The weekend before Christmas marks the penultimate weekend to see live music, before New Years Eve festivities take the place of usual club shows. December 18-20 was no exception and in the Capital District, we had the benefit of three Upstate New York bands playing three local venues to crowds of revelers looking for that one last fix before the holidays arrive.
Starting with Thursday December 18 show at The Hollow, Ampervene opened the night for Aqueous with complimentary prog rock. Aqueous tore through “What’s the Connection”, leaving the song unfinished for later and segued into “All In”, which contained “Fuego” teases. The debut of “Underlyer” was well received, as was a cover of Hendrix’ “Bold As Love”. The encore was a special treat as Aqueous invited up Joe Davis from Formula 5 to play on a debut cover of “Bertha” by the Grateful Dead, which eventually into the end of “What’s the Connection”. As a bonus, guitarist Mike Gantzer revealed that this show is likely to be a live release in the near future, so stay tuned for a crisp soundboard recording of the night!
review by Adam Pensel
On Friday December 19,Formula 5 made a triumphant return to the stage at Dinosaur BBQ in Troy. The masterfully crafted two set show featured a number of covers layered nicely with some of the band’s most powerful original jam vehicles.
They began the night with a spirited cover of “The Music Never Stopped”, which featured a smooth segue into “Hot Box”, an upbeat and fan favorite track off of their first self titled album. The most impressive tracks of the first set were covers of Derek and the Dominoes’ “Why Does Love Got to be So Sad” and Warren Zevon’s “Night Time in the Switching Yard”. Lead guitarist went on endless runs in the jams of both songs that would have left Zevon and Clapton nodding in approval.
The second set featured a sit-in during John Scofield’s “Hottentot” by Kevin Hendricks on trumpet and former Formula 5 bassist Bill Shattuck right at home on vocals for a cover of Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer” to close out the evening. The most impressive take away from the evening was the growth this band has shown over the course of this year. On any given night they have the ability to blow you away. Don’t miss your opportunity to see them in 2015 – this is a band on the rise.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfWrJ1BEB1U
In what is an annual tradition, Marco Benevento played a December show at Parish Public House (formerly Red Square) on Saturday December 20, and in turn packed the house with patrons who drank the bar nearly dry until the wee hours of the morning while dancing to the contagious beats from this fantastic trio. Joining Marco was Andy Borger on drums and Dave Dreiwitz on bass, who was particularly on point all night and laid down greater bass grooves than had been heard in past shows – this was a standout performance from him alone. Marco sang more this night than in the past, something you can hear on his latest album Swift, a step in a great direction for Marco. The night was celebrated by all as evidenced by the enthusiastic revelers dancing away in full view of Marco, feeding off his energy and he doing the same.
Marco Benevento announced his Swift US tour with stops in Brooklyn and Albany, NY. Marco will be in Brooklyn December 19 at the Brooklyn Bowl and Albany the following night on December 20 at The Parish House.
Marco will spend quite some time out west with shows all along the Pacific coast. Benevento has been busy with his solo work over the past few years as well as collaborating with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead. The tour is in support of his brand new album Swift which is available now in multiple formats on Marco’s website.
2015 Marco Benevento Swift US Tour
December 12-13 – Philadelphia, PA – Johnny Brenda’s
December 19 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Bowl
December 20 – Albany, NY – Parish Public House
January 29 – Northampton, MA – The Parlor Room
January 30-31 – Portsmouth, NH – The Press Room
February 26 – New Orleans, LA – Blue Nile
February 27 – Houston, TX – Warehouse Live
February 28 – Austin, TX – The Parish
March 4 – Phoenix, AZ – Rhythm Room
March 5 – San Diego, CA – Winston’s
March 6 – Los Angeles, CA – Bootleg Theatre
March 7 – San Francisco, CA – Independent
March 10 – Napa, CA – City Winery
March 11 – Arcata, CA – HumBrews
March 12 – Cottage Grove, OR – Axe & Fiddle
March 13 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios
March 14 – Seattle, WA – Nectar
The unmistakable notes from Marco Benevento’s piano rang out in the streets of historic Uptown Kingston – New York’s first capital – on Friday, September 26th. Benevento, who teamed up with bassist Dave Dreiwitz and drummer Andy Borger, played early into Sunday morning to a hyped-up Hudson Valley crowd. With family and friends aplenty to witness the release show for Benevento’s new album, Swift, no one left BSP without an ear-to-ear grin.
The front doors of the large bar/venue were wide open and folks could cool off on the plaza while still enjoying the feel-good tunes wafting outside. Inside, the music was as hot as the air; the trio rocked while joyous admirers filled the hall with dancing bodies. The shaggy piano man led long jams and, in between, held the audience’s attention with captivating asides.
BSP, located in the heart of New York’s first capital, provided an intimate setting for the Ulster County resident to play for a hometown crowd before hitting the road on tour. A few hundred people filled the spacious room, and everyone had a chance to get as close as desired to the semi-raised stage. In the middle of one 20-minute long improv session, Marco eased up on his piano to clap along and start an “AN-DY” chant, ensuring everyone in the building knew exactly who was banging the drums. Andy Borger fed off the cue, turning in a solid drum solo as Marco and Dreiwitz admired in support.
Later in the set, Benevento’s metaphorical nose grew and grew as he covered Money Mark’s “I Don’t Play Piano,” belting out: “I don’t know how to play piano; I don’t know how to sing.” For over a decade, the world has been aware of his mastery of the piano; the new album, Swift, features his voice as an additional weapon for the first time, evincing the complete inaccuracy of the lyrics. “DJ” Dave Dreiwitz’s stoic onstage persona never wavered even as he thumped out heavy solos, while Marco’s smile crescendoed with the music.
