I caught Patrice Pike and her band in a show at Davey’s Uptown the other night. I wasn’t familiar with her or the Rock Star: Supernova TV show where she was a contestant, but a friend of a friend said this should be a good show and tickets were only $10, so I decided to go.

It was a really tight, slick, professional act. Instead of an opening act, the band members accumulated on stage, doing their own material. As Patrice Pike explained, the individual band members are all well known as artists in their own regard around Austin, and she was happy to give them a chance to showcase themselves, besides the fact she was thrilled they had agreed to tour with her. I do think they tried too hard not to upstage her in their choice of material. The songs they played before Patrice Pike joined them were so sleepy that I was just about ready to write the band off then and there.

There was no denying what great players they all were, though, especially when the main part of the show started. Patrice Pike is an accomplished songwriter and singer, and more to the point, the woman has star power. When she is on stage, you can’t take your eyes off her, even with as massively talented a band as this one. The material covered everything from rock anthems to funk jams, with impeccable arrangements and inspired playing. I do think her songs tend to be a little too complicated to be huge hits, and the show dragged on a little too long (though that may have been at the request of the venue, trying to sell liquor as long as possible).

I bought the Unraveling CD, but I’ve only had time to listen to it once so far. I thought the songs were good, but overall it was pretty flat compared to the live act—possibly a hurried production to capitalize on Patrice Pike’s name recognition while she still has that advantage. Nothing wrong with that; in fact, I get the feeling that this tour is part of a pitch to get a major label deal for Patrice Pike. She’s ready. If you get a chance to check out her show, I highly recommend it.