10/22/01 - Steve Kimock Band
Starr Hill Music Hall - Charlottesville, VA
Click For Setlist
Left work at three p.m. and found myself nodding in and out on the train as the effects of limited sleep from the previous night's show kicked in. I got in a little nap, though, and by the time my wife arrived home with my car, I was raring to go.
I'd been told that the drive from Fredericksburg (where I live) to Charlottesville is two hours but, as traffic held my wife up I left with just over two hours until showtime and a clear mission ahead of me. I'm not one for tardiness and made the drive in ninety minutes.
I entered The Starr Hill Music Hall, picked up my ticket and, rather than ascend towards the venue, I stepped into the ground floor brewery/restaurant to meet some friends and unwind with a beer. (The Stout is excellent, FYI) Together, just after nine, we all went upstairs to check out this new venue.
The music hall is long and wide with a low-ish ceiling and hardwood floors. The stairs come up in the center of the room and ahead of you (at the back) is the bar. To your right are tables and a counter for merchandise sales. To the left is the sound board beyond which and up one step are more tables and chairs. Turning around to the left, at the front of the room and in the corner is a smallish stage. Similar in size and height to the Wetlands stage, the band was setup much closer together than at the previous night's gig in Falls Church.
We moved up front and mingled a bit (I met Rudson, Steve's guitar tech) until just before nine-thirty when the band came up on stage. Richard Hammond (this being only his third gig, he's the newest member of SKB) had rough charts of some of the songs with him onstage. The top sheet of these dampened my surprise although not my enthusiasm for the opener, Bad Hair.
Steve had on his intensely modified white strat and, after the intro theme and a funky bass break from Richard, led us away from the theme for the evenings first tasty solo. This shifted into a tight funk jam as Richard continued to show confidence (despite the crib notes at his feet) and then returned to the theme once more to close out a terrific choice to start the evening.
Steve then switched his signature guitar, the Explorer, as my friend Mike (who had seen the setlist just before they came on) grinned like a man with a winning lotto ticket. When they eased into Severe Tire Damage, I started grinning too. Here we have classic Kimock performed at its best. Rodney Holmes appeared to be guiding Richard a bit but if he was lagging you couldn't really hear it. I was mesmerized. Steve took an expansive solo that spiraled upward and out enveloping the room in a melodic mist before, eleven minutes into the song, they reprised the theme. Mitch Stein took the next solo which jarred me a bit as his tone initially seemed too heavy; too dirty for the song. He quickly pulled in the reins and gave us a nice, brief solo which led to a every quieting meltdown. Richard held steadily to the STD theme on bass as the rest of the band brought it down lower and softer until, on a cue from Steve, they slipped into Ice Cream.
While not chronologically "classic Kimock", this tune has all the elements of such as this performance revealed. The opening theme soared from Steve's guitar atop the galloping rhythm from Mitch, Richard, and Rodney. Words like "monumental" and "anthemic" come to mind and, although they don't sound very objective, I'd have to use them to describe this song. Several great, tight jams ensued over the next twenty minutes although frankly were it not for my watch I'd never have known that time was passing.
Kissin The Boo Boo added to the trinity of sweetness. Steve switched to his Fender Mustang and took a delicious solo which didn't stray too far from the theme before he waved Mitch in. Mitch took things his way (a little heavier, a bit crunchier but satisfying and fresh in his contrast to Steve) and carried us through a strong run through the bridge. Steve picked it up once more and turned in yet another stratospheric solo that had the spinning girls spinning and the gear-head guys bobbing heads with closed eyes and blissed out grins.
Next came the third venture in as many nights into New Loop In C (which is likely just a provisional title but with Kimock, you never know). Steve made a one-handed keyboard gesture to Rodney as he turned to adjust his rig and Rodney began sampling beats with a laptop that perches near his floor tom. After assembling a groove that stretched several bars, he applied some sort of effect (which made it sound electronically generated rather than sampled) and looped it. Rodney then locked into a sympathetic beat and Richard joined in producing a very danceable disco groove.
Steve pulled up his Fender Stringmaster dual-necked steel guitar and, playing that traded leads with Mitch. Folks in the hall were getting down, waving their hands in the air and clearly enjoying themselves. Shortly, though, they brought it down and then back up as Steve took a quick solo and Mitch checked into the weird department. Weird is a domain in which Mitch seems very comfortable as he stepped on pedal after pedal, waved his guitar about by the "whammy" bar and coaxed wails and moans from his amp.
This too was short lived and shifted into a rock jam before breaking down to solo from Rodney (and his Laptop). Steve signaled for Richard to join in and we got our dose of drum 'n bass before the song wrapped up. Not quite as out-there as in Falls Church and, in fact, seemingly more developed, this 'new groove' for SKB grew on me a bit more after the second listen.
Steve decided to hold to the steel guitar for a little while more and closed out the set with a ripping performance of Steel Guitar Rag. This folksy jam felt right at home in the hills of Virginia and I, for one, really enjoyed seeing it. Afterwards Steve quickly introduced the band and they slipped off to the bus for a break.
