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Easy Star All-Stars |
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Starr Hill Music Hall
Charlottesville, Virginia
07.17.03 |
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review by Skandar Rassas; photos by John Williamson
Irie. Yeah, that sounds about right. Describing the show in a single word, bassist and lead vocalist Ras Iray captured the mood of the night perfectly. The Easy Star All-Stars bridged the gamut between classic rock and reggae, packing Starr Hill Music Hall with an enthusiastic blend of dreaded rastas, Pink Floyd-enthused hippies, and everything in between. Performing for the first time in Virginia, the band kicked off its tour in support of Dub Side Of The Moon, a roots-rock rendition of Pink Floyd's 1973 masterpiece Dark Side Of The Moon, an album listed in the Guinness Book of Records for remaining in the Billboard top 200 for over 11 consecutive years.
In only its second show ever after an opening performance for Israel Vibration at B.B. King's in New York, the heterogeneous group composed of members of various New York bands traveled to Charlottesville, Virginia, home of label co-founder Lem Oppenheimer, who also conceptualized the Dub Side album (buy it). With no opening act on the bill save for a short session by DJ Scott Shisler (a.k.a. Goldfinger), the All-Stars opened the night with a straight up roots set, getting the audience into a skanking frenzy. Though many of the songs were unfamiliar to a large majority of the crowd who came to hear Dub Side, the seven-year-old record label certainly gained some new followers before the set was over. "We just wanted to give you a little roots reggae just to give you a different version. From version to version, Dub Side and the other side, you know?" said Iray. Opening with a couple of instrumental numbers displaying the skill of the band's individuals, the All-Stars started off with "Fighting" and "Darker Shade Of Black," with nice solos off the bat from trombonist Buford O'Sullivan, sax player Jenny Hill, and keyboardist Jeremy Mage. Bringing the brilliant vocals of Kirsty Rock into the third jam, her self-described "Brooklyn reggae" voice powerfully foreshadowed things to come. Introduced by Hill, fellow Brooklyn native Ruff Scott added depth to the group's vocals, taking the lead for the remainder of the set with his "chat" vocal style (reggae's version of rapping). Scott was joined briefly by Iray to bash the necessity of money on "Until That Day." The set gave a good overview of individual efforts by various band members,
After a prolonged intermission, the All-Stars returned to the stage to give the people what they came to hear. Recreating the entirety of Dub Side from start to finish for the first time ever, the band infused the audience with as much energy as could possibly be packed into the small venue, which sold out soon after the end of the first set. Although not mixed as continuously as the studio album (after all, the artists need a chance to breathe between songs), the live show certainly retained its integrity, though the mix occasionally left certain vocal parts drowned out by competing instrumental sounds. Some differences were evident from the studio version, such as the substitution of a regular drum set for the drum machine on "On The Run," to name one. Among a few vocal and instrumental substitutions, and the use of fewer synth sounds throughout, the live rendition still was able to recreate sounds reminiscent of the Pink Floyd original—thanks to sound man Dave Hahn—while adding new elements such as a beautiful flute melody from Hill at the beginning of "Time." Extending songs such as "Us And Them" with strong instrumental sections contributed to the intensity of the performance, as did the crowd knowing the Pink Floyd version so well that the anticipation of certain notes had the entire room holding its collective breath.
Sharing vocals and switching off throughout the performance, Rock and Scott provided raw vocal energy, while Iray and Michael Goldwasser (also on guitar) added a smooth texture. Absent were the big names featured on the studio album such as The Wailers' Gary "Nesta" Pine, Dr. Israel and dancehall veteran Frankie Paul, but blues and reggae stalwart Corey Harris treated the people with an appearance during "Time," dropping by from his house down the road from Starr Hill. Any fan of the original Dark Side was more than pleased with Rock's emulation of the original's wailing (provided by Clare Torry) during an electrifying "Great Gig In The Sky." Beginning exactly like the Dub Side version, the gurgling bong sounds of "Money" led into a blazing tirade by Scott in which he continued the theme of admonishing the importance of money.
After winding down the Dub Side set with a smooth continuous mix of "Any Color You Like," "Brain Damage," and "Eclipse," which ended in a pounding drum solo by Ivan Katz, the group left the stage briefly, walking through the crowd shaking hands before returning for an encore that was all but demanded. After seeming to use up all its energy during the main set, the entranced crowd was blasted with a burst of fast-paced toasting by Scott, who brought the energy level back up to its peak and even raised it another notch during the horn-heavy "Preach," while Iray got the people swaying in rhythm, breaking down a hard bass line. Quoting Bob Marley's classic "War," a musical version of a speech by Haile Selassie, Iray urged the audience to promote unity. "What we were blessed to do was to take Jah music and take Pink Floyd music. You have reggae lovers and you have Pink Floyd lovers out here tonight, and when you bring that together, you know what we call that? One love," said Iray. Rounding off the encore with an improvised, dancehall-inspired version of the Stalag riddim, Starr Hill was again forced into action by the shrieking of Scott, the hissing of yet another guest vocalist, local deejay Culture Biff, and a rap by Rock. By the end, an exhausted crowd filtered out of the venue, each person completely satisfied that they had gotten everything they paid for and came to see, and then some.
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