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Southwest Regional Report
Edited by Chris Gardner - cgardner@tstar.netWelcome to the rambling rolling freakily flowing experiential tangential exercise in musically inspired wordplay that is the December installment of the Southwest review. Our bold submitters struggle mightily to wrap words around thoughts and themes of music as they wiggle and waggle through the air, and they all emerge unscathed and improved. So hop in the Mystery Van and indulge yourself...
-Chris Gardner
cgardner@tstar.net
- From the Road - Peter Rowan - 9/25/98 - Cactus Cafe - Austin, TX
- String Cheese Incident - 11/19/98 - Trees - Dallas, TX
- "It's Like a Whole `Nother Country" String Cheese Incident 11/20 - 11/21/98 - Liberty Lunch, Austin, TX
- Local Flavors Magpu The Home Bar - Dallas, TX
- Soul Hat Record Release Party - 12/5/98 - Steamboat - Austin, TX
From the Road
Peter Rowan
9/25/98
Cactus Caf‚ - Austin, TX
by Teresa DraughonI want to publicly thank a man who will likely never know that I am thanking him. His show on Friday, September 25 at the Cactus Cafe in Austin was one of the most meaningful and magical musical (alliteration, anyone?) experiences of my life.
I got goosebumps in the car on the way to Austin every time I thought, "I'm going to see Peter Rowan." I got out of my car in Austin and could not believe that I was going to see Peter Rowan. His voice, that voice I'd been hearing on tapes on cds... that wild head of hair... and that voice... I was going to hear him sing. I felt so young going in there. I felt so young sitting there in line thinking of all of the people Peter Rowan has known and played alongside... Can you say legend? I couldn't. I couldn't stammer out the word. We get in there and I feel so young because I so wanted to dance... I told myself I was allowed come Midnight Moonlight... Or is it Moonlight Midnight?
I had to be there. I had to. I waited in line and I kept fearing that something would happen... That he would realize that he had to be in Colorado the next day and duck out or something. I was so scared that I wouldn't see him... Because I seem to have bad luck with these things.
So I'm there and I'm listening to him... I am not one for show reviews song by song, sorry... maybe when I hear the tape... and I thought, "How strange it is that he is there, when he had been so many other places. He has sat outside a broken down bus at dawn with Bill. He has walked around Jerry's house strumming a guitar. He has... been to Mexico."
This has taken a turn since I started it. I think now of a friend who died and wonder if people think of what another person has thought and done and experienced in their life. I wonder if anyone has looked at me and said, "That's Teresa (I just misspelled my own name... I fixed it though) and she has seen the stars between Austin and College Station at two o'clock in the morning." Do you wonder about the people around you?
Life is so big... There is so much that happens to people that brings them to where they are when they sit down next to you on the plane. I don't think that we should all talk to each other about the fact that this very morning I had a nutri grain bar for breakfast, or that last night I dreamed that Pigpen and Sharon Stone were once in love... But think. Each of us has had an amazing life. Things happen to people that seem magnanimous to us but are insignificant to them. Yeah, Einstein, to me, found more truth than I think I ever will... But to him his defining life moment might have been finding the perfect pair of socks (I hear he often forgot to wear socks... forgot?).
I sat there in wonder at that show, watching the Czech bluegrass group Druha Trava... there were people up there from Europe! Across an ocean, on the other side of the only planet I'll ever be on. They came over to play... a banjo and a bass and a mandolin and guitars. Wild Horses. That's my Jerry song (I know he didn't write it...). What an incredible thing that we share music with each other. Someone told me today that books would be obsolete. No. Please no. Books smell good. They looked at me funny- to them that was not a thought. To me physics as the last art form was never a thought.
Peter... yeah, I played with Jerry. And tomorrow I'm playing with the String Cheese Incident. That's my life. And what might yours be? Does he see it as big, is it big to him like it is to me? Or is it another day? I guess it has to be another day, but that's so sad... that you can't take everything in.
Oh, lord. I sound like Emily from Our Town. "So all that was going in and we never noticed."
Take me to the stage, I'm ready to perform now...
Seriously, though... I'm sitting here in my room at college and I'm looking at my books, Business Math 142 in which I have a test Thursday, the radio schedule and I need to call and change my career counseling appointment so that I can learn how to run the board at the station... and it seems devastatingly unimportant. I know. I'm young. I'm in college. I'm acting quite stereotypically, but somehow I think there's something here that I can catch if I keep writing...
I guess to all of you people who saw the Dead, it's going to seem trite for me to say that I want that feeling all the time. People who go to 240 incidents a year are living it or something... That makes me feel alive and it gives me fodder for what I'm always thinking about when people see me and think I look mad. I'm not mad I'm thinking.
