Jim Price
Moderator
Joined: 07 Dec 2002
Posts: 4817
Location: Altoona, PA
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 Posted: Monday Mar 26, 2007 |
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WEEK/WEEKEND RECAP 12/11/06
COUNTRY OUTLAWS @ THE HITCHING POST, ALTOONA 12/6/06
With my weekly Wednesday evening workplace duties not keeping me late this night, I headed to the Hitching Post to see what was up during Wednesday "Country Night." Not knowing who was playing there this week, my curiosity was further aroused when I noted a new name on the marquee as I arrived; The Country Outlaws. I went inside to order up some ribs and investigate. I was soon joined by accomplice "Big Jim" Ricotta. The band was on break, but would soon start into their third set of the evening.
The group commenced their third set with Johnny Cash's "Cocaine Blues," and immediately I was impressed with the deep and resonaant Man-In-Black-styled voice of singer/guitarist Charlie Hilderbrand. Charlie, lead guitarist/singer Jason Fouse, upright bass player John Lukowski and drummer Jim Mills proceeded to play more old-school outlaw country from Merle Haggard and Conway Twitty, some more recent country from Kevin Fowler and Garth Brooks, a few early rock'n'roll chestnuts from Jerry Lee Lewis and Chuck Berry, and also versions of Social Disortion's "Ball and Chain" and Santo & Johnny's "Sleepwalk." Along the way, thr group welcomed a guest, Jackie Aungst, onstage to sing a Patsy Cline number, "Walkin' After Midnight."
As the group performed, I was eventually greeted by their manager, Jim's wife, Joyce. She eagerly told me about the band and their history, and was elated that she had met somebody from Pennsylvania Musician magazine; she has been a mail subscriber to the publication for a number of years. Very cool!
I was very impressed with my first look at The Country Outlaws and their style of rebel country and roots rock'n'roll. The band was good instrumentally, and Charlie sold the package with his voice and rural swagger. This is a band sure to wake up your inner redneck; and I look forward to their Hitching Post return.
The Country Outlaws, making their first Hitching Post appearance.
Again, The Country Outlaws.
John Lukowski of The Country Outlaws.
Charlie Hilderbrand of The Country Outlaws.
RANDY JACKSON & FRIENDS @ 4D’S LOUNGE, ALTOONA 12/8/06
As we were entering the season where holiday get-togethers become more frequent, I spent a good part of this Friday night partaking in a holiday get-together with my on-air co-workers at The Knickerbocker. This took me up to around midnight, before I headed out to discover what live music was happening in the ‘Toona.
Not much was happening this night. At least in Altoona city proper, only a scant handful of live music activities were taking place, including Half Tempted at the Victory Lane Saloon, a metal double-bill featuring Ninetail and Choking Faith at Aldo's, Denise Baldwin at Burgi's (an early show done by 10 PM), and Randy Jackson and friends at the 4D's Lounge upstairs Schnappes Shoppe. I hadn't seen Randy in this project for a while, so I headed to the Dees to see what was up.
With DJ Caraby entertaining downstairs, the parking lot was packed, and so was the downstairs. But the upstairs was lightly populated as I arrived during the second set. Randy sang, played electric guitar and handled programming.. And he had some friends this night - Bob Scholl on sax, and trumpet players Jay Arnold and Don Emery. Randy and Bob were doing renditions of the "Peter Gunn Theme" and Steely Dan's "Pretzel Logic" as I procured a foamy beverage and took up position at a table near the stage area. Jay and Don then brought their trumpets to the stage as Randy and Bob launched into Ides Of March's "Vehicle," and the brassy display continued with an Earth Wind & Fire number and Katrina & the Waves' "Walking On Sunshine." A guest, Susan Brandt, then stepped to the stage to sing lead on Dionne Warwick/Burt Bacharach's "Walk On By." Another guest in the audience, Jeff Kauffman, took his turn on the lead microphone to front the group on Looking Glass' "Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)." And the cavalcade of guest singers continued for one more song, as Susan's husband, Greg Brandt, stepped up and sang lead on Chicago's "Saturday In The Park" to finish out the set.
Randy, his friends and guests all sounded good. The brass was tight and together, and the guest singers all did respectable jobs. I enjoyed the song selection as well, with the blend of brass-driven classics and vintage hits offering a different flavor not frequently heard on area stages any more.
I wound up being invited to sit in the upper "nosebleed" seats near the bar during the third set, and became involved in some conversations that prevented me from paying full attention to the band during the homestretch. But I did note the set-opening rendition of B.B. King's "The Thrill Is Gone," a rare appearance of Bob Scholl playing bass on Bachman Turner Overdrive's "You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet," and the horn section letting it rip on Stevie Wonder's "Don't You Worry About A Thing" and Eddie Floyd's "Knock On Wood." Late during the set, a Nine Planet Tour contingent arrived to celebrate singer Erika Marino winning $500 in a karaoke contest earlier that evening.
While the lack of crowd in the Schnappes Shoppe made this a casual and not particularly legendary evening, Randy Jackson, his musical friends and guests did make it an enjoyable night of good musicianship and fun sounds.
TOYS FOR TOTS BENEFIT @ ALDO’S, ALTOONA 12/9/06
Two weeks removed from City Limits' annual Toys For Tots benefit, Aldo's and FaceOff Muzik presented their second annual benefit for the U.S. Marine Corps' Toys For Tots program, to help out local kids and families this holiday season. This benefit would take on a decisively heavier rocking tone, courtesy of Divine Everlasting, Chapter 5 and Second Offense.
