A small yet well-known engineering school in Upstate NY isn’t somewhere that would be expected to produce the talent to perform at a world class concert hall. However, that’s what happened at Carnegie Hall on Oct. 24 when Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) celebrated the launch of a new Bachelor of Science degree program in music with a debut performance by the Rensselaer Orchestra.
Under the direction of Nicholas DeMaison, the Rensselaer Orchestra presented two pieces beginning with River Rouge Transfiguration composed by Missy Mazzoli (commissioned by the Detroit Symphony Orchestra in 2013) and continuing with Jean Sibelius’s Symphony No. 5 in E-flat major, Op. 82, composed during the years of World War 1.
RPI President Dr. Shirley Ann Jackson began the show with some opening remarks about the new music degree and program. “…the degree is a means of preparing today’s contemporary musician for fluency in the arts as well as in the sciences…We all have recognized the degree to which the arts can spark innovation and the value connected with the arts, science, and technology.” Dr. Jackson continues, “our new Bachelor of Science in Music will enable us to further incorporate the arts throughout our research, curriculum, and student life experience…The theme of our musical program this evening is also about transformation that celebrates the work of two innovative and inspiring composers, Missy Mazzoli and Jean Sibelius.”
Since the concert, the university has released a video of the concert which can be seen here.
The marriage of electronic and improv-based music was inevitable from the start. The malleability of overtones provides a great platform for on-stage audibles. A lot of groups have used the modern synths to their advantage, although any music hobbyist who has played a synth can vouch for its complexity. Being able to find a good sound that is purely one’s own sound is difficult given the almost infinite parameters contained in modern synths. More so, being able to control those tones on the fly, whether in studio or on stage, is equally hard. Lord Electro, a budding electronic band from Albany, figures out a way to make their synth stand out as a staple lead tone by creating rich rhythmic grooves which fit like a puzzle piece underneath competent key lines with various changing characteristics. Their recent 10-track album, Reinvigorator, gives listeners a lot digest in terms of not only the content of each song, but the emotional arc the whole album follows.
Dan Gerken, Steve Mink and Jordan LeFleur make up Lord Electro, a trio that fills out a sound of a much larger outfit. One of their main catches, if you’re able to catch them live, is that they are an all-organic electronic group. The album reflects their ambition to remain an organic band. You can feel the chemistry on every track, with different parts within each composition lining up in sync to a level that sounds rehearsed but not computerized. Just about every piece on the album is a true dance track, staying in that sweet bpm range of 120-140. The seventh track, “Broken Glass,” features a more frenzied bass and drum line. The bass lines up almost perfectly with the bass drum accents to give the line a lot of weight, while the key parts mesh one piece providing the chord structure and rhythm while the other lead-synth part drives the melody and development of the song. This is a formula followed throughout much of the album. While this could be redundant, Lord Electro does a great job of varying even just the smallest pieces on a composition to keep it interesting.
A couple of the songs feature vocals too, whereas the rest is mainly instrumental with some background samples of different speeches or monologues related to the song. The vocal performances add a lot of texture to the album. While sparse, they are powerful and rich, relaying lyrical content that doesn’t delve too deep and provides more of a musing or reflection related to the song. On the eighth song, “Why Wait,” the vocals mirror the emotion of the tune, delivering an empowering message. The album follows a nice transitional arc too, with some tracks acting as a kind of anchor for the true sound and other tracks experimenting around that sound. This provides great variety, with every song feeling like a hard refresh. The ups and downs are in the grittiness of the bass line, or the beautiful melody of a synth lead.
Nestled along Tuscarora Lake between the Madison County college towns of Cazenovia and Morrisville, the Blue Canoe is a charming Adirondack style family restaurant. On Friday, November 30, this off-the-beaten-path venue was packed as it hosted Blaine Holcomb, a Nashville singer-songwriter born and raised in Hamilton and a graduate of St. Lawrence University.
Holcomb was in the area for a hometown-ish show, celebrating the release of his self-titled debut CD and did not disappoint. Holcomb is a young artist with a flair for modern country, yet has a truly high classic country IQ. His reverence for country royalty — George Jones, Merle Haggard, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, George Strait — is evident in his writing and he makes it well-known that these people are his music idols.
Holcomb entertained the standing room only crowd at the Blue Canoe with an almost three-hour set; his only breaks taking place between songs when he signed CDs for the many in attendance. If there’s one thing Holcomb is, it’s appreciative. He has spent the better part of the past few years in residency at Nashville’s famed Tootsies Orchid Lounge, and in that time, has learned the skill of entertaining. He’s not above taking requests but makes sure he sprinkles classics into his set to let everyone know his roots.