Though the room at BSP was dark, the music was light and uplifting. They played a poppy brand of improvisational, piano-heavy rock that induced the shimmying horde to raise hands to the heavens in delight. The band and crowd instantly engaged in a symbiotic relationship; fans fed off the musicians’ energy and vice versa. Spirits from the bar were lifted for many “cheers” while spirits were lifted by the sprinkling of melodious piano solos, accompanied by raucous cheers.
Around 1 a.m., the band came out for an encore while nearly everyone remained to show support. Benevento, Dreiwitz, and and Borger hit the road next in support of the album, which will conclude at the Brooklyn Bowl on December 18th and 19th.
Adding another instrument to a band is always a hard choice, but when it works out so well, the band and its’ fans embrace it forever. On his new album Swift, Marco Benevento has done just this, except the instrument he added is his own voice. Not one known for singing, Benevento sprinkled his voice all over Swift and it works great. Opening track “At The Show” has been played live for about a year and it is finally nice to hear the studio version. His voice adds character to a song that was already a great one from the wizard of the keyboards. Benevento explains. “I’m surprised it took me this long to sing, but growing older, getting into music by The Band and James Booker and the Grateful Dead, the singing door has opened. It’s a new instrument.”
Andy Borger and Dave Dreiwitz, on drums and bass respectively, are not hidden by the new instrument on the scene either. They are an integral part of what makes Marco’s music so special. Borger’s drums are heavy throughout the record, constantly driving each song forward while Dreiwitz’s bass dances right along with Benevento’s keys and lyrics, keeping them honest. “Eye to Eye” is a slowed down hazy dream that you get lost in immediately and feels longer than the four minutes that it is listed as. For fans of jamming, “Coyote Hearing” is a blissful jam, creeping closer to craziness the longer the track goes. This song is sure to thrive in a live setting with the beautiful work on the keys from Benevento, the thumping bass from Dreiwitz, and Borger’s impeccable drum work.
On “The Saint” an evil bass line pushes everyone else to go down the path of full on rock and roll and should be another one that thrives in the live setting. Album closer “Free Us All” is one that will be one of the tracks you find yourself listening to and clapping along with it. The song is sure to get stuck in your head. The vocals shine on this one with Marco belting out “Why don’t you free us all?”, over and over. Swift is new territory for the band and it should come as no surprise that these great musicians thrive on it. The band is going to be touring the country behind the album and make a stop in New York early in the tour with album release parties in New York City on Sept. 16 and 17, and a stop at Kingston’s BSP on Sept. 26. Grab the album before going the show though so you can learn the words and sing along with Marco; I’m sure he’d love it.
Key Tracks: At The Show, Coyote Hearing, The Saint, Free Us All
No family tree has as many strange branches as the ChillFam, and, from Sept. 5-7, approximately 5,000 fanatics gathered at the world’s foremost musical family reunion–the fifth annual Catskill Chill. Old friendships were rekindled and new ones born at Camp Minglewood in Hancock, NY. Among many other acts, Lettuce, Turkuaz, and Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe pumped out the funk, Kung Fu, Particle, and Papadosio rocked hard, and Dopapod, Electron, and Yonder Mountain String Band played their unique styles. From staff and vendors to artists and admirers, everyone at The Chill was camped on cloud nine. With round-the-clock live music on five official stages, pristine early September weather, and characters aplenty, The Catskill Chill was once again the perfect way to wind down festival season.
Friday
Anticipation and excitement blew in the pleasant Friday afternoon breeze as tents sprang up from the tennis courts down to the lake. My friend Chris and I headed to our “island”—a grassy triangle between sidewalk paths, large enough for our tents and chairs. Last year, we were known as the parking lot pirates; donning old-school Pittsburgh Pirates caps in homage to Ryan Stasik, our volunteering duty was to direct festival goers where to park. This year, we graduated to press pirates, hooked up by PR director Destiny Beck at the eleventh hour to promote the music we feverishly crave.
After setting up camp on the island, MUN’s early evening set in Club Chill was the first batch of music for me. While Nahko and Medicine for the People played the Main Stage, MUN jammed in the only fully enclosed stage. Led by guitarists Alfred Rylands and Wiley Griffin, they put on a heavy set of improg. The Brooklyn-based quartet will tour the Northeast this fall, providing the desirable kind of MUNdays with their “astrofunktronica.”
After The Eric Krasno Band lit up the B Stage with Alecia Chakour, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe played the first primetime Main Stage set. With a solid mix of covers and originals, the funk-masters ignited a massive dance party in the hangar-like pavilion. Denson showed off his versatility with back-to-back covers of The Marshall Tucker Band’s “Can’t You See”, and The White Stripes’ “Seven Nation Army”, on the flute before switching back to the sax for The Beastie Boys’ “Suco De Tangerina”. Dressed to the nines, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe wrapped up with “Shake It Out” and the mass before them obliged excitedly.
