Dawes seems to be doing everything the right way. They tour endlessly, they’ve played backup to the great Robbie Robertson, and they treat their fans like their friends.

Last night was my first chance to see Dawes live and it was everything I hoped. On album, the band sounds like a California version of the Avett Brothers — less punky and  more Jackson Browne-era harmonies. But live frontman Taylor Goldsmith not only delivers his heartfelt lyrics with feeling, he backs them up with some pretty searing guitar. In fact, the whole band rocks a whole lot harder in concert.

The show had a weird early start because Royale is primarily a dance club with a DJ after 10. The three-band event started at a ridiculous 6 p.m. The brother-sister act the Belle Brigade started things off with a fun set of folky-punky pop. Dawes was up next, and while they only had an hour and a half, they packed in 11 songs, including great versions of “Fire Away,” “When My Time Comes,” and “Time Spent in Los Angeles.” Taylor’s brother Griffin took the vocals on a pair of tunes, including a cover of Paul Simon’s “Kodachrome,” which was totally fun and sent the crowd into a frenzy.

I was not so taken, however, with the final band, Blitzen Trapper. I had heard great things and even heard a couple of tracks that I liked from their latest album, “American Goldwing.”  The band rocked well enough, but I guess after how personable the Dawes show was, Trapper seemed a little generic. I will someday give them another try though. As for Dawes, there is no doubt this band is in it for the long run and hopefully they’ll come around again when they are headlining.

For my pix, go HERE
Dawes setlist (courtesy of Maimed and Tamed blog)
The Way You Laugh
If I Wanted Someone
That Western Skyline
How Far We’ve Come
Fire Away
So Well
Peace In The Valley
Kodachrome (Paul Simon cover)
A Little Bit of Everything
When My Time Comes
Time Spent in Los Angeles

Video of “A Little Bit of Everything” at Royale

The door has swung wide open for Grace Potter, and she is sprinting through it. It seemed to jar open suddenly late last year with her invitation to join Katy Perry and Nicki Minaj on the high-profile MTV “Divas” showcase. She and the Nocturnals followed that with a full circuit through the late-night talk shows, charming Leno, Letterman, and George Lopez and blasting their new-album hit “Paris (Ooh La La) to the world. Recently, she duetted with Kenny Chesney on his hit “You and Tequila” and staged her own music festival in her home state of Vermont.

So with that success it would be easy for her now to lay back a bit on her live shows, maybe cut down on the two-hour stage time, the wild dancing, and especially the multiple 10-minute–plus jams.

But judging from her recent show at the Bank of America Pavilion, that just not the way she rolls.

From the moment she sprinted (yes, really sprinted – in high heels, no less) on stage to the opening notes of the evening-appropriate “Hot Summer Night,” Grace was a dervish, dashing, skipping and dancing from center mike to her Hammond B-3 back to center. Her voice, as always, ranged from soulful to downright Janis-Joplin-esque – sometimes within the same song.

She led the Nocturnals – guitarists Scott Tournet and Bennie Yurco, bassist Cat Popper and drummer Matt Burr – through many of the group’s great tunes including “Joey,” “Treat Me Right” and “Apologies.” Songs from her latest album, like “Tiny Light” and “Oasis,” were treated with extended jams that lifted them out of their pop-lite original state.

Along with numerous Boston shout-outs, Grace dedicated her eveningwear color to Bonnie Raitt, who apparently wore blue during a performance – Grace’s first at the BoA when she was 15. Somehow I doubt Bonnie wasn’t decked out in the same sparkly electric-blue miniskirt with gold heels that Grace sported.

The evening came to a head as the band broke into a guitar-spastic version of Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit,” perfectly suited for Grace’s pipes, followed by the solo a cappella “Nothing But the Water, Part 1” and the blistering band-finisher “Part II.”

That seemed like a night full of music right there but it wasn’t the end. It was followed by an equally exuberant “Stop the Bus” (complete with a snippet of Led Zep’s “Good Times, Bad Times”).

Off went the band to a cheering and chair-pounding call for more, and back they came, for “Ah Mary,” “Paris” and then a rousing cover of Joan Jett’s “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Done, right? Nope. “Medicine” finished the night, ending in a tribal-like drumming group that sent fans home happy into the hot summer night.

