Three in Brief: Cave Singers, Breakestra, Dead Remnants

The Cave Singers: Welcome Joy

The Independent

San Francisco, CA

October 6, 2009


This is the fourth appearance for the Cave Singers on MV&R. The most of any artist and deservedly so. In previous reviews, I have referred to the Cave Singers as raw art and then as poetry- the highest compliments that I can give any act and an assessment which is reconfirmed every time I see them. The refined rawness of their acoustic sound and the beauty of their poetry definitely puts this band in a class all their own. They released only their second album about two months ago, called Welcome Joy. There are several tracks definitely worth downloading. When singer Peter Quirk croons, "I hear them talking about me/ Well, I ain't no daughter of seasons/ I am just myself/ no one else" in Beach House; or "We do our best to carry on/ oh, is that the way, is that the way home?/We don't care where we are/ we don't care if we arrive soon" in Summer Light, I feel centered and connected like listening to no other artist. Their songs speak to a place deep inside and make you understand, in a way that only great music can, that we are stardust, flashing for an instant in the sky and then fading out. All my problems and worries recede for a grateful moment. And they can also call forth demons in the raucous Dancing on Your Grave or At the Cut. For over a year, the Cave Singers have been my favorite band.



Breakestra: Dusk to Dawn

The Independent

San Francisco, CA

October 2, 2009

This band is so much fricking fun, it should be illegal. In fact, I don’t think it is possible to go to a Breakestra show and not have a blast. I double-dog dare you! The funked-up sound laced with horns and breakbeats is infectious. I only wish their recordings were half this good. This concert was a CD release party for Breakestra and headliner Crown City Rockers (who I did not stay to hear). Breakestra's new CD is Dusk to Dawn and while it has several good tunes, it simply does not capture the overwhelming energy of the band on stage. When they get on stage, something special happens and the music comes to life. The band is full of first-class musicians as well, who seem to be having as much fun on stage as the urbane hipster crowd – lots of fedoras and bowling shirts and Krazy Kat tattoos (a bit like the movie ‘Swingers’ come to life). This band is so money! I cannot recommend Breakestra enough- if you have the chance, get yourself some tickets, some dancing shoes and go to the show.


Further: For Deadheads only

The Fox Theater

Oakland, CA

September 19, 2009

Seeing a show after the passing of Jerry Garcia is considered anathema by many Deadheads: Jerry Garcia was the heart and soul of the Grateful Dead and, far and away, the most talented- a true artist. The devotion of many Deadheads to this roly-poly, psychedelic Santa Claus, who could make his guitar sing, equaled the other 5 band members combined. This was most evident during the Dead's long run by the beer lines during “Bobby tunes.” When Jerry Garcia died of a heart attack fifteen years ago, brought on by years of heroin-addiction and other drug abuse, I thought I would never go again to another Grateful Dead show. Since that time, I have seen the remnants, the surviving members, perform on 4 occasions (which previously would have equaled one weekend stand at the Shoreline). It is true that time heals all wounds as this was by far the most enjoyable of the four post-Jerry shows. During the night, it (almost) never occurred to me that if only Jerry had been playing, that song would have been so much better. His creditable stand-in was John Kadlecik, the guitarist for the Dark Star Orchestra (which is probably the best Grateful Dead tribute band around). The crowd was the usual lively scene of tie-dye and blissed-out faces doing the Dead shuffle or twirling on the fringes with dreadlocks swaying. I’ll provide the song list of the second set here since it was absolutely huge: Shakedown Street, New Speedway Boogie, China Cat/I know you rider, Playing in the Band, Eyes of the World, Unbroken Chain, Help on its way/ Slipknot/ Franklin’s Tower E: One more Saturday night. That’s like 3 shows rolled into one! Starting with Shakedown and ending with Franklin’s- that’s a pretty special night. For even more deets: Deadheads can check out this pretty fair song-by-song review.

Jackson Browne: Latter day sins

Jackson Browne

Paramount Theater

Oakland, CA

August 19, 2009

Jackson Browne: Latter day sins

“Sub-question: is it, in fact, unfair to criticize a formerly great artist for his latter day sins, is it better to burn out or fade away?” Jack Black as Barry in the movie High Fidelity.

