Teaching the blues...school is in!

Threadgills South ( http://www.threadgills.com/history.cfm ) is a freakin awesome location. On the corner there by down town, Congress/Barton Springs/Riverside, without being DOWN TOWN, this is as good as you wanna get. Next door to the historic and non existent Armadillo World Headquarters (and still retaining some of that charm) you can walk around the restaurant and check out many of the items saved before the tear down. Now this particular write up will focus on the Bier Garten outside and right on the street. With the fencing going almost all the way around the outdoor area, the street noise is almost all but non existent. When the band starts playing...yup! you are transported to that other world with the sounds and performance that take you away.

Mingo Fishtrap ( http://www.mingofishtrap.com/ ) was the soul /sole performance this evening. With a long set and a short break they pretty much stomped on the Texas Thang with that Southern Sound and that Chicago brass all at the same time. Moving, uplifting, soul quenching, bluesy, and rocking all at the same time.

Here are the words of a 15 year old fan...

"They were 'flippin' amazing. They definitely had everyone moving in their seats and had the crowd dancing [to the beats]. There were old faces and new [young] faces [enjoying the music]. The young college kid and the older lady [really dancing up a storm down front]" after the front man demanded for some feet in the dirt or he would play the same lick ALL NIGHT LONG! Hell yeah!

"Playing songs I had never heard of and teaching me a thing or two [about the blues classics]." They did play a huge variety of songs. Not just playing a cover here or there, but explaining the song and telling a story about the cover along the way. "They definitely warmed up the slight chill in the night air with the relaxing vibe that filled the Threadgills area. Having [my] little brother along for the ride, experiencing the music of Mingo Fishtrap, like never before." - Angelina Skye

Don't think I can or will add much more to that. If that doesn't make you wanna go see them or buy a CD then I guess you are dead and didn't read this to begin with!

Laters

A Gem from the heavens?

One2One ( http://one2onebar.com/ ) OH Shit! and OH my god!...I got to see the HiDefs tonite (and at One2One none the less). I have seen Mingo Fishtrap ( http://www.mingofishtrap.com/ ) at a SXSW event AND Angelina got to do a meet and greet (check out one of the waayyyy older blogs and you will see the pics and write up).

So the Hi-Defs ( http://www.facebook.com/TheHiDefs?v=info#!/TheHiDefs ) are also affectionately known as little Mingo and I was finally able to see them all by a simple stroll down the street on this particular night. With a great Mississippi Delta blues sound and a little Louisiana soul these are the things that will tickle your soul. As a big man once said to me "he's got a voice so sweet it would make angels cry and make you wanna smack yo momma." So take this as a fact that you will really have to go see them to experience the experience!

When you have a force to be reckoned with and an unstoppable object the heavens will weep with joy! So there are the HiDefs on stage making us smile and feel religion all at once, then upon the stage appears...OVERLORD!

So still, the One2One remains a gem in the Austin nightlife music scene, tucked away on the corner of 5th and Brazos. Thanks for a great night Gregg!

Laters

Scoot Inn to the night

Alrighty then, I am now slightly refreshed from writing til 2:30 in the morning (thanks Shea for keeping me awake to finish the first half).
So after seeing Rodney Branigan, Midnight Bombers, and Mingo Fishtrap we were now in for the CRAZIEST performance of the night.Peelander Z ( http://www.myspace.com/peelanderz ) WTF!!!! Uhm, I think this is performance art at it's highest level. These guys did not show up from Planet Peelander (yeah check their myspace page) just to play music, they came to TAKE OVER THE WORLD! (or just your mind). This is undoubtedly the most insane, frantic, spastic band I have EVER seen. It was all fun, complete audience participation is required or just go home. They are billed as Punk and for the most part I could hear it. I have nothing bad to say about this because it was so different and as part of the collective whole for the day it was awesome. Just to give you a little insight on how surprising they are, a couple of the Aimless Gun boys and their manager showed up during the performance, none of us could stop laughing at the same time we were asking ourselves "I don't know what to think", "are they for real", "I think I like the music". So please take my word on this one, check them out next year when they make a return to SXSW (this is their third trip here).This is what I came for (no offense to any of the other amazing performances that Angel and I experienced) to see The Dirty Wormz (http://www.dirtywormz.com/ and www.myspace.com/dirtywormz ). I have listened to their music for several years now, loved "Top of the food chain" (props to Overlord), and heard about the intensity of their shows. Yes it was ALL good! I am happy to be one of the lucky people that knows Overlord, and while sitting with him in the back of The Scoot Inn The Wormz started showing up and gravitating towards him (lucky me). Met the guys in the band, joked around, and had a laugh at the damage that Father Time has done to Overlords memory,

Wormz - " Whatcha doin on your phone "
Ovey - "Lookin up lyrics!"
everyone - "WHAT!"
Ovey - "Say I haven't performed Top of the food chain in forever, I just wanna make sure I get it right"
Wormz - "Oh, don't worry about that we'll help ya through"



So the Wormz hit the stage, gave an very nice Sunday morning sermon (for the heathens that didn't attend before going downtown to see the show) and then completely LIT IT UP. Just like the band before them, they were about the performance, the show, and the music! Their costumes were potent enough to scare the crap out of Angel and even some other chick in the audience who would shriek every time her boyfriend pushed her towards the stage. AAHHH and then that moment came when they fired up 'Top o the food chain', Overlord was called up and sure as shit he owned the mic with no doubt and no hesitation. Like there was even a doubt! Much audience participation, the hard hitting riffs, and punchy vocals, all the shit I heard about and came to see. I am excited to be able to see them perform again soon (03/27/2010 -Club Encore), be there or "Rubik's cube".