I arrived midway through Divine Everlasting's set. This was my first look at this group. Against a cyber backdrop, lead vocalist Devin Jones, guitarist (and programmer) Tony Ross and bassist Adam Schaffer performed a dark, melody-geared brand of metalcore. Tony showed detailed guitar work along the arrangements, with Adam's pulsating bass lines adding depth to the cyber-geared sound. Atop this backdrop, Devin delivered his intense roar; but did so with clarity. Most of the material was original, and I did not catch any of those song titles; however, the group also did a terse mauling of Survivor's "Eye Of The Tiger," suggesting what Ministry might do with the song if they decided to cover it one day while in a nasty mood. Divine Everlasting demonstrated a unique sound; it will be interesting to see how they progress.
Divine Everlasting kicks off Aldo's Toys for Tots benefit.
Devin Jones and Tony Ross of Divine Everlasting.
Again, Divine Everlasting.
Next was Chapter 5, delivering their brand of high-velocity, metal-fueled punk. Slimmed to the foursome of singer/bassist Tim Mort, guitarists Shaun Barr and Tom Noel and drummer Billy Mort, Chapter 5 bristled with their set of new original assaults. I didn't catch many song titles here, except for "Same Old Thing." But it was all high-velocity, roaring, metallized punk aggression - picture a Motorhead engine being dropped into a punk rock chassis, and you'll get a general idea of Chapter 5's style. It was good stuff, with developed melodies and shout-along choruses, sold by Chapter 5's pedal-to-the-metal, all-out intensity. Chapter 5 picked up the energy and mood of the evening, and their set made me more anxious to check out their next studio CD, coming out sometime in 2007.
Tim Mort of Chapter 5.
Chapter 5 stirs things up at Aldo's Toys for Tots benefit.
Again, Tim Mort of Chapter 5.
Billy Mort of Chapter 5.
Once again, Chapter 5.
Finishing the night was Second Offense. This was the first chance I had to see these guys and gal since the release of their excellent new CD Seven. Frontman Myke Long, guitarist Bryan Faychak, bassist Jes Mattern and drummer Wally Fiedor mixed assaults from the album with newer metalcore compositions. From the album, about the Seven Deadly Sins, Second Offense indulged "Greed," "Envy," "Sloth," "Vanity" and "Lust." Among the newer wraths unleashed upon the Aldo's audience were "Into the Basement," "Ignorant" and the closing assault "Your Lies Cost Lives," which Myke dedicated to our troops overseas. Second Offense delivered impressive ferocity; this band has gelled into a tight and punishing unit, and Myke showed more poise and confidence up front. Their brand of metalcore agitation kept a number of Aldo's fans generating turbulence on the stagefront dance floor, with Myke coming out to join them a few times during the set.
It all added up to a successful evening, as a boxload of new toys and several hundred dollars was raised for Toys For Tots, and three of this area's heaviest-hitting bands likely won some new fans.
Jes Mattern of Second Offense.
Bryan Faychak of Second Offense.
Myke Long of Second Offense.
Bringing metalcore annihilation to Aldo's Toys for Tots benefit, Second Offense.
Again, Second Offense.
Wally Fiedor of Second Offense.
Once again, Second Offense.
Again, Wally Fiedor of Second Offense.
Jes Mattern and Myke Long of Second Offense.
One more time, Myke Long of Second Offense.
Among the audience members showing support for Toys for Tots this night were members of Not Without Resistance, who were playing an all-ager up the street at The Lion's Den earlier in the evening. Here Dave Steele and Justin Strickland got together with me for a photo.
GREEN EGGS @ PELLEGRINE’S, ALTOONA 12/10/07
This weekend, as so many of mine before, came to a close at Pellegrine's, with veteran Lancaster party juggernaut Green Eggs providing the tunes.
Although it wasn't as packed as it often gets for Green Eggs appearances, the crowd that did show up this night was an interesting one. And it was the type of crowd many bands wish for on any given night, populated by a number of off-duty exotic dancers! As Green Eggs provided the music for them to dance to, they danced...and performed (with their clothes on, for the most part). It was quite a show, enough to make the guys pay attention and the girls shake their heads in bewilderment. Perhaps inspired by the dancers' wild antics, a few other patrons put on their own individual freakshows on Pelly's dance floor. It was one of those nights...
Of course, Green Eggs reliably gave this whole dance floor circus the perfect uptempo soundtrack over the course of the two sets I witnessed, mixing up everything from Nine Inch Nails' "Closer," Rage Against the Machine's "Killing in the Name" and Buckcherry's "Crazy Bitch" to Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline," Garth Brooks' "Friends in Low Places," 80's hair band and hip-hop medleys and more. At night's end, the circus performers demanded an encore, and the band responded with Guns'N'Roses' "Paradise City."
Although Green Eggs has played to bigger crowds in this venue, they probably haven't played to a crowd as crazy as this one. It kept this Sunday night from being routine, and made for an interesting close to the weekend.
(On a bummer note, my camera batteries were dead this night, so I couldn't catch any photos of the band or decadent stripper dancefloor action. Of all nights...wouldn't you know it!? Damn!)
JP’s HAIKU
Randy J and friends
Tasty classics, feisty horns
Great musicianship!
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