All music fans love the movie High Fidelity about the

doomed love life of a record store owner who has a

penchant for using lists to mark the soundtrack of his life: e.g. top 5 break-up songs, Top Five Bands or Musicians Who Will Have To Be Shot Come the Musical Revolution (1. Simple Minds, 2. Michael Bolton, 3. U2, 4. Bryan Adams, 5. Genesis) Just remember, for all you Bolton fans, I didn’t make the list. And though, this sub-question above is regarding Stevie Wonder, a once great artist that has committed some grievous latter day sins ("I just called to say I love you"); it could also be asked of Jackson Browne in some respects.

JB is Old School: not as an adjective but as a noun. When it comes to singer-songerwriters from the 1970s: Jackson Browne set the mold. He is a first class song-writer, a great singer and, at least, projects the image of being one of the most centered, down-to-earth rock stars in the biz. There is little wonder why he has a devoted following and engenders great affection from his fans- including me (what's not to love about someone who sues John McCain?).

Yet, the first set of last night’s concert was pretty tame. It was the lame Jackson Browne of the 1980s: forgettable sing-songy melodies, pedestrian lyrics with hackneyed metaphors- all rather uninspired. A pale echo of what he once was. Now, should I hold these sins against JB when his following set, after a brief intermission, was fantastic and displayed the brilliant song-writing of his early days that has made him a staple of classic hits FM radio?

The first three songs of the second set were Jamaica Say You Will, Rock Me on the Water and Doctor My Eyes. He also went on to play The Pretender and Running on Empty and closed the concert with The Load-Out/Stay. These songs are simply brilliant pieces of song-craftmanship and embody what I love about Jackson Browne- the painful honesty and self-revelatory nature of these songs say things that you have always felt yourself without the ability to put them into words. And JB accomplished this in a very laidback, easily accessible California style that makes me happy to live here: it’s about the good-life and trying to enjoy life because it is a wonderful thing to experience.

So, it pains me to say critical things about JB because I have affection for what he has accomplished as well as his longevity- not to mention his willingness to say what he feels is right and wrong. But I wish he would have skipped the first set and just played the second set.

RBF & The English Beat: Crazy Skanking High School Musical

Reel Big Fish
The English Beat
The Grand Ballroom at the Regency
San Francisco, CA
August 3, 2009

Senior Ska Correspondent Brian Griset

The English Beat: 30th Anniversary

In the late 1970s in England, bands like The Specials, Selector, Madness, Bad Manners and the English Beat combined ska, reggae, pop and punk to create a joyful reggae sound that was just danceable awesome music, often referred to as 2 Tone ska: the second wave of ska music. The English Beat had great success in the UK with a handful of hit singles. In addition to their UK popularity, the band found a solid base of young American fans eager to dance after tours with the biggest acts of the 80's including the Police, Talking Heads, and David Bowie.

Lead singer and guitarist, Dave Wakeling is the only original member of the band left but he has surrounded himself with very capable, younger musicians in order to recreate the Beat’s signature sound.

The song list was a veritable greatest hits collection of 2 Tone ska including "Hands Off She's Mine," "Twist And Crawl," "Rankin Full Stop," "Click Click," and "Can't Get Used To Losing You." "Mirror In The Bathroom," a song many believe refers to cocaine addiction, was a rollicking dancer. During the classic "Save It For Later," the Beat broke into the I-didn't-see-it-coming moment of the show playing a few verses of Pearl Jam's "Betterman." When two musical worlds collide like this, everybody wins.

The band also played three General Public songs, a later band of Wakeling’s, including "I'll Take You There," and the sing-songy hit "Tenderness." Overall their set was good fun. However, Wakeling seemed a bit bored, tired and contrite with his comments. For me, the show brought back fantastic memories of my twelve times seeing the movie ‘Dance Craze’ about 2 Tone Ska and enjoying the Beat, from the days before I could even legally drive a car.


Reel Big Fish: Where the Kids Are

Q. What do Van Morrison, A-ha, Toots & the Maytals , Poison and The English Beat all have in common? A. Each has had Orange County-based Reel Big Fish record a cover version of their songs.

