Hanging with Some Possums on a Rainy Saturday Night

Phil and I have been surprisingly busy the past few weeks with hikes, Meetups, Thanksgiving celebrations, and day trips. Our most recent outing was to Avilés, which is a half-hour bus ride west of Gijón, to see live music! We saw a couple of outdoor concerts this summer during Gijón’s summer activities and while these were fun they didn’t quite scratch my itch for live music, as everyone was seated and at least two meters apart. I like to be able to dance at a concert should I be moved to do so.

The concert in Avilés was a for real concert, in the dark with everyone standing, and they sold beer! Everyone still had to wear masks in the venue except when sipping their aforementioned beers but other than that, it felt normal. It was excellent. Some Meetup friends of ours had mentioned that there had been several recent concerts in Avilés and sent me a link for the venue and the band, Theo Lawrence and the Possums. Theo Lawrence, a young French-Canadian musician, now based out of Bordeaux, France with his band, The Possums, has a sound that blends blues and country, often sounding very much like old-school country of the 50’s and 60’s.

We arrived just a bit early and stopped in the small bar across the street from the venue, Factoria Sound, which is inside of the Avilés cultural center. As we were going in, Theo Lawrence and some band mates were exiting the bar and we ran into some of our Meetup friends inside! It was a great start to the night.

We headed across the street to the concert at 9pm and snagged a spot near the front left of the stage and settled in. The band played a couple of slow, crooning, ballads which I liked but mostly the music was upbeat which I liked even more. I shook my hips and just got right on down to the music. It was so fun! He even played a couple of George Jones covers.

After the show, a group of us ended up talking with the drummer and their driver/maracas player for a bit. They were very nice guys and seemed so genuinely stoked to be touring and playing and just doing what they love. We also got a chance to talk with Theo and the rest of the band before leaving. We were surprised to discover he lived in Bordeaux as we assumed he was from the U.S. given his English singing and speaking accent. He informed us that he was French-Canadian and half-French but had settled in Bordeaux.

We ended the night at a rock & roll bar with our friends before heading back to Gijón. The night was such a blast. I am really looking forward to seeing more shows!