Sitar Bliss

The great folks at GrooveMine.com have used some of my photos from the Mile High Music Festival, you can see them here:

http://www.groovemine.com/musicfestivals

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Michelle Shocked at The Bluebird

What started out as a cold and wet, snowy April evening turned into a warm, cozy and intimate dialog with one of the greatest anti-folk singers of all time, Michelle Shocked, who is also a self proclaimed ”sophisticated hillbilly”.

I’ll never forget the first time I heard  the punk powerful voice and passion of Michelle Shocked, a good friend gave me a tape of her, it was her first album titled The TexasCampfire Tapes, this album/CD was recorded live in 1986 while she sat around a camp fire and played her complete stash of original songs, accompanied only by the crickets croaking and passing cars.

Michelle Up Close

The small but appreciative crowd at the Bluebird Theater was treated to a passionate stroll down memory lane with an old friend, complete with politcal commentary. She chatted continually with the crowd and even made a phone call on stage with her iPhone to her husband to whom she dedicated the next song.

Michelle Silhouette

The evenings set list ranged from her first campfire album to her soon to be released Soul of My Soul album. An encore performance of Little Sister (requested by a fan) topped off this spontaneous and beautiful performance. 

For a complete set of high resolution photos see the Michelle Shocked set on my Flickr site;

http://www.flickr.com/photos/30893898@N08/sets/72157617015024634/

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Trevor Hall

Do you remember your first concert? I was probably 15-18 and saw Kiss. We actually had tickets that were so bad they were called “obstructed view” but that’s all we could afford. Obstructed view meant there was some massive object in your way so you couldn’t actually see the performance. Our tickets were even worse! We had tickets that were behind the stage…the only time we could see anything was when Paul Stanley would come backstage to re-apply his face makeup. Sounds bad? Don’t feel bad for me yet.

My friend Chris who was a die-hard Kiss fan knew all the band member’s names. I didn’t. When Paul cam back about the third time, he yells “Paul, Paul Stanley!” Much to my surprise, Paul stops on his way into the makeup booth and turns and looks at these two pathetic rock fans, stuck backstage, no view whatsoever, but still jazzed about just being there. Paul turns and moves towards us, crawling up onto to some massive PA Speakers and walks back and leans out to grasp the handrail of the balcony we were in and put out his hand, shaking both of our hands while we stood drooling and dazed.

My Lucky Daughter

Well, my 14 year-old daughter Alexia just got to see her first concert last Thursday, accompanied by her Dad (me) who had secured a photo pass to the Trevor Hall/Tyrone Wells show in Provo, UT at a tiny venue called the Velour Love Music Gallery. She was much more fortunate, front row, no obstructions, and group photos with the performers and a night of beautiful music played to perfection.

We waited patiently in the frigid evening air for nearly 30 minutes before they opened the doors. We had hoped to get the killer spot on the floor, which we achieved and were positioned dead center first row an arms length away from the performers. This was a tiny venue but I liked the intimacy of the place and they kept the volume at a less than earth-shaking level, which was very appreciated by both Alexia and I. Alexia commented early on that it was a bit loud and I told her she was very lucky, the last time I saw Trevor at Harry O’s in Park City, the music was so loud anything placed on or near the PA speakers would be physically knocked over by the vibration of the bass beat!

Trevor Hall

When will we get a full two-hour show or more and have Trevor as the main act? Is there no justice in this world? Sorry about that, it’s just that Trevor has such a large body of great work, I would like to hear more than a hour or so, it goes by so quickly, over before it starts. Someday, someday. Anyway, on this day, Trevor came on stage with his typical loose look, comfy sweater, T-shirt, jeans and, of course, bare feet. Sparkling eyes and sheepish grin, radiating peace, love and sweetness.

Trevor launched into his set and within seconds both he and the crowd were swaying rhythmically to the deep beat Chris put down and now for the first time, Mario Pagliarulo on bass dropping in the bottom, what a treat. So tight, yet so laid back. Closing his eyes, head tilted back deep into his music Trevor was mesmerizing, his sincerity has palpable.

