Day 3 Equifunk 2013: Camp Equinunk, PA

So, I missed breakfast this day.  I really just needed some coffee, although I had some bloody mary mix and accoutrements to ease myself in on this day, I still just wanted coffee.  Which I found a few hours later, much to my delight.

Sunday was a slow day.  You know how it is, festival living/festival time… I just needed to get up there for Mike Dillon Band.  Much to my amazement, I had woken up earlier than originally thought and I could see Papa Mali.  Lucky, lucky me.

I pretty much wandered aimlessly during Papa Mali’s set, it was a little too early still for me to get my groove on.  I haven’t seen Mali in over a year I think, and he looks different. He’s lost a lot of weight (congratulations!) and he looks great.  He sounds even better.  He played a great set with 13 year old guitar virtuoso Bobby Paltauf. This young man made his rounds during the weekend as well, and has played with Deep Banana Blackout this summer at The Brooklyn Bowl. Keep your eye and ears out for him. Mali’s set highlights were: “Wade on the Water,” “Nobody’s Fault But Mine”

Day 2 Equifunk 2013, Camp Equinunk, PA

Saturday Morning, Day 2

I woke up hungry.  And worried that I was going to miss breakfast, or at least miss all the food.  And I needed coffee. Bad.  So I left my cabin mates and walked over the footbridge and wandered for the mess hall.  It was not where I thought it was – actually I had no idea where it was, but I needed coffee.  STAT.  There was a line for the food, but much to my welcome surprise there was food. The food was not going to run out.  The coffee was not running out.  They had bagels, eggs, bacon, waffles, coffee, tea, ice water and orange juice, fruit and cereal and milk.  It was a beautiful buffet.  I was happy. Sitting alone, eating my breakfast, finally having enough coffee in me to be able to focus on what was going on around me.  People looked about the way I felt.  I needed a shower.  Or a dip in the pool.  And I just needed more coffee.

I took a doggie bag back with me for my cabin-mates, and took the walk back to my camp, yes over the footbridge again, past the lake, through the woods, up the hill to my cabin.  My cabin-mates were waking and slowly getting motivated to go see Superhuman Happiness, a supergroup whose members are all key NYC players with a collective resume that stretches across a dizzying array of talent, including Antibalas, Phenomenal Handclap Band, TV on the Radio, Iron & Wine and Martha Wainwright among numerous others. They were formed in 2008 to seek joy and love through shared rhythm and melody, composed and improvised. Their mission is to pursue a happiness greater than that experienced by an individual mind.  I got my chair, and my towel and got my cocktails in order and went back through the woods, over the footbridge, through the Equinunk cabin quad, up the hill to the pool area where there was a stage playing music all day.

photo by: Phrazz

Day 1 Equifunk 2013: Camp Equinunk, PA

Pre-festival logistics

Oh the decisions!

After a long week, I had left the decision to leave after work on Friday or first thing on Saturday morning to a “game-time” decision.  I realized mid-day that I was going to trek up to the Poconos on Friday night – hoping to see some music, but really wanting to get settled in so I could have one full day of festie love, instead of getting up there on Saturday morning, rushing and getting settled, and then finding music just to pack up the next day.  I have to say, the decision to go on Friday night was the right one.

Driving close to 3 hours from NYC, I got up to the camp, and after a bit of confusion trying to find my bunk, passes and parking, I settled in, made our bed in our cabin, met my new cabin mates for the weekend, and tried to suss out the situation.

I pretty much just followed the music.  I took a walk past a gorgeous lake, where the full moon was bright and clear.  I walked over the footbridge into the other part of the camp – the Equinunk part of camp.  I passed the courtyard of cabins, found the beer, passed the pool and the slide, and walked up the hill to the “E-rena.”  (get it “E-rena” for “E-quifunk.”  Yes, very tongue-n-cheek.)

I had no paper to take notes.  I had no camera to take pictures.  I would have to experience and write that down.  Excuse me in advance if I forget anything.

photo by: Dino Perrucci

Day 1 Highlights: Friday

I heard JJ Grey & Mofro while walking to the E-rena.  I got to see The New Mastersounds KILL IT on the stage on Friday night.  The scene, I have to say, was totally chill.  Crowd age ranged from mid-twenties to mid-fifties, I’d guess.  People were friendly and nice, with an odd frat-boy overtone (due to free beer, I’d say), but none of the “frat boys” were rude, obnoxious or mean.  They were having just a great time with their buddies, listening to great music just like the rest of the hippies/festival freaks.

