Saturday turned into a throw away afternoon of recovery, writing and venting on the events of the night previous. The dust had settled and the general consensus was that the venue was the notorious dirty party and this was just a last straw for the tight knit local community of music-inclined. After a short stop to check up on Cheesehead Productions, who were gearing up for Cope at The Funky Buddha Lounge and Brewery, I was on the road heading South. Brotherly Love Productions partnered with reggae band The Resolvers to organize a bus-turned-party wagon for the crew to roll down to downtown Miami. This had potential!
Get Down On It
Welcome to Miami
Things got off on the right foot and the good vibe was in full swing when we stopped to pick up more passengers in Hollywood, but not before numerous keg stands took place. The silly antics built the friendly atmosphere filled with Soul Train sing-a-longs and humorous banter. By the time we arrived at the Transit Lounge I was feeling pretty damn good and probably had my share of the transportation cost in liquid consumption alone. I was not alone in this endeavor. My partners in imbibing, Mr. and Mrs. Earthspice, lead our short stumble over to Tobacco Road just in time to catch the last few songs of Greenhouse Lounge's first set.
Tobacco Road
The cozy upstairs venue was close to full and the Miami BLP Krewe was already going hard on the short bar. Luckily the party bus made for a meeting of the buzzes. Sir Charles' set was a high energy dance party by the small stage. Even the older heads running sound were bobbing to the heavy bass. Whether it was the Miami mindset or the gritty venue dynamic, the Jacksonville DJ was bringing the heat to an already warm venue. He paid homage to Pretty Lights with a particularly well placed mix and satisfied my previous curiosity as to whether the Fort Collins producer was a heavy influence on his sound. After over an hour he announced his last track and jumped off the stage like a ball of raw energy. The guy had just completed a 60 minute dance aerobics session on stage and was still ready to go. I was impressed.
Sir Charles
Party in the City
It was getting late, and the room was as full when Greenhouse Lounge started their second set. Right out of the gate a burst of high octane grooves got the place pulsing in the dim lit room. I snapped a few pictures, but the beats and booze combined and I had to abandoned camera to take my place on the dance floor. Each time I took a grooving reprieve or stopped to open my eyes I caught familiar faces lost in the trance of multifaceted dub and deep electronic rhythms. It felt good to let loose and surrender to the music. The aforementioned sound engineers had the levels near perfect and this allowed for Zach Weinert's intricate samples and guitar chops to really shine. They were on a totally different level tonight and it felt more like a music odyssey than a predetermined set of individual tracks.
Greenhouse Lounge
As a result the movements moved towards higher destinations and blissful peaks of release. Jason Hunnicutt was playing more of a lead roll behind the drums and using every opportunity to hit a fill. Their underrated tightness, and ability to hit changes, is remarkable given how textured each composition is from an instrumental perspective. Zach is balancing his role as a guitar player with having to be precise on his sample board triggers. This literally dictates the overall flow of each composed and improvised section. I watched him flawlessly nail it every time. They were really feeling it. A particularly fierce "Slow Drip" emphasized this technique and was extended out into multi-layered pick ups and drops. As the last synthesizer tones rung out I came back to reality and felt the tune really capped off a strong set. An encore with a tribute to Michael Jackson's duet with Janet "Scream"confirmed that the hype was real.
Zach Weinert Triggers A Sample
The Heat Is On
The lack of any reasonable curfew in Miami allowed for the crowd to unwind throughout the venue for a while before dispersing. Impressions of the band ranged from impressed to ecstatic. I dabbled with the idea of sticking around for an after party near by. Instead I made my way out into the oddly desolate Miami street. The heat hung thick in the air and given it was early morning at this point, I jumped in a cab towards Miami Beach for some shenanigans till the sun came up. Yet another overly successful night thrown by Brotherly Love Productions. As Alonso the Taxi Driver and I crossed the bridge heading towards the Purdy Lounge, he asked about the band playing that night. The conversation ended with a warm, yet sloppy invitation to their next planned gig in the area at Aura Music and Arts Festival. Maybe we will see him there.
Set 1: Silhouette, Empires, Defeating Harrison> Merrimac Merchants, Sands
Set 2: Bebot (Up Until Now Remix), Slow Drip, Let's Go (Trick Daddy Remix), Beel, Koto, Backdoor Deal, Scream (Michael Jackson Remix)
Part 1: "Un-be-liev-able" As an avid patron to local music venues in South Florida, and abroad, bearing witness to a night like this seems inevitable. It is unfortunate, but rest assured that even upholding a status as a seasoned veteran could not have prepared anyone for the series of events that transpired.
Aquaphonics and Marc PaperScissor Team Up
After months of mounting anticipation, the North Florida dub-fusion trio Greenhouse Lounge kicked off a two night run from Delray to Miami last night. Hailed as a staple act of Aura Music and Arts Festival, as well as garnering a strong support base on their turf, South Florida ready for a strong dose of homegrown live electronic music to get the weekend started.
The heat lightening overhead lit up the sky above Atlantic Avenue. Ominous clouds threatened rain but more importantly served to set the tone for an eerie and hot summer night. Something in the air was off. I felt this even before I arrived. A cold beverage in the lot cooled my nerves and my body temperature. I was on time for once but the venue had the doors closed. This was odd given that every other establishment in the surround area was full and in swing. An unsettled group was forming outside but I wrote it off and readied my camera bag.
