Man I love discovering artists I've never had a chance to see perform. Derek Trucks had been on the radar for a long time, I've just never had a chance to see him play. Late yesterday afternoon I discovered the DTB would be in town that night, and I didn't hesitate. With my encouragement, Susan joined me last night at the Royal Oak Music Theatre.
We had a nice dinner at one of our favorite Royal Oak spots and made it into the theatre about half way through the opening act. I can't remember her name, but her Soul Blues performance did not leave much of an impression, and the sound seemed entirely off, just a jumbled mess of guitar, percussion and voice, none of which stood out. The crowd didn't seem too dialed into it either.
I had really high hopes for Derek Trucks and he did not disappoint. Derek has a very clean and deliberate style of play that reminded me of Eric Clapton; however he played with a slide bar the entire night, which gave his entire performance a characteristic 'slidey-oscilating-vibrato' sound. While the night was primarily rooted in a blues sound, he wandered through several unique soundscapes including a jazz fusion funk jam out that completely lost Susan for fifteen minutes in the middle of the show.
The band included a rich set of characters to include a flamboyant Detroit born drummer, a Rastafarian bongo / rhythm percussionist, a keyboard / flutist and a short greasy bass player that was playing the largest bass guitar I've ever seen. The band is joined by vocalist Mike Mattison, who had a really interesting voice, but lacked a certain energy or stage presence. Together, they put out a unique sound, with a hard to define, almost improvisional / world music vibe. Susan and I agreed the band had a really solid sound, but they were all foreshadowed (by volume and spotlight) by the lead guitar, and they were never really granted their rightful freedom to explore their musical space. The sound seemed off to both of us, where the lead guitar just stepped all over the rest of the band, and in particular the vocals, which we could barely hear. I wasn't sure if this was by design or just a bad night for the sound man.
It was a great set backdrop with excellent lighting and effects. I found myself wishing that I should have brought a camera.
Derek played an efficient and business like two hour set, with several guitar solo highlights, lights dimmed, all spotlights trained stage center, smoke machine turned on high, building momentum and energy and sound into a blues guitar frenzy. Susan mentioned that she kept waiting for the performance to end because on several occasions it sounded like he was building to a show finishing crescendo. I could see it was getting a bit exhausting for her, so we finally retreated from the front row to a table in the back for a diet Coke and a chair in time for his encore of two or three songs.
If I had to characterize the night, I would say it was really good, but not great. There was nothing in Derek's sound that I had not heard before, and it seemed to lack that certain something you can't explain that just sends the audience over the top. Susan and I also agreed that a lot of the music sounded alike, and seemed to go on longer than it really needed to. What Derek achieves in crazy guitar talent, he seems to lack in rock star charisma, and to me, it showed through in his performance. It just seemed to lack a certain quality that makes you drop your jaw and stand in awe as you take in the sound. I found myself watching the performance more objectively than emotionally and saying, wow, this guy can really play the guitar, but I was never really pulled too deeply into the musical experience. There seemed to be a lack of soul if you will.
All of this may be a bit nitpicky however, as it was a very entertaining performance, and he definitely had a few moments of WOW, just not enough for me to call the night a totally over the top guitar jam performance.
I would definitely see him the next time I have a chance, I may just lower my expectation a bit, and try to dig a little deeper into appreciating the music, rather than just standing and waiting to be blown away.
We had a nice dinner at one of our favorite Royal Oak spots and made it into the theatre about half way through the opening act. I can't remember her name, but her Soul Blues performance did not leave much of an impression, and the sound seemed entirely off, just a jumbled mess of guitar, percussion and voice, none of which stood out. The crowd didn't seem too dialed into it either.
I had really high hopes for Derek Trucks and he did not disappoint. Derek has a very clean and deliberate style of play that reminded me of Eric Clapton; however he played with a slide bar the entire night, which gave his entire performance a characteristic 'slidey-oscilating-vibrato' sound. While the night was primarily rooted in a blues sound, he wandered through several unique soundscapes including a jazz fusion funk jam out that completely lost Susan for fifteen minutes in the middle of the show.
The band included a rich set of characters to include a flamboyant Detroit born drummer, a Rastafarian bongo / rhythm percussionist, a keyboard / flutist and a short greasy bass player that was playing the largest bass guitar I've ever seen. The band is joined by vocalist Mike Mattison, who had a really interesting voice, but lacked a certain energy or stage presence. Together, they put out a unique sound, with a hard to define, almost improvisional / world music vibe. Susan and I agreed the band had a really solid sound, but they were all foreshadowed (by volume and spotlight) by the lead guitar, and they were never really granted their rightful freedom to explore their musical space. The sound seemed off to both of us, where the lead guitar just stepped all over the rest of the band, and in particular the vocals, which we could barely hear. I wasn't sure if this was by design or just a bad night for the sound man.
It was a great set backdrop with excellent lighting and effects. I found myself wishing that I should have brought a camera.
Derek played an efficient and business like two hour set, with several guitar solo highlights, lights dimmed, all spotlights trained stage center, smoke machine turned on high, building momentum and energy and sound into a blues guitar frenzy. Susan mentioned that she kept waiting for the performance to end because on several occasions it sounded like he was building to a show finishing crescendo. I could see it was getting a bit exhausting for her, so we finally retreated from the front row to a table in the back for a diet Coke and a chair in time for his encore of two or three songs.
If I had to characterize the night, I would say it was really good, but not great. There was nothing in Derek's sound that I had not heard before, and it seemed to lack that certain something you can't explain that just sends the audience over the top. Susan and I also agreed that a lot of the music sounded alike, and seemed to go on longer than it really needed to. What Derek achieves in crazy guitar talent, he seems to lack in rock star charisma, and to me, it showed through in his performance. It just seemed to lack a certain quality that makes you drop your jaw and stand in awe as you take in the sound. I found myself watching the performance more objectively than emotionally and saying, wow, this guy can really play the guitar, but I was never really pulled too deeply into the musical experience. There seemed to be a lack of soul if you will.
All of this may be a bit nitpicky however, as it was a very entertaining performance, and he definitely had a few moments of WOW, just not enough for me to call the night a totally over the top guitar jam performance.
I would definitely see him the next time I have a chance, I may just lower my expectation a bit, and try to dig a little deeper into appreciating the music, rather than just standing and waiting to be blown away.
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