Bernie Worrell @ LPR 1/7/12

This was good and funky.  A percussionist right up front, 2 drummers, 2 guitars plus Gary Lucas special guesting, bass, alto and tenor saxophones, and of course Bernie.  It was awesome and I may not get the chance to see this again.

Bernie Worrell Orchestra
Kyle Cadena, guitar / Andrew Kimball, guitar / Scott Hogan, bass / Glen Fittin, percussion / Shlomi Cohen, alto sax / Ofer Assaf, tenor sax / Justin Mullens, trumpet / Karl Latham, drums / Evan Taylor, drums

Bernie Worrell:  How many artists can say they were in on the ground floor of an honest-to-Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame supergroup, all while inventing a completely original and uncanny sound and, in the ensuing years, building a legendary reputation as one of the most versatile hired guns in the music business? True funkateers know the history. From the fat Minimoog bass lines of “Flash Light” and “One Nation Under A Groove” to the percussive piano runs of “Chocolate City” and “Give Up the Funk,” Bernie Worrell is synonymous with the legacy of Parliament-Funkadelic; in fact, he’s one of the originators of the psychedelic funk sound, having written and co-produced the lion’s share of the music going back to Funkadelic’s formative years, with an eclectic ear for everything from Chopin to the Chi-Lites.

These days the terms “living legend” or “funk icon” really don’t come close to doing him justice. “Funk iconoclast” is probably more apt, considering the breadth of Worrell’s contributions to seminal albums outside the P-Funk canon—including Talking Heads’ Stop Making Sense and Public Image Ltd’s Album, to name two of the more monolithic examples. Keith Richards, Yoko Ono, Bootsy Collins, Jack Bruce, Ginger Baker, Mos Def, Sly & Robbie, Deee-Lite, Bill Laswell and many more have recruited him in the studio and on tour—all for his versatility, vision and feverish creativity whenever he gets his hands on a keyboard.

June, 2011 saw the release of "Bernie Worrell: Standards" -- Bernie's take on jazz standards -- precipitating the decision by Worrell and co-producer,  Evan Taylor to "take the show on the road".  The Bernie Worrell Orchestra performs with a nine piece band consisting of two guitarists, two drummers, bass, percussion and a three piece horn section that performs songs from this album but also songs from Bernie's vast repertoire.  The enthusiastic response from fellow musicians means you just don't know who will show up to join the BWO on stage!!!!

Mostly Other People Do the Killing @ Kenny's Castaways 1/7/12

I tried to go and was in there for a few minutes.  It was really crowded and hard to see.  It sounded brass bandy and I didn't need to stick it out with the Fabian Almazan strings playing around the corner.  I'm writing about this even though I didn't see it because Richard was camped out at this venue all night and said Other People Do the Killing was the best of the night.  Given all the phenomenal music, I need to make a point to see them.

Mostly Other People Do The Killing

Peter Evans, trumpet / Jon Irabagon, saxophone / Moppa Elliott, bass / Kevin Shea, drums

We're Mostly Other People Do the Killing. We're named Peter and Jon and Moppa and Kevin. We all went to music school for a while. We play jazz. We like to play all the jazz all the time all at once as fast as possible. Moppa writes the tunes. Except for the ones written by other people. They're funny. Jazz is funny. We'll have a new album out soon. Come see us play music. You'll like it.

Fabian Almazan & Strings @ Sullivan Hall 1/7/12

I was so happy when I made my way up front and saw Jenny Scheinman and Linda Oh up there.  I was happy listening while making my way up there.  5 strings, piano (which has strings though technically a percussion) and drums.  Jazz strings if you will.  Stellar jazz strings.

Fabian Almazan & Strings

Fabian Almazan, piano / Linda Oh, bass / Henry Cole, drums / Jenny Scheinman: Violin. I / Megan Gould, violin. II / Karen Waltuch, viola / Noah Hoffeld, cello

Pianist and composer Fabian Almazan, a native of Cuba now residing in New York City, found his musical roots as a child in his homeland of Havana where he first became involved in the classical piano tradition. When his parents could not afford to pay for private piano lessons, having fled Cuba in political exile to Miami, FL, pianist Conchita Betancourt was gracious enough to impart free lessons for over three years. Thanks to Mrs. Betancourt's exceeding generosity, Fabian was able to audition for the New World School of the Arts High School in Miami, FL where he studied from 1998 to 2002.

