Album Review: David Michael Miller – Same Soil

David Michael Miller – Same Soil |Album Review

Food for the Soul Records

www.davemillermusic.com

11 tracks / 54:56

Hi!

I do not get a lot of new Blues music out of Buffalo, New York, but apparently there is some pretty awesome stuff going on there judging by the CD from David Michael Miller, Same Soil. Miller grew up just south of there the Buffalo, where he started his musical endeavors by playing at church, while still getting a wonderful education into the ways of blues, R&B, and soul. After years of playing gospel music, he formed a few bands to explore the world of blues and soul music: Beautiful Bones and Dive House Union.

A few years ago he started recording solo projects, and Same Soil is his sophomore disc. David crammed the studio full of vintage equipment, and put his voice and guitar to work. He was joined by plenty of awesome sidemen, but his core band included keyboardist Jim Ehinger (Bonnie Raitt and Albert Collins), drummer Carlton Campbell (The Campbell Brothers), and saxman Jason Moynihan (Buddy Guy). Martin penned all eleven tracks for the disc, and it clocks in at a respectable 55 minutes – that is a lot of music for the money!

The first track in the set is “All the Blues to You,” which is an encouragement to enjoy blues in all of its forms. This is a great intro for the album, as David walks the walk: there are no two songs that sound the same, and he leads the listeners on a journey through many of the sub-genres of the blues. His voice is marvelous with clear and consistent tone, great intonation and outstanding diction. You will not need a lyrics sheet for this one!

Miller is also a very talented guitarist, and he lays down respectable acoustic and electric riffs throughout. His choice of vintage instruments was worth the effort as his tone is amazing. Likewise, Moynihan does a marvelous job of arranging the horns, Campbell has a heavy beat, and Ehinger is the master of the keys.

There is a little bit of most everything related to blues going on here: roots, rhythm and blues, soul, rock, blues rock and southern rock. There is even a killer live track, “Got Them Blues,” which was recorded at Buffalo’s bastion of the blues: The Market Bar. One of the standout tracks is “Doing Me In, Doing Me Wrong,” a killer stop time blues song with only riffs to die for.

This collection of diverse music all fits together into a cool package and none of the songs stand out or do not fit in. David Michael Miller turned in a solid performance on Same Soil with mature songwriting, good musicianship, and excellent production values. It is totally worth your time, so check it out if you get a chance!

Mahalo!

Review: NY Gilbert and Sullivan Players’ H.M.S. Pinafore at the Carpenter Center in Long Beach, CA

Greetings!

When thinking about musical theatre, it is a shame that modern audiences are not more familiar with the works of Gilbert and Sullivan. Fortunately, the New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players keep the legacy alive, as they take their shows to the stage in the Big Apple, as well as around the US. I recently had the pleasure of seeing their production of H.M.S. Pinafore at the Carpenter Center in Long Beach, California.

This location was a great choice as the Richard and Karen Carpenter Performing Arts Center at Cal State Long Beach is a lovely venue with plenty of conveniently located parking. Each of the 1000 seats has a good view of the stage (without being too far away) and the acoustics are very good.

The New York Gilbert & Sullivan Players have been around since 1974 (or 1975, depending where you look), when the group was founded by a group of alumni from the Barnard College Gilbert & Sullivan Society at Columbia University. One of these folks was their biggest proponent, Albert Bergeret, Founder and Artistic Director/General Manager. Besides their full productions, they also conduct many outreach performances to student in NYC schools.

H.M.S. Pinafore was Gilbert & Sullivan’s first international hit, and it ran for around 600 performances in its first London run in 1878. It was so successful that this talented duo was ripped off by numerous copies of the show that sprang up in the Empire and in the United States. With their clever lyrics and biting satire, the show is the story of two young lovers, Ralph Rackstraw and the captain’s daughter, Josephine, who kept apart by society until a convenient role reversal brings them together in a most improbable ending. There are a few other romantic plotlines bizarre plot turns, making it complicated enough that I am not even going to try to fit it all into a 800-word review…

The overall themes of class inequality, overbearing nationalism, and foolish are still relevant, and they are presented with Gilbert’s inimitable linguistic genius and Sullivan’s knack for writing addictive melodies.