Uplifting piano notes from Marco Benevento began floating down from the B Stage as Karl Denson and company were still raging. Benevento’s was one of my most anticipated sets of the weekend, and he delivered. Banging his head and keys emphatically, melodic runs rained from Benevento’s piano in the steamy three-walled shed. Once in a while, he would take a break from jamming to clap along, beaming. “DJ” Drew Dreiwitz, also of Ween, cranked out a huge bass solo while Benevento sat back, sipped from his Solo cup, and soaked it in. The trio, rounded out by Andy Borger on the drums, covered “Benny & The Jets” and had the whole venue singing in raptures. Benevento will be touring this fall in support of his new album Swift, which releases on September 16th, and his show is not one to miss; he is as energetic and talented onstage as he is gregarious offstage.
From 11:15 p.m. to 1:15 a.m., Lettuce blew everyone away back at the Main Stage. Guitarist Eric Krasno, feeling at home at The Chill, shredded like a madman. The fired-up Kras sparked the rest of the band: Neal Evans crushed on the keys while the funk was rooted in the horns section. The venue was packed with fans swaying in hammocks, chilling in the bleachers, or grooving on the dance floor, which spilled out onto the hill in the rear. Lettuce played hits off each of their studio albums, including “The Dump”, “Sam Huff’s Flying Raging Machine”, and “Madison Square”. Adam Deitch was a rock on the drums and turned it up from “Outta Here” into a slamming solo. Jesus Coomes rattled bones with the bass and Alecia Chakour’s vocals were exalting. By the time they ended with “Blast Off”, the ChillFam was already in a state of bliss.
With Lettuce still keeping it fresh on the Main Stage, Pigeons Playing Ping Pong began flocking in Club Chill. The quartet features two guitarists with very different demeanors. Greg Ormont’s Sideshow Bob-like hair, infectious smile, energetic personality, and emphatic upbeat vocals make him hard to miss. While Ormont danced around grinning and singing, Jeremy Schon stood relatively in place, shaking his blonde mane, fingers deftly sliding around his six-string. Schon ripped through PPPP’s lively funkalogue, showing off big-league guitar skills. Barefoot bassist Ben Carrey scooted around the stage playing tight bass lines and drummer Dan Schwartz made his presence well-known. Twiddle’s Mihali Savoulidis joined for “Poseidon”, a number off Pigeons’ new album, Psychology, and the Baltimoreans hatched new dirty birds by concluding with a red-hot cover of “Suck My Kiss”.
The music would go on past 5 a.m. with Alan Evans’ Playonbrother jamming in Club Chill, but DJ Shpongle’s 2:30 a.m. set was my last bit of music on Friday. Shpongle, aka Simon Posford, had no trouble adding to his loyal following. He has mastered the art of playing to the mood. Those not melted into the hillside danced vigorously to the ambient DJ set. His beats are all-inclusive and joy ballooned in the pavilion as DJ Shpongle closed the Main Stage in style.
Saturday
Vermont quartet Twiddle was the first to play the Main Stage at 1:45 p.m. on Saturday. They opened with a rendition of “When It Rains It Poors” featuring beautiful vocals and warm harmonies. With each member dressed as a different Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, Twiddle segued into “Somewhere Over The Rainbow”. The master of turning knobs, Dopapod’s Eli Winderman, joined a few songs later and they almost got “Stooooped” off the stage when Kung Fu’s Todd Stoops sat in on the keys. Twiddle is finding their stride with well-composed songs, a positive message, and rapidly growing following.
Last year, as Chris and I directed cars in the hot, dirty parking lot, new-found enemies mocked us from their all-access/VIP pedestals: the teachers. When I heard a “Hey, pirate!” call while grabbing lunch between Twiddle and Cabinet, I knew instantly who it must be and my hand reached instinctively for a non-existent sword. As anticipated, it was one of the teachers.
Instead of spending our energies plotting each others’ demise, however, we formed the teacher-pirate alliance against wooks at this year’s Catskill Chill. On good terms, we wandered around pretending to duel and enjoying each other’s company at killer sets of music. From 4:30-6:25, ChillFam favorite Dopapod jumbled up an enthusiastic Main Stage crowd with jams like “Black and White”, “Freight Train”, and “Vol. 3 #86″. While they oozed out mostly originals, Adrian Tramontano joined on the hand drums for a Herbie Hancock cover before we headed to see a band people were talking about all weekend.
Long Islanders TAUK poured out chunky progressive rock in Club Chill after having slammed Lockn’ Festival the afternoon before. The quartet, whose members have been friends for longer than many Chillfam members have been alive, proved that they are not up-and-coming: they are here. They looked at ease on stage delivering heavy instrumental jams. They played “Mokuba”, “Friction”, and, personal favorite, “Collateral”, off new album Collisions. Bassist Charlie Dolan anchors the group while Matt Jalbert’s tight guitar riffs and well-placed solos add a healthy dose of inflection. Alric “A.C” Carter manipulates his keyboard dexterously while the “new guy” Isaac Teel does not miss a beat on drums. As Dolan pointed out, the group has the flexibility of continuing down the instrumental route or adding vocals one day, and their firepower gives them plenty of time to decide.
Despite the warmth of Club Chill and the delicious eeriness of TAUK, I moved over to the Acoustic Junction to catch the most talented trio in show business, Consider the Source. A loyal following wiggled in the rain as the Sourcerors rewarded with a cover of The Beatles “Blackbird”. They followed up with “Wayfaring Stranger” during which drummer Jeff Mann stepped up to the mandolin; he was so smooth that I barely noticed he was playing an atypical instrument. As the rain fell and the sun went down,the music was just getting turned up.