Peter Rowan thank you for the life that you live. I guess that's like thanking you for eating corn flakes this morning... but thank you. People give and give and that is the life that they live and that's amazing to me. Thank you for helping us see more. Who isn't seeing more for a while? Hearing more, liking coffee and Grover's corners more...
I always wonder what is my quest... Especially when I see that movie (which movie?zzyzx?). But you know, I think I'm realizing that the quest is the quest.
I see my poster telling me that GREAT SPIRITS HAVE ALWAYS ENCOUNTERED VIOLENT OPPOSITION FROM MEDIOCRE MINDS but...aren't we all great spirits? Aren't the mediocre minds something too?
I'm learning, I'm learning. And I apologize to those who know who are looking at me now saying, "I learned too and I didn't subject others to my first grade ramblings"... but also I know it's ok.
Yes, I feel young. And I feel surrounded by... Young. I don't mean I'm 20. I mean I feel like I'm a little kid looking for things, finding out what this does, what that does. I think... Ani Difranco said this on some tape I have... I was real young, getting younger... Is that it? The more I look the more I will want to look? And of course I can't be told because that ruins the game.
Yes, the Druha Trava show with Peter Rowan on September 26 at the Cactus Cafe was quite the catalyst in making me see these things. How much that one man has to give, how much he has been given, how... exactly the word spiritual seems to describe this man. Peter Rowan is indeed one of the rarest of rare breeds- a _living_ legend. We gotta live these people while we can, we gotta see them before they become pure spirit.
Then again... are we not all legends? Thank you Mr. Rowan for making me wonder.
Teresa Draughon
String Cheese Incident
11/19/98
Trees - Dallas, TX
by Teresa DraughonOn the String Cheese Incident mailing list, one word reviews are commonplace. Seems like once every five or six shows one is posted, which is a little surprising considering how heavily the thing is populated with PhD's, lawyers, students, and other folks notorious for wordiness. And the one word reviews are, strangely enough, almost always the same word... EPIC.
If you've seen them on one of those nights, you're probably nodding your head. What else can be said?
For the benefit of the uninitiated, though, I offer my review of the String Cheese Incident show at Trees in Dallas Texas on November 19, 1998.
The show started off with Keller Williams performing a few songs. A solo artist who plays a 12 string guitar, Keller's stylings are most easily compared to those of Michael Hedges- although no comparison will really do the man justice. He blends guitar playing with what is commonly referred to as "mouth flugel" with drumming on his guitar.
How Mountain Girls Can Love starts the Cheese off. This song was played the night before in Houston, but no one is too surprised at the selection since the members of the band are just days away from returning to their native mountains. All the Texas shows seemed fueled by a sense of urgency, a definite travel-thank-GOD-tour-is-almost-over kind of feeling, but it adds to the joy and energy of the music. Knowing they are almost home and us knowing they know adds to the happiness.
This song is bluegrass by nature. One of the unique aspects of the String Cheese Incident is that, unlike many other bands, their keyboard player, Kyle Hollingsworth, possesses the ability to _add_ to a bluegrass jam.
Next was Chili Dawg, and I have it on good authority that some knees were jellied by the Cheese's rendition of this ever popular Grisman tune. The crowd is realizing that they are dancing like they are usually dancing at the end of other shows... and it's only the second song.
DOWN THE ROAD, BABY!
The are just ON FIRE for this entire song. Kyle's all over *all* the keys in front of him- you get the feeling that if there was another keyboard in front of him he'd manage to play that one at the same time too. Travis is POUNDING on those drums- switched to "auto pilot"- the engine of that bus and they are gonna rooooooollllll as long as he's got anything to do with it.
A song for Keith Moseley's wife comes next, with Billy assuring her that he'll sing the harmony. California Rain falls upon our windowpanes and we don't have to hear it from a thousand miles away 'cause we are THERE! You can hear this one happening at Gruene hall as the tourists two-step obliviously through the magic they are hearing.
All Blues is next in line, and oh, the delicate sounds of the flugel waft in off the lips of the aforementioned Keller Williams. It's a mellow song which lets us take a step back and prepare for...
She Don't Say. Aptly named because after this song, I didn't hear anyone saying anything- all too shocked at what we'd heard. There are nights when this band is on fire and the kindling of the first few songs truly exploded with this sad sad song of a sad sad girl who... after hearing this would not be sad anymore. There are those who wonder where the spirituality is in their lyrics, where the meaning is, and I say listen to this song. Billy Nershi writes songs that are so earthy and folky that you become sure that they were written on the back of leaves, or in the snow with a stick, or carved into a rock... and Kyle writes songs that illustrate the kind of emotion and confusion that you find when you're trying to figure that damn girl out... and I can't think of another band whose *members* are able to achieve this sort of variety so seamlessly.
