Blog Archives
FAITU#52+#53+#54+#55+#56
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#52 & #53 & #54 & #55 & #56)
2001-04-20
2002-04-20
2004-04-20
2005-04-20
2013-04-20
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2001-04-20
MMW c.2001
Source info:
2001-04-20.neumann-u89.117619.t-flac16
– ONE SET (tracks 1-23) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
Another opening slot with The Dropper, but this time the band basically jumps right into the tune and WE ARE ROLLING! Cool little Shack out of there and we move into *yet another* kick ass single spring set show! Super fun Acoustic Intro > Chubb Sub too …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
2002-04-20
MMW c.2002
Source info:
2002-04-20.schoeps641.9521.t-flac16
– SET I (tracks 1-7) –
– SET II (tracks 8-15) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
Speak of the devil! Take Me Nowhere pops up here … Lifeblood, again cool with an extended outro of sorts … Creole > Felic might be the highlight of the show for me … well, the Moti Mo to close is in competition but not quite … Nocturnal Transmission is a wicked tune! And the move into Where’s Sly? is wacked! HA!
Can’t speak to Dan the Automator additions to the show too much … I’m just not a DJ guy … I simply can’t recall one way or the other at the moment …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
2004-04-20
Wood & Martin 2004-05-28 @Harmony Park Music Garden, Geneva, MN
Source info:
2004-04-20.fob.dpa4023.23966.t-flac16
– SET I (tracks 1-11) –
– SET II (tracks 12-27) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
Standing out as one of the most incredible run of shows MMW has ever played, these April 2004 gigs of 100% improvisation exhibit the band at the height of their SHACK skills, pulling endless melodies and grooves out of thin air, along with the usual visits to more out-there/open space.
Each night encores with a tune intended for release on End Of the World Party (Just In Case) later in 2004 — Whiney Bitches never made it to the US release, but I think was on the Japanese release, and was later found on the Note Bleu-Best of the Blue Note Years 1998-2005 compilation disc.
All that to say: Dig into these gigs of pure musical exploration … you won’t be disappointed.
enjoy the grooves,
dug
2005-04-20
MMW @The Staircase, Scranton, PA 2005-05-13
Source info:
2005-04-20.akg463.29083.t-flac16
– SET I (tracks 1-5) –
– SET II (tracks 6-13) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
The show opens in fine form with lots of exploration solidifying in a tweaked-out groove — Medeski’s keys are wild! We move through 2 incredible improvisations in the first 30min — you have to listen to these guys constructing these pieces on the fly, it’s unreal, boiling down to Chris letting loose on a Bass Solo before illyB joins back in and the two groove out and play around for a few minutes before landing into Hegaz — this is an incredible tune the guys played throughout April ’05 thanks to Brahim Fribgane bringing over this Club D’Elf tune during his sit-in @Tonic in NYC the previous March. Thought it might be the Zorn tune Ziphim for a while, but it’s a D’Elf tune, I believe written by Brahim. John sticks on piano throughout for this one which is real nice — each version of this tune is worth checking out for what the band does over the course of its brief inclusion in the live repertoire. Curtis is a hard groove resolving to the soothing wackiness of ITAHTLMJ to close the set, a tune benefiting nicely from Medeski’s ’05 key sounds.
2nd set gets going with a solid (as always) EOTWP (love that bowed bass!), with a HUGE Reflector close on its heels containing a Drum Solo which is fairly common for the tune but not a given, so I like to note it, and this jams into the nice combo of New Planet > The Lover, leading to a Bass Improv Outro that takes us to the slink of Sasa. The quietness of Everyday People follows (ya know, I honestly hardly recognize this cover!), and Queen Bee (a common closer) rocks us out to end with the cries of Whiney Bitches — what a pairing to wrap-up the set! Every version of Whiney Bitches is worth hearing as well …
Who The Fuck? is a short but VERY sweet encore — FRICKIN’ LOVE THIS PJ Harvey tune! Never listened to the original because I’m afraid how much it might ruin my love for MMW’s version … it rocks SO HARD!
