Written by: Meredith Berke
Photos by: Allison Murphy
photo by: Allison Murphy
Drive-By Truckers drove through The Capitol Theatre including an hour long encore.
Drive-By-Truckers came to The Capitol Theatre last night for a rousing two-and-a-half hour set. This band has gone through multiple iterations throughout the last five years or so, and now the group is touring to show their fans how they have morphed into a new five-piece band, with the recent departure of John Neff.
The new band now consists of: Patterson Hood (guitar, vocals, bass), Mike Cooley (guitar, vocals, bass), Brad Morgan (drums), Jay Gonzalez (keyboards, guitar, vocals) and Mike Patton (bass), the newest member who genuinely looked thrilled to be playing with the band.
Pre-show/During-show/Overall Bowling Notes: I made it out on a Tuesday, even though I was quite spent from the work day, I went to see Bowlive IV with Booker T. and special unannounced guest David Hildago.
Since I was spent, I decided to get a cup of coffee from the restaurant. I saw a bunch of friends I knew including Eric Kalb (drummer, Deep Banana Blackout/Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings), and he called me a music addict. “This girl sees a lot, I mean a lot of music.” I laughed and acknowledged my addiction… and gave him props for the sick, sick DBB set last weekend at The Capitol Theatre.
We bowled, and I threw a horrendous score of 43. Don’t judge. I am a better Wii bowler than a real bowler. Yes, I know, the amount of time I am at The Bowl does not equal my bowling score. I go to dance and hear music, not bowl. I am glad all eyes were on the stage, some of my throws down the bowling alley caught air. Whoops.
So, with the bowling, and the very mellow mood I was in, I relaxed on the couch and listened sidebar…till the end of the show.
Opener: Have to say, it was a pretty incredible set from Cochemea “Cheme” Gastelum (Dap Kings) with about 1,000,000,000 players on the stage (ok, it was 9 players on the stage, but still pretty incredible.) There was Cheme alternating with a sax and flute and his band playing The Electric Sound of Johnny Arrow, which sounded amazing to my ears. It was a mix of jazz/world beat music and it was such a great large sound to my ears. The world beat brought in a new element from the inundation of funk/jazz we’ve been treated to. Take my word, if you like horns and you like great percussion (2 percussionists and a drummer) and you like a mix of jazz/reggae/afrobeats, you’d love Cheme’s band.
photo by: Allison Murphy
Set 1 (and only 1, for a full 2+ hours)I had seen a set list from the Beacon Allman shows, and Hildago was supposed to be there, but instead he showed up at The Brooklyn Bowl. Lucky for us! Continue reading →
The birth of this music blog began four years ago, at the first Bowlive, Soulive’s yearly residency at The Brooklyn Bowl. The Bowl had also just opened their doors around that time, and it seemed that View Skewed and Brooklyn Bowl has grown leaps and bounds since that time.
Brooklyn Bowl has become one of the top 10 destinations in NYC, and opening locations in Las Vegas and London. View Skewed has been writing for such great publications like Jambands.com, Relix.com and now for The Capitol Theatre. It is fitting that View Skewed returns to our roots by covering Bowlive IV. The reviews of the first Bowlive shows, if your interested, for shits and giggles….
NIGHT 1 Highlights: (set lists below) The Bowl was packed, Kung Fu opened, with their amazing 100% in your face jazz/funk fusion fury. Night 1 special guests were John Popper, from Blues Traveler, and Luther & Cody Dickinson, with an unannounced appearance from Tedeschi and Trucks Band trombonist, Saunders Sermons.
NIGHT 1 Scene: John Popper, special guest
Packed Bowl. Packed for a Thursday, the most packed first night of Bowlive I’ve seen in the four years. Soulive played first set and then brought out John Popper. Popper sounds gooood, he looks good, and he sounded powerful and strong when he sang his tune, “Mulling it Over.” His signature voice sounds sweet yet tough, and it was great to see him up there. It’s always a treat for me to see Popper.
