Party till you drop - an overdose of fun at The Evening Muse!

With a very special line-up that was heavy on regional talent the Evening Muse had the feel of a neighborhood party about to explode as the late show commenced on this Wednesday night. The audience were passionate about the musicians they had come out to see as many were intimately familiar with the music. You could feel the anticipatory buzz in the air.

Opening the late show was an extremely talented emerging band out of Washington DC named Honor By August.

Second to the stage was the Atlanta based group Sun Domingo, with labels: MBM (US) / Racket Records (UK/Europe).

Completing the night of rock 'n roll music was the Virginia Beach based band The Influence.

Read on for the rest of the nights story as well as photos of the performances..

Cheers,

Monty

December's Tosco House Party was warm and cozy

Imagine a show that would include Grown Up Avenger Stuff, The Cloer's, Chris English, Haji Basim, Kevin Marshall, Ralph Husband, and Nicole Reynolds. Well that's exactly what the folks at the Tosco House Party were treated to on a chilly, rainy, windy night at the Evening Muse.

Read on for the rest of the story and photos..

Cheers,

Monty

gogoPilot to release third studio album @ the Evening Muse - Nov 27th 2009

In keeping with friends & family tradition, gogoPilot frontman Jeff Williams has selected the Evening Muse as the venue to hold an intimate gathering & performance in celebration of the release of the bands third CD recording. The latest reflection of Jeff’s musical state of mind at this point in time will be revealed at 8PM on the 27th of Nov.

“The further it goes; the farther it is”

The songs on the CD are all originals written by Jeff Williams. There’s a mixture of older songs and newer material. When asked about any song favorites, Jeff shared an unguarded affinity to his songs akin to a mother asked which baby she loves most. “They’re all special – they are my creations”. There are 3-4 songs on the CD which Jeff considers to be "older" material which he had written some 10 years ago but had never recorded. “The passing of time has made them doable. They reflect some family tragedies and personal experiences I wasn’t ready to perform until now”. Jeff shared “That relates back to the title of the CD – the time and distance thing. Now’s the time since there’s more distance – it gets easier”.

Read on for the rest of the story and chat with Jeff concerning this new release..

Cheers,

Monty

Saturday Night Special - Sarah Borges with Eilen Jewell

It was a festive evening in NoDa this Saturday night. Breaking Laces were still in town and playing the “Cash Van” game around NoDa. April Verch was entertaining a fairly full Evening Muse venue with her Folksy Bluegrass.

The late show partiers were beginning to arrive for the Boston based rock groups Sarah Borges & the Broken Singles and Eilen Jewell performances at the Evening Muse.

Behind the Dog Bar, all it took was 90 seconds and a couple of Charlottes low-life’s with a snub-nosed 38 pistol to put a damper on what had here-to-fore been a perfect evening. Fortunately noone was hurt and the bad guys left the scene in a hurry with a few more dollars than they had arrived with and the Charlotte police on the look out for them.

Read on here for the rest of the story and photos from the show.

Cheers,

Monty

Breaking Laces w/ Jesse Dee opening

After a near on two year hiatus, Breaking Laces returned to the Evening Muse and was accompanied by boston native Jesse Dee.

Jesse brings vocal of a soulful sound via a powerful voice. His theme is not a blusy tone, but rather an upbeat positive take on a pop vibe with hints of old school rock with soul.

The feature act for the late show was none other than the Bronx, New York based band Breaking Laces. A mixture of Pop, Rock and gut busting humor front man and songwriter Willem Hartong kept the hits coming throughout the night with an ongoing interaction with the audience.

Read on for the rest of the story and images from the night!

Cheers,

Monty

Joshua James - need I say more?

Joshua James came to the Evening Muse during the East Coast leg of his tour this fall - we were blessed to see this young talent perform. My money is on a bet that the next time he's in town there won't be a vacant seat in the house as people discover the enormity of this young mans talents!