...and finally the man, the myth, the legend...MC Overlord ( http://www.overlordmusic.com/ ) himself. I wondered, after seeing the performance and energy of the Wormz, how could he follow that. What a STUPID ass thought, he mixed it up a bit, jumped into it and proved why HE IS a 13x Live Hip-Hop Artist of the year in Austin!!!! It was a short set, but he stayed on fire the whole time (even got Michael Dillard onstage to through  down with some lines (still think Mike has a fucking great and unique voice). The really nice thing is that the boys from Aimless Gun were in the house and, FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, got to see MC Overlord perform. I will tell ya, his energy is amazing, the music is supreme and to see those guys faces after his performance after the show, really said it all. This guy is an Austin icon and has inspired so many people, and for a couple of guys that he's repping and booking, you know it must've been awe inspiring to realize he doesn't talk shit, he is the shit!

Later

How many people did you meet?

First and foremost I would like to say how proud I am of Austin music and the support that all of the musicians give each other. It was amazing to see all of this talent together in one spot supporting the music. Oh and what music it was! Some of the most diverse shit I have heard in one spot in a LONG time.

So thanks to The Fremen, Aimless Gun, and Michael Dillard for being there, hanging out, cheering the acts on, laughing, carrying on, and having a generally bad ass time on a cold ass day.
And all of you WILL know my daughter by the end of this particular blog (and I suppose it will be a two part er as there is a lot of info to post), because there will be ALOT of pictures of the bands in this particular blog and she seems to be in them all.

First up, which seemed awfully damned early on this very cold Sunday was Rodney Branigan ( http://www.myspace.com/rodneybranigan ). The little blurb on his MySpace says "The Impossibly Talented", I don't really know about that, it would seem to be a modest understatement after watching him perform. Now please remember that this was about 3 pm in the afternoon on a Sunday, and Saturday has been a loooong day and night. So, for those few brave, stoic souls that made it, it was definitely worth it. Rodney did amazing shit with not one guitar, but two. Now Angel told me she saw his video where he played two guitars AT ONE TIME, I just kind of smiled and said "wow that sounds cool", what a douche I am, He did and boy DID HE! Congratulations to those who were in attendance at that point in time. Please make a mental note and file that away as a point in time where you witnessed something impossible, stunning, and great, because it was a time to remember. His from Texas (of course..DUH!), but currently resides in London (WTF, dude, really).
Next was an unexpected treat, Midnight Bombers ( http://www.myspace.com/midnightbombers ) from San Francisco, Ca. This was some crazzyass shit to have thrown in your face this early, ESPECIALLY on a Sunday. But damned if it was totally great. Austin has a decent hardcore/punk scene and I would sooo like for these guys to make a return trip to Austin for the 'Chaos in Tejas' punk fest in May. I kinda felt for them as it appeared the only two people really having fun and yelling back at them during their performance, were Angel and myself. I even tried to start moshing but just succeeded in pissing off Angel, HA! None the less they kept it true to the genre, "12 songs in 18 minutes" the lead singer informed those in attendance. Hell yeah! that's what I'm talking about. You late suckers who saw Peelander Z and The Wormz, and enjoyed that, missed out on the fun.Mingo Fishtrap ( http://www.myspace.com/mingofishtrap ) climbed the stage at the back of The Scoot Inn for the next performance of the day (and by the way, I must say this little place is starting to grow on me). AHHHHHHH what a great sound ANY time of day. Always, ALWAYS have enjoyed the big sound of the Memphis/Chicago blues (with a touch of that Mississippi Delta Blues thrown in to make you feel all warm inside). Apparently the audience would agree with me as it was nice to see the crowd finally approaching the stage and starting to groove it up, look alive, and move a little. Angel stayed down in front for their whole performance and this made me feel good, as I felt the diversity of their music opening her young mind (thanks guys from Mingo Fishtrap and education in music I know she will NEVER forget)! Even Overlord pronounced "His voice is so sweet it makes me wanna cry just listening!" DAMN! I just sat back and enjoyed the whole set top to bottom.
OK, It's 2:30 am, I am going to bed, wait for the rest of my shit tomorrow. EHH who the hell am I kidding, not a GD person out there eagerly waiting for me to post a 2:30 in the fucking morning, HA! Anyway, read, enjoy, pass it on. Be back in a bit for the the last half.

Later