Ceramic Dog + MMW @ Prospect Park 6/19/08

Phenomenal! I did get there for the tail end of Taylor McFerrin, which was fine, but not anything I needed to have taking up time that could have been used by either of the other 2 bands. I didn’t care for the hiphop stuff at the end at all.

Ceramic Dog really stole the show. I wasn’t sure how it would translate into a big place, but it seems a little better in such a large space. It was great that so many people kept asking who they were. I think they should do a double bill tour with MMW, meaning both bands should get lots of time, like 2 sets each or something. Actually, it would be really cool if they could seamless transitions and 4 sets, where maybe Billy comes in and plays with Ceramic Dog for a while and then Medeski comes in and then Chris Wood and then slowly each of the Ceramic Dog people exit the stage. Then, they variously sit in with each other at different points. I think that would be awesome and I’d probably travel to see it a few times. While I'm dreaming, they should have Sexmob open and then each of them can do various sitins as well.

I have to accept that Prospect Park isn’t just about the music. Actually, for the most part, it was easy to ignore the low murmur of the crowd as a lot of people in the back were there to socialize as much as to catch the music. It’s that kind of space, I can’t really blame them. There were a few instances where people would come up very close to me, invading my space and then talking very loudly. I learned to just move to a different spot, which was usually a better spot.

The masses loved the intense Ceramic Dog moments. They didn’t seem as into it during the quiet moments. But I thought the whole thing was incredibly awesome and possibly the best I’ve ever seen of them. Again, it translated really well on the big stage.

MMW was great. They seemed to be playing to the masses yet staying true to themselves at the same time. They crossed a lot of genres while being themselves. They were funky, then grooving, then a little rock-a-billy-ish (more on the rock side). They had Ribot and Steven Bernstein out for some awesome improvising. Then, Ribot stayed til the end.

I had such low expectations, more due to the anticipated crowd than the bands. It was way way better than I imagined.

I was able to pick up the Ceramic Dog cd, and it’s awesome. Of course, I like live better, but this is pretty good.