Stanley Clarke @ Martini Ranch

STANLEY CLARKE
MARTINI RANCH
JANUARY 23, 2008

Phoenix, AZ (October 31, 2007) – Stanley Clarke, one of the most innovative electric bass players of the past three decades will make a stop in Scottsdale to perform at Martini Ranch on Wednesday, January 23. The show will begin at 7:30 pm.

Bassist Stanley Clarke was barely out of his teens when he exploded into the jazz world in 1971. Fresh out of the Philadelphia Academy of Music, he arrived in New York City and immediately landed jobs with famous bandleaders such as Horace Silver, Art Blakey, Dexter Gordon, Joe Henderson, Pharaoh Saunders, Gil Evans, Stan Getz and a budding young pianist-composer named Chick Corea.

In 1972 Clarke and Corea formed the seminal electric jazz/fusion band Return To Forever. RTF was a showcase for each of the quartet’s strong musical personalities, composing prowess and instrumental voices. The band recorded eight albums, two of which were certified gold (Return To Forever and the classic Romantic Warrior). They also won a GRAMMY (No Mystery) and received numerous nominations while touring incessantly.

At 25, Clarke was already regarded as a pioneer in the jazz fusion movement. He was also the first bassist in history to double on acoustic and electric bass with equal virtuosity, power and fire. In his ongoing efforts to push the bass to new limits, he invented two new instruments, the piccolo bass and the tenor bass. The piccolo bass is tuned one octave higher than the traditional electric bass. The tenor bass is tuned one fourth higher than standard. Both of these instruments have enabled Clarke to extend his melodic range to higher and more expressive registers.

Clarke’s creativity has been recognized and rewarded in every way imaginable: gold and platinum records, GRAMMY Awards, Emmy Awards, virtually every readers and critics poll in existence, and more. He was Rolling Stone’s very first Jazzman of the Year, and bassist winner of Playboy’s Music Award for ten straight years.

Always in search of new challenges, Clarke turned his boundless creative energy to film and television scoring in the mid-1980s. Starting on the small screen with an Emmy-nominated score for Pee Wee’s Playhouse, he transitioned to the silver screen as composer, orchestrator, conductor and performer of scores for such blockbuster films as Boyz ‘N the Hood, What’s Love Got To Do With It?, Little Big League, Passenger 57, Poetic Justice, The Five Heartbeats, Romeo Must Die, The Transporter and Roll and Bounce. He even scored Remember the Time, a Michael Jackson video directed by Jon Singleton. His scoring can currently be heard on the series Lincoln Heights for the ABC Family Network.

On October 16, 2007 Clarke released The Toys of Men. It is a 13-track CD that examines the emotional sweep of war, and features guest appearances by vocalist/bassist Esperanza Spalding, percussionist Paulinho da Costa.

TICKETS ON-SALE NOW
Tickets priced at $35.00 are available to purchase at www.livenation.com, all Ticketmaster outlets. To charge by phone call 480.784.4444 (Phoenix Metro Area) or 520.321.1000 (Outside Phoenix Area). Tickets will be available at Martini Ranch on the day of show. All dates, acts, and ticket prices are subject to change without notice. All tickets are subject to applicable taxes, and service and handling charges. Tickets purchased on the day of show will be priced at $40.00. You must be 21 & over to attend.

As I Lay Dying Review 10.27.2007

By B. Nixon, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

As I Lay Dying performed a show at the Marquee Theater on Saturday October 27 that can only be described as a live-wire.  The crowd fed off of the intense energy pouring out of the amps. 

Being previously untouched by the experience that is watching a show like theirs, I had to do a little homework on their history.  In comparison to some of their earlier recordings they continue to pour out hard driving guitar riffs while, varying the tempo and delivery of some of their pieces.  But no matter what they still remain true to their blitz attack metal style.  After listening to tracks on their earlier albums the progression and technicality became much more clear when looking back on their set, it definitely reflected their variability. 

It was easy to see the connection between all four band mates and the cohesiveness between drummer, Jordan Mancno whose sheer speed on snare sets a thrashy tone for guitarists, Phil Sgrosso, and Nick Hipa.  You can tell they have developed a loyal following in the Arizona crowd, who would enthusiastically join the more melodic anthem type choruses.  I went into the show inexperienced with the genre and unfamiliar with the band and left feeling completely amped up, a feeling that I am sure everyone left with that night.

