In a couple days, we will be working at a new venue (as previously mentioned) with the NEXT Music Charity Concert Series. We’re really excited by this one. We will be working at the Captain Lawrence Brewery in Elmsford, NY on August 23rd, inside the brewery enjoying craft beers and one of America’s greatest bands, Black Taxi. Originally this was scheduled to be outside, but there are a few factors preventing an outside show there at the moment. We are working towards returning to that plan, but in the mean time we have a huge warehouse full of beer to play with!
This will however, present us with some new challenges as we will be in quite the harsh environment for a sound production company. Nothing we can’t handle! Most specifically, we need to dial in a venue that is designed for brewing beer and storing boxes. Concrete floors and metal ceilings. Brewing vats and countless bottles and kegs everywhere. Reflections will have to be dealt with from numerous areas. Environments like these have a tendency to reflect severely high notes. One factor that will help is cardboard. The stage area is actually going to have stacks of cardboard boxes on both sides. Equalization will be vital here. There will be sections in the sounds you hear that will be drastically reigned in, while others are severely boosted. We’ll follow up after the first show on this blog.
Black Taxi, in case you are severely musically challenged enough to not have heard of them, are the modern answer to the Rolling Stones. Dance-able, creative song writing with high entertainment value. These guys are a lot of fun to watch. Honestly, if you don’t know who Black Taxi is, then you’re definitely not listening to NEXT Music on the radio or on ITunes. So head on over to www.allthingsnext.com and click on “podcast”. Pick your preferred method of listening (Stitcher, ITunes, Stream it right from NEXT) and catch up already! You’ve got till Thursday!
Here’s a little help:
Food will be provided by Bridgeview Tavern and The Cookery pizza truck. So, you got great freaking beer, an awesome band, great eats, and Chris Bro to talk music with. Why anyone would stay home this Thursday I do not know! It’s kind of like the keg parties of our youth. Only! We’ll be partying at the kegs house. And with better food than most parties.
*Captain Lawrence Brewery is so easy to find you have to be careful not to drive past it. (Come on. Admit it. You’ve done that before!) 444 Saw Mill River Road, Elmsford NY. Exit 2 on I-287 West (Route 9A).
*Black Taxi is managed by the super capable Nicole at MezzoForte Productions . Please visit their website if you book bands. She works with some great talent.
And finally our pics from the show, taken by our partner @ Focus In Digital (give the slideshow a chance to load)
One thing to notice in this gallery is the crowd at the stage. In all the other galleries out in the media, these photos are shown as the crowd for the next act when in fact they were there already watching The Matt O’Ree Band play.
As mentioned previously, The Matt O’Ree Band returned to Stamford, CT. This was a two night engagement. The first night at our old home venue The Rack N Roll Cafe involved a night of acoustic music from the boys. This show was planned to be as a completely different experience to what the area was about to see the next night. Two sets of blues, and rock tunes played not necessarily toned down, just different timbre and energy if you will. Speaking with those in attendance it was clearly a great idea. Some had seen The Matt O’Ree Band in the past and really enjoyed seeing them in this dimension. Others were enjoying their first experience with them. These first timers were telling me that the music was awesome but you could feel it could explode at any moment and they were getting this anxious feeling to see that happen. That was what the next night was for…….
6PM August 2nd, Stamford, CT. The annual Alive @ 5 Concert Series was at its 7th and final show. Frank Viele and the Manhattan Project had already left the stage. At this point, quite a few thousand had come into Columbus Park for the show which featured Foreigner as the headline act. The local Classic Rock station 95.9 The Fox had their morning djs up MCing the show. I took a position at stage left near the merchandise tent to see the reaction. I look through the crowd. This was a very mixed audience with almost equal parts of every age group. But there just a couple rows back. A sizable group of young kids. Pre-teens, mid-teens, late-teens. and early twenties. They introduce The Matt O’Ree Band. That moment the world seemed to change. That moment it was proven that musicianship and pure Rock & Roll energy are still appreciated in today’s world of Lady Gagas and techno wizard dance music. I watched these kids down front explode. Dancing and screaming with every note from Matt’s guitar and Eric’s keys. Shaking their fists to every beat of John’s drums and the rolling groove laid down by Scott’s bass. I walked around to see the reaction. People are on their phones yelling to someone on the other end “ARE YOU HERE YET? THESE GUYS ARE FUCKING AMAZING! HURRY UP!” And similar statements. Many were dancing. Some just shaking their head to the beat, some tapping their foot. The crowd continued to pour in and load up at the stage. Pushing to get closer. Screaming at every song. Whistling and cheering at every guitar or organ solo. Then John’s drum solo! This was not that every rock concert drum solo. And people recognized that! I heard shouts of “really?”. As the solo progressed the crowd began to surge with even more energy. The here and there whistling became more and more present. The once and a while “YEAAAAAH” became a building wind of screams. The band joins back in to finish the song and now the crowd is just jumping up and screaming with their hands reached out as if to try and grab their handfuls of this magic pouring off of the stage.
