Ringing in the New Year with the Duo and the Slip

Benevento/Russo Duo perform "9 x 9" at the Chameleon Club 12.30.06:

It will come as news to nobody that there were a plethora of options available for New Years festivities on the East Coast this year. While the most enticing options almost always involve travel of some kind, I was lucky enough to find musical pleasures close to the Big Apple. However, my game plan involved turning a blind eye to the shenanigans in Atlantic City, and whether I could actually resist ringing in the New Year with the red-headed felon was a decision that many (including myself) wondered whether I could stick to. But stick I did, and I was rewarded with the warmest NYE run in recent memory.

The 29th began with a yummy double-header at Mo Pitkins of two sets of Honky-Tonk Allstars, Larune and Basement Band. Kamara Thomas bravely opened the Larune set with a solo acoustic debut of another of her signature panoramic song-writing journeys, and the band then joined her for favorites like "My Kentucky" and "I Just Don't Get It", the latter of which Jeff Malinowsky hilariously (and correctly) dubbed "Best song ever!". He thereafter took the stage with his Basement Band-mates, and delivered some wonderful a capella and acoustic numbers, including a lovely "Wagon Wheel". From Mo Pitkins, we hightailed it to the Knit to catch Rana's set, performing as a trio in the Tap Bar, and whilst the front row featured some distracting glow-ring e-tivity, Scott Metzger once again demonstrated his solid chops on guitar.

The next morning I hit the highway and headed west to PA (and not south to AC) to catch The Benevento/Russo Duo in Lancaster, PA. With no forseeable shows as a duet in 2007, I wanted to make sure to catch one last Duo show to cap off a huge year for Marco and Joe-- a year that saw them on stages in Europe, on stages with half of Phish, and everywhere in between. I can't think of two musicians who have toured as tirelessly as these two, and this sentiment was solidified when the fact was revealed backstage that this was the first time in recent memory that Joe had not opened for himself: he has pulled double-drumming duty on tours with GRAB, Chris Harford's Band of Changes, and had even stood in the night prior for Sam Champion while Ryan Thornton manned the kit at Rana's Knitting Factory gig.

Joe and Marco opened their set with a rare "Hateframe", and played an impressively tight and evocative show in the quirky and intimate Pennsylvania venue. A hands-down highlight was the cover-combination of Elliot Smith's "Waltz #2" into Radiohead's "Myxamatosis", a segue which appropriately showcases both ends of the Duo's sonic spectrum. Songs like "Love Song" and "9 x 9" (which you can view above) have grown much deeper and tighter since the release of "Best Reason To Buy The Sun", and if songs this young can be nostalgic, the anthems from their first album seem to recall a different era. Perhaps it is because the Duo's incessant touring and prodigious talent have meant that their entire repetoire has evolved immensely over the past few years. What is clear is that their presence as a duet will be missed in the musical tapestry of 2007.

New Years Eve brought me back to Brooklyn, not just because of the borough's musical offerings, but because waking up in your own bed is the most attractive way to start the year. I doubled-down on my Honky-Tonk intake by attending an incredible loft party in Green Point and happily counted down to 2007 with the rowdy sounds of Gordon Hartin singing "Drinkin'", with delighted Honky-Tonkers abounding. I then skipped over to NorthSix to catch the second set of The Slip.

While they had plowed through many of their hits like "Airplane/Primitive", "Children of December", and the ever-awesome "I Hate Love" already, that meant that the second set was peppered with one-of-a-kind gems like Bowie's "Changes",, Elvis Costello's "What's So Funny About Peace, Love, and Understanding", and my personal favorite cover of the ENTIRE YEAR: AC/DC's "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock N' Roll)" with a "Poor Boy" sandwiched in the middle. Pretty serious stuff for the beloved Berklee dropouts.

All in all, they capped off a lovely three-night run of smiling friends playing music in intimate rooms: what New Years should be every year if we're doing it right. Happy 2007...