For my pics, click HERE

The setlist:
Hot Summer Night
Joey
Money
That Phone
Treat Me Right
Oasis
Colors
One Short Night
Big White Gate
Tiny Light
2:22
Apologies
White Rabbit
Nothing But The Water I
Nothing But The Water II
Stop The Bus

Ah Mary
Paris (Ooh La La)
I Love Rock ’N’ Roll
Medicine

It’s clear that the musicians that play the Newport Folk Festival get it. Yes, it’s a beautiful scene, with its view from the stage looking beyond the crowd to the bay filled with folk-loving yachters. But there are other scenic venues – Red Rocks in Colorado and the Gorge in Washington state come to mind.

It is the tradition that makes Newport special. It is 92-year-old Pete Seeger coming out at the end of the festival and leading the sold-out crowd of 10,000 in “Turn, Turn, Turn” and “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” It’s the ebullient Colin Meloy of the Decemberists telling the crowd, “We’ve never played to a more attentive festival audience.” It was Gillian Welch doing a hand/leg slaps and a little jig while David Rawlings played banjo during her new song “White Horses.”

Yes, the difference between Newport and, say, Bonnaroo or other wildly popular festivals is that this one is all about the music. It’s about looking at the day’s lineup and making a plan to see as many acts as you can: watching gypsy rockers Gogol Bordello on the main stage then catching the early part of up-and-comers Delta Spirit’s small-stage set, but being back at our chairs in time to see 87-year-old bluegrass legend Earl Scruggs.

People come to listen, not to chat with friends. Because this year’s fest was sold out, our seats were fairly far back, near the walkway. The hi-def video screen made it easy to see the acts, but was even more remarkable was that we heard every acoustic note, every quiet harmony. And that’s a credit to the crowd.

We were only able to make it on Saturday, and no doubt missed a lot of great moments Sunday. But here are our highlights:

We had just gotten settled when the Wailin’ Jennys took the stage. I’ve been a big fan of the trio’s sweet harmonies, and they did not disappoint. It was a nice and easy way to start the festival.

Next, it was off to see the N.J.-based rock/punk/folk band River City Extension, an octet led by Joe Michelini, inside the fort. The Quad stage, as it is known, is a favorite. Last year, the David Wax Museum played there and was so popular, the festival brought them back to play the main stage on Sunday this year.

We returned to our main-stage seats to catch the end of a rather subdued set from the Felice Brothers. (Last year they ripped it up on the second stage).

Then came our Gogol/Delta Spirit/Scruggs run, which included a quick stop at the second stage to catch some rockabilly from Pokey Lafarge and the South City Three. Gogol Bordello is led by the manic Eugene Hutz. He played acoustic while sitting (or trying to sit) on a stool! Scruggs, also sitting, can still play and ran though some of his popular tunes.

By then, it was decision time. We wanted to catch some of Tegan and Sara’s acoustic set and even made the trek over to the Quad stage, but as time grew near we worried we’d get caught missing some of Gillian Welch and David Rawlings’ set, so we changed plans and hoofted it back to our seats.

Words cannot describe the beauty of Gillian and Dave’s voices and instruments, how they mingle, meander and mix together. The crowd was dead silent as they sang, so every note rang out. Gillian introduced a bunch of new songs, including “White Horses,” in which she did a little jig. And they absolutely dazzled on the jam-filled crowd favorite “The Revelator.”

The Decemberists closed the show with a most entertaining set, mixing new and old tunes including “The Mariner’s Revenge Song,” which featured guitarist Chris Funk leading the crowd in screams as if they were being swallowed by a whale. It was the ideal song for masses at the ocean-kissed venue. As the sun set, Gillian and Dave came out to join the Decemberists for their encores “All Arise!” and “June Hymn,” a perfect ending to a perfect day.

To see my pics, click HERE

Most times when you go to shows you pretty much know what to expect. Once in a while, though, you get surprised and wonder (in your best David Byrne impression), “How did I get here?”

That was somewhat the case the other night at T.T. the Bear’s in Cambridge, where caught three acts that — if you stood back and determined the “Modern Acoustic genre range” — may have been slightly outside the circle. But it proved to be a fascinating auditory experience.