Between songs Trevor appeased a fan (Abi) by speaking with her friend who could not make the show on her cell phone, I could her shrieks form the cell phone 10 feet away. Later Trevor left the stage mid-song and sang from the crowd. Later Trevor was carried away by the beat and danced in circled on the stage. Trevor sang a new song that he and Matisyahu had written together called United.

Mid-show he played a wonderful version of My Beating Heart and changed up the outro by playing an interesting little keyboard instrument that was powered by Trevor blowing into a small tube, just magical. Trevor’s music has always been simple, yet spiritually powerful, and now with the addition of Mario’s bass, it takes on a whole new level of intensity. If Trevor’s music did not put you into a deep peaceful state before, resistance will be futile now. Sweeping over you like a warm wave, his love-filled lyrics and gravelly voice, he sings with a sincerity that draws you in so close you can barely breath. And its just music, not that important right? Yeah, right…

His version of Venomous had the entire audience singing out load which seemed to surprise the band at first, crazy that this little out of the way venue in this sleepy little town could be so into this Rasta-soaked rhythm, but we were overwhelmed and washed away in Trevor’s groove.

Mario all the way from Naples, Italy

Trevor taught the crowd his great song Om Shakti Om which we gladly sang at the top of our lungs.

Chris drums like no else, power and grace.

Chris Steele "Blur"

Later in the show, Trevor welcomed a killer guitarist to the stage that added some gritty blues/rock/jazz riffs to a couple songs, I am still trying to determine his name and will update this review as soon as I can be sure.

TBD

In the meantime, here are a few pictures of this wonderful guitarist. If you EVER get a chance, see Trevor Hall, he will affect you, you will smile and hum his spiritually rich songs for days, lingering in your mind like a wonderful dream, where as is peaceful, calm and right.

As Trevor would sign off:

So Much Love

More info about the players;

Drummer: Chris Steele

Chris Steele began playing drums on laundry hampers with magic markers at the age of four or five (he really doesn’t remember too much from that time). He does remember “The Tropics”, “Thumbs Up”, “Temporary No Parking” these were some of the names of his band made up of his older brothers and some friends. At the age of twelve, Chris was already playing live shows in his hometown of Butler, PA. His passion for rhythm only grew with time as he began a journey that would take him all over the world. His college career started in the town of Youngstown, OH where he completed a bachelor of music degree. He then moved to Los Angeles where his scholarship to USC allowed him to finish his Masters in jazz studies. Along with the course curriculum Chris also studied privately with, Ndugu Chancler, Peter Erskine, Jeff Hamilton, Zoro, Gregg Field, John Riley, and everyone else under the sun. Chris’s passion for jazz music allowed him to share the stage with Kenny Burell, Conrad Herwig, Sean Jones, Bobby Shew, Jiggs Whigham, Alfonso Johnson, and Phil Woods. Chris also had the opportunity to perform a drum duet with legendary swing drummer Louie Bellson. A summer tour as the drummer for the Glenn Miller Orchestra followed by a tour with an R&B artist in China showed his passion for all styles of music. Cary Brothers had given Chris his first TV appearance on the Late Late Show with Craig Kilborn as he performed “Blue Eyes.” Behind the scenes you can hear Chris in the movie Dawn of the Dead and Four Brothers. In front of the camera you can see Chris as Jim Carey’s drummer in The Majestic. Chris has performed with a gambit of Pop, Rock, and Reggae artists that include Barry Manilow, Deborah Gibson, John Popper, David Foster, Rusted Root, and The Wailers. Now Chris is enjoying touring and recording with one of his favorite artists Trevor Hall. Playing on The Late Late show with Cary Brothers!

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Mike Berg

 Mike Berg, front man, lead singer and guitarist of the Denver based band  And Sometimes Why has the type of band musicians die for, talented, passionate and mature. I knew this band was great before I had even entered the building,  just the deep groovy sounds emanating through the brick wall as I walked towards the entrance of the venue was enough.

