SXSW: The Felice Brothers Channel Borat

They call themselves "a bunch of ramshackle bastards." They sing of bewitching 56 year-old cougars, lullabies about armed robbery (“Frankie’s Robbery”), and doing it doggy-style (“The Ballard Of Lou The Welterweight.”) Yes, I am talking of none other than the Felice Brothers, who after two days of non-stop music and facing exhaustion still brought me to my feet during their 1AM set at Pangaea. With roots in New York's Catskill Mountains, comparisons for the Felice Brothers to Bob Dylan and the Band are obvious and many, but the band still manages to entertain with some 21st century humor, more specifically a la Borat. Drummer Simone Felice seems to still be obsessed with the movie that made Sasha Baron Cohen a gagillionaire, interspersing the set with Borat speak…you know the one that goes, ”My mother she…sexy time.” A little old, but what’s not old is the Felice Brothers’ sound. While nostalgic with washboards and harmonicas, the band manage to update roots rock with freestyle rap.There's "Whiskey In My Whiskey" where the band yelps and feeds of each other building an intimacy that takes you to a small rundown bar deep in the middle of nowhere. Our favorite of the evening was the shout out to “Colleen, the Cincinnati queen. Who put the sin back to Cincinnati” or otherwise known as the brand spanking new tune ”White Limousine.” The band explained during their late night set of the old woman that told each and everyone of the members in a bathroom stall that she loved them. Whether its fact or fiction, the Felice Brothers are a great live show that entertains. Not into music? Go for the girls in short dresses in the audience.