Avett Brothers And Mammals at Iota
North Carolina's Avett Brothers kicked off a night of acoustic music at Iota Friday with an impressive set that could easily be classified as Pre-Civil War Modern Rock. What else to call the young trio's distinctive, nearly transcendent brand of pop melodies played at punk tempos on banjo, acoustic guitar and upright bass?
The threesome -- Scott Avett on banjo, brother Seth on acoustic guitar and non-brother Bob Crawford on the doghouse bass -- ripped through originals including the terrific ballad "Love Like the Movies," a punk-banjo jam called "Nothing Short of Thankful" and the raucous "Distraction No. 74" with fearsome, infectious passion. The Avetts blended bluegrass traditions with contemporary influences, culminating in the bittersweet "Swept Away," which brought to mind the image of Robert E. Lee singing for the Ramones.
Fiddler Ruth Ungar, guitarist Michael Merenda and banjo player Tao Rodriguez-Seeger of the Mammals, who performed with a rock rhythm section at Iota.
(Courtesy Of Public Emily)
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Woodstock, N.Y.'s, Mammals took the stage following the Avetts and were a study in contrasts on a night of North-South acoustic music. Primarily a string trio (fiddler Ruth Ungar, guitarist Michael Merenda and banjo player Tao Rodriguez-Seeger) propelled by a rock rhythm section (bassist Dan Rose and drummer Chris Merenda), the Mammals played a more sedate, jam-oriented style of folk-pop that hewed closer to the traditions of Bob Dylan, Woody Guthrie and Pete Seeger, the banjoist's grandfather.
The politically charged "Ball and Chain" and "Tahoe," which describes an event-filled 24-hour layover in a Sierras snowstorm, were captivating in their intensity despite the obvious borrowing from the Dylan book of guitar riffs. Ungar's fiddle and Rodriguez-Seeger's banjo kept the sound invitingly original.
-- Buzz McClain
Envy at Warehouse Next Door
The opening of Envy's performance Friday at the Warehouse Next Door could been seen as a Pavlovian experiment: The Tokyo post-hardcore quintet crashed and bellowed, and the fans closest to the stage erupted in spasmodic dance. Yet the show was not the aerobic workout its first minute suggested.
The music promptly slowed, shifting into the first of the evening's long, gently bobbling passages.
As it ultimately demonstrated with two swift, explosive encores, Envy can ignite a responsive crowd whenever it likes. The bulk of the group's performance, however, was devoted to three long suites incorporating material from its latest album, "A Dead Sinking Story." These pieces included lyrical guitar ramblings, churning modal grooves, swooping electronic embellishments and only occasional outbursts from vocalist Tetsuya Fukagawa. Rather than incite the capacity crowd, Fukagawa spent much of his time with his back to the audience, summoning whooshes and squeals from his synthesizer.
The most impressive thing about Envy's performance was not its power but its precision. Dairoku Seki's metallic-toned drumming both kept and embroidered the beat, and the band demonstrated a formidable range of transitional techniques, including jump cut, slow build, cool down and quick stop. The main set ended with one in the last category, which halted an intensifying vamp just short of the top. Having proved they can drive listeners over the edge, the members of Envy now specialize in braking at the edge of the precipice.
-- Mark Jenkins
Billy Stritch at KC Jazz Club
Singer, pianist and composer Billy Stritch has been associated with several big-name artists over the years, including Liza Minnelli, Charles Aznavour and Reba McEntire. Even so, they're no match for the parade of tunesmiths Stritch conjured and celebrated Saturday night at the Kennedy Center's KC Jazz Club: Irving Berlin, Rodgers and Hart, the Gershwins, Stephen Sondheim, Cy Coleman and Ivan Lins, among many others.
Of course, good taste doesn't necessarily translate into good entertainment. But Stritch pulled off the trick with disarming ease, as if simply sharing his musical enthusiasms with close friends. Indeed, he confided during the early show that he's something of an accidental classic-pop evangelist. He stumbled upon the Great American Songbook while growing up in Texas, watching Carol Burnett and Cher occasionally revive a pop evergreen on TV. He was converted overnight.
Though Stritch's voice isn't particularly distinctive, it's strong, smooth and tuneful, and he easily negotiated the high-kick modulations that punctuated his repertoire, turning "Mountain Greenery" and other vintage songs into brassy showstoppers. His piano arrangements were colored by jazz harmonies, but he's clearly a melody man at heart, as well as a sucker for lyrics brimming with wordplay and wit.
Stritch also revealed a soft spot for ballads that cut deeply to the heart of the matter. The seldom-heard "Let Me Down Easy," composed by Coleman and Carolyn Leigh, created an especially poignant interlude, surfacing amid a vibrant collection of trio arrangements enlivened by bassist Steve Doyle and drummer Warren Odze.
-- Mike Joyce
Raheem DeVaughn At the 9:30 Club
The crowd at the 9:30 club Saturday was glued to Raheem DeVaughn's sugary falsetto and didn't seem to care that his major-label debut still awaits a release date.
DeVaughn signed in 2002 with Jive Records, the powerhouse label that's home to Britney Spears and R. Kelly. With loads of entrancingly amorous tunes in a sold-out house, the Maryland-bred DeVaughn proved well-prepped for a stab at R&B stardom.
Previewing his forthcoming "Love Experience" disc with a band and trio of backup vocalists, DeVaughn distanced himself from the hip-hop crowd with an hour-plus set that included only a single profanity. His gospel influences in tow, he instantly apologized.
"I'm an R&B neo-soul rock star," DeVaughn proclaimed. Guitars then blazed into the Prince-inspired "Cadillac." His tame propositioning was earnest on "Believe" as he gently implored, "Have some faith, that's all I ask. Believe in me."
He effortlessly shifted from low to high and back again in the jazzy swing of "Guess Who Loves You More," currently blazing over the local FM airwaves. The night's rather mushy love theme was reinforced by a sultry cover of OutKast's slow jam "Prototype."
-- Craig Smith