enjoy the grooves,
dug
2013-04-20
Wood @Mondavi Center, Jackson Hall, Davis, CA 2013-04-20
Source info:
2013-04-20.neumann-km140.124444.t-flac16
– SET I (tracks 1-6) –
– SET II (tracks 7-12) –
– SHACK THOUGHTS –
An electric gig drops on 4/20 in the midst of an acoustic run …
– SET I –
Some mildly piercing tweaks of feedback-like noise begin our journey through this 4/20 excursion, I believe the sounds are coming from Chris bowing below his bridge on the stand-up — it makes that kinda uncomfortable sounds. John is filling in some atmospheric sounds while Billy tinkers with some percussive injections. This open space is sifted and mined for groove until just after 5min or so the band allows the groove to emerge — Chris has already been building up the bassline, but @5:20 of track #2 John hits a mild riff and things evolve smoothly from there … this feels nice and welcoming even with its haunted edge. The last couple of minutes of the track sees the band developing what sounds like the beginning of an entirely new piece but it only lasts a couple of minutes … could really just be the outro from the previous improvisation, but I’ve noted it separately and it actually chills down to a very brief skittering from illyB on the kit before we reach silence.
Martin @Mondavi Center, Jackson Hall, Davis, CA 2013-04-20
The next track picks up the energy a bit with an illyBeat kicking hard before John chimes in with a nice and funky Clav riff followed by some nasty slide work from Chris on his electric — and we’re suddenly in a much funkier territory that’s almost feels scary to follow but also so nice. The organ comes in with a complimentary/contrasting riff to the Clavinet and this is a FUNKY TUNE, folks! Too bad we’ll never hear it again … THANK YOU TAPERS!!!
Track #4 I’ve dubbed “Mondavi Piano” — it’s incredible. It’s comprised of a few sections that sound to me like they all work together as a composition — spontaneous? I dunno … but listen and you’ll love it. The intro section moves smoothly into the main piano groove of the song c.3:40 — beautiful work from John here, complimented so perfectly by Chris and Billy. Wicked good. This builds to some chaos, out of which John continues a piano riff as the track rolls over and Billy joins in on percussion …
Medeski @Mondavi Center, Jackson Hall, Davis, CA 2013-04-20
Medeski drops out and illyB keeps playing his mettalic percussives for a spell, and then John slowly joins in with a murky little riff on (what I think is) the Wurlitzer — oh yeah, and Chris starts to compliment John as Billy switches to the kit and things start movin’ and groovin’. This is great and leads us to a Drum Solo closing the set — I recall an old interview where Billy noted the first time they ever did that, close a set with a Drum Solo, and how different it felt and how cool it was … not sure, think around ’03 … anyway, set break!
– SET II –
The 2nd set gets back to tunes, with a great selection, cool to hear, especially since in 2013 we weren’t hearing much else from the band other than the surrounding acoustic gigs that were the thrust of this spring ’13 tour. I think you had to hit some European festivals to catch MMW electric that year — HA! — so, lucky for our friends across the Atlantic. Anyway, great selection of tunes that are all at the top of their game, with a nice loose yet in control and confident feel.
Wood & Martin @Mondavi Center, Jackson Hall, Davis, CA 2013-04-20
Shacklyn Knights is a good slinky way to begin the set, followed by a Bass Solo, while LCTDT(P) is a particular highlight — stellar piano from John. JLIPI takes me back to my first live experience with MMW in ’98, and I’m a sucker for always hearing No Ke Ano Ahiahi for similar reasons — it’s a tune my wife and I both love as well. Heaven on Earth is a tune we could hear more from the band … if/when they play again more …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
THE SHACK STREAM
LISTEN/DOWNLOAD ANOTHER SHOW!