Actually, Thao & Mirah, a group made up of two superb singer-songwriters, was everything I hoped for. I’ve known of the high-energy Thao Nguyen and her band the Get Down Stay Down for some time. Mirah, from San Francisco, I am less familiar with. Together the pair, along with a stellar backing band of keys, viola, bass and drums, combined that same high energy with danceable beats and nice harmonies. The two are a blast to watch: Thao is constantly moving, whether she’s playing her guitar or beating on a tambourine. Mirah is all smiles and really gets into her vocals. The group showed its diversity and range by each playing multiple instruments while playing tunes off their debut album as well as their solo projects.

The acts that preceded them were interesting if not quite to my taste. First off was Alex Guy, a viola player who I would eventually realize was a player in Thao & Mirah’s band. She played her viola like a violin, plucking and bowing the strings and using loops to build her sound, to accompany her songs. She produced some beautiful sounds though her lyrics were lost in the mix.

A note about T.T’s here: I love the place. I spent a lot of my post-college time hanging in Cambridge clubs, including Jonathan Swifts (gone), Jacks (burned down) and T.T.’s. I specifically remember a truly smokin’ night with Barrence Whitfield and the Savages… but I digress. T.T.’s however is next door neighbors with the Middle East nightclubs. A quieter act at T.T.’s can get lost in the echoing bass from a more raucous band at the Middle East.

The next band up, BOBBY, is definitely a group I wouldn’t have gone to see but I’m glad I did. They were profiled on NPR two days before I saw them, and while NPR calls them “quiet but not ambient,” I beg to differ. Comprised of five musicians who met at Bennington College in Vermont, the band sounded to me like an ambient jam band. Three keyboards, a guitar, drums, and sometimes bass provided danceable beats while the male and female lead singers mouthed either words or wails into heavily echoed mikes. It sounded pretty interesting, but as songs… well I just couldn’t make out the lyrics. That might have been T.T.’s issue since I pretty much had trouble hearing lyrics all night.

To see my pics, click HERE

Here’s a video from a different show.

From left: Dinty Child, Amy Correia, Tim Gearan, Jefferson Hamer, and Anais Mitchell.

Sleeping after a concert is always difficult for me; the music from the show runs through my head, almost like reliving what I heard. So imagine what it’s like when you have the entire Hadestown folk opera on repeat!

That said, Anais Mitchell’s Hadestown, as performed in Marblehead last night, was truly an amazing experience. I was lucky enough to have seen the premiere in Cambridge a little more than a year ago (review HERE). I was totally bowled over by that show, and was equally blown away here. A lot of what I wrote about that is still true so I’ll try not to repeat too much, but it kills me how much the musicians get into the show. I wrote this before but it is worth repeating: I’ve never seen a group of performers who are so focused in on listening to each other and to the music. When they weren’t singing, they were swaying, eyes closed and thoroughly enjoying the community of the project.

This rendition of Hadestown was notable in that all the singers had performed their roles before. Tim Gearan as Hades and Dinty Child as Hermes in Cambridge, Jefferson Hamer as Orpheus and Amy Correia as Persephone appeared in New York, and of course the fabulous Anais, who wrote and created the whole thing, as Eurydice. This is a great group and the fact that they had done it before meant they could really get into their characters. I also have to mention the fabulous backing band, the Michael Chorney Orchestra, which punctuated the songs with a bevy of folk and jazz grooves — trombone, cello, viola, drums bass and the amazing acoustic guitar of Chorney. Another local, Jake Bush, added some tasty accordion.

I love Gearan’s Hades. His “Hey Little Songbird” and “Why We Build the Wall” are showstoppers.  And Amy Correia, who I had never heard before, has an amazing, raspy-husky voice that, to me, blows away Ani DiFranco’s from the album as Persephone. Correia was a force on “Our Lady of the Underground.”  Jefferson Hamer, who I had seen just a few weeks before as a guitarist-only backing singer Robert Sarazin Blake, was a surprise to me with his high-range vocals, and really stood out on “If It’s True.” Local musician Rose Polenzani, who was in the audience, came up to add some vocals for the role of the Fates. If there was one downside it was the lack of the Fates. In Cambridge, Polenzani led two other local singers, Ann Heaton and Melissa Myers, in the roles of the three Fates.  The song “When the Chips Are Down,” one of my favorite tunes, was a little lacking.

In all, it was a great night. I brought my 17-year-old daughter and her boyfriend along. It was really fun to see how much they enjoyed it. Natalie was spot-on with her summatio: “Brilliant!”