His set reflected the modern country charts, with covers from Eric Church, Keith Urban and Chris Stapleton, but also paid tribute to the legends, covering his idols, George Jones and Merle Haggard. Holcomb’s take on Jones’s “He Stopped Loving Her Today” and Haggard’s “Mama Tried” had the crowd engaged and would have done the original artists proud.
Speaking of Holcomb’s roots, his visit to Erieville on Friday was a testament to that. He holds his family and friends close and makes sure to fit in a local show whenever he is in town, whether it’s at the Blue Canoe or Ray Brothers BBQ in nearby Bouckville. His maternal grandmother sat at a table stage left the majority of his set while his mother worked the crowd selling CDs. Many fellow St. Lawrence alums and former bandmates were also in attendance.
A highlight of the night was a ballad Blaine Holcomb wrote in honor of his grandfather, who he spent much time fishing with in his youth. The song, “Keep Your Line in the Water” is an emotional ode to an influential man that Holcomb held close and brought tears to the eyes of many in attendance.
Holcomb paid tribute to friend Daryle Singletary, who he’d met in Nashville, describing the affable nature of the man as he introduced his cover of Singletary’s song “Spilled Whiskey” that is included on Holcomb’s album. Singletary died earlier this year at the age of 46.
He tried ending his set several times throughout the night, but bowing to the crowd kept extending the set for “one more” song. One more song wound up being five more songs ending the night with rousing covers of Garth Brooks’s “Friends in Low Places” and Johnny Cash’s “Folsom Prison Blues,” with his fans singing along and begging for more.
Blaine Holcomb is a unique presence in this new world of country music. An old soul housed in a young body who isn’t afraid to mix the classics with the new. You can pick up his new album at his website here or at his shows. He returns to Nashville this week to continue his Tootsies residency. You can catch him live there or through the Tootsies Live Cam here.
Located in the center of downtown Plattsburgh, The Strand Theater is a historical landmark that has been the cultural heartbeat in the North Country for almost a century. Opened on December 29, 1924, as a Vaudeville theater featuring stunning architecture and interior design. The Strand Theater provided the community with theatrical and musical productions of all types and was considered the “Pride of Northern New York.”
The Strand went through some changes over the years. In the 70’s the theater was renovated in such a way that it became a two-room movie theater, and eventually a four-room theater. The changes covered the original interior design. The beautiful and ornate features were no longer visible, and the theater took on a different feel. The theater struggled financially and went on to change hands several times until in 2004 when the North Country Cultural Center for the Arts purchased the building. This was the beginning of a ten year, four-million-dollar restoration project.
Years of hard work, public and private grants, donations, and the dedication of the community has paid off. Now known as The Strand Center Theater, the venue is flaunting the ornamental design meant from its inception in 1924. Two highlights from the restoration include the replica of the original chandelier, donated by Swavorski Lighting, and a 1924 Wurlitzer organ. The Wurlitzer was donated by Leonard and Louise Johnson of Hingham, MA, owners of the Colney Theater in Philadelphia. A group of volunteers refurbished the 1924 instrument and it is now fully functional and an astonishing sight.
Not only has the theater completed its restoration and is sporting its fancy facelift, but The Strand Center Theater also has a new Executive Director creating quite a buzz in Plattsburgh. Mr. Bob Garcia relocated from New York City to Plattsburgh and is the first permanent director for The Strand in three years. Mr. Garcia has an impressive background in theater and production. He worked at Radio City Music Hall and Madison Square Garden in finance positions for many years. Mr. Garcia has much enthusiasm about the future of The Strand and has great ideas about ways to make the theater more and more successful with each event.
Recently Mr. Garcia brought Dave Mason, Traffic co-founder, Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Inductee to The Strand. Dave Mason is a rock legend, having an artist of this caliber grace the stage in Plattsburgh was a huge honor. Between his unsurpassed guitar playing, storytelling and great sense of humor, Mason gave the audience one of the best shows to date. Receiving several standing ovations throughout the night Dave Mason’s performance brought an undeniable, tangible energy to the theater. The seated crowd ended the evening on their feet and dancing in the aisles. The following weekend The Strand Center Theater welcomed another world-class musician. Ronnie Earl & The Broadcasters brought their classic soulful blues to Plattsburgh, and it was a show the audience won’t forget. Earl is known for his old-school style, mesmerizing fans since he started playing in the 1970’s. B.B. King has stated, “…he is one of the most serious blues guitarists you can find today. He makes me proud!” Another top-notch performance for The Strand, with many more to come.