MMW Halloween History
– KNOWN/CIRCULATING RECORDINGS FROM HALLOWEEN (2000-2008) –
Trouble playing/downloading tunes?
| ~ HALLOWEEN Shows ~ ~ FLAC & MP3 filesets ~ ~ Download and/or Stream ~ |
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| 2000-10-31.schoeps-m222-mk41.96277.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #1] Beacon Theater, New York, NY Tuesday, October 31, 2000 # with Whirligig Percussion Ensemble (Paula Potocki, Arno Buzack & Gregg Burrows with Billy Martin & Cyro Baptista) * with Robert Randolph on pedal steel with Marc Ribot + Cyro Baptista on entire second set + encore |
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| 2001-10-31.fob.schoeps-cmc64.6158.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #2] The Beacon Theatre, New York, NY Wednesday, October 31, 2001 w/ Marc Ribot w/ Kid Koala and DJ P-Love # w/ Whirligig Percussion ensemble |
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 MMW – Halloween 2000 |
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| 2002-10-31.fob.neumann-tlm170.13067.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #3] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Thursday, October 31, 2002 # “Stridulations” are a series of independent percussion compositions written by illy B (aka Billy Martin), of which two were performed on this date, one leading right into the other. The five performers were: MMW, Steven Bernstein, and percussionist Carl Nilsen. * w/ DJ Spooky + w/ Mauro Refosco ^ w/ Smokey Hormel % w/ Uninvisible Horns of NYC: Steven Bernstein – trumpet, slide trumpet, director Briggan Krauss – alto sax Howard Johnson – tuba Curtis Hasselbring – trombone |
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| 2002-10-31.mbho603.13050.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #4] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Thursday, October 31, 2002 # “Stridulations” are a series of independent percussion compositions written by illy B (aka Billy Martin), of which two were performed on this date, one leading right into the other. The five performers were: MMW, Steven Bernstein, and percussionist Carl Nilsen. * w/ DJ Spooky + w/ Mauro Refosco ^ w/ Smokey Hormel % w/ Uninvisible Horns of NYC: Steven Bernstein – trumpet, slide trumpet, director Briggan Krauss – alto sax Howard Johnson – tuba Curtis Hasselbring – trombone |
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| 2002-10-31.mg210.112715.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #5] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Thursday, October 31, 2002 # “Stridulations” are a series of independent percussion compositions written by illy B (aka Billy Martin), of which two were performed on this date, one leading right into the other. The five performers were: MMW, Steven Bernstein, and percussionist Carl Nilsen. * w/ DJ Spooky + w/ Mauro Refosco ^ w/ Smokey Hormel % w/ Uninvisible Horns of NYC: Steven Bernstein – trumpet, slide trumpet, director Briggan Krauss – alto sax Howard Johnson – tuba Curtis Hasselbring – trombone |
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| 2003-10-31.akg393.retracked.122619.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #6] Beacon Theater, New York, NY Friday, October 31, 2003 One Set Most of show w/ DJ Le Spam * w/ Marc Ribot + w/ Spam Allstars horn section: –Mercedes Abal on flute –AJ Hill on Alto Sax –John Speck on trombone –Steve Welsh on Baritone Sax |
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| 2003-10-31.mg200.112716.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #7] Beacon Theater, New York, NY Friday, October 31, 2003 One Set Most of show w/ DJ Le Spam * w/ Marc Ribot + w/ Spam Allstars horn section: –Mercedes Abal on flute –AJ Hill on Alto Sax –John Speck on trombone –Steve Welsh on Baritone Sax |
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 MMW w/ Ribot – Halloween 2001 |
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| 2004-10-31.cad-equitek-e200(d1+d2)+mg200(d3).27302.t-flac [TSP-Halloween #8] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Sunday, October 31, 2004 One Set # with Antibalas Horn Section * cover of a song by Ethiopian keyboardist/composer Mulatu Astatqe, from the album “Liberty” (1974) ^ with Cyro Baptista (exact performance tunes unconfirmed, but sounds like these are the tracks) |