I cocked my head to one side like a dog trying to understand a human when they talk to their dogs, what was this sound, why can I tell already, from outside the building that this band was excellent, the bass, drum beat, the silky lead, what was it?

Bill TravisAs soon as I walked into Herman’s Hideaway located in downtown Denver I heard Mike Bergs deep smooth vocals and the incredibly tight groove being laid down by this young band I felt like I had been listening to them for years, it sounded so familiar, comfortable and beautiful, what was not to love instantly. I heard Lindsay Buckingham like droning leads, and Santana backbeats, powerful smooth vocals reminiscent of Dave Mathews or maybe Chris Martin. The band is comprised of members Mike Berg (Salus/Mike Berg Band) on lead vocals and guitar, Justin Gomes (Battery Park/Solar) on bass and backup vocals, and Bill Travis (Esovae/Savage Henry) on Drums and background vocals, keyboards on this night were played by a guest musican,Justin Miller. He's a part of the Jason Vigil Band. "A super good dude" according to Mike. I gather that the position of keyboardist is up for grabs currently, if I could vote I would say that the young man at the wheel of the keyboards on this evening complimented the band perfectly, I wondered how different the sound would have been with out this particular musician, he’s definitely a keeper.Guest Keyboardist Justin Miller

Justin Gomes bass playing was excellent and his animated playing style balanced nicely against the stoic stance of Mike Berg who played brilliantly on both his beautiful blonde Gibson electric acoustic guitar and his magnificent and much coveted Paul Reed Smith Starla Guitar complete with the Bigsby B5 tailpiece and a Grover Tune-O-Matic bridge. It was obvious that his influences cover wide swath down the genre chart from The Police to Tool and back to James Horner, all great stuff and so easy to enjoy completely almost immediately, there is no learning curve with this band.

Mike Berg

I struggled to get a good shot of the superb drumming of Bill Travis but eventually made my way to stage right up on some stairs to get some nice profile shots of this masterful percussionist. This band is really something special and well worth listening to, check them out and let me know what you think. I have found a few songs on their MySpace but have not yet been able locate any to buy. I will update this post as soon as I locate their music for purchase stash.

Side note; the venue Herman’s Hideaway is one of if not they best venues I have yet to visit in the Denver region, not too big, not too little, a nice big wide stage, great sound system, prompt and courteous wait staff and hell even the damn bouncers were nice.

And Sometimes Why Jammin

Down The neck

Mike and The Blonde Gibson

Shadow Man

Drummer Bill Travis

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Nick Sullivan and Alex Hebert of the Denver-based band American Relay are the kind of guys that you feel like you have known forever within minutes of meeting them. We had been invited to come see some “real” rock at a low-down club on Broadway in downtown Denver. I am not one who can pass on an offer to see rock and roll played hard, loud and with passion, so we headed downtown to Three Kings Tavern for an evening of high energy entertainment.

Within minutes of arriving at the tavern, we secured a select location up front near the stage and then buzzed down the street to score some of the finest Pizza in Denver at a pizzeria called Famous Pizza. We hustled back to the tavern and enjoyed a few brews with the pizza and hunkered down for what we hoped would be a great show. A few minutes later, I was introduced to a quiet young man named Nick who invited us backstage to visit while we put new strings on his guitar.

Entering the dressing room was a surreal experience in itself. One of the walls were covered with hundreds of band posters that must have been placed one on top of the other for years, the other was covered with graffiti. The room reeked of guitars, tube amps, cheap beer, road-weary musicians and worn-out guitar stings…my kind of place for sure. A galvanized tub of ice filled with beer set nearby, the only “perk” of this most-brutal job with the glamorous title of Musician. I quizzed Nick about how long he’d been in this band, to which he replied “about 5 years.” We chatted about music and influences and recording while he restrung his arsenal of axes. I know a lot of musicians and have been a part of many, many late night jam sessions, so sitting here with Nick seemed like being at home. Nick was humble, soft-spoken and a beautiful spirit. He had a sly smile that made you wonder what he was really thinking as I snapped shot after shot of him, the room, his guitars and anything else that moved.

