The Idaho Songwriters Association Open Mic @ the Gamekeeper Lounge; The Thomas Paul Band @ Neurolux (12/18/12)

I wound up being much busier this night than I'd planned initially.  I'd already marked down the Matthew E. White/Thomas Paul show at Neurolux on my calendar when I caught wind of a show set up by the Idaho Songwriters Association.  I'd been eager to check out something by this organization for a while--they tap into a part of the music scene around these parts that doesn't seem to get as much attention as the younger bands do.  When I heard that folk legend Rosalie Sorrels was going to drop by and play a little, that clinched it.

I counted a little over forty people when I arrived at the Gamekeeper Lounge.  Unfortunately, Rosalie Sorrels didn't make it down: I overheard some folks saying that she got snowed in and couldn't make the drive to Boise.  That was too bad, but the eleven musicians that I did see didn't leave me with much reason to complain.

Musicians Who Played:

Steve Eaton--The ISA's head honcho kicked off the proceedings with a pretty decent song about loving your fellow man (he'd started thinking about it, he said, because of the school shooting in Connecticut).  He also talked about how he and other musicians had set up the ISA because they'd grown tired of trying to play over bar chatter.  That's something I can readily sympathize with (I've written more than once about wishing that audiences would stop talking during shows).

Bob Kohnke (with Don Cunningham)--This gentleman's strong, straight-ahead vocals, sly harmonica and sharp original blues tune went over very nicely.

Zack Tyr--I knew I was gonna like this guy when he said that he'd come down to see how many people he could piss off.  However, no one seemed offended by his uproarious put-down of Tim Tebow entitled "Jesus Loves Me Better Than He Loves You."  Quite the opposite, in fact.

Johnny Shoes--A last-minute addition to the list (someone else had signed up but hadn't shown up).  He played a pretty good Merle Haggard-esque original about the true holiday spirit (no b.s. commercialism, caring for the less fortunate, etc.).  Not sure what was up with the bandage on his left hand, though.  Hope it's okay.

Bill Rector--This gentleman's pleasantly jazzy tune and funny, oddball lyrics got some support from a whistle/mouth-trumpet solo courtesy of Steve Eaton.

Monelle Smith--With her warm, low voice, I'd have listened to this lady sing the menu.  Her driving, minor-key tune sounded much better than the menu, however.  It also added a nice touch of rock to the proceedings.

Casey Russell--He was most likely right: you probably won't hear his Christmas song about Santa Claus eating Viagra-laced cookies on the radio.  That made me even happier to hear it here.

Mike Cramer--In addition to running the soundboard for most of the time that I was there, this gentleman got to show off his rich, sonorous baritone and a smart, slightly off-kilter tune about a ladies' man going to seed.  Title: "Throwin' Noodles at a Wall."

Dave Starr--His sprechgesang sounded a little creaky, and his song about Kent State shooting victim Allison Krause could've used some trimming (though admittedly, most any song on this topic will probably sound prolix next to "Ohio").  Still, you had to give the man points for having his heart in the right place.

Lee Penn Sky--I've known about this guy for a while, and I'm glad that I finally get a chance to write a little about him.  His rich, soulful baritone, clipped strumming, Dylanesque harmonica and greedhead-bashing lyrics went over very well indeed.

Pat Folkner--Before he played, I overheard Lee Penn Sky insisting that he did NOT want to follow this lady.  A wise move: Folkner's tender, gorgeous voice and detailed, devastating Civil War-themed ballad could've put Joan Baez to shame.  Truly stunning.

Tim Swanson (with Lou Armstrong)--Poor guy: his first time out here and he had to follow Pat Folkner.  He managed just fine, though, with his catchy number about kissing off an ex.  Lou Armstrong's slick fills and soloing helped too.

Kristina Liming--She was pretty nervous--in addition to playing her first gig ever, she was playing her first song ever.  However, between her smart lyrics, memorable melody and breathy, quietly aching singing, she acquitted herself in fine style.  Hope she keeps it up.

Wilson Roberts--This gentleman has been around for a while--he and Steve Eaton chatted about playing gigs together for twenty-five years.  It surprised me, then, that I hadn't heard his ultra-catchy tune about a good woman's love giving him strength a million times before.  Damn impressive.