Yonder Mountain String Band played the headlining set on Saturday evening as the rain let up. Allie Kral sat in on the fiddle and, having caught her final set with former band Cornmeal at Summer Camp in 2013, I was eager to see her add to the Colorado bluegrass quartet. Their version of “Only A Northern Song” was awe-inspiring and they plucked out a unique rendition of The Talking Heads’ “Girlfriend Is Better”. Having also headlined in 2012, Yonder Mountain String Band may be an outlier to the funk-rock heavy lineup, but they bring a great following to the party and put on a captivating show. The strings-only group closed out their set by playing “40 Miles From Denver” and “Southern Flavor” to a delirious crowd.
After the first half of Cabinet’s Dead set in Club Chill, I learned that, after disbanding in 2011 (following 12 years of bumping), Canadian-based techno trio The New Deal is back. Consisting of keys player Jamie Shields, bassist Dan Kurtz, and drummer Joel Stouffer, they played a late night technotronica set to a packed Main Stage. Reunited, the band is scheduled to play a handful of shows across the country this fall as well as Dominican Holidaze.
I hopped over to the B Stage for The Nth Power after some more wook-watching. I need to be tested, but I may have been impregnated by their music. The quintet with one outlier (Nikki, Nigel, Nick, Nate, and… Weedie) played baby-making music to a dazzled crowd. Most of the songs they played will be featured on their 2015 debut full-length album, Abundance, but they threw in a euphoric cover of Marvin Gaye’s “I Want You”. Featuring powerful vocals and deep bass lines, the Nth Power creates a rich flavor of funk and produces a mesmerizing show.
Papadosio’s late night Main Stage set on Saturday proved that a music festival is like a box of chocolates. Anticipating an ambient, trancey end to the night, Papadosio put on a slamming set of rock. Festival goers like myself, who expected to be gently lulled toward sleep, were rocked back to life starting with a 20-minute “Find Your Cloud”. Eli Winderman joined for a tasty “Unparalyzer” as the Brouse brothers, who handle the band’s keys and synths, gave Dopapod’s keyboardist the reins. Anthony Thogmartin’s songwriting ability was evident as always and ‘Dosio is rounded out by bassist Rob McConnell and drummer Mike Healy. The Ohio natives jammed deftly until 4 a.m. while Pink Floyd/Talking Heads/Phish fusion Pink Talking Fish wound down the night in Club Chill.
Sunday
Every day at a music festival should start with a set from Turkuaz. After helping one of my best friends (whom I met at last year’s Catskill Chill) move out, Dopapod showed their innovation is not limited to the stage by serving up pancakes with a side of jam. Then, Turkuaz supplied the fuel needed for the rest of the weekend at the Main Stage. One cannot not dance while watching the Brooklyn-based funkernaut. Michelangelo Carubba looked and sounded fly as usual while leading the 9-pack on drums. Celebrating her birthday by gracing loyal fans with rich vocals, Sammi Garrett was on point all day and guitarist Dave Brandwein laid down the hammer on his axe. Bubbles and sunshine filled the early afternoon air while Turkuaz put the “fun” into funk with the title track off their recent album Future 86. As the horns rang out, knowing looks spread through the crowd: “These guys are getting it!”The band is on fire right now and their merch sports my new go-to alibi: “Turkuaz made me do it!”
After packing my gear up and reluctantly moving off the island, the rest of the day was dedicated to music. Particle carried on the bash that Turkuaz started as drummer Darren Pujalet led a one-way race to funkville. Turuaz’s horns section came out to brighten the set for a jam, then The Hornitz and original bassist Eric Gould joined and shook up the house. Guitarist Ben Combe is a force on stage, and Particle’s progressive synthy style is catalyzed by Steve Molitz on the keys, who also spit a rendition of Slick Rick’s “Children’s Story”. Particle played plenty of new songs and left many people slack-jawed with one of the harder sets all weekend.
I followed Particle’s bassist Clay Parnell up to the B Stage, where he also played with American Babies. They played a more traditional rock set highlighting Tom Hamilton’s songwriting and singing abilities. Electron’s Aron Magner sat in for a cover of The Dead’s “New Speedway Boogie” and the crowd loved Dylan’s “Tangled Up In Blue”.
Back at the Main Stage, Kung Fu impressed with hard funk. Tim Palmieri challenged Eric Krasno for “master shredder” title of the weekend and Todd Stoops played some glorious piano solos. Robert Somerville got real saxy and Chris DeAngelis was crisp on the bass. These ninjas’ chemistry glows like a beacon on the stage. Drummer Adrian Tramontano’s kit, like Tramontano himself, is compact, but the Zack Galifianakis look-alike is an inspiration for us vertically challenged denizens everywhere. As onlookers gawked, he crushed one of the best drum solos of the weekend, moving with remarkable speed. The horns and ladies of Turkuaz reappeared to form Kungkuaz and play Stevie Wonder’s “Haven’t Done Nothing”, a highlight of the entire weekend. The Connecticut quintet, who will tour the East Coast in October and November, never fail to deliver.
Before I could see Consider the Source‘s plugged-in set, I heard them and thought, “That can’t be them; that’s at least 6 or 7 people.” It was, however, CTS. There is videographic proof that I am not being hyperbolic describing the Sourcerors as a crew filmed the set. Drummer Jeff Mann must have eaten his Wheaties; he played with a maniacal reckless abandon. Guitarist Gabriel Marin, whose fingers glide like butter on glass across his fretless guitar, played an upbeat trumpet solo on his custom double-necked instrument. “Tihai For The Straight Guy” was a classic example of Beach Boys meet Middle Eastern pop-rock and, during “Keep Your Pimp Hand Strong”, bassist John Ferrara ripped the dirtiest bass solo of the weekend. With the first part of their new album World War Trio releasing this Halloween, expect heavy ripples from Consider the Source this fall.
