Flanfire

Rockin' at Nuno's with MP2!
Wednesday nights -- 10 pm. Nuno's on Sixth! Be there!

Spread the word -- and keep this good thing going. Lots of jams in Austin, to be sure, but THIS ONE features the vocal power of Storyville's Malford Milligan (with such special guests as Kelly Doze and Natalie Zoe), Austin newcomer Phil Brown (The Jimi Project) on guitar (with lots of buddies showing up to sit in), Austin's answer to George Hamilton on bass -- that's the laid back Californian Mark Andes, formerly of Spirit, Jojo Gunne, Heart, and others and Jon Dee Graham and the Bump Band among his Austin gigs, and the incredible Pat Mastelotto on drums (Mr. Mister, King Crimson, the Rembrandts, XTC, etc.).

Meagan Tubb and her argyles; Gina Chavez and her Martin.

Now, folks, that is quite a band -- and a HUGE LOTTA albums and CD's sold among them. And the crowds that this group has been drawing have put smiles on the faces of owners Nuno and Angela Vasconcellos, who are having just as good a time as their customers on these evenings. Best of all -- NO COVER!!!!!

As if the quartet -- already billing itself as MP2 (Malford, Mark, Phil and Pat) -- is not more than enough to keep people dancing (to lots of Hendrix, lots of Storyville and other Milligan songs, and much more), the guest performer list makes these evenings even more unmissable. For starters, we had the lovely brunette Natalie Zoe and the equally lovely blonde Kelly Doze do a couple of numbers (and sing backup too!), and Tim Dyer and Jon Garr of Malford's own band each showed their guitar riffs and vocal licks on more than one number. Phil's special guests included Ray McCarty and Bob Feldman, whose duet with Phil on "Live Today" was beyond good. And yet that performance may have been topped when this group was joined on stage by the incomparable Ephraim Owens for amazing renditions of "Purple Haze" and Phil's own "La La Land." Paul "Bhudda" Mills also sat in on drums, and I forget who else was on stage (hazy!) -- but folks -- this was F U N!!!!!

One evening earlier I had the pleasure of watching the Momo's debut of Austin-born and bred Latina diva Gina Chavez, who packed the house with friends and extended family for her acoustic set with her on guitar and buddy Roel Martinez on mandolin. The barefoot contessa opened with an a capella verse of "Summertime" that led into a song about St. Anthony ["won't you help me find a place called home"]. Other songs from her forthcoming CD -- "Hanging Spoons -- included "Brother Sun," "Matter," and her finale, "Saving Grace." Momo's will be hosting her CD release sometime soon.

Gina sings from her heart and from her faith, and she can keep the crowd attentive with her wit and her smile -- and off-the-cuff songs like "Baby's got a short stack, bagel in the oven ...." Her OTHER group is "Before the Throne," a worship band that writes its own music. It is quite a step up from Tazza Fresca to Momo's, but Gina (who was filling in for Suzanna Choffel, who had a gig at Antone's this evening) has the energy, the wit, and the chops to build an audience of people who are NOT her longtime pals (if she needs to -- her entourage itself is daunting!).

Also on the bill for the evening was my pal Meagan Tubb, who was sporting some fabulous Argyle socks and a matching (??) outfit. Lovely as her long legs are, though, what makes Meagan unforgettable on stage is her booming voice and her serious guitar chops (which she shares with Jason Nunnencamp). Drummer Johnny Duran and bassist Ric Ricker provide the pulsating rhythm for this high-energy band (and yes Meagan IS often compared with Susan Tedeschi -- but she's her own woman), which is getting ready to take advantage of that free time in Pedernales Studio courtesy of winning Poodie's Battle of the Bands last summer.

October Sky Explodes over Austin:
Homer Hiccolm and the Rocketboys!

Brandon Kinder (hat) and Justin Wiseman of Home Hiccolm and the Rocketboys; Tommy Blank and Taylor Muse (on keyboard) of Quiet Company.

A (Youngmond) Grand Evening!

Okay - so I ducked out of the Slowtrain set to run to the Continental to catch Brothers and Sisters (before a PACKED house!) -- my very first time to hear this band whose music sounds like MY younger daze. The Courtney kids -- Will and Lily -- and Courtney Chavanell lead the singing, and there are lots of other band members on stage (reminiscent of Greezy Wheels, but not so decadent!). That Will Courtney writes some songs -- "Old Love Letters" (does anyone really write these any more -- though I remember writing passionate and very long letters the first time I was away from my future bride for a few days), "Sunday Morning Seven Days a Week," and on and on -- but did anyone ever say the sound is reminiscent of America and that wonderful "Sister Golden Hair" (which of course brings us back to Lily). I have to hear more of this band -- my kind of music, flowers in the hair, beads, and that peaceful easy feeling [the real one].

I was going to stick around for more of Moonlight Towers, but after a blown guitar amp stopped the band in its tracks after their very first song, I opted to head back to Beerland and caught a couple of songs from Crawling with Kings (in between conversational moments with Slowtrain birthday boy Andy Keating and his entourage) before settling down for a rare opportunity to catch Youngmond Grand (who go on the road again next week). I mean, they started right out with "I Like to Break Guitars," moved right into "Don't Hit So Hard," "Better Machine," "Not What You Said," and (sadly) only two or three more. Okay, the lyrics here are bleak and blunt -- but the music reminds me of the Cure (or New Order) on speed (walking over to Beerland there I noted that Elvis on Speed was playing next door).