Rhythm of the Road is another favorite of mine. It starts off almost... noodley. Just putzing around, let's kinda take a ride in the car kind of feeling into the full blown we are going, going, going mentality that takes over you and makes you want to cross the horizon before you go to sleep, makes you skip the hotel and drive though... The structure of this song, the way it takes you by surprise is also a testament to the power of the cheese. They sure seem unassuming, they sure look like a couple of people who could be in their own audience, they sure can hula hoop... then BAM, you realize that they've just taken you to a place you've never been without... ahem... before.
This was the setbreak, but you'd hardly know it because there's Keller. Chillin' Like a Villain, a song extolling the virtues of doing a whole lot of nothing, leads us into Lester Had a Coconut. Somewhere in the middle there, I remain convinced that there is a sesame street theme tease... Hmmm. Chillin -> Lester Had a Coconut is an incredible set opener, and when this band starts a set strong, they rarely back down.
Following this danceathon, Billy decides that it's time for some bluegrass and oh my LORD you have got to hear this Restless Wind to believe this. Billy sounds out of control when he sings the first lines, reflecting the energy of the audience. People are dancing with a strange look of wonder on their faces, like they don't understand what is making them move like this! There is no control here, and thank goodness the musicians on the stage are skilled enough to play through the waves of energy that are ripping through this little building. Even the bartenders, the BARTENDERS AT TREES are moving to this one! And what happens at the end? WHOOPIE DOOPIE! What a jam, what a jam. They are all together on this one... Kang's on the violin, Billy's bouncing back and forth with is guitar, Keith is bobbing his head along with the music, Travis is... TRAVIS and no, really, I saw Kyle stand up and bounce too. This is not an everyday occurrence, friends.
Howlin' at the Moon... Keith is always great, he's so mellow, I swear that man masquerades as a starving Nashville hopeful when he's not touring with SCI... oops, he's *always* touring with SCI. Fellow Okie.
Blue Bossa, aaah, as smooth as its name.
Next was probably the biggest surprise of the evening for most of the crowd- Hey Pockey Way. Well, most surprising song choice that is. There was that hilarious moment of realization when people went, are they- they are! And then went back to that wild mountain dance style that only the Cheese can inspire.
One of my favorite concert moments ever follows- they are noodling around, we are all still dancing because by now we can't stop and suddenly... I hear it. It's Land's End, the Tim O'Brien song that has been called the SCI equivalent of dark star (I relay this fact as a frame of reference, not as my opinion. To me, the Cheese stands alone). I can't believe that I'm about to hear my first Land's End. I get all psyched up to be propelled into the stars by this... it's not just a song kind of song. So there I am, feeling all smart and wise and knowing what a treat these people are in for who have never even heard the band before and don't know what to expect when... the Land's End goes away. First I feel pouty, then I feel tricked and then I feel... ECSTATIC!
They're playing San Jose! The epitome of what makes me happy about this band! The song is NOT deep, the song does not explore life death and... whatever else you're supposed to write songs about. It doesn't make you feel tiny with it's magnanimous emotion and feeling and grasp of the unbelievable force of the universe. It's about a little boy's day. And it's happy.
I think that is the magic of this band. They can make me, for one, feel nothing but happy for a long time. I don't wonder when they are going to take it down, I don't expect to eventually want to hold their singer up on my hands and push him up into the stars so he can live forever- I want to hula hoop with them. The beauty of String Cheese is exactly what some see as their major pitfall- they do not take you down. When I think of any tears that I've shed at the hand of SCI, they have been tears of joyful wonder at the beauty that is in front of me, not tears because the song is sad and it made me cry.
San Jose has me jumping, bouncing, just like so many others in the audience. We must look like a bunch of bobbing heads from the 5 foot tall stage at Trees. But the band knows they are doing *it* and they reward us with probably the best encore I've ever seen. They start with Dudley's Kitchen, a nice song... then Keller comes back out and our Deep Elem Blues were recognized and given the proper attention. What a wacko Keller is- are there any songs that man can not sing flawlessly? Oh, I didn't think so. But even that rip roaring encore was not enough to satiate the audience, we needed just a little more...
So after Billy got the shot he demanded, he was joined by Travis for- well, it was epic. Billy played the guitar while Travis played drums on the guitar. Yeah. The same guitar. While Billy was playing it.
That was the last little WOW we needed to be able to go home happy.
Go see them.
They're playing New Years in San Francisco, members of a Cryptical Development. Opening up and closing out the show. They're playing the night before in Santa Cruz... aw, check the website.
But go see them.
