The Avett Brothers
Originally uploaded by MrBadExample.
Welcome to Avett August here at Tinsel and Rot.
Avett August is a month-long salute to my new favorite live band, The Avett Brothers, from Concord, North Carolina. They're doing their best to get a foothold outside of their home state, and that means a lot of touring in places where they might not have the biggest followings. That can be a lonely proposition, leading to nights where you're playing to such a small crowd at the Goldhawk in Hoboken that you can shake hands with each audience member when the show's over.
And that's a real disappointing thing, or at least it's disappointing to me. Maybe you don't care about music. And, really, that's fine. We all have different ways to get through the day. But music does mean a whole lot to me, which is why you should take heed of what I am about to tell you.
With all the shows I've been to, there have only been a few moments where I've (forgive the hippy-dippiness) felt a sort of magical feeling wash over me. It happened when I saw Todd Snider and the Nervous Wrecks at the Bottom Line in the summer of 1996. It happened when I first heard Marah perform "History of Where Someone Has Been Killed" at the Mercury Lounge in the summer of 2000. And it happened a few months ago at, of all places, a Tower Records in Lincoln Center, where the Avett Brothers (Seth and Scott Avett and honorary brother Bob Crawford) gave an in-store performance on a Saturday afternoon.
Now, a Saturday afternoon in-store performance isn't exactly a show you would expect to kick much ass. You figure they'll play a few songs for a smattering of indifferent people who are busy looking for a Norah Jones CD, sign a few CDs afterward, and be on their way. But the Avetts don't do anything half-ass. They stomp. They shout. They shake. Scott Avett slashes at his banjo til a string breaks or a finger bleeds, whichever comes first. Seth Avett picks out a clean guitar break and then pounds a way on his high-hat cymbal, stopping only when a spring pops loose and quick repairs need to be done. And just when you think it's all about the shoutin', Bob Crawford joins in on a three-part harmony, and it sounds so damn sweet that you want to cry. But you're 28 and you're in a record store on the Upper West Side, so you think better of it
Listen, what I'm saying here is that if they can do that at an in-store on a Saturday afternoon, don't you think you should check out what they can do in a full-blown show?
The Avetts will be up here in the Northeast a few times in August. You really oughta check them out. And I will even pay your way. If you don't like it, you owe me nothing. No strings attached. No money down. No kidding. But I'll only take the first five who jump at the offer. I aint no rich man, son.
I'll likely be at all the following shows. Come on down:
8/13 Joe's Pub, NYC (9:30 p.m.)
8/24 Rittenhouse Square, Philly, PA (already a free show to start with, dammit; with Chatham County Line) (don't know the time)
8/25 Mexicali Blues, Teaneck, NJ (10 p.m.)
LINKS
http://www.theavettbrothers.com
http://www.joespub.com
http://www.mexicalibluescafe.com
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