Saturday, January 30, 2010
Tuesday, January 26, 2010
Let's Go Guins!
(I am due a post about my birthday; it will come . . . )
So, I was invited to the Garden last night to see the Pens take on the Rangers (thanks Rick!). Really entertaining. The first period *flew* by, with almost no stops at all. The Pens were flying around the ice, and the Rangers did what they could to hold on imo.
AHL call-up Conner looked strong getting his first two goals of the year(both from Crosby); good to see him step up on the first line.
The Rangers's second goal was quite a fluke -- somehow the puck just squeezed itself in there past the skate of Fleury. But the Pens really came back strong. All grew from Malkin flying into their end off of the face off and drawing the penalty. He may not have been too productive (well, a goal), but he took it on his back for a few minutes.
Ended 4-2 after Dupuis' empty netter, sending all the "blue shirt" fans to the exits. I, of course, stayed until the end.
So fun to see! Especially so close. We had club level seats; back to the left of the Pens goal for two periods, just up off the ice (people taking your food and drink orders). I could get addicted to that rather easily. The chill of the ice, sounds of the blades and sticks hitting the puck. Such a different game live . . .
So, I was invited to the Garden last night to see the Pens take on the Rangers (thanks Rick!). Really entertaining. The first period *flew* by, with almost no stops at all. The Pens were flying around the ice, and the Rangers did what they could to hold on imo.
AHL call-up Conner looked strong getting his first two goals of the year(both from Crosby); good to see him step up on the first line.
The Rangers's second goal was quite a fluke -- somehow the puck just squeezed itself in there past the skate of Fleury. But the Pens really came back strong. All grew from Malkin flying into their end off of the face off and drawing the penalty. He may not have been too productive (well, a goal), but he took it on his back for a few minutes.
Ended 4-2 after Dupuis' empty netter, sending all the "blue shirt" fans to the exits. I, of course, stayed until the end.
So fun to see! Especially so close. We had club level seats; back to the left of the Pens goal for two periods, just up off the ice (people taking your food and drink orders). I could get addicted to that rather easily. The chill of the ice, sounds of the blades and sticks hitting the puck. Such a different game live . . .
Saturday, January 23, 2010
Captain America said . . . moe. is Fun
moe.
01.22.10
Roseland Ballroom, New York, New York
Set One:
Timmy Tucker > Bearsong, Capt'n America*, Caveman**, Nebraska**, Happy Hour Hero^, Whipping Post^^
Set Two:
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed$, Shoot First**, Waiting for the Punchline$$, Real Morning Party&, instrumental**, East Nashville Easter**, Blue Jeans and Pizza&, Mexico$
Encore:
The Weight&&
Notes:
* with Danny Barnes on banjo and Marco Benevento on organ
** with Barnes, Benevento, and Jeff Austin on mandolin
^ with Benevento, David Sanborn on alto, and Butch Trucks on a second kit
^^ with Benevento, Sanborn, Trucks, and Austin on vocals
$ with Benevento and Trucks
$$ with Barnes and Austin
& with Benevento
&& with Barnes, Benevento, Austin, and Trucks
[Caveman is a Danny Barnes song; Whipping Post is Allman Brothers Band; Real Morning Party is Marco Benevento; East Nashville Easter is Yonder Mountain String Band]
Fun night tonight. As you can imagine, with all the guests, it wasn't a typical moe. jam/segue fest, but there sure were some nice treats. Tucker is always enjoyable, especially followed by a Bearsong. Happy Hour Hero had a great lounge vibe with the sax. The Allman's tunes to close the first set and open the second were quite good -- Whipping Post was sung by Jeff Austin, and featured solos by al., Sanborn, then Chuck; Lis Reed was longer with more jamming, including some nice stuff by Marco. Punchline took on a really bluegrassy feel. Real Morning Party was catchy. The instrumental was a ho-downy number.
Highlights of the night was the great little jam in East Nashville Easter followed by the Blue Jeans and Pizza with Marco.
