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Midwest
Regional Report
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Edited by Todd Justus &
Tim Ward
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2000 has come and gone with what seemed like very little fanfare.
Maybe it's because current jam-kings Phish aren't performing an endurance
test in the Everglades or a city-wide blitz of New York at MSG. Whatever
the reason, the thing that has surprised us the most is that we haven't
heard from YOU. I mean, I know The Agora sold out, but I doubt that
all of you were there. So we're gonna let the rules slide and accept
New Years reviews for our next issue in February (we'll give you the
benefit of the doubt - maybe you haven't made it home left or are
still sleeping off that hangover).
Although lacking in tales of 12/31 debauchery, this issue isn't chopped liver by any stretch. We got the quick and dirty on Fat Apple's stop in Cincinnati by our Rivercity correspondent Scott Preston, and my take on the 12/28 and 12/30 hookah shows. A new voice with a funny penname, Cliff Hanger, has kept us updated on True Gravity, and we certainly appreciate Jeff Trinco's take on Cryin' Souls and The Steepwater Band. Check them out. So you guys have a month or so. Clear out your head and let us know why it's been so long since we heard from ya. We'll see you at the show. Todd & Tim (midwest@jambands.com)
Fat Apple Not many bands can pull off a 18 minute instrumental jam to open a show but Fat Apple (based out of Baltimore, MD) accomplished the task. The music is almost hypnotizing to the point where you lose track of time and you forget where you are, and all that your mind will comprehend is the melodic rhythm of the music. The music has a tightness to it, but to me it shows that all the band members know each other so well that they know how to play off of one another. At the same time they leave enough doors open for improvisation, which seems very important to them. Each transition into the next song is seamless; it takes a minute to realize that the flow is ever so slightly changing into a new listening experience. They even performed a funky version of "Jack and Diane" by John Mellencamp, which some people might think is a strange choice for a song to play , but they blended the lyrics quite nicely with their own style of music. Fat Apple without a doubt had everybody grooving all night. Fat Apple is: Fat Apples website: http://www.fatapple.com
ekoostik hookah by Todd Justus As fate would have it, my New Years run this year was limited to two shows. With a six month-old baby girl at home, the wife and I have found that sometimes we need a night hanging around the house, and we voted on New Years Eve this year to be that night. Besides, have you seen how much babysitters charge on the biggest party night of the year? I'll have to say, though, that thanks to two on-fire performances by hookah, I received a musical fix strong enough to last me well into Spring. hookah planned their New Years run this year well with two nights in Ann Arbor, a stop over at the House of Blues in Chicago, and then three nights progressing north on I-71 through Cincinnati and Columbus before putting a pretty bow on a late Christmas present to the fans with the culminating show at the Agora in Cleveland. Bogart's sold out easily, and the vibe of the crowd could be felt in the long lines braving the cold trying to score tickets. An urgent Masquerade opened the show on the 28th and was followed by the left-right combo of Change and Moonstone. Three songs in, and the fans had already seen three of their favorites. Two rarities followed, the undeniable and grossly underplayed Under Full Sail and Roadsick Blue, before Lady Vanilla met a terrific response from the crowd. Cliff Starbuck's John Henry got the dancers in a frenzy, and Dave Katz's Silvertrain kept the bluegrass going. Ecstasy closed the set with strong soloing across the board. Set two opened with a powerful Viper that slithered with its usual zeal before everyone took a turn on Riversong. After My Own Way, Dumpster earned "Jam of the Night" honors by applying the power funk in thick doses. Dumpster continues to get better with every version, and is almost scary in that you wonder where else they'll take this song. Ed McGee's Float, with a generous rhythm session sandwiched in the middle, stretched to end the set. And as they've tended to do of late, hookah selected the perfect encore with an affirming rendition of Peter Frampton's classic Do You Feel Like We Do? with McGee perfecting the riffs on his voicebox. And as I've done each time after checking out hookah this year, I found myself pondering the future of the band during the early morning ride back to Columbus. Eric Lanese and Johnny Polansky keep getting tighter with their beats. Cliff keeps bring the 'grass and funk on bass. Ed keeps writing good songs and playing better rhythm guitar. Katz seems to be turned up in the mix and experimenting with the keys. Sweney, well, I think Sweney speaks for himself (favorite shirt seen at hookah shows: "Sweney For King.") Let Phish (as much as I love 'em) take all the time they need. I think hookah has us covered for 2001.
Cryin' Souls & The Steepwater Band By Jeff Trinco New Year, Cold Weather, Hot Jams! A lot of the jambands of today tend to feature jazzy type jams in a lot of their tunes, but tonight I must admit it was incredibly refreshing to see a solid night of balls out, whiskey drinking, power dancing, Chicago blues jams. Cryin' Souls took the stage first at about 10:30. They started off the night with about a 10 minute version of the funky Booker T & the MG's instrumental Chicken Pox. This tune featured Cryin' Souls' new keyboardist Matt just wailing away on the Hammond. Highlights of their set included the first rendition of the new tune, Driving Down The Road, which started with a slow old school-Robert Johnson like guitar solo, then the song got kicked into overdrive and it was all jam for the next 6 or 7 minutes.very cool. I'm looking forward to seeing this song live again and again. Wiser Time was very well done, with Matt setting the jams with the awesome sounds of the Wurlitzer organ. Also a long jammed out version of Can't You See, complete with flute solo was quite a treat. Next up, at about 12:15, was The Steepwater Band. If you like blues/rock and you like jambands, see these guys as soon as you can. These guys rock. They opened up their set with a 15 minute version of Light Up Or Leave Me Alone! And things just got better and better. The Steepwater Band played a mix of both originals and old blues standards, but one thing was for sure, every song they played was extended beyond all levels of traditional blues jam. Guitar, harmonica, maracas, bass, drums, and "Greg Allman" style vocals was all mixed into a wonderful pot of jams. Each song must have clocked in around 10 minutes. Their high energy solos and jams never got boring. These guys are incredibly hot musicians. All in all, I was blown away by both bands. They each brought something a little different to the table, but it was ALL good. It was the first time Cryin' Souls and The Steepwater Band had ever played a show together, but it most definitely won't be the last. Look for more shows from these two in the spring...catch them while you can...I guarantee you'll be in whiskey drinking/blues/jam heaven.
True Gravity by Cliff Hanger Who Needs Gregg? Gregg Allman. Who Needs him? Well, certainly not True Gravity. Let alone any keyboard player at all! This was proven tonight at the Lyons Den when the Chi-Bros rocked the house without any support of a Hammond or a piano. With the recent removal of "Pistol" Pete Legend, True Gravity was stuck with nobody to play the keys and they proved to everybody in attendance that it could be done. It was left up to the youngsters on January 12th that an Allman Brothers tribute band doesn't necessarily need a Hammond. And I stress necessarily. The remaining five members were pretty confident when they approached the stage. They opened "At Fillmore East" style with Statesboro Blues. Since the band was put together just a year ago, Nate Wolverton has never played such a powerful solo in this piece. Up next was the remarkable dueling slides on Don't Keep Me Wonderin'. Listening back to the tapes, it's hard to figure out who is playing what solo. Both were unbelievably wailing and both were quite "Duane-esque". It was kind of a bumpy lead in to Stand Back but eventually they got things rolling and put a slow, funky backbone to the Allman/Oakley classic. Rather than keeping the set list entirely made up of Allman Brothers material, True Gravity played the Black Crowes tune Wiser Time. It was a little fast but the harmonies performed by Mike and Jason were extraordinarily tight. Moving back into the Fillmore genre, Done Somebody Wrong was played as close to perfect as you can get. This performance ultimately showed that Mike Tangorra is one of, if not the best, slide guitar players in Chicago. The next number is very hard to describe. The only thing I can say is if you get the chance to see True Gravity play Mountain Jam, you'll feel like you've died and gone to Fillmore in the clouds! Their rendition is so impeccable, yet so original, you have to see it to understand what the hell I'm talking about! The solos included Duane, Dickey, Warren, Derek, and even a little Scott Henderson (Tribal Tech)! As the band completed the 28-minute epic, I put my coat on and waited for the encore. Little did I know they still had a lot of gas to burn. After an incredible Midnight Rider with three-part harmonies, they performed the entire You Don't Love Me/Soul Serenade masterpiece with guitar lines taken straight from Dickey and Duane. Then, just to show that this wasn't a fluke, an encore of Jessica was played. I can't say enough about their version of this great Dickey Betts classic. It includes a lot of variations from the original studio version and a lot from the Grammy Award winning version from the Second Set. Ok, the reason I stressed "necessarily" earlier is because the band was definitely lacking in some very small aspects but after reflecting on tonight's performance, I seriously believe that this was True Gravity's greatest show they have played so far. It is unbelievable how far they have come in such a short time span and it is sad to see that they still have to resort to playing smaller venues because of their inert fan base. If your New Years resolution is to see more live music this year, do yourself a favor. Check these guys out. Not one soul on that stage should have a day job. True Gravity will be performing next week (1/20/01) at the Wooden Nickel in Highwood with featured guest Dan Moulder on the keys. After that they will be taking a short break to find a permanent organist. To get more information on True Gravity, Check out their web site at www.truegravity.org.
Notable Dates OHIO: 1/16/01 Fat Apple, Barrelhouse Brewing Co., Cincinnati ILLINOIS: 1/16/01 Mos Isley, Boulevard Cafe, Chicago MICHIGAN: 1/17/01 Jiant with Clovis Minor, Memphis Smoke, Royal Oak 1/17/01
Left Undone, Mitch's, Ann Arbor 1/18/01 Jiant, Rubbles, Mount Pleasant
1/18/01 Phat Phunktion, Rick's American Cafe, East Lansing 1/18/01
Sprout & the Orange, Wiseguys Bar, Saginaw 1/18/01 Urban Hillbilly
Quartet, Fishhouse Coffeehouse in Jonny's, Grand Rapids 1/19/01
The Flow, Billy's, Grand Rapids 1/19/01 Jiant, Wooden Nickel, Ypsilanti
1/19/01 Left Undone, Mitch's, Ann Arbor 1/19/01 Phat Phunktion,
Fifth Avenue Ballroom, Novi 1/19/01 Professor Marvel & The 4th Quadrant,
Ristos Bistro, Owosso 1/19/01 Steppin' In It, Alma College, Alma
1/20/01 Phat Phunktion, Bell's Eccentric Cafe, Kalamazoo 1/20/01
Professor Marvel & The 4th Quadrant, Ristos Bistro, Owosso 1/24/01
Steppin' In It, Mac's Bar, Lansing 1/25/01 North Mississippi All
Stars, Magic Bag, Detroit 1/25/01 Sprout & the Orange, Wiseguys
Bar, Saginaw 1/25/01 Steppin' In It, Bell's Eccentric Cafe, Kalamazoo
1/26/01 Lotus, Bell's Eccentric Cafe, Kalamazoo 1/26/01 My Cousin
Leonard, Magic Stick, Detroit 1/27/01 Electric Magi, Bell's Eccentric
Cafe, Kalamazoo 1/27/01 The Flow, Billy's, Grand Rapids 1/27/01
Fluent Blue, Rubbles, Mount Pleasant 1/27/01 Left Undone, Up Front
& Company, Marquette 1/27/01 Meropoix, The Blind Pig, Ann Arbor INDIANA 1/19/01 Lotus, The Courthouse Pub, Goshen WISCONSIN: 1/19/01 Cool Waters Band with Groovulous Glove, The Checkered
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