In 2002 Fabian was selected for the piano chair in the National 2002 Grammy High School Jazz Combo. The following year, Almazan won the piano chair for the newly up and running Brubeck Institute fellowship program based in northern California where he studied with Mark Levine and performed with Dave Brubeck and Christian McBride. In 2003, Fabian moved to New York City to study with Kenny Barron at the Manhattan School of Music. During the completion of his bachelor's degree, Almazan immersed himself in the realm of orchestral composition studying instrumentation and orchestration with Mr. Giampaolo Bracali. Under Mr. Bracali's tutelage, Almazan composed several pieces for orchestra and chamber ensembles. In the spring of 2009 Fabian Almazan received a master's degree from Manhattan School of Music, selected as a recipient of the Michael W. Greene Scholarship, studying privately with Jason Moran.

Fabian Almazan received the Cintas Foundation 2010/11 Brandon Fradd Award in Music Composition. The award has been granted to many Cuban artists who have gone on to play an influential role in the development of Cuban cultural heritage. Almazan was also selected as one of six composers to participate in the Sundance Composers’ Lab 2011 where he studied with such acclaimed film composers as Harry Gregson-Williams, Alan Silvestri, George S. Clinton, Christopher Young, Ed Shearmur and Peter Golub. Personalities, Fabian’s debut album, has was released October 2011 and it featured Linda Oh, Henry Cole, Meg Okura, Megan Gould, Karen Waltuch and Noah Hoffeld.  The release was featured on Itunes during its first week receiving worldwide attention.  For the past four years Fabian has been the pianist for the Terence Blanchard Group and has toured North and South America, Asia and Europe extensively. Almazan has had the opportunity to share the stage with such artists as Gretchen Parlato, Paquito D'Rivera, Christian Scott, Chris Dingman, David Sanchez, Stefon Harris, Kendrick Scott and Ambrose Akinmusire among others.

Lakecia Benjamin and Soul Squad @ Sullivan Hall 1/7/12

Whoa! Intense greatness!  The only one up there I already knew was Maurice Brown.  He was accompanied by his equals.  I must admit, the word "soul" in the band name made me leery I wasn't going to to like it due to the genre.  Oh no, this kicked some serious butt.  The trumpets and sax were intense, high level amazingness.  The only thing that resembled what I think of as "Soul music" was the rhodes and the sound coming from it.  I enjoyed that due to the intensity of the music in general.

I can't help but wonder if it was extra good because of the festival.  I hope not - I hope that was the norm for this band.

Lakecia Benjamin and Soul Squad 

Lakecia Benjamin, saxophone, vocals, effects / Chris Rob, keys & vocals / Louis Cato, bass / Joe Blaxx, drums / Jamiel Corneilo, guitar / Maurice Brown, trumpet / Melanie Charles, vocals

Saxophonist Lakecia Benjamin, born and raised in New York City is a multi-faceted artist on the scene. International Globe Hopper Lakecia Has Played in Europe, Asia, South America, Russia and many other festivals throughout the world. Exploring the musical styles of Jazz, R &B, and. Ms. Benjamin has performed with artists Clark Terry, Rashid Ali, Joanne Brackeen, Vanessa Rubin and the Duke Ellington Orchestra. As well as performing with contemporary recording artists JT Taylor and Kool and the Gang, Stevie Wonder, and Alicia Keys. Not only Is Lakecia Noted for her work with some of the world’s greatest Musician’s you can find her As the saxophonist with Comedian Craig Robinson who is featured on “The Office” and the Hit movie “Pineapple Express”. Giving back to the community Lakecia also performs workshops as well as concerts at public schools, Festivals, and community events with organizations Jazz At Lincoln center and Arts Connection.

MTO Plays Sly @ LPR 1/6/12

This is always so great, it's hard to choose anything else when this is going on.  They opened with Stand, which I always love.  I recall I happened to be listening to WWOZ on-line last Fall when they happened to be interviewing Steven Bernstein.  They talked to him for a bit and then said they were going to play "Stand".  Steven warned the DJ it was the most "out" piece on the CD.  It was awesome and I can't believe I forgot to pick one up.

Anyway, I stayed for a few and then went home to rest up.  It was awesome.

