by happycat! >^.^<m~ | Jun 6, 2012 | Mickey Hart
by Andy Harrison
Photos by Tim Demoucelle
Sometimes you have those days wheen everything just simply works out. You know those days I’m talking about, the ones when there’s this perfect balance between what you anticipate will happen and the hidden surprises yet to come. Think about it.
Well the day of the Golden Gate Bridge’s 75th Birthday was one of those days.
The Bay Area turned out in droves…families with their kites and their dogs, fitness enthusiasts in spandex, pretty young things in yoga pants lining up at the food trucks, and sailboats dotting the Bay waters like a watercolor in motion. It was perfect weather no matter the warnings of the local news channels. Sun, friends, excitement, and room to celebrate. We waded into the crowd vibrating with an appetite to share smiles. As the sun dropped from the sky and energy arose in the crowd antsy with want for fireworks to astound us and music to move us.
We watched, we listened, we laughed, and we waited for events to unfold and delight us. Those of us who follow these things knew that The Mickey Hart Band was going to be the finale after ‘the finale’.
Pomp and circumstance rolled to and fro, then it was time! BOOM! SPARKLE! FLASH! Okay…now! We ARE ready!
Mickey was going to play the Bridge came the whispered secrets. Oh my. Oh my goodness!
Families packed up volleyball nets, frisbees, and pups and ruched into traffic going nowhere.
We got right up into the music loving crowd and saw the replica of the Golden Gate Bridge at the front of the stage. The band and Mickey emerged to the delight of the Faithful, the Grateful, and the willing. We roared politely!
The night went by from the first note to the last with perfect incantation and dance. Mickey had us! He really HAD us! We were amazed and entertained.
Mickey’s playing of “Bridgette” was nothing less than performance art. It was interpretive art at its finest. I could not look away as our favorite Rhythm Devil pushed, and prodded, pulled, and tweeked our favorite local landmark into exquisite tones and vibration.
It was dance, it was sound, it was air and water in sonic vibration. It was our shaman’s song. I closed my eyes and moved feeling the soundwaves move through me when I wasn’t staring at the ballet of Mickey’s performance.
It was everything they had promised, and MORE!
I cannot leave out the songs that this band gave us after the Bridge music. One of the most fun and talented ensembles this year, I couldn’t help loving them. Mickey and Ian “Inkx” Herman on rhythm stole my heart being a lover of drums. Crystal Hall’s vocals left me breathless one moment and singing along the very next. Gawain Matthews night of lead guitar lifted my spirit into the sky as much or more than any shimmering fountain of the fireworks.
Dave Schools on bass guitar is as important as my heart beating in my chest. Lively, funky, thudding and reeling; happy one moment and pushing my boundries the next I could not stand still with that mind-filling bassline.
I loved every moment of this music and this band. I thank Mickey and his band for the most beautiful ending to a day filled with fun and laughter.
“The Brokedown Palace” closer was a slow tribute to the Bridge, the City, the community, and the music lovers swaying to the slow emotion embodied in our collective soul.
Thank you, again, thank you.
~ Andy Harrison
by happycat! >^.^<m~ | May 24, 2012 | Mickey Hart
Clearly, Mickey Hart is taking music making in cosmic directions.
It’s another perfect segue for the legendary drummer of the Grateful Dead.
With his knack for innovation, he’s leaping light years here, from using his son’s in utero heart beat for his album Music to be Born By to this: harnessing the sounds of the universe through the conversion of radio waves, light rays. and electromagnetic vibrations into music. Truly, this is “Music of the Spheres
Recently, he brought his band to La Zona Rosa, a club in downtown Austin, the heart of Austin’s famous music scene. With a talented ensemble, he wove songs from his new album Mysterium Tremendum around Grateful Dead favorites.
They opened with a cover of Buddy Holly’s “Not Fade Away.” This was tantamount to really turning things on their head, as the song had always been a popular show closer for the Dead. Other popular Grateful Dead originals included “Bertha,” “West L.A. Fadeway,” and the Hart-Robert Hunter penned “Fire on the Mountain.”
