Tag Archives: The Wellmont Theatre
Anthony Hamilton – The Wellmont Theatre – July 25, 2010
July 26th, 2010
Modest Mouse – The Wellmont Theatre – July 22, 2010
July 23rd, 2010
Crowded House – The Bowery Ballroom – July 19, 2010
July 20th, 2010
Photos courtesy of Greg Notch | photography.notch.org/music
(Crowded House plays The Wellmont Theatre on Friday.)
Huey Lewis and the News Are Still Going Strong
July 14th, 2010Huey Lewis and the News – The Wellmont Theatre – July 13, 2010
As the lights dimmed at The Wellmont Theatre last night, a nearly unified, low-toned shout came from the crowd. What could have instantly been misheard as booing quickly became a much clearer “Huuueeyyy!” as Huey Lewis and the News took the stage. Now more than 20 years removed from the peak of their fame, Lewis and his band have settled into a remarkably tight groove in their live performance. Starting the show with new, soul-driven material off a forthcoming album warmed up the crowd. “Just wait ’til you get the record and play it over and over,” cracked Lewis in response to cheers.
The band then played the very first song they ever wrote, “Some of My Lies Are True (Sooner or Later).” Lewis spent one more song in what he called the “greatest misses” section of the set and then shifted the show into high gear with the best of the News. “I Want a New Drug” was followed by a two-song a cappella break (a “customary” part of the shows according to Lewis), where he introduced each member of the band, two of whom he’s known or played with for more than 40 years. That long tenure lent the band a stunning ability to play, and the four-piece horn section blared with a groove akin to Tower of Power.
The 60-year-old Lewis performed greatly as a workingman’s Tom Jones, and while Beyoncé he is not, he still never stayed in one place onstage either, belting out notes in his signature gravely voice or sharply soloing on harmonica. The band encored with the best, starting with the smash “Power of Love,” then playing “Do You Believe in Love” before finishing with “Workin’ for a Livin’.” As the crowd once again unleashed “Huuueeyyy!” shouts, the band fittingly substituted a final bow with a sleeve-rolled flex of the arm. —Sean O’Kane
Photos courtesy of Greg Notch | photography.notch.org/music
Jeff Beck – The Wellmont Theatre – June 14, 2010
June 15th, 2010
A Night with Tracy Morgan
May 28th, 2010Tracy Morgan – The Wellmont Theatre – May 27, 2010
(Photo: Andy Keilen)
Somewhere in between jokes about Adam and Eve having sex, colostomy bags and the dangers of anal beads, Tracy Morgan had a moment that bordered on poignant. He inadvertently burped into his microphone (no, that’s not the poignant part). While the audience began to laugh, Morgan paused and then very naturally said, “We family, right?” So went the rest of the night, which was much less like a stand-up routine and much more like the stories your crazy uncle won’t stop telling at family gatherings (albeit the ones he tells a few drinks into the proceedings).
Tracy Morgan brought that raunchy conversational act to The Wellmont Theatre last night, filling the space normally reserved for loud riffs and echoing vocals with tearful laughter and wild shouts from the audience. The hour-and-a-half set ranged from his spacey, almost incoherent late-night appearances to topical humor, including the immigration situation in the Southwest and the BP oil spill. Morgan’s advice on the latter: “Leave that shrimp scampi alone from now on.” The best material of the night was a running gag about previous girlfriends, which always began with the same line and always ended with a different (and increasingly hilarious) sexual twist. By the end, the final story had gone far past painfully funny and nearly revolting, something extremely fitting for the uncle telling the joke onstage. —Sean O’Kane
The Flaming Lips – The Wellmont Theatre – April 19, 2010
April 20th, 2010
Third Eye Blind – The Wellmont Theatre – April 13, 2010
April 14th, 2010
With a Little Help from His Audience
April 12th, 2010Ben Folds and a Piano – The Wellmont Theatre – April 9, 2010
While Ben Folds and a Piano is a technically accurate title for the piano-rocker’s current tour, I suggest an amendment along the lines of Ben Folds, a Piano and You. Akin to the relationship audiences have with movies like The Rocky Horror Picture Show and The Room, the crowd that filled The Wellmont Theatre on Friday night played a large role in the fun that Ben Folds brought. That role took shape early on with “Annie Waits,” during which the audience filled in the claps and backup vocals from the studio version without needing a cue.
Folds’ performance adopted a vibe similar to VH1’s Storytellers, starting with a story about Paul Simon appearing at one of his shows. That led to a hilarious sequence where he unsuccessfully tried to start “Sentimental Guy” before giving up and skipping to “Effington.” (“Only my audience would be sweet enough to applaud that.”) The set continued with some of Folds’ newest material, including two songs from a forthcoming release featuring lyrics by Nick Hornby. But he finished the show with a generous helping of songs from his Ben Folds Five days.