When I used to live in Las Cruces, I spent a lot of time watching El Paso television. The Texas board of tourism bought a lot of air time. "Texas," the ads would proclaim, "It's like a whole 'nother country." While the point of the campaign was to show how much there was to do in Texas, the slogan was always darker to me. Compared to the northeast where I was raised or the northwest which I fell in love with, Texas was an alien world. I ventured through there a few times to see Phish (most notably at the Bomb Factory in Dallas) or, more frequently, driving through to a more interesting place. Seeing how much it took to get me to go to Texas when I was 20 miles from the state line, it's not surprising that I hadn't visited the state since I moved to Seattle. It would take a lot for me to visit there; in this case it took a 2 show run by String Cheese Incident.
When I first looked at SCI's fall tour schedule, I was distraught. Not only was an entire corner of the country missing, but that was the corner that I happened to live in. I had just gotten back from a 1300 mile road trip where I saw them in Montana and Moscow, ID and I was jonesing for more. At the end of the schedule was a 2 show run at the Liberty Lunch in Austin. Why not? I have a good friend there. It's the end of the tour. I'll get out of the rain for a few days, and I get to see the Cheese.
After an exciting 3 hour layover in St. Louis International (which not so oddly enough was filled with Mark McGwire bric-a-brac), I finally landed in Austin. A quick snack and we were off to the Liberty Lunch. It's a strange venue, the Liberty Lunch. It looks like your usual bar, but there's an entire section of it that was outdoors. Also you could pass in and out, but only if you were of drinking age. I'm not quite sure what the point of that was.
String Cheese opened up, appropriately enough, with "Texas", and we were underway. While the "Texas" raged, this was a very inconsistent set. The next few songs were somewhat sluggish (String Cheese!?!?Sluggish!?!?!), and other than the "Missing Me" with its post song jam and the "Mercy Mercy Mercy" I was about ready to write off the set. At the last second though, they went for the Hail Mary pass and succeeded; the set closing "Black Furry Possum" was epic. The jam started out nice and spacey and built from there. Whenever I listen to this I end up bopping around the room, which is quite embarrassing at work.
Since Keller Williams opened, he also played between the sets. As sometimes happens, String Cheese Incident rejoined the stage while he was playing. They combined on his tropical "Best Feeling in the World". After a segue jam that teased some disco song (I think it's "Shake Your Bootie" but my disco knowledge is weak), they dropped into.... "Fire on the Mountain"!?!?!? I suppose I shouldn't have been too surprised at this call. Keller is a big Deadhead and frequently plays Grateful Dead songs in his set. For many people this was the complete highlight of the show, for me it was kind of cute. It was played competently but not spectacularly. At least Keller didn't rap the lyrics.
Like the first set, the second set was inconsistent, but then it picked up for the closing song. "Black Clouds" demonstrated String Cheese's greatest strength- finding a theme and building on it. This technique is a perilous one; it is easy to speed things up too quickly and ruin the entire effect. However this was done perfectly. As soon as we were enjoying the beauty of the theme, we learned that there was a perfect pop song buried inside of it. As we were enjoying that, it turned out that they were really playing the "Black Clouds" theme all along. It was a thoroughly impressive jam.
I awoke the next morning hours before my friend and went for a walk. "Wow, it's nice out!" I went to the H-E-B to get some breakfast, only to discover that they wouldn't take my ATM card because it was out of state. Geez, someone is taking this whole 'nother country thing just a little too seriously.
The day was spent exploring the grandeur that is Austin. Right before the show, we went to dinner at a southern place that had a lot of interesting vegetable platters. I wondered why no one ever set up a southern vegetarian restaurant specializing in chicken fried tofu.
After refueling, we had time for a quick round of putt putt golf (well it would have been quick if it weren't for the 4-5 strokes I needed at each hole) and then off to the Liberty Lunch. On the drive there, I got to see a protest. "FAG = SIN!" proclaimed one sign. Yeah it's like a whole 'nother country- a scary one.
While the first show was a mixed bag of great songs with filler-which actually makes that a bad show, relatively speaking- there would be no filler at all on the 21st. The show opened with my favorite song, the song I flew down there in hopes of seeing, "Land's End". Right before the part at the end where there is the incredible build, they paused and then dropped into "Late in the Evening". Even my friends who had never seen the Cheese before were stoked for that. In the middle of it, they did a Phish style vocal jam to the tune of "Three Cheers for the Red White and Blue" and then *boom* right back into "Late in the Evening." That 20 minute segment was better than anything done on the first night, and it was only the beginning.
