Todd Menton CD Release with Lehto & Wright at Cedar Cultural Center on 12/18/08

By: David de Young

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Todd Menton w/ Savage Aural Hotbed at the Cedar - Photo by David de Young

Music fans from Minnesota and parts beyond are familiar with Todd Menton from his time spent as Boiled in Lead’s lead singer as well as from his prolific solo career and participation in the folk duo Martz & Menton.  A Boiled in Lead show in the late ‘80s may well have been my first show at First Avenue after moving to Minneapolis, and Martz & Menton was one of the acts I booked at the 24 Bar when I worked there some 15 years ago.

 

This week Todd Menton released a new CD on New Folk Records called The Dolmen Field,  his first album since 2004’s Where Will You Land.  He celebrated the release of the album Thursday night at the Cedar Cultural Center with special guests folk duo Lehto & Wright, who opened the show, and a backing band that included writer Kevin Kling on didgeridoo, Savage Aural Hotbed on various percussive things (everything from oil drums to garage door springs), and both Lehto, Wright and their drummer Matt Jacobs.

 

To introduce the show, Mark Johnson from the Cedar stepped to the microphone to make a few announcements. First he congratulated show-sponsors KFAI for their recent increase to 900 watts (someone shouted out they can now even receive the station at 90.3 FM in the far reaches of St. Paul!).  Johnson also mentioned improvements to the Cedar that have been made in their 20^th season, pointed to an ongoing campaign to help light the marquee and spoke of a future outdoor space for films.

 

The opening act Thursday was the folk trio Lehto & Wright (Steve Lehto, John Wright and the aforementioned mentioned Matt Jacobs) who gave us a memorable if short 4 song set. Their selections included “Handsome Johnny” and a piece by Robert Schuman. Wright joked before the latter piece that “nothing says Todd Menton CD release like Schuman.”  The Schuman song, which closed their set, started quietly then totally rocked out.  One thing that characterizes Lehto & Wright’s music is a big, full-spectrum sound, especially when they play with their drummer. Wright plays organ-style bass foot pedals to fill out the sound.

 

After a short break, Todd Menton came out and opened with “The 23^rd of June” which he recorded for Where Will You Land. He sang the song with its memorable phrase “Skiddly didle diddle dum skiddly didle didle dum dum dee" a cappella accompanied only by the bodhrán.

 

Kevin Kling on Didgeridoo

Following the song Menton hesitated briefly to figure out which instrument to pick up next. He told the audience we should get used to that hesitation as it would likely be a theme of the evening as a lot of switching was to take place. 

 

Next up I was glad to hear one of my favorites, Richard Thompson’s “1952 Vincent Black Lightning.”  I still remember Martz & Menton’s version of this song after hearing it live only once 15 years ago. Since making it a part of his repertoire, Menton has without question made this song his own.  It still has the emotional power of the original (which still chokes me up), but Menton’s version hits you hard at slightly different times.  Songs so strongly tied to their original writers often make for tough covers,  so it’s a testament to both a great song and to Menton as a performer that he can so adapt a signature song by another artist in this way. 

 

Next up was “West Clare Reel/ Frosty Weather, Snowy Weather” the opening track from the The Dolmen Field and a song on which didgeridoo features prominently. Minnesota writer Kevin Kling plays the instrument on the album and was on hand to perform his parts live. Susan Esbjornson joined on backup vocals. Shortly thereafter came “Paddy on the Railway” a haunting history song from the new disc about an Irishman working on the English railway.  Menton joked that he hoped this was an traditional song, mentioning that that he’d picked it up from a friend, but that if that friend actually wrote it he owed him some money.  For “Paddy” Menton was joined by Matt Jacobs on drums and Lisi Wright on fiddle.

 

Keeping the tunes coming from the new CD, “Bonny Light The Horseman” was next (again done a cappella).  It was followed by “The .22 Man” from Where Will You Land, a gunfighter song Menton said that could be summarized most succinctly by saying “Size doesn’t matter.”

 

Kling and the backup vocalists were back for “Sure of Me,” and then Savage Aural Hotbed joined for the rhythmic “Johnny Cope/The Kerry Huntsman.”

 

And that was just the first half of the show.  Savage Aural Hotbed was back for a lot more after an extended intermission.

 

See more photos from this show here.

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Location Info: Cedar Cultural Center
Artist Info: Lehto & Wright, Todd Menton

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