Steven Bernstein's MTO plays Sly

Steven Bernstein, trumpet / Peter Apfelbaum, tenor saxophone / Doug Wieselman, clarinet / Allan Won, baritone saxophone / Clark Gayton, trombone / Charlie Burnham, violin / Matt Munisteri, guitar / Ben Allison, bass / Ben Perowsky, drums + special guests John Medeski, organ / Sandra St. Victor, vocals / Dean Bowman, vocals

New York City’s favorite "little big band" Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra cracks open wide the monumental songbook of Sly & The Family Stone on its third album, MTO Plays SLY. On this freewheeling and jubilant 13-track tribute, MTO is propelled by a dynamic cast of special guests, including Antony Hegarty, Bernie Worrell, Bill Laswell, Dean Bowman, Martha Wainwright, Sandra St. Victor, Shilpa Ray and Vernon Reid, treating Sly & The Family Stone with the same (ir)reverence it would Duke Ellington or Count Basie. By illuminating the melodic and harmonic sophistication of the iconoclast’s body of work, MTO re-imagine Sly Stone through the filter of their own "downtown NYC" aesthetic, while still upholding the Day-Glo soul and psychedelic funk that is the backbone for classics like "M'Lady," "Everyday People" and "Family Affair." Both the CD and LP versions of the release include extensive liner notes by Steven Bernstein and music historian Greg Tate along with never before seen photos from the recording sessions.

Marco Benevento Solo @ Sullivan Hall 1/6/11

I gave myself an hour to go to Winter Jazzfest after the Wealth Workshop.  I like to use this and Undead Jazzfest in the summer to learn about and see new bands.  This night I ended up at my old favorites that I can't get enough of.  I was sorry to miss Marco's last solo show at 92YTribeca, so I'm glad I got a taste this night.  What I saw was all of that deep feeling, emotive piano I like.  He certainly couldn't pull out all the equipment he had at that incredible show he did during his Tonic run in 2006.  Still, this was great.

Pound

It's a new fitness class at Crunch.  It's a Pilates-based workout with a mat and weighted drum sticks.  I love drums, so I was intrigued.  It's a lot of fun and a full body workout.  We drum the floor and hit the 2 sticks over our heads a lot.  It's choreographed. They do one Nirvana song, which makes me happy.  The rest of the music is OK.  It's a lot of fun and a really good workout.

http://www.poundrockoutworkout.com/

Having It All

I was busy this weekend at Ariel & Shya Kane's "Money, Success, and Happiness: Wealth as a Lifestyle" weekend workshop.  Their January workshop is usually the same weekend as Winter Jazzfest.  The past few years I've skipped the phenomenal festival in favor of sleep.  This year, I realize that wealth includes being able to have the workshop AND the festival.  I took Fri afternoon off and got in a nap.  I first went to an amazing new class at Crunch called "Pound".  More on that in the next post.

I was able to get to see some of 2 shows on Friday night and a bunch of great stuff on Sat.  I also have the list and I will look out for each and every one of the bands I missed as well as the ones I saw.

http://www.transformationmadeeasy.com/en/schedule.shtml#EastCoast


http://winterjazzfest.com/2012nycwinterjazzfest/2012schedule.html

Skerik/Medeski/Deitch @ LPR 1/5/12

Yes, there was still one more phenomenal band in this one ticket lineup. I bought the combo ticket for this show plus 2 days of Winter Jazzfest. I can't remember how much, but it was a pretty good deal.

Before leaving my home for the night I checked Facebook and saw this amazing video. I was super psyched. I heard they are recording soon, so hopefully that means more chances to see them.

They were great and there were definitely moments. It was tough to play that late and follow that intense Red Baraat show. It would have been a whole other thing if they were before Red Baraat, after The Young Philadelphians. It was great, but hard to overcome the tiredness. Skerik had a couple of keyboards as well as the tenor. It's going to be fun to see this band evolve.

Red Baraat @ LPR 1/5/12

Finally!  I have been wanting to see them for a while.  They definitely lived up to the reputation!  It was hipster meets Afrobeat meets Indian meets hiphop.  The intensity!  The phenomenal musicians!  Tomas Fujiwara is on the drumkit.  I see him a lot with Mary Halvorson.  I didn't know any of the others but they are all worth looking for in other guises.

Every moment was stellar.  They sometimes try to get people to do a specific dance or call and response sing-along, but if the crowd doesn't do it, it's not a big deal.  The crowd was into the call and response sing-along.  Usually those aren't that great for me, but this particular song caused my jaw to drop for most of it.  There was something extra special about what they were playing.