It was all southern twang style with Luther and Kraz going tit for tat against each other, and Cody was playing some electronic drum next to Neal Evans’ keyboard rig. Then Cody put on his infamous electronic washboard, and made those odd yet fun swishing sounds that I have come to love from the North Mississippi Allstars. I turned to my friend and said, “This makes me feel like Wanee is close.” Indeed, The Wanee Festival is about a month away. Saunders Sermon strolled on stage to finish the last couple of songs with Soulive and The Dickinson Brothers.They played long on the first night, since DJ Questo couldn’t make his Bowltrain set, and we danced until around 1:15pm on a Thursday evening in Brooklyn.
Night 2
Pre-Show: Line to get in, packed house, people milling around for Sister Sparrow. We got our drink, we said hello to some people, we found our spot near the stage, and watched the opening set. Continue reading →
You could feel the energy, even while we were still at port, with the crew still setting up the stage, and the MSC Poesia staff scraping off the stickers from Holy Ship! which still dressed the boat’s elevators. I walked around the boat, giving the grand tour to my friends who had never boarded the boat: “virgins,” as they say. We bought our drink tickets, and sat in the sun, with our drinks, on the pool deck watching people hugging other people, relaxing into the vibe that is Jam Cruise. Finally. We were here.
Back at the cabins we spent time decorating our hallway in a zebra theme, and then went up to the pool deck for the Sail Away Party. Soul Rebels, a brass band from New Orleans, were playing loud and strong,, the wind in your hair was palpable, and we were about to leave the country. This was a highly anticipated moment, for me, and about the other three thousand people on the MSC Poesia.
Day 1, All Aboard! Saturday, Jan 7 Highlights:
The monster set with Medeski, Scofield, Martin and Wood on the Pool Deck. They played experimental jazz at its finest. I love these guys and this was an absolute treat as we sailed away from Florida. I was still feeling amped, excited to become totally decompressed and relaxed, my personal anticipation at its height, and this set that made me think, “ahhh, we are here. This is happening. I’m on vacation, I’m on the boat, I’m on the boat! Ahhhh.”
Notes:
Timing/lack of timing: Once we left the Port, my phone went into roaming mode, and automatically advanced 5 hours. This wasn’t helpful trying to figure out the schedule/timing/what stage, etc.
Zebra night – I went back to the cabin after MSMW and put on my zebra pants and made our way down to the Theater for Steel Pulse, and on our way, while walking through the Zebra Room to get to the Theater was The Motet with Nigel Hall playing. I took a double take. And then remembered what life is like on the boat – a feeling of total FOMS (Fear Of Missing Something) all day/every day, and you are ok with it.
Day 2, At Sea, Tuesday, Jan 8 Highlights:
It was a full day on the seas packed with fun activities and music sets, to keep us busy and dancing well into the early morning hours. I bought myself a poster and got on line for the Artist Autograph Signing. I waited in line for about an hour. In front of me was a seven-week old baby, who brought his parents along to take pictures. I asked all the artists (Lettuce, MSMW, Dumpstaphunk, funky Meters, Galactic, Soul Rebels, Pimps of Joytime, Zoogma, Skerik, Mike Dillon, I’m sure I’m missing people.) “Will you sign my poster?” in true dork form, and every one of the artists were gracious. I shook Mr. Bernie Worrell’s hand. I told Scofield he was my hero. And I promptly lost that poster by the time I had left the boat. :-(
I am now writing for The Capitol Theatre, and here is my View Skewed (get it!!) on the Friday night show.
Short story: The place was sold out, packed, the booze was flowing, the crowd was excited, and the band played their hard guitar rock for the shiny happy people below.
We walked into the Brooklyn Bowl where there were large signs stating that tonight’s concert was being taped and by being there we could be on TV.