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| 2004-10-31.mg200.112717.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #9] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Sunday, October 31, 2004 One Set # with Antibalas Horn Section * cover of a song by Ethiopian keyboardist/composer Mulatu Astatqe, from the album “Liberty” (1974) ^ with Cyro Baptista (exact performance tunes unconfirmed, but sounds like these are the tracks) |
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| 2005-10-31.audix-1290-hc.31643.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #10] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Monday, October 31, 2005 One Set Entire show w/ Cyro Baptista + w/ SLAM (50+ piece band fronted by Kenny Wolleson & Jonathon Haffner) |
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 MMW – Halloween 2004 |
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| 2006-10-31.akg393.80135.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #11] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Tuesday, October 31, 2006 One Set # with Flora Purim (vocals) * with Sharon Jones (vocals) with Dave Tronzo (guitar) & Airto Moreira (percussion) for the entire show |
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| 2006-10-31.audix1290.79797.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #12] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Tuesday, October 31, 2006 One Set # with Flora Purim (vocals) * with Sharon Jones (vocals) with Dave Tronzo (guitar) & Airto Moreira (percussion) for the entire show |
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| 2006-10-31.schoeps-mk41.79897.t-flac16 [TSP-Halloween #13] Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, NY Tuesday, October 31, 2006 One Set # with Flora Purim (vocals) * with Sharon Jones (vocals) with Dave Tronzo (guitar) & Airto Moreira (percussion) for the entire show |
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| 2008-10-31.senn-k6.95827.t-flac [TSP-Halloween #14] Yebisu The Garden Hall, Tokyo, Japan Friday, October 31, 2008 One Set # with Cyro Baptista * with Jamie Cullum + WISM? Super Session with Shacho/Motoharu/tabu zombie/Midorin of Soil & “Pimp” Sessions |
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THE SHACK STREAM
LISTEN/DOWNLOAD ANOTHER SHOW!
FAITU#32
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#32)
1996-10-21 – SHACK PARTY VI
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| Trouble playing tunes? | ||||
1996-10-21 ticket stub
Source info:
1996-10-21.schoeps-cmc6+mk4.1457.t-flac16 [TSP1996#17]
– SET I (tracks 1-4) –
– SET II (tracks 5-10) –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#32)
The Shack Project celebrates MMW @25 years!
– SHACK THOUGHTS — SHACK PARTIES I-VII ’96 –
Listen to these gigs. Listen to all of these gigs — it’s the best advice I can give you. These Shack Parties, where the band played for 7 Mondays in a row at the Knitting Factory in NYC, encompass such a wide range of the band’s talents and musical interests that a summation would simply do the music an injustice. Whether you dig a certain track or guest through this run, you have to admit that each guest brings something unique to the mix which in turn causes the band to react and shift, making the music they all create something adventuresome and real for that moment only. There are also plenty of moments where it’s just the trio and you’ll love it. As they explore both groove and open space with/out guests, it is clear this is a band out to make inspired music.
Oren Bloedow’s speech during Set II of the last Shack Party puts it best … so take a listen and Shack-out with these near 20 year-old musical explorations …
1996-10-21 ticket stub
– SHACK PARTY VI THOUGHTS –
After a brief introduction from illyB, wasting no time, a beat kicks in and the trio along with Eddie Bobe and Vernon Reid launch into some HEADY improvisation, with DJ Logic eventually joining the fray. The next 35min is simply outstanding group communication riding through waves of intensity and loose open grooves — this is Shackin’ Out at its finest, folks. This show is loaded with guests, as Bobe and Reid leave the stage, Daniel Carter joins on sax and Leon Gruenbaum on his very own creation, the Samchillian Tip Tip Tip Cheeepeeeee – see here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samchillian – with these players lending their input to the the next set of improvisations. Juliana Nash joins on vocals for a couple of tunes, Gramma’s Hands (played again a few years later with Bruce Hornsby) and accompanied by Jennifer Jackson’s vox on the oldie, Chain of Fools, with Carter remaining on stage, the ensemble is also joined by Logic and Oren Bloedow for this fun celebratory close to the set.