The Strand Center Theater is excited to announce that The Allman Betts Band set to perform on March 30, 2019 and Lonesome Traveler, a concert version of the acclaimed off-Broadway musical with special guest star and Folk Legend Peter Yarrow, the only living member of Peter, Paul & Mary. The musical tells the story of Americana music over the years. More event listings including comedy shows, ballet, theater, art and orchestra events can be found at the venue’s website.
The future of this historical theater in the North Country is bright. With Mr. Garcia at the helm, continued passion and support of the community, this venue is bringing back the heartbeat in downtown Plattsburgh.
Lotus has been on top of their game this year, bringing their heavy bass-line jams across the country and on Saturday, November 24, the quintet came to NYC and played to a packed show at the Playstation Theater in Times Square.
Set I: 128, Hammerstrike, Inspector Norse > Cosmosis, Cain & Abel, Travel > Greet the Mind
Set II: Slow Cookin > Wooly Mammoth, Faceblind, Through the Mirror > Sunrain, Spaghetti > Age of Inexperience
E: Strawberry Letter 23
You can catch the boys this winter at Dominican Holidaze and on their New Year’s Run. They play the Majestic Theater in Detroit and the Intersection in Grand Rapids before finishing with two nights at Park West on December 30 and 31.
The Disco Biscuits visited Albany’s Palace Theatre for a 2-night run this past weekend, the band’s first time in the Capital District since 2010’s show at The Egg. Opening up the night was the local and nationally touring band Formula 5 making their debut at the Palace. Though the weather was quite brisk, fans came out in droves to see both bands work their magic at the famous venue.
Formula 5 kicked the night off with an hour-long, all original set, opening with a newer tune “In The Sand,” into “Sad Bed,” a rocking cut from the group’s recent studio album All Points North. “Sad Bed” was left unfinished as the band transitioned into “Booher’s Pass,” a more somber instrumental tune that featured the best jam of the set, leading the group into some experimental type-2 territory. After another original “Gettin’ Tough Again,” the group closed out their set with another new song, “Breaking Glass.” The song mixes lyrical sections with synth-heavy, prog-like riffs and does it well, as the crowd was responding very positively to what F5 was laying down.
To open up the Palace show, The Disco Biscuits played the rocking “7-11,” an older song that was met with open arms by just about every fan in the theater. “7-11” was just the beginning of what became an incredible first set, which was foreshadowed by the band absolutely nailing the composed section of the tune. The jam was extremely fast-paced, featuring lots of drummer Allen Aucoin hammering away on his drum pad laying down an untzy groove for the rest of the group to build a heavy jamtronica groove off of. “7-11” was left unfinished so that the group could transition into the ending of “Above The Waves,” signaling to the fans that the band was inverting the song. Following the quick peak of “Waves” the group started working through the song’s composed section, another tune from the early days of the band.
The “Waves” jam continued the uptempo jamming from “7-11” before dropping back into the song’s chord structure and bringing the jam back to the peak it had opened with. Following a heavenly solo from Barber, the group dropped into “Minions,” a more recent tune that had a mysterious feel to it. Keyboardist Aron Magner utilized the full extents of his rig during this tune, looping a funky clavinet part during the verse and singing the chorus through a vocoder on one of his synthesizers. The majority of the “Minions” jam was the band flexing their funk muscles before they started lifting the jam into the last song of the set, “Voices Insane.” This version of “Voices” was superb, the band locked in and smoothly transitioning between each composed section, allowing some of the movements to breathe a bit before moving onto the next part.
After a quick set break, the group came out and opened the second set with “Sweating Bullets,” a grandeur tune that had a medieval feel to it during the composed section. The jam was fairly short and featured a somewhat dub reggae feel before coming to a close. The group then took a quick pause and dropped into “Resurrection,” which had an R&B feel to it and allowed for the group to show off a different side of their musical capabilities. The “Resurrection” jam was slower than most of the night’s previous jams, and served more as a jumping off point for the segue into “I-Man,” which is where the second set started to pick up.