After finally sneaking in a successful version of “Sentimental Guy,” the show concluded with four of Folds’ most popular songs, two of which were the catalysts for the now-obligatory role his audiences play. After a brilliant version of “Philosophy,” he concluded his main set with “Army,” during which the two sides of the venue sang the dueling horn parts without needing direction. Then, following encore-starter “One Angry Dwarf and 200 Solemn Faces,” Folds finished with the most involved song of the night, “Not the Same.” Before playing the finale (while conducting the audience through a four-part harmony), the singer candidly stated, “I thought people would have been sick of this song ages ago, but everyone always sounds so good.” The standing ovation that followed proved just how much the audience still enjoys that sound, too. —Sean O’Kane
Photos courtesy of Andy Keilen | spartanmarchingband.smugmug.com/Music
See Ben Folds and a Piano on Friday at The Wellmont Theatre
April 7th, 2010
Ben Folds is most well known as the singing, piano-playing frontman of the Ben Folds Five. But in addition to side-project Fear of Pop’s Volume 1 (out in 1998), Folds has been recording solo material and playing it live—sometimes backed by a band—for years, going back to Rockin’ in the Suburbs, released on September 11, 2001, and on which he played most of the instruments. Songs for Silverman followed in 2005 and then Way to Normal came next in 2008. And now Folds is back. See him above, playing the Chatroulette-related “Ode to Merton,” and then see Ben Folds and a Piano in person at The Wellmont Theatre on Friday.
Wilco Hits a Home Run
April 5th, 2010Wilco – The Wellmont Theatre – April 3, 2010
(Photo: Autumn de Wilde)
Baseball season, the great American pastime, started this weekend. Rock and roll, that other American pastime, was also in full effect this weekend as Wilco came to The Wellmont Theatre for nine innings of killer music and raucous fun. One of their shows is the live-music equivalent of heading to the ballpark with a combination of heavy hitters, attention to the fundamentals and utter consistency. Is there a more consistent live show out there? Opening Saturday night with “Ashes of American Flags,” drummer Glenn Kotche got things going with a pounding beat that paved the way for a solid lineup. The first four batters set the tone for the game, and the band, with their fine-tuned show, delivered, following up “Ashes” with “Wilco (The Song),” “I Am Trying to Break Your Heart” and a dark, tense version of “Bull Black Nova.”
Jeff Tweedy was his normal self, riffing between songs all night on New Jersey and the “Boo-yah!” that someone shouted early on. Nels Cline was electric on guitar, packing more explosive firepower into four-minute songs than would seem possible. Midway through the marathon set, after smacking “Impossible Germany” and “Poor Places” out of the park, Wilco moved to a semi-acoustic mode. The lights dimmed and the sold-out rock palace became a cozy, intimate theater again. An acoustic “Spiders (Kidsmoke)” was an interesting twist, pulling the lyrics to the forefront of the usually jam-techno vibe.
Back to full electric, the perfectly calibrated arc of the Wilco show continued, highlighting almost every album from the catalog, every mood and style in their arsenal and likely most of the requests the packed crowd could have wanted. Another night, another perfect game from Tweedy and the boys—but no lingering, because they’ve got something like 161 more of them to play. —A. Stein
Punk Rock Hits Northern Jersey
February 25th, 2010Dropkick Murphys – The Wellmont Theatre – February 24, 2010
Last night, just two dates into their St. Patrick’s Day Tour 2010, Dropkick Murphys tore through The Wellmont Theatre, with Strung Out and Larry and His Flask supporting. Both Strung Out and Dropkick Murphys have been at it for more than a decade, and the veteran punk-rock lineup brought an exciting one-two punch to a sold-out crowd at a venue still new to hosting such shows.
Dropkick Murphys’ set began dark with a single light on Scruffy Wallace playing the bagpipes. But before long a fury of guitars exploded, led by Al Barr’s gruff and barreling voice. About five songs in, the band played a great run of “The Warrior’s Code,” “As One” and then “Buried Alive.” They later dove into yet another great run with “Forever,” “The Dirty Glass” and “Black Velvet Band.” Throughout the night, Barr ran feverishly from side to side of the stage, while his bandmates shared microphones behind him. Ending the set, Dropkick Murphys played “Kiss Me, I’m Shitfaced”—a song for the ladies, dozens of whom climbed onstage to sing along—and the Bostonian anthem “I’m Shipping Up to Boston,” which saw many guys from the crowd join together with the band. —Kirsten Housel
Photos courtesy of Kirsten Housel