Here is the organization moe. was raising money for: http://www.whyhunger.org/
01.22.10
Roseland Ballroom, New York, New York
Set One:
Timmy Tucker > Bearsong, Capt'n America*, Caveman**, Nebraska**, Happy Hour Hero^, Whipping Post^^
Set Two:
In Memory of Elizabeth Reed$, Shoot First**, Waiting for the Punchline$$, Real Morning Party&, instrumental**, East Nashville Easter**, Blue Jeans and Pizza&, Mexico$
Encore:
The Weight&&
Notes:
* with Danny Barnes on banjo and Marco Benevento on organ
** with Barnes, Benevento, and Jeff Austin on mandolin
^ with Benevento, David Sanborn on alto, and Butch Trucks on a second kit
^^ with Benevento, Sanborn, Trucks, and Austin on vocals
$ with Benevento and Trucks
$$ with Barnes and Austin
& with Benevento
&& with Barnes, Benevento, Austin, and Trucks
[Caveman is a Danny Barnes song; Whipping Post is Allman Brothers Band; Real Morning Party is Marco Benevento; East Nashville Easter is Yonder Mountain String Band]
Fun night tonight. As you can imagine, with all the guests, it wasn't a typical moe. jam/segue fest, but there sure were some nice treats. Tucker is always enjoyable, especially followed by a Bearsong. Happy Hour Hero had a great lounge vibe with the sax. The Allman's tunes to close the first set and open the second were quite good -- Whipping Post was sung by Jeff Austin, and featured solos by al., Sanborn, then Chuck; Lis Reed was longer with more jamming, including some nice stuff by Marco. Punchline took on a really bluegrassy feel. Real Morning Party was catchy. The instrumental was a ho-downy number.
Highlights of the night was the great little jam in East Nashville Easter followed by the Blue Jeans and Pizza with Marco.
Here is the organization moe. was raising money for: http://www.whyhunger.org/
Friday, January 22, 2010
Keaton and Chaplin, Kimock and Vernon
Last night, Laura and I headed to the Merkin Concert Hall to see one of the concerts associated with the New York Guitar Festival. This particular series from the festival featured guitarists "scoring" old silent movies. We jumped on tickets early and were able to get fourth row, to the left -- we couldn't pass up the opportunity to see Steve Kimock and Justin Vernon (of Bon Iver fame). I actually thought they would be playing together; upon looking at the program, I realized that would not be the case. Kimock and his son John Morgan (drums) played along to Buster Keaton's "Cops." Then, Vernon and Chris Rosenau ("2/6s of Volcano Choir") wrote two original pieces to accompany a pair of Charlie Chaplin movies, "Easy Street" and "One A.M."
It was an interesting contrast of styles and sound. Steve and his son went about the task as an exercise in improvisation -- and actually was more "literal" in their interpretation of the music. They had clearly studied Keaton's humorous 18-minute movie, knowing when to crash the cymbals or play a descending run of notes. The music was light-hearted and danced along with Keaton and his wonderful facial expressions. As a score to a silent movie, I thought the piece was a success; but I actually did not find the music to be that interesting.
Rather than let the movie guide improvisation, Vernon and Rosenau spent almost a year composing two pieces for two guitars for both of the Charlie Chaplin movies, one around 30 minutes and the other was 15 minutes. The two musicians sat across from each other, flanking the screen, and played both acoustic and electric. They utilized loops, effects, and pedals; Vernon on a EBow for some of the second song. The music had the flavor of an instrumental Volcano Choir song, with the sounds subtly building and layering. In contrast to Kimock's direct relationship to what was on the screen, their two songs were more allusions to the movies, capturing of an overall mood, without direct reactions to what was happening.
All in all, it was quite a nice way to spend the evening. I am not at all familiar with silent movies, and this sort of "concert" directs your attention to the screen while you listen to the musicians. (I was enthralled with Keaton's face, for example.) It was the first time seeing Justin Vernon, and it made me want to see and hear more of his music live, especially the more layered music played last night (compared to the stripped down Bon Iver songs; while I love, don't get me wrong . . . ). One of those New York treats that I try to enjoy as much as I can.
It was an interesting contrast of styles and sound. Steve and his son went about the task as an exercise in improvisation -- and actually was more "literal" in their interpretation of the music. They had clearly studied Keaton's humorous 18-minute movie, knowing when to crash the cymbals or play a descending run of notes. The music was light-hearted and danced along with Keaton and his wonderful facial expressions. As a score to a silent movie, I thought the piece was a success; but I actually did not find the music to be that interesting.
Rather than let the movie guide improvisation, Vernon and Rosenau spent almost a year composing two pieces for two guitars for both of the Charlie Chaplin movies, one around 30 minutes and the other was 15 minutes. The two musicians sat across from each other, flanking the screen, and played both acoustic and electric. They utilized loops, effects, and pedals; Vernon on a EBow for some of the second song. The music had the flavor of an instrumental Volcano Choir song, with the sounds subtly building and layering. In contrast to Kimock's direct relationship to what was on the screen, their two songs were more allusions to the movies, capturing of an overall mood, without direct reactions to what was happening.
