You had me at harpsichord…
To celebrate the release of the new CD ‘I’m Assuming You’re All In Bands: Tris McCall In Brooklyn’ by Tris McCall and the New Jack Trippers, Jersey Beat invited several friends to perform at Maxwell’s in Hoboken. Tris sent me a message thru My Space informing me of several points to entice me to the show. Not that I really needed it, but here’s what it said:
“This really ‘is’ going to be a one-of-a-kind show. I’m never going to play an electric harpsichord with the band again (because the harpsichord is moving to Maine after the show) and I’m never going to do some of these songs again. Considering that this may be the last New Jack Trippers show I ever do, I intend to leave it all on the floor. It ought to be something to see.”
I replied with, “You had me at harpsichord.” Although I did not boohoo and blubber it up like Renee Zellweger. Ok, maybe I got a little misty.
Jersey Beat, the consummate indie music zine, is expanding into a bona fide record label with this new eclectic pop-rock musical tour thru the land of hipsters and wannabes known as Brooklyn. There is a veiled bit of satire in the song ‘Colonial Williamsburg’ which exposes the all too frightening similarities between the vacation spot and the ‘L’ stop. And anyone actually in a band will no doubt relate to most every line of ‘An American Tourist in Brooklyn’.
On to tonight’s festivities. I’ve always been impressed with Marc Maurizi’s songs. This former member of Cropduster and The Broke Downs justified his country-flavored brand of rock by saying the songs were written in Hackensack. He’s right, that town is further west of the Hudson River than Hoboken—even if only by about 10 miles or so.
He started out acoustic then switched for one song to distorted electric. He wanted to emulate the time when Frank Black played Maxwell’s after leaving The Pixies. He treated us to a rousing rendition of one of my favorite Cropduster tunes that I don’t think was ever released. ‘Lester Bangs’ commemorates the man who wrote for Creem Magazine in the 70s and was credited for coining the name ‘Heavy Metal’.
As the set progressed, Marc was joined by his buddies Jake (whose last name I never cought) on piano and former band mate Tom Gerke on guitar. Tom joked that he rarely sits to the left of Marc. Being that he is a lefty player, this increases the chances of that horrible of on-stage tragedies; the headstock collision. Thankfully they came thru unscathed, briefly visiting a spastic, progressive leap of modulating wonder.
Next up was Charles Bissell from The Wrens, the band that won the Tris McCall.net critics poll of 2004. An interesting use of delay pedals, dual amps and unique vocal style creates a mesmerizing sound. By being aware of his proximity to the mic, he is able to make sure his vocals remain set nicely in a pocket well suited for this carousel.
There is a lot to be said for this exploding realm of self-accompanied music. Some do it because it is a bitch to keep a band together. Others do it because they just can’t find kindred spirits to work with. And still others, like Charles, I assume do it just to have that added dimension of getting their music to the masses. Whatever the reason, I’m just glad to be discovering more talented cats thru the propagation of looping.
Up came the man of the evening Tris McCall and The New Jack Trippers. As I alluded to earlier, this would be their final show due to miscellaneous cases of marriage and relocation. Or so was the rumor of the night. The 80s flavored surf keys combined with a tight rhythm section and quality backing vocals made a fine go cart for Tris’s words.
And man does he have words. Tris is one of the most intelligently witty writers around. Whether it be the lyrics to his songs or the articles he has written for numerous media, one thing is for sure, you will be entertained. Heck, you may even learn a thing or three about life and the world around you.
The last band up was The Multi-Purpose Solution. They were not really my cuppa tea. Although the music was strong and melodic reminiscent of Echo & The Bunnymen. However, the Danzing inspired vocals just seemed way outta place to my ears. I will confess that others at Maxwell’s claimed that this was an off night for them. So perhaps I will give them a second listen some time.
See my Pix from Maxwell’s
Tris McCall
The Wrens
The Multi-Purpose Solution
Maxwell’s
Jersey Beat
Buy ‘I’m Assuming You’re All In Bands’
