Psychograss
Freight & Salvage Coffeehouse, Berkeley, June 28, 2002
from Shaggy (shaggy@yak.net)

Does this mean psychotic grass? Grass for the psyche? Grass to get you
psyched up? I think all that and so much more. Wow, what a show!

These guys are stellar, fun, incredibly technical and technically sloppy
in a humorous way. Each of them had many moments in the spotlight,
evenly balanced, and everyone knew how, where, and when to give the
others plenty of room to explore and roam the musical frontiers.

This irregular ensemble features an all-star lineup: Tony Trischka,
mastermind and nimble-finger of the banjo; Darol Anger, virtuoso fiddler
with a smattering of bluegrass, classical training, shredding, plucking,
and general strangeness; Mike Marshall, ditto for the mandolin (I don't
recall him picking up a mandola tonight), swear to God he's Mike
Gordon's twin brother; Todd Phillips, very crafty and skillful upright
bass; and David Grier on guitar, flatpicking guru with a good sense of
humor. I won't write about each of them; each of them deserves a whole
separate article by someone who can do them proper justice. Besides,
it's midnight, and my satiated self is going to sleep soon to have
dreams of bluegrass ballads drifting across the hills of my old Kentucky
childhood home.

David Grier is one of the finest flatpickers I've seen in recent memory.
His agility and speed was mind-numbing, and his accuracy and tone were
an unbelievably delicious match to the other fast-picking genius up
there. And he really coloured the music well in the not-so-fast moments;
"Psychograss" might imply blazing speed - and indeed I think they
achieved deep-space warp speed tonight - but is not the general rule, as
they had some great down-tempo numbers, bluesy and jazzy treats, and
moments of strangeness that belong to no particular genre except that
of... Psychograss.

Mike left it up to the audience in the second set to steer the show and
call out requests. Several voices blurted out, and Mike responds, "Oh
geez, you actually bought the album! Oh my... can't you ask for
something like Blackberry Blossom?" Heh heh.. they say how they like to
put new and weird spins on even the most over-played standards. So they
bust into a riveting Blackberry Blossom in disjointed metre, five
different keys, with at least three different "themes." It was
hysterical! And then, of course, fitting with their collective
brilliance, ripped into a "real" version along with another medley of
tunes (which I forget at the moment).

Another memorable number featuring nimble Mike Mando, zippy Darol
Fiddle, and smokin-pickin Tony was Roanoke, a tune by Bill Monroe and
Joe Ahr which I remember from "The Bluegrass Album Band, Vol. 6", on
which Todd Phillips also stars.

And what would bluegrass be without.. Jimi Hendrix? A rollicking good
third Stone from the Sun, with so many musical styles represented that I
lost track. Literally, one measure was fast-on bluegrass, the next jazz,
the next minor-key blues, rock n' roll, then something approaching new
age, then classical... and all five musicians dropped into each of them
flawlessly with complete mastery. I don't think I've ever seen someone
*bow* a banjo (i.e. play the strings over the edge of the banjo head
with a violin bow), but this is how Tony represented the lead
instrument. This number was a fine example of how the whole show
progressed, keeping me on the edge of my seat for just about every note.

And no Darol Anger/Mike Marshall performance would be complete without
intellectual musical humor. The chemistry of these guys was phenomenal,
and their playfulness showed up in some quirky and funky musical moments
that left the whole audience in stitches. They attempted spoken humor,
often strange and cryptic and sometimes great fun. Darol recounted a
story of Bill Monroe laying down new gravel on his driveway (pea sized?
yes, it must have been pea sized gravel!). One day he was running late
to a gig, threw some stuff in the back of his station wagon, and backed
out of the driveway - having forgotten a mandolin sitting behind the
car, he backed right over it. Ouch! But the new gravel was so big that
it smushed the mandolin case down into the gravel and dirt, and it
emerged unscathed. So they did a tune about a gravel driveway.

The encore of I'll Fly Away, with all the other spaces and musical
diversions it took, was a real emotional joy-ride that brought the house
jumping up to a standing ovation and deafening, well-deserved applause.

No show review from Shaggy would be complete without boi adventures.
None so to speak at the show (plenty of good ones afterward, though! not
tellin'... ;) except for one heart-warmer. I had dinner with friends and
then arrived late to a standing-room-only crowd. I found my niche and
got way into the music, then noticed I was standing next to a really
hot, tall, tanned boy with long blond hair. Whoa! I never really spoke
to him other than to ask his thoughts on the show. He, as I, was blown
away. But that was about the extent of our exchange, although when I
walked outside his eyes followed me about halfway up the street (I know
this because I kept looking back, but old stories kept me from talking
to him right then, even though he was standing alone and the opportunity
was obvious. Made for a good pondering session on my walk during
intermission.). So, that was about it for the boy energy at the show.
Continuing to dream of the queer bluegrass circle...!

Happy Pride, and summer blessings,
Shaggy