All in all, it was quite a nice way to spend the evening. I am not at all familiar with silent movies, and this sort of "concert" directs your attention to the screen while you listen to the musicians. (I was enthralled with Keaton's face, for example.) It was the first time seeing Justin Vernon, and it made me want to see and hear more of his music live, especially the more layered music played last night (compared to the stripped down Bon Iver songs; while I love, don't get me wrong . . . ). One of those New York treats that I try to enjoy as much as I can.
Thursday, January 14, 2010
Great American Music Band
The other night, I stayed up way too late downloading shows posted by some kind soul over on a music message board (http://www.phantasytour.com/phish/boards_thread.cgi?threadID=2149878&page=1).
Countless live concerts of bands that I love.
Well, I came across this Great American Music Band show. I first heard this music as filler on my copy of the 1994 Dead Berkeley Schools Acoustic Benefit concert. Great musicians, with Maria Mauldar's nice voice. Just great stuff all around . . . Wanted to share this one in particular.
Great American Music Band
Pilgrimage Theater
Hollywood, CA
April 20, 1974
SBD MR > R > CD > EAC > FLAC > MP3
01. Intro & tune up
02. Limehouse Blues
03. Dawg's Bull
04. My Plastic Banana Isn't Stupid
05. Swing '42
06. Coloured Aristocracy
07. Rolling In My Sweet Baby's Arms (1)
08. Dawg's Rag
09. I'll Be A Gambler If You Deal The Cards
10. Midnight At The Oasis (1)
11. Sweet Georgia Brown (1)
12. Will The Circle Be Unbroken (1)
David Grisman - Mandolin
Richard Greene - Fiddle
David Nictern - Guitar, Vocals
Taj Mahal - Bass, Vocals
Jerry Garcia - Banjo
Maria Mauldar - Vocals (1)
http://www.mediafire.com/?gyzwzmzj5wo
http://www.mediafire.com/?wzmm3nzzmzi
Countless live concerts of bands that I love.
Well, I came across this Great American Music Band show. I first heard this music as filler on my copy of the 1994 Dead Berkeley Schools Acoustic Benefit concert. Great musicians, with Maria Mauldar's nice voice. Just great stuff all around . . . Wanted to share this one in particular.
Great American Music Band
Pilgrimage Theater
Hollywood, CA
April 20, 1974
SBD MR > R > CD > EAC > FLAC > MP3
01. Intro & tune up
02. Limehouse Blues
03. Dawg's Bull
04. My Plastic Banana Isn't Stupid
05. Swing '42
06. Coloured Aristocracy
07. Rolling In My Sweet Baby's Arms (1)
08. Dawg's Rag
09. I'll Be A Gambler If You Deal The Cards
10. Midnight At The Oasis (1)
11. Sweet Georgia Brown (1)
12. Will The Circle Be Unbroken (1)
David Grisman - Mandolin
Richard Greene - Fiddle
David Nictern - Guitar, Vocals
Taj Mahal - Bass, Vocals
Jerry Garcia - Banjo
Maria Mauldar - Vocals (1)
http://www.mediafire.com/?gyzwzmzj5wo
http://www.mediafire.com/?wzmm3nzzmzi
Monday, January 11, 2010
New York Winter Jazz Festival, Night Two
While I quite enjoyed the surprises of the night before, I was excited for the expectations of Saturday night's offerings at the New York Winter Jazz Festival. And for the most part, all of the bands I wanted to see were at Le Poisson Rouge. Sure, there was some down time here or there, but as I quickly found out, I was more excited to save my spot and soak in the venue's offerings than fight possible crowds at the other four venues.
Carmen Consoli: I listened to some of Carmen's music online before heading down and I was interested to hear her mix of jazz and folk, with lyrics sung in Italian. The songs that I saw featured just Carmen on acoustic guitar -- simple, beautiful songs. "Nice" is a good description.
