The Districts last year at LouFest. 

The Districts are comin’ in hot this evening at Off Broadway. The quartet from Lititz, PA was signed to Fat Possum Records before any of its members could legally drink a beer to celebrate. Since then, the Districts’ precipitous rise on the heels of their 2014 self-titled EP release has been something to behold. On this, the band’s third (fourth?) trip to St. Louis in the past twelve months, they come bearing gifts in the form of a promising full-length debut called A Flourish and a Spoil.

It was a joy watching these guys heat up an already sweltering September day at LouFest in 2014 with their familiar but fantastical rock and roll. I can’t wait to see what they’ll do indoors as a headliner.

If many of us fell for the Districts at LouFest, then an equal number of St. Louisans got it bad for Search Parties at An Under Cover Weekend 8 when they performed as Hall & Oates. SP supports the Districts tonight as the band comes down from last weekend’s high at The Firebird, where they helped storied venue celebrate its 6th anniversary. Polished but not pretentious, SP’s Elliott Pearson told IWTAS he’s grateful for the new fans picked up thanks to AUCW, though Search Parties has been playing out around town since the summer of 2013.

Search Parties plays Off Broadway tonight in support of the Districts. 

As far as this year, the rapidly ascending indie pop/rock act has a few songs they’re looking to take into the studio. “[We’re] not sure if they’ll be singles or part of a larger project yet. We’ve got a couple of festival gigs in the works, as well as trying to tour other cities as much as possible. We don’t know how long we’re going to be able to do this, so we’re going to try and do as much as we can with this band in 2015,” writes Pearson to IWTAS, acknowledging the fragility of young band lineups.

From where is Search Parties drawing inspiration right now? Locally, it’s The Feed (“Outsider is incredible.”) and Brother Lee and the Leather Jackals (“Their South City Blues EP is a definite headbanger.”). Otherwise, Pearson can’t turn off Father John Misty’s newest and most highly lauded, I Love You, Honeybear.

Tickets are still available for the evening but we have it on good authority that quite a few have sold, so arrive on time to pay your cover and claim your favorite spot at Off Broadway. More show info here.