I have travelled back in time and met the future…

*Sonically we’re in control
We’re the diamond in your soul
Images come thick and fast
From the future, from the past*
Leftfield-Original-1995

I have travelled back in time and met the future…

Captains Log: Stardate : February 2010..Sector : Charleston,South Carolina,The U.S.and A…

(This is best read with a fake British accent…)

Sounds a little crazy to me except I did the travel bit and am here in the past letting you know the future finally looks awesome/hopeful/good and delicious…It’s been awhile hasn’t it?…”Yes indeed it has Sir” is what your inner-voice just said.Listen up.

A few evenings ago I was invited by the local barista at my favorite little coffeehouse here in lovely Charleston,South Carolina to attend a fundraiser at the Memminger Auditorium in downtown Charleston for the new Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art ( http://halsey.cofc.edu/ ) housed at the College of Charleston featuring the musical stylings of local musicians “The Opposite of a Train” ( http://www.myspace.com/theoppositeofatrain )…seemed like a good cause , cause I’d gone to an exhibition at the aformentioned Halsey Institute the week before and it was rather rad.period. *re-read that part…there’s a lot of info to digest…

So I went…and I went expecting the typical hipster/indie/mopey/shoegaze “i fantasize locally about fame” type of music that seems to be tolerated by misinformed *fans* of live music as of late…

*Set Phasers to Stun*

The Opposite of a Train at its’ core element is a 3 man-group…no…not the bass/guitar/drums 3-man group…guitar and drums yes…and piano,banjo,accordion,french horn or whatever it is that looks ‘like a french horn’ but is actually called a flugleheimer or something,marimba,trumpet and the list goes on…and these fuckers play each of their many instruments.Great.Period.

Here’s how it works;

Bill Carson sings.Gorgeously.
Ron Wiltrout drums.Amazingly.
Nathan Koci plays.Perfectly.

Actually Piano-Playing Nathan may have stolen Carrot Tops prop-crate because I honestly lost count of how many instruments he played.He’d reach down and pull something new out for every song.I was hoping for a rabbit or a bouquet of colorful flowers at the end but they’d already hand-delivered Rainbows of Sound and Unicorns of Glee by that point…yes, Glee…real genuine “I’m glad I am here seeing this in person” Glee, not that stupid tv show that’s apparently “hilariously funny”,it isn’t…

These three fine fellows had a couple of friends join them…Kevin Hamilton, Charlton Singleton, Clint Fore, and Wilton Elder were the Brass/Stand-up Bass section,all bad-asses in the world of complicated musical jazz stylings,see; http://www.jazzartistsofcharleston.org/ for some info on a couple of these Soul-Crushers…and a few ‘real’ singers helped out too…Carry Ann Hearst,Michael Trent, Lindsay Holler,Joel Hamilton and Stephanie Underhill (barista mentioned earlier)…Hipsters everywhere should shave off the Ironic beards and ironic Moustaches and just go get jobs selling insurance because this Massive Collective of real real Talent will most certainly get hipsters in touch with true feelings of shame and fraud for pretending they might have a hidden talent…let’s picture for a minute Clay Aiken VS. Janis Joplin…wait for it…exactly.case closed.I saw the Future and it’s coming to get you.Isn’t it Ironic?

Joel Hamilton broke everyones heart all at the same precise moment he sang Led Zeppelins ‘Going to California’.He really did.Mine’s still broke

Cowboy Ballads/Moving Classical upswells of rolling hills sound/Jazz flavored Jazz/Honky-Tonk/Bluesy Blues/Foot-Stomping playground Rhymes/Spirituals/Heart-Breakers…like a proper Sunday Church Picnic,there was plenty of everything for everyone.

I can’t properly convey how fucking awesome it was simply with words…ok,It was Awesome!.there.

Big Ups to
Maryland!
Crooklyn! X2 nights…What what what???
Mass.!
Maine!
The D to the C!!

Go see these guys and give them hugs/bring a friend/you won’t be bummed/unless you suck/then you should be bummed in person by greatness/it’s only fair.

Feb 5 2010 7:00P
Sweet Ellicott City, Maryland
Feb 6 2010 8:00P
Clover’s Gallery Brooklyn, New York
Feb 8 2010 10:00P
Goodbye Blue Monday Brooklyn, New York
Feb 9 2010 8:00P
Whitehaus Jamaica Plain, Massachusetts
Feb 10 2010 8:00P
Hog Farm Annex Biddeford, Maine
Feb 15 2010 6:00P
Kennedy Center Millennium Stage Washington,D.C.

links to the shows w/ addresses are above and here http://www.myspace.com/theoppositeofatrain

Word.
CD

Tags: accordian, awesome.music, banjo, charleston SC, great, hipsters, music.awesome, musicians, piano, the opposite of a train

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