Thursday, August 29, 2013

November 9. 2012 (with Elijah Brice)

Colie Brice - "Walk Away (6/14/12 Saint Asbury Park, NJ)

Saturday, August 03, 2013

Hymn For Her Presents Lucy & Wayne at the Eastport Arts Center 8/2/13

Trying to piece together apt superlatives to convey the magnitude of what I experienced last night while listening to Hymn For Her Presents Lucy & Wayne at the Eastport Arts Center. . Truth be told I had a tough work week and was feeling cranky and out of sorts. Was more in a brooding bear in cave type mode rather than the spirit of community fellowship kind of mood.. I went anyway, and I am so glad I joined my wife Manuela for this performance. The grace, authenticity, courageous exhibition of artistic exploration and freedom, fierce dexterity, humor, contrast between brash bold emphasis and soft subtle textures was like a manic spinning wheel of textured sound.
HYMN - world class guitar chameleon, a kaleidoscope of tried and true riffs and leads from across the full spectrum of popular guitar - surf, country ROCK, Metal, punk, blues, Samba? Wayne just flows impeccably from style to style in full service to the songs and sound on an acoustic guitar. Even his missed notes become deft, graceful turn of phrase that compliments the moment at hand. The guy is triptastic and exudes a zen like cool control - a player that truly and thrives lives in the natural presence of the moment. The guy just has an ability to let go completely. As a life long guitar player, observing him was both humbling and inspiring all at once. OH! and by the way.. The guy is usually pounding out tasty beats and accents on a bass drum and hi hat simultaneously. I won't even get into that for now.. Truly amazing..

HER - Her voice and persona reminds me of a summer wild flower in late September. Slightly but delicately wilted in a graceful and still gorgeous way, beauty intact, deepened on another level, a trace of world weariness accompanied by emerging wisdom but still fortified with a certain vitality of youth. Yet there is a contrasting dark side to her voice that has a slightly sneering moonshine whiskey side as well. A voice that has sung in good times and bad, has taken its shots yet remains defiant in the face of adversity.. Not quite the virtuoso her husband is on string instruments, yet her note choices and PLACEMENT are gritty, heart searing, and just simply on point.

The real triumph here is that these two titans can come together and play so cooperatively. Raising a child together on the road, the financial stress of being completely independent musicians, and somehow managing to metabolize all that as fuel for their intense performance is just.. Sorry.. F*CKING BAD ASS is all I can think is left to say.. Bravo..