The final evening at Camp Minglewood was chilly, but Electron cranked the heat at the Main Stage. Comprised of The Disco Biscuits’ Marc Brownstein and Aron Magner on bass and keys respectively, Lotus’s Mike Greenfield on the drums, and American Babies’ guitarist Tommy Hamilton, they broke through with the most expansive jams of the weekend. Not only was their music out of this world, their light show was spectacular. Despite being Sunday night, the dance floor was as packed and busy as any point during the weekend. Electron played richly textured space jams with intricately laid layers and explored the psychedelic. Magner pounded emotionally on the piano and gave equal attention to the synths, and Greenfield put the pedal to the metal a bit more than he would with Lotus. With glow sticks flying, rage sticks raging, and bodies bumping, Electron put an exclamation point on a great weekend of music.
My ship had sailed at Catskill Chill by the time the plug was pulled on Electron. Having bonded with old friends, acquired a host of new friends, danced to hours of incredible music, and explored every corner of Camp Minglewood, I was ready to put another successful Chill in the books. The marathon was over and the memories were made; now, I attempt to wait patiently as anticipation is already bubbling for Catskill Chill 6.
Check out a video of Yonder Mountain String Band from the festival:
New Jersey native Marco Benevento took the stage at The Saint in Asbury Park, NJ for a weekend of live music in a most intimate setting. The Saint, with a max capacity of 150, is one of the last small sized venues of its kind. If you haven’t had a chance to catch a show at The Saint, the diminutive size becomes a catalyst for a most memorable experience.
Friday night was filled with instrumental jams, dancing, and light-hearted interactive jokes between the crowd and band. Songs like “The Real Morning Party” and “Limbs of a Pine” had the band and crowd vibrating in unison for the duration of the night. A most unexpected and beautiful cover of “Fearless” had the entire room silenced holding on to every note, building up, to let it all out for a funky fun rendition of “Benny and the Jets”. Marco also invited local singer-songwriter Nicole Akins to the stage for a bluesy rendition of “Dazed and Confused”.
This weekend also included the debut of Benevento’s new song “The Saint” in honor of this iconic venue. This new song as well as several vocal tracks will be on his new album “Swift” which will be released in September.
As the weather breaks and nicer temperatures start to become the norm, the residents of Buffalo begin to come out of their winter slumber and explore the city again. This past Friday night, Marco Benevento was in town and, with mother nature’s cooperation, Buffalo’s music community came out in droves and ascended upon Nietzsche’s for a night of great music. As 10pm came and went, the venue began filling up with all walks of life to catch the jazz experimentalist himself. Benevento has played Buffalo pretty consistently as of late and it seems as though the scene here is not only appreciative of his visits, but the crowd continues to grow every time he comes back.
The night started off with local favorites, Lazlo Hollyfeld. With a beer in hand, it was actually difficult to try to maneuver to the front of the venue as it was that densely packed for Lazlo. The group, in my eyes, was a perfect fit to open the night as their instrumental experimentation goes hand in hand with the type of crowd Benevento brings out. With over ten years under their belts, Lazlo knew exactly how to draw a crowd in and keep them entranced with their choice of songs for the set. Without any effort, your ears immediately gravitated towards Matt Felski who has the unique role of Vibraphonist in the band. For those unfamiliar, the instrument is similar to a xylophone and, as you can imagine, stuck out like a sore thumb. That might sound like a slight, but the way Felski utilized staccato and legato couldn’t have been more perfect. I can’t say I’ve ever heard this instrument outside of jazz, let alone in a small band, but these guys made it work and have a truly unique sound because of it. While I would’ve enjoyed seeing some more of them that night, their set was stellar and got the crowd in the perfect mindset for what was to come. Their jamming was dark and exploratory, having almost a heavy metal feel in terms of both tempo and tone. Guitarist Sonny Baker was the visual focal piece for the band as his energy swelled with peaks in the music and forced him to frantically pluck away in certain segments and attack his solos with a fierce tenacity. As they wrapped up their set, the crowd let out an exuberant cheer, letting the band know of their appreciation and enjoyment.
Marco Benevento took the stage around midnight, which was appropriate for Buffalo as the city is known for its late nights and 4am last call. Midnight is when things start to get interesting here and that would hold true on this night as well. Benevento started off the night sprinting out of the gate and showing everyone right away why he’s so talented. On one song, he held the strings inside of his piano, creating a similar effect to a muted guitar and adding a layer of texture to his deep overall tone. As he stated in our interview, he doesn’t go on stage with a setlist in mind; he completely plays to the crowd and feels out what they’re hoping to hear from him. Friday night was no different. Benevento was locked in from the get-go as every change in tempo and every blistering solo only electrified the crowd even more. A few songs in, he turned and looked out across the crowd, grinning, to let both the band and audience know he was having a good time.
As we got deeper into the set, you began to question how much his weathered piano could take. Even though it looked like it could’ve been lying around in the back of Nietzsche’s, the tone that was culled from its depths was beautiful. It was definitely an odd juxtaposition of visual ugliness, yet tonal beauty. The use of effect pedals with his historic rig only make his sound that much more unique. His tone and approach is literally out of this world. If you closed your eyes, it was almost as if you were strolling through Dalí’s “The Persistence of Memory” and he was playing the soundtrack.
