Time to reboot? Let's see.

I stopped blogging here almost 6 years ago. Trying to decide whether a reboot is warranted. When I logged, there was 1 draft for my TOAPP camp in 2017. Just for the record, assuming no change in plans, I expect to attend my 9th TOAPP camp in August. It should have been this past August, but obviously postponed because of Covid. Not sure if I will continute here, or find a new place.

TOAPP Camp 2017 (One for the other Thumb)

Last week, I attended my sixth Three of a Perfect Pair camp. One of the highlights, was taking this group shot with my friends, who I first met in August of 2011, and have been there along with me.



My group of friends from this camp is however larger, since there are approximately 50 people that have been to been to more than one camp. Things have taken on the characteristics of a musical family reunion. Universally, the entire group talks about PCD (or Post Camp Depression), which is always strongest in the weeks following camp, while we wait for the next one.

This time around, I wanted to talk about the camp's evolution, and explain why it has become so special.

Day 0

Rehearsals and the 2nd Annual Pre-camp Dinner

The Full Moon features multiple buildings, including one known as the Roadhouse, which also has a cash bar. Originally, in 2011 the evenings were very similar to an Open Mic Night, and were very unorganized. One night, in the week was reserved for a group Jam, in the barn, where everyone with an instrument played for about an hour of cacophonous fun.

Things have slowly changed however, and the group jam has been retired. Now there is a sign-up sheet, so that campers can sign up to 1 of 2 songs with each of the 3 artists. This is followed by other groups of campers performing other songs, late into the night.

Since everyone now feels a responsibility to bring their "A" game, some attendees have started to get to Woodstock early, and begun renting rehearsal space during the weekend before camp. This year, this groups of campers rented out 2 studios, including Dreamland, pictured below:

I should add however, that we welcome players of all levels. Each camper is given an opportunity to play if they so desire. The camper audience is supportive, attentive and respectful in all cases.

Since so many people have been getting into the area a few days early, we have also started the tradition of having a Dinner at Tony Guido's in Kingston, the night before camp starts. In the two years we have done this, it has grown from about 4 tables to 7. Personally, I am already looking forward to doing this again next year.

Day 1

Day 2

Day 3

Day 4

Day 5

Apres-camp

Hot Night at the Austin360 Amphitheater

Elvis Costello

So, my friend Ron and I arrived at the venue right around 7PM. After quickly wolfing down food at the trucks, we got seated just as Elvis and the band started playing. Like the previous Rush show, although the sight lines were good, the sound was so-so, and it was extremely hot and humid. With the small seats, this made things sticky and slimy.

The Imposters

The backing band for Elvis is essentially the Attractions with a new bass player.

• Steve Nieve - Keyboards
  
• Pete Thomas - Drums
  
• Davey Faragher - Bass
  

The set lasted exactly 1 hour, and consisted of the following songs. The music was very enjoyable despite the sound. Both of us agreed that the Bass would have been a much better venue.

My love of this music probably resulted in my enjoying this show more than I should have, given the shortcomings of the venue.

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Steely Dan

The stage change-over was completed very quickly, with the headliner taking stage precisely at 9PM. This was my first time seeing Steely Dan live, and I would describe myself as a casual fan of the band.

The Band

In addition to Fagen and Becker, there were 12 other musicians on stage. They were all awesome musicians, but the drummer and bassist were particularly kick-ass in my mind.

For this leg of the Rockabye Gollie Baby tour, the 2 hour set of music consisted of selection of their greatest hits.

Everything was great with the exception of the heavy set, middle-aged, bald guy near me, who clapped out of time with every song, and insisted on standing and dancing throughout the show. Fortunately, the music was able to compensate for this annoyance.

RIP: Chris Squire

Chris Squire, founding member and bassist for the band, Yes, has passed away. During my early teens, I was heavily into Progressive Rock, and Yes was my second favorite band, after ELP.

Throughout my life, I would hazard a guess that I have seen Yes approximately 6 or 7 times. I can't say that I was really much of a fan of the later incarnations of the band, and was pretty disappointed in the last Yes show, that I saw at the Moody, several years ago.

Here are some of the obituaries:

• http://pitchfork.com/news/59686-yes-bassist-chris-squire-has-died/
  
• https://twitter.com/asiageoff/status/615159221387182080
  

A Double Helping of Steven Wilson

Tour Announcement

After anxiously awaiting the release of Steven Wilson's latest solo album, Hand Can Not Erase, he announced the North American tour dates. My friends and I picked these shows because they were on the weekend, and within close proximity of each other. The shows were in Anaheim, and LA, on 6/12 and 6/13 respectively.

Band Lineup

For the European leg this spring, the band lineup was essentially the same as the Raven that Refused to Sing tour. The only person missing this time around were Theo Travis, on woodwinds.

For the North American leg, Marco Minnemann, and Guthrie Govan, also dropped off, because of their commitment to their own project, the Aristocrats. (I'll be seeing them perform here in Austin, on 8/21.)

The current lineup of the band is:

• Steven Wilson - Vocals and Guitar
  
• Adam Holzman - Keyboards
  
• Nick Beggs - Bass and Chapman Stick
  
• Dave Kilminster - Lead Guitar
  
• Craig Blundell - Drums
  

I was already familiar with Kilminster's work, he has played with the Keith Emerson band in the past, and also was the guitarist on Roger Water's tour for the Wall.

Blundell apparently won some sort of drum clinic contest, and doesn't seem to have a very long resume. I will say, he is quite good, and certainly held things down.