I could list all of the highlights here (the stunning "Round the Wheel" to close the first set, Kang's solo in "100 Year Flood", ...), but that would basically be me reading off the setlist. Not only was the energy level high throughout the whole show, but the setlist was the kind that people write up filled with all of their dream songs. Closing the second set with "Lonesome Fiddle Blues", "Little Hands"->"Land's End (reprise)" just isn't fair. I would have been happy with a quick encore after the adventures of that second set, but that was not to be. Perhaps inspired by the impromptu cheer before they returned (Clap clap clap "WHOOO!" clap clap clap "WHOOO!" clap clap clap "WHOOO!"), they encored for 30 minutes. This encore seemed to sum up what String Cheese was about. Three songs- an original, a Miles Davis cover, and a traditional song- showed how their influences and their range. Perhaps most impressive is their ability to do a song like "Lonesome Road Blues" (basically "Goin' Down the Road Feelin' Bad") and make it sound like their own discovery, not a Dead cover. There is a rich tradition of folk music in this country; it's nice to hear people mining it and making it their own.
I left Austin the next day. Before my flight took off, I made a pilgrimage to Bee Cave, TX to visit The Backyard, the location of the last Texas Phish show I attended. A mile down the road, an H-E-B was opening. There was a table outside where you could get "Free Samples" of this new product, an obscure beverage called "Coca Cola". Apparently Texas is a whole 'nother country, but if they get more shows like the 21st, maybe I should keep my passport handy.
Setlists:
11/20/98I: (80 m) Texas, Sitting on Top of the World, Mauna Bowa, Missing Me-> Panama Red, Mercy Mercy Mercy, Shine, Black Furry Possum
II: (80 m) Best Feeling in the World* -> Fire on the Mountain* -> MLT, Barstool, Got What He Wanted->Impressions-> Black Clouds
Enc: (12 m) The Road Home, Southbound
* with Keller Williams
11/21/98I: (90 m) Land's End-> Late in the Evening-> Vocal Jam-> Late in the Evening, 100 Year Flood-> Resume Man -> Remington Ride, Mrs. Brown's Tea House -> Pirates -> Round the Wheel
II: (60 m) Bigger isn't Better-> On the Road, Parkers Blues, John Hardy, Lonesome Fiddle Blues, Land's End (reprise)
enc: (30 m) Smile, So What*, Lonesome Road Blues*
*with Keller Williams and a washboard player
Local Flavors
Magpu
The Home Bar - Dallas, TX
by Stan SmithIntroduction:
Let's all be on the same page and get this understood right from the start about this piece of journal-ism you're about to read; it _IS_ journalism, and it contains opinions, namely mine. I attempt a version of a gonzo impersonation (my apologies to Dr. Thompson in advance) /stream of consciousness rap ala Ferlingeti/word game improvisation, & hope some of the emotional content and ideation of the moments I'm describing are felt by the reader.
Now I'm a strange person, and naturally my views are a bit strange. No offense intended to anyone here, but take it for what it really is, one individual laying down what's on his mind and trying to do so in an approximation of the fashion in which he thinks. IMHO, YMMV. Caveat emptor, beware of the dog . . .
Pre-show:
News from the trenches - e-mail from another planet - Is there anybody in there? Looks more like an abandoned building every time I come up here - random noise, congealing rain falling from the holes in the roof, washing the soot, dust, & smoke haze from the rafters - disgruntled patron set a fire a few months back, still rebuilding - old bar, new name. . .It used to be The Rhythm Room, then Stempys', now The Home Bar. . .Thursday has never been a great bar night, too close to the weekend hustle of Friday & Saturday night for the college crowd, is my guess. Arrived about 8:00 p.m., just as the soundman is unloading his PA. . .old habits die hard. Haul in the tape gear & start to set up my own rig, just plugging up the last connection as the first of the band arrives. . ."Wonder where the opening act is, they should have been here by now if they left College Station at five." "Last Free Exit, never heard of them." "They're pretty good, heard them open for somebody else a while back. . ." "Guess you'd better backline your gear, & not wait for them. It'll save time later." "Did you bring any extra mic stands or Claws?" "Nope, sorry!" "Ah shit, I'm going to have to run back to my house and get them! Can you run some mic lines for me while I'm gone?" "Sure, but you owe me. . ." "Fuck, it's raining like hell!" "Be careful, man." He heads for the house, and I head for the cable crates to start setting up mics for the opening band.
