Spirit Vine is on the verge of what would be “revival of the revival” to the blues psychedelic scene with their image and sound. Opening on a community bill with friends Ragsy and The Monthlies, Spirit Vine blew friends and fans away with what to them was considered an “acoustic set,” playing without bass player Aaron James, also of Rocking Horse People.

The setting at The Unknown Theater was warm and artsy. The bands played on a high rise of stairs, part of the current set at The Unknown, where you can see an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Macbeth called The Sticking Place. The set involves 7,000 gallons of water held in a reservoir that was slowly leaking after the production prior to the bands performance. The lighting was set with red tones that glistened off of lead singer Jacquelinne Cingolani’s shiny gold and Indian (okay, Native American) feathers. While friend Cameron Murray on tambourine was sparkling as well with silver tones. Cingolani’s rich lyrics and vocals on songs like “Golden” and “Lazy Son” transported everyone to another world. The crowd was tapping their feet in puddles to drummer Kelly Winniger’s solid beats. Meanwhile, guitarists Aaron Bustos and Gabe Pacheco’s styles compliment each other well, setting a droney tone of reverb that tied in with the mood of the red lighting and the bright shining ladies. With or with out the peyote, Spirit Vine is definitely a sound of summer.

—Rebecca Balin