While only a year has passed since I last saw these guys, they have grown tighter as an overall entity. Dave Dreiwitz (bass) and Andy Borger (drums) have learned how to compliment what Benevento does and now play much larger roles within the group. When they would collectively stop, it felt as though the pressure had finally let up. The three were so good at keeping an incessant pace that you felt the need to gasp for air on the short break in between songs.
Benevento himself is a madman behind the keys. You could see it in his face at various points throughout the show that he was really trying to push his musical boundaries. In and of itself, you can respect him for that, but he balances that seriousness with a jovial side that enjoys the dynamic between the band and crowd. As a clear example of his playful side, a large wolf mask somehow made its was to the stage and Marco was the first to embrace it, playing through the second half of a song while it was on his head. It was difficult to discern whether the whole thing was planned, but Marco’s eagerness and energized playing said otherwise.
The show went on until about 2am with Marco covering songs off of every album, including some new tunes off of his upcoming Fall release. It was an incredible night of music to say the least. As the crowd filed out, I overheard what I presumed to be a new fan talking about how they couldn’t wait for the next time he’s in town. Not surprised, I now understand why Marco is always smiling.
Marco Benevento is coming to Buffalo this Friday for an intimate night of music at Nietzsche’s and sat down for an interview with Jeremiah Shea. The experimental pianist, who’s known for his engaging live show, will be joined by his band which features Dave Dreiwitz on bass and Andy Borger on drums. The three were last in the area when they headlined the Night Lights Fall Music Festival this past September and fans of Marco have been eagerly awaiting his return. Opening up the night will be WeazilDust (Packy Lunn from Jimkata doing a DJ set) and Lazlo Hollyfeld who play regularly in the area and will add to a night of great music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABW_fIufv9g
I got the chance to sit down with Marco and discuss a few things from his upcoming album to his approach to the stage. Marco is exactly how you’d expect him to be when we talked: personable, genuine, and appreciative of all of the support he’s had throughout his career. Our talk only lasted a half hour, but the insight into his music and life went pretty deep as his candid answers were anything but rehearsed.
Jeremiah Shea: It’s been a little while, but what was the experience like having Holly Bowling sit in with you on more than one occasion?
Marco Benevento: It was awesome! The first time it happened, we were playing in San Francisco and the audience was really close to the stage. The point of the gig was a fundraiser for Bread and Roses and every cent that came into the door went right to that organization. Nobody got paid for the gig, it was just volunteered time. Because we were setup so close to the audience, people could actually reach the piano from the audience and press a key down. I was jokingly saying, “It’s $2 if you want to reach up here and play a couple of keys.” People just got out singles and were holding money in the air to reach up and play. Holly just jumped up on stage and I was like, “Oh shit,” but she sat down next to me and said, “Don’t worry, I’m not a crazy fan and I’m friends with Dan.” Dan is our sound guy, so I knew it was ok and she jumped right into “Atari.” We totally rocked out and she knew the changes, and then we recreated that same experience at the Highline Ballroom in NY.
JS: I know you guys are experienced in improvisation, but how was it being the one who was surprised?
MB: Oh it totally made the night, especially in San Francisco. There were a lot of people who thought it was planned, so it was a cool experience. I was totally taken back by her knowledge and how she just knew all of the chords and didn’t flinch.
JS: You’re a guy who is always testing new ideas and mixing things up musically speaking. What new projects have you been working on?
MB: Yeah, my band, which includes Dave Dreiwitz on bass and Andy Borger on drums, went out to Oregon and we recorded with this incredible engineer/songwriter, Richard Swift, who is my age and plays with The Shins and The Black Keys. He’s just this genius engineer with a studio outside of Portland and we made the record with him that is primarily a vocal record. It’s all new music I wrote and instead of being instrumental, I put words to my melodies. We’ve been testing it out a lot lately, but the new record is the biggest project we’ve been working on.
JS: Is the plan to still have the album out this Fall?
MB: Yep!
JS: Now the vocal approach is a little different from what you normally do. Was that Richard’s idea or yours?
MB: That was my idea going into it and prior to going into it, we had made demos at my place before we went in. I knew I wanted to do it and I thought I should do it with a guy who has done a lot of that stuff. It was all something that I had planned out, but I wanted him to be the guy to capture it all. We did it in three days and it was just a very natural evolution of sound for me.
JS: Have you been tinkering with any new gadgets lately for your rig?
MB: One of my favorite gadgets is my Boss DR-3 delay pedal which was made back in the 70’s or 80’s and is just rockin’. I also have this Casiotone RC-1 which is predominantly featured on the new record. I sampled a lot of it from the Casio that’s here in my studio and it’s one of the best drum machines I’ve ever heard in my life. I want to do a whole album with it because it’s that amazing. The RC-1 has been rockin’ it for me and I never see it for sale or find anyone that knows about it. It’s just a hidden gem that is so badass.
JS: How was your experience at Bowlive this year?
MB: I’ve been doing that with them for about the last five years and it was great. They asked me to do it this year, and I said yes, but only if we covered “Soulful Strut” by Young Hault and “The In Crowd” by Randy Lewis. Those are both old school, funky piano jams from the 70’s and were instrumental hits at the time. It was a lot of fun and they have a great thing going over there.
JS: You had a pretty packed schedule at this years New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival. How was that experience as a whole and what was your favorite gig?
MB: I played about 1-4 gigs a day over the course of ten days, so it was busy. I got the chance to play with George Porter, my old band, and a bunch of other gigs. It’s always fun to play Jazz Fest. My favorite gig was probably playing at the Fairgrounds right before Phish with Anders Osborne. Playing for that many people at the Fairgrounds is a real treat.
