According to my math, and based on how long it took me to park, everyone who packed into Boulder Coffee Friday night to see Flower City ex-pat Tony Brown and The Believers with Swati drove two cars. Swati --- a lone woman and her guitar--- rumbled with a casual intensity, punctuating her acoustic guitar with a little electric trip. Brown towered over the stage with a voice that was a little more silvery than it is on record. The band grooved on its mid-tempo asphalt Americana and got a little gritty with Tom Waits' "Way Down In The Hole."

Me and the Jive Mama wingman hit the Dinosaur next for young Boston soul-singing sensation Jesse Dee. Dee wails, Dee croons, Dee delights. It was de-lovely, with his voice sounding as disheveled and heartbroken as his threads. The dance floor swirled as the band positively pumped with maximum roadhouse appeal.

Even when The Buddhahood and friends stopped it was as if they were still playing. Water Street Music Hall was so hot it could have been Steam Street Music Hall. Goddamn, I just love those horns.

You needed a shoehorn to get into The Bug Jar for the Beat 4 Boards extravaganza. I rolled up as Ric Rude was rapping and raving righteously. Rude and other artists of this scene have the lyrical insight, unity, and quality to really make something happen here.