A few minutes later his partner in crime and music came in packing his drum set piece by piece. His name was Alex Hebert, the second and final piece of this musical puzzle. He, too, was easy to talk with and very soft-spoken. He said he had just returned from Africa where he had been visiting his recently-retired father and had only been back in the States a few days. As we discussed musical influences, I could tell I was going to enjoy the show, but I had no idea just how much. Moments later, the other acts of the night came in, Reverend Deadeye and Becky Lee with Drunkfoot, both of whom had just recently returned from Europe.

Nick announced that they had decided to go first rather than last since it was his Birthday show and he needed more time to get drunk–fair enough I thought—besides, I couldn’t wait to hear a Power Duo. Now, there are a lot of power Trios out there but I could not recall ever hearing a Power Duo and was wondering how they could pull this off.

From the moment Nick strummed the first chord, it was evident that these two were special. Tight doesn’t do justice to them. What a knock-out show! Denver must have more talented musicians per capita than any place on the planet. I have witnessed some killer Power Trios in my time but Nick and Alex of American Relay blew my mind, a Power Duo? What Hell? Only two musicians who are seemingly fused at the ear could possibly pull this act off without the sound getting old after a song or two. Nick’s vocals are so pure, authentic and soulful that your mind will race trying to think of someone to compare him to, and then you will give up. His licks are so sweet and raw I thought to myself “So, this is what it would have been like to hear Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page in a garage blowing out the jams, when they were young and ready to kick the world’s ass.” Alex’s drumming was second to none, bluesy, jazzy, back beats coming out front, fading away and then a crescendo with rolls that would make Keith Moon roll over in his grave. These guys rocked me to the core with their power, finesse and talent. All I can say is “Denver, you are one lucky city to have so much talent to choose from on any given Friday or Saturday night.” I’m done talking about it now and will just let the pictures do the rest.

Check out their CD “Corn and Oil.” As Jon Solomon describes it: “American Relay, Corn & Oil (Self-released). Nick Sullivan and Alex Hebert’s two-man blues assault is thick as Quaker State and has the muscle of a ’68 Pontiac GTO. This souped-up hot rod is screaming down the highway with some fuel-injected fuzzy Delta blues under the hood. Jump in and take a ride.” Nick and Alex signed my copy and as I was walking away, Nick said “Hey, take this too…” It was a great poster for that night’s gig, what could I say but thank you, Nick, for the great show, for the wonderful CD and poster and a night of music I won’t soon forget. Catch their next show January 23 at Cicero’s or February 14 at the Larimer Lounge.

PS. If you are over 20, you may want to bring your ear plugs, this band only has one speed and volume level: 11. It’s only rock and roll and that’s the way its played.

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Born In The Flood

As the night progressed, it was obvious that this was not a “normal” concert and was a true variety show where musicians wandered on and off stage at what seemed like random and dynamic intervals, depending on their mood, the song being played and the tone of the vocal audience.

Joe and Nate moved on and off stage blending with the act on stage for a song or two and then the disappearing, exiting stage right through the heavy red curtains. Each act played only one or two songs before making room for the next act, always leaving you wanting more, always thirsting for just one more song.

The show offered up all of Denver’s brightest and best young musicians while either Joe and or Nathaniel accompanied them, moving like shape shifters from band to band adding a bit here and there to each groups sound, these chameleons and master musicians literally blew me away. The terms awesome is way to over used and these days offers up little clarification to the object to which the word is applied, but remember back to when it was reserved for occasions like the first man in outer space looking back at the blue orb we call earth and uttering “the view is just awesome”, they were in awe and thats when the word should be used not as Eddie Izzard says in simplistic statements like, ” this hot dog is awesome, man.” Born in The Flood is an awesome band, I have very discriminating taste when it comes to music and these guys are world class, just the emotion these guys bring to the stage will snare you and tie you up until the last chord is played or until Nathaniel leaps from the stage into the audience and lands literally in your lap (this happened to me). The following summary is from the bands web site located at http://www.bornintheflood.com

Born in the Flood originated over a decade ago when singer/guitarist/keyboardist Nathaniel D. Rateliff and guitar/bass Player Joseph Pope III began creating music on the south bank of the Missouri River floodplains in Hermann, Missouri. Rateliff and Pope were raised in the throes of a blue-collar life, witnessing the constant hardships. It was here that Rateliff began his work as a songwriter; here the factories and farms mixed quiet desperation with idealistic youth. Their vision quickly outgrew the limitations of rural seclusion and over the years found their way west to Denver.