Twenty minutes before twelve, the band returned and Steve slipped on his white strat. They jumped right into You're The One. Although it was another repeat from Falls Church, this version was different and stronger. Richard Hammond continued to show confidence within the unit and Rodney took short solo. Then Steve pulled out his Supro Ozark and a slide, producing a delightful solo. This solo shifted away from the high-octane rock/funk into a Blue Ridge Mountain Reel suitable for a barn dance! Steve then dropped the slide and played the Ozark normally (which, I'm told is tricky as the strings are quite high) to reprise the theme one last time- ending at precisely midnight.
Steve returned the Ozark in favor of the Mustang for A New Africa. Similar to the previous night's version, Steve sailed effortlessly through the theme, bolstered by the steady cushioning of the band. His leads wove in and out of the catchy, carribean theme- up, over, away, and descending into a tension diffusing meltdown before coming back, once more, to the theme.
After Africa, Steve handed the 'Stang back to Rudson and moved his steel guitar back into position. We watched expectantly as he donned his finger picks and Rodney, Richard, and Mitch began the gentle, ethereal introduction to Why Can't We All Just Samba?. I'm endlessly amazed at how inventive Rodney Holmes can be and found myself gaping admiringly as he danced across his cymbals sending out shimmers of rhythm like golden snowflakes.
The audience applauded as Steve spelled out the graceful melody. Naysayers might cite the absence of vocals in SKB as a weakness (and they have every right to that opinion) but, one would be mistaken in noting an absence of lyrics. Many of Steve's tunes, while instrumental, are as lyrical and poetic as anything this record collector has ever heard. ...Samba is a perfect example.
Steve yielded, after a glittering solo, to Mitch, who took another impressive lead. A brief drum and bass break ensued, bringing the tension down a notch before Steve stepped back up. This solo started quietly; patiently evolving into longer, more complex phrases.
By this time however, some of the audience attention had waned and- atop the delicate solo which Steve was unfolding- a distracting chatter arose. Not to be outdone, Steve continued unabated and he and the band began a five-minute accelerando which rose in volume and tempo to a mind-searing, roof-tearing peak that turned to talkers into whirling dervishes and had those of us who'd been paying close attention popping our eyes and holding our heads as if they were about to burst. After that climax, Steve reprised the theme to raucous applause and wide-eyed grins. He then switched back to his white strat for Moon People.
At twelve thirty-seven, nearly twenty-four hours after beginning their previous performance of Moon People, Steve and Co. embarked once more into its science-fiction-movie-soundtrack realm. The theme strides along in a gentle, low-gravity canter until it reaches the launch pad. Once there, Steve sent out a wave of other-worldly tones before switching to something a bit dirtier.
Rodney set himself down in the pocket while Mitch coaxed beams of feedback from his rig (which I noticed was Moose-less for the night.) Steve, satisfied with his heavier sound, began a driving, repeating riff while, in contrast, Richard sent out low, sustained ripples of bass through the floor. Next, taking off his guitar as he'd done the night before, Steve held it before his amps- drawing out rivers of feedback. Unlike Sunday's show, however, he seemed pleased with the results and knelt down closer to the cabinets, steering us through rapids, eddies, and pools of sound. He hopped up, after that, grabbed his EBow, and the band moved into a heavier, yet more cohesive, jam. The EBow quickly disappeared and the jam returned to the melody, leaving the darkness behind. Steve soloed as Richard held down the theme. Mitch took a go as well before they finally touched back down.
A short, beautiful Cole's Law followed and was clearly an audience favorite. This version would not fall under the category of expansive or revolutionary. Instead, it was more a note-perfect, crystalline example of a classic Kimock ballad. Steve took two delightful solos which swelled and ebbed gorgeously throughout the hall.
Not willing to leave us on a mellow note, they jumped right into the odd time and uptempo jive of Five B4 Funk. Those familiar with the song, waded through the progression and, upon hearing the bridge as their cue, shouted the obligatory, "Woo!" After the first time around, Steve could be seen shaking his head and saying, "You can do better than that." The next time around, the crowd was louder but still Steve shook his head.
"Not as good as Boston," he said, referring to the December 1999 KVHW show at The Middle East.
The audience rose to the challenge the next time through before the band jetted off into a tight jam that never really strayed too far from home. The finale, which generally includes a syncopated breakdown of the bridge, was smooth but not nearly as intense as I've heard before. Afterwards, Steve stepped up to the microphone and introduced "The Gig Clock." He then introduced the band, all of whom received much-deserved applause, and said goodnight.
Myself, with the clock edging towards one-thirty and a long drive ahead, I said a couple of good-byes and hopped into my car- putting Charlottesville behind me. A terrific night of music racing in my mind, I drove and thought about the rising strengths of the current line-up. Richard Hammond's comfort level is obviously increasing and I feel that he's a good compliment to the group. Mitch plays devil's advocate to Steve's clear and present tone while Rodney brings it all together. He's the glue and the metronome. The "new" material is still too new to accurately judge but surely will find its niche in the Kimock sound. As the tour progresses, this band is only going to get better and better... Get off the fence, and get into the clubs. Enjoy.
©2001- jmh
About the Author jmh is a family man who is thankfull for beer, LPs, and extra guitar strings. Donations of any of these things or cash for their purchase will be happily accepted.