Things Go South
A member of the Cheesehead Productions crew hit me up and warned me to not come in. He came out and told me they just kicked Matt Beck out of the venue. As the head of Brotherly Love Productions and the promoter for the event, booting him would have some heavy repercussions. I made my way towards the entrance and caught up with him. A perfect storm of misunderstanding, mismanagement and inflated egos that stemmed from earlier in the evening had catapulted into the illogical decision to have him escorted out by a third party security personnel.
Given my personal interactions with Matt and Brotherly Love Productions, I know how much time and effort goes into bringing in talent and making sure every show runs smoothly for the band, the audience and the venue. He takes this very seriously and this was a big night for him, the bands and the local scene. Like any well oiled machine, the more simple things appear on the surface is usually an indication of more intricate processes going on in the background. In a nutshell the whole thing went awry when the venue kept the doors locked after the scheduled opening time out of some unjustified fear that no one was going to show up. When Matt stepped up to point out possible problem areas he was seen as a threat to the internal power struggle. Even as I write this it seems incomprehensible that a revered promoter could be penalized for simply doing his job.
Beyond that the staff was disproportionate with only 1 bartender and half a dozen security guys, complete with ear pieces and bad attitudes. The end result was a tragic case of too many chiefs distorting the truth and the upper level management of the venue letting his staff make executive decision based on misinformation. No matter what was actually said or not said, the way it was handled was completely unprofessional and a huge turn off to the concert goers and BLP Krewe faithful.
Despite the blatant mistreatment by the venue, Matt swallowed his pride and put on his professional face when he rallied for everyone to support the bands and tear up the dance floor for them. The venue realized they were in a bad place and decided to wave the $10 cover, thus sacrificing an easy $1,500 that would have been kicked back to the establishment and promotions. This kind of drastic decision making coupled with other revelations, such as a poorly stocked bar, may be an indication that this place is in trouble. Now we know why.
Music Saves The Night
Aquaphonics hesitantly took the stage around 10:30 PM to a decent sized crowd of eager fans. The vibe was tense at first but as soon as the music started all negative thoughts were out the door. This was the biggest stage I have seen them grace and they took full advantage of the sound capabilities. Images projections displayed local artist Marc PaperScissor's designs through psychedelic filters and sequences as the boys hosed the crowd with smooth electronic movements and reaching jam sections. Much like they have been doing in recent history, Aquaphonics was on point, playing up and the best I have ever heard them.
Aquaphonics
Taking a vow to never again monetarily support the current management of the venue meant heading across the street for a beer and shot combo before coming back to Sir Charles' electronic bass efforts. My research into his sound lead me to believe he would have a different approach, but the crowd was vibing to the hybrid dubstep-electronica. I could not help but place him as a generic rendition of producers like Derek Smith, but that could be a result of my limited exposure to the genre or the limitations of the genre itself. The guy believe in his music, which any music fan will applaud regardless of their own personal preference. His unending energy on stage proves it. I will give him another chance tomorrow.
Sir Charles
The Last Straw
It was getting late and Greenhouse Lounge took the stage. They band made a point to give a warm shout out to Matt that was met by a loud, positive response from the crowd. In hindsight I think that jab might have set the venue personnel off. The staff collected every piece of BLPJessiah, the drummer from Aquaphonics was tossed for an undisclosed reason. Those that protested and tried to question the security were also given the boot. It was an unreal turn of events and the most unsettling thing I have seen happen at a show. After the show was over I went back in to question the general manager. She had no idea who I was but went off on Brotherly Love Productions management and responded that the other patrons were forced out for rough housing. Having nothing to lose at this point, I called her out on this false information before being told to leave.
Greenhouse Lounge Kills It
Unfortunately the peripheral events taking place were a distraction from what was happening on stage. That being said, Greenhouse Lounge took the crowd on a trip through heavy dub lead by Dave Sweeny's thunderous bass and robotic posture. Skillful hip-hop vocal samples from the likes of Ole Dirty Bastard incorporated well with their break beat tendencies. The tones were on point, especially Zach Welnert's clean space guitar. I had to shed my own predispositions about how they might take the hypnotic composed sections to soaring peaks and improvisational segments. Instead they rely heavily on grooving textures and strategic effect sequencing that aim to capture the ear and no necessarily fulfill tension and release junkie's desires.
Greenhouse Lounge
The set was much shorter than expected, but for obvious reasons. I enjoyed some of the darker moments in the music and was impressed with their tight transitions. The crowd put in a good energy for the band and seemed more than satisfied with the performance. It was only night one and the general consensus was to get out of there reasonably unscathed was a major plus. See you guys in Miami tonight!
Greenhouse Lounge
Set 1: Bebot (Up Until Now Remix), Koto, Backdoor Deal, Sands, Let's Go (Trick Daddy Remix), Empires Fall, Scream (Michael Jackson Remix)
Aquaphonics Set I: Sip, Spooky, In Dub/In Dew, Animal, Super Moon, Waiting For It, Fingerbreaker
Videos Courtesy of Mark Duclos - Cheesehead Productions!
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