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| Roma di Luna - Photo by Stacy Schwartz |
Pity the poor commuter. It's no secret that the ideals of suburban living are long gone, the dreams of a perfect community pushed to the nightmares of Judge Doom’s mad visions from Who Framed Roger Rabbit? As our freeway arteries clog with shopping malls and Taco Bells, it is the intrepid of spirit, the determined, who make it through the day to get to their nights of music and fellowship.
At the 7th Street Entry, there were familiar faces and some welcome out-of-towners. Mike Mangione and his band had traveled in from “Chicago and Milwaukee and places in between” to grace the stage. In his literature, Mangione is described as "perfect for coffeeshops," not necessarily a complimentary descriptor. Yes, Mangione is a singer-songwriter of the grassroots folk persuasion and sticks close to his acoustic guitar, and yes, he does seem to have a special place for that ne plus ultra of folkies, the young Bob Dylan. Still, he has pieced together his own sound, borrowing Dylan's growl here and Jack Johnson’s patter there. It is a warm voice Mangione has found for himself, an amalgam inviting in it's familiarity.
Realizing that he alone did not need to carry the show, Mangione brought along an electric guitar, cello and a violin to buoy his sound. Their orchestration made songs like “The Killing Floor” recall the brooding, plaintive backing of Dylan’s “Not Dark Yet,” and