To see my pics from the night, click HERE

A video from the show (not mine)

You have to make the most of Mondays, especially the dismal ones in April. Luckily for us, the Submarines came around just at the right time. If you’ve never seen or heard the Submarines — ostensibly, Blake Hazard and John Dragonetti, though they brought a drummer and bassist with them on tour — they are quite the opposite weather equivalent: sunshine, fresh air and the promise of summer approaching.

On this particular Monday at the new Brighton Music Hall, the California band with Boston roots played to a small but enthusiastic crowd, who seemed to know all the tunes from their popular “Honeysuckle Weeks” album and certainly appreciated the new material from the group’s just released “Love Notes/Letter Bombs.” (Our review of the album HERE.)

Songs like “Birds” and “Plans” from the new album mixed seamlessly into the set with their great tunes “The Wake Up Song” and “Swimming Pool” from Honeysuckle. Some highlights: “Shoelaces,” one I really like from the new album  (Dragonetti sings, “I’ve had better days than this/ words trip like untied shoelaces/ Still you’re worth falling down for once in a while.”) was stellar as was “Ivaloo,” a tune Hazard said was written about their friend’s baby who was named after a street in Somerville. Older tune “1940,” which was played as an encore was outstanding. And “You, Me & the Bourgeoisie” remains a killer tune, definitely their showstopper and crowdpleaser. Most songs have a poppy-rock beat but the lyrics, which sadly were lost in a poor vocal mix, concern the ups and downs of relationships.

Hazard is the shining light of the band. She is adorable, personable and just seems like she’d be a fun person to hang out with. Her husband and bandmate Dragonetti is a great musician and holds the group’s reigns, working not only his guitar but the computer keypad that controls their keyboard backing tracks. I’ve seen him in interviews where he too is very personable but, for the most part, he seems to leave the stage banter to Hazard. Also the drummer Jason Stare is a blast to watch. He reminds me a little of Animal from the Muppets back there (see my review from previous concert HERE), pounding away and smiling the whole time.

Two things: First, the band doesn’t venture too far from the structure of the original recordings, probably because of the computer-generated backing tracks. It would be fun to hear them change up some of their older songs a bit, either with extended solos (Dragonetti is a skilled guitarist) or some kind of new sound (He is known for taking songs such as “You, Me…” and remixing them to great effect.

The second thing is that the Brighton Music Hall is a pretty neat place. Originally Harpers Ferry, the club has been redesigned recently with a nice open floor plan and has a small capacity for an intimate setting to hear live music. Mondays are not a good night to judge a club’s atmosphere so we’ll have to make a return trip on a night when the place if filled and buzzing with excitement. Hopefully also, the sound mix will be improved.

To see more of my photos from the night, click HERE.

I could end my review right there and you would have enough information to get you to go see them the next time they come to your town. You won’t find a more spirited group of musicians than the quartet of singer Rachael Price, acoustic bassist Bridget Kearney, guitarist/trumpeter (yes!) Mike Olson and drummer Michael Calabrese. They implore you to get up and dance from the first song.

It’s music you want to share with other people. I was there alone, and most of the time I’m OK with that. I like to experience some music by myself — where I don’t have to worry if the person I’m with is having a good time. But Lake Street Dive, no, you want to share the experience.

I was only able to catch the first set of the first night at the Lizard because of having to work the next day (even though the band basically scolded me — really, anyone — if we were to leave early). But from what I did see and hear, I want more, and often.

Calabrese and Kearney lay down the beat behind Price’s rock ‘n’ soul vocals, while Olson adds the exclamation points on the songs with his guitar and especially his sweet trumpet playing. It’s a great change of pace to hear a trumpet in the mix. Did I mention that these guys are all New England Conservatory musicians? So, yeah, they’re talented, and the music is intoxicating. It’s soul mixed with jazz, against a rockin’ beat. It’s dancey. It’s fun. Yes, that’s the genre: fun.

This band is a blast to watch as well: First, they all seem to be having a great time, laughing and peppering each other with their thoughts (they’ve even set a up a “Feelings” page on their website!)  and engaging the audience all along the way. Kearney, who plays in multiple bands including Joy Kills Sorrow (which has a new album in the works), is in turn hunched over her bass or wildly picking and slapping her bass while providing emphatic harmony vocals. And Price is a joy to watch as she moves to the rhythm of the songs like sweet soul singer of some past era.

