XOXO

Seriously, Richmond?

I started seeing the closings by early afternoon.

Despite it being clear that rain was the order of the day, they were dropping left and right - restaurants, shows, public school systems.

All I knew was that there was no way I was staying in all evening.

So I held my breath, hoping that the show at Balliceaux would go on as scheduled.

They were promising a sunny, California sound with a wall of fuzzy guitar from an NYC band, so I was being called by name.

I found another poor soul suffering from cabin fever and we walked in, hoping for lo-fi goodness.

There was man-about-town Prabir, ensconced at the bar and clearly also looking for a fuzzy pop fix.

"So we're not actually from Brooklyn," a girl was saying from the stage. "We're from Manhattan. I know. We wish we were from Brooklyn."

The band was (wait for it) Chloe Sunshine, a quartet who'd played a show in Charlottesville last night.

The snow had necessitated them pulling off I-64 and taking shelter in a Best Western.

Before starting, the lead singer, observed, "This room is gorgeous. You guys are gorgeous."

She wasn't far off; the small crowd of maybe 20-ish (18 of whom were male, bearded and with glasses) were fairly easy on the eyes.

And absolutely rapt.

From the opening note, this roomful of guys may as well have been hypnotized, so entranced they were by the four girls on the stage.

One guitarist had long, pink hair, a polka-dot halter top, black shorts and tights. Tres cool.

The other guitarist wore a gray tunic, gunmetal-colored leggings and an air of conviction that served her well.

The lead singer looked especially young, wearing a flowered dress with a dip in the back, long hair she incessantly pushed behind her ears and a deer-in-headlights look.

Only the drummer, hidden in the back, took refuge in pants and a knit cap.

"I'm Kendall," the singer said. "I'm pretty bad at talking onstage."

The beauty of youth is stating the obvious.

"Do you know any jokes?" a girl in the audience called out.

Turns out she'd recently learned one, although her delivery was still a work in progress.

"How do you get a musician off your porch? she asked rhetorically. "Pay him for the pizza."

The joke was older than she was.

That said, the band's lo-fi sunny pop was a delightful antidote for this windy, cold, damp day and night and I was thrilled that they were in Richmond tonight.

Incredibly earnest-sounding, Kendall told us, "If you take any pictures, will you please send them to us at chloesunshineXOXO.com?"

Hugs and kisses all around from this band.

They got everyone's attention by covering "Will You Love Me Tomorrow," the classic Carole King nugget that might as well be part of the popular American songbook by now.

"Yea, nobody's ever covered that before," an audience member pointed out.

There's no reason to be unkind when you have an out-of-town band playing for you on a night when most of the city is closed down, kids.

"We have our new CD, "Indian Summer" over at that table if you want to buy it," she said. "We also have t-shirts we spray-painted."

This was getting cuter by the minute.

"This song is called "About You," said Kendall and was notable for the two guitarists singing along quietly while Kendall wailed.

When technical difficulties necessitated a male friend jumping onstage to correct them, the audience was immediately faced with a wide shot of his underwear coming out of his pants.

The pink-haired guitarist was quick enough to observe the situation and correct it, moving in front of his butt to block our view of his boxers.

Next they covered the Cure's "Love Song" and covered it well. There were even a little keyboard part by the lead singer.

The arrangement gave plenty of attention to the guitar parts and as I looked around, I saw every male in the room staring raptly at the girls.

I have no doubt that for a certain generation of guys, seeing an all-girl band cover the Cure is about as good as it gets on a cold March night after winter storm Saturn.

Taking a long pull on a bottle, Kendall said, "I'm drinking hard ginger beer. I've never had it before. I didn't even know it existed."

Fortunately, she had known Carole King and the Cure existed.

The band's sound was loud, melodic and catchy as all get out, a real treat on a night when we were lucky anything was happening.

Before their last song, the pink-haired guitarist had something to get off her chest, saying, "I have a pen-pal here. We use snail mail. After a bad breakup, he sent me a care package. It was all stuff from his office, staplers and fasteners and stuff. Things you really need after a bad break-up."

The grinning guy looked about ready to bust his buttons with pride at the acknowledgement.

Wait, there are still pen-pals handwriting to each other now? I had no idea.

After their last sunny pop gem, the audience called for one more song.

"We don't know any more songs," Kendall said a bit sheepishly as the group put down their instruments.

Come on, guys, they're from Manhattan, not Brooklyn, remember?

Be glad they stopped in on this chilly night to share their pop goodness  at all.

I know it made my night.