Concert Review by Larry Caddell

Concert Review by Larry Caddell (2006)
It was a hot and balmy Saturday night. The intermittent rain only pushed the humidity level off the charts. I had heard good things about Backyard Blues. Something was happening at a grassroots level. After all, I received my invite courtesy of Will Dockery, Columbus' poet laureate and Ralph Frank, our own drummer/sign painter/folk artist extraordinaire.

Thomas Gottshall purchased the old "coin op" laundry and accompanying garage-style building on Sixth Street and First Avenue. He has been renovating and restoring the old building in hopes of turning it into a music and arts complex. Floor plans have been created featuring performance space, meeting rooms and a recording studio. The building is made of brick and featuresa wooden-arched roof.

The large main room has a small stage on one end and has surprisingly good acoustics, thanks to the arched ceiling. The crowd was sparse but very enthusiastic and consisted mostly of musicians, artists and residents of the historic district. Most occupied the church pews inside, brought their own lawn chairs (and favorite beverages) or stood in the open air. The music, much like the weather, was steaming hot.

After several acoustic performers, the Shadowville All-stars took the stage. This band of rock n' roll renegades are fronted by Will Dockery who has long needed a launch pad for his eclectic, imagery-laden, neo-beatific poems. Chain-smoking, spontaneously gesturing towards make-believe objects and addressing imaginary characters, Dockery sang with a gravel-throated limp to a rolling, bluesy romp in the swamp. Sounding like a cross between Tom Waits, Lou Reed and the soundtrack to Pulp Fiction, Dockery and crew chugged through their myriad of originals about pool halls, bridges, tragedies, lost love and relationships.

The music of the All-stars was gritty and down-to-earth: a solid backbeat encircled by the meandering bass lines of Sam Singer and two blues- infused electric guitars (one tremolo-heavy surf-induced). The band was joined on stage by Henry Parker for a long, bombastic version of Sweet Jane by the Velvet Underground.

I was glad to hear this crew of upstarts carving out musical sketches of Smith-station, the Dillingham Street Bridge and other Columbus- inspired landmarks. I hope to see a lot more of the Shadowville All-stars. They kicked out the jams. Check out their space at
https://www.reverbnation.com/willdockery

Next up were the vocal harmonies of Kat and Renee, both of whom have wonderful voices. Their blues and country-inspired tunes paved the way for Columbus' best kept secret - The Muff-tones.

The Muff-tones are made up of three very talented brothers, Jim, Jack and John. Their aural soundscapes drift across the plain of bluegrass, folk and sweeping instrumental originals. The Muff-tones play both acoustic and electric instruments naturally or through various effects, sounding at once intensely original and vaguely familiar.

The band started their set in a traditional formation - guitar, banjo and electric bass. The sound was also traditional, very much like standard bluegrass. Jim then switched his banjo for a dobro and then replaced that with a mandolin. The trio swooped and sweltered through some speedy newgrass, ragtime and instrumental folk ballads. Titles included "Road to Recovery," "Running from Nothing," "Bleach" and "Square Dance." "Searching" was described by Jim as something "Barry White would play if he grew up in Kentucky." Each piece told a story. Slowly the effects were added. Jack played his acoustic guitar through a synth pedal, making the instrument sound like keyboard washes. Jim then pulled out an old Ibanez electric head-banger guitar and played it through an assortment of effects. This all added to an interstellar sound that brought the listener from the coalmines of Kentucky to a psychedelic galaxy far, far away.

The Muff-tones ended their set with a very dexterous groove full of rich, acoustic textures and synchronistic rhythms showcasing these front porch symphonies. The band seems to be tightening up its sound and line- up. This band is worth catching around town. The final act at Backyard Blues was Eddie Jones. Jones sat on stage like a professional blues player and belted out "I Got a Woman" by Ray Charles and jammed with a young bass player and Jim from the Muff-tones on some blues in E.

He was then joined on stage by Eileen d'Esterno, a local sculptor and painter who began singing the blues in a sultry and sexy voice. Whether it was her verses or the swaying of her hips in front of the still seated Jones, the performance was cut short by Jones' significant other who ruches on stage only to yank the cable from the guitar, silencing the room and leaving d'Esterno to ask: "What happened? Did the cops come?"

The cops should have come. I haven't had more fun of recent, and best of all, the event was free. All performers gave of their time and talent, and some really good folks supported the event with sound, lights and spirit. Gotshall said he would host more of these events, so keep your ears open for good things to come from Backyard Blues.

-Larry CR Caddell 2006