The band very suddenly dropped into the fan favorite “I-Man” during the “Resurrection” jam, beginning with Barber singing out the opening lyrics of the tune, which was met by loud cheers from the entire crowd. Following the lyrical sections, the group started into the jam of the night, a supernatural peak that was incredibly patient in its build up, delivery, and subsequent redelivery as the group started back into the song’s chorus. Following “I-Man,” the group broke into Muse’s “Knights of Cydonia,” a song that has only been performed three times prior by the Biscuits. The “Knights” jam was full of untz and dove back into the jamtronica side of the Biscuits, before a very dramatic drop back into the song’s lyrics and main riff. To close out the set, the group broke into the upbeat “Story of the World,” which rounded out the stronger second half of the set. After the main composed section, the group broke into some more funk-themed jamming, bringing back some of the musical flavor that “Minions” was offering during the first set. The peak was pretty quick and brought the tune back into the melody of the tune before one last chorus and ending the set. For an encore the group played an extremely short, “World is Spinning.”
Saturday night was a spectacle of its own, with the crowd revved up from the night before and ready to rage the Palace. Opening with “The Tunnel,” which has found its way back into the rotation in the last few years took a journey that ended up in the latter section of “Spectacle,” which would also open Set 2 with the first portion of the song. “M.E.M.P.H.I.S.” brought the energy level even higher through the composition and eventual jam, which worked into Biscuits anthem “We Like To Party,” a statement that encompasses the tone of the crowd over the weekend. “Rock Candy” and “Save the Robots” took it back old school for a tight pairing to close the set.
To keep the party going in the second set, a 45-minute pairing of “Spectacle” -> “spacebirdmatingcall” made for a sweaty run of energetic of the Biscuits signature trancefusion jams. A brief “Hope” was a well placed breather, if you consider the flowing peaks of the song a place to rest. “Reactor” featured an inverted “Crickets” sandwiched inside, a crunchy progression of classic Biscuits jam vehicles that brought the set to a tremendous finish. “Portal to an Empty Head” closed the night in the encore slot, wrapping up the first multi-night Biscuits run in the Capital District since Camp Bisco was held in nearby Mariaville.
The Disco Biscuits have been on fire as of late, and have a few more runs you can catch them at before their NYE run at The Fillmore in Philadelphia. Check out photos from Filip Zalewski for a taste of what the the evening was like.
Setlists
Formula 5, Friday, November 23, 2018
Set: In The Sand > Sad Bed*# > Booher’s Pass, Gettin’ Tough Again, Breaking Glass
*”In the Sand” tease
# Unfinished
The Disco Biscuits, Palace Theatre, Friday, November 23, 2018
Set 1: 7-11* > Above the Waves (Inverted) > Minions > Voices Insane Set 2: Sweating Bullets, Resurrection > I-Man, Knights of Cydonia**, Story of the World Encore: World is Spinning
*Unfinished
**Muse Cover
The Disco Biscuits, Palace Theatre, Saturday, November 24
Set 1: The Tunnel -> Spectacle, M.E.M.P.H.I.S.-> We Like to Party-> Rock Candy, Save the Robots Set 2: Spectacle-> Spacebirdmatingcall, Hope, Reactor-> Crickets (inverted)-> Reactor Encore: Portal to an Empty Head
The Long Island Music Hall of Fame, a non-profit organization, honors, in its own words, “a diverse array of performers, groups, and music industry leaders that have made significant contributions to Long Island’s rich music history,” and earlier this month the Hall witnessed its seventh annual induction ceremony, on Thursday, November 7 at popular music venue The Space at Westbury.
The LIMHOF Awards Ceremony inducted eleven new members and groups this year, and they included the likes of more recently important artists, like sensational pop-punk group Taking Back Sunday and formative hip hop artists E.P.M.D, as well as more early icons of the music business, like Woodstock Music Festival promoters Michael Lang and Artie Kornfield (inducted separately), and music composer Jimmy Webb (who wrote “Wichita Lineman” for country music superstar Glen Campbell).
The first segment of the night allowed patrons and press alike to get up close and personal with the award winners as they walked the red carpet into the lobby of The Space at Westbury and posed for both photo ops and field questions. Surely, the highlight of this portion of the evening for most present was the unexpected arrival upon the scene of the one and only Billy Joel. No doubt most thought the presenter at the entrance to the red carpet was kidding when he announced the name of the 69-year-old musical icon, but in the man strutted only moments later.
For its ceremony portion, held in the gracious and acoustically impressive performance area of The Space, The LIMHOF Ceremony saw speeches from both award winners and their close acquaintances—Joel, it turned out, had come to speak and not just surprise the venue with his presence—as well as gave the stage to some of the inductees for special and touching performances. Videos of award winners, showing their heydays that had helped earn them the night’s recognition, played behind them as they addressed the crowd. A particularly poignant example include singer-songwriter inductee Melanie, whom performed her seminal hit “Candles in the Rain” with a large choir group while an old video showed her doing the same all the way back in the early 1970s. The recreation of that musically historic moment that had touched lives back then was certainly a treat for both her longtime fan base and the rest of the attendees.
