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• Corner Wine Bar

Jim Hanna and Chris Hunt take in the music in the cellar of the Corner Wine Bar in Broad Ripple.

Jason Miller and Josh Brunner of the Session Brothers jam in the cellar at Corner Wine Bar.

8:43 p.m.:

An old friend asked me to come check out a show in the Corner Wine Bar's basement. I grew up in Broad Ripple; my father was friends with former owners of the place, and I've enjoyed a pint or two in the Wellington (the bar owned and operated by the restaurant).

But the fact that there is another bar under the building somehow eluded me.

The crowd inside the Wellington is manageable. The light drizzle seems to have depressed the weekly pilgrimage to Broad Ripple's numerous alcoholic holy sites. I venture downstairs to find my buddy, only to head back upstairs to meet him at the bar.

9:14 p.m.:

The racket from downstairs alerts us to the fact that the Session Brothers are in full swing. An aggressive funk trio featuring John Adamson on guitar, Josh Brunner on bass, and Jason Miller behind the drum kit, the band is occasionally joined by saxophonist John Ball.

We settle into a table in the back of the small room, between stairwells leading to the Wellington on one side and the Corner Wine Bar on the other. Glass-fronted cabinets full of wine bottles line the walls around us.

The band wraps up another song and Adamson asks for a pretty female volunteer to carry the tip can around. His wish is granted and a blonde carries the tin from table to table, collecting ones and change.

It's difficult to move around down here, and it seems like you're always in someone else's way. "It's definitely the most intimate setting" to see live music, says regular Chris Hunt.

The Session Brothers' songs are self-indulgent but relatively short. It's not for everyone, but the group is one of the most technically proficient bands I've seen in the city. Adamson breaks a string and Brunner unleashes a slap bass riff that sounds like someone fast-forwarding through the opening credits of "Seinfeld." Again, not for everyone, but impressive.

9:50 p.m.:

he band finishes its set and invites other musicians up to jam. Another guitarist plugs in and two MCs take turns rhyming over the less hectic instrumentation. A crowd gathers around the band and I slide out the exit, up the stairs and out onto the damp streets of Broad Ripple