Warped Consumption
“By all means, take pictures…but the microphone on your telephone is shit, so please, do not film us.”
This was the announcement made by Rollo Markee to the packed out AintNuthin’ But… blues bar as he discouraged those in the dense crowd from making crap videos of great bands.
They’re everywhere, these types and they seem more interested in showing people the great gigs they’ve been to than actually experiencing them in the moment. It’s a sad sign of our modern times and Rollo’s got something to say about it.
For a brief moment, Rollo wasn’t just a great frontman but also an ambassador for eradicating this warped version of live music consumption. A version that has somehow sneakily evolved from the traditional way of watching a band with your eyes, to viewing almost the entire happening via a brightlylit LCD screen that will later be viewed again with tinny, distortedsound.
OnceRollo is done asserting his humorous opinions on filming live music, the bandcracks on with the gig in the same masterful fashion in which they had begun.
In Walloh’s last
article on Rollo, he appeared with just one member of his usual band, The Tailshakers. This
time however, we got the full package: Guitar, drums, double bass and of course
the man himself on voice and harp with vintage gear and a
cracking, raw sound as a result.
There
were some especially tasty moments where guitar and harp came together in
unison, accented by ride cymbal crashes from a skilled drummer (superb facial
expressions included).
The jump blues vibes that interspersed throughout the
set eventually gave way to the usual, high energy guitar solos that never fail to get the
crowd cheering. In addition, their covers of blues giants Howlin’ Wolf and Muddy Waters
were more than well received.
The
highlight of the show was – as always – Rollo’s harmonica solos. The man has
skills like no other and it’s obvious to see he’s playing that harp from the
heart. It’s that visual element this band has that makes them worth going
to see.
It’s
not just a sound, it’s a performance and it’s what makes creating a shitty
little video of it so absurd. In a world where digital music consumption
dominates the industry, this band is one of an ever-shrinking number of
doorways into a world where you can experience some real, raw, music being
played with heart and soul.
So
check out Rollo Markee and the Tailshakers at Aint Nuthin But… blues bar on
Friday 13th March, where they’ll also be accompanied by the Bluematics. As long as
you keep your eyes on the band and your hands off your phone, you’ll have a
great time, guaranteed.
Nick
Vaughn
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