TUESDAY JULY 8, 2008 "ED'S SHINDIG"
Ed’s Shindig:
I was taking it easy Saturday. When it’s a Brand New Sin show I like to keep my wits about me because I’m a neurotic musician and I really care about my performance. This is especially true when it happens to be an exciting event like this was. Although we played an impromptu surprise gig during our open mic last Thursday, this was the real debut; a show; outside, under a tent in the middle of nowhere NY.
We showed up to see the infamous half-school bus that belongs to Joe Sweet and parked right behind it. This was going to be fun. We got out and staked our claim on the unmarked territory and set up our tent. My son was allured to the stage area and proceeded to clap his hands and dance to the jam-band that was playing. His name is Collin and he turned two in March. Hey, this is not YOUR son. If I want to subject him to a Brand New Sin showcase at an all-ages party while it’s sunny and beautiful I have the right. Don’t worry, my wife and mother were there too and he wasn’t too much of a pain in the ass. If it makes you feel better, Joe brought his infant son which is way more irresponsible. Nah!
We had a good day. Of course I had to follow the kid around while he crashed everybody’s party flirting with the girls and getting tons of handouts. Collin was scoring big time. He walked out of one campsite with a bowl of chips, a bottled-water and a lollipop. Nice work. Sooner or later I tapped my tag-team partner (the better half) and relaxed at the campsite while she too had the pleasure of being guided around the land to meet everyone. I mean everyone.
The second band played for a couple hours. These were some very skilled musicians. They played really low volume which is something that I haven’t been accustomed to since college and my jazz/fusion days. The drummer was very articulate and played an impressive solo that reminded me of Jon Fishman (Phish) mixed in with Stanton Moore (Galactic / C.O.C.).
Fireworks – very impressive for a party, hell it was impressive for a typical 2 hour wait to get in, then paying for parking and a 4 hour wait in traffic to go home at the usual ‘annual fireworks displays’ around central New York. Collin was about done for the day so we put him to bed.
Choke Slam hit the stage in their diapers. No joke. Well, it was all a joke. These guys take comedy very seriously. It was getting really cold out too- 40 degrees maybe. They stayed the long haul and jammed almost naked for an hour and a half. Much respect for that accomplishment. Hopefully they were ready to drink so at least they could trick their minds into thinking it was warm out. Man, I hope they didn’t wake up sick.
Chucky Luv – stage manager extraordinaire. He couldn’t really do his normal job of bitching at the opening bands to get off stage and demanding beer and towels for BNS like he has been known to do in the past. He’s not an asshole he just looks out for our best interests. This was a party with friends and we were more like guests than stars. So relax man. It’s cool. We hit the stage about an hour after we were supposed to. Much of Choke Slam’s crowd hung out by the bon-fire while we played but hey – it was freekin’ cold! The people that stuck around under the tent were rowdy! It was awesome to play a full show with Joe Sweet. That guy is something else.
I can never accurately describe what we sound like. I can only give you my experience of the moment. I was adrenalized – that helped reduce the cold-factor almost immediately. About 30 seconds into Did You I felt warmed up and relaxed. For old guys in the rock scene we still have a lot of energy and BNS shows are the best way to get it out of us. I hope that’s enough of an explanation for you to realize that even if we sucked – we mean business when we play. It’s our passion. When I was done I felt completely content with life- I know this is what I was meant to do and I’m doing it.
These people at Ed’s 4th Annual Shindig were mostly Joe’s friends and peers and they were proud of him. So was I. Hopefully we just created a new legion of Brand New Sin fans in Utica. This was a great way to lay the foundation for The Electric Company show on July 24th!
Set List (not exactly sure of the order – sorry):
Did You
Dead Man Walking
Brown Street Betty
Know Yourself
Wyoming
Black and Blue
Reaper Man
Broken Soul
Freight Train
Arrived
Motormeth
Question?
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