Flanfire

Saturday night I took the bride out for a little "jug band" music from South Austin - first time I had gotten to see "new" fiddler Brian Beken, and I was impressed. We had to leave after the first set, but we will not soon forget the dueling twin fiddles of Beken and former fiddler (and current mandolinist) Dennis Ludiker - who were joined on stage by Boise, Idaho, emigre Noah Jeffries (who plays sometimes with Jason Boland, we are told) on mando (on an earlier song, Noah had played fiddle with Brian and Dennis stayed on mando). It was a special thing to see three young fiddlers so full of joy in their instruments and so talented as well. And remember, this was once Warren Hood's band!

Beken (who was the 2004 Texas flat-picking champion!) plays fiddle the old-fashioned way (standing up straight most of the time), while Ludiker is much more animated on stage (and on his one fiddle tune during our set showed some amazing quadruplets - these guys can play fast!). Jeffries, we are told, also plays banjo; these guys are roommates, and one can only imagine the jams they are having at home.

Not that either of the newbies takes away from flat-picker Willie Pipkin (who has been joining Champ's son with Toni Price on Tuesdays) or bassist Will Dupuy (one of the group's chief songwriters who always adds a touch of humor) or even the saddest man in all show biz (if you believe his song lyrics), crooner and guitarist James Hyland (whose voice just seems to get better, like Tennessee whiskey, with age). One of the saddest (for the boys, at least) songs was one called "Ain't No Likker in This Town," which fortunately for them is not Austin. More serious was a song dedicated to the late Champ Hood, "Ghost in My Hometown" or something like that. The title track of the band's new CD (which has colorful art on the cover), "Dark and Weary World," was probably written while the band was hanging out with the Weary Boys over a few (six packs?).

The band really shines on hot instrumentals (some with interspersed lyrics) - Beken's fiddle solos, Ludiker's mandolin, and Pipkin's penetrating staccato guitar, plus on occasion the thumping of Dupuy's doghouse bass - are a fine contrast to the twangy vocals from Hyland. After the warmup (including the venerable "$2 bill"), the band got very very busy on Blackberry Blossom (which leads into and out of Friend of the Devil), with Noah on fiddle along with Brian, and - well, some of the picking just leaves you speechless.

Opening up (the early show) was The Robert Socia Orchestra, featuring the handsome native Austinite Socia on acoustic guitar and lead vocals - trading in the electric guitar he slung for Southern Fried for years. Socia has a CD release party set for January 17, which will likely feature most of the players he had on stage (with maybe Brian Beken on some instruments as well) - Eric Smith on electric bass, Andrew Davis on cello, Andy Tindall on fiddle, Bruce James on keyboards, and Mike Forest on drums (snare only at Momo's). This (makeup for Brooke Axtell, on whom we are awaiting a progress report after her serious injury in a car wreck last week) gig was the new band's third - but they play again at Antone's this Friday. I did not get to hear much of their set (stuffing face across the street), but what I heard was NICE - and so are the two tunes available for download on the www.robertsocia.com website. We are just so blessed to be in Austin, where musicians write real lyrics about real life.

And speaking of real musicians - I got to see Colin Brooks playing lead guitar(s) with the amazing Brian Keane - plus my hero El Goins on drums and the solid Seth Whitney on bass. Brian, who writes funny songs and deep songs and silly songs and plays many many instruments, has become a musicians' favorite here in Austin. Sunday night, he opened with a song that must be called "Satan's Taco," and it split our sides. He closed with "Odysseus," a cowboy version of an old classic story, but in between he meandered between pure country ("Since You've Been Gone," for one) and such songs as "Anywhere" (which featured a duet with El Goins - for those who missed it!) and "Been a Long Day" (which featured some amazing work by Brooks on on guitar). I blinked twice and recognized "Nothing Compares 2 U," and the only thing missing for the evening was Brian on keyboards (or various other instruments). Brian's playing Wednesdays at Momo's as a regular gig for now, but he also has a special show at the Longbranch Inn (eastside) on November 21.