The 2nd set sees many of the same players return, but Ben Perowski on percussion starts the set with the trio, Steven Bernstein makes an appearance on the too-little-played “Going Home”, with David Fiuczynski and Dean Bowman jumping in at the end on a tune they played on a few times with MMW, the Hendrix classic, Crosstown Traffic, which closes the night on a HIGH note.
The space and sounds explored over this 6th Shack Party should do well to sooth you with groove on this Friday Afternoon In The Universe …
enjoy the grooves,
dug
THE SHACK STREAM
LISTEN/DOWNLOAD ANOTHER SHOW!
FAITU#29
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE
(FAITU#29)
1996-09-30 – SHACK PARTY III
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MMW mid-90s Promo
Source info:
1996-09-30.schoeps-cmc6.21608.t-flac16 [TSP1996#14]
– SET I (tracks 1-5) –
– SET II (tracks 6-12) –
FRIDAY AFTERNOON IN THE UNIVERSE (FAITU#29)
The Shack Project celebrates MMW @25 years!
– SHACK THOUGHTS — SHACK PARTIES I-VII ’96 –
Listen to these gigs. Listen to all of these gigs — it’s the best advice I can give you. These Shack Parties, where the band played for 7 Mondays in a row at the Knitting Factory in NYC, encompass such a wide range of the band’s talents and musical interests that a summation would simply do the music an injustice. Whether you dig a certain track or guest through this run, you have to admit that each guest brings something unique to the mix which in turn causes the band to react and shift, making the music they all create something adventuresome and real for that moment only. There are also plenty of moments where it’s just the trio and you’ll love it. As they explore both groove and open space with/out guests, it is clear this is a band out to make inspired music.
Oren Bloedow’s speech during Set II of the last Shack Party puts it best … so take a listen and Shack-out with these near 20 year-old musical explorations …
MMW c.1996
– SHACK PARTY III THOUGHTS –
illyB kicks down a beat to get the groove rolling, and the other musicians just start piling on, layering the sound, and a superb groove is born! Over the next 30min the group on stage, MMW + Logic, Bernstein, & Scheps, take us through 4 distinct improvisations before we hit some Open space that winds us down to just the trio with Logic on the Horace Silver tune/jazz standard, Cape Verdean Blues — nothing standard in MMW’s take on the tune though! The horns return after a Bass Solo from Chris, and stick out for another Improv > Organ’n’Trumpet jam that smoothly leads into Wiggly’s Way before the horns exit again. Bernstein is a perfect fit for MMW any time, and in this set he’s a monster on that slide trumpet — just KILLER! The set ends with Jennifer Jackson’s beautiful vocals accompanying the trio on an “Unknown Bassanova”.
And then there’s a 2nd set! It begins on a subdued note with Medeski solo on piano which opens up into a killer improvisation when the guests join in with Logic quite prominent and Oren (must be him on guitar) — I mean, Oren is nailing it here! Great stuff! We get a Drums’n’DJ breakdown at a few points (Weston eventually joins the percussive fray later in the set), some Open explorations, Bass’n’Drums, and incredible groove improvisations — where do all these melodies come from!?! Rufus Cappadocia on cello is an INCREDIBLE addition to this set of musicians and his input on the latter part of the set’s improvisations as well as on the tune Friday Afternoon In The Universe, makes this afternoon’s listen all the more special … the closing number is an Oren Bloedow tune that wraps up the set in a similarly subdued manner as Medeski’s solo started … some sweet sax from Aaron Heik on this number too …
Gotta say I just love how far out the FAITU tune gets in that 2nd set … and this quote makes me chuckle each time I hear Billy utter these words near the start of the show, “New record coming out in a couple of weeks, check it out. We’re *not* playing any of the music from that record tonight …” — HA!
enjoy the grooves,
dug
THE SHACK STREAM
LISTEN/DOWNLOAD ANOTHER SHOW!
The Shack Project 