Karen Ponzio Photos
Scruffy Pearls
“You know, 11/11 is supposed to be some kind of magical number,” said Laini Marenick from behind her keyboard on the stage at Cafe Nine last night. “I feel like playing here on this date is a cosmic event.”
It was definitely a manic event — Manic Monday to be precise — and Marenick’s New Haven-based band Laini and The Wildfire were the first on a two-act bill that also included the New York-based Scruffy Pearls. Whether it was the moon or the stars or just plain old connection, both bands grabbed the audience’s attention from the very start.
With Laini Marenick on keyboards and vocals, Mark Marenick on bass and vocals, and Rob Suraco on drums, the trio of Laini and The Wildfire brought its lyrically rich pop rock to the room and received an immediate warm response — from the first soulful bars of “Wandering,” the title song of the group’s 2017 album. The Wildfire played many other selections from the album throughout its nine-song set, including the rollicking “Thunder,” which Laini said was about a “realization” like one of those “cosmic events,” and “Where the Wind Blows,” which she said was about days like this Monday, where some people just want to “leave their job” and take a day to themselves.
Laini Marenick
Marenick also spoke candidly about leaving her job a couple of years ago to pursue music full time. “It’s been amazing,” she said, “and a struggle.”
“Writing songs has been cathartic,” she added as she introduced one of the band’s “darker” songs, “Bricks in the Water,” in which she sang, “In my hands I hold the past and my mistakes / feel like bricks in the water.”
Marenick also had her moment solo for the tender and touching “Sunday,” which she said was “a song about love, the person that makes you feel like pancakes on a Sunday morning.”
The band also performed its latest single, “DeLorean,” as well as a cover of the classic “Ooh La La” by Faces that got the crowd singing along. But the band also got the crowd singing along to the final song of the set, its own “All The Love in the World.” Laini asked for help with the song’s hey hey heys, telling them “that was good for a Monday, but let’s hear a Saturday. Scream like it’s a Saturday.” The audience obliged, garnering a “wow” from Laini, though it appeared the crowd had been pretty wowed by this band already.
The second act, Scruffy Pearls, came to the stage six members strong with Carly Brook on vocals, R.J. Gatsby on keyboards, guitar and harmonica, Billy Pearson on guitar, Renee Hikari on drums, Parker McAllister on bass and fiddle, and Adam Abresch on trumpet. “Love Me Harder” began with Brook’s powerful voice accentuated only by Gatsby’s guitar and then became a full-on hard and bluesy band piece that would have felt just as home on a hot and wild summertime stage as it did on this cool November night. The band dipped into a more soulful groove reminiscent of the best of the ‘70s for “Good Things,” which Brook said was about “how if you believe in good things coming, they will come to you. You gotta believe it.”
The band even had a song named after Forrest Gump “inspired by his love for Jenny,” said Brook. “We’re suckers for a love story up here.”
The band members’ love for one another and their music shone through as they dug deeper for a slower groove accentuated by a big and juicy bassline. They also added a cover of “Ophelia” by The Band. Gatsby asked the audience of anyone was a fan of The Band and someone yelled “I am now.”
“No, THE Band, not this band,” Gatsby said. That got laughs from the whole room.
This day was also the day Scruffy Pearls released a new single called “Sit Back,” which they performed and encouraged the crowd to look up online everywhere. “It’s like giving birth,” Brook said with a laugh. The band also had its own singalong for the final number, “Workin’.” After it was all over, the applause was loud and the woos were plenty. Many in the audience made their way up to thank and talk to the bands. Musical connections can be cosmic as well.