Blue October “Foiled Tour” 10.27.2007

By D.Marcher, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor
I’m not sure what it is about the Celebrity Theater that seems to terrify those that have never performed there.  Perhaps it is the chance that the stage might be set up to turn during the performance and they might get dizzy, or perhaps it is the fact that they may be surrounded by the crowd on all sides and they have to be careful what they do from all directions.  I have yet to witness a poor performance from anyone at the Celebrity; in fact, it is one of my favorite venues.  However, even on a night like tonight, when the Celebrity is at “3/4 House”, meaning the stage isn’t turning and the performer is only surrounded on the sides, there still seems to be a great deal of nervousness amongst the performers.

The Blue October “Foiled Tour” got an early start with the first band going right at 6:50 and only playing for 18 minutes.  Everyone has expected the Shiny Toy Guns, however, it was not them, it was a band called Lovedrug.  Although their set was short, it was still full of energy and the perfect lead to Yellowcard.

Yellowcard, commanded the stage shortly after, and the crowd was thrilled by their performance.  An extra talkative Ryan Keys, lead vocals, started the evening describing how nervous he was about the stage set up and apologized in advance.  No apology was necessary, as Keys and the rest of Yellowcard energetically leaped and rocked across the stationary stage.  Starting their set with songs from their latest album, the crowd enjoyed the songs, often joining in and singing. 

Keys delighted the audience with many stories through out the evening, truly making it a personable performance.  He talked about how Phoenix and the basement at the Nile, served as a launching pad for many of their old tours 10 years ago.  He also did a “shout out” to his mom, who was in the audience, when he played one of her favorite songs from their new album.  Keys also got over his nerves of the stage and later declared that “This is an awesome set up” and that this night was one of his favorites on tour.  He also explained that part of the reason they were on this tour was to promote their music in AZ, and that they were going to be back on their own tour later in the year.  At the end of the set, he asked how many people were Yellowcard fans, and everyone raised their hand, their performance had made fans out of everyone.

Blue October, couldn’t have asked for a better environment to start their set.  The crowd was still pumped from Yellowcard, and their lighting set the mood.  Backlit in blue lights, Blue October, rocked out to songs from their now platinum “Foiled” album.  Engaging the crowd, Justin Furstenfeld, lead vocals, and the rest of Blue October, covered the stage with vigorous energy.  Perhaps one of the most entertaining moments, occurred when Furstenfeld, provided an insightful speech about Karma, he explained, “Karma, if you fuck someone over, life is going to fuck you back!”  The crowd erupted into applause as the intro to “Overweight” played, a song about having to carry the weight of another, and well, Karma.  Justin and crew carried on with their performance taking the crowd along for the wild ride.  Everyone in the crowd, regardless if they were the 10 year old rocking out with his dad, standing on his chair to see the stage or the 75-year-old grandmother that had come with her 50-year-old daughter directly behind him, were glad to be on the journey.

Overall, it was a dynamic evening of music and once again, the Celebrity provided for another magical night of music.

Lifehouse “Who We Are” Tour 10.22.2007

By D. Marcher, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

As many of you did not know, judging by the size of the crowd, Lifehouse performed at the Marquee Theater on October 22^nd.  Even though the Marquee was only filled to about half capacity, Lifehouse performed as though they were entertaining an arena full of their biggest fans.  Unfortunately the same can not be said for their opening acts, luckily, the fans realized that there was light, in this case Lifehouse, at the end of the tunnel.