After the English Beat finished and the 40-somethings had cleared out of the ballroom, leaving a room of rowdy teenagers, Reel Big Fish took the stage. RBF is made up of a group of zany guys led by front man and mutton-chops connoisseur Aaron Barret. The guys produce a high energy wacky ska nicely fusing bass, guitar, trombone, trumpets, drums and keyboards. They easily pick up the listeners feet sending audiences into a ranking full red bull skank infused party out of control.

Last night, I was a bit intimidated to let myself get into a skanking frenzy with fourteen year-olds in the dance pit. Despite my own fondness for a good mosh pit, I just couldn’t get into the thick of any mosh pit with children.

In addition to their celebrated covers, RBF also does original songs. One song called “Beer" - which is more about a relationship gone wrong than the virtues of barley and hops - is probably the band’s most popular song amongst its fans. Other fan favorites, which might explain their animated High School following, are "Everything Sucks" and "Fuck Off." Although there is no doubt that RBF is better known for their revved up ska versions of classics such as John Cougar Mellencamp’s “Authority Song,’’ A-Ha’s “Take On Me,’’ and Duran Duran's "Hungry Like a Wolf."

The band is tight, frolicsome and very enjoyable. I am glad I saw them even though I was probably the oldest guy in the room.


Jeff’s Take On the English Beat:
I lost track of how many times the band yelled “San Francisco” as a cheap applause line or even “San Fran” -which you don’t do in San Francisco unless you want to be branded as a hapless tourist or if you are hellbent on annoying the natives. I also lost track of the number of times the band stated it was their 30th anniversary tour which made me feel more like an old fart than appreciating the longevity of the band- especially as they played their hits, that were a soundtrack to virtually every crappy college party that I attended back in the 80s. The band was certainly fun but left me unfulfilled much like most popular music in the 1980s. Yeah, I am looking at you Dexy’s Midnight Runners, Belinda Carlisle, Cyndi Lauper, Milli Vanilli, Howard Jones (it’s a long list). Painfully simple, simple uninteresting hooks, lame lyrics etc. But the The English Beat and the music of the 1980s was only about having mass-marketed fun and nothing else and that was certainly true at the Grand Ballroom. Banal fun.

Jeff’s Take on RBF:
Horrible sound mix. No midrange. It was all bass and horns. Of course, I loves me some horns, but this band was the opposite of Gomez whose live performance was so much better than their recordings. RBF recordings are much better than this live performance- despite the mosh pit and the truly unbridled enthusiasm of their fans. If you were wondering were High Schoolers hang-out during the summer, they’re at the Reel Big Fish show, skanking their brains out in the mosh pit like some crazy skanking High School musical and crowd-surfing- which I have not seen since the days of Grunge. Still, it was great to see that kids get to cut loose once in a while these days but I won’t be going back. I don’t think the kids want mom and dad hanging out at their party anyway.

Gomez: Change and Stasis

Gomez

Blind Pilot

The Fillmore

San Francisco, CA

July 31, 2009

The possibility of reinvention, the capacity for change, is not only the foundation of hope for a better life but is inherently human and intrinsic to our perception and experience of life. I’ve been thinking a lot about change as entropy sinks into my skin and I notice the creaking of my bones growing a little bit louder as the weeks, months and years sail past. I am not the same person I was even seven years ago - literally. Many scientists believe that the molecules of every cell in your body are in a constant state of flux and regenerate every 7 years- which means in 7 years, I could be George Clooney. Of course, if there wasn’t constant change, there wouldn’t be life at all. This is part of the ecstatic quality of music and the celebration of life in attending live shows. Music is not static, it unveils itself to us over time- during which the world is spinning, evolving, changing, along with the song and myself.

When I left the concert last night, I was mostly trying to puzzle out why Gomez is not more popular. They are tremendous song-writers and talented musicians. They sing songs about infatuation, lost love, living in the moment, quitting your job, bad relationships, good relationships and their music includes elements of hard rock, folk, psychedelia, blues, jazz. They are occasionally classified as a “jam band” but are far closer to the “indie/college” music scene. From one song to the next, and sometimes within each Gomez song, there is the possibility for quick change of tempo, key or even musical genre- yet the reinvention within and between songs is all done rather seamlessly. And their songs can stay in your head for weeks.