It doesn't happen often. You can probably count the times it has happened to you on your digits. The emotions you felt when you experienced your first connection with the music of Stevie Ray Vaughn, the places you drifted to listening to Led Zepplin, or level of concurrence you felt as you related to the words of Harry Chapin. These connections which endear you to music and your trusted favorites result from a commonality you experience which builds that relationship which has stood the test of time.

Read on for the rest of the story and images of Joshua's performance here and in Chapel Hill..

Cheers,

Monty

November Tosco House Party was a blast!!

The first Wednesday of every month beginning at 8PM the Tosco House Party is hosted by John Tosco at the Evening Muse. Most of the time the term "open mic" suggests a less than stellar night of music. If you've been to a Tosco House Party, you know that the room will be filled with people waiting to see what surprises lay ahead in the next two hours. There's always a few outstanding performances, occasionally a very unique display of musicianship, and usually at least one WOW factor artist sneaks up on us at the show. The best part is the anticipation because you usually don't know who is going to do what.

Link to the rest of the story, the line-up and photos from the night..

Cheers,

Monty

Updates on a few shows at The Evening Muse

I haven't been very diligent in my updates to this blog site - neglectful I must say. I'll try to catch up with a few links to writing & photos of what has been going on with a mind to be more thorough in the future.

The Evening Muse had a three-course special lined up for 2009's St Patty's Day featuring Emily Lynch, The Bowmans, and Wavy Space. There wasn't any food coloring in the beer but there was plenty of beer flowing out of the tapsThe Evening Muse had a three-course special lined up for this St Patty's Day featuring Emily Lynch, The Bowmans, and Wavy Space. There wasn't any food coloring in the beer but there was plenty of beer flowing out of the taps.

Thursday night, the 19th of March '09, I witnessed not only a talented singer-songwriter, but a well rounded entertainer perform at The Evening Muse. This entertainer goes by Lipbone Redding. Lipbone uses a unique diversity of styles including, New Orleans Jazz, Memphis Blues, a little ragtime, and a sprinkling of vaudville.

The Influence & Flagship also performed in March..

Kyler England came to town in April! What a great show w/fellow musician Adrienne.

The Brilliant Inventions also appeared in April..

Not A Sparrow helped close out the month of April.

Not So Solemn performed in May.

The Houstons rocked the house with their unique sound in May as well.

Porterdavis laid some blues rock on the Muse in September!

Girls Guns & Glory returned to the Muse in Sept too!!

Wavy Space brought their party to the Muse in October!

That about catches things up at a very high level.. I'll be more diligent about adding shows - promise..

Cheers,

Monty

Gareth Asher - 03/14/09

Gareth Asher brought his powerful voice and medley of popular songs to the Evening Muse Saturday night. It had been a while since I had seen Gareth and I was very much looking forward to this show. He is a very unique singer-songwriter in that his voice is crystal clear, in tune, and booms loud enough to probably not need a microphone! I mean, Gareth can bring the soulful ballad to your ears and your heart!

Gareth shared that many things had been going on in his life over the past several months. He mentioned he is "newly single" to the applause of the ladies in the house - but its obvious that he is not quite so happy about it. On a lighter side he shared with me that he had enjoyed both The Simple Man cruise and the Rock Boat cruise this winter. Lot's of performing, eating, and partying with friends durting those couple of weeks in the Caribbean.

Gareth is working on a new CD. When asked when it would be available, he said "when its done". I guess these things don't happen on a schedule but rather in due time as the various components come together, one song at a time. One thing is for sure - his vocal ability sets him apart from anyone else doing acoustic sets. Not to mention that you won't meet a nicer person.

Listen to a few of Gareths songs at his MySpace page and have a look at a few of his performance videos. You'll want to add his music to your collection - I promise.

Here's a link to a few photos of the show.

Cheers,

Monty

Malcolm Holcombe - 03/14/09

Shuffling around the Evening Muse prior to the beginning of the show, Malcomb Holcombe had the look of a humbled soul, lost in the noisey buzz of the people who had come to see him perform. Slight of stature and unassuming off the stage Malcolm blended with the crowd, occasionally stopping to say hello to a fan who had recognized him.