The Concert lasted about 2 hours and 30 minutes, and Aaron Neville sang many doo-wop songs. From what we learned on Wednesday, Neville can do doo-wop. Well. Really well.
This concert was the actual live filming for Aaron Neville’s upcoming PBS special, produced by Keith Richards and Don Was. This show also promoted his upcoming Doo-wop album coming out in January. If it is any indication of what I saw on Wednesday, I can’t wait to purchase it.
Neville singing, known for his sweet harmonic voice, shouldn’t have been a surprise when he was harmonizing with Joan Osborne, or Paul Simon. But it was. The specialness of being at such an intimate setting as The Brooklyn Bowl with two incredible icons like Neville and Simon. It gives me goosebumps as I write this.
Mr. Neville looked sharp up there, in his suit, with his brother Charles next to him on sax, and a plethora of talent behind him. The formality of the show was not lost on me. Joan Osborne looked like she was in awe of Mr. Neville as she dueted with him. Paul Simon and Neville sat on stools, both dressed with fedoras as they played an acoustic We Belong Together, an old Ritchie Valens song.
Even though the house lights were on the whole time, and the crowd itself was an odd mix of NOLA fans, and Doo-Wop fans, it was still one of the most special shows I’ve seen all year. The intimacy of a packed Brooklyn Bowl was also juxtaposed against the all kinds of aged crowd, and the immense amount of talent on the stage… it was, for me, overwhelmingly mind-blowing. At times, it brought me back to this year’s NOLA Jazz Fest, my first Jazz Fest, and the tears that streamed down my face when Neville sang Amazing Grace, the last song at the Fairgrounds.
Neville played some favorites too, like a hair raising Hercules, ending the set with his , Tell It Like It Is. @WebVixenNYC grabbed a set list – grateful for your set list snag!
The band members on the stage behind Neville were, Greg Leisz on guitar, (Sheryl Crow, Bob Dylan, Ryan Adams), George G. Receli on drums (Bob Dylan, James Brown), Tony Scherr on bass (Bill Frisell, Norah Jones, Rufus Wainwright), brother Charles Neville on saxophone (Neville Brothers). Also featuring Michael Goods on organ/piano and Joel Katz, David Johnson and Earl Smith, Jr. on background vocals. Special guests including Eugene Pitt of the Jive Five (who co-wrote the album’s title song), and Dickie Harmon from the Del-Vikings, Joan Osborne and Paul Simon.
Again… goosebumps all over my body. Thank you, Mr. Neville… thank you.
View Skewed takes on its first classical review with The 92Y Well Tempered Clavier.NYC’s 92Y put on two exquisite classical piano concerts this week featuring pianist András Schiff playing both books of Bach’s Well Tempered Clavier. The 92Y also used social media to promote the lead in of the two historic shows through Twitter, by creating the #WellTweetedClavier. It was through this campaign that brought the visitor to the 92Y website where they were treated to Schiff’s ideas about these two impressive books of work.
Mr. Schiff explains that he sees colors that matches the keys of the piano, or all the keys within the Well Tempered Clavier. This campaign explained to the viewer about Schiff’s color scheme by attaching a color to each key of the keyboard. The #WTClavier taught us about what a fugue is (A fugue has multiple (usually four) voices that perform a theme in succession, just like a round (“Row, Row, Row Your Boat”), and their hand picked YouTube videos promoted each song within the Well Tempered Clavier by including a variety of musicians, pianists, orchestras, violinists, harpsichordists, vocalists and even a few cartoon characters playing Bach. It was a whimsical, funny and sometimes tongue-in-cheek way of promoting and teaching the public, the tweeters and the interested viewers alike. I encourage you and your family to interact with the #WTClavier keyboard and learn more on your own by clicking here: 92Y WTClavier
Below is Justin Brunelle‘s look at what he experienced when he went to the 92Y to see Mr. Schiff play Bach’s Well Tempered Clavier, book 1 and book 2. I hope you enjoy it. -Ed.
