Ozric Tentacles 9/27/15 Spaceland Ballroom

So, I'm driving to Spaceland to see British psychedelic troupe Ozric Tentacles, the B-52s Planet Claire comes on the box and the light of the eclipsing Super Moon is guiding me in. If only Sun Ra was chauffeuring me and my astronomical evening would have been complete. OT has been around since the jam Renaissance of the late 90s. Seemed like one or two original members. Noel Redding lookalike band leader on guitar and keyboards, mini Noel Redding on second keyboards, propulsive drummer (who I think was in Jamiroquai), and a stoned but talented Linda Hamilton on muscular bass. The Linda Hamilton character was a sight to behold, body builder arms that anchored the Brit-stoners through psychedelic Terminator territory. Thankfully wordless, (between their accent and dank haze, they could barely articulate the song titles), they were on autopilot on stage. Effortlessly careening from Prog to metal to dub to dance stylings.

Amir ElSaffar and the Two Rivers Ensemble 9/25/15 Firehouse 12

Amir ElSaffar's group was showcasing their new release Crisis. The ensemble is a mashup of middle eastern instrumentation and straight ahead jazz blowing. ElSaffar on trumpet, santur (an Iraqi hammered dulcimer), Ole Mathisen on saxes, Carlo Derosa on standup bass, new to the group drummer Dan, and Palestinian-American string players Tareq Abboushi on buzuq and Zafer Tawil on oud. I have seen this group before, but they seemed to have upped the ante on the eastern inflection, with ElSaffar even singing in the arabic microtonal maqam style. The seven part Crisis Suite with sections like "Flyover Iraq", "Tipping Point", and "From the Ashes" were all excellent. The ensemble also seemed tighter, with great sax-trumpet interplay even a few tease-nods to recently departed Ornette Coleman. In bringing the buzuq and oud to the fore, ElSaffar had an exotic backdrop for his modern jazz delivery. In an age when Iraq and the U.S. are unwanted bedfellows, this ensemble bridges the gap with music....the great equalizer.

Barrence Whitfield and the Savages 9/10/15 Cafe 9

Regional R&B legend BW made a stop at C9 to sharpen some songs from his excellent new release "Under the Savage Sky". The Savages, drums, guitar, bass, and saxes are the perfect backdrop for BW. Barrence is a sight to behold, built like a papasan chair or a whoopie pie with a booming voice and a trademark yelp, he takes on songs like a lumberjack. These guys were a staple at Toads in the 80s and 90s, and have the chops of a seasoned bar band. Thankfully, BW didn't try to walk down the bar as is his usual at C9. The set was short but sweet, including a nice Smokestack Lightning tease at the encore.