Hey everyone,
What an awesome weekend! Played two great shows, both with Crooked Tree (www.crookedtreemusic.com)! Friday night was at Epicure in Fairfax, VA and Saturday night with some great bands at an awesome venue called Iota (www.iotaclubandcafe.com) in the Clarendon neighborhood of Arlington, VA. Seriously, Iota is the best sounding room I have been in in a long time. Great sound and good people! It was a privilege and a stroke of luck to play there, no doubt.
Crooked Tree kicked off the night with a 45 minute set that went from rough to rockin as it progressed. Lesson learned: don't let your gear get ya down. First our acoustic/electric guitar decided not to be electric anymore, then after a decent first tune, the bass decided to stop making sound! Like I said in the intro "great sound and GOOD PEOPLE." Yes I just quoted myself. Iota's great sound tech remedied the guitar situation by throwing up and leveling a microphone super fast and easy, and the bass player from The Atomic Mosquitos, Sean Rush, saved the day by lending Wes (our bass player) his instrument for the rest of the set. We owe both of them a huge thanks! Post equipment difficulties the set rocked and we had a great time.
After Crooked Tree, The Atomic Mosquitos took the stage. These guys blew my mind! It was surf rock on steriods (in a good way, not the Barry Bonds way). They were so tight. These guys have been playing together a long time and you could definitely tell. The classic pulsing surf rock guitar sound riding over heavy drums, bass and rhythm guitars hitting starts and stops so precisely was an awesome site. And with the amazing sound system at Iota, a totally rich sound. Coupled with the vintage surf-flick clips projecting on the wall during the set, the Atomic Mosquitos are a must see. Check out their info here: www.atomicmosquitos.com
Then the headliners, The Latebirds, were on. Hailing from Finland on a two week US tour, it was an honor to share the bill with these guys. They had great songs and a complete sound. They took us from melodic rock to singer-songwriter folk to pop-punk during their set. And all of it was awesome! The band consists of frontman Markus Nordenstreng who sang and played guitar and piano, Janne Havisto on drums, Jussi Jaakonaho, Matti Pitsinski on organ, and Mikko Mäkelä playing bass. Each of these guys was a great musician. I loved Markus' voice and presence. He definitely kept my attention for the entire set. Jussi's guitar solos were melodic and technical at the same time, which is so rare. He played perfectly to compliment the songs. All of it backed up by solid bass and drum work from Mikko (who also sang harmonies) and Janne, with Matti chiming in on the organ at exactly the right moments. You could def tell the Late birds were seasoned. You have got to check out their website: www.latebirds.com Their resume is really impressive: recording, playing, and touring with groups like Wilco and Benton Trench from Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. The Latebirds are headed to Chicago and then out to LA for their next shows. If you have the chance to see them, GO! If you don't, get their record. What a great show and an awesome band!
Thanks for reading! And thanks again to Epicure and Iota for having us this weekend. To see a schedule for Iota go to their site: www.iotaclubandcafe.com They bring in some great bands and do not disappoint with the sound and experience.
Sunday, September 4, 2011
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Aubriot, Dustin Edge, and Outer Body Llamas @ Wonderland Ballroom in DC
This has been a busy busy weekend. Shows, gigs, rehearsals, and recording all involved! Oh yeah, and a hurricane. It all started on Wednesday night at Wonderland Ballroom (www.thewonderlandballroom.com) in Columbia Heights DC...
My good friend Matt Connelly was in a band called Aubriot ( I say was because they played their last show as a band last night...). Aubriot kicked off the night around 9 and totally rocked out. Lead singer Cate can really belt it over Matt's distortion-laced, delayed guitar chords and melodies. The rhythm section is so solid with Steve Jordan (not that one...) on the drums and Ari on the bass. If you gotta go out, Aubriot did it right. We will miss them. For a look back check out www.aubriotband.com
After Aubriot, solo acoustic guitar and harmonicaist Dustin Edge took the stage. He is a beast. From Boulder, Colorado, Dustin is on a regional tour here on the East Coast with stops in NC, VA, GA, FL, TN, and moving more west... KY, IL, IA, and NE. What stood out most to me about Dustin's performance was the raw passion in every single song. He took us from melodic sweet sadness to explosive fiery anger; from Bob Dylan to DMB to Dashboard. And you could feel it. You have to check out Dustin's site and get his new record. Go here: www.dustinedge.com
Finally to end the night was Outer Body Llama. These guys are it. Seasoned professionals with a killer 90's and a hint of 60's sound. Eduardo Llanes sang most of the lead vocals and switched off between keys and guitar. His disposition on and off stage is very easy, a very engaging performance. Enrique Llanes took some of the lead vox, as well as ripping some amazing guitar solos. Rich Bindell holding down on bass plus some smooth vox back up harmonies, and Andrew Keener keeping a solid groove on the drums. OBL has been playing around DC since '93 and you could definitely tell. They had a great presence on stage and put on an energetic show. I enjoyed every bit of it. Outer Body Llama is playing again this Saturday September 3rd at Molly Malone's in DC. They have a new album in the works so look out for it! For all their info and music go to http://outerbodyllama.