11.2.12
New York, NY
There is a purity in the music of Johann Sebastian Bach that belies its rich nature. The 18th century composer flourished in the Baroque period, marked by ornamentation in all forms of art. In music, the use of ornamentation came up against traditions upheld for centuries. Bach was able to bridge the gap between tradition and improvisation, which lead to a sophistication that still seems modern today. In doing so, he became one of the great preservationists and innovators in the history of western music.
Bach’s most pedagogical contribution to history is The Well Tempered Clavier, a series of compositions for the student and the accomplished keyboard player alike. The Well Tempered Clavier is two books written in 1722 and 1742, each book is comprised of 24 preludes and fugues from each major and minor key of every note in the chromatic scale. It is simply called The 48.
A prelude is a beginning, an introduction to the presence of melody. The fugue is a classical compositional technique that develops a theme through repetition of two or more voices. The relationship between these voices is in harmony while being independent of each other in terms of melodic contour and rhythm. In this form the melody is deconstructed or rearranged in many ways. Bach inserts a great many chord inversions, trills, augmentations, and other contrapuntal devices. The compositions range from deceptively simple to intricate, calisthenics for the mind and body where both the right and left-brain is continually tested. To hear them played well, where all the interweaving elements come together in polyphonic harmony, is to witness sheer perfection.
András Schiff has consistently shown the temperament to execute these techniques with sobering flair. On October 27th and November 1st, at the 92nd Street Y, Mr. Schiff played both books from memory, in their entirety, to a packed crowd of aficionados and musicians. He played them without pedal, reliant on the mechanical nature of his touch alone for sustain. It was an opportunity to hear a master…as pianist Laura Leon said before the first concert, “I came to learn, that’s why I am here.”
The first impression of Mr. Schiff’s interpretations is clarity. His intense devotion to the material is palpable. This devotion spread to everyone’s rapt attention like a convocation.
Indeed, Mr. Schiff showed a tacit command of the varied highs and lows of Book 1 in the first set. The bright airiness of E-flat major floated into the explosive juxtaposition of sonority in Prelude in E-minor. The somber sweetness deserving of C-sharp minor eventually gave way to the dizzying exuberance of D major. It is only here in D major did I miss the harpsichord sound.
During the second set I was most struck by the elegant calm of Prelude in B-flat minor as it matured into a gorgeously layered fugue, dramatically separated, only to fold back into itself in one fluid motion. I could not help but visualize the cubist collapse of Duchamp’s Nude Descending a Staircase of 1912.
The performance of Book 2 had a particular spirit. A mere three days after the devastation suffered by Hurricane Sandy, the concert felt highlighted in a special glow of generosity and salvation that was very religious.
On this occasion the difference between composer and pianist was seemingly erased right from the start of the meditative Prelude in C major. Mr. Schiff refrains from embellishing the works with to many personal touches or accents. The man has become synonymous with Bach in terms temperament, erudition and fervor. One is left with a feeling of remarkable intimacy.
I was fortunate to have a sight line of Mr. Schiff’s hands on the keyboard. It was mesmerizing to watch his nimble fingers reflecting off the black sheen of the Steinway grand during the brilliant Prelude and Fugue in D-sharp minor followed by the clarion salvos in E-flat major.
Book 2 is certainly more dense. The sheer polyphonic force of listening to all the works in one sitting is almost overwhelming, emotionally and intellectually.
Thursday evening’s performance concluded with the wonderful dance of B minor. The light-hearted, frivolous affair formed a perfect resolution to the emotional complexity just witnessed.
I woke up and hung with my camp family while some people trekked up to the Peach Stage for Bruce Hornsby. Even in camp I could hear Bruce playing a soulful tribute to Levon Helm with “The Night They Drove ‘Ole Dixie Down” and “Ride That Train”. It gave me the chills and I wasn’t near the stage. My friends told me it blew them away.