Part of me wanted to stay longer, but I'd made arrangements to see the Neurolux show and didn't want to miss it.  I'd found out earlier in the day that Matthew E. White had cancelled, but Thomas Paul was the man I really wanted to see anyway.  Paul's solo acoustic version of "Waiting for the Miracle" at the Record Exchange's Leonard Cohen Birthday Bash had blown me away, and I wanted to check him out with a full band.

I counted about sixteen or seventeen people when I got there.  The crowd would build to a respectable enough thirty-plus by the time that the Thomas Paul Band played their second set.  A big chunk of the audience seemed to be there to support Thomas Paul's bassist, Bob Nagel.  Use your friends wisely, that's what I always say.

The Thomas Paul Band took the stage around 9 pm.  Between Bob Nagel's fluid, Claypool-worthy basslines (the man was wearing a Primus shirt), Louis McFarland's muscular drumming and his own clean, wiry guitar and thoughtful, soulful croon, Paul sounded as impressive with a band as he did solo.  They powered through two sets--the second of which featured Boise Philarmonic flutist Jeffrey Barker and was broadcast on Radio Boise--with a winning mix of jazz, blues, funk and country.  The crowd spent most of both sets in their seats, but they cheered warmly.  Pretty good stuff.  Definitely wouldn't mind seeing this group again.

You can find info on the Thomas Paul Band and the Idaho Songwriters Association on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Radio Boise.

Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer and Idyltime @ the VaC (12/15/12)

This show interested me not just because it featured two acts I'd never seen before but because it supported what struck me as a worthy cause.  It had been set up by Wild Lens, a local non-profit organization that "brings biologists and filmmakers together to document interactions between wildlife species and human communities in an effort to find an ecological balance point."  As a guy who's trying more and more to become aware of what's going on in the world, I figured that this was a good enough reason to check this deal out.

I counted about fifty people when I arrived at the VaC.  The crowd looked on the older side--I'd guess late twenties or above (mostly above).  Another fifteen or twenty people would show up as the evening progressed.  I was glad to see such a solid crowd, though I would wind up wishing that the people by the bar had shut the hell up during the music (pretty sure I saw the musicians glare back there a couple of times).

Anyway, at that point, I just sipped a Mutton Buster and scoped out the cool artwork on the walls by such local artists as Storie Grubb, Julia Green, Bruce Maurey, Shasta Nash and my old schoolmate Kelly Knopp.  I refrained from taking pictures just to encourage you folks to go down to the VaC and check 'em out your own selves (they should be up until February 2nd).

Each set was preceded by a three-to-four-minute Wild Lens documentary.  The first was produced for the Idaho Bird Observatory and dealt with a couple of guys in Idaho studying the migration pattern of flammulated owls.  The second discussed how the loon population is dying off from lead poisoning (simple enough fix: fishers, stop using lead fishing lures).  The third and last doc focused on a small non-profit in Tanzania devoted to giraffe conservation.  Very interesting stuff.

Bluegrass group Idyltime kicked off the night's live music.  They sounded a little stiff starting out, but they got a nice swinging groove going soon enough.  Beth Mason's guitar soloing sounded pretty awkward, but her low, breathy vocals more than compensated.  Tate Mason's weathered, slightly nasal voice harmonized nicely with his wife's, and his sprightly banjo solos livened this set up considerably.  In addition to playing some well-crafted originals about WWI and a bar in Oregon ("It's a fantastic establishment--I was almost beat up there a couple times."), they did right by a couple Gillian Welch tunes and the John Prine classic "Paradise."

Washington-based duo Dave McGraw and Mandy Fer played two sets after Idyltime.  That made for a lot of time onstage, but they definitely earned it.  Mandy Fer's sultry, gorgeous vocals served as the ideal vehicle for their sharp folk-pop melodies and smart, compassionate lyrics, and her stunningly assured guitar playing would've made this show worthwhile all by itself.  Dave McGraw backed his partner up with his own pleasant croon, some rapid strumming and some impressively propulsive bongo playing.  Show me a group who damn near steals "Moondance" away from Van Morrison and I'll show you a group I wouldn't mind seeing again.  Hopefully, when/if these two come back, the roads won't be so treacherous (they had to drive for ten hours to make this gig, four or five of which was spent going through some heavy snow).

You can find info on these groups and Wild Lens on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Sam Stimpert and the VaC.