As the Evening Muse continued to fill it was obvious that the Charlotte locals had been waiting for Malcom to come back to this listening room. Many of the conversations were stories of the last time they had seen Malcom, either here in Charlotte or at a folk festival somewhere in the Carolinas. The chatter supports Joe's introduction of Malcolm as "The man, the myth, the legend". He's certainly one of Carolina's sons and a favored mountain trubadour.

There's a lot that changes when Malcomb takes the stage. I'd swear he gets 6 inches taller and puts on about 40 pounds as he begins his set. His graveley voice and rustic appearance combined with some unique guitar picking/strumming/banging mark the unique sound that is Malcomb Holcombe. A gifted guitarist and storyteller indeed! The country fried stories which introduce each song are filled with anticipation as one never knows where Malcolm is going to take a story or what adjectives are going to come out of his mouth. It's an adventure! Over and over again, the crowd let's out a chuckle as Malcolm transitions from a story to a song.

On this night Malcolm played a number of upbeat, bluesy, rockin' songs which kept the toes tappin'. Of course the night would not be complete without several ballads as well. As the set drew to a close and the house stood in ovation, Malcom continued with an additional three encore songs as people shouted out favorites and Malcolm quickly acknowledged them. Once finished, Malcolm stepped off the stage and began greeting his fans and friends as he melded back into the unassuming man whom had blended in with the crowd as the night began.

A few photos of the show....

Cheers,

Monty

Review - Feb 26th - Anya Marina, Jay Nash, Greg Laswell

There was so much music going on at The Evening Muse during this early show that its hard to keep straight in my mind who was doing what with whom! These three musicians on tour together is pure musical ecstasy, that's for darn sure! It's not often that three nationally recognized musicians get into the same schedule, but these three are friends from way back and it shows - not only in the ease with which they support each other but also in the friendly banter that only occurs between real friends.

Read on for the rest of the story & photos......

Cheers,

Monty

Saturday Night Lights! JoAnna Lynne, The Stellas, Last November, No Second Troy, Flagship

Overall this night was a definition in sensory overload - in a good way. All of the musicians that entertained us this evening had a distinctive sound within the defined boundaries of rock'n roll. It's this diversity that has kept three generations of music lovers rocking and I personally hope it stays that way. Keeping the music scene live, keeping the energy level high, keeping the rest of us guessing about what will come next around the bend.

JoAnna Lynne & Chidori

As is normal the night was split into two shows. First was an early show featuring an acoustic set by The Stellas with folk/indie singer-songwriter JoAnna Lynne. The abnormal part of the evening was that the usual transition of people did not occur between the early and late show crowd. The people and genre generally remained constant between the shows. It did get a little younger, but generally because the younger folks tend to come out later in the evening.

The Stellas

The late show continued a theme of high energy rock'n roll with Last November leading off followed by the Washington DC group No Second Troy. The closer of the night was Flagship, a hard driving group from Charlotte.

Last November

No Second Troy





Flagship

Click on the appropriate links to reviews and photographs of each group from the Early show as well as the Late show.


This was a really nice night of music at Charlotte's Evening Muse.



Cheers,



Monty

Sunshone Still

Chris Smith, the brainchild behind the alt/country sound of Sunshone Still, brought his unique sound and story to the Evening Muse Friday night the 13th of February. Supported by a group of guys including Flavio on Bass and an amazing add of Steel Guitar by Rodney, Lanier Sunshone Still played most of the songs from their debut album "Dead Letters" and about half of the tunes from "Ten Cent American Novels".

The uniqueness of this contemporary alt/country band cannot be understated and requires a little explaining to gain a full appreciation for what was heard Friday night at the Muse.

It starts with Chris Smith being from Columbia, SC - via Austin, TX - via Nashville, TN. It's that Austin component that influences the sound the most as the songs from "Dead Letters" were all written during Chris' tenure in the Texas music capital. It took three years for this debut album to come to fruition, but it gave Chris the confidence to undertake a rare musical task - writing a concept musical production chronicling the life of Kit Carson. This biography takes its form in the sophomore album titled "Ten Cent American Novels". As I listened to this nights performance I felt the quiet of a west Texas night in the Chisos mountains of the Chihuahuan desert.