I wish I knew more of their songs to be able to go into depth about what they played, but since I don’t I will just tell you to check out Lake Street Dive. You will thoroughly enjoy them. Oh, and don’t forget to take someone with you to enjoy them with.

For more pics (not that great), click HERE

Grace Potter the band has arrived!

This is the third time I’ve seen Grace and the Nocturnals in about a year and a half. Each time I reviewed the shows, I thought I knew what kind of band they wanted to be.

The first, in Nov. 2009 and just after the formation of the new Nocturnals (adding bassist Cat Popper and second guitarist Benny Yurco), I guessed they wanted to be a female-led version of the Allman Brothers.  (Read review HERE.) They had already had their makeover — snazzy short dresses for Grace and Cat, suits for the guys — but for the most part they still seemed to be geared to jam.

The second time they came around, last May, I was sure they wanted to be a bedazzled version of Heart. (Read review HERE) They still jammed but were starting to add a more sharp stage presence, really started to gel as a band. Popper, who stays mostly in the background and plays a solid bass, adds another dimension and a second female voice, which helps the band’s balance (and obviously helps draws some eyes).

So here they are now, post-VH1 Divas show (with Katy Perry and Nicky Minaj!!?!), have dazzled audiences on every late-night talk show out there, and crossed the country spreading the love of Grace.  They are now officially their own band, one that can crank out songs like “Paris” and “Medicine,” equal parts solid pop and mesmerizing jam rock. They are fronted by a woman who twirls like Stevie Nicks and can belt out tunes like Heart’s Ann Wilson.

Last night’s show opened with mostly newer tunes — “Only Love,” “Hot Summer Night” and “Low Road” — with only “Toothbrush & My Table” as the only older song in the first four.  But while “Paris” gets most of the play when the band hits the late-night circuit (and who can blame them, the song is built to kick ass) and is the surefire main-set show closer, Grace & co. gives her past album tunes plenty of space in concert.

“Low Road” led right into “Joey” and had the Friday-night crowd in full lather, singing all the words. It should be noted that it didn’t take too much to get the crowd into it: Blues & Lasers, basically three members of the Nocturnals plus a second drummer and a different bass player, were the openers for the evening and during the break between bands, there was a spontaneous singalong to Bon Jovi’s “Don’t Stop Believin’” as it played on the venue’s sound system.

Other highlights included a wildly pschedelic intro to “Mastermind” and a nice version of “Treat Me Right,” featurning  just Grace, Scott Tournet and Benny, all playing acoustic guitars. That led into a wild flurry of tunes that bled into each other: “Stop the Bus,” “Big White Gate” and the great “Nothing But the Water,” parts 1 (Grace solo) and 2 (the electric band version). By this time Grace was whirling like a Red Bull-fueled Stevie Nicks as she moved seamlessly from her Hammond B3 stage right to center stage strutting around playing her flying V.

After “Why Don’t You Love Me,” the band brought down the house with “Paris.” Scott, who had torn it up all night while playing in both bands, is such a great joy to listen to. He can play tasty or incredibly nasty. On “Paris,” he was downright nasty.

For the encore, Benny came out by himself and played some nifty acoustic for the intro of Heart’s “Crazy on You.” Then the band walked out, or in Grace’s case, skipped, twirled, and jumped (in heels!) out and blew the song out of the water.  [Ed note: Apparently, Grace was pretty ill during the show. Check out the revealing clip from VH1 HERE.] If you thought Ann Wilson could really hit those high notes, well, Grace takes them into the stratosphere. They finished with “Medicine,” which as a pop song is nice on the album. But it something special when it becomes the rocking closer, complete with full-band drum solo in the middle.

It was a  phenomenal way to end the night, and perfectly fitting to what the band is right now — emerging pop stars who can really rock.

For more pics, click HERE

A video (not mine) of “Treat Me Right” from the show

The setlist  (From This Is Somewhere blog)
Only Love
Hot Summer Night
Toothbrush And My Table
Low Road >
Joey
Mastermind
Money >
Apologies >
Tiny Light
Treat Me Right >
Stop The Bus >
Big White Gate >
Nothin’ But The Water Part I >
Nothin’ But The Water Part II >
Why Don’t You Love Me
Paris
–
Crazy On You >
Medicine

Josh Ritter and the Royal City Band, opening night in Philly

  What should one expect from a Valentine’s Day Brawl? Love, roses,  a nice slow-dance sax solo, and of course some heartache because this ain’t no Hallmark celebration. This was Josh Ritter’s tell-it-like-it-is idea of Valentine’s Day, and it was quite a party.
  I was lucky enough to catch the first two of four of these events — in Philly and Boston. Josh not only brought his crack band but also a three-piece horn section, and set the mood with roses draped on all the mikes.