Ben Allison: While I was not familiar with Ben's music, I was excited to see the first of two of Jenny Scheinman's appearances at LPR Saturday night (I believe she also played a third gig at Bitter End). And I ended up enjoying every single minute. The mix of trumpet (Shane Endsley), violin, and guitar (I recognized guitarist Steve Cardenas from when he played with Jenny and Nels Cline), with the amazing rhythm section of Ben and Rudy Royston on drums produced some wonderfully playful and upbeat music. I believe the setlist was something like: Kramer vs Kramer vs Godzilla, Platypus, Green Al, theme from movie Philadelphia (with guest singer; a figure in the NY Club scene I was not familiar with), and Man Sized Safe (dedicated to Dick Cheney). Green Al, off of Ben's most recent album, may have been one of the best songs of the weekend, seamlessly blending the melodic instruments across this great bluesy melody, with Jenny plucking on her violin to trade licks with Cardenas to her bowing her instrument along with Endsley's blowing.
Occidental Brothers Dance Band International: I was still riding high from the last performance when the Occidental Bros took the stage. My sister and I had moved to the stage's lip, settling in for the long night, and I was excited to hear some African jazz. Ironically, a portion of the crowd sat down -- for the dance band. I should have taken that as a bit of a sign. Hailing from Chicago, the Brothers had also brought with them Samba Mapangala, a Congolese singer. I liked the guitar tone, the sax player was capable, and the bassist was quite good -- the music just felt a little thin (especially when compared to all of the other music I heard).
Jenny Scheinman & Jason Moran: Another set I was excited for -- and once again the musicians left me smiling and shaking my head. Having collaborated on Jenny's album Crossing the Field, there was clear relationship and understanding between the two musicians. Jenny took the lead on violin for a majority of the songs while Jason provided tasteful color on the piano. It was fun to watch Jason "trick out" the Yamaha piano for certain songs, particularly with an EBow. Due to where we were, it felt as though Jenny and Jason were playing just for me and those to my right and left at times. Truly special. Setlist included Bouy Song, Ana Eco, Frog Through His Head Back and Laughed, and That's Delight.
Lionel Loueke: To be honest, I had thought about trying to skip out to another venue during Lionel Loueke -- I was not too familiar with his music, and it seemed to be the only slot. But due to our perfect location for Vijay Iyer, we decided to stay put. And I am quite happy I did, as Loueke put on an interesting set. His playing was as diverse as the nationality of his trio (Loueke is from Benin, his drummer is Hungarian, and the bassist was Italian and Swiss) -- on his unique guitar, with its various effects, Loueke would flow in and out of African sounding rhythms into runs free of structure. Some songs he would sing along to; others, he would tap the body of his beautiful wooden guitar to make it sound like a talking drum. I enjoyed most of his set; the parts that I did not immediately enjoy were at least quite interesting. I did not regret leaving to see anyone else.
Vijay Iyer Trio: If there was a "headliner" at the festival, Vijay Iyer and his trio seemed to be it. With his critically acclaimed 2009 release Historicity topping a number of "Best Of" lists, I think quite a few people were excited with the opportunity to see him perform. Needless to say, the crowd pushed forward ever so slightly as the stage was getting set up. I must admit that my knowledge of his music was somewhat limited -- I have a Fieldwork CD (actually believe I reviewed it for Jambands.com years ago) and knew of him from various articles. Up until last night, I had found his playing to be a bit "angular." His playing isn't overly soft or sensual, but rather a confident communication of an idea (if that makes sense). Live, I thought he was quite emotional and dynamic, enjoying himself, appreciating the contributions of his bandmates. It was a great pleasure to watch, seeing how his fingers moved across the keys, maybe doubling up on one in particular as he moved up or down; how he worked the pedals; where he leaned into the instrument, or pulled away. His setlist was: Galang (according to Vijay, this was the first time his nod to M.I.A. was performed live; he jokingly said the ending gives him tendinitis), Historicity, Big Brother, Dogon AD, Helix (I think) > Segment for Sentiment #2. I should add that both Marcus Gilmore on drums and Stephan Crump are great players. Particularly Gilmore, who should this great mix of relaxation and touch along with confidence and power. As the band went over their allotted time slot, I could see two organizers off to the side becoming a bit distraught. Things were moving so well up to this point, with bands starting on time, they seemed to be concerned. I, on the other hand, wish Vijay could have kept playing -- the last five or so minutes of the set were quite beautiful. Over the closing notes, he thanked the crowd, saying it was the best one he had ever had in New York. (Side note: I had never had so many cameras surrounding me before, pointed over my shoulder or next to my hip.)