Act 1:
A bunch of folks in here early for the opening act, maybe about thirty all told, either family or friends it appears, and all on the guest list as it turns out. Not much cover charge money for the bands tonight. . .the opening band has arrived, beating the odds on the long drive through the thunderstorms blowing up from the Gulf. . . "Hey! You made it! Good to see you!" `Last Free Exit, a young four piece, bass, electric and acoustic guitars, drummer in the front line (aka: the Fishman configuration). . .Finally get all the gear set up, tuned, & tested and it's a fast line check and off we go . . .Clubland Soundmans Rule #1: The first three songs are always soundcheck. . .A bit rough at first, probably still road burnt . . .getting after it now. . .Interesting groove, DMB meets moe. with shades of Panic on the side. . .wish that poor guy could keep that acoustic guitar in tune, really jacking with my ear tonight, especially since I'm not over this cold. . .Wow! just looked at the a-time on the deck, 0.28.26 so far & they' re still jamming! Is that one long arranged song, or four run together? Good solid stuff either way. . . Bass player is tight w/ the drummer, good start. The band seems a little green, just finding their collective soul, but that' s cool. Time will tell. . . . I enjoyed their set, definite potential here, but the damn out of tune guitar really got in the way. . .positive lyrics, simple but effective five & six chord jam-rock. . . at the end of the set a nice response from the crowd, locals and imports - [Who the heck are some of these folks, anyways? Never seen an older crowd like this, out for a new band, esp. on a weeknight!] Total time on stage: 54.30., total breaks between songs: 0 - that's ZERO - 0, Total times trying to tune that #@!!%*# acoustic guitar: about thirty; Answer: replace the tuning heads on it, or burn it onstage ala Hendrix. The world will be better for it. ;)
A short intermission, and some introductions:
. . .Hard to believe that this is already the 20th show, only the 20th show, less than nine months ago this band didn't even exist - some sort of `birth' metaphor here? - Nah, too easy. ;) These guys may not have a lot of time on stage, but they seem to have it down enough to play out. . .Lots of rehearsals, a live EP tape, just recently a self produced CD, and some good shows. . .pretty good track record so far, & I'm expecting that they will continue to work hard at what they obviously like to do and be successful at it. It's either that, or give it up for the day-job scene, like so many other new artists who don't achieve immediate success & glory. Be a damn shame, too `cause these guys are fun to watch. I'm friends w/ them, but don' t let that influence your opinion of what I have to say about their music.
Find a tape, come see a show, but make up your own mind and don't just accept my word for it because you saw it on the Net. . .I'm just another human being who happens to express an opinion. Hopefully you have one too (pretty sad if you don't), & we can discuss the differences over a beer some night at a show. I'm a taper/technician/stage hand ("sound man", for those of you who have no idea what these other things are), and I see a lot of live music, local and national acts, and I volunteered to write this review. If the editors' like it, and you like it, and I like it, maybe it'll be a regular thing. We shall see. . . Hopefully you have one too (pretty sad if you don't), & we can discuss the differences over a beer some night at a show. `Nuff said. . .
Kurt always sets up his three keyboards Stage Right, M1, some sort of Casio, & another electric piano, lead vocals, sometimes the only vocals, but what the hell . . . Terry the drummer, sets up on the riser in back, left-handed but weird, hi-hat on the right, snare left of center, floor tom behind that, roto-tom over, but if it works for him, who cares? . . .Kyle the giant bass player, easy to spot in a crowd, head and shoulders above everyone else, listens so well and fills in the holes in the jams, center stage, center of the mix, of course . . .Brian on guitar/z far Stage Left, Axe-sys & pedals ready, ".able to leap taller guitar players in a blast of midi-sounds.', taper/computer geek, a good guy to have with you on a road trip, even if he is fussy about his mics ;). . .
Act 2:
Here we go, change-over, wrap the cable, rearrange drum mics, level check, reset the monitor levels, and "They're off, coming around the first turn and it's Magpu out in front." . . .intergalactic radio sliding around looking for a station in the clear, dial spinning, sliding around again to discover synchrony. . .stepping through the program pedals
