For close to 30 years, drummer Jefferson Voorhees has built a reputation as an earnest, reliably quirky, and much appreciated fixture on Albuquerque’s music scene. His list of credits runs the gamut from world music (with Wagogo and others) to avant-garde jazz (with TG3 and others) to several unclassifiable varieties of miscegenational music (with Pray for Brain, The Dogbone Trio, and others). He is as much at home onstage playing the most unconventional music you might ever encounter, as he is playing standards in nursing homes and senior centers with Red Roosters, or any number of danceable genres with Jasper. Along the way, he has studied West African and East Indian drumming, played with world beat pioneers such as O.J. Ekemode and the Nigerian Allstars, and is currently collaborating with the trio Engine. This coming Thursday at the Outpost, he will draw from his vast storehouse of rhythm to present a solo concert—just him and his idiosyncratic drum kit—on a bill with the Glass Key Trio. Continue reading
Category Archives: Previews
Vocalist Carla Van Blake Throws a Launch Party for ‘Land of Enchantment’
The forecast is for sunny and warm vocals with high levels of musicianship on vocalist Carla Van Blake’s new release, Land of Enchantment, and on Sunday, August 19, she will throw a launch party at The Mine Shaft in Madrid at 6:00 p.m. to celebrate its release. Continue reading
Celebrating Uncle Mike (aka Guitarist Michael Anthony)
Michael “Uncle Mike” Anthony
Even if you’ve never heard the name Michael Anthony, it’s very likely that you’ve heard him. A first-call fixture in Los Angeles studios for 15 years, the guitarist has played on hundreds of TV and film soundtracks, including seven years on the Carol Burnett Show, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, and more than 250 Hanna-Barbera cartoons. On recordings, he’s backed stars ranging from Tony Bennett to the Beach Boys.
Since relocating to Albuquerque in 1980, Anthony has become a respected figure on the jazz scene and a venerated teacher, affectionately known to his students as Uncle Mike. The moniker perfectly captures his avuncular contribution, musical and otherwise, to his students’ lives. Two of those students, John Maestas and Claudio Tolousse, who have built successful careers as professional guitarists on the foundation of Anthony’s lessons, will honor him this Saturday evening when they present Michael Anthony: The Lineage Concert at the Outpost. Continue reading
Rahim AlHaj Trio Celebrates New Album at the Outpost
Rahim AlHaj Trio: Issa Malluf, Rahim AlHaj, Sourena Sefati.
Eighteen years ago, Iraqi oud virtuoso/composer Rahim AlHaj, his life threatened by the Saddam regime, which had already imprisoned and tortured him twice, emigrated to the United States with his oud, a few books and paintings, and $60. (A heavy smoker at the time, he claims, with a laugh, to have smoked the $60.) His trouble with the regime had its seeds in the early days of the Iran-Iraq War, when he was just 13 years old. He submitted a composition in Maqam Dasht (an Iraqi scale) to the quadrennial youth competition and won. Because Maqam Dasht is closely related to the Iranian Maqam Āvāz-eDašti, the composition was heard by some as an antiwar statement, a gesture of peace toward Iran. This Saturday, at the Outpost, AlHaj celebrates the release of his latest recording, One Sky* (Smithsonian Folkways), which includes that same composition, enriched by AlHaj’s mature mastery of his instrument. He will be joined by his trio mates on the album: Iranian santur virtuoso Sourena Sefati, and Palestinian-American percussionist Issa Malluf. Continue reading
Enginergy: The Trio Engine Channels a Magical Energy (Updated)
Engine: Robin Gentien, Pierre Lauth-Karson, Alejandro Tomás Rodriguez. Photo by Ian Rivera. Courtesy of Engine.
On Wednesday evenings through May 2, in a funky back room at Dialogue Brewery, with its rebar-protected windows and its mismatched collection of office chairs, stools, folding chairs, and legless sofa, a series of Encuentros Íntimos—Intimate Encounters—offers an exciting musical experience with the trio Engine. The group, comprising Alejandro Tomás Rodriguez (vocals, acoustic guitar) from Argentina, and Robin Gentien (vocals, electric guitar, percussion) and Pierre Lauth-Karson (vocals, harmonica, percussion) from France, plays an unclassifiable genre of music that includes original and ancient songs delivered with irresistible rhythms, theatrical savvy, and transformative intention.
Update: Given the enthusiastic reception they’ve had in Albuquerque, Engine has decided to record their new album here, and they’ve launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund the project. Please visit their Kickstarter page to learn more and to contribute. Continue reading