The press room at the Long Island Music Hall of Fame induction allowed award winners retreated after their showing on stage was a unique experience all in its own. To an intimate greeting of only a dozen or so reporters, these prolific artists and entrepreneurs of the music business answered questions up close and personal, while also delving into welcomed anecdotes of their life. Cousin Brucie, for example, shared stories of his storied career as a radio personality, such as the time that he introduced The Beatles at their legendary performance at Shea Stadium in 1966. What the award winners offered with these stories were bits of insight and truth into their musical worlds. Brucie, for example, said to reporters of The Fab Four: “At the time, none of us believed that The Beatles would be as big as they were.”
Tea Leaf Green recently celebrated 20 years as a band and was greeted with an exceptionally warm Northeast welcome. This run was special because the San Francisco-based jam quartet hasn’t visited the area in two years. These shows notably mark the second time bass player Eric DiBerardino played with Tea Leaf Green in the New York City Metro region. DiBerardino replaced bass superstar Reed Mathis in 2016. Fans are excited to be more acquainted with his style.
StageOne in Fairfield, CT (11/16/2018)
Described as a “coffee shop stage,” StageOne in Fairfield, CT offered fans a chance to see the band up close with great acoustics. The venue has a 225 person capacity, with seating on both sides of the stage. Tea Leaf Green rewarded those in attendance with a classic set of favorites.
The set began with “5000 Acres” and “Ride Together,” which got the crowd on their feet and grooving. Next up were “Make a Connection,” “Innocence” and the electro-funk jam “Germinating Seed,” featuring notable guitar segments from guitarist Josh Clark. The set wrapped up on a high note with the perennial hit “If It Wasn’t For the Money,” featuring outstanding vocals and smooth solos by keyboardist Trevor Garrod.
Set II picked up where Set I left off, starting with the funky “These Two Chairs“ and an electrified “Don’t Curse the Night.” The high energy “One Reason“ got the crowd ready for the first jam of the night, “Gasaholic.” Garrod’s soulful vocals and funky keyboard execution combined with Clark’s guitar improvisation made this an unforgettable rendition.
“All Of Your Cigarettes“ brought a few chill moments before Jordan Giangreco of The Breakfast joined Tea Leaf Green on stage, playing organ next to Garrod for the high energy favorites “Give Me One More Chance“ and “Incandescent Devil.” Musical nirvana between all five musicians was reached during the second jam of the night and closed the second set on a high note.
The encore brought the energy down to earth for the melodic Garrod classic, “Earth and Sky.”
Brooklyn Bowl in Brooklyn, NY (11/17/2018)
Tea Leaf Green has a rich history of high energy jamming at the Brooklyn Bowl, which features a bowling alley adjacent to the stage. Gadadu and Greg Humphrey’s Electric Trio opened and got the crowd on their feet.
The band was ready to rock and roll from the very first song, “Devil’s Pay,” including eloquent vocals from Garrod and mind-numbing guitar solos by Clark. The harmonica-fueled “Let Us Go“ was the perfect precursor for the jam of the night, “Red Ribbons” > “Garden III.” Both are classic Tea Leaf Green songs, and “Garden” included a unique rock infused jam, which delighted longtime fans.
Garrod’s vocals and keyboard skills shined in “Been So Long“ and “Cops Took My Weed“ followed by a Clark electric guitar clinic in “Space Hero“ and “Hot Dog.” There is no question how talented this band is.
The soulful Garrod tune “Kali Yuga” closed out the set, and included celebration confetti from the audience. The encore began with “Carter Hotel,” an inspiring ballad sung by Clark. The show ended on a high note with the electric “Vote on Tuesday,” including more audience confetti to close this memorable night.
The Northeast was jubilant after two fantastic Tea Leaf Green shows and awaits their return for more soulful, funky improvisational rock and roll.
Jigsaw Youth came out swinging with their sophomore album, Sorry for the Distortion. The biggest change this time around is the production value. Their style, attitude and sound is similar to their first collection but great production value, layering and adventurous blending of genres breathes new life into the group. New York natives Nastacha Beck, (guitar) Julia Mannarino (drums) and Maria Alvarez (bass/vocals) have obviously poured their heart and soul into this one and created a highly polished album.
