The Wee Trio was anything but wee as they filled the
Wilder Room Thursday night with hip, bouncy bop. The atmosphere in the room is
a tad stiff without music, and it’s still stiff with music. The picture the
band painted didn’t entirely color the walls, but I loved it. The trio was
equal amounts what I like and what I understand mixed with a dash of good ole
WTF.
James Westfall’s vibraphone attack was reminiscent of Cal
Tjader in its playful discourse and speed, both of which were matched expertly
by Dan Loomis on the bass and Jared Schonig on drums.
The set also had a guest visit from Rochester ex-pat Mike Cottone.
What I do in these cases is daydream, create a film in my
head as its soundtrack unfolds. The weirder the music, the weirder the dream.
The dream I created with this trio’s help was a long, shiny Cadillac surrounded
by showgirls in mini dresses on mini bikes rolling like Shriners with maximum
moxie, all cruising the Vegas strip with the lights of the assorted casinos
lighting up the Caddy’s gloss and the dresses’ sparkle and shimmer. I betcha you can practically taste those vibes now.
Find The Wee Trio at theweetrio.com.
Sheryl Crow played a sold out Kodak Hall at the
Eastman Theatre after earlier today buying a couple of guitars from the cat in
the hat, John Bernunzio, at his Uptown Music and hat
store. I’ve seen Crow a number of times and though her band was excellent as
always — charging right in with three hits in a row: “Everyday
Is a Winding Road,” “A Change Would Do
You Good,” and the one that put Crow on the map, “All I Wanna
Do” — it lacked steam and could have used a little more heat. There was no
shortage of hoots and hollers from the crowd for her performance, and there’s
no denying she can write a pop song, and she broke out just about all of them —
I just could’ve used a little more spark.
Sheryl Crow can be
found at sherylcrow.com.
Tomorrow night, it’s Binker and
Moses and Caravan Palace for me. Join me, won’t you?
This article appears in Jun 28 – Jul 4, 2017.
