MMW at Rams Head Live June 5th 2009
Friday was the second straight show of Medeski, Martin and Wood I was going to see. Of the two this was definitely the one I was most looking forward to. Yeah the Lewis Ginter was a new venue for me, but the last time I saw MMW at Rams Head Live it totally kicked ass. Plus it was a Friday in Baltimore so that was it’s own fun right there. For this show I planned on doing a little drinking and there is always Sabatino’s for some after show dessert and coffee.
Medeski, Martin and Wood
Unlike last nights show, this one started at a more reasonable hour. The doors didn’t open until 7 where as with the Lewis Ginter show, by 7 MMW was getting ready to take the stage. The extra time allowed me to put in a full day of work with plenty of travel time before the show started. I couldn’t leave work till 6pm but even at this late hour traffic was not an issue and I was in Baltimore just after 8. When I got into the venue The Wood Brothers were already on stage, but only a couple of songs into their set. Not my favorite band. They play really well and it was certainly different just having a due on stage. I like to call it hard core bluegrass, it was mostly time to get drinks and mingle with the other fans.
Trying to find other fans turned into a little bit of an issue as NO ONE showed up! That is not entirely true, probably 400-500 people showed up for the show. The last time I saw them at the Rams Head Live back in 2005 the placed was packed and I was hoping for the same amount of people. Baltimore has got a great scene when it comes to live music and I was expecting the hoards of people to flood into the inner harbor and support the band. Even on a Friday night and still no one showed up. So as showtime approached I was a little apprehensive on how good the show was going to be.
Another beer and it was time to find my permanent spot on the floor to enjoy the show. Because of the low turnout the upstairs area was closed off, so I took a spot dead center about 20′ away. There I meet two really cool people from Annapolis, Gretchen and Michal. A couple of young people who were well traveled when it came to seeing concerts. We all reminisced about various concerts we had been to and the upcoming Phish shows we were going to see. When the lights went down the fun was about to begin.
Rams Head Live!
The quick and dirty is that the show was 10,000 times better than last nights. Having such a small crowd did not diminish the vibe. The boys were on fire this night performing many of their new songs from Radiolarians II. They also threw in some new new stuff that should appear on the third installment of this series. The energy during the entire show was well maintained throughout. Reliquary starts off the first set and had this building quality to it. It sounds as if at any moment they are just going to breakout into this crazy bizarre jam without limits. Riffin’ Ed continued in the same way. When they got to the third song, a new one, they changed direction into something a little mellower that flowed right into Junkyard and back into an uptempo beat. For the set closer it was all energy with two more songs from their recent album, ijiji > Flat Tires. This left the crowd on a high and me wanting more, that second set couldn’t get here fast enough.
One last run to the bar for beer, I am responsible you know so no more drinking once the second set starts, and then to procure more real estate. This time I was able to get within a few feet of the stage, everyone else was not as quick at getting the last beer like I was. While waiting for the second set I meet Jennifer, now what I am about to say sounds straight out of a porno, but it is not. She is a airline stewardess out of Detroit who was in Baltimore for the night just to see the show. A real lovely woman to talk to and a true music fan like myself. I don’t know many people that will travel such a great distance just to see a band. When the lights went out and MMW stepped onto the stage it was time for my attention to shift.
copyright Tim
The second set was a little more adventurous in it’s tone and arrangement. Set highlights included three new songs, including one for the encore and another great version of Amber Gris which I have been really digging from their new album. Right in the middle of the set they change temp and pull out Baby Let Me Follow You Down. Not sure why when they were rocking hard they felt the need to slow things waaaaay down. Fortunately once it was over it was time to get back to the funk and boogie. When the set ended the crowd was pretty tired and I doubted they would be able to pull the guys out for an encore. Fortunately we didn’t have to wait long for them to bust out a new funky jam to leave us all on a high.
At the close of the show it was not exactly time for me to drive home. I was hungry for some dessert and besides, I needed to sober up a little. On my way to Sabatino’s I ran across this woman throwing an orange around and I just had to ask what she was doing. Being the gentleman I am I couldn’t just let her walk alone in the city this late at night. When we reached Sabatino’s however we parted ways, she headed home and I was headed for tiramisu and a cappuccino. I don’t know what it is about this combination, but it totally kicks ass and is but one reason I like coming to Baltimore for concerts.
Sober from the evenings concerts and still jamming to the tunes in my head it was time for the long drive home to my nice comfortable bed.
Set 1 9:38
Reliquary
Riffin’ Ed
unknown >
Junkyard >
ijiji > Flat Tires
set ends at 10:41
Set 2 11:13
Sweet Pea Dreams
unknown
Amber Gris
Baby Let Me Follow You Down
Amish Pintxos
unknown
encore 12:03
unknown
show ends at 12:11