There they picked up guitarist Matt Fox and drummer Mike Hall and soon after was the birth of Born in the Flood. The band has wrapped up its highly anticipated sophomore e.p., “The Fear That We May Not Be”, recorded by Ian Hlatkey at Woodshed Studios, and has begun to garner label attention already. The album was independently released July 15th 2005. Songs such as “For Fear” and “Fate of the Underachieved” had previously begun underground circulation in the Denver area and have created much excitement at the passion and progressive nature of a band on the pulse of the music scene. The band then released the CD “If This Thing Should Spill” on May 15, 2007.

We arrived at the Bluebird Theater just in time for the first of nine acts that would end up playing from 9:00 p.m. until 1:00 a.m., four full hours of exquisite live music. The Bluebird theater was built in 1913 and is a beautiful old building with a bar located at the back center and balconies above, and a grand marquee out front. We purchased a couple T-Shirts a CD (If This Should Spill) and the poster to the right from the bands road manager Bart Dahl who I had called earlier that day to get approval to take photos. We moved front and center in the venue and took our place among the die hard fans and the other photographers, one in particular was especially helpful and informative about the Denver music scene, his name is Jason Claypool and is a photographer for the Denver Post. You can see his pictures from this show on his Flickr site located at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/scnightrod/sets/72157611226552441/ also you can read the review of this show in the Denver Post at: http://blogs.denverpost.com/reverb/2008/12/15/born-in-the-flood-holiday-revue-the-bluebird-theater/

The acts for the evening included the brother duo Patrick and Nathan Meese, The Wheel (Side project of Nathanials), Joseph Pope III, Bad Weather California, Sweet Tooth Meat Tooth, The Get Down, Joshua Novak, Ian Cooke, Iuegliss, Aaron Collins.

First up Heavy Rockers, we were still getting settled and this first act came on and played a couple songs before we could even get down to the stage. I was able to take one shot from the back of the venue. I will attempt to get their name but until then I will simply refer to them as the hard rocking band that was up first.

The second act was a young man named Tom Metz has the stage name of Iuegliss, he fired up his laptop and performed several tunes solo, his delicate voice accompanied his expertly preprogrammed synth and drum beats.

Third Act – ?? Group and Keyboard Player? Next the stage filled with the what seemed like every musician backstage, an eclectic group of players wandered out and plopped down on stage like a madrigal group who had juts walked in after a long journey and decided to stop and have a picnic. As ? began playing the electric piano and singing in a sweet, low voice the group began banging and pounding to the rhythm of ?. ? black patent leather shoes tapped out a jazzy beat and kept time to his intricate and dancing rhythms.

Fourth Act – Brothers Patrick and Nathan Meese. I did not know these two were brothers and the DJ that tried to fill the gaps between acts with clever banter called them the cutest band in Colorado. Patrick’s voice was high and sweet and filled the Bluebird from dance floor to Balcony, the tightens off the arrangements was obviously the result og years of jamming together, I will be doing much more research on these two and will augment this blog with more details about this incredibly talented team. As was the pattern of the night, the sand a couple songs and disappeared, leaving us yet again wanting more.

Fifth Act – Joshua Novak performed his own music to simple arrangements that suited his melodic yet edgy voice perfectly.

Sixth Act – Sweet Tooth Meat Tooth? Newly Weds, this husband and wife team graced the stage and delivered a spare and beautiful yet edgy set of original music, the lone guitar had a heavy bass sound and droned against the angelic voice of his new wife. These two knew each other well and played off each others minute nuances and made for a solid heavy set, raw, hard and beautiful at the same time.