Bitches Brew Revisited: As all of the gear was moved into place for Bitches Brew revisited, I can see why the organizers were worried about time. A new drum kit (up until this point, all of the drummers were using the same kit), congas, a small PA system, Rhodes, turntables . . . all for a 40-minute set. I still remember when I first heard Bitches Brew -- the openeness, sounding as though it was recorded in a warehouse, patience, Miles's horn punching through the fog. For over half an hour last night, I got to hear it played live. What made the set successful, to me, was Marco Benevento's work on the Rhodes and Antoine Roney on bass clarinet. To my ears, they nailed their parts on the opening Pharaoh's Dance and set the tone. Of course Graham Haynes coronet was spot on -- as were his effects on the small PA, creating the well-placed echoes. Sitting over on a stool, James Blood Ulmer added the perfect tone on guitar. The rhythm section was comprised of Lonnie Plaxico on bass, Cindy Blackman (of Lenny Kravitz fame) on drums, and Adam Rudolph on percussion (also quite good). And over at the far end of the stage was DJ Logic, adding just enough turntablism to remind us we weren't in 1970. It was fun to watch Haynes count off the beginning of Bitches Brew to Benevento and Plaxico, getting it just right. As the band faded out the title track into nothing, they were met with yells for "Spanish Key" -- clearly, the crowd wanted more Miles.
Marco Benevento Trio: I was getting quite tired by the time Marco took the stage again -- this time on piano. With the previous performance pushing things back by almost an hour, I was about ready to head home (taxi this time, compared to the cold night before). I stuck around just to get some Reed Mathis and Benevento collaboration.
All in all, an amazing eight hours of music packed into one night. As artist after artist kept proclaiming from the stage, "Someone said jazz is dead?" Let's hope these sort of events happen more than once a year -- it would make many people quite happy.
Carmen Consoli: I listened to some of Carmen's music online before heading down and I was interested to hear her mix of jazz and folk, with lyrics sung in Italian. The songs that I saw featured just Carmen on acoustic guitar -- simple, beautiful songs. "Nice" is a good description.
Ben Allison: While I was not familiar with Ben's music, I was excited to see the first of two of Jenny Scheinman's appearances at LPR Saturday night (I believe she also played a third gig at Bitter End). And I ended up enjoying every single minute. The mix of trumpet (Shane Endsley), violin, and guitar (I recognized guitarist Steve Cardenas from when he played with Jenny and Nels Cline), with the amazing rhythm section of Ben and Rudy Royston on drums produced some wonderfully playful and upbeat music. I believe the setlist was something like: Kramer vs Kramer vs Godzilla, Platypus, Green Al, theme from movie Philadelphia (with guest singer; a figure in the NY Club scene I was not familiar with), and Man Sized Safe (dedicated to Dick Cheney). Green Al, off of Ben's most recent album, may have been one of the best songs of the weekend, seamlessly blending the melodic instruments across this great bluesy melody, with Jenny plucking on her violin to trade licks with Cardenas to her bowing her instrument along with Endsley's blowing.
Occidental Brothers Dance Band International: I was still riding high from the last performance when the Occidental Bros took the stage. My sister and I had moved to the stage's lip, settling in for the long night, and I was excited to hear some African jazz. Ironically, a portion of the crowd sat down -- for the dance band. I should have taken that as a bit of a sign. Hailing from Chicago, the Brothers had also brought with them Samba Mapangala, a Congolese singer. I liked the guitar tone, the sax player was capable, and the bassist was quite good -- the music just felt a little thin (especially when compared to all of the other music I heard).
Jenny Scheinman & Jason Moran: Another set I was excited for -- and once again the musicians left me smiling and shaking my head. Having collaborated on Jenny's album Crossing the Field, there was clear relationship and understanding between the two musicians. Jenny took the lead on violin for a majority of the songs while Jason provided tasteful color on the piano. It was fun to watch Jason "trick out" the Yamaha piano for certain songs, particularly with an EBow. Due to where we were, it felt as though Jenny and Jason were playing just for me and those to my right and left at times. Truly special. Setlist included Bouy Song, Ana Eco, Frog Through His Head Back and Laughed, and That's Delight.