The songs from Mysterium Tremendum transported us to realms we’ve never before been. As a veteran of more than a hundred grateful Dead shows, I can honestly say this brought it all back home. Considering his source for Music to be Born By, Hart takes a leap from the micro to macro with “Heartbeat Of The Sun.” Other songs from the album included “Time Never Ends,” “Slow Joe Rain,” and “Starlight Starbright.” No doubt Hart intends to hang the sun, the moon, and stars and he delivers.
With lyrics from Robert Hunter, Jerry Garcia’s long time writing partner and verily, the VOICE of the Grateful Dead, the music manages to integrate the legacy of the Grateful Dead with new sonic forms and innovative explorations in cosmic creativity never before heard.
The Mickey Hart Band features Crystal Monee Hall on vocals, Nigerian percussionist Sikiru Adepoju, Dave Schools, the bassist from Widespread Panic, Ian “Inkx” Herman on drums, Tim Hockenberry on keyboards, and Gawain Mathews on guitar. And of course, you’ve Mickey Hart at the helm of this sonic starship. Make it so, Mickey!
If you’re a Deadhead or even if you’re not, you won’t know what you’re missing until you surfed the cosmic sound waves with the Mickey Hart Band.
MICKEY HART BAND
La Zona Rosa
Austin, Texas
Thursday – April 26, 2012
Download an AUD of the show here: http://bt.etree.org/details.php?id=554645
1st set
Mickey’s intro….
Not Fade Away
Who Stole The Show
Starlight Starbright
West LA Fadeaway
Time Never Ends
Slow Joe Rain
Fire On The Mountain
2nd set
Heartbeat Of The Sun
Supersonic Vision
Drums/Bass/Space
This One Hour
The Other One
Cut The Deck
Bertha
Encore: Iko Iko
Musicians:
Mickey Hart – Drums, Percussion, Vocals on Iko Iko
Dave Schools – Bass, Background Vocals
Sikiru Adepoju – Talking Drum
Crystal Monee Hall – Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Percussion
Tim Hockenberry – Vocals, Keyboards, Trombone, Percussion
Ian “Inx” Herman – Drums
Gawain Matthews – Guitar, Background Vocals
Ben Yonas – Keyboards
by happycat! >^.^<m~ | Apr 27, 2012 | Uncategorized
by happycat! >^.^<m~ | Mar 13, 2012 | Mickey Hart
Another great show from Mickey Hart and his band. After a week on tour, the band was ready to smoke! The energy was high throughout the show – this band gets better and better. Starting to really mix up the setlist, and throwing in some new things too, like the surprise Sly Stone cover “Papa Was A Rolling Stone”.
Crystal Hall is obviously having a blast, her sweet singing voice embraces the songs, and she’s rocking out on rhythm guitar too. Gawain Matthews takes his solos and realy opens it up sonically into some high places we haven’t been before. And his interactions with bass player Dave Schools are cool, they have a few laughs together while playing.
Tim Hockenberry has a deep rich voice, somewhere between Tom Waits and Peter Gabriel in timbre and expression. Switching between keyboards and trombone, he’s a showman without showing off.
Of course the band keeps on groovin’ along with deep rhythm, Ian INKX Herman at the drum kit. Mickey is the maestro, orchestrating cosmic sounds into songs; “Heartbeat” is created from the sounds of the sun, and while it is Mickey’s standard 2nd set opener, it is never the same twice, as it deeply entrances us into a deep state of awe. It was clear Mickey was having more fun than ever in Healdsburg – his energy was more relaxed than the previous week in Santa Cruz, tuned in, and engaged with the audience at this show. The tour has been going well, he knows the music is good, and he invites us all to come along and “enjoy the ride!” And you know that is what DHL is all about!
It was great to hear talking drum master Sikiru Adepoju step up to the mic on “Who Stole The Show”!
Along with all the new songs, the band still broke out some Grateful Dead tunes; Mickey told me last summer, it is part of who he is. Crysrtal sang “Brokedown Palace” in the middle of set one – nice placement, this song does not have to live as an encore always. And a fun and hot “Franklin’s Tower” closed the first set leaving us all smiling as we migrated out for setbreak.