In the wings, … I glanced to the winds and noticed a motley crew of musicians who had already played and some waiting anxiously for their turn, these guys all wanted to get out there and play and could hardly contain their enthusiasm and stay put off stage right in the wings. The reminded me of an picture I saw once of the band Fleetwood Mac, happy, euphoric and most definitely in the moment.

Seventh Act – Joe Pope III, Joe a core member of Born in The Flood (BF) came on and after a few minutes spent adjusting his guitar and bass effects boxes launched in to a heart felt set of beautiful music and heartfelt lyrics sand with an intensity and passion that lifted you up, placed you securely in his world and and then bathed you in a melodic waterfall colored by experiences of his life. His voice harkens a comparison to both John Lennon and the much more recent sounds of Coldplay, yet on some level more approachable and vulnerable.

Eighth Act – Joe Pope and Great Denver Musicians 8

Ninth Act – Bela Karoli with Ian Cooke sitting in, this band is just too good for words, just go buy their album and be done with it or if you won’t listen to me listen to what NPR had to say:

Their latest CD Furnished Rooms, is a stunning set of jazzy acoustic compositions with touches of subtle electronics. The album is filled with beautifully structured dynamics and captivating sonic twists.”

Band members include Julie Davis : upright bass, vocals, soft instruments. Brigid McAuliffe : accordion, vocals. Carrie Beeder : violin, cello. James Han : piano, keyboard, organ.

Ian Cooke

Great Denver Musician 6 and Joe Pope

Bad Weather California, formerly Love Letter Band , Chris Adolf’s, Here is a blurb from Chris’s web site;

I remember when I learned that playing music and devoting yourself to it was something that a regular guy like myself could do. I was just an awkward high school kid no older than 15 years and a friend took me to see his older brother’s punk band play. This was back in the days when groups like Dinosaur Jr., Narvana, Fugazi and Sonic Youth ruled the world and still seemed a little scary to me. I was blown the fuck away, these weren’t rock stars or gods up there playing. These were dudes that I had eaten breakfast cereal with, dudes that had dropped me off at the mall, dudes that were regular dudes like I was.
That serendipitous introduction has stuck with me to this day. It has led me down an organic path of self, perhaps even spiritual-discovery and creativity. I’m not unique in this. It’s just that I have chosen to share my path through the things that I make. Here’s my vibe: I just want to be a regular dude playing music for regular people. Not any particular type of people. Just people. Every person on this planet is born equipped with a heart for magic and feeling. Why only share feelings with certain people? Fuck that. I mean, everyone is a valid person.
This is my church brave and humble.
And these are my songs. They go by the fake name (((bad weather California)))
love always,
Chris Adolf

There was so much good music that night that I have given up trying to decide who was who, if any one visiting this site can help me out please let me know if you can identify some of the photos. I have delayed posting this blog for several days just because I cannot determine who was who. How about I just drop a bunch of photos in here and label them Great Denver Musician 1, Great Denver Musician 2 and so on. Below is Great Denver Musician 7 and Nate.

Note the perfect unison of the swirling arms.

One thing I can tell you is that I am going back to Denver every chance I get to check out the”underground” Indie music scene, it is on fire with talent and should not be missed, can you imagine the thrill of four hours of non-stop killer music all for $13.00! And to top it off I had the thrill of a life time getting to photograph it all and then ending the evening with a full fledged crowd dive by Nate directly into the center of my frame, see below. Nst was blowing out the windows with a evening ending version of one of their more popular songs, Anthem. Below are before and during the stage dive.

Coming right at me.

They left the stage and I used the age old secret weapon to get them back on for one more song.

One last song.

After the show Nate was good enough to allow a couple flashed shots with him and Lorin.

We made our way home, voices sore from screaming and yelling, bodies tired from all the dancing and delighted to have been present at such a fantastic event. There are over 300 photos on my Flickr site of this show, check them out at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/30893898@N08/sets/72157611154331351/

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