Lionel Loueke: To be honest, I had thought about trying to skip out to another venue during Lionel Loueke -- I was not too familiar with his music, and it seemed to be the only slot. But due to our perfect location for Vijay Iyer, we decided to stay put. And I am quite happy I did, as Loueke put on an interesting set. His playing was as diverse as the nationality of his trio (Loueke is from Benin, his drummer is Hungarian, and the bassist was Italian and Swiss) -- on his unique guitar, with its various effects, Loueke would flow in and out of African sounding rhythms into runs free of structure. Some songs he would sing along to; others, he would tap the body of his beautiful wooden guitar to make it sound like a talking drum. I enjoyed most of his set; the parts that I did not immediately enjoy were at least quite interesting. I did not regret leaving to see anyone else.
Vijay Iyer Trio: If there was a "headliner" at the festival, Vijay Iyer and his trio seemed to be it. With his critically acclaimed 2009 release Historicity topping a number of "Best Of" lists, I think quite a few people were excited with the opportunity to see him perform. Needless to say, the crowd pushed forward ever so slightly as the stage was getting set up. I must admit that my knowledge of his music was somewhat limited -- I have a Fieldwork CD (actually believe I reviewed it for Jambands.com years ago) and knew of him from various articles. Up until last night, I had found his playing to be a bit "angular." His playing isn't overly soft or sensual, but rather a confident communication of an idea (if that makes sense). Live, I thought he was quite emotional and dynamic, enjoying himself, appreciating the contributions of his bandmates. It was a great pleasure to watch, seeing how his fingers moved across the keys, maybe doubling up on one in particular as he moved up or down; how he worked the pedals; where he leaned into the instrument, or pulled away. His setlist was: Galang (according to Vijay, this was the first time his nod to M.I.A. was performed live; he jokingly said the ending gives him tendinitis), Historicity, Big Brother, Dogon AD, Helix (I think) > Segment for Sentiment #2. I should add that both Marcus Gilmore on drums and Stephan Crump are great players. Particularly Gilmore, who should this great mix of relaxation and touch along with confidence and power. As the band went over their allotted time slot, I could see two organizers off to the side becoming a bit distraught. Things were moving so well up to this point, with bands starting on time, they seemed to be concerned. I, on the other hand, wish Vijay could have kept playing -- the last five or so minutes of the set were quite beautiful. Over the closing notes, he thanked the crowd, saying it was the best one he had ever had in New York. (Side note: I had never had so many cameras surrounding me before, pointed over my shoulder or next to my hip.)
Bitches Brew Revisited: As all of the gear was moved into place for Bitches Brew revisited, I can see why the organizers were worried about time. A new drum kit (up until this point, all of the drummers were using the same kit), congas, a small PA system, Rhodes, turntables . . . all for a 40-minute set. I still remember when I first heard Bitches Brew -- the openeness, sounding as though it was recorded in a warehouse, patience, Miles's horn punching through the fog. For over half an hour last night, I got to hear it played live. What made the set successful, to me, was Marco Benevento's work on the Rhodes and Antoine Roney on bass clarinet. To my ears, they nailed their parts on the opening Pharaoh's Dance and set the tone. Of course Graham Haynes coronet was spot on -- as were his effects on the small PA, creating the well-placed echoes. Sitting over on a stool, James Blood Ulmer added the perfect tone on guitar. The rhythm section was comprised of Lonnie Plaxico on bass, Cindy Blackman (of Lenny Kravitz fame) on drums, and Adam Rudolph on percussion (also quite good). And over at the far end of the stage was DJ Logic, adding just enough turntablism to remind us we weren't in 1970. It was fun to watch Haynes count off the beginning of Bitches Brew to Benevento and Plaxico, getting it just right. As the band faded out the title track into nothing, they were met with yells for "Spanish Key" -- clearly, the crowd wanted more Miles.
Marco Benevento Trio: I was getting quite tired by the time Marco took the stage again -- this time on piano. With the previous performance pushing things back by almost an hour, I was about ready to head home (taxi this time, compared to the cold night before). I stuck around just to get some Reed Mathis and Benevento collaboration.
All in all, an amazing eight hours of music packed into one night. As artist after artist kept proclaiming from the stage, "Someone said jazz is dead?" Let's hope these sort of events happen more than once a year -- it would make many people quite happy.
Saturday, January 9, 2010
New York Winter Jazz Festival, Night One
Just some quick thoughts before getting ready to head out again tonight. Really a lot of fun last night, having three venues all within a block with music going on. Fun to do a festival here in New York (even if it was freezing out . . . )
Darcy James Argue's Secret Society: Great four-song set to open the Festival (Transit, Xeno, Ferromagnetic, Obsidian Flow). They just seem to get better and better each time I see them -- punchier, more confident, even some swing to their playing. Looks like Darcy picked up some new players, too.