Check the levels, stereo balance is good, got the mics set in the sweet spot, & all systems go. "Good evening ladies and gentlemen! We are `Magpuss' , and we've been told by the critics that we are quite infectious, and that some of our fans can be a little obsessive . . ." Ba-dum-pum - - ching! (a reference to a misprint in one of the local papers advertising the gig) - "Oh my god! That guy's got so many hats!! What's he gonna' do with all those hats? Find out." And the first song kicks off, "So Many Hats", a tribute in the style of local heroes Walter Mitty, keyboards flailing, Kyle on the BASS, "That's Mr. Bass to you. . . ", guitar screams like a mutant kitten, drums fitting in/around/over/under the beat, pushing the rest of the group into line . . . four simultaneous solos - looking for the groove that moves other people, finding their stride . . .musical mutation in action . . .jammin'! . . .outside the song form, a hint, a bit of a theme creeps back on little mutant kitten feet. . .explosion as all of the guys come in on the one and it's the first ever "Tweezer" cover! %). . . heading for jazz-fusion world, taking it somewhere other than the usual form, atonal hieroglyphic note & chord forms. . .CIRCUS music!. . . morphing again, twirling out of any hope of recognition, twisted up into a new thing that will not come around twice in the same way ever again -[A short aside: Damn it ,Julie & Shannon! You are the loudest people I know! And, you both have the uncanny ability to place yourselves exactly in the pattern of the recording mics! I love you, but get the flock BEHIND the mics if you want to have a conversation for a change! You know you're loud when: Your voices can cut through a live PA at 140 dB SPL & piss off the guy who makes the tapes. You know who you are! ]- . . . Ah-ha, I get it! Blended "Hats" & "Tweezer" together simultaneous like. . .now back to the "Hats" themes, and a nice jam on that, and a quick restatement of the "Tweezer" (GO Brian!), shifting gears again . . .out of the structured chaos . . .another song slimes it's way into view . . .and next up: "Tub-a-Flub" (minor key scary, a bit stilted, but an okay song . . .good launching platform for more exploration.) . . .and yet more circus music. . .-[The opening bands crowd is slowly filtering towards the exits, while the band themselves gather on the couches in the back of the room & stare openmouthed at the `Pu - They hang for a while, & then too fade into the continuing rain, thunder and lightning - brings us down to about 25 souls in here, seen worse w/ other acts: A bartender, a sound-man, & a band.depressing.]- . . . jammin' continued. . .getting after it . . . a sudden right angle turn, and the music falls apart . . . Three song jam, Total time: 39:30 . . ."Beware of the rats!" "We have a broken snare drum, and a rat in the monitor!" "He crawled out one hole and back into another." . . . "Honest to gawd, there's a rat in my monitor wedge!." - Wayne gets the duct tape, seals the ports on the wedge, & the rat gets a serious ultra sound examination for the rest of the evening - goofing around with the crowd now, an "Iron Man" fragment - "Give that rat an MRI" - musical one-liners - a brief tuning, shades of Creams' "White Room" . . .back on track, "Legwork" is the next tune, I think. Don't have all the titles down. . .Nicely done. . .a short silence .
. ."We apologize in advance for this next song." "It's the sequel to our other hit "Everything Here Is So Large", and it's called "Burrito Transplant Surgery"." . . .The capsule review on this one would be "Blackmores' Rainbow meets King Crimson, & beats up on Mahogany Rush" . . . Well, I liked it! - a Rush tuning, "Spirit o/t Radio" , attempted Zepplin. . .now it's getting weird in here, down to nine people including me, the soundman & the bartender. . .random noises, synth swirls & guitar way, way up the neck, drums almost at heartbeat tempo . . ."I think you know where you are . . . On the back of the worm . . ." - quoting from some Phish show last year, I think [later confirmed w/ the 'Pu after load out] - drifting into the intro from "Temples of Syrinx ", an actual Rush cover, drifting out to something resembling a Crimson tune - into demented caliope music - back to Crimson `sturm & drang' - caliope music from Mars again - the storm . . . nice right angle turn, well executed! . . .??? I have no idea what he said there!?! "How does it feel to know the one who knows the song . . ." huh? What?!? . . .nice synth solo . . .another round of jamming, seems like totally free form, resembles nothing I've heard from other gigs. . .if I hear it twice more then it gets a name . . ."Alice in Wonderland Rhinoceros"? ;) . . . another "Tweezer" reprise, short, but funny in context, "you had to be there" sort of thing . . ."LOOK AT THE MOON! I MADE IT DISSAPEAR!! IT'S A MIRACLE!!!" (add your own imaginary long delay/reverb to get the full effect here) - What in the hell was that all about? - more free form - loud drum crashes, synth argues w/ the bass & squeals horridly like a small child, fat chunky guitar chorded arythmically, suddenly swirls, quiets and slows - "We' re trying to kill the rat . . ." - "I think we succeeded." "Do you think the rat will sign our mailing list?" . . . "I can tell by the pitter pattering of that rain that our friend the moisture has come back to haunt us . . .Do you know where you are?. . .You're on the back of the worm . . ." - ".seMpER FIIIIIIIIIIIIII!." - Wayne at the console seems to be digging it, helping out the weird feeling here w/ some well applied delays & twisted feedback from the efx section of his FOH rack. . .more simultaneous soloing, definitely twisted stuff here, dynamic from a whisper to a scream, "Dark Side Of The Moon" in reverse at dub speed. . .something trying to climb up into form, up into being. . . they've almost got that chord progression jam stuff figured out . . .clanking, rumbles, thunder outside in perfect time, crank up the tension another notch, no release, no release, no release, and. /.. /. . . / . . . . "The rat is dead." "Long live the rat.", ".Semper Fi." a silence falls, then those who are left smile & applaud.