Before Gomez, Blind Pilot opened the show with a very nice set of easy-on-the-ears folk rock tunes. Blind Pilot is definitely an up and comer. Their lead singer has a warm and appealing voice and the songs are well written, but they lack a bit of a spark. It was all a little too easy to listen to and not quite engaging- despite the trumpet and xylophone. I really love their song “The Story I Heard” which I can listen to over and over and hopefully this foreshadows a bright future. They are a band with great potential that I hope they realize.

Gomez is definitely a music critic’s band. They have repeatedly received the highest plaudits and awards during the 13 years that they have been together. I think part of their popularity problem and inability to really break through is that they have not been able to capture the energy of their live performances in their recordings. The highlights of last night’s performance were the current hit “Airstream Driver,” “Ruff Stuff,” “Devil Will Ride” and “Get Myself Arrested.” If you follow the links to these recordings, they are only half the quality, energy and excitement of the live versions last night. The reinvented arrangements added the extra spark that could change Gomez from a critic’s darling to a popular darling. But a part of me also doesn’t want that and wants Gomez to remain my own secret that no one’s heard of, just like a part of me doesn’t want to change and get any older. And that’s intrinsically human also.

For the Gomez neophytes: the most “pop”ular tunes “See The World,” “Girlshapedlovedrug,” and “How We Operate.”

Grizzly Bear and HWGM: Good to be in SF

Grizzly Bear
Here We Go Magic
The Fillmore
San Francisco, CA
June 21, 2009


Special Correspondent: Senior Musicologist Edie Hofmeister


Here We Go Magic!

Here we go! Magic! If you are seeking a psychadelic-indie earful after a warm summer day in San Francisco, this is the band for you. At times the repetitive rhythms conjured a Close Encounters call to alien life forms – which apparently included much of the college hipsters in the audience at the Fillmore. But it was good to be back in SF amongst the alien life forms.

HWGM sports a do-you-think-I'm-sexy lead singer, in a pretty hot cross between Chris Martin (Cold Play) and Greg Kinnear, in Luke Temple. Luke Temple has released a couple solo albums including one called Here We Go Magic which provided the spark behind the forming of HWGM. Luke is flanked by a loose-haired Princess Leah on keyboard and a 60’s-esque Twiggy on the bass who sported a tea dress that did not do her justice. Both women go by single names, so clearly, they have larger ambitions. But, at least, they looked good compared to the mediocre lead guitarist.

The band combined a brave attempt at 2, 3, 4, and 5-part harmonies in an all-band chorale effort at times ending in a cacophonous crescendo over a rolling beat that was more conducive to swaying than dancing. Their set came to a strange climax during “Tunnelvision” in which the band behind Luke nodded their heads violently, banged on their instruments and, throughout the song, whispered incomprehensibly – kind of like speaking in tongues in a monotonous cadence.

Here We Go Magic was more good than bad, but the band needs a little more practice. Perhaps some alien intervention is called for, or the Holy Spirit. More convincing was headliner Grizzly Bear.

Grizzly Bear

The Bear Band of the Hour. (See, also, Minus The Bear, Bear Claw, Big Bear) Grizzly Bear’s recent album has been number one on the college/indie charts for weeks and the show sold out so quickly that the band needed to add another on Monday night to appease disappointed fans.

On Sunday night, after HWGM warmed up the crowd, GB did not disappoint the loud, appreciative crowd. Lead singer Daniel Rossen, also of Dept. of Eagles (which is a side project for most of GB's band members) and looking like a young Paul Simon, was soaring on vocals and immediately engaged the audience. After opening with "Southern Point," the first track on their new album, they played "Cheerleader," a throbbing, pulsating dirge that had no semblance to actual ‘cheerleading.’ Nor did the regretful refrain, which sounded like "Should have sung my song. Should have made it matter," (though it could have been "I'm cheerleading myself. I shouldn't even matter,") - in either case, it didn't conjure up any notion of pom-pom waiving Go-Team airheadedness. There is a good chance I missed the point if there was one.