The NYGASP brought all of this to Long Beach for one lonely matinee, which seems like a lot of work for a single show. They brought the full cast, the crew, a 25-piece unamplified orchestra, and an impressive set of sets and backdrops. They were faithful to the music of the show, and the book was modified a bit to bring some local flavor to the production, as well as to bring the orchestra and Mr. Bergeret (the musical director too, it seems) into the stage action.

Visually, Pinafore is an attractive show. There is only one set, but it is a fairly detailed replica of a ship’s deck, complete with rigging and huge masts, so it must be a bear to drag around and set up. The lighting was classy and brought the scenes to life, courtesy of designs by Benjamin Weill. For the most part, the cast was not amplified, but there must have been some sort of microphones set up near the back of the stage, as the volume of the vocals varied quite a bit as the cast moved back and forth. They might want to work on this a bit.

The costumes were also well done, without going over the top. The sailors’ (tars, as the would say) and officer’s uniforms seemed period correct, as far as I would know; the ladies’ gowns were also very pretty, with more than enough bustles to go around.

The cast embraced the spirit of Gilbert & Sullivan perfectly. They are all capable singers and dancers, but that is not really what this show is about – the acting comes first. They have great comedic timing, and are able to spit out the uber-complicated lyrics with no missed cues. The leads all gave satadnout performances, and the players included David Auxier as Captain Corcoran, Kate Bass as Josephine, Daniel Greenwood and Ralph Rackstraw, James mills as Sir Joseph Porter, and Angela Christine Smith as Little Buttercup. All of them are very experienced with the Players, and some have actually appears in all 13 G&S operas. Impressive!

If there was anything that brought me down about the NY Gilbert & Sullivan Players’ production of H.M.S. Pinafore, it was that the auditorium was only 2/3 full, and there were not many young folks in the crowd. Where are the new fans going to come from? If you have not seen one of these shows before, take the time to check one out the next time one comes up in your area – it will definitely be worth your time!

Mahalo!

Peaches and Crime – Do Bad Things |Album Review

Peaches and Crime – Do Bad Things

Self Release

www.peachesandcrime.com

14 tracks / 49:25

I get over a hundred new albums a year to listen to and review, and have to say that in my whole life I have never received anything in the mail like Peaches and Crime’s third CD, Do Bad Things. This project was put together around a really fun concept, and I really appreciated what they created for the listening public.

Do Bad Things is a modern day bawdy vaudeville cabaret show that has a little bit of everything: singing, maybe some dancing (it is a CD, you know), acting, comedy, drama, and even a little ventriloquism. The honky-tonk feel of this disc includes elements of old-time jazz and blues music with a few surprises thrown in for good measure. This music, along with the very clever lyrics, ties the fourteen different vignettes together to make an attractively cohesive whole.

Peaches and Crime is based out of Binghampton, New York (somewhere between Scranton and Syracuse), and they have been evolving and honing their show since their debut CD in 2010. The main crew includes the master of ceremony and lyricist, Daniel Schwartz (his stage name is Daniel Black), vocalist Angela Schwartz (Angie Diamond), vocalist Julia Adams (Ms. Abigail Pins), vocalist/clarinetist Cat Macdonald (Young Catherine), bassist ”Honest” Stephen Longfield, pianist Mike Sclafani (Mikey the Fist), and Ross Bennett behind the skins.

I do not want ruin any of the surprises from the show, but let’s just say that all of the major human conditions are to be found here: love, hate, death, infidelity, culture and class. They are presented via song and dramatic skits, and yes -- one case of the aforementioned ventriloquism. The performers are obviously having a good time, and the ladies pull out some wonderful 3-part vocal harmonies. As a whole it is pure entertainment, which is what going to the show should be all about!

Peaches and Crime are working on a new burlesque show, and are scheduled to start recording a new album any day now. In the meantime, check out their website at www.peachesandcrime.com for show dates, and make sure you give Do Bad Things a listen. I think you will like it!