Everything was so good.  At times it was hard to take attention away from the sousaphone.  The trombone was killer.  They have a trumpet and a bass trumpet.  The 3 horns were up front on one side of Sunny Jain and the baritone and soprano saxophones were on the other side.

Sunny Jain is the leader and kicks butt on the dhol drum.  Tomas is on the drum kit and there's another standing percussionist with some drums.

I hope it stays fresh for me and doesn't get old.  This is an awesome band and I need to make a point to stay up to see them more often.  They are definitely a late night band.

The band (from the website):
Sunny Jain - dhol / MC
Rohin Khemani - percussion
Tomas Fujiwara - drumset
Mike Bomwell - soprano sax
Alex Hamlin - baritone sax
Sonny Singh - trumpet / vocals
MiWi La Lupa - bass trumpet / vocals
Ernest Stuart - trombone
John Altieri - sousaphone / rap

The listing:

Red Baraat

In just over two short years, the pioneering Brooklyn dhol 'n' brass party juggernaut RED BARAAT have made a name for themselves as one of the best live bands playing anywhere in the world. Led by dhol drummer Sunny Jain, the nine piece (comprised of dhol ((double-sided barrel shaped North Indian drum slung over one shoulder)) drumset, percussion, a sousaphone, and 5 horns) melds the infectious North Indian rhythm Bhangra with a host of sounds, namely funk, go-go, latin, and jazz. Simply put, Sunny Jain and Red Baraat have created and defined a sound entirely their own.

It’s a sound so powerful it has left the band in its own utterly unique and enviable class. These days you are as likely to find Red Baraat throwing down at an overheated and unannounced warehouse party in their Brooklyn neighborhood as you are at Lincoln Center. Or the Montreal Jazz Festival. Or the Barbican. It’s a band unquestionably on the ascent playing some of the most prestigious festivals and theatres worldwide, and keeping their chops razor sharp in basements and sweaty sold out clubs across New York City. Leading an audience as diverse and joyful as the band itself, Red Baraat has subsumed a plateful of global influence, fused it, and is now exporting it Brooklyn-style to the world.

The group's most recent release, BOOTLEG BHANGRA, is the band’s incredibly powerful live show captured at Brooklyn’s Southpaw on the band’s second anniversary. With songs pulled primarily from their debut album, CHAAL BABY, the group was mindful of the challenge to capture a rapturous live sound on record. Well, it happened on this night, and the resulting document places you squarely in that small Brooklyn club jammed from front to back with hip shaking beauties - hands raised to a ceiling dripping with condensation. The band is currently at work on their 2nd studio date, SHRUGGY JI, which should see release in early 2012.

Most recently, the title track, Chaal Baby, is being used as the background music for the promo ads for the hit FX TV show, It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia. After the group’s performance at the 2011 globalFEST, Red Baraat was a top pick favorite and featured on PRI’s The World, NPR’s All Songs Considered, New York Times, The Village Voice and Mother Jones magazine. The group's debut CD, CHAAL BABY (Sinj Records) was voted by several music critics as a top world and jazz release of 2010. Since their inception in October 2008, Red Baraat has delivered blistering performances at globalFEST, Montreal Jazz Festival, Sunfest, Festival De Louisiane, Quebec City Summer Festival, Chicago World Music Festival, Lincoln Center, The Kennedy Center, Madison World Music Festival, New Orleans Jazz Festival, Pori Jazz Festival (Finland), Molde Jazz Festival (Norway) and Chicago Folks & Roots Festival, among many others. Red Baraat appeared on John Schaefer's Soundcheck WNYC-FM 93.9, an NPR affiliate, in which they were picked as a top live radio performance of 2009. They also recorded the credit roll theme song for the movie, The Yes Men Fix the World and performed for the 2009 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week (NYC) for Ports 1961 runway models. Red Baraat has been featured in National Geographic, Wall Street Journal, The New Yorker, Relix and Songlines, among many others.

The Young Philadelphians w/ Strings @ LPR 1/5/12

It was 1.5 hours of sheer joy.  They were unbelievably good.  I don't think I've seen them before.  They played a few with the regular band:  Ribot, Weston, Nix, Coleman, and Jamaladeen Tacuma.  Apparently, the 3 Philadelphians, Weston, Nix, and Tacoma all used to play with Ornette Coleman.

