By: Andrea Myers
 |
|
Spaghetti Western at The Cedar - Photo by Andrea Meyers (click for larger version)
|
When I entered the Cedar Cultural Center auditorium I was greeted by a large, hushed crowd of people intently watching a series of odd short films by Adam Sekular, each of which had been scored by Spaghetti Western. The first featured choppy images of a man putting on a dress under a bridge spliced with images of downtown Minneapolis and a man flailing his limbs on a beach. The weirdness climaxed with a movie about a mannequin who was riding in a taxi past windows displaying other mannequins (was that Nicollet Mall?) and ended with her naked and limb-less on the sidewalk. I think I will stick to reviewing music.
When the movies finished, acoustic duo The Pines took the stage and launched right into their set. I was pleasantly surprised to see them joined by special guest Chris Morrissey (Mason Jennings, Haley Bonar) on the upright bass. Combined with David Huckfelt on acoustic guitar and Benson Ramsey on electric and vocals, the group put out a unique sound; blending a driving blues bass line with folk chord progressions and Ramsey's airy, haunting voice.
Ramsey immediately picked up on the intensity of the audience; as he plugged in a new guitar and let out a big electric THWANG he noted, "When that happens in a bar nobody notices." The audience - a mixture of young trendy hipsters, audio-visual geeks, and a considerable amount of older folks - spent the entire evening hinged onto every musical nuance, barely moving from the rows of tightly packed chairs.
I especially enjoyed a song called "Pale White Horse," from the Pines self-titled debut release in 2003. The song features strong acoustic rhythms and some serious finger picking by David Huckfelt and Ramsey's almost eerie electric distortions. Towards the end of their set, The Pines welcomed Spaghetti Western’s Michael Rossetto to the stage to play banjo on "Goin' Home." The banjo seemed a natural addition to the music of The Pines, and Rossetto later admitted that he has had a longstanding friendship with the duo.
 |
|
Spaghetti Western String Company
|
After a lengthy intermission that allowed audience members to run and get a drink (though few people were drinking anything alcoholic), Spaghetti Western took the stage.
The crowd fell silent as the quartet tuned, and then ever-so-softly worked in to the first song, "Gee-than's Latin." The piece was a slow dance between Michael Rossetto's graceful finger-picking on acoustic guitar, and the delicate harmonies between a mandolin (Nicholas Lemme), cello (Ethan Sutton), and violin (Denise Guelker).
Traditional Italian culture places a high value on having a large, intertwining family that can offer each other support and guidance. Spaghetti Western embraces this philosophy. The two-hour set featured guest appearances by a number of local performers, including a very talented young violinist named Eddie Kwan, as well as the members of The Pines.
It was revealed that the song "Granias" is about Denise Guilker's violin instructor, who just happened to be present Friday. The audience cheered as the teacher stood up and for a moment we all saw that this was more than an average, everyday concert; this was a recital showcasing four of the most talented string players in the area.
Perhaps the wildest part of the evening was during "Luna Marinara," which featured Nicholas Lemme and his beautiful tenor voice. Lemme exhibited excellent control and an impressive vocal range, which you would never suspect when he is self-consciously hunched over his mandolin. Lemme absolutely shined in this performance and he was thanked by the audience with long, rowdy (for this crowd anyway) applause and a girl shouting "is he single?" We got to hear Lemme sing again later in the evening as he mastered a piece from Schubert's "Winter's Journey," showing his versatility and ability to sing in both Italian and German.
The songs played off of their new EP, especially "BMV" and "Draisianne," showed that the newer material is just as finely crafted. The group exhibits excellent timing and attention to one another, clean phrasing, and mature emotional context.
By the end of the evening I completely understood why the audience was so quiet, so gracious of every detail; it was worth every second.
The Pines set list:
Let's Go
Make a Run
Midnight Sun
Don't Let Me Go
Pale White Horse
Can't Make Peace
Goin' Home
Spaghetti Western set list:
Gee-than's Latin
Granias
Ossa's Tango
Merton's Woods (Eddie Kwan-violin, Chris Morrissey-bass)
Luna Marinara (Eddie Kwan-violin)
Red Balloon Running Theme
Sullivan's Ferry (Travis-drums)
Horse and Buggy (with The Pines)
Cuckoo (with The Pines)
Light Under the Door (with The Pines)
BMV
Hurdy Gurdy Man from Winter's Journey by Schubert
Claus and Lucas (Eddie Kwan-violin)
Draisianne
Encore: Chitarra Romana
Location Info:
Cedar Cultural Center
Artist Info: Spaghetti Western String Company, The Pines
Share this story:
Article comments powered by Disqus