Tom Phillips Trio

Tickets: $7

Talent aplenty, albeit oft-left rotting by the wayside, the Phillips brothers [Tom and Brian] have worked together here & there creating truly standout musical compositions blending genre boundaries for long enough in the Omaha area to be considered one of the city’s best kept secrets. These musical gems, highlighted by both intense musical chops and a sensible song-writing framework, have come out of two distinct groups, the latest being multi-instrumentalist Tom’s solo recording efforts that have produced an album release since their former band (Suspicious 5th) fizzled into deep obscurity almost a decade ago. Fortunately for the brothers, the third member of their longtime musical collaborations is Suspicious 5th mate and local band busy-man Scott Evans, who not only holds down the rhythm of the rare live trio’s shows on drums, but manages to bring together whatever remains of the almost snuffed embers that previously had been stoked heating up some unsuspecting rooms more than a couple of times.
Don’t fool yourself into thinking the trio’s “whats the rush” approach doesn’t pack a noteworthy punch of creative inspiration, but the person who dares to witness the infrequent musical moment the trio puts together should prepare to walk away scratching their head at the mystery of such a bonafide bond producing what are only sketches of what potential continues to lay untapped and will never be shared with the city’s masses.