A nice crowd of mostly locals from Healdsburg, Santa Rosa, and Sonoma county in general. Each town has such a different vibe, and this wasdefinately the wine country crowd, relaxed and chatty, socializing freely durring the break (where as Santa Cruz was more “hippie”, with large portions of the audience doing stretches and yoga between sets, nothing worng with it, but very differnet energy!) This was the closest to Mickey’s hometown show, and it had a very freindly feel to it. Most of the band members had friends and family there, and it felt open to hang out and talk.
Set two included a powerful version of “The Other One” that segued into the new song “Cut The Deck”, which really impressed my friend who had come with me – she is not a Deadhead, by the way. She turned to me and said “I really like this song!” It could actually be a break out, I could see this getting airplay on non-deadhead radio. If you don’t tell people it’s by someone in the Grateful Dead, you might be able to slip it by them!
I spoke with Tim Hockenberry and keyboardist/producer Ben Yonas after the show, and they were both very excited about the new CD. They’re proud of their work, and can’t wait for you to hear it. The CD drops on April 10th, Mysterium Tremendium on Shout! Factory records. DHL will be reviewing it for you shortly. The live versions are great – can’t wait to hear what the studio version sounds like.
Enjoy the great pictures here from my old friend Cheryl Alterman, of Cheryl Alterman Photography. While not a Deadhead, Cheryl’s been going to concerts with me since we were teenagers, and it was fun for me to turn her on to the Mickey Hart Band. I think she had fun… it’s infectous! Mickey and his band have a good thing going here, and the newness of it is exciting. It is so differnet than anythng else in the Dead ‘lands! It’s fresh and fun, danceable, and meaningful.
Keep on rocking Mickey and band, you know our love will not fade away!
by happycat! >^.^<m~ | Mar 2, 2012 | Mickey Hart
GRATE STUFF! Mickey’s new band is fresh from the studio, their album is coming on April 10th. This was the first show of their tour, and they felt a little tentative… for about 45 seconds! Then they kicked it in, opening with a rousing “Not Fade Away”. Then most of the 1st set was filled with their new material, though since they have been playing some of these songs now since August 211, the grooves are deeper and richer than before. The set closed with a “Fire On The Mountain” with some very fresh phrasing from Tim Hockenberry. The band was on fire, and not even a whole pail of water could have cooled them down.
The second set opened with some of Mickey’s outer space sonifications, bringing “the sound of the Sun” to our ears and bodies… the vibes of “Heartbeat” washed over us and into us, and the 2nd set took us all on a deeper voyage. Again, mostly new grooves, with a very different “The Other One” in the middle, with Dave Schools dropping the bombs on us! The set wrapped up with “Going Down The Road Feeling Bad” > a sweet sing along “And We Bid You Goodnight”. Gawain Matthews gave us some thrilling lead guitar all night, and his riffs on this last number were gorgeous.
Two debuts (for this band) for the encore, “Franklin’s Tower”, and a touching “Stella Blue” sung by Crystal Hall to close the show.
What I love with this band is that they are doing something different. Mostly new songs, mostly with Robert hunter lyrics. Enough Dead tunes to keep it friendly, but even those have a whole new way of sounding. The Mickey Hart Band is a very fresh and innovative group, shedding some new light, dusting off the rust, and making it shine!
Mickey Hart Band
Mickey Hart, Dave Schools, Gawain Matthews, Tim Hockenberry, Crystal Monee Hall, Ben Yonas, Sikiru Adepoju, Ian “INKX” Herman
Rio Theatre
Santa Cruz, California
March 1, 2012
Opening: Lenka Dusilova
Mickey Hart Band – 1st set:
Not Fade Away
Time Never Ends
Slo Jo Rain
Djinn Djinn >
Let There Be Light >
Fire On The Mountain
2nd set:
Heartbeat >
Supersonic >
I Can Tell You More >
The Other One >
Drumz >
The Other One >
Cut The Deck >Going Down The Road Feeling Bad >
And We Bid You Good Night
Encore:
Franklin’s Tower >
Stella Blue
