To say that Lucero has been gaining momentum over the last three-four years is a gross understatement. They’re the perfect example of a band being rewarded for their hard work and dedication to rock music. Over 10 years, six full-lengths and thousands of shows into their career, Lucero are pretty much flirting with “the next level.” They have been selling out larger venues, gaining rabid fans and now they’re putting the final touches on their first album with their new label, Universal Music Group. Not bad for some drunk punks out of Memphis.

Getting back to their rabid fans… Anyone who has checked out this band live over the last few years may have noticed that Lucero’s fans cannot be pigeonholed. They are punks, hipsters, rednecks, hippies, jocks, moms, dads, dweebs, stoners and whatever other stereotypes you can come up with. Oh yeah, and DRUNKS. Drunks are at most rock shows, but Lucero shows are particularly, well, drunk.

April 9th at the Off Broadway in St. Louis was no exception. Titus Andronicus opened the show and they were a great primer. Energetic as hell, noticeably drunk, and ready to rock the room, which they did…very well. They played a short enough set to have you wanting more, but just long enough to remember why you were there in the first place: Lucero. The Lucero fans were ready. To give you an idea as to how “ready” they/we were, the venue ran out of Pabst tall boys before 10:00 p.m.

And getting back to those Lucero fans again, raise your hand if you’ve seen a fight at a Lucero show. ::several hands raise:: Yeah, well, St. Louis was no exception. Ten minutes before Lucero hit the stage, three girls got into it pretty good directly in front of me. Hair was pulled, beer was spilled and expletives were yelled. It was broken up pretty quickly, but for whatever reason, they weren’t kicked out.

Lucero eventually hit the stage and came out guns blazing. Apparently the girls that fought earlier were so amped they decided to fight again. About three songs in, these girls went at and it was nasty. The band stopped playing and staff finally broke them up and kicked the girls out (minus a few clumps of hair and two pairs of shoes).

The fights were a serious distraction but not necessarily in an awful way. The band handled the whole incident gracefully and proceeded to rock the hell out of the room for damn near two hours. They mentioned that they had spent the last couple weeks recording at the legendary Ardent Studios in Memphis and it was obvious they were in tip-top shape. This Lucero was, musically, the best Lucero I’ve seen live. They had a piano/accordion/harmonica player in tow that added a great dynamic to the band’s live show, a dynamic that I love hearing on their albums and hope they continue to incorporate to their live show from here on out.

Lucero has clearly hit their stride and they’re showing no signs of letting up. If you haven’t seen them, there’s no better time to hop on board. Just remember to bring a chest protector and a hockey mask.