"Delete this, Baby" , `freeboird' intro, TT 1.40.36 from start to finish, w/ some additional conversation about the rat not included in time figure, Seven "songs", including two extended improvisations
[excerpt from e-mail letter]
See you @ Home, eh?!? Well, _NOT_! Good show last night, a 'Tweezer' cover sandwiched into several Magpu originals, & two 'Tweezer, reprise' sections as well! Go Brian! About 1.40.00 straight through with remarkably few tuning/"whadda' you wanna' play next?" breaks. 'So Many Hats' is sounding more & more like Mitty every time I hear it . . .a nice tribute/parody, IMHO. Also repeated 'quotes' from a '97 Phish show (according to B.C.) about "You know where you are...riding on the back of the worm..." interspersed w/ Magpu multi-soloing improvs. Pretty damn cool!
Soul Hat Record Release Party
12/5/98
Steamboat - Austin, TX
by Chris GardnerI was kidnapped. I wasn't drugged and bound by any means, but I was definitely kidnapped. I held a grudge against the venue you see. When Soul Hat began playing Steamboat years ago, the ticket prices sky-rocketed to $8 dollars, and I hadn't forgotten. Sure I was excited to see the new guitarist, Mac McNabb. Sure I wanted to see the funky as month old cheese new bassist, John Vogelsang , and yeah I knew there hadn't been a new Soul Hat record in years. Still, it is just an EP, and I sure am comfortable right here and it is cold and I am broke and I am tired and this is a good movie and I never see these people and...
Of course none of that mattered. The Mattmann wasn't having it, and before I could blink or protest or even sputter out a defiant, "Heyman!" I was bouncing in anticipation with a cold Shiner in one hand and a shiny new CD in the other. So it goes.
Soul Hat is a four piece again. Bassist Brian Walsh whose fluid lines gave Soul Hat its slink went out to country a few months ago, and local former funk wizard John Vogelsang joined. Kevin McKinney is the frontman and songwriter. These days, anyone can jam. The problem seems to be that, while the bar rooms are filled with competent and even exceptional improvisers, the jams use half-baked songs as spring boards and little more, and the result is a jam with words tacked on. There is a deceptive simplicity to Kevin's songwriting. His lyrics and riffs drift in and out of your thoughts throughout the day. When I am in line at the grocery store with a ridiculous smile on my face bobbing, wiggling, shaking my keys like a hi-hat, and singing guitar parts when the old lady in the next aisle catches my figure in the corner of her eye, recoils, and shoots me that, "Can't turn my back on that freak," look that always makes me feel at home, I usually have Kevin to blame. The songs are so good that the jam is just gravy.
They opened with the new tale of unleaded frustration, "Pay at the Pump", and I began to notice that my well rehearsed "Soul Hat Bounce" wasn't going to cut it. The new tunes are jauntier, punchier (thanks to John Vogelsang), and a few baby steps closer to straight ahead rock `n' roll than the older material. They followed with "No Neck Joe", a perfect combination of the weightier sound and the familiar groove. Things were beginning to heat up.
They delved into "Prayin' for Rain", and all the hands hit the air. I was beginning to remember why I didn't like Steamboat, but that was a passing billboard of a thought as I immersed myself in the music on the road ahead of me. Frosty was drivin' the bus this night, and Frosty has seen all the roads. Some drummers keep up with the jam. Some keep up and even add a new wrinkle here and there. Frosty drives it - insistently. The jam listens to Frosty. He tells it where to go, points the way, and the jam does what it is told. He is not the best drummer I have ever seen, but I have never seen better.
Somewhere during the half hour I spent zoning out on Frosty, I forgot why I didn't like Steamboat. Really quite a nice little place I have decided.
Soul Hat has gone through several incarnations over the last few years, and the jams, as a result, have suffered. Well, they exorcised the demons tonight. The versions of Psychological Bone and Wiggin' this night were expansive. Each stretched well beyond the ten minute mark without ever losing focus. Through the lineup changes, they were always able to explore a theme, but this night they shifted from theme to theme seamlessly, exploring the directions a thought might lead rather the fringes of the initial theme, moving beyond the music, weaving new layers beneath between and behind the groove. A Soul Hat show is a journey again.
They chased us out into the 85 degree December night with "Love Me Now", which I hadn't heard in years. They hinted at teases of Little Sister's "Sweet Love", but resisted the LMN>Sweet Love>LMN sandwich that was once standard. Kevin was yelping and growling. Frosty had the whole crowd hooked on the hi-hat. I closed me eyes, splashed around in the puddles of spilled beer, grinned like all get out, and knew for certain that Soul Hat was back.
Check out the SCI page at: http://www.stringcheeseincident.com/and the Magpu page at: http://www.metronet.com/~lerxst/magpu.html
and the revitalized Soul Hat page at: http://lonestar.texas.net/~jslozano/soulhat.html
Please send any and all submissions to Chris Gardner at cgardner@tstar.net
You may notice a pronounced Texan slant to this section. Help me change that!
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