By: Kristine Lambert
God Johnson’s lead singer was appropriately dressed as Darth Vader for this pre-Halloween jam. He lost his mask shortly thereafter even though there were no vocals until the third song, except for the one-syllable yeahallrightyeah! They sounded like a saxophone-heavy String Cheese Incident. Well into the set, the crowd really started moving with the up-beat rap-jam that had David Byrne-style vocals, singing “our president’s crazy.” The song broke into a scratchy guitar solo, which led to distorted synthesizer and was resolved by the saxophone. They later dug Gary Wright’s “Love is Alive” out of the vault and made it their own.
During God Johnson’s spread-out jams, I made my way back to the merch booth to pick up the new release. Wookiefoot founders, JoJo Lash and Mark Murphy, were manning the booth and happily greeting their fans. This night was special; it was the celebration of Halloween and the release of the new Wookie CD Activate—The Story of Nothing and the Monkey Part Too: Good for Nothing, a continuation of their 2000 release Domesticated—The Story of Nothing and the Monkey.
When Murphy handed Activate to me, he instructed that I go home, put on headphones, and listen to the story along with the inside booklet. He warned: “Don’t look ahead.” Drum circle rhythms that brought me back to Venice Beach soon erupted between sets, allowing for a seamless musical event. Wookie shows always call for a colorful array of people and their respective costumes. I knew I could count on the Wookiefoot fans to give me a good dose of Halloween.
Dark fairies fluttered their sparkling eye lashes and elaborate wings. A Hare Krishna toted bongo drum and a large afro wig. There were three Bo-Peeps, a halo-clad groovy Jesus, Carmen Miranda, Juan Valdez, a dude riding a duck, five pimps, two bad nuns, and a Dick Cheney who told me not to forget to vote for oil. My favorite costumes were the flame throwing skull; a woman dressed like Dark Side of the Moon with an illuminated rainbow coming from her mask; and a guy dressed up like a keg who was sipping liquid from the tap, along with his sidekick, the now iconic Will Farrel (Don’t Fear the Reaper) More Cowbell Dude.
The Wookiefoot ensemble was assembled as the drum circle made its way to the stage. The band started off with “High is High,” which started with a reggae beat and then moved easily between metal guitar and hip hop. The crowd rushed the stage as Lash announced: “Look at you, you’re FREAKS!” The band next moved into a set from the new record. “Activate” started out with Blues Traveler-type harmonica, background banjo and a stepping bass leading up to the lyrics: “Call out to all bliss junkies, now’s the time!” Next off “Be the Change” gave us a sincere, John Lennon on “Day in the Life” sounding ballad that changed into a freeform rap, pleading at the end of the song to “stop killing your time.” Wookie lightened it up a bit with the solid rhythm of “Think You’re Free” chanting, “If you think you’re free, then you can’t escape.”
If you sense Wookiefoot’s social consciousness, then your instincts are correct. The band lives what it preaches. It is actively involved in fundraising for international relief; the funds for their 2005 Harvest Fest supported a four-month mission to Nepal and Southeast Asia. They fund a de-landmining program along with a Cambodian amputee orphanage, an organic farm that supports building libraries in Laos, and a school in Nepal. (To learn more about Wookiefoot’s charities click here.)
The band then took us on a journey through past recordings, including songs from 2003’s Out of the Jar. “Mushroom Jazz” featured Amy Willmoth's breathy vocals in counterpoint with heavy bass, and on “She Sells,” Willmoth rapped “see how she sells sex by the sea shore” and ending up proclaiming “sisters rise up, its time for a rebirth.” The stadium cheers of the crowd beaconed the encore “The Frog & The Scorpion,” ending the show with a full-on jam of eleven people on stage. The entire evening was a microcosm of Wookieworld.
Photos by Tom Healey.
Location Info:
Cabooze
Artist Info: God Johnson, Wookiefoot
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