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ISTANBUL: You absolutely rocked it, as you always do. The Aristocrats are grateful. ![]()
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Back to Central Europe tonight in Prague (fly and play!) - then Vienna, Budapest and Zurich.
ISTANBUL: You absolutely rocked it, as you always do. The Aristocrats are grateful. ![]()
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Back to Central Europe tonight in Prague (fly and play, gah) - then Vienna, Budapest and Zurich.
KENEALLY/BELLER/ERIC SLICK FROM 20 YEARS AGO: I have some things to say about this amazing unearthed archival Mike Keneally performance from a once-only lineup of Keneally, me, and then 19-year-old drummer Eric Slick. A Bandcamp exclusive release, link in comments. My personal notes below!![]()
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Playing with Mike Keneally is never dull, and that’s by design. He likes an element of chaos and danger, and on top of the highly unorthodox song forms and the wild improv sections, there’s also the chance that those forms might be bent and twisted at any time by Mike himself onstage (keep those eyes and ears open!). But much like the music of one of his mentors, Frank Zappa, this sonic play-doh provides musicians a rare opportunity to dig all the way inside themselves and find new parts of who they are, and what they can bring to this incredibly varied and adventurous repertoire. It took me the better part of playing with Mike for five years to really find myself in his music, and know what to bring to the stage each night we played it…![]()
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...which is why this one-off-lineup concert is just so fucking insane.![]()
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I remember being concerned that Mike’s take-no-prisoners set list was going to be too much for any drummer on a one-off gig without so much as a separate day to rehearse together. Now a 19-year-old drummer was going to do it? Really?![]()
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Yes, really. ![]()
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You can hear for yourself just how completely in his own element Eric Slick already was, at such a young age, as he blazed though some of the craziest stuff MK ever wrote - Dolphins, Breakfast, Uglytown, Nonkerchunk - one after the other, nailing it and having a blast while doing so. The rock blasters - Pride, Miracles, Snowcow - were practically turbocharged with energy. The slow R&B number “Panda” felt like some old greasy dude was playing it. He even took my slow shuffle grinder (and deceptively difficult) early composition “Supermarket People” and grooved the fuck out of it as if he’d been playing it for years. I remember being amazed and kind of giddy that not only was it working as a top tier Keneally gig, but that the material was living and breathing in a new way, as all of MK’s new constellations pushed the music on their best day. ![]()
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I thought I’d be steering our new young friend, and sometimes I was, but more often Eric was pushing *me* to match *his* energy. ![]()
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What took me years to figure out, Eric was throwing down on his first Keneally gig. Extraordinary. ![]()
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And yes, perhaps Mike and I really needed a loud electric gig after a couple of weeks of acoustic duo performances. That still doesn’t explain the pure fire Mike himself was bringing here. ![]()
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I remember it being good, but I don’t remember it being *this* good. ![]()
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I hope you enjoy it as much as I did, hearing it for the first time 20 years after it originally happened. ![]()
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-BB
ISTANBUL: The peace sign is for peace but also for two days off with no travel in this beautiful city…before we rock Istanbul on May 2 with The Aristocrats. Also walking amongst *many* people!
Teşekkürler ANKARA!: It was total mayhem at last night's sold out fly date in Ankara, Turkey with The Aristocrats. So much so that we didn't have anyone onstage to take the post-show pic! So here's a pic from high above the city. It's also the first time that Guthrie, Marco or I have ever been here, which doesn't happen every day. Thank you again Ankara for such an incredibly warm welcome. ![]()
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On to Istanbul!
