Last month the final night of the Open Road Americana music series, hosted by The Macat Persico Band, was held at the Maui Sugar Mill Saloon, and it was announced that night that Karman Jeanne (who was singing with Lois Blaisch at that show) would be taking over. Well, last night was Karman's first time hosting, and it was a wonderful night. The music series has a new name, Deep Valley Roots, and three bands were featured on the bill, including her own band, Karman Jeanne & The Fish, along with Levi Petree & The Radio Publica and Jed's Dead. Interestingly, Jed's Dead also played the final night of the Open Road Americana series, so there was a sense of some continuity between the two series because of that band's presence.
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| Jed's Dead |
Jed's Dead was up first. I had forgotten about the drummer's adorable, small kick drum. This band, by the way, is working on a new album, though have not started recording yet, so keep an eye out for that in a little whilte. At 8:30 p.m., Karman Jeanne introduced the band, and then Edward thanked her for having the band on the series' "
inaugural flight." They opened with "A Girl From Texas," a song that I remember being a highlight the last time I saw them perform. "
And everybody knew we'd fall apart/My only regret is you were smiling when you left/And I didn't have a chance to break your heart." How great are those lyrics? The song featured some nice guitar work by Tom. That was followed by "Two Hearts," a thoughtful number with a good country groove. "
I wrote that song for my mom," Edward said afterward. Dave then said the next song was one that he wrote, and added it was not about his mom. That song, "Emanita," had a nice vibe. Then "Grace" had a cheerful pop sound and groove, and a particularly catchy chorus. Tom sang lead on "When The Night Comes Down," and also delivered a pretty lead on guitar. The band did a couple of covers: Gear Daddies' "Stupid Boy," which featured some nice harmonies, and Del Reeves' "Looking At The World Through A Windshield," which had a delicious energy. They followed that with "Small Gods," one of Dave's songs, and one that Edward introduced as his favorite song on their most recent album. And it's easy to understand why. It's a wonderful song, and featured some nice work on harmonica last night. They wrapped up the set with "Party Wrecker," an energetic and fun number that featured a really good bass line and some great work on guitar. "
I'm sorry about the windshield on your new boyfriend's car/I didn't mean to wreck your party/But you shouldn't have broke my heart." Hey, sometimes a little damage is inevitable, eh? The set ended at 9:10 p.m.
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| Levi Petree & The Radio Publica |
Levi Petree & The Radio Publica were up next. This was my first time seeing this band, and it also happened to be the drummer's birthday. They opened their set with "Steering With My Knee," a song with a good energy and featuring a strong lead on guitar. They followed that with a somewhat mellower number, "Here And Now," which featured an excellent vocal performance and ended up being one of my personal favorites. The energy increased again with "When I Get Out," featuring good stuff on guitar. Levi switched to acoustic guitar for "Happy 4th Of July." In introducing that one, he mentioned that many things both in this city and in the country have bothered him and he wanted to put some of that into a song. From the moment he said that, I figured I would love the song (which I did). It's also nice to know you're in good company. I generally assume that musicians, or anyone in any artistic field, is probably bothered by the state of things, but you never know. That song was followed by another of the set's highlights, "Country At Heart," a country song about not quite fitting in with the country trappings and style. "
Cowboy hats always looked a little off." The song featured some cool stuff on bass. It was mentioned that Chad, the drummer, is from Montana before the band started "Big Sky Morning," a delightful, catchy country number. That was followed by another catchy number, "I Told The River." Levi switched back to electric guitar for "A Big, Big Love," and began it solo. This ended up being another of my favorites. Levi said it was the first time they'd performed it live. He then led the audience in singing "Happy Birthday To You" to Chad, before wrapping up the set with "The Brothers Rock 'N' Roll," a fun, high-energy rocking song. The set ended at 10:11 p.m.
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| Karman Jeanne & The Fish |
Karman Jeanne & The Fish took the stage just before 10:30, the duo was joined by Jonathan Sheldon on fiddle for the entire set. They opened with "Strange Time," which featured some excellent harmonies. "
These are all original songs," Karman told the crowd before introducing "Free Rocks For Sale," a song about, as she said, being five years old and not understanding what money meant. This song brought me back to my own childhood, though, truly, pretty far into my adult life, I was still having people tell me I didn't understand what money means. Maybe if I had some, I could learn? There were more beautiful harmonies at the beginning of "Tell Me Tomorrow." "
Only gravity could make us stay." Fish said that song was about ending a relationship without having to say the words. Then "What If I Said" featured some pretty violin work at the beginning. Fish sang lead on the first verse of "Talkin' 'Bout You," with Karman singing lead on the second verse. That was followed by "Empty Bed," a particularly pretty song. Karman mentioned that they were going to be recording with Ed Tree next month, so keep an eye out for a fresh recording from this duo. Though the set focused on original material, there were two covers, and for those songs Tom Gramlich (of Jed's Dead) joined them on electric guitar. By the way, as you've likely gathered, there are all sorts of great music series and residencies in this city, and Tom Gramlich hosts one on the last Sunday of each month at Cinema Bar. The first of the two covers was a really nice rendition of Lucinda Williams' "Crescent City," Lucinda Williams being an inspiration to Karman Jeanne. The second was Mark Knopfler's "Our Shangri-La." They then wrapped up the set with "Take," which was one of my favorite songs of the set, and "1, 2, 3 (Easy)." "
One, two three/It's gonna get easy/Trust in yourself." A good message to leave us with. The show ended at 11:27 p.m.
Next month, Arielle Silver will be playing the Deep Valley Roots music series, so that will be another special night.
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