Bull Street Garage - Bull Street Garage

​Bull Street Garage

Bull Street Garage
​self-released; 2022

3.8 out of 5

By Jamie Funk

In 2001 I was in Champaign, Illinois going to school. It was a great time to be on a campus in college. People weren’t staring at their phones while walking, differences were handled in person and live music was flourishing. My friends would go out and listen to bands at the Canopy Club. They had a lot of jam bands at the time. A lot of them sounded similar but it didn’t matter. Lots of people dancing, talking, smoking pot and again no smart phone to steal everyone's attention.

Bull Street Garage reminded me of one of those bands I would have seen. They have a very familiar energy that’s upbeat, loose, fun and can easily put you in a good mood. The band formed in 2020 and is composed of Joe DiGregorio (guitar/vocals), Doug Neubauer (guitar/vocals), Parker Lubin (bass/vocals) and Josh Blibaum (drums/vocals). They got to work and released an eight-song self-titled album Bull Street Garage.

“Keeper” is the opener and the band lays down a familiar sounding jam band type of groove that flirts with a reggae pattern. The song is warm with notable guitar work as well as memorable vocal melodies. There’s a catchy chorus and it was a solid opener.

The energy increases with “Ice Cream Man.” The band proves they can do more than just jam and can write a song with mass appeal. That being said, there are a number of guitar solos which were impressive.

The slightly more Americana infused “Twice” also contains elements of blues. It works for their sound. There’s some great lyrics on this song as well. “So I caught up to my brother on the street. / I could tell by his eyes he'd been facing defeat. / He looked at me and said aren't you a sight for sore eyes / And then he pulled out his 9 / And he said to me….”

“Drop Bear” is a super chill song. The drumming was great. This is a song I could imagine being played on a beach. It’s very atmospheric and I could imagine drifting off to sleep with this song in the background. There are some epic guitars solos in the spirit of Pink Floyd.

The band embraces a trope with “Steel Shovel.” It’s the biker infused classic rock vibe that introduces some danger. The vocal inflection as well as the lyrics indicate this. The vocalist sings “The waking up is evil, when you dream about all day / A pot of gold to save your soul and wash these blues away.” “In a Bind” is a smooth and clean ride while the closer “Witch” is a fast moving song that ends the EP with impressive technical skills.

​The album was nostalgic for me and I hope that bands like this continue to surface.

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