HoneyHoney, kicked the show off with their unique folk take on rock, perhaps their sound is best describe by their MySpace, calling it backyard rhythm.  The duo, comprised of Suzanne Santo, the singer and violinist and Ben Jaffe, rhythm guitar and bass drum, charmed the small audience.  Santo, while small in stature wowed the audience with her strong vocals.  She looked sweet and innocent; however, this was all dispelled when she began singing a playful song dedicated to all of the couples in attendance.  While their music was heavily based upon prose, it was lighthearted and fun, something that is often not found in the music of today.  As the crowd slowly trickled in, everyone in attendance seemed to enjoy the performance, which was actually their last with the Lifehouse tour

Unfortunately, the same can not be said for the next band, Midway State a quartet from Toronto, that just joined the tour the day before.  With that said, perhaps it is this lack of experience on the stage, which made this performance so disappointing.  Midway State provided easy pop rock melodies that seemed to fall upon deaf ears, as they were unable to capture that audience with their performance.  The crowd, which was now about quarter capacity, freely walked around in and out of the theater, with little interest in the performance.

For the fans that had come for Lifehouse, this was just not their type of music and I would say a poor selection for the tour to compliment Lifehouse.  Perhaps it was best said by Amber, 18 from Phoenix, “I didn’t leave because I wanted to save my spot (in the crowd) for Lifehouse, otherwise I would have.”  Amber, was not alone in her sentiment, Mike, 30 of Goodyear, said “I would have come later, had I known.”    Midway States’ lead singer was full of dramatic movements and obvious angst, but it seemed self absorbed.  To be honest, I would have been just as happy to have listened to elevator music, while waiting for Lifehouse, and those in the audience that were listening to their mp3 players, must have felt the same way.

Finally, Lifehouse, the trio comprised of Jason Wade, Rick Woolstenhulme, Bryce Soderberg, came on stage to the delight of all of those in attendance.  Jason Wade erupted into “Make Me Over”, followed by “Spin” and the crowd couldn’t have been happier.  The audience ate up the high energy level that Lifehouse emitted.  You could instantly tell that this crowd was in for a great evening of music.  Not letting the size of the crowd place a damper on the evening, couples danced together freely, almost as if this is the way the audience should have been.  The boys of Lifehouse made full use of the large stage, Bryce, the bassist, even leaped onto the speakers to the surprise of the crowd.  There were plenty of other surprises too, such as Bryce taking on lead vocals for a cover of  Badfingers’, “No Matter What”.  Jason Wade’s vocals were as impeccable as ever as he commanded the stage, leading the crowd through seven songs from “Who We Are”, the latest Lifehouse release.  Jason and company, of course, also played fan favorites such as their mega hit, “Hanging by a Moment” and even dedicated “You and Me” to all of the fans in attendance.  Overall, Lifehouse managed to salvage a somewhat disappointing night of music, into one of my favorite concerts this year.

A Paolo Nutini straight up please! 10.21.2007

By Adam Scott, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

It was a emotional display of Italian heritage, Scottish roots, and London beginnings fueling the October 21^st show at the Marquee Theatre that left the audience dripping with a worldly view of  old soul and Rock and Roll. Coming off of Nutini’s first full length album released in May 2006, These Streets, this 19 year old songster stole the minds and hearts of the few lucky enough to fall witness to his performance.

 When the show began blaring the tune of “Gonna Fly Away” popularized by the 1976 film Rocky, we all began to think we were in for a little more than the Pop/R&B single “New Shoes”. Ready for a musical mixture of crossing genres, the night consistently kept my attention and was drank down like the chilled cocktails served just feet behind me. Covering the 1966 Bang Bang (My Baby Shot Me Down) gave the crowd a plethora of songs to sing to and even surprise Paolo when the audience took over for a chorus of “Last Request” that made the band grin with a sense of accomplishment.

If living the dream consisted of quitting school at 16, moving to the booming metropolis of London, and starting a music career that will change the face of throaty harmonics, I’m in! His Joe Cocker stage presence and willingness to connect will definitely have me finding tickets in my coat pocket the next time he moves through town.

Lifehouse Concert Review 10.22.2007

By K. Mac, FromTheCrowd.com Contributor

Performing at Tempe’s Marquee Theatre Monday night was Lifehouse, the band that entered the mainstream with their breakout single “Hanging by a Moment.” Surprisingly, the venue was not filled to capacity, but that did not stop Lifehouse from putting on an amazing show. If anything the lower number of attendees added to the intimate atmosphere of the show.