I met songwriter-vocalist-guitarist Clint Myers over a year ago at the club currently known as "The Mohawk," but only got to see YG months later at Trophy's (not the best venue for what they do). Bandmates include the versatile Will Rhodes and John Pfirman on multiple instruments, Jonathan Humphrey on drums and stuff, and bassplayinben on (well) bass and electronics. These guys sometimes play three guitars, sometimes a couple of keyboards, and once in a while throw in some mumbling and some sound effects -- but the whole sound helps paint the word pictures of a world inhabited by imperfect people with real emotions. Give them a listen soon.

Young Rockers Picking Up Sticks:
Graves, Mordecai, and Copeland!

Matt Slusher: McAllen Man!

I have been a Matt Slusher fan ever since the early daze of the South Austin Jug Band -- and have known all along that he is first and foremost a guitarist (Harris and Ryden, Rodney Hayden) who picked up the mandolin because Warren Hood could not play three instruments at a time in the same band -- and did amazing things with an instrument which at the time was fairly new to him. More recently, Mattie Groves (oops! but he has that folkish impishness about him, and I am a big fan of old English ballads) Slusher has been picking and grinning with Tommy Byrd and Kathy Street and the wonderful Robyn Ludwick (went to Europe with her band -- and I believe they may have opened for Robyn's brother Charlie).

In his thirty-fifth year, McAllen Matt has released his first solo CD -- and when I say "solo," this time I mean he plays EVERY instrument (some of which he borrowed) on all 12 songs. He also produced, engineered, mastered, took photos (including of his own paintings), and swept the floor of his living room studio -- and also gave us a jewel case with all the lyrics to all the songs.

The CD opens with the title cut, "Somewhere Between Nowhere and Gone," in which Nowhere is somewhere in California -- a song that makes you want to open a tallboy and tell tall tales, and "listen to Kris Kristofferson sing a Beatles song," or "to Cash sing Petty." I gotta tell you -- this music grows on you -- and why not? Slusher wrote "Ramen Noodle Rag" and many others of my favorite Jug Band songs (or bits of songs).

Now, I will say that while I admire Matt's effort to do the whole thing himself, I hardly think he can pull off the one-man band on stage and trust that some of his many many friends will join him at what I hope will be several gigs to showcase the new CD. Indeed, Matt is "on my way" -- NOT "listening to Willie Nelson sing a Ray Charles song" ... but singing his own. Some of them on this CD may well be about someone he once fiddled around with ... but then real life is often the spark that sets afire the creative muse.

"I Know" is one of those hopeful songs that sometimes creeps through, but then there's "The Sun Didn't Come Out Today" -- "Maybe I belong here all by myself tonight, To walk these lonely sidewalks by the city lights, The cold damp darkness suits my mood, and it's a little sad, but hey ... the sun didn't come out today." And yet the banjo lead here treats these lyrics with a bluegrass bounce, morphing into mandolin and electric guitar riffs that make you want to do-si-do and swing your partner (if you had one)..... a Charlie Robison feel..... with a hint of piano.

"She's Going Out to Carolina" may be Matt's best vocal -- and, yes, it too lets us know that, "she wasn't really mine to keep...." Gotta like Matt's engineering feats here for keeping the flow going while wearing about a dozen ten-gallon hats. One of my favorites on the CD is "Small," an upbeat call to recognize that, "It's a big ol' world, and I just gotta try."

The high point of the CD, though, has to be "The Cost," which has the feel of a cool morning in deep rural Virginia and the irony of a man whose eyes have been opened but who still feels "the urge to wander" and yet "can't help but wonder if this freedom is worth the cost." I can just hear John Starling and the Seldom Scene in the deep background (and BTW, John has a great new record that once again makes my skin crawl). Good electric guitar solo here, too.

"Shine on Moon" is a showcase for Matt's mandolin, an old-fashioned tune that hearkens back to the 19th Century. "Love and Love Again" brings out memories of Will Dupuy -- and finally our boy is all better .... even though "love ain't no simple game." "I'm Still Here" is pure singer-songwriter, quiet and honest ... and with that tinge of hope that comes from the recognition that, "someone believed in me." And finally there's "The Slush Breakdown," Matt's tribute to all of the great Texas fiddle players (including, whether he knows it or not, my grandfather who was a legend in his own time long before the turn of the 20th Century). And just as he did when the Jug Band reshuffled to form the "South Austin Hug Band," Matt is on the fiddle (and everything else) on this hot instrumental ditty.

Matt says of his own music that, "This one is meat, green pepper, egg and onion covered in a couple of slices of white, square wonder bread till it's one big meatball wrapped in greasy, gooey dough. Just like mom used to make." Kinda makes you hungry for a bite - right?

I have a friend who says the songs he writes are way too sad for anyone else but him to hear.


Flanfire -- Bringing LIFE to Austin music.