At this point, I could not tell you how many people were at the stage area. You couldn’t see through or around it. This was the view near the end of the show taken from Matt’s IPhone (notice how far back you can see hands raised?):
Matt O’Ree from the Matt O’Ree Band takes a photo of the crowd at the last Alive @ 5 in Stamford 2012
After the show. The guys signed autographs and took pictures with lots of people as the crowd waited for Foreigner to take the stage. Word comes to us that Foreigner wishes for us to stick around to meet up after the show. A crew member of Foreigner’s informs me that the guys in their band feel they have to really step up their game because of the way The Matt O’Ree Band energized this crowd. After Foreigner’s show the members of the band came back to the bus area to talk to the guys and express how impressed they were.
To me the greatest moment was during the autographs after the M.O.B guys came off stage. I happily retell the story here. With a crowd of people surrounding the guys, I noticed a kid of maybe 12 or 13 years old standing behind Eric as Eric signs an autograph. Eric turns and the kid reaches out his hand and touched Eric’s shirt. Eric leans down and the kid quietly says “you were really great”. I notice two Xs written on his hand in magic marker. This came from the entry gate to signal he was under age for alcohol. Turning to the kid, I joke about the marks and ask Eric to autograph his arm so the Xs would look cool! Eric was hesitant but a smile came over the kids face and he says “would you please”. After Eric signs his right arm he also asks him to sign a pair of white sunglasses. Eric does so and shakes his hand. The kid runs off to his parents who were standing just off to the side. They reach out to him as he shows them, with a big smile on his face, his souvenirs from Eric.
Eric Safka of The Matt O’Ree Band signs an autograph for a new young fan.
If you did not get the chance to see either or both performances. You missed quite a lot. But we will be posting pictures soon from both nights.
BNK Productions is proud to represent The Matt O’Ree Band in the North East. They are an amazing bunch of guys. Caring and friendly, but powerful in their craft. Their CD’s are available on ITunes or Amazon. And you can check them out at their website: www.mattoree.com
Also check out photo galleries from:
The Stamford Advocate (many of the crowd shots in the daylight in this gallery were during The Matt O’Ree Band’s performance)
And also check out these awesome pics of the acoustic performance the night before from Aaron Kershaw
Most of all, keep an eye out as we bring them back in couple months as they continue to tour the country.
We are really excited by the change of venue to the NEXT Charity Concert Series! REALLY!!! When is the last time you got to hold a monthly party/concert at a brewery? Yep..unless you own one yourself, NEVER!!! But that is the new change to the already awesome NEXT Charity Concert Series. We’re moving to the Captain Lawrence Brewery! While the weather is good and warm, we’ll be outside celebrating music and charity! And when the weather begins to become cold we’ll head inside.
Chris Bro of NEXT has begun putting together a stellar line-up and chose an incredible way to start off at the new venue:
Black Taxi is well known to our area and if you’ve attended the NEXT Charity Concert Series with any regularity then you’ve heard/seen them a few times. My Pet Dragon put on an incredible set at Paulie’s for NEXT earlier this year, but if you have been attending the Alive @ Five in Stamford, CT then you saw them put on a stellar performance that had Columbus Park dancing away!
We’re especially excited for this show as we get to really use our sound systems. Most of you have heard the awesomeness of the BNK sound rig, but not all of you have heard the outdoor rig! (PCTV we did not use the outdoor format although it was outside).
So mark it on your calendars to be at the Captain Lawrence Brewery 444 Saw Mill River Road in Elmsford, NY (so easy to get to!) and join us for the NEXT Charity Concert Series!!!
