Lucky–the latest brainchild of musicians Andrew St. James and Peter Kegler–to play at the Independent on January 11
The Lucky Horseshoe is not a glamorous place.
A dive located in Bernal Heights—one of San Francisco’s less glitzier neighborhoods—the bar is a nondescript joint where locals can stop by for a few beers and a couple rounds of pool. The lighting is nice and dim, the drinks are reasonably priced, and the crowds are manageable. There is a small stage where you might hear a cover band playing David Bowie tunes or an old-timer riffing out the blues.
And on any given night, you might find Andrew St. James and Peter Kegler ponied up to the bar, nursing a beer and having a chat. The unassuming, yeoman nature of the Lucky Horseshoe makes for an ideal locale for the two veteran San Francisco musicians, which is why it’s no surprise that they opted to name their latest project—Lucky—after the venerable institution.
Both have put in plenty of hours grinding it out as a working musician. While St. James still hasn’t reached 30 years of age, he’s been plying the trade nearly half his life, starting off as a teenage wunderkind recording under his own name while also performing in outfits like Juan Wayne, Fast Times and the French Cassettes. Similarly, Kegler has a lengthy resume of artistic ventures, playing with bands such as Half Stack, Babewatch and Share.
As a result, the pair have a unique view into the itinerant nature that’s inherent with being a working musician—the joy of playing raucous late-night gigs with your best friends in strange cities and the subsequent hangovers and uncertainties of the day after. That restlessness and wayfaring energy is captured gloriously in Lucky’s first collection of songs—a seven-song album that is due to be released in early 2025.
“When Andrew and I became buddies and started working on this project, we were both going through some transitional times, which is kind of natural for what we do,” said Kegler. “It was almost like a molting phase—this shedding of layers. There were a lot of changes happening to both of us, and I think that’s clearly reflected in the music.
On January 11, Lucky will play those tunes of modern day drifters at the Independent as part of a support gig for the French Cassettes (St. James will be playing double duty that night.)
While both are stalwarts of the local music scene, Kegler and St. James didn’t actually become acquainted with each other until the tail end of 2022. St. James, who has been running a regular music booking residency for years under his Fast Times moniker, enlisted Half Stack for a gig at the Rickshaw Stop. He and Kegler hit it off while at the show and after a few drinks, committed to playing with one another in the future.
“Andrew can probably attest to this as well, but I’ve had that same conversation a million times before with other musicians,” said Kegler. “Like, ‘oh dude, I love your band, we should make music together,’ but then nothing ever happens. But this was the real thing—I think that’s a testament to how aligned we are on our approach to music.”
Prior to committing in earnest to collaborating together, the two had plenty of written material already in the works, which they brought collectively to the partnership. And despite existing in some forms before the band, the songs on Lucky’s debut album feel remarkably cohesive and natural—a testament to St. James and Kegler’s creative chemistry.
While both are Bay Area natives—St. James grew up in San Francisco and Kegler is from Orinda—there is a decidedly bucolic feel to the Lucky songs. St. James has an inherent twang that imbues his songs with a countryish vibe—more Bakersfield bard than Haight street hippie—and Kegler’s plainspoken approach has a similarly high-desert plains appeal.
Their album kicks off with Kegler taking the lead on “Falling Through,” a whirling, lilting jaunt about underachievement and disappointment that sounds like Merle Haggard injected with a high voltage shot of the Pixies. It sets the tone for a collection of songs that map out the highs and lows of relationships, the tenuous nature of being a creative person and the general volatility of post-pandemic life.
“Traveler” is a gorgeous, urgent Americana tune, with St. James extolling the virtues of wide-eyed wonder—a paean to the joy and discovery of not knowing what the next day will bring. Similarly, “Friends” is a gloriously raucous ode to hellcat living—a collection of blurry barroom memories and booze-soaked backstage reveries, with St. James highlighting the song by stating the obvious—“Believe it or not/I don’t think we’re too well/as far as minds go.”
“The lyrics in ‘Friends,’ are mostly me just writing things that I literally witnessed,” said St. James. “There is a lot of hassle in this kind of lifestyle, but there is also so much to celebrate. That song is about remembering what this is all about and that’s the people. Like, it's all about the people you do this with, and the people do you this for. This is a people job, and I love that.”
But the album isn’t simply an unflinching exultation to excess—far from it. Following the one-two roar of “Traveler” and “Friends,” is Kegler’s austere “Lines,” a beautiful ballad that captures the headaches and heartbreak that inevitably comes with a nomadic life—a mournful elegy about lost time and missed opportunities. In a related vein is “Colder,” a lamentation about dishonesty, shame and taking things for granted, made all the more sorrowful by St. James’ cracked delivery. It recalls the haunted majesty of Magnolia Electric Company’s Jason Molina (a noted inspiration for the album.)
The songs are rife with references to motion—whether it's barreling down highways, navigating city streets or feeling forlorn on the back of a bus. Those extracts are literal—so much of a musician’s life is in transit—as well as figurative—apt metaphors and analogies to relate a general feeling of disquiet.
“This is kind of the reality of our life,” said St. James. “Peter has had a lot of projects he’s worked on; I’ve had a ton of projects. You’re always finishing one thing and starting another thing. There is always an end and then a beginning—a changing of circumstance or focus. I’m sure, subconsciously, that bleeds into how we both write our songs.”
With that in mind, St. James and Kegler both seem realistically grounded but cautiously optimistic about the future of Lucky. They’re exploring label options for the release of their album (which is still untitled) and are committed to playing more shows in the future. They’re discussing the possibility of releasing a single following their gig at the Independent while also exploring other options to promote the project.
Until then, the duo will continue to catalog and collect the moments that make their music so worthwhile—those twilit times in an empty bar or the epiphanic moments when the sun shines through on a California coastal highway.
“We started this thing off just writing songs together and they were kind of an amalgamation of our styles,” said Kegler. “We didn’t have a lot of conversations about the future of the band at first, but I think we both believe in this project. This is a real band—this is a real thing. And we’re looking forward to seeing what happens next.”
Show Details:
Lucky with French Cassettes and Tino Drima
Where: The Independent
When: 9 p.m., Saturday, January 11
Tickets: $20 plus fees, available here.