Day one of spring break starts off with a bang, and that is absolutely not a reference to the painting of Kurt Cobain about to commit suicide under the specter of dead, young stars on the above artwork from Little Brothers in scenic Columbus, Ohio. The venue was hosting the Black Swans and the inane jam revolution that is Akron/Family.
The Black Swans got the party started with their very deliberate, slow driving style. The group is a three piece with guitar, bass and violin. The violin provides beautifully ornamented runs that typically connect the vocal sections.
The music was performed at such a slow tempo that the audience was slow dancing along with the music much like a 1950s high school dance. The lead vocalist joked that dancing like that was the same way Suzanne Summers got pregnant.
There was a short break between bands. Then Akron/Family piled up their requisite montage of musical devices and rained a furious energetic trance down on anyone and everyone within ear shot.
Each musician had a fall back instrument that they backed up with other instruments. There are two guitar players, a bassist and a drummer. Seth Olinsky, Miles Seaton, Dana Janssen and Ryan Vanderhoof play flutes and maracas and tambourines and 1980s Yamaha synthesizers and hand drums and shekere and recorders that spin a multi-genre folksplosion of music.
Many songs are an almost religious chant style, with vocals or vocables sung over melody lines that soar from under a powerful drone built by whichever members are operating the rhythm section at that juncture in time. There are classic and hard rock elements in many sections, but Akron/Family jumps around quickly enough that if you ever get bored, they'll be doing something totally different in one more minute.
The audience even got involved, with the band handing out their instruments and allowing the crowd to play recorders, tambourines and maracas along with the infectious rhythm. There was also a section with beatboxing alongside the audience's percussion foundation.
The show lasted until 1:45 a.m. Check out the photo gallery and video clips included with the presentation to get a real feel for the show.
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| Akron Family Web |
Check out some video of the Black Swans and their carefully crafted, folksy dirges.
Here is another Black Swans clip.
This is the montage of Akron/Family video. They are all short clips.
Early Jam.
Bass Drum/Floor Tom.
Bass Drum/ Floor Tom2.
Guitar work.
Vocables in Action.
Everybody Jump and Clap!
Let's have a little bass with those 88s.
Guitar 1 close up.
Synth sounds.
The below Picasa link contains the videos from the end of the show, including the footage of everybody in the crowd jamming along with Akron/Family.
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| Leftover Akron Family |
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