One thing that Grizzly Bear did well and seemed to enjoy was the incorporation of multiple instruments not normally associated with an indie band--lap harp, flute, clarinet, bass sax. The wind instrumentalist, a jack of many trades, but a master of none, sometimes overindulged himself, but he mostly kept the music relevant and interesting.

The band played a haunting rendition of “Knife” with Rossen channeling a soprano from the St. Paul's Boys' Choir. Then “Colorado”--a different kind of Rocky Mountain High that sounded a lot like a song John Denver might sing from six feet under (no disrespect to JD or JD fans). Other tunes were upbeat and even sounded a little "poppy" such as the keyboard-driven “Two Weeks” that showed off the band's vocal range and tight harmonies.

All in all, a terrific band with a lot of energy, ambition and range. Check them out the next time they are in town. But don't wait too long to buy tickets!

David Byrne: Awesome Show

-->David Byrne & Devotchka

The Greek Theater

Berkeley, CA

June 26, 2009

David Byrne: Awesome Show
David Byrne promised to perform Euripides at the outset of his performance on Friday night at the Greek Theater in Berkeley but instead played what very well may have been the concert of the year in the Bay Area. It was a beautiful warm night under a cloudless sky. The exceptionally talented band played a generous set that was engaging and fun. All ingredients were perfect for a wonderful night of live music.
The night was billed as an evening of songs by David Byrne and Brian Eno. David Byrne is, of course, the musical genius behind the cerebral and quirky 1980s band, the Talking Heads. And Brian Eno is, of course, one of the all-time great musical producers having previously worked with the Talking Heads, U2, Coldplay, Paul Simon, David Bowie, just to name a smattering of the enormously successful artists that he has guided to musical prominence. .
Before Byrne took over, Devotchka played an entertaining opening set. Devotchka has received lots of critical praise for their unique Balkan-gypsy-folk musical stylings. They sound straight outta Sarajevo but they are actually from Colorado. Go figure. They were the perfect opening act for an audience of David Byrne fans and received an enthusiastic response, but, as much as I enjoyed them, I’m not sure that they will go much further. How many rock bands are there with Sousaphone-players keeping the bass? Although I find their studio offerings a little stiff, they were definitely fun live and I will probably go see them again.
At 57 years old, David Byrne is still wiry and energetic. He and his entire band, including his dance troupe, wear clad all in white and the Greek Theater was frequently backlit in primary colors to great visual effect. The You Tube is already littered with videos of varying quality from the concert, see links below. The dance troupe tread the line between corny and cool and, in the final analysis, I think, were probably unnecessary because the music was just so good. Almost every song was right on the money and the crowd was extremely enthusiastic and never took their seat from the opening song. There were several very long ovations after classic hits that clearly surprised Byrne. Although Byrne was front and center throughout the concert, I cannot say enough about his band that showed great chemistry, artistry and energy. True professionals.
The highlights (most of these vids were probably shot with cell phones, so sound quality is not what we heard at the show which was absolutely first-rate): Heaven, Houses in Motion (the best song of the night, the crowd cheered for 5 minutes after this song, to which even Byrne responded ‘Wow’), the classics Life During Wartime, Once in a Lifetime and Burning Down the House.
The first encore began with Take Me to the River. I think, myself, along with half the crowd initially thought that the band was going to play Michael Jackon's Billie Jean. The opening bass lines of both songs are very similar, but on reflection it may have been wishful thinking because of a wager earlier in the evening that there might be some kind of tribute.
The second encore began with the Extra Action Marching Band, also clad in white, marching through the crowd and on to the stage to join Byrne for Road to Nowhere and Burning Down the House at which point there was a large white balloon drop (balloons make a party) and a mosh pit broke out in front of the stage. Chaos ensued.
A great night of music.

Jeff’s Most Embarrassing Concerts

1. Rick Springfield, Summerfest, Milwaukee, WI, July 1983

In my youth, the brilliance of the high school sophomore mind was embodied in a friend's suggestion that we go see Rick Springfield at Milwaukee’s Summerfest because, as he reasoned, the place will be swarming with randy teenage girls. And damned if he wasn’t absolutely right. The teenage girl to teenage boy ratio was probably 10:1. I was surrounded by thousands of shrieking, delirious girls. Despite this numerical advantage, we still failed to get any action and instead ended up going home to play Dungeons and Dragons all night (which is on a whole other ‘most embarrassing’ list). Talk about misspent youth.

