The world is full of experiences that must be seen in the flesh where no picture, film or story can measure up to. The Sistine Chapel, the Grand Canyon, the Great Wall of China and while we're at it, let's add seeing J Roddy Walston and the Business to that list. OK, I know what you're thinking; "Here's some writer looking to over praise some unworthy indie band". Just because they may be indie doesn't mean they are undeserving of the praise I am about to bestow. The scruffy yet jubilant foursome have a brand new self-titled record in stores and while it's loud enough to make the needle on your record player skip, it's the hair swirling live experience that burns into your brain. The live show is downright riveting and if you believe in the sheer power of the live experience, then put J Roddy on your bucket list; it's akin to an intimate encounter you can't wipe from your mind. The sweat, closeness, smells, surprises and ultimately the release are the same except one takes place with your clothes on. As I recently watched J Roddy and the Business at the Double Door in Chicago, the scent, sweat and feeling of frenzied physicality were all on hand. In a rare feat, J Roddy and the Business executed all of this being an opening act for not just one but two other acts. The venue had room to move when they opened with their Jimmy Miller Stones like "Don't Break the Needle", but by the final wailing notes 45-minutes later, the crowd was drenched in a spiritual and sexual transformation where their eyes bulged, they pulled themselves off the ground, headed for the bar to quench their thirst and to the smoking areas to ponder the musical climax that just occurred.

Opening with "Don't Break the Needle", Walston banged his piano keys with more than precision but attacked them like a possessed madman. It's akin to being hit by a bus on a city street when not paying attention. Those in attendance to see the evening's co-headliners were suddenly absorbed. By the time the band was serenading the crowd with their splendid "ahh-ahh-ahh" chorus of "Full Growing Man" everyone had their eyes on the stage making sure they were really hearing and seeing what was in front of them. When I heard the record this past July, I asked the band's publicist about who the band hired to fill in backing vocals; I was informed it was the band themselves. There was a part of me that didn't believe it. Seeing them in concert, their voices find a way to congeal into a harmonious band of brothers that sound better than any backing singers on any major concert tour. Walston, while a luminary on the keys, doesn't limit himself to that instrument alone. On "Don't Get Old" Walston picked up an electric guitar as well adding an extra component of strength to their already substantial sound. None of this would be worth a damn if the songs didn't make an impact from within. Like a trapped ghost, the ten songs in their set list screamed to be not just heard but understood. When talking to Walston earlier in the evening I asked him if I had looked too closely at some of the songs for some religious undercurrents. He merely smiled at me and said "I'm sure it's there but I hope to not make any of my songs that definitive, I want different people to take different things from them." When I watched Walston sing "Brave Man's Death" an hour later, I couldn't help but feel like he was trying to say something to me about family, religion, mortality and life. There was heartache, humor and defiance all in the same song driven by a key lyric "Life was worth the pain". I can only hint at what the meaning behind the song is, but whether I can dissect it or not isn't the point. What I know is that Walston and the Business delivered a tale of life I'll return to time and time again and possibly uncover something new each time I listen to it.

"I Don't Wanna Hear It" spotlights the rhythm section of left handed drummer Steve Colmus and bassist Logan Davis. "Pigs & Pearls" and "Use Your Language" flexed the band's gospel blues and country influences. Owing a page to Gram Parsons, each of these songs features some wicked slide guitar work by Billy C. Gordon that was downright sublime. Walston sat at the piano, but for the chorus he gripped the microphone with both hands punctuating the heightened vocals almost as if he was wrangling with a spirit. Watching "Used To Did" you see the promise of the piano in front of you. It's not here simply to sit in the corner of a saloon or sit untouched within a house, but it exists so some individuals like J Roddy can use it as an extra limb trying to convey something from inside. Above all else, you realize this is not a chore for any of them and in the live performance arena, this is half the battle. They exude pure love for the craft of their art and carry the cross of those who came before. J Roddy Walston and the Business aren't merely imitators of the past, but ascend and bow to the lineage put forth by acts that descended from Sun, America Sound and Chess Studios. They do more than embody the spirit of the past; they make it live and relevant in the now.

Before their Chicago stop, I had been listening to the record solidly for a few months, had heard the stories, seen YouTube clips, but the honest to God truth is nothing could have prepped me for what I witnessed over a vigorous 45-minute set that could turn a skeptic into a believer. Any time an act is characterized and has labels of rock n' roll greats placed on them, it's first to give the reader the essence of their sound and secondly, it's usually because there's something in their genealogy that warrants that comparison. J Roddy Walston has been compared to many of the heavy weights from the past, (notably Jerry Lee Lewis) but the truth is they're just a damn fine rock n' roll band that stand on their own. Their southern friend (by way of Washington DC) rock n' roll essence is downright revitalizing. They were the first of three bands, but by the time their last night sailed off into the night, everyone there to see J Roddy Walston and the Business knew exactly who they are. It was the first sticky and sweet meeting between many of those in attendance and the band. While they performed a mere ten songs, their loud and raucous execution impacted anyone there to witness it. J Roddy Walston and the Business delicately balances the physical pleasures of Earth with the spiritual powers above with one toe dipped into the pools of hell for good measure.