It was a great night of music at a great venue. Seriously, check out these bands.
As for me, Crooked Tree (www.crookedtreemusic.com) is playing at Epicure (http://epicurepizzafairfax.com/) in Fairfax, VA this Friday Sept 2. We are bringing it down a bit since Im gonna be on snare and hand drum rather than full kit. Should be a good time. Thanks for reading!
My good friend Matt Connelly was in a band called Aubriot ( I say was because they played their last show as a band last night...). Aubriot kicked off the night around 9 and totally rocked out. Lead singer Cate can really belt it over Matt's distortion-laced, delayed guitar chords and melodies. The rhythm section is so solid with Steve Jordan (not that one...) on the drums and Ari on the bass. If you gotta go out, Aubriot did it right. We will miss them. For a look back check out www.aubriotband.com
After Aubriot, solo acoustic guitar and harmonicaist Dustin Edge took the stage. He is a beast. From Boulder, Colorado, Dustin is on a regional tour here on the East Coast with stops in NC, VA, GA, FL, TN, and moving more west... KY, IL, IA, and NE. What stood out most to me about Dustin's performance was the raw passion in every single song. He took us from melodic sweet sadness to explosive fiery anger; from Bob Dylan to DMB to Dashboard. And you could feel it. You have to check out Dustin's site and get his new record. Go here: www.dustinedge.com
Finally to end the night was Outer Body Llama. These guys are it. Seasoned professionals with a killer 90's and a hint of 60's sound. Eduardo Llanes sang most of the lead vocals and switched off between keys and guitar. His disposition on and off stage is very easy, a very engaging performance. Enrique Llanes took some of the lead vox, as well as ripping some amazing guitar solos. Rich Bindell holding down on bass plus some smooth vox back up harmonies, and Andrew Keener keeping a solid groove on the drums. OBL has been playing around DC since '93 and you could definitely tell. They had a great presence on stage and put on an energetic show. I enjoyed every bit of it. Outer Body Llama is playing again this Saturday September 3rd at Molly Malone's in DC. They have a new album in the works so look out for it! For all their info and music go to http://outerbodyllama.
It was a great night of music at a great venue. Seriously, check out these bands.
As for me, Crooked Tree (www.crookedtreemusic.com) is playing at Epicure (http://epicurepizzafairfax.com/) in Fairfax, VA this Friday Sept 2. We are bringing it down a bit since Im gonna be on snare and hand drum rather than full kit. Should be a good time. Thanks for reading!
Tuesday, August 16, 2011
Jonny Grave and company at Bella Cafe, DC - 8/14/2011
I played an awesome show the other night at Bella Cafe in DC with Jonny Grave headlining, my band (Crooked Tree), and SweetBread Jim's.
SweetBread Jim's kicked off the full band sounds with a bang! Linsay's vocals were powerful and she has amazing stage presence. The sounds that were coming from SBJ were huge and loaded with energy, especially considering they are just a three piece (Linsay Deming on vox and guitar - John Lanou on Bass - Jon Lewis on Drums). The set ended with some impressive drum chops from Jon Lewis. You have to check out SweetBread Jim's: www.sweetbreadjims.com
Crooked Tree came on next. I have to thank Nate from the Tombstones for letting me play his drums, which was a beautiful kit with some enormous drums! A 26" kick! We played a good set to a decent size audience, especially considering it was Sunday night...thanks to everyone who came out! Crooked Tree is at www.crookedtreemusic.com
Finally, Jonny Grave and the Tombstones took the stage. First I owe them a huge thanks for organizing the entire night from booking to collecting door to running sound. Second, they totally blew me away. I have not heard that kind of gritty, raw sounding blues live in a long time. Jonny's energy is contagious. You could definitely tell he was feeling it and his Tombstones are all amazing musicians. This is Jonny's site: www.jonnygrave.com
It was a great night with great music. I'm looking forward to playing again with SweetBread Jim's and Jonny Grave and the Tombstones in the future!
