So very Medeski

A touch of class filled the air in the Performing Arts Center, on the University of Buffalo’s suburban campus, that weekday evening. The Hallway leading to the venue had me remembering a friend’s graduation a few years earlier. Once inside I could see the crew from the famous local head-shop Terrapin Station seated in the middle of the auditorium. Their array of strategically placed microphones was ready to capture the melodies coming from the keys, strings, and skins of John Medeski, Chris Wood, and Billy Martin respectively.

The MC began with a humorous icebreaker to open the performance. He made reference to the upcoming performance “Snoop Doggy Dog.” What gave the MC his primary credentials was his affiliation with the local Jazz radio station (fm 88.7). I was content in knowing that for at least the next few hours some good noise would be traveling through the airwaves. It surely bested whatever alternative babble and 70’s pop rock that the other radio stations had to offer. Moments after strapping in, the trio revved the funk into high gear. The first ten to fifteen minutes of their performance seemed like riding a tidal wave of pure musical harmony. It relied heavily upon the interplay of John Medeski’s heavy organs, Woods deep plucks from the upright bass strings, and Billy Martin’s ability to shift from the skins of his kit to some bongos, and then the steel drums in the blink of an eye. This first stellar wave finally built to a crescendo that took the form of a fifteen-minute Billy Martin drum solo in which he seemed to go all around the world with his percussive sounds. Along the way he took us on many sharp and drastic turns.

The first set continued along nicely. It maintained much of the tempo that it had steamrolled along with straight from the beginning. By the conclusion of the first set I needed a breather. I stepped outside to catch a feel for the crisp October night. It was a clear night on the shores of Lake Erie. I could catch a clear view of the man-made lake located on the campus. Upon return I was roused out of my seat by what I predicted was to follow. Mr. Wood began by describing how “these days it is good to have a lot of security around.” A cover of Jimi Hendrix’s, Fire followed this warning. Not only was it a quality cover, but MMW was technically ill-equipped to play it. However, one should never underestimate the capabilities for talented musicians. Medeski’s organ filled in the lead guitar movements, and the cover was thus completed magnificently. Throughout the second set MMW jammed into and out of some of my favorite tracks from their albums Shackman and Combustification. Their Bubblehouse stands out as one of the more memorable highlights. It led to a first for myself in terms of musical oddities. In all the time I’ve spent seeing music recently, I can honestly say that I have never witnessed what Mr. Wood pulled off. With his band-mates walking backstage for a refresher, Wood pulled off a wonderful solo on the upright bass that filled the center with sounds more equipped to be the distant crevices of a Transylvania castle.

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