Then they brought out the string section.  I had a thought it was going to get mellower.  Instead, it got more intense and funkier.  They did a lot of old familiar covers.  It was awesome!  It was sometimes hard to hear the strings, but sometimes they added something.

The listing:

Marc Ribot's Young Philadelphians

where deco meets disco meets decon

Jamaladeen Tacuma, G. Calvin Weston, Bern Nix, Anthony Coleman, Marc Ribot: 5 professional, harmolodic noise improvisers with an uncommon love of Philly soul and hard groove. Forever young, forever Philadelphian, forever fixated on the moment before dance went digital. Stuck in the groove like a scratch in your favorite record. Ladies and Gentlemen…the hardest working men in punk/funk/soul/noise: The Young Philadelphians!!!

The Young Philadelphians pays tribute to twin legacies: The mind-blowing harmolodic punk-funk of Ornette Coleman's first Prime Time band and the sweet, optimistic pulse of 1970s Philly Soul. Ribot enlists bassist Jamaaladeen Tacuma and drummer G. Calvin Weston, both Prime Time alumni and Philadelphia natives, adding guitarist Bern Nix also of Prime Time and keyboardist Anthony Coleman to do the job. And the name? "Ever see that movie with Paul Newman?" Ribot asks. "It's about these rich young lawyers from Philly. We had a good laugh about that. You should hear our version of 'Fly Robin Fly.'"

Jessica Lurie Ensemble @ LPR 1/5/12

I didn't make in time to see this but I saw pictures and heard it was great.  I wanted to post that Jessica had Chris Lightcap on bass, Eric Deutch on keys and Will Bernard on guitar.  I also heard she did a lot of singing.

The listing:

Jessica Lurie Ensemble

Jessica Lurie Ensemble:
Jessica Lurie - sax/flute/voice,
Will Bernard - guitar,
Erik Deutsch - piano,
Chris Lightcap -bass,
Allison Miller - drums

NYC-based instrumentalist Jessica Lurie performs on saxophones, flute and voice. Moving to the east coast from Seattle, and touring around the globe, she is well known for her creative mixing of funk, jazz, balkan and klezmer music with an avant-garde approach. "Her ensemble shifts among funk, jazz, folk and ethnic melodies reminiscent of klezmer-jazz and Balkan-jazz hybrids by artists like Steve Bernstein (and) the winding, angular grooves of Tim Berne." (JAZZIZ) Jessica is a founding member and lead composer for the Tiptons Saxophone Quartet, Living Daylights trio and La Buya.

Jessica has performed and recorded with artists such as Bill Frisell, The Indigo Girls, Mark Ribot, Karl Denson, Frank London, Vinicio Caposella, Skerik, Nels Cline, Kenny Wolleson, Bernie Worrell and Ivan Neville, and created twelve multi-media works for live music, painting and video with visual artist Danijel Zezelj. The JLE has been featured at festival worldwide such as: Vienna Klezmore Festival, SXSW, Zagreb Animateka, Pisa Instabile, Motovun Film Festival, Babel Arts, Earwing No Jazz, JVC Jazz Festival, CMJ, Bumbershoot International Music Festival, Earshot Jazz, and Jazzmiele and jazz documentary Icons Among Us.

She will be having a NYC pre-release show with the Jessica Lurie Ensemble celebrating her 5th release as a leader with her new CD MEGAPHONE HEART at 92Y Tribeca on Feb. 18, 2012. The 10 song recording is co-produced by bassist Todd Sickafoose, and features Brandon Seabrook on guitar and banjo, Erik Deutsch on all things piano-like, Allison Miller on drums, and Todd also on acoustic bass, with special guest cellist Marika Hughes. www.jessicalurie.com

Gov't Mule @ The Beacon 12/31/11

It was a great show.  I must admit I enjoyed the night before a little more.  I don't know the Joe Cocker album, but I just looked it up now.  I know I wasn't crazy about Nigel Hall being up there.  The horns had their moments, but I wish Warren would find some others, they are somewhat weak in my opinion.  There's got to be better options in this city.  Matt came off the kit at one point to sing.  The 3rd set was very short.  The Beacon has become full of tight rules and isn't that great anymore.  They were giving people a hard time if they were in a different seat from their ticket stub - even if they were in the same row as their stub.  It seemed very overboard and unnecessary.