Atomic Mama, Christopher Smith and Art Fad @ Neurolux (12/14/12)

I had actually planned to pass on this show originally.  Nothing at all against any of the acts--I'd just seen all of them several times in some capacity or another and needed to do a lot of work over the weekend.  Then I heard that this might be Atomic Mama's last gig for quite a while (no drama--Jake Warnock may have been recruited to play bass on tour for a very popular band from Boise).  That was enough to get me down to Neurolux.

I was somewhat alarmed when I only found about twenty-five people there.  This was at 8 pm, one hour after the designated doors time.  Happily, a pretty substantial crowd had built by the time that Atomic Mama played.

Art Fad opened the show.  This duo has apparently made quite a bit of progress since I last saw them.  While their tunes sounded as catchy as ever, their riffing sounded even sharper and more rousing, their drumming hit quicker and harder and their groove was much more limber.  Theo Maughan and Jacob Milburn's snarled vocals seemed to have ripened nicely, and I could even understand some of the lyrics.  Best of all, antimagic's montages of flashing colors, twisting shapes, weirdo film footage and 80's computer text created a new context for Art Fad's manic inchoateness.  Rather than the mere scribblings of punk-besotted ADHD cases, it came across here as the struggle to make sense of the postmodern age's information overload.  Might be a bit too much to read into it, but a darn impressive set nonetheless.

Next up was a solo set by First Borns' Christopher Smith.  His lean synthesizer instrumentals had a definite 80's robotic flavor to them.  He added just enough complexity to his steady beats and elegant hooks to make them hypnotic instead of boring.  This set had a few technical difficulties--the volume fluctuated and cut out altogether at various points--but not enough to detract from the music.  It helped, of course, that the music had antimagic's glowing squares, twirling spirals and oddball film clips to lean on.  I got a big laugh out of one montage that incorporated footage from the now-legendary bad movie Manos: The Hands of Fate.

He takes care of the place while the master is away.

Atomic Mama closed out the night.  While I must admit that I missed their drummer, these local favorites' mega-catchy tunes held up just fine thanks to their bubbling polyrhythms, dreamy synth blare, droll basslines and piercing guitar solos.  antimagic's clever, psychedelic, overpowering montages helped compensate for the sonic gap as well.  The crowd certainly didn't seem to mind the reduced lineup: they pressed in close, danced and screamed throughout the entire set.  If this group does go on hiatus, it'll definitely be missed.

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Duck Club Presents.

JamesPlaneWreck, Storie Grubb and the Holy Wars and Chris Jennings @ Neurolux (12/11/12)

JamesPlaneWreck and Storie Grubb and the Holy Wars.  Admittedly, the pairing struck me as a little odd at first--kinda like putting together Lynyrd Skynyrd and Neil Young (though they actually really liked each other, believe it or not).  But hey, I wasn't gonna complain about seeing two excellent local bands on the same night.

There were about twenty-five people at Neurolux when I got down there.  I counted a little over thirty by the time that JamesPlaneWreck took the stage.  Pretty modest, but decent enough.

Starting off the night was local musician Chris Jennings, who debuted as a solo act with this set (he played bass in the Caldwell group Lakefriend up until a couple of months ago).  This performance had plenty of rough edges: Jennings's basic picking and strumming wandered off beat, he forgot lyrics occasionally and he looked pretty darn nervous in general ("I'm a little bit shaky," he admitted with a grin at one point).  All the same, he definitely showed potential.  His simple tunes and unaffectedly plainspoken lyrics went together nicely with his multiple George Jones covers.  Also, while Jennings was no match for Jones vocally (who is?), his subdued delivery had a certain charm to it (don't know about that faux-twang, though).  I'll be interested to see where the man goes from here.  Maybe he could do some duets with Kailie Leggett.

Storie Grubb and the Holy Wars played next.  Their spot on this bill attuned my ears to the elements of folk and country that run through their melodies and riffs.  This set was also noteworthy as the debut of Dustin Jones (The Hand, The Evil Wine Show) on bass.  The man certainly didn't waste time making his presence felt: the casually expert interplay between Jones's muscular basslines, Storie Grubb's jangly guitar and Bruce Maurey's intricate drumwork added a whole new dimension to the group's older material.  It also gave them the confidence to venture out into some lyrical instrumental passages.  Meanwhile, Matthew Vorhies's accordion floated on top as serenely as ever.  Luna Michelle's tambourine jabbed in and out skillfully, and her lovely harmonies continued to temper the smart abrasiveness of Storie Grubb's vocals.  A great band is getting even better.