Josh and Zack rockin’ the Troc

  The Trocadero in Philadelphia, known locally as just the Troc, is nice old theater with a lot of history and some beautiful architecture, including swooping balconies and detailed columns. It made for an interesting contrast to the sort of cookie-cutter House of Blues in Boston the next night. Both venues had their advantages, the Troc’s was the intimacy of its building. The House of Blues is a bigger venue (2,400 patrons to the Troc’s 1,200) with impeccable sound so the HOB show really felt like a rock SHOW. At both places the crowd was right there for Josh as he led them through love’s travails.
  The set lists for the two nights were similar though not the same (see below), and there was plenty of individuality to make them special. For one, Josh, at two points in each show, read out valentine dedications sent in by fans who were going to those shows. The dedications were hilarious, ranging from sweet to bawdy. One person in Boston even proposed through a dedication (and was accepted!).
Since the shows followed similar set lists, I’ll go through the shows together, pointing out the highlights and differences as I go.
  Both shows opened with Josh bounding on stage – dressed nattily in a vest over a red shirt with a rose in his lapel and even red socks! – for one of his ultimate love songs (how many of these does he have?), “Bright Smile.” It’s amazing how he grabs the audience’s attention right away… they see him out there alone and they immediately quiet down to hear him. At the Troc, the crowd sang along unobtrusively (mostly, more on this later) to every song. Josh’s voice rang out but underneath you could hear the audience basking in the love of his lyrics.
  The band took the stage to roars from the crowds for the next tune. In Philly it was “Long Shadows” followed by “Lillian,” in Boston the order was swapped, and seemed to fit better. “Lillian,” played with rockin’ delight by Josh’s great band is a treat. At HOB, it just roared, a great piano solo by Sam Kassirer, and guitarist Austin Nevins was just on fire all night.
  ”Southern Pacific” and “The Curse” were next. Beautiful renditions — Josh waltzing by himself to the beautiful piano and bass lines of “The Curse.” This led into the first set of dedications back by the still waltzing music of band. At the Troc, the last one read “Roses are red, violets are blue, hopefully not my balls”… something like that. The crowd was in hysterics.
  ”Empty Hearts” followed, and then the highlight of both nights: the three-song killer of “Real Long Distance,” “Rattling Locks” and “Harrisburg.” A three-member horn section (trumpet and two saxes) torched these songs, rocking both venues to their core. This is where the HOB shined. Despite the volume and the number of players on stage, you could hear every instrument, crystal-clear. On “Rattling Locks,” bassist Zack Hickman led the charge of musicians, including the horn players, cracking drumsticks together in percussive bliss. If Josh is the emotional leader of the band, Zack is the physical leader, making sure the show runs smoothly, and an incredibly talented musician. “Harrisburg,” one of my all-time favorite tunes, including a very funny Josh story-song interlude that led in and out of the Talking Heads’ “Once in a Lifetime.”
  The band then brought the crowd down with a beautiful “Folk Bloodbath” before leaving the stage for Josh to work his magic again.
  At both shows, Josh opened the solo portion of the sets with “You Don’t Make It Easy, Babe.” In Philly, he dedicated the song to Sarah Palin, Queen of Alaska. He followed this with an acoustic “Thin Blue Flame,” which he didn’t play in Boston. The crowd was hushed as Josh worked his lyrical magic. The two shows continued with “Temptation of Adam” and a “Naked as a Window/Girl in the War” pairing that was amazing. In Boston, he poignantly dedicated “Girl in the War” to the people of Egypt. These songs, to me, really showed the difference in the intimacy of the crowds. In Philly, fans sang along with every word. In fact, they sang beautifully on “Girl in the War” except for one dude who kept shouting the lyrics before they were sung. It was funny at first, annoying by the end and then he was shut down. In Boston, the crowd really came to party. They were polite and sang along with the quiet songs, but lived for the rock.
  The band returned to the stage, but not to their instruments for the next song, a lush cover of Velvet Underground’s “Pale Blue Eyes.” Sam, Zack, Austin and drummer Liam Hurley stepped up to a side mike to sing harmonies on the chorus. They returned to their instruments for the next set of dedications, backing them with Cyndi Lauper’s “Time After Time.” In Boston, this is where the proposal was made. It was pretty cool.

