Caught A Ghost is so diverse, it's as if there are four or five bands playing at once. The group's ability to perform a loud, foot-stomping number followed by a slow ballad-like song, Caught a Ghost has talent and deserves a listen.
30 minutes after its set performance time on Tuesday night, the band still hadn’t arrived. But Caught A Ghost is an indie-funk band from L.A., so I assumed they were way too cool to show up at exactly 8:00 p.m. When they did arrive, however, let’s just say that the term “fashionably late” was not only an understatement, but completely acceptable. Lead singer Jesse Nolan strolled into The Rhythm Room wearing the most sophisticated suit and tie, rather than the expected flannel shirt and cut-off jeans.
Caught A Ghost opened with a rock-'n'-roll-esque song, then quickly jumped to an upbeat feel-good number. Lead singer Nolan kept a floor drum next to him to bang on during the heavy-bass songs and played his guitar when the band switched to blues. A few times he even played all three.
Talk about talent.
The band also featured a female singer, keyboardist and a drummer. But what really made the crowd move was the saxophone and trumpet players. Without them, the band would have lost 100 percent of that funky sound everyone seemed to love.
Nolan took a breather after their second song to show some love to the crowd.
“This is actually my first time in Phoenix," Nolan said. "Yeah, you have a delicious city. I went to Zeppe’s. Food was nice and home-cooked. Much like our music.”
The band got its name from the term, “catching the holy spirit,” which is what old blues musicians would say after they had a dynamic performance. The band couldn’t have picked a better name. For being a more modern group out of California, Caught A Ghost had the soul-sounds of the deep south; they could be easily mistaken for New Orleans natives.
I recognized their sixth song, “No Sugar in My Coffee,” from the show "Boardwalk Empire." The band has also been featured on "Vampire Diaries" and "Suits."
“It feels good playing on this stage,” Nolan said. “I like playing on a stage that has a lot of history.”
With that, the band signed off with a slower lyrical song called “Time To Go.” It was a perfect ending to a well-rounded performance, with one of the most diverse sounds to ever come from one band.
Reach this reporter at knphill3@asu.edu or follow her on Twitter @KayLa_Soul