Thanks for reading!
SweetBread Jim's kicked off the full band sounds with a bang! Linsay's vocals were powerful and she has amazing stage presence. The sounds that were coming from SBJ were huge and loaded with energy, especially considering they are just a three piece (Linsay Deming on vox and guitar - John Lanou on Bass - Jon Lewis on Drums). The set ended with some impressive drum chops from Jon Lewis. You have to check out SweetBread Jim's: www.sweetbreadjims.com
Crooked Tree came on next. I have to thank Nate from the Tombstones for letting me play his drums, which was a beautiful kit with some enormous drums! A 26" kick! We played a good set to a decent size audience, especially considering it was Sunday night...thanks to everyone who came out! Crooked Tree is at www.crookedtreemusic.com
Finally, Jonny Grave and the Tombstones took the stage. First I owe them a huge thanks for organizing the entire night from booking to collecting door to running sound. Second, they totally blew me away. I have not heard that kind of gritty, raw sounding blues live in a long time. Jonny's energy is contagious. You could definitely tell he was feeling it and his Tombstones are all amazing musicians. This is Jonny's site: www.jonnygrave.com
It was a great night with great music. I'm looking forward to playing again with SweetBread Jim's and Jonny Grave and the Tombstones in the future!
Thanks for reading!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
The Drum Solo
In my experience the drum solo has been reserved the hold the audience over while the band deals with technical difficulties on stage, or needs a break. John Bonham could kill like 20 minutes with a killer drum solo. I've seen long ones from Neil Peart too. So what is it that makes an awesome drum solo? Is it speed? dynamics? groove? fills? themes and variations? Most likely all of the above and more.
Maybe a drum solo is a bit more complex than most give it credit for... something more profound than just a time-filler. I'm working on some videos, which I may have mentioned in a previous post, so I have the opportunity to experiment and hopefully create the perfect drum solo. Wish me luck! and look out for the result. Maybe my first Video-Post...
Maybe a drum solo is a bit more complex than most give it credit for... something more profound than just a time-filler. I'm working on some videos, which I may have mentioned in a previous post, so I have the opportunity to experiment and hopefully create the perfect drum solo. Wish me luck! and look out for the result. Maybe my first Video-Post...
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Summertime
Had a great rehearsal this evening with a band yet unnamed. We have our first gig together in a week and a few days, so we are learning and running the songs from the set. For the most part the tunes, which are covers, are coming together... still in a learning phase as we figure out arrangements, parts, and transitions.
The highlight of the rehearsal for me was the tune "Summertime" by Gershwin. We play it in a six feel rather than the standard 4/4 swing. Brush on the snare drum, cool-rod on the ride. The dynamics were totally locked in between the drums, bass, and guitar (keys couldn't make this one). Plus our singer has an amazing voice, especially on tunes like this. I haven't experimented too much using different "drum utensils" in each hand, but I found out, at least in this tune, that it really gave me some more flexibility with dynamics. I'll probably try some different combos in the future...
The highlight of the rehearsal for me was the tune "Summertime" by Gershwin. We play it in a six feel rather than the standard 4/4 swing. Brush on the snare drum, cool-rod on the ride. The dynamics were totally locked in between the drums, bass, and guitar (keys couldn't make this one). Plus our singer has an amazing voice, especially on tunes like this. I haven't experimented too much using different "drum utensils" in each hand, but I found out, at least in this tune, that it really gave me some more flexibility with dynamics. I'll probably try some different combos in the future...
The Online Effect
I spent yesterday evening setting up microphones and other recording equipment to record and video my drums. I'm doing this because I want to put some videos on YouTube just to increase my presence. I guess you never know who might stumble on your videos and dig your playing, plus maybe more buzz I can share.
I'm thinking about how the internet has effected the success of a working musician. Like networking, samples, videos, promotion, etc... can all and are mainly all done via the internet i.e. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and even this blog that probably no one is reading...haha. I wonder if this makes getting work harder or easier? Its definitely more complicated...
I'm thinking about how the internet has effected the success of a working musician. Like networking, samples, videos, promotion, etc... can all and are mainly all done via the internet i.e. Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and even this blog that probably no one is reading...haha. I wonder if this makes getting work harder or easier? Its definitely more complicated...
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