JS: You are very personable on stage and it seems as though you like the interaction with the crowd. How do they shape the show and what does it do for you to have that back and forth?
MB: You get so much energy from the audience. If there’s 50, 200, or 2000 looking at you, dancing with you, and listening to you, you feel that when you’re on stage. It’s hard to describe, but you feel that. You can sense that maybe a lot of them are on acid and it’ll be a weird night or they’re drunk and belligerent, and we play to that. We never write a set list down, so when we go on stage, nobody knows what’s going to happen. I try to feel out what the crowd wants to hear next. You can ignore that feeling from the crowd as a musician and play what you’ve already decided on playing, but I don’t like to do things like that. I like to go out there and think, “what do these guys want to hear?” You really get a sense of what the audience wants while you’re out there being focused on.
JS: You’ve said this past year that you wanted to do a residency at the Red Square in Albany this upcoming Fall. Do you have any details on that?
MB: The last time I played a gig there, I was egging the crowd on and announced on the mic, “Tell the Red Square we want to play here every Saturday in October,” and the crowd went nuts. What I said leaked online and we had planned to do it, but the promoter had his hesitations. We were talking about doing it this October, but I don’t think it’s going to happen unfortunately.
JS:What upcoming festival gigs are you most looking forward to and why?
MB: We’re doing this really great one in Oregon, just outside of Portland, called Pickathon. It’s incredible! It has such a wide variety of music there and I just really like it. It’s not every jam band you’ve ever heard of playing there, it’s more a big variety and I just love that!
Western NY is in for a treat as the ivory wizard Marco Benevento brings his extensive spring touring through Upstate, then Rochester and Buffalo. Joining him again are David Dreiwitz (Bass/Ween) and Andy Borger (Drums/Tom Waits Band etc). Benevento is well known for innovative shows with mixed setlists, audience interaction (Want to play the piano for a dollar?), and virtuoso instrumentation.
The tour stops first at The Montage Music Hall in Rochester NY on May 15th. The Montage has gone through some recent renovations including upgraded sound and lights and has the local music community abuzz with their new jam heavy venue schedule. Tour continues May 16th at Buffalo’s historic Allentown music home, Nietzsche’s. Ticket prices and support acts to be announced.
Fans love to meet their musical idols, whether backstage, walking down the street, or just outside a venue. The experience is hard to come by but when it happens, it’s like a dream come true. But what happens when you meet a musician you are a huge fan of, possess a solid degree of musical talent yourself, and you are invited to play music with them, live on stage? Quite possibly the best night ever begins to unfold. Holly Bowling, a Suzuki Piano teacher from San Francisco had the unique, once in a lifetime experience sitting-in with Marco Benevento on December 1st at The Chapel.
And then it happened a second time later that month.
Pete Mason: Let’s start with the basics: you’re the mystery guest who sat in with Marco not just on December 30th at the Highline Ballroom, but also in San Francisco on December 1st at The Chapel. Who are you exactly?
Holly Bowling: I live in San Francisco and teach Suzuki Piano. Really, I’m just a girl with a piano and a dream. And a unicorn outfit… but I don’t usually talk about that. I like long walks on the beach at sunset and the Tahoe Tweezer. Actually, I can take or leave the long walks on the beach at sunset. I’ve played piano since I was five. I’m classically trained but play all kinds of different stuff. I teach piano lessons for a living, mostly to kids. When I’m not doing that, I see a lot of live music. A LOT of live music.
PM: What is your experience in playing piano?
HB: I played classical piano all the way through school growing up. It was simultaneously a really amazing thing as well as kind of a stressful competitive thing that I sort of stepped away from for a while. It’s a really intense scene. I came back to it for a while and majored in classical piano in college, and I’m really glad I did. But I really enjoy more freeform styles of music. And although you can lose yourself in classical music for sure, there’s something really cool about losing yourself in music that’s being created in the moment – whether you’re the performer or a member of an audience who are all experiencing the same thing.
PM: What draws you to music?
HB: What draws me to music is something I could talk about for hours but it’s the same things that draw everyone to it. It’s a form of expression, a way of conveying emotions to others or of experiencing someone else’s emotions. And it’s transportive; you can lose yourself in and it carries you somewhere, maybe someplace you remember, maybe someplace you’ve never been, whether you’re playing a Beethoven sonata or you’re in the crowd at a Phish show.
It’s elation, it’s despair, it’s contentment, it’s anticipation, it’s release… I mean it’s everything really. Also there’s an element of music that’s like a beautiful complex puzzle, with repeating patterns and cycles that go in and out of phase and mathematical ratios and perfect structure and order and also breaking all of that structure and order apart. Figuring out a new piece of music when you’re unfamiliar with it is fun that way. It’s a brand new puzzle to unlock and understand.
Also, music is the place in my life where I feel like I’m best able to 100% live in the exact moment I’m in and appreciate it fully. I’m right here for an instant and nowhere else. That’s increasingly hard to find, and hard to get to. It’s a pretty awesome feeling.
PM: Beyond your experience as a piano player, what draws you towards pianists in particular?
HB: On most instruments, you get to play one note at a time. Even on the guitar, where you can play chords, you still pretty much have to choose melody or chords, not both at once. There are amazing jazz players out there that can throw crazy harmonies underneath the melody as they improvise but for the most part, most instruments are one note only. The piano opens up all kinds of possibilities. But really I think i’m mostly drawn to it because I play it.
