Memphians bundled up for a very frigid night to check out the return of super group and cover band the Pirates. The band consists of Snowglobe’s Tim Regan and Brandon Robertson, the Coach and Four’s Luke White, and Paul Taylor of Amy & the Tramps. After fairly regular appearances in the city’s most popular dives in 2005, the Pirates went on hiatus when Regan moved to Knoxville.
Although his Snowglobe bandmates released their third album, Oxytocin, without him, Regan has stayed busy. He formed his own band, Antenna Shoes, recorded an album (Generous Gambler is set for release in January), went on tour to play guitar, organ, and banjo with Oh No! Oh My!, contributed to the latest Sparklehorse album, Dreamt for Light Years in the Belly of a Mountain, and played shows with everyone from Gnarls Barkley to the Invisible Giant to the Flaming Lips.
Longtime Snowglobe fans will be happy to know he’s rejoined the band and that they’ve already begun recording a new album due for a fall release. While he’s kept extremely busy playing all over the country this year, Regan’s demeanor fronting the Pirates clearly showed that he was happy to be back in the Bluff City. And while music may take him away for much of the year to come, there’s no doubt in his mind that Memphis is still him. “I never really leave Memphis, I don’t think anyone does. Welcome to the vortex,” he said. While many may think cover bands are a poor substitution for the real thing, the crowd at the Hi-Tone Cafe seemed to love every minute of the Pirates’ covers-tastic set. STORY AND PHOTOS BY RACHEL HURLEY. scenestars.net
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