Avant-garde at the Avant-Garde

We interrupt our Bluesfest posts for some stuff outside the festival. And when I say outside, I mean outside! Well, it was actually inside, but it was, like, out - y'know? Instead of waiting in the crush to see Wilco, I went off to the Avant-Garde for my customary cheesecake and a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see Japan's Tetuzi Akiyama. He was touring with Montreal's Harris Newman, who is well known for his work mastering too many bands to list here. He also trades in some excellent John Fahey-influenced guitar. Newman's music was quite melodic; lots of arpeggios and somewhat raga-ish motions, bluesy bits, all played with considerable focus. No pointless meandering here.





Okay, I'll let you see what he actually looks like.



Not groundbreaking but highly listenable.

By comparison, Akiyama's sets ranged a little wider. He started on acoustic guitar, and his playing ranged outside the diatonic with far greater frequency. He was very quiet at the start - you could hear dishes clattering in the background and the hum of the fridge.



It's just not the Avant-Garde without Euro-pop videos ...



He went on to play a set of mantra electric boogie blues that sounded almost like a calliope playing.





The audience for his second set was smaller, but far more vocal.

Bluesfest: Day Nine

Since this was Bluesfest, I thought I might go and see some actual blues music. The Electro-Fi Records Hoodoo Review set up shop at the Blues Til Dusk Stage, and I dropped by to catch a couple of its acts: Curley Bridges and Finis Tasby. They shared a backing band and knocked out some old style blues in fine style.

Curley laid down some serious scatting.



Finis can't live with 'em, can't live without 'em. David Rotundo at left.



Then I went by the Main Stage to watch The Ms. This lady was playing some energetic piano-soul-blues concoction when I arrived. I think she's Kelley Hunt, filling in for the New Amsterdams, but I'm not sure.



As for the Ms, I liked their soulful indie rock; I might have put them in company with My Morning Jacket. They're current tourmates for Wilco, and one can see how they suit the role.



I zipped home for dinner, zipped back for some Roseanne Cash. I miscalculated and showed up for Martin Sexton's set. I snapped a few photos from afar, decided he wasn't my cup of tea and went off to the Blues Til Dusk stage to listen to Junior Brown.



Brown's performance on the guit-steel made me think of The Sadies' combination of country, surf and rock'n'roll, and he has a robust voice.



Once that was done, I went back to the Main Stage to see Cash. Good solid country rock from Johnny's daughter. Her right hand man, John Leventhal, is at left.



The big draw for Saturday was Wilco, but I just can't get into a show with such a huge crowd. The thought of standing for another three hours was unappealing as well. So I went to where I new the crowd would be small and the chairs plentiful: The Avant-Garde Bar, to see Tetuzi Akiyama and Harris Newman.

Newman arpeggios in silhouette.



As theorized, Akiyama started with an acoustic set, and finished with his "boogie" set.





Also, I had some cheesecake.