Funk Rolls Down the Bowling Lanes w/ Bowlive 2 – March 1, 2011 (updated w/ video)

photo by: dinoperrucciphotography.com

Last night, Soulive’s 10 night residency at The Brooklyn Bowl began with a blast, a bit of stink, and horns galore….  These are my first impressions:

• Apparantly Brooklyn Bowl owner Peter Shapiro handed out 600 tequila shots.  Missed that.  Darn.
• Lettuce and Maceo Parker brought the house down.
• The secret is out of the bag, the place was packed for a random Tuesday evening.
• Nigel Hall and his Band set the tone for what is about to go down the next two weeks.
• Soulive:  Pure FONKI power…

I’ll be jotting down my notes for Jambands this week – and will link to those published stories (right here!).  From what I saw last night, the documentarians are out in full force, tapers, photographers, videographers, not to mention the official Soulive crew.  I think there may be a Bowlive 2 video in the making.  (by the way, they have DVD’s of Bowlive 1 on sale at The Bowl).

Here’s a taste of some of the pictures from one of the Funkiest Bowling Hall Residencies around:  Bowlive 2, Night 1, 3/1/11

Pictures from Dino Perrucci below and, Ruth Rocks and Relix (so far).

As of right now, there are no YouTubes (that I could find) to post.  C’mon documentarians…. get it together – this thing goes fast and you have to dump your footage and post your links ASAP. See Below in the comments section for Video:  Thanks Ross!

Photo by: dinoperrucciphotography.com

Photos by: dinoperrucciphotography.com

The First 8 Weeks of 2011 Music, NYC Bound

[Ed note: I have been lax in my habit of coming home and writing about every show I see.  Very lax.  That seemed to happen for only a few months in the beginning of this journey, but now it seems to be harder to do every show I see, (yes, I know – crybaby cry…)  I will try to sum up what’s been going on in NYC on these dreary wintery nights, where the snow piled high on cement streets, freezing cold winds slapping in my face…. Oh, whilst in the depths of winter, music will warm my bones…]

Bernie Worell, The Bitter End

That Bernie Worrell show with his whacked out jacket, jammin hard with a stage full’a fellas, Will Bernard, 2 saxs, great drummer, trumpet player from PFunk, in the tiny Bitter End club.

Umphree's McGee, Brooklyn Bowl

Umphree’s McGee and all their lightshow bonanza at the Brooklyn Bowl, phewwweee!  That was great fun, and their lights made the Brooklyn Bowl sparkle, there was a haze on the mirrored dance ball over the dance floor.  It was wild, they sounded great, the crowd was psyched and ready to roll with UMG’s surprise Monday night show.

Funky Meters, Brooklyn Bowl

Nigel Hall‘s, vocals/piano, Residency last Wednesday at the Rockwood with all the Royal Family members in the house and then to Brooklyn Bowl to see the funky Meters play with Brian Stoltz, Art Neville, Russell Batiste and George Porter, Jr., the late night at Bembe with some tasty DJ licks by Nutritious, where the night came full circle when Nigel Hall comes to bang on some congas and dance the night away.  Did I say this was a Wednesday…

The insane late night rage at the Blue Note with Sam Kininger, Sax that I wrote about here.

Dr. John, Maceo Parker, Eric Krazno, Photo by Allison Murphy

The killer Soul II Soul Benefit at Brooklyn Bowl with Nigel Hall and the Royal Family folks with Maceo Parker and Fred Wesley.  Horns in the HOUSE.  Dr. John on keys.  Good lord.  Insanity.  Listen here at Archive:

Photo by Robyn Gould

The night at The Beacon Theater with the gorgeous Dickinson Brothers, Cody (drums), and Luther (guitar) opening for Robert Plant’s Band of Joy.  WOW.  First off, the Dickinson Brothers (North Mississippi Allstars), wailed incredibly tight jams my ears couldn’t believe at times that there was only two instruments on the stage.  Then Robert Plant and the Band of Joy, his new band.  Really great to see Robert in the flesh, dancing and singing perfectly.  Voice sounds great, the band is filled with string instruments and great singers.  Sweetness.