PM: What led to the sit-in with Marco Benevento in San Francisco?
HB: I went to a show on December 1st at a one of my favorite small venues in San Francisco called The Chapel. It was a benefit for a really fantastic nonprofit called Bread and Roses (if you haven’t heard of them, check them out – they bring live music to people who can’t go out and see it cause they’re stuck in the hospital, etc). Marco was playing with with the guys from Tea Leaf Green. I almost didn’t go, all my friends flaked and it was a sunday night. I decided to go at the last minute because I rarely miss a Marco show in San Francisco and I was excited to see him play with Reed (Mathis) again.
During the show, someone reached up and hit one of the keys on Marco’s piano. Somehow it became a running joke between Marco and the crowd that for a one dollar donation to Bread and Roses you could reach up and touch the top end of his piano. So all kinds of people were handing Marco singles and playing a note. Actually they were handing him small bills for all kinds of things… a group of people handed him a pile of singles to play happy birthday to their friend. He played “Hava Nagila” for everyone celebrating Hanukkah. So it was definitely a night of shenanigans and banter.
He kept asking the crowd “Does anyone else want to pay a dollar to touch the top end of the piano?” throughout the night and I’m thinking to myself, “Hell yeah I want to touch Marco’s piano!” But if I’m gonna touch it I wanna do more than just play a note… So I figured I’d go over there, hand him $2, and reach up to the top end of the piano and play the opening notes to “Atari”, because its my favorite Marco song and I wanted him to play it. $2 seemed fair… $1 for a note, double the rate for a handful of notes and a request.
I went over to hand Marco my $2 but I realized I couldn’t reach the piano over the monitors and all. So I handed him my two bucks and just climbed onstage. He was really cool about it and thankfully no one tackled me or threw me offstage or anything. He made room for me on the bench and offered for me to sit down next to him. Who turns that down? Not me! So we’re sitting at the piano next to each other and Marco starts playing “Heart and Soul”, that song everyone plays when they’re a kid, whether they know how to play or not, and I just turn to him and say “Uh-uh. Can I pick?”, and he stops, and I start playing the opening notes of “Atari”.
At this point I’m sure I have the biggest smile on my face and can’t be much happier because I AM SITTING NEXT TO MARCO BENEVENTO who is one of my favorite musicians and I am PLAYING MY FAVORITE MARCO SONG, but then Marco starts playing the bassline on the bottom end of the piano, so now we’re playing a duet. We played the whole song together, we high-fived, I gave Marco a hug, he tried to give me the pile of small bills that was on top of the piano from all the shenanigans earlier. I climbed off-stage and Marco kicked over his piano bench, said “This show is OVER” and walked offstage.
Here’s the crazy thing: I didn’t know a single person there. All my friends bailed last minute, and (my husband) Jeffery was in Los Angeles for work – I had literally dropped him off at SFO right before the show.
So this crazy thing happened, and no one I knew was there to even witness it. Luckily people in the crowd took video and sent it to me afterwards, which was awesome, because otherwise I think would’ve tried to tell my friends “Yeah I totally just climbed onstage and sat in with Marco tonight” and I think “suuuuuuuure you did” would’ve been their response.
On December 30th, Holly and friends attended the Phish show at Madison Square Garden, then went to the Highline Ballroom afterwards for the Marco Benevento post-show.
PM: What led to the sit-in at the Highline Ballroom?
HB: It’s post-Phish and my whole crew is at the Highline up in the balcony, and they’ve all been giving me shit the whole week about how I have to get up onstage and play with Marco again. Obviously they haven’t let it go by the time we get to the Highline. So the night goes on and the show starts to get weird like Marco shows always do (and I mean that in the best way… I blame the tiger mask) and it’s getting late, past 2 am. I figure if I’m gonna go for it this is the time. So I make my way up to the stage and between songs, I yell “Hey Marco, is it still a dollar to play the piano?” and hold up a single. He says “Yeah, it’s still a dollar! come on up here!”
So I got to play “Atari” with Marco again, but this time with Dave and Andy! Awesome. This time it was on a different piano, which was interesting because it only had maybe 6 octaves on it, so there was much less room to play around, especially with two people on it. I couldn’t believe I got to play with Marco… TWICE. I was pretty on top of the world.
The show continues and Marco does a cover of “Benny and the Jets”; it’s mostly instrumental but he usually sings the high “Benny! Benny! Benny and the Jets” part towards the end, except this time he sings “Holly… Holly… Holly is the best!” I seriously lost it. I’m like “Am I hearing this right? What is he saying?! I think that emboldened me a little to go back down there during the encore and see if I could play one more song with him. I definitely wanted to respect his show and not mess anything up but I figured he seemed like he was having fun with it during “Atari” so why not ask? I mean, the worst he could do is say no, which would’ve been totally fine. But I’m glad he said yes.
During the encore I went to the bar and bought Marco a beer. An encore, actually. I handed it to him, along with my buddy’s ridiculous neon green RAGE hat. I really wanted to see Marco wear the rage hat, it’s kind of a legendary. We played the encore together as well. Marco threw in some Phish teases as we were trading phrases at the end which was awesome. I teased “Tweeprise” and we jammed on that for a minute and then Marco brought it back to “Twin Killers”.
Pete Mason: Let’s start with the basics: you’re the mystery guest who sat in with Marco not just on December 30th at the Highline Ballroom, but also in San Francisco on December 1st at The Chapel. Who are you exactly?