Concert Review Extravaganza!

I've been to an overwhelming amount of concerts lately, so I haven't been able to write full-quality reviews, but I promise that will resume soon with the upcoming Rufus Wainwright concert. Right now I'm going to write mini-reviews of concerts I've been to for the past 3 weeks. Lets delay no further. Here we go!

Under the cut:
Rustic Overtones at the Ayslum - 7/29

Zappa Plays Zappa at the Bank of America Pavillion - 8/4

Rotundo Sealeg, Zac Clark, and Math the Band at the Portland Friends Meeting House - 8/11 (video included)

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Rustic Overtones at the Ayslum - 7/29

I wasn't too impressed with the opening rapper, and I thought Cambiata was alright (not my kind of music), but the Rustic Overtones were stellar! I was so delighted by the show! I could tell that every band member was putting all their energy into playing the music. The crowd wasn't really rough at all, so I could focus on the band no problem.

There were two things that really stuck out during their performance. Number one: the strings! There was a violinist and a cellist as an addition to the band, and they added so much to the overall sound. The other thing that stuck out to me was the song "About A Kid". That has been my favorite Rustic Overtones song for ages, and they played it! I was so pleased to hear it live after listening to the song countless times on Long Division.

It was great to see Rustic Overtones perform after all these years. Before May, I wouldn't have expected to see them live ever again. This was a great summer treat for myself and many others. I hope all of the fans got to see one of the shows at least.

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Zappa Plays Zappa at the Bank of America Pavillion - 8/4

I've been a big fan of Frank Zappa's work for the past two years, and I have been waiting for this concert all this time. Zappa Plays Zappa passed by in Boston last year, but I missed my chance to attend. I received tickets to this show as a Graduation present, so I was absolutely thrilled.

For those who don't know, Zappa Plays Zappa is a tribute act put on by Frank's son, Dweezil Zappa. Dweezil may appear to be the main attraction with his guitar playing prowess comparable to his father's, but any Zappa fan knows that the music is all about the wonderfully bizarre and questioning compositions of all the instruments and vocals. Every musician on the stage- guitarist, bassist, saxophonist, percussionist, drummer, keyboardist, vocalist- they all had their own stage presence.

My favorite musician to watch was Scheila Gonzalez on saxophone, flute, keyboards, and vocals. It was very enthralling to see a person play that many instruments so well for an entire set. She wowed me with her wailing saxophone solos and darting flute interludes.

Ray White was a special guest on this tour, and he was welcomed by the audience as an old Zappa veteran. His best performance of the show was "Carolina Hardcore Ecstasy", and it was very easily my favorite song of the show. I was glad to see them play "G-Spot Tornado", a ridiculously fast composition originally made on a Synclavier (computer programmed synthesizer). I was impressed that they managed to stay near the original tempo of the song; it would've been almost impossible to get anywhere closer.

One of the coolest parts of the concerts was that Frank Zappa made an appearance during some of the songs. Yes, he is no longer with us, but the producers managed to perfectly sync in his recorded guitar solo and vocals in with the live band, and it could all be seen on a huge screen in the backdrop. It was so surreal to see Frank up there while his son played below in the flesh. I can't imagine how emotional these shows must be for Dweezil. They must be some of the best experiences he has ever had. This was definitely one of the best musical experiences I've ever had. Definitely up there with The Polyphonic Spree and a few others.

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Rotundo Sealeg, Zac Clark, and Math the Band at the Portland Friends Meeting House - 8/11

Just before I thought I was ending my month-long-plus marathon of weekend concerts, I was absolutely wrong. It turned out that my favorite absurdist pop artist, Math the Band, was scheduled for a show up in Portland, so by obligation to the music gods, I had to go.

The Appreciation Post was headlining the show, but unfortunately I had to leave before they went on stage. However, I was able to see the three other bands.

Rotundo Sealeg was up first, and it's a one-man band from Belfast, Maine. For anyone familiar with Atom and His Package, you would love Rotundo. Rotundo Sealeg was full of geeky goodness with songs about the dislike for Harry Potter spoiler warnings, hover boards from Back to the Future: Part 2, and his favorite town that he hopes doesn't burn down. He was amusing to watch, and I only hope that he boosts his stage confidence, because if he had a little more, it would make all the difference.

Zac Clark, a Burlington-based rock pianist, came on next, and he had a great stage presence. His music was well composed with dubbed clap beats, but I really liked how he communicated with the audience throughout the entire set. He was a really funny guy, and I hope to see him perform again. There must be some strong connection between rock pianists and the ability to engage an audience. Zac Clark, Ben Folds, Will Gattis... They all seem to do that so well.

Math the Band was on next, and the band was comprised of frontman Kevin Steinhausser and his girlfriend Justine Mainville, lead singer of The Reaganauts. Kevin sang along to the music he played on his Mac while Justine did background vocals and a bunch of other crazy stuff.

This was the most fun and ridiculous show I have ever taken part of. Right from the beginning of the first song, Kevin began to flail his body around as he sang "Hello everybody // you know I'd like to give you all a hug // for coming out to the show // It's how we like to thank you everyone // You know I don't play any instruments // and I don't have very much talent // but I'm selling cds and tshirts over there at the merch table // so buy my stuff!" And it was at this point that he did his little appreciation dance.

Throughout the entire show, Kevin and Justine flew around the room singing and dancing. My brother and I eventually got the courage to dance with them, and it became a lot more fun. During one song, everyone at the show engaged in a shoe-slamming party that Kevin initiated by throwing his own shoes on the floor. This was an absolutely hilarious and unique moment of the show. I don't know if he has ever had a shoe-slamming party at a show before. It was just really freaking random and funny.

I can't say enough good for Math the Band. If you want to attend a music show that involves 100% audience participation, go see Math the Band. He plays in people's basement sometimes... He is much more than music, though some music traditionalists would see he is much less than music. Math the Band very easily falls under performance art, and for anyone who is open to something fresh, entertaining, and ridiculous, you definitely need to check them out.

Here's a video of Math the Band performing (minus Justine):