Tuesday, July 18, 2006; C03

Andy Cabic, the San Franciscan who is the main creative force behind folk-rockers Vetiver, wouldn't seem to be much of a VH1 fan. But by the end of his group's set Sunday night at the Warehouse Next Door, it was clear that Cabic and the cable channel had one thing very much in common: They both really love the '70s.

Cabic is also a member of freak-folk kingpin Devendra Banhart's band, so Vetiver has been lumped into that scene, along with just about every other group that has a large, rotating cast of members and shows an appreciation for Marc Bolan when he was in the band still going by Tyrannosaurus Rex. But on Vetiver's recent album, "To Find Me Gone," which provided much of the evening's material, Cabic has shifted from composing gentle, acoustic fare to a more pleasing, polished country-rock sound that is heavily indebted to Neil Young and Gram Parsons.

Sanders Trippe's crisp guitar lines rose to the top of the sometimes muddy mix -- often at the expense of the cello and violin -- and showed that he has spent plenty of time with Young's "On the Beach." Cabic's voice was also reminiscent of Young's, albeit with less personality, which is a fair way to describe Vetiver in general. The sextet provided no transcendent moments, but songs such as "I Know No Pardon" and "Won't Be Me" were rollicking, if not quite rocking, ditties that were versatile enough to feature both memorable melodies and a bit of modest jamming. Nothing earth-shattering, but plenty groovy.

-- David Malitz