Matt Douglas’ slow-dance sax solo on “Kathleen”

  Then it was back to rock. “Rumors” and “Right Moves” were blistering. The band was in high gear. The horns reappeared and took these songs to a new level. In Boston, the horn players were totally in to it, dancing and goofing in time to the music.
  And then there was “Kathleen,” ever the crowd-pleaser. This time it was intro’d by the band, slow and quiet, as Josh worked the crowd into a lather. First, regaling the crowd with tales of love — from a pigeon’s standpoint. A male pigeon flies down, puffs himself for the females, who basically ignore them. He then warned the crowd there would be slow dance mid-song and promised it wouldn’t be too awkward. Boom. Liam hits the kit and away the band sails into “Kathleen” full-on… and then mid-song the band quiets and Matt Douglas on baritone sax, steps to the front and delivers a jazzy slow-dance solo.
  You think you’ve come to the end of the night. There were peaks and breaks and peaks again. But the band played on. “Lantern,” “Change of Time,” and “To the Dogs” in different order (this is Boston’s, and seemed to work best.) On “Lantern,” folks swayed glowsticks to the beat. “To the Dogs” simply rocked, the crowd trying to keep up with the breakneck-speed lyrics.
  With that the band left the stage, but of course would be back.
In Boston, Josh unveiled a new song, “Galahad” (there’s an animated video of the song HERE). He didn’t play it in Philly (I think he ran out of time). Scott Hutchison of the band Frightened Rabbit, who was a great opener (need to hear more!), came out to perform an Everly Brothers cover “Stories We Could Tell,” with Josh. Hutchison left, the band came back and ripped through “Snow Is Gone,” a wishful, final valentine to their fans.  More than two hours of music finally over, the crowd left jubilantly into the chilly night.

When a CD release party is billed as an Extravaganza, you expect just a little bit more than a band onstage running through their new songs. And so it was that the alt-Mex-folk act David Wax Museum — essentially the duo of guitarist David Wax and his violin and donkey-jawbone-playing partner Suz Slezak — brought not only their music, but a musically theatrical show to the funky confines of Oberon on Feb. 3 for the unveiling of their hip and spirited new CD, “Everything Is Saved.”

After some brief comments from an emcee (who was also a super fan of the band) and some unusual merch hawking (including some shirtless male body posing), the pair took the stage along with Wax’s accordion-playing cousin and a percussionist for the opening number “That’s Not True.” It was about halfway through that first number that the crowd realized why this venue was chosen for this party, as a procession of horns, percussionists and accordionist snaked its way from atop the theater’s balcony, parted the standing crowd joined the group on stage.
In all, 12 musicians would come and go during the set, playing a variety of instruments. At one point there were six or seven donkey jawbones simultaneously being whacked to the beat. The tunes, such as “Born With a Broken Heart,” already played with enthusiasm on the album, were ramped up to foot-stomping, hand-clapping, audience-participatory levels by a group of musicians (and obviously good friends of the band), who couldn’t stop from emitting smiles and laughter as they were playing.
As for the carnival atmosphere of the show, well, let’s see… there were two people on stage who had string pulled out of their mouths, there were crepe-paper streamers tossed from the corners of the theater into the crowd, shiny confetti fell from the ceiling. Oh, and did I mention the trapeze aerialist? Yes, there she was, about a third of the way into the crowd, doing her thing while two accordions and a percussionist serenaded her from the balcony.
The highlight of the show (no, I haven’t mentioned it yet) was around midway though the night when the musicians broke off into groups, with the horn section performing in the balcony stage right, followed by Wax and Slezak on the catwalk behind the crowd, then down to the floor where an acoustic bass backed a solo singer, then to the center of the crowd where Wax and Slezak performed a very acoustic gospel number that had the whole crowd foot-stomping the beat. It was mesmerizing music and theater.
The night finished up with multiple encores: their very popular “Yes, Maria, Yes” brought the band out in full force. It was followed by a beautiful duet of just Wax and Slezak side by side on a single microphone for a final tune.
For more pics, click HERE

My video clip from the show