a free form jazz odyssey in front of a festival crowd

So much to say, I have been slacking on this blog-o-thing for weeks.

Lets start with halloween. After much procrastination, I went to see Medeski Martin and Wood. I have been out of the jamband loop for a long time, so I figured it was time to go see a big holiday event back in the scene. As you could imagine, it did not go as planned. I have spoken about my affinity for the MMW on these pages before, so I don’t need to go into it too much. Lets just say they are a band you need to pay attention to while at a show, because there is a lot happening. I planted myself in the front row along the railing, and prepared to Rock the fuck out. By that, I mean listen attentively.

There were some fun costumes in the Hammerstein Ballroom. By far the best, were 3 guys, dressed in sport jackets, wearing 50’s style wigs, carrying balloons, a microphone and a check. I couldnt tell what was going on at first, but they were the Publishers Clearing House people. They had a giant check made out to “Dorothy Mantooth” and would approach someone, throw confetti at them, and scream “Dorothy, how does it feel to win a million dollars!” everyone around them would cheer, then they would pause and say “Wait, you’re not dorothy….somebody clean this up” and walk away. I was cracking up
The band took the stage, and did some freaky stuff. There were trapeze artists swinging from the ceiling, Medeski was dressed as a spider (appropriately, it sounds like the guy has 8 arms to begin with) Wood was a goth rocker, and my homey Billy Martin, was dressed as nothing, and i’m not gonna lie, I was a little dissappointed. The first 45 minutes were amazing, our little section of the crowd was tight knit, and rocking out. But, things changed in a bit. Some guys dressed as nuns pushed their way up to the front, right behind me, and proceeded to talk the entire time. I was going to say “Hey Sister, you are supposed to be quiet in church” but i decided against it at the last minute, because i live on the edge like that. YEAH.

As the show continued, people yelled things during the quiet parts such as “Kill Your Mother” which i really dont get. In conclusion, Jam Band crowds just don’t do it for me anymore. There are maybe 2 bands on earth i would sit through that for, and its MMW and Wilco, both of which has happened.

One thing though, I watched Billy Martin like a hawk, trying to figure out some stuff he was doing. And in the process, I think i made myself more intimidated by him. Last time I took a lesson, I felt good, like “Hey, I can totally rock a solo in front of this guy. Who is he??? Just another drummer!” but after the show it was like ” who is he?? Just another drummer that can play in front of 4000 people, hire trapeze artists and a marching band for his show, and then go to Japan for new years eve” So, I’m back where I started.

At the end of the show, I was walking out, trying to see if there was anyone I knew, but not necessarily talk to or been seen by them. I walked by one kid, dressed as a farmer, straw hat, overalls, yelling “Who’s Got My Doses!” in phish head speak, that means- “Does anyone have acid they could sell me?” This was no rare occurrance, until i looked at his face, and noticed we had an art class together at my high school. I almost said hi, because he was a funny kid, but did not, because I imagine our conversation would have gone like this:

Farmer: Who’s got my doses???
Steve: Hey, are you Jason? We went to PV together
Farmer: Oh, yeah, how are you?
Steve: Umm, good, whats happening?
Farmer: Not much, just looking for some acid, you got any?
Steve: No……I’ve gotta go watch Laguna Beach, i’ll see you later