I do finally motivate around 1:30 to go see Buddy Guy. On a hot afternoon, the sun beams down on the field and my notes go something like this: playing with one had, keyboardist explosion, deep southern groove, Buddy is BAD.
Yes, Buddy is bad singing “Nobody Loves Me but my Guitar,” and then he stops and banters with the crowd. “Wait a minute, wait a minute. Ya’ll brought me here to sing the blues, we will not disappoint!” He goes into “Hoochie Coochie Man” and then stops again to scream at the crowd. “I was in India, and even they didn’t f*ck up the words like yall have.” Yep, Buddy Guy is a character – but can belt the blues like nobody’s business.
Then he does this bit where he leans on the speaker, turns the guitar around and sings this song where he plays a lick with his belly – or more to the point – his man parts. Uh huh. Seriously.
Then I move over to the mushroom stage to hear Mickey Hart’s new band that I had been hearing really great things about. I wanted to hear it for myself. The crowd goes wild on the first song, Not Fade Away, and the female singer, Crystal Monee Hall, brings a nice feminine voice to the mix. Dave Schools (Widespread Panic) is on base and then we go into some of Mickey’s new songs from his latest album, Mysterium Tremendum.I can honestly say this was the set that blew me away with new sounds, great jams and hard hitting percussion and bass. Some new music that really blew me away with its experimental groovy danceable jams. The third song began sounding reminiscent of early Pink Floyd with a bit of space and drums mixed in. The jams were hot and new and fresh. I can’t wait to see them again.
SET LIST: Not Fade Away >, Let There Be Light, Time Never Ends > Who Stole The Show?, Starlight Starbright, Cut The Deck > Bertha >, Supersonic > jam >, Fire on the Mountain
photo by: Shelly Smith
I then move back to the Peach Stage to see Tedeschi Trucks Band. If you know me at all, you know I’m a huge Derek Trucks fan. No, I was not disappointed at this set. They are greeted by a loving crowd. Tedeschi sings the first note of the first song and the audience is captivated. The sun beams down on the field, Susan Tedeschi banters with Derek Trucks’ guitar. The horn section is tight and sharp.
A few songs from Trucks’ old band, Derek Trucks Band were dusted off with “I Know” with Matt Mattson singing. It was a strong rendition, with a B3 keys explosion from Kofi Burbridge, and a just a tiny bit of shredding from Derek Trucks.
“Love Has Something Else to Say” was changed up a bit, there was a sick trumpet groove by DeShawn Ross, Oteil Burbridge, bass, was squirming in the background, hitting the sickest bass groove.
I then found some food while they played “Midnight in Harlem.” Derek noodled for a bit while I was on the ticket line, and then they began the song. Derek and Kofi start off the song sultry and soft. It is a beautiful song, Susan sings it perfectly – there is no one else out there with her type of voice. It was chillingly beautiful. And it was silent during Trucks’ solo. A field of 20,000 people, silent. He shreds that guitar to a silent crowd. Wow.
The second DTB song was Majoun, with its soft and dreamy bantering flute and guitar also kept me swaying in the crowd. Full set list below:
Don’t Let Me Slide, I Know, Love Has Something Else To Say, Midnight In Harlem, Down Don’t Bother Me / Band intros, Lord Protect My Child, Nobody’s Free, That Did It, Mahjoun > bass > drums, Darlin’ Be Home Soon >, Bound For Glory
I needed a break after that one; needed some food, more drink, and a rest back at camp. On the way back to the site I heard Bonerama from the Mushroom stage. A little bit later I heard Furthur begin to play. I sat in a chair at camp (home), and listened to both bands play. Continue reading →
This is the first festival I go to every year. I’ve been going for quite a few years now, and I go for the Brothers. (Allman Brothers, that is.) The last two years, Widespread Panic headlined. This year Furthur headlines. My favorite Gov’t Mule and the funky Dumpstaphunk are playing as well as a Q&A session with the Fur Peace Ranch w/ Jorma Kaukonen. Who’s going??