Punk is all about fuzzy guitar, relentless drums, powerful lyrics and-chant worthy choruses, but when an album is under-produced, it can make it indigestible. I’m all for dirty and washy punk-ish sounds, but if instrumentation isn’t balanced then the group can come off as illegitimate. Jigsaw Youth overcame this, striking gold with producer Gary Nieves Jr. of Cobra Sun Studio. This is not to say Jigsaw’s song writing and talent doesn’t deserve any attention, because they have created some fiery and energetic songs.
Hit play and “Stillborn Black” blasts out with a quintessential punk sound. Alvarez’s vocals are an instant hit. They’re baritone, atonal and at times, loud and crackly – she’s a perfect fit for this genre with her talents shining throughout the album. This one has a catchy chorus, a good harmonic break mid track and is a fantastic prelude to what the rest of the album has to bring. It also features an exciting solo from Beck – great choice in guitar tone as well.
After listening to “Stillborn Black” and “Don’t Make Me Freak,” it’s obvious this group’s source of inspiration is powerful female punk groups. Instrumentally, there’s a lot of similarities to L7 and Bikini Kill but the group is really separated by Alvarez’s aggressive vocals. What I’m loving about this group is their ability to give the songs more depth by jumping into different sounds mid track. Instead of a constant barrage of punk, “Freak” jumps into a ballad with acoustic guitar work and ethereal singing from the group. We also hear how versatile Alvarez can be when she goes sultry before turning savage towards the end of the song.
“Flirts of Fire” is a nice change of pace from a latter, dark tone. We still hear influences of popular female punk groups though. It showcases an upbeat and major sound and we get to hear the talents of Mannario on drums. She’s clean, precise and gets to flaunt her ferocious speed with her wild single stroke rolls.
This group really checks all the boxes in the punk genre. “Serotonin” is a sluggish but powerful track with Nirvana’s slimy, grunge sound that made them so popular. “Serotonin” may be slow and lazy but it’s layered with airy backup vocals throughout that give it some more depth as well as valley and peaks of tempo changes and attitude. Did I mention Alvarez’s voice is really good?
“Surf Rock Song” is another key track. It’s a great blend of classic punk and (believe it or not) surf rock. It’s not something that’s been heard too often and it’s just fun to listen to. “All Around (Fucked Up)” is a great cap off for the album – it’s the best summary of the groups unique sound. This song perfectly blends their influences together and gives Alvarez a chance to show off both her sultry and intense side of her vocals that make this group stand out from the rest.
This album is going to yield a great deal of recognition from their community and in a live setting, will definitely rake in some new fans. So far, the only place to see them is on Saturday, December 1st in The Loft at City Winery. Tickets are $10 online, $12 day on the day of show. Stay tuned to their Facebook page for more info.
Key Tracks: Flirts of Fire, Surf Rock Song, All Around (All Fucked Up)
John Medeski brought his latest project, a quartet with Will Bernard on guitar, Kirk Joseph on sousaphone and Terence Higgins on drums, to the Buffalo Iron Works on Sunday night. Collectively known as Mad Skillet, the seasoned veterans brought fresh sounds from a wide expanse of influences, mixing in styles from the South, East and West.
Touring behind their just-released album, they stretched those tracks and some additional material into two super-grooving hour-plus long sets. Joseph held down the low end with honking sousaphone blasts that twisted and exploded with electronic distortions. Bernard shredded a hollow body guitar with jazzy chops, funky cuts and bluesy slide-laden swirls. Medeski threw in everything but the kitchen sink: massive swells and chunks of B3 organ, heady splashes of Mellotron and a bit of spice from the Wurlitzer. Higgins beat it all together to a perfect blend.
They weren’t shy in slathering on some jam either. They moved in, out and through grooves with ease. Each player headed up the kitchen while the others played the sous chef. The baton was passed around the room until the dish was ready and all the flavors came together for a glorious four-pronged meal of sound. Regardless of the on-stage dynamic, playing as one, two, three or the full band, each individual flavor came through loud and clear; nothing was lost in the mix. Each individual musician sounded exactly like themselves, and the end result was no more surprising. As good as you would come to expect.
The marriage of electronic and improv-based music was inevitable from the start. The malleability of overtones provides a great platform for on-stage audibles. A lot of groups have used the modern synths to their advantage, although any music hobbyist who has played a synth can vouch for its complexity. Being able to find a good sound that is purely one’s own sound is difficult given the almost infinite parameters contained in modern synths. More so, being able to control those tones on the fly, whether in studio or on stage, is equally hard. 