Ben Williams & Sound Effect: Ok, straight-ahead jazz of Rhodes/sax/bass/drums. Zinc Bar was packed, warm and cozy. Those at tables seemed to be in for the long haul.
Joel Harrison Sextet: Could have skipped Ben Williams, I think, and would have enjoyed Joel Harrison more. The few moments that I saw had a bit of a Mahavishnu vibe, coming from the violin player. Upset, too, since I missed Donny McCaslin on sax (one of my fave's in Maria Schneider's band).
Briggan Krauss: Out there, mostly noise, but when it came together it really was great. First time seeing Kenny Wollesen on drums (rather than vibes) -- so entertaining to watch. The trio worked best, I think, when Kenny toned it back and used his hands on the drum kit.
Jeremy Udden's Plainville: One of the surprises of the night. I was a huge fan of the sound of this band, especially combining soprano sax with banjo and accordion (it reminded me at times of the Tin Hat Trio and Rob Burger). Laid back, dreamy at times, with maybe a nod to indie pop. Really great stuff.
Matt Wilson's Quartet: Second surprise of the night. All four players were quite good, and Matt Wilson clearly has fun behind the drums. Jeff Lederer was a standout on saxes along with the trumpet player. Highlight was the original Raga (great middle eastern vibe) and then the cover of Two Bass Hit. The playful School Yard Thug was enjoyable, too. Loved the energy.
Bobby Previte's New Bump Quartet: Not too much of a fan, to be honest. I though it lacked quite a bit of dynamism -- Previte's playing was just one-note. Hard, not much touch. The most interesting (best) part of their set was when they invited Matt Wilson and his horns up on stage for the closing number. But other than that, not too impressed.
Mark Guiliana's Beat Music: I left during their opening tuning and meandering, having started fifteen minutes late. While I wanted to last for Jamie Saft's Whoopie Pie and Peter Apfelbaum's band, I knew it would be tough. Especially with a set of what Guiliana was presenting. So I headed home and saved up for tonight . . .
Darcy James Argue's Secret Society: Great four-song set to open the Festival (Transit, Xeno, Ferromagnetic, Obsidian Flow). They just seem to get better and better each time I see them -- punchier, more confident, even some swing to their playing. Looks like Darcy picked up some new players, too.
Ben Williams & Sound Effect: Ok, straight-ahead jazz of Rhodes/sax/bass/drums. Zinc Bar was packed, warm and cozy. Those at tables seemed to be in for the long haul.
Joel Harrison Sextet: Could have skipped Ben Williams, I think, and would have enjoyed Joel Harrison more. The few moments that I saw had a bit of a Mahavishnu vibe, coming from the violin player. Upset, too, since I missed Donny McCaslin on sax (one of my fave's in Maria Schneider's band).
Briggan Krauss: Out there, mostly noise, but when it came together it really was great. First time seeing Kenny Wollesen on drums (rather than vibes) -- so entertaining to watch. The trio worked best, I think, when Kenny toned it back and used his hands on the drum kit.
Jeremy Udden's Plainville: One of the surprises of the night. I was a huge fan of the sound of this band, especially combining soprano sax with banjo and accordion (it reminded me at times of the Tin Hat Trio and Rob Burger). Laid back, dreamy at times, with maybe a nod to indie pop. Really great stuff.
Matt Wilson's Quartet: Second surprise of the night. All four players were quite good, and Matt Wilson clearly has fun behind the drums. Jeff Lederer was a standout on saxes along with the trumpet player. Highlight was the original Raga (great middle eastern vibe) and then the cover of Two Bass Hit. The playful School Yard Thug was enjoyable, too. Loved the energy.
Bobby Previte's New Bump Quartet: Not too much of a fan, to be honest. I though it lacked quite a bit of dynamism -- Previte's playing was just one-note. Hard, not much touch. The most interesting (best) part of their set was when they invited Matt Wilson and his horns up on stage for the closing number. But other than that, not too impressed.
Mark Guiliana's Beat Music: I left during their opening tuning and meandering, having started fifteen minutes late. While I wanted to last for Jamie Saft's Whoopie Pie and Peter Apfelbaum's band, I knew it would be tough. Especially with a set of what Guiliana was presenting. So I headed home and saved up for tonight . . .
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