Set 1
Railroad Boy >
Mule
Thorazine Shuffle
Brighter Days >
Like Flies
Lay Your Burden Down
About To Rage
Slackjaw Jezebel
King's Highway >
St. Stephen Jam >
Eternity's Breath >
Trane with Norwegian Wood Tease

Set 2 Mad Mules & Englishmen with The Assets (Machan Taylor, Mini Carlsson & Alicia Shakur) & Chronic Horns (Buford O'Sullivan, Pam Fleming & Jenny Hill)
Intro >
Honky Tonk Women
Sticks & Stones
Cry Me A River
Bird On A Wire
New Years Countdown
Feelin' Alright
Intro >
Superstar
Let's Go Get Stoned
Blue Medley: I'll Drown in My Own Tears/When Something Is Wrong with My Baby/I've Been Loving You Too Long
Girl From The North Country
Give Peace A Chance
She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
Space Captain
The Letter
Delta Lady

Set 3
Sco-Mule with Oz Noy
I Believe To My Soul with Nigel Hall
Soulshine with Nigel Hall, Alicia Shakur & Ron Johnson, without Jorgen Carlsson

Encore
I Shall Be Released with The Assets, Nigel Hall, Ron Johnson & Oz Noy

7 Walkers @ Sullivan Hall 12/30/11

It was a fun late show with awesome music.  It was crowded, but once I got up front it wasn't so bad.  Kirk Joseph is now on sousaphone instead of George Porter on bass.  They sounded great!  They played until around 3:30am.

Here's the setlist:
http://www.deadheadland.com/2011/12/7-walkers-setlist-december-3th-2011-sullivan-hall-nyc-early-and-late-show/

Gov't Mule @ The Beacon 12/30/11

It was an awesome show.  There was lots of soul and the music was outstanding.

Set 1
Muleidelic Jam >
Maggot Brain >
Gameface >
Fool's Moon
Little Toy Brain
Lively Up Yourself
Brand New Angel
Kind Of Bird

Set 2
Alice Jam >
One Of These Days >
Fearless
Since I've Been Loving You with Paul Ill, without Jorgen Carlsson
Blind Man In The Dark
32/20 Blues with Hook Herrera, Jimmy Vivino & Nigel Hall
Working Class Hero with Hook Herrera & Jimmy Vivino
Smokestack Lightning > with Hook Herrera, Jimmy Vivino & David Hidalgo
John The Revelator with Hook Herrera, Jimmy Vivino & David Hidalgo

Encore
Politician > with Jimmy Vivino & David Hidalgo
Dear Mr. Fantasy > with Jimmy Vivino & David Hidalgo
For What It's Worth Reprise with Jimmy Vivino & David Hidalgo

Update to Planet of the Abts @ Brooklyn Bowl 12/6/11

Follow up to this post:
http://terrismusicblog.blogspot.com/2011/12/planet-of-abts-brooklyn-bowl-12611.html

So, I left a little too early.  I saw my friend recently who told me Warren showed up for the last 3 songs.  I had to leave when I did, but I should have known.  It didn't even cross my mind.

Hidden Track has a video:

http://www.glidemagazine.com/hiddentrack/video-planet-of-the-abts-w-warren-haynes-hook-herrera/

Marco Benevento Trio @ Highline 12/29/11

I love having them on the Highline stage.  It's also such a good late night show.  Reed Mathis was on bass and Andy Borger on drums.  Andy brought something different to the trio.  I loved seeing it on the heels of The Bad Plus the night before.  Both trios remind me of each other even though they are quite different.  They started a little before 1am and played for about 2 hours or so.  It was a Phish after-show and they did some Phish tunes.  I only know because Marco announced it - I'm not familiar with their music.

The Bad Plus @ The Village Vanguard 12/28/11

This is always a winner.  They did some old familiar pieces and some new music from an album they will be recording next month.  It's always a pleasure to watch and listen to each of them.  It was interesting that Reid did the talking this time, introducing the band and announcing the song titles and composer.  Ethan always did it every time I've seen them in the past.  I love how they play something fun while introducing the band members.  That was a little different and still fun with Reid doing the talking.

Mary Halvorson's Reverse Blue @ Cornelia St 12/20/11

It was there first live gig.  A chance to get in front of an audience before recording.  It was 2 short sets of awesomeness.  I loved how much Chris played clarinet.  I loved Mary and Tomas duoing together.  Bass solos were great.

Mary Halvorson, guitar;
Chris Speed, saxophone, clarinet;
Eivind Opsvik, bass;
Tomas Fujiwara, drum