Friday 6/12 - The National Grove in Anaheim

Even though Anaheim was only 35 miles away, we had to leave LA around 4:30 PM. With LA traffic, it ended up consuming approximately 90 minutes. I certainly didn't miss this aspect of LA, which I used to experience when I was contracting in Orange County 15 years ago.

The venue is actually at the edge of the parking lot of Angels stadium. So there were a lot of people in the area with baseball paraphernalia on.

Inside I estimate that the venue held somewhere between 1.5 to 2K. Sight lines and acoustics were good, and the seating was comfortable.

The concert started approximately at 8:30, and finished up two half hours later. The setlist was focused mainly on the new album, but also included covers of two PT songs. In all honesty, it would be very difficult for a live music performance to ever get much better than this.

Saturday 6/13 - The Wiltern in Los Angeles

Night 2 was at the Wiltern. It is located just a few blocks away from the La Brea tar pits, has a larger seating capacity than the Grove, and is an older building. Although we had floor seats, the pitch of the floor was essentially flat, making it a bit more difficult to see. The seats were also cramped, but I had no complaints about the acoustics.

This show was actually streamed by Yahoo for free, and was on a somewhat tighter schedule than the previous night. The show started promptly at 8:00PM and finished up within the allotted two hours. I am hoping that perhaps it will be possible to purchase a video copy of the show in the future. As you can see, the setlist was a little different.

As the show progressed, you can see that my friends and I opted to go upstairs, in order to see better. Other friends at home were commenting on Facebook about how good the show was. I obviously look forward to more albums and tours by Steven in the future. (I'm just hope Porcupine Tree is eventually returned to action).

Bert Lams and Fabio Mittino at MOCHA

MOCHA at Monterey Oaks

My good friend Bruce Stofft has hosted several concerts at a church in South Austin. The common thread has been Bert Lams, who has appeared here with Tom Griesgraber, California Guitar Trio, and now, Fabio Mittino. Best of all, this show was free.

Kem Watts

The opener was a very talented Americana, Singer Songwriter, named Kem Watts. She played for approximately half an hour.

Bert Lams and Fabio Mittino

Bert and Fabio were introduced to each other by Robert Fripp. Fabio had worked for years on reducing piano arrangements by De Hartmann, of songs that Gurdjieff had captured, while traveling throughout Asia and the Middle East.

Originally a solo project, Fabio contacted Bert and they converted the pieces into duets. They recorded an album funded through Kickstarter, and are now on a small tour consisting of small venues and house concerts.

The music is simple, but hauntingly beautiful. It incorporates both polyphonic and polyrhythmic playing, which is difficult to describe. I highly recommend their album, however, Long Ago.

Rush at the Austin360 Amphitheater

This is the seventh or eigth time that I've seen Rush, since 1981 or so. I describe myself as a fan, but not as rabid or fanatical, as their core demographic. In fact, I've really taken to seeing every other tour, and unlike my friends, I would not travel to go see them, or go to multiple shows on a tour.

So, this tour is being billed a R40, for their 40th anniversary. Actually, they have been around for longer, 2014 was the 40th anniversary of Neil Peart's joinging the band. in 1974.

In typical fashion, they started the show with a video montage including an animated section, depicting the band through its various eras, hair and fashion styles. The whole accompanied by the Rush music of that time period.

The show kicked off shortly after 8PM, and consisted of 2 sets and an encore, wrapping up around 11:30. The setlist consisted of selection of music covering their entire career. (Of course, I didn't even bother to note the songs because I knew someone else would capture the set list.

So the question now, is this their Swan Song? The band can still play, but Geddy is no longer able to hit the high notes like he once did. To be honest, I'm wondering whether he is doing damage to vocal chords now, because he clearly struggles.

Still it was an excellent night under the stars, watching a good show. In general, I'd say the venue (which holds about 14K) is average, particularly because of the parking situation. The pitch of the seating is far from ideal, because it is extremely difficult to see, if anyone is standing in the next 4 rows in front of you. For Rush in particular, this is bad, because there are always a bunch of the Neil Peart wannabes, who stand during the entire show playing air-drums.

Lastly, since it was already warm and a bit humid, I'm starting to wonder whether it will be more unbearable in July when I return there to see Steely Dan and Elvis Costello. Truth be told, I would have preferred to have seen this show at the Erwin Center.

Beards n' Beck at the Cedar Park Center

Jeff Beck

So I'm never one to pass up a Jeff Beck show, one of my favorite guitarists. This show was a double dinger, and also allowed me to catch ZZ Top for the first time.

For 2015, Jeff is touring with some new and some familiar face. His band included the following personnel:

• Jimmy Hall - vocals
  
• Rhonda Smith - on bass, and backing vocals.
  
• Jonathan Joseph - drums
  
• Nicolas Meier - guitar
  

I had seen Rhonda with Jeff before in Houston. She was awesome. The surprise of the night was the singer, Jimmy Hall. He totally blew us away. Jeff rarely plays with singers, but when he uses one, they are always exceptional.

This part of the show went by way too quickly. The setlist included a mix of old and new stuff.

ZZ Top

It was good to see ZZ Top for the first time. I'll say that their show was exactly what I expected. I'm not a huge fan, but I did enjoy their set.

As with the first half of the evening, it was easy to find their setlist on-line.

Encore

The highlight of the night came when Jeff joined ZZ on stage for the encore. This was memorable, and very fun to watch, to boot.