2. Dan Fogelberg, Alpine Valley, WI, June 1984

Of course, once I had a girlfriend, I would do anything in my teenage randiness to please her, including going to see Dan Fogelberg at Alpine Valley. For those who don’t remember him, Dan Fogelberg was a syrupy balladeer who sang maudlin songs about lost love like Same Auld Lang Syne and Leader of the Band, now playing in an elevator near you. I still cannot hear these songs without recalling cheap perfume and Asti Spumante in the backseat of my girlfriend’s Pontiac Bonneville in some leafy Milwaukee park.

DF started his career doing semi-decent jazzy collaborations with flutist Tim Weisberg and this concert would actually have received a mixed review on MV&R, had there been blogs back then, because the second set was a collection of bluegrass tunes that was both surprising and really well done. Also, no matter who is performing, it’s tough to beat sitting on a blanket under the stars on a warm summer night at Alpine Valley.

3. Quiet Riot, Milwaukee Auditorium, WI, 1983

The complete bill was Quiet Riot and Saga. Quiet Riot’s hit “Come on Feel the Noise” was number one at the time, and had not yet becoming utterly unlistenable, but it was quickly apparent to me that they would be a one-hit wonder (though a smaller hit “Bang Your Head (Metal Health)” was recently used as the opening song to the acclaimed movie “The Wrestler”). I also remember this as being perhaps the loudest concert that I ever attended, followed closely by AC/DC on the Decibel Scale on their Back in Black tour. Overall, this show was not worth the admission.

Also, check out "On the Loose" by Saga for a good example of everything that was cheesily good and cheesily bad about MTV’s early days.

4. George Michael, Alpine Valley, WI, September 1988

Another example of what guys will do for their girlfriends. I am actually of two minds regarding George Michael as a musical artist, putting aside all the tawdry tabloid stories regarding his drug abuse and unsavory sexual habits. I think George Michael is a fantastically underrated songwriter by music critics. Yet I never like the production of his songs. Tunes like Faith, Kissing a Fool, One More Try, Hand to Mouth are all great songs but sound like they’re being played on a toy music box with no bass. A real artist should take a second look and consider re-recording one or two.

Nevertheless, this concert makes the list mainly because of the performance. This was George Michael’s Faith tour, his first after leaving Wham! The entire concert, and I mean all of it, was George Michael in the spotlight with the band left behind him literally playing in his reflected shadow. It was a tour de force of unrestrained ego that left me feeling a little queasy in the end.

5. Ted Nugent, Honolulu NBC Arena, HI, Summer 1983

This one is embarrassing as much as for what Ted Nugent has become (everything I loathe) as for the very limited musical value involved. Ted Nugent is now a complete arse, a tool, a spokesperson for the NRA who barely avoids spewing a racist paranoid screed whenever he opens his mouth – which is every chance he gets. Whenever he pops up, I can’t hit the mute fast enough.

I will have to confess that this concert was some value for the money, with some guy near the front spitting on Ted during “Cat Scratch Fever” prompting him to dive headfirst into the crowd (in the middle of the song) and inciting a mini-brawl with huge Hawaiian bouncers wading into the crowd to pluck Ted out and toss him back on the stage still enraged. (Of course, I can appreciate the spitter’s perspective far more now.) Oh, and that’s not even mentioning the fireworks under my chair. Even the worst concerts can give you good stories.

6. Honorable mention: Whitney Houston, St. Louis Amphitheater, Summer 1986.

Great voice, horrible songs.

The Mutaytor: Burning Man Cabaret

The Mutaytor

The Mezzanine

San Francisco, CA

May 16, 2009

The Mutaytor: Burning Man Cabaret

The Mutaytor likes to say that they are from Black Rock City, Nevada. You could say this is true in a spiritual sense even though the band is actually based out of Los Angeles, CA. Black Rock City is, of course, home to the Burning Man art festival that has grown from its humble origins as a neighborhood bonfire on San Francisco's Baker Beach to probably the biggest art festival in the US. Of course, to call Burning Man an art-festival does not really do justice to the varied nature of the event, since it is probably even moreso about countercultural cooperative community via unrestrained self-expression as it is a staid display of art – which it is most certainly not, even though the establishment, the stuffy Nevada Museum of Art in Reno has pieces on display from Burning Man.