JamesPlaneWreck closed out the night with their best performance yet.  Aaron Smith's rough vocals sounded more assured than ever.  Shane Brown's twangy leads zipped and stung.  Shaun Shireman's bass kept the music gliding along.  Andrew Bagley let off enough dynamite for two drummers.  Their indelible tunes, chugging guitars and thunderous rhythms got people on their feet and dancing.  When the band reached the chorus of the anthemic "Fuckin' with Ghosts" (which they changed to "Walkin' With Ghosts" for this show--they were being broadcast on Radio Boise), the crowd sang along loudly.  No doubt about it: this is one of Boise's best bands.

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Radio Boise.

Finn Riggins, And And And and Little Tiny Little People @ Neurolux; the Hardluck Cowboys @ the High Note Cafe (12/8/12)

This show interested me because it featured the return of yet another Treefort alumnus, And And And, and a headlining set by Finn Riggins, who probably don't need an introduction.  Part of me was tempted to head across the street from Neurolux and check out the Idaho Songwriters Association show at the Gamekeepers Lounge.  I'd already made arrangements to attend this one, however, and I figure that a man oughtta honor his commitments.  Besides, I can't complain much about seeing Finn Riggins again.

Apparently, not many others can complain either.  I counted around seventy people when I made it down to Neurolux.  By the time that Finn Riggins played, there had to have been well over a hundred.

Kicking off the show was a new local group, Little Tiny Little People.  Their music proved about as cutesy-poo as their name: fragile vocals, jaunty folk melodies, gently swinging beat, pleasant trumpet and straight-ahead, down-strummed guitar.  Maybe a bit too twee for my taste, but not bad.  At least they've got a decent drummer.  Also, the crowd certainly didn't seem to mind.  Especially the ladies--got a little swaying going.

And And And played next.  This Portland band's jangly drones, whooshing distortion, bouncy basslines, malleable drumming and solemn trumpet all sounded as pleasant as I remembered.  Unfortunately, Nathan Baumgartner's pitch-challenged whine also sounded as irritating as I remembered.  Don't get me wrong, I got nothing against pitch-challenged whines in themselves (I'm a huge Neil Young fan, remember).  The rub, I think, lay in a certain smug insularity that seemed to lurk behind it.  The man sounded too cool or too bored to bother with staying on key.  Just as it did at Treefort, however, the music saved the day.  And this night, it got help from some trippy, creepy montages from antimagic, which helped give the set a 90's alt-rock video feel.

Finn Riggins took the stage next.  It occurred to me that up until this show, this group hadn't played a headlining slot around these parts in a while.  They took the opportunity to stretch out and experiment, tossing in some marimba, some moaning and screeching distortion, some dub-like echo and some extended instrumental passages.  No matter how far-out the music got, however, the songwriting and the playing held it all together.  Aside from a slight stumble and some unintentional feedback in the middle of the set, all three members brought their A+ game.  The videos playing on the screen behind them, which came courtesy of antimagic and others, knocked the energy level up a couple of extra notches (I especially liked the dancing children and elementary school paintings for "Benchwarmers" and the 8-bit incarnations of FR for "Big News").  The mix of sound and vision whipped the crowd into a nice frenzy--lots of dancing and cheering.  Overall, an outstanding performance.  I just wish I had a picture of the little dancing miniature of himself that Eric Gilbert placed on his synthesizer.

After Finn Riggins wrapped up, I headed over to the High Note Cafe to catch part of the set by the Hardluck Cowboys a.k.a. local musicians Johnny Shoes and Speedy Gray.  It was a great pleasure to hear these gentlemen trade songs and solos again (especially in Johnny Shoes's case--hadn't seen him in way too long), but it was an even greater pleasure to see a solid crowd of people applauding the same.  Speedy Gray unveiled a song from his upcoming solo album, Z.V. House and Karen Singletary stepped up to play a couple of numbers, a young musician did some pretty good Tom Petty covers and Johnny Shoes wrapped his sly, weathered vocals around my favorite Townes Van Zandt song, "To Live is to Fly."  A wonderful coda to my night: warm, loose, collegial.

You can find info on these acts on Facebook and elsewhere online.  Special thanks to Eric Gilbert and Duck Club Presents.