Lead vocalist, Jason Wade led the set perfectly, bringing the crowd with him on a journey through a variety of songs, emotions and tempos. His passion for the material was tangible, even from the back of the venue it was possible to feel the emotions in each song. Adding to the atmosphere were the lighting effects of the show. There was one moment that is still crystal clear in my mind, and that was when the instruments died out, he was backlit by soft blue light and his crystal clear voice sang the chorus of “Spin.”

As well as playing their own material, Lifehouse covered Badfinger’s “No Matter What,” which had the crowd singing along enthusiastically.  Jason interacted throughout the evening with the audience, including an anecdote about the drummer, Rick Woolstenhulme, growing up in Gilbert.  Jason and explained that Rick had worked at a popular pizza joint, and the crowd erupted in applause and cheers.  These interactions only enhanced the connection between the band and crowd.  Rick also made his hometown proud with an impressive drum solos during “Broken” and the encore.

Lifehouse’s performance was in no way lacking, even if concert attendance may have been.  The experience was incredible, and it felt as if it were attending a private concert. The members of Lifehouse engaged the crowd, and let everyone present feel the emotion that went into creating their music and lyrics. If you get the chance to see them in concert, take it. You will not be disappointed.

Set List:

• “Make Me Over”
• “Spin”
• “Am I Ever”
• “Interlude-Quasi”
• “Simon”
• “Hanging by a Moment”
• “Somebody Else”
• “Mesmerized”
• “No Matter What” – Badfinger Cover
• “The Joke”
• “Better Luck”
• “Whatever it Takes”
• “You and Me”
• “First Time”   

  Encore:

• “Disarray”
• “Broken”

GWAR Interview 10.06.2007

From the Crowd had the opportunity to interview Oderus Urungus, lead singer of the sickest band in metal history, Earths only openly extra-terrestrial rock band, and the destined destroyers of not only the human race but also reality itself, GWAR, before their performance with the Viva La Band tour, that played at the Marquee theater on October 6.  Just incase you don’t know, GWAR is a band consisting of hulking, heaving, dribbling alien WAR-GODs who would like nothing better than putting hordes of their sniveling fans to the sword while playing the marauding mutant metal that they are famous for! Stars of stage and screen, carvers of stem and spleen!

From the Crowd: Hello, to get us started, please tell us who you are…

Oderus Urungus: I’m Oderus, Master of this planet and all of the filthy, miserable beings that crawl upon it, so you have an audience with a creature that pretty much knows all of the answer or will pretend that he does, very effectively.

FTC: Now for all of the slaves out there that are dumb and might not know too much about GWAR, can you please inform us what you do with this band?

Oderus:  I’m the singer of course, I had the loudest voice and the biggest sword, and I fancy myself the leader, even though everyone in this band is so free spirited and impossible to lead, even when you beat the shit out of them.  So, I don’t know, I the job of yelling into the mic and killing the giant monsters, that is pretty much what I do.

FTC: Since your rebirth here on Earth, has your opinion changed at all about this planet that you refer to as a mudball?

Oderus:  Well… no not really.  I still find it the same reprehensible, awful, boring…  Pretty much the Cleveland of outer space  It’s what Earth is referred to in outer space.  You know out there, they’re like, you deserve to go to Earth.  That is why we ended up here, because it was the most inaccessible, mudball, boring planet in all of the galaxy.  Now, when we got here, we did have sex with all of the animals and created the human race, and we’ve made it a lot more exciting since then.  I don’t really know what’s been going on in outer space… so, maybe Earth has become the, oh what a good place to go to on Earth?  Hmm… can’t think of a place… well the Monaco… of outer space.  I donno it can be pretty cool.  I know I badmouth Earth all of the time, but it is my home planet now.  All my followers are here and we do rock the house.  I don’t want to bite the hand that feeds too much… might tear it off completely.

FTC: The human race is described as being the most annoying race in the Universe, so why do perform us, or are we more performing for you from the crowd?

Oderus:  We’re not really performing for you, we’re just using the metal thing as a ruse to draw people close to us, so they can be destroyed and murdered and we can feed off of their soul.  We can’t help it that we’re also brilliant musicians, I mean, that just kind of comes with it naturally.  But yes, we use the metal as lure, because, even though you’re just human and inferior scum and all that shit, you still have this certain soul energy about you and every human can still be harvested for their Jizmogloben, and this is what we do.  We suck the Jizmogloben out of your soul and we use it to power not only ourselves, but also our war machines.  Even gnats have Jizmogloben, everything does.  Jizmogloben, is the stuff that makes the dead walk.  That is what we feed on.  The soul, if you will.  Flies, cats, dogs, cows, dogs.. did I already say dogs?