From the Wanee Website:For the first time Wanee Music Festival will host one of the premier music workshops in the country, Jorma Kaukonen’s Fur Peace Ranch. Wanee and Fur Peace Ranch will hold workshops during the festival and Q&A groups that will be held by Jorma Kaukonen, Jack Casady, Mickey Hart, Oteil Burbridge, Warren Haynes, and other performers that will be at Wanee 2012. They will all be hosted by Rock and Roll Hall Of Famer, Jorma Kaukonen. Continue reading →
So, we’re back – the 3rd annual Bowlive held in Brooklyn’s own Brooklyn Bowl. This is the favorite time of year to be eating lots of fried chicken, hearing bowling pins crash while listening to some of today’s finest musicians in a room where only 600 can comfortably stand, or dance. The first night went off without a hitch. Here’s my recount – it gets increasingly harder to understand my notes as the night goes on….
Pre-show:
No real preshow for me. I got to the Bowl at around 8:15pm, the show didn’t start until 9pm. I dropped my coat and bag off, said some hellos, hit the ladies room, got a drink and settled in for the evening. Chatted with my friend and looked to the right of me, there was John Scofield talking with some people, no less than 4 feet from me. I noted it but couldn’t bring myself to gawk at him. He’s one of my guitar heroes-being so close to greatness made me nervous.
photo by: RuthRocks
First Set:
Soulive alone. The trio (Eric Krasno and brothers Neal and Alan Evans) just came off their three night Snowlive weekend in Boulder Colorado, and they sounded tight. Soulive usually sounds tight but tonight they sounded like they had tightened a few notches up. They played alone, and for the first few songs I was so enthralled I had forgotten guitarist John Scofield was going to join the stage.
The trio just nailed the first set of the Bowlive 3 run, my friend turned to me and said, “first set, eh?”. I laughed and shook my head. It had already gotten heavy with funk and bass… We were only a hour in.
Set break:
Bathroom Run. Smoke Break. Hit the bar. Get back near stage left.
photo by: RuthRocks
Set 2:
Alan introduces John Scofield onto the stage and off we go.
Nigel Hall joined Neal Evans on the keyboard before he grabbed the mic to sing a slow bluesy serenade.
Here are my notes on that: Nigel slow serenade soulful sexy and raw. 10pm. Organ keys reverb right through The Brooklyn Bowl
Nigel wails. Scofield wails. Organ wails and a hot beat by Alan. Damn. Night 1 w the posse surrounding me, all goo love in the air.
First set. Jesus. It just started and it’s crazy funky souled up in here.
Scofield gives props to Soulive and particularly Nigel. Sweet. They go into Boozin’. Scofield is in love with Nigel. You can see it by his face.
Next, a crazy banter w Scofield and Neal. This rage officially melts the Bowl at 1022 pm.
Set Break: I’m kinda floating at this point. With permagrin wide I made it outside, chatted with friends, and realized I was starving. Good thing the Bowl has some good food.
I dropped my coat and winter crap back near my spot next to the stage and went for food. Apparently I wasn’t the only one who had such an idea. So I hit the ladies room instead.
photo by: RuthRocks
Set 3:
Soulive comes on the stage, alone once again. I find a dark corner close my eyes and groove hard in anonymous land. I went there. But I was in dire need of food. So, off to the restaurant!
Food choice? The Beach french bread pizza. Oh my. Lord. Yum. Not for vegetarians but for a pork filled meat lovers delight? I highly recommend. Soulive plays while I wait for my pizza. Food!! Come quickly. They’re raging!
11/28/12
NYC’s 92Y put on two exquisite classical piano concerts this week featuring pianist András Schiff playing both books of Bach’s Well Tempered Clavier. The 92Y also used social media to promote the lead in of the two historic shows through Twitter, by creating the #WellTweetedClavier. It was through this campaign that brought the visitor to 
View Skewed 