Chris' amazing talents, storytelling ability in almost a whisper, performed perfectly by the band in the style of arrangement envisioned for this album allowed the listener to follow many of the stories with visions of the events.

Probably the best news of the night was Chris' recent discovery that he had "slipped one by the goalie" and will soon be a proud father! Reason for this talented musician to celebrate!

I truly hope you take the time to go out to the Sunshone Still MySpace page and/or website to have a listen to some of these tunes. I know you'll find them as amazing as I did.

Hit this link up to see some photos of the nights performance.

Here's the set list from the night:

1. A Pallet Of Buffalo Robes (Widows Blues) - Ten Cent American Novels


2. Roan Mountain - Dead Letters


3. Land of Tar & Cotton - Dead Letters


4. Fireflies - Dead Letters


5. Damn You California - Dead Letters


6. The Winning of Waa-Ni-Beh - Ten Cent American Novels


7. Barstool - Dead Letters


8. Saturdays In The Sky - Dead Letters


9. Blood and Thunder (Burn The Damn Thing) - Ten Cent American Novels


10. Black Weeds' Submission - Ten Cent American Novels


11. Klamath Lake (It was a Perfect Butchery) - Ten Cent American Novels
    

Cheers,

Monty

Lucy Kaplansky

New York City singer-songwriter Lucy Kaplansky graced the stage of Charlotte's Evening Muse Friday night, the 13th of Feb '09. Performing to a very full house, Lucy mixed her story-telling melodies to guitar as well as keyboards. Lucy reveled in stories of her daughter Molly as well as a few of her recently passed Father. She shared one his songs - entitled Pi - a cute mathematical number playing on the value of Pi as well as several other algebraic terms.

It was a pleasure listening to this intellectual (PhD in Psychology) serenade the audience with her diversity of self scribed indie tunes as well as well known numbers from other songwriters & well known singers. Sharing these songs of sweet beauty had members of the audience thanking Lucy for coming to our little house and allowing such an intimate interaction.

It was certainly a performance which will not soon be forgotten by the numerous fans present. Be sure to check out Lucy's website and her latest CD - Over The Hills (2007) Red House Records.

You can check out photos of her performance at this link.

Cheers,

Monty

Girls Guns & Glory - 02/10/09

WOW!! These guys are for REAL! Girls Guns & Glory may sound like the title of a Billy-The-Kid western remake, but its the nombre of a Boston band that rocks Americana style with the lyrics of a Roy Orbison and the sound of progressive country.

The groups lead singer and primary lyricist, Ward Hayden, has written some witty tunes that tell life's stories with smooth eloquent vocals - has hints of the Roy Orbison sound too! Colt Thompson shreds the lead guitar with crystal clarity providing exceptional rock'n sound when called upon and can also bring tears from his instrument when the country tunes call for a love song melody. The group is completed by bassist Bruce "IV" Beagley and John Graham on drums.

These guys are solid in their timing, experienced in entertaining the audience and full of confidence in their musical capabilities. They should be too. They've just released their fourth album - Inverted Valentine - which has reached No. 8 on the national AMA Chart and No. 2 on the Roots Music Report!!

Another charming aspect of these guys is the time they spent with the folks that came out to see them on this Tuesday night. They spent at least 45 minutes after the set just talking and having a beer with the 30 or so folks who hung around after the show. I hope everyone who wanted a CD was able to get one. I and the people around me all purchased one of each of the three they had with them. This was an easy decision after listening to them for the 100 minute set they performed.

Normally the Evening Muse is closed on Tuesday but I'm sure glad Lea and Joe booked these young lads in on this night. Wouldn't surprise me at all to see this band break out in 2009 - might be the last time I get to see them in a listening room from 10 feet away!

Here's a link to some photos from the great fun!!

Link to Girls, Guns & Glory MySpace page where you can hear a few tracks as well!

