Dan Baird and the Homemade Sin 2/23/16 Cafe 9

DB and the HS took their brand of "swamp-ass" rock to C9. DB wore a top hat, and reminded me of a cross between John Hiatt and Todd Snider. Snarky southern humor and rock and roll chops, you could tell this band had a toe in arena rock. Then it appeared, "don't tell me no lies, and keep your hands to yourself". Yes, DB was the voice of the Georgia Satellites, early 80s on hit wonders. With help from young bassist and veteran drummer, and lead guitarist with a BonJovi complex, DB seems to have plodded along with the initial push from the GS hit. It was a rainy February night, and I bumped into DB on the way in. He said the weather was a bit much to which I responded that he could do anything with a tophat. Good thing I didn't make a Smartass Lincoln joke, DB is keenly aware of the Mason-Dixon or should I say Macon-Dixon line. Highlight was a tune about finding some CCR on the radio, even veering into a little Proud Mary for good measure.

Joe Russo's Almost Dead 2/11/16 College Street Music Hall

Joe Russo and Marco Benevento called themselves The Duo in the early aughts. They plugged in to the Phish-ey blossom of new jam and were tour warriors. Befriending the likes of MMW and showing an appetite for versatility, The Duo were positioned to be called up to the majors. Russo on drums and Benevento on a variety of keyboards, they needed to be familiar with the Grateful Dead catalog. Russo even got tapped to play in various post-Jerry incarnations while Marco carved out some quirky critically acclaimed solo offerings. Fast forward to 2016, the duo with the help of some other jammy pals, rock the area as JRAD.
People latch on to the Dead for a variety of reasons: country rock of Uncle John's Band, jazzy improv of Dark Star, expansive segue- rock of Scarlet/Fire or China/Rider, and of course the drug barter parking lot scene. JRAD focused on the Jazz segue notions of the Dead, delivering ambitious versions of Cumberland Blues, Bertha, and Goin Down the Road Feelin Bad. The evening highlight was Benevento's melding of Tear's For Fears Everybody Wants to Rule the World with the iconic GD anthem Eyes of the World.

Moon Hooch w/ Balkun Bros. Bar 2/3/16

Just caught the last tune of local blues outfit Balkun Bros. The back room at Bar was packed for an indoor-hippie-freak out for area buskers Moon Hooch. Legend has it that this trio of drums, sax, and sax hooned their chops in a NYC subway stop. I missed them at the 2015 Vibes because they were dealt a miserable time slot. I couldn't see the drummer from my vantage point, but his propulsive fills created the palate for sax. One saxman played alto exclusively and sang and rapped a bit. The other saxman started out on baritone and moved to some homemade sax contraption that looked like a mutant handrail and gave off a Bassnectar-like EDM leg hair shaking synth sound. The second sax-er also played a small keyboard laptop thing. The trio had a lot of energy which kept the the packed house in a perpetual pogo. The second saxer even strapped on a sawed off traffic cone to the sax bell for extra effect. Like many dance offerings, the songs didn't vary in structure, and the sparse vocals seemed like blurry add-ons . This music pivots on crescendo, not song structure. At many points, the dueling saxes fired their sound at each other like some rock-em sax-em robots. "Stand clear the closing" indeed.

Bent Knee with Kindred Queer 1/13/16 Bar

Woefully under-recorded local talent Kindred Queer warmed the crowd. Lead vocals and guitarist Xavier and collaborator Olive on cello and harmony vocals are now backed by youngsters on bass and drums. The quartet displayed solid songwriting with the vocal harmony and cello affording an almost gypsy feel. Supported by a cadre of local artists and family, their set gave off a house party vibe. I'm sure the two mainstays of this band have day jobs, but if they took a summer off to tour, they could really blow up regionally. Xavier claims new ep is forthcoming.
Berkeley School of Music grads Bent Knee had a full band. Drums,violin, female bassist, female organ and lead vocals, snarky guitarist, and laptop effects. Song structure was technically complex, to the point of confusion. Female vocalist had a shrill voice that sometimes went off the rails and irritated. Guitarist had a decent solo with a full dose of Mahavishnu on a raga-inflected solo. Bent Knee would do to dumb it down a bit for us, the masses.

Cloakroom 1/6/16 Bar

Power trio Cloakroom said they were happy to "be back in the States, where paper towels are not an option". Guitar, drums and bass were loud and punky.  Lanky guitarist had an almost Morrissey-esque  vocal delivery. The drums and bass loudly backed the guitar to give a metal tinge to the sound. A packed house of head-bobbers enjoyed the set. The drummer was shaped like a fire hydrant and hit the skins with the ferocity of a fire hydrant.

Ned Rothenberg's Inner Diaspora 12/11/15 Firehouse 12

Downtown reed-man Rothenberg takes his current group to the Firehouse. Rothenberg played clarinet, bass clarinet, and Japanese skakuhachi flute. Mark Feldman on violin, Erik Friedlander on cello, Jerome Harris on acoustic guitar/bass, and Satoshi Takeishi on percussion.
The second set started with a mournful clarinet-centric tune. I am currently reading "New York Noise", Tamar Barzel's book chronicling John Zorn's radical Jewish music and the downtown scene of Knitting Factory fame. I can' help but relish the thought of Freidlander, Feldman, and Rothenberg as being instrumental ( no pun intended) in this movement of the mid-90s. With masterful command of their instruments, these guys veer from ethnic to avant grade and back. Tight compositions with airy spaces to improvise keep them moving. The textural elements of Takeishi colored and shaded these songs to a sharp delivery. Great end to the winter season.

Dawes w/ Hiss Golden Messenger 12/5/15 College St Music Hall

Opener HGM from North Carolina showed some good songwriting and guitar-centric rock. Lead singer had a Ryan Adams flair (even sported the tight denim jacket). Drums, bass, sax, and keys/slide guitar rounded out the group. Singer had just enough twang for an enjoyable lead-in for Dawes.
 The hall was packed to see Dawes, which seemed to surprise leader and singer Taylor Goldsmith. The crowd had an interesting demographic, mainly young couples aged 20-40. Dawes has a few records with minimal hit recognition but a seemingly fervent following. The plateau where jam, rock, and pop reside is a tiny space with slippery slopes on all sides. Dawes tried to maintain balance on this coveted real estate, but inevitably fell off. Comparisons to Jackson Browne and Counting Crows should have tipped me off. Thankfully they didn't try to recreate the Brown classic "Lawyers in Love" which is one of the tunes I seem to despise most. Tame songwriting and un inspirational musicianship flowed from Dawes. On one tune, the refrain was "I'll take some mashed potatoes and some chicken wings cause I'm a little bit of everything", I guess they have as much "everything" as a KFC value meal.