Yes…

Well cats, dogs, cats, human, you’re all the same on the food chain for us.

FTC:  What type of venue do you prefer to draw your victims or slaves into?  The more intimate club setting or the large arena?

Oderus: We really like the large ones, the more people that are there, the more for us… people always ask us how much blood to we go through in a night.  Well if you figure, 8 gallons of blood per person, 10,000-person venue, oh well, that’s where the math gets too complicated, but let’s just say it is up there!  The more the merrier, or should I say, the more the murderer, or something like that.

FTC:  So then, is it disappointing for you to play a venue, like the Marquee tonight that only has about 1,000 victims?

Oderus: Oh, well, we’re happy with it.  When everything is a disappointment to you, you learn to be happy with what you got and we’ve played the Marquee many times, and always had a great night.  I can’t help but notice there is a new building right next door.   That was not there last time, you industrious ant like humans, just building shit all of the time.

FTC:  That’s a new light rail system too.. (pointing to the other side)

Oderus, Wow and they caught the Baseline Killer as well, he was an evil motherfucker, a big GWAR fan though, I heard.

FTC:  Why did GWAR decide to contribute “War is all we know” to the Viva La Bands VOL 2 CD?

Oderus:  Oh, I don’t know, other people make these decisions for me.  I believe we had put out all of the other songs, on other things at that point.  I also think Bam actually liked that song, and he’s so deluded he actually thought there was a video with that song as well, but there isn’t.  It’s a great song and we’re just trying to get as much of out latest album out as much as possible.  I think that is why we did it. 

FTC:  Are there any pre show rituals that you or the band may do before going on stage to harvest the Jizmogloben?

Oderus:  Drink, drink a lot.  I know that might sound mundane, but all bands do that.  The pre show, Jägermeister and red bull, battle bombs, we call them.  Besides that, we stumble around all day, as humans, trying to pick up prostitutes and score crack.  After that, we stumble into the dressing room, hopefully 30 minutes before the show starts and transform back into our bestial selves and go out and put on the greatest show in Rock’n Roll.
 
FTC:  So, did you already hit Van Buren street today to get your whores and crack?
 
Oderus:  No!  Is that where we go?  How far away us that?
 
FTC:  About 5 miles?
 
Oderus:  Great! We’re there… after the show.
 
FTC:  Out of all the songs that you have released, do you feel that there has been one that may have been misinterpreted by your slaves?
 
Oderus:  I think, maybe the song, “Baby Dick Fuck”, was misinterpreted by someone as trying to have sex with babies, but that is completely wrong.  What it is really about is trying to have sex with a pregnant woman, using her baby as the rubber.  I thought I was misrepresented there.  It is very important that people get their head on straight about that, because that is a big difference.  The two must be differentiated.
 
FTC:  After being around for so many years and touring so much, what are you tricks of the trade?
 
Oderus:   People practice all of the time and sound check and we don’t practice anymore.  Don’t leave your best shot on the practice tee, is basically what I am saying.  Sometimes we’ll being doing sound check and it sounds magnificent and then the show will suck.  Therefore, I don’t go to sound check anymore.
 
FTC:  Those are all the questions I have, do want to leave us with some information about your current CD and upcoming projects?
 
Oderus:  Well, we’re at the end of this tour, still supporting the Beyond Hell CD, which has been out for over a year.  This is the final leg in support of that CD, so come out and expose yourself to that.  After this tour is over, we will be retreating back to our Antarctic stronghold and getting ready for, what is just around the corner, the greatest celebration in the history of this planet the 25th anniversary of GWAR, alive on this planet.  That’s just a year away.  So, we’re going to spend the whole next year in the studio just fucking off, making products that no one will ever listen to, except for fans, or course, because they love everything that we do.  That’s it!
 
FTC:  Great!  Thanks for taking the time out to meet with us today!
 
Oderus: Thank you!