Cheers,

Monty

p.s. A special set of props to Laurie & Don for the heads up on this show!

Amy Speace & The Tearjerks

Thursday night I was once again able to enjoy the uplifting ballads and soft americana rock of Amy Speace and The Tearjerks.

The pure pleasure of listening to her in such a fine listening room environment as The Evening Muse kept all senses on overdrive! You feel personally attached as Amy shares stories ranging from her favorite beer to attempts at being creative in upstate New York shacks - sorry, Cabins. Amy has a lot of stories to tell..

With Manhattan as her front yard and Newark as her backyard, this city girl from a place just south of Fort Lee, NJ on the Hudson river creates her sound from what she hears in her head and what she experiences around her.

Amy's Americana/Folk/Indie sound is highlighted on her 2006 CD titled "Songs From Bright Street" and continues on her next CD "The Killer In Me", due out this spring.

Currently on tour, Amy will spend the next month or so in Tennessee and North Carolina before heading back north for the spring season. Keep an eye out for this singer-songwriter in the hopes she comes to a venue near you. You can preview her music on her MySpace page.

Here's a link to a few photos from Amy's performance.

Doug & Telisha Williams opened for Amy. Go here to view photos from their set.

Cheers,

Monty

Tosco House Party - Feb 2009

Providing a safe environment where musicians are encouraged to reach within themselves to explore their talents, given an opportunity to try new material on a live audience, afforded a platform to introduce themselves to a new city, or simply a box to stand on from which to showcase their individuality - all of this is embedded in the formula that is known as the Tosco House Party. It's been said over and over that you never know what you'll see the first Wednesday of each month as John Tosco welcomes these folks into his "living room" and this month was no exception.

Several folks joined the party for the first time. South Africa native Justin Taylor is an impressive singer/songwriter whom we were fortunate enough to hear sing a couple of different tunes. Carey Marshall also joined us for the first time at a THP night. Carey sang a beautiful ballad while caressing the ivories of the piano. Since she is newly relocated to Charlotte I hope we get to see her again real soon. And a first for me was seeing the extremely talented Ben Hernandez just tear it up on a harmonica while serenading us with his powerful voice.

Of course another benefit of the THP is being able to watch the young budding musicians of Charlotte continue to gain confidence and explore their talents. I continue to be impressed with the songwriting of Charlotte Parrot, a local high school sophomore. Isaac Strap of the band Moses Cherry reached way down deep to entertain us with a great rendition of a 1920's era blues tune - I didn't catch the name, but perhaps he can post a comment here to share it with us?? :-)

Another cool night at the Tosco House Party - its really comfortable in John's "living room" at the Evening Muse. First Wednesday of each month - hope to see you there.

Photos from the show can be seen here.

Cheers,

Monty

Mel Washington w/John Krueger

John Krueger was first up at the Early show Thursday night. John is a solo artist out of Augusta, GA and has been touring in promotion of his newest work entitled Rock & Rhyme. It's a digital album which can be picked up here - for free. I applaud the emergence of another new artist, making his way and putting it out there for our enjoyment. Cheers John.. Go here to see a few images of John's set..








Second up this evening was Charleston, SC singer/songwriter Mel Washington. Mel is a dynamic singer with a strong, raspy, and at times mellow voice capable of pounding out his melodies in ways that grab your attention. Several of his songs caught my attention - Oh Jessie and Lions Roar are two examples. Check Mel out on his Myspace page.

Link to photos of Mel's performance.

Cheers,





Monty

Mieka Pauley

Mieka Pauley graced the Evening Muse with an Early Show performance that dazzled as well as entertained a very full house. Mieka opened with a powerful rendition of "Marked Man".

It set the tone for what was to come. Powerful lyrics, powerful voice, a talented group of musicians backing her, mixed with a little humor made for a very entertaining evening at the Muse.

You can listen to a few of Mieka's tunes at her MySpace Page.


Some photos from the show can be seen here. Right now the lighting is excessively warm at The Muse, so I apologize in advance for the redness in the photos.


Cheers,


Monty