Audio By Carbonatix
The Black Crowes, Vetiver
Saturday, Dec. 13
Fillmore Auditorium
Better than: Revisiting the sounds of ’60s soul and ’70s rock with a middling bar band.
“I swear I’ve heard that riff before.” That was the recurring thought as I watched the Black Crowes and Vetiver perform Saturday, as the solos, the vocal lines and the song structures recalled countless precedents, from the Allman Brothers to Lynyrd Skynyrd.
The consistent sense of déjà vu did not come as a surprise. The
Black Crowes have never been shy about paying homage to their musical
heroes, whether it be in covering Otis Redding or borrowing heavily
from sound textures first pegged by rock legends. Depending on your point of view, the band’s pattern of musical
resuscitation can either seem admirable or sacrilegious – some would
revel in the revamped sounds of past masters, while others decry the
effort as unoriginal and stale. Saturday’s performance left me somewhere in the middle.
Both the Crowes’ and Vetiver’s sets were unassailable in their
sound, their musicianship and their content. Both bands delivered
lengthy sets marked by high energy, tight solos and a balanced sound
mix. The dense crowd packed onto the Fillmore’s floor and in its wings
never lacked enthusiasm.
But the bands’ live voodoo grew tiresome rather quickly. Even as
someone who grew up with a steady diet of classic rock and soul, and
even as someone who still holds that music as my baseline, the familiar
musical cues failed to excite or inspire as the show wore into its
second hour.
As an opening band, Vetiver laid a solid foundation for the show
that was to follow. With a straightforward and unadorned vocal style,
lead singer and guitarist Andy Cabic helped to keep the set grounded
and approachable as the crowd streamed in.
With steady, plodding rhythms and a range of sound cues pulled from
American folk and rock, Vetiver delivered a set that, at its high
points, was engaging, fluid and approachable. Songs like “Another
Reason to Go,” “I Know No Pardon” benefited from the sounds of Eric
Johnson from the Fruitbats on keyboards and lap steel guitar and Kevin
Barker from Currituck Co. on bass. The Black Crowes’ Adam MacDougall
also joined the band on keyboards.
While the Vetiver set was solid, its weakness was one that
characterized the whole night. The group’s sound – rooted in the
plaintive strains of American folk and the fuzzy solos of ’60s rock –
tread territory that was all too familiar. Vetiver seemed to channel a
wide range of ’60s bands – including Crazy Horse, Country Joe and the
Fish and the Band – and a few contemporary ones, too, with Wilco and
the Wallflowers being the most obvious.
After a 45-minute opening set, Vetiver packed up and the Crowes didn’t waste much time in starting their set.
Opening up with “Movin’ On Down the Line,” the Black Crowes quickly
established a high energy level and a pattern of virtuosic solos and
vocal flourishes. The opening tune featured a solo from frontman Chris
Robinson on harmonica and some musical acrobatics from MacDougall on
keys, and Rich Robinson and Luther Dickinson on guitars.
But the echoes of past giants were inescapable from the very
beginning. The opening keyboard riff of “Movin'” bore an undeniable
resemblance to Led Zeppelin’s “No Quarter” from Houses of the Holy.
As the Crowes’ set progressed and the band played more tunes from
their new album, Warpaint, such parallels continued. Newer songs like
“Goodbye Daughters of the Revolution,” “Whoa Mule” and “Oh Josephine”
melded well with older tunes like “Wiser Time” and “Could I’ve Been So
Blind” from the Shake Your Money Maker and Amorika albums. But whiffs
of rock giants from Skynyrd to Jimmy Paige, and Credence Clearwater
Revival to the Zombies didn’t stop.
That’s not to say the band’s paeans weren’t admirable. During
extended solos, MacDougall laid down some keyboard lines worthy of
George Duke in their sheer funkiness, and both Robinson and Dickinson
enjoyed some dynamic solos. Even drummer Steve Gorman showed his chops
on several solos, included a spate on congas.
The Crowes’ set also featured a reappearance from Vetiver for a pair
of acoustic tunes, a cameo that saw the large ensemble partake in group
vocals and lengthy solos. The Crowes-cum-Vetiver offered decent covers
of both Bob Dylan’s “You Ain’t Going Nowhere” and the traditional
gospel song “Will the Circle Be Unbroken?”
After Vetiver departed, the Crowes continued with their mix of older
and newer material. “Thorn in My Pride,” “High Head Blues,” “Downtown
Money Waster” and “Remedy” all received extended treatments, featuring
jams that were at times straightforward, and at others abstract in
their structure. The sheer length of some of the solo sessions became
arduous as the set progressed and the guitarists showed no signs of
self-editing.
The Crowes’ set spanned more than two hours, and the band kept up an
impressive degree of energy and chops throughout. The songs came off
smoothly, and the milling crowd ate up every note. But somehow, the night lacked any memorable dynamism. I felt as if
I’d heard all of these sounds and structures, and from artists who were
much more capable and original.
If asked to isolate a poorly performed guitar solo, an off-key vocal
or a song that lacked cohesion, I wouldn’t be able to. But the show
proved that being well-rehearsed and versed in soloing doesn’t equal
originality.
— A.H. Goldstein
Critic’s Notebook:
Personal bias: I was
fortunate enough to be seated next to a drunken band of over-the-hill
groupies, one of whom insisted on grabbing my notepad and pen and
exhorting me to participate in the group’s frenzied arm waving. It was
enough to detract from the set.
Random detail: The band omitted one of its best known singles, “She Talks to Angels,” from the set.
By the way: The large crowd at the Fillmore rivaled
the turnout for Rise Against and Ween, two of the most packed shows I
attended in 2008 at the same venue.