As the, more or less, self-proclaimed house band of Burning Man, Mutaytor also embraces many of these greater ambitions by sharing the stage with a bevy of varied performers and can be largely likened to seeing a super-charged cabaret act, including belly-dancers, fire-dancers (without fire at the Mezzanine, damn firecode restrictions!), hula-hoopers (both on the ground and in the air) and one number featuring an ornate Chinese dragon. It is all quite a visual spectacle and never dull.

And all this is without yet mentioning the music- which is a driving, primal-rhythm based dance music with a 3-piece horn section. The music is high energy dance music that does not fall victim to the mind-numbing repetition of techno. The band also features John Avila on bass whose most famous stint was with the 80’s New Wave band Oingo Boingo. He appears rather gnome-like on stage surrounded by all the perfectly toned young dancers, but he is clearly a great musical talent- as is the rest of the band. At the Mezzanie, they were also joined by Jane's Addiction drummer, Stephen Perkins, who added a real rocking kick to the percussion section.

The band does not really need the visual distractions of a Chinese Dragon on stage but brings along all the additional performers because they want to and really who can complain? It was a tremendously fun show.

Check out a video of Mutaytor at Burning Man 2007 here.

Van Morrison: Astral Weeks

Van Morrison
Greek Theater
Berkeley, CA
May 4, 2009

Van Morrison: Astral Weeks

There are few songwriters as prolific as Van Morrison. He has released 36 albums in his career but few have engendered as much fondness amongst his fans as his second album from 1968, Astral Weeks. It is nowhere near his best selling album nor did it produce any of his classic hits, like Gloria, Brown-eyed girl, Moondance, Crazy Love, Into the Mystic or Domino. Which raises the question, why do Van Morrison fans as well as critics frequently cite this not only as one of his greatest albums but one of the greatest albums of all time by any artist? Which is a bit like asking, what makes good art?

The songs on Astral Weeks are impressionistic landscapes of romance and redemption. They evoke a time in life when one begins to realize that you make your own identity and your own life. The album has much in common with early masterful albums by Tom Waits with Heart of a Saturday Night or Lou Reed’s Transformer, Joni Mitchell’s Blue, The Band’s Music from Big Pink or even Rickie Lee Jones’ eponymous debut- when these artists seemed to produce their most honest and heartfelt work and told poetic stories of the struggles of every-day people to find love and live life- when they were writing songs because of their need for expression and not of their need to pay the mortgage or some desire for stardom. You can almost see the still-life by Annie Leibowitz of hanging tapestries, patched jeans, overflowing ashtrays and empty wine bottles- the artist’s life.

Many of the songs on Astral Weeks are written in a stream of conscious and can sound half-finished but when combined with Van’s poetry and Irish mysticism, the music is transformative. Just listening to the opening strumming of the song Astral Weeks or the opening lyrics of Sweet Thing, “And I will stroll the merry way and jump the hedges first/ And I will drink the clear clean water for to quench my thirst/ And I will never grow so old again,” is to be transported. The connection with great Romantic poets, like Keats, Blake or Wordsworth is immediate.

Which is all to say that it is a true masterpiece of music, and one which I believe, Van never again surpassed, though he keeps trying. Van is currently on an Astral Weeks tour where after an opening set and short break, he returns to play the album in its entirety. When I headed to Berkeley on Sunday night, the rain had threatened all day, but it never came and Van, who can be a very fickle performer, was in good spirits with a strong voice. He was accompanied by 15 class-act musicians. Van always surrounds himself with the very best talent. He performed an opening set that included jazzy takes on some of his standards and then came back for Astral Weeks. The performance of a 40-year old album has its perils. If simply duplicated, it would sound contrived and hopelessly mired in nostalgia but if updated too much, it risks losing the original appeal that the album always had. Van’s performance at the Greek was not too polished or too rough, he got it just about right.