And it begins...
I'm always amazed at how many people watch live concerts through their cell phones/cameras, but last night, shooting video for this here site, I joined their ranks ... leading me to wonder, does anyone go to concerts and not blog about them? Is "mediated experience" the new "live"?
Alright, cut the Carrie Bradshaw.
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My first random pick of the festival was excellent! I got out of work in time to catch Rocketship Park at Pianos — which I settled on because they were the band before Two Man Gentlemen Band, and, as I said yesterday, I like TMGB's (hey!) name.
I was blown away! The mp3s up on their MySpace don't do them justice. Their sound is melodic (with actual sung harmony, which seems rare these days), twangy, laid back and kind of reminiscent of early Neil Young. It's good music to feel bad to, I wrote in my notes last night (I was in a terrible mood when I started this musical odyssey).
I particularly enjoyed whatever whiskey-soaked lament that started, "Your drinking buddies are your drinking buddies — don't get used to that." So true.
Anyway, these guys are in Brooklyn, so I hope they start playing around more.
Two Man Gentlemen Band after the jump...
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The room filled up quickly for the TMGB (not that there wasn't a nice crowd for RP), leading me to think that they already have a following, or have a lot of friends (I ultimately concluded that they have a large following of loyal friends).
I was surprised to see that Two Man was a trio, but research reveals that the duo recruited a third to play percussion just for the show.
...which was AWESOME. These guys rule in a totally old-timey, banjo and stand-up bass way. They've got charisma, energy and kazoos, and they definitely have fun up there, with compositions that are a little bit dorky and a little bit dirty. Banjo player Andy Bean works the crowd, addressing members of the audience and his own band with the honorific "friend," and employing other affectations of a Depression-era huckster. Their lyrics are twee and hilarious, and each song clips along at approximately twelve-million bpms.
The band should be atop every geek's play list. They played, not one, but two songs related to mathematics — and Bean worked the word "erudite" into his introduction to a song which used the square root of two as a metaphor for love. (The other math-related song led to a listing of prime numbers; we as a crowd made it to 11 (someone said 9, ending the fun).
A song about Badminton brought about the first instance of audience participation. We were instructed to chant, "Smack the bird" (or alternatively, "Smack the cock" — you see what I mean about a little bit dirty?) during the chorus.
To cap off this complete and joyful celebration of dorkitude, we had a brief discussion on William Howard Taft — the last president to have facial hair in office — followed by a song.
I have such a crush on Bean, and his fedora.
eh.www.amNY.com
Comments (1)
Thanks Emily. check it:
http://seriousbusinessrecords.com/news_items