Rock Springs Eternal at Harlow's Pub

On a Friday night I decided to try two new things at once; a pub that I had never been to and a band that I'd never heard of.

Thankfully, neither disappointed. The music was played by Rockspring, which isn't normally my type of band. For one thing, they have a fiddle player, and in place of guitars, they have an upright bass and a mandolin. If I was pressed, before I saw Rockspring, I probably would have told you that a mandolin was a type of small orange or something.

Despite not listening to this type of music, I cannot deny that Rockspring was cooking at Harlow's Pub in Peterborough. The sound was amazing, fast paced, and you could even dance to it. I even liked it enough to pick up one of their free live CDs.

Senior Thomas Atwood also attended the show. "I liked how they had a bluegrass feel," said Atwood, who has been to several other Harlow's shows, including the Reggae Fest.

Something that really sold me on this band were their covers. Of course, they did a lot more original stuff than covers, but never having heard of them before, much less heard them, the first thing that made me perk up my ears and have a really good listen was their version of Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff."

Bob Marley's "I Shot the Sheriff" on violin, upright bass and mandolin, that's right, you heard me correctly. It was like one of those old recipes of your mother's that includes two ingredients that shouldn't work together, and yet somehow, they just do.

After that, I started listening a bit more closely. Some of their original songs had me singing along to the chorus by the end. Remember, I've never heard any of these before, so that's pretty good.

So, while I have nothing but good things to say about the band, the venue left a little something to be desired. Harlow's is a very small place. It's good that they are promoting relatively unknown bands, because I don't see how they would accommodate anyone with a larger following. The space makes for tight maneuvering, and the volume isn't conducive to quiet conversation. If you want to make yourself heard, you had best be prepared to shout in someone's ear.

"It can kind of be a struggle to push your way through the people," said Atwood. "It's not really meant to be a high energy place, it's more of a cozy feel."

One of the good things about Harlow's is the prices, which are very reasonable. A couple of dollars will pay for your cover, and it's close enough to campus that it's a feasible place to go and unwind at the end of the week. Not to mention the fact that venues for live music aren't exactly a dime a dozen in the area. Just for that it's worth a closer look.

I can't say much for the food. The group I was in ordered a plate of nachos. Our plate was large, with a lot of chips, which was a plus. Not so much the teeny-tiny tubs of salsa and sour cream, or the fact that the entire top layer of chips was burnt black. Not something that induced me to try anything else, although apparently their pasta and quesadillas are both decent, according to Atwood.

Despite the food and crush, the atmosphere at Harlow's is great. There is a small dance floor in front of the stage, and they encourage dancing. Both the floor and the stage are small, so it's more of an intimate experience. "It's cool that people can stand out in front of the band," said Atwood. One of the waitresses was one of the first people up there shaking her groove thang, and the mood was fun and light. The band and the pub were a good fit, all things considered.