Photos by Robert Chapman

I’ve been to Brooklyn Bowl a few times now, and the most recent Bustle in Your Hedgerow show was possibly the most packed I have seen the place so far; which was surprising because the band still seems to be under the radar. Still the group includes Brooklyn residents Marco Benevento and Joe Russo, a “duo” well known and loved in their hometown of NYC and there was a strong showing of local support (the quartet is completed by Ween bassist Dave Dreiwitz and RANA guitarist Scott Metzger). Bustle in Your Hedgerow — or Bustle, as true heads proclaim — is an instrumental quintet that covers Led Zeppelin songs.This may seem like a trite idea, but one need only attend a show to see the originality behind it.

Bustle’s rendition of “No Quarter” has an ominous opening solo with a degree of strangeness that only Benevento can pull off. The instrumental improvisation led into a temporary tease of “I Am the Walrus” that gave homage to the late John Lennon, whose birthday recently passed. Joe Russo kicked off “Over the Hills and Far Away” by standing up and singing the opening lines, following up with a drumstick twirl, and then crashing into the first beats. This song and most of the others in the set had Benevento playing the vocal melody on the keys. I don’t remember when, but at some point in the night Joe Russo went all medieval and performed a drum solo with his hands.

The song “Good Times Bad Times” was played with an incredible degree of energy and enthusiasm. “Trampled Underfoot,” featured Benevento using his array of circuit-bent effects and Wurlitzer piano to sound like the guitar on The Dire Straits tune “Money For Nothing,” a unique and funky sound. “All of My Love” was another high energy jam with a cathartic and melodic guitar solo. The band closed with the Led Zeppelin classic “Ramble On.” While just short of spectacular, it was yet another tune in which Benevento’s keys interacted perfectly with Russo’s syncopated drumming.

The group played great and really filled the venue, a deserving turnout given the creative concept, in which some of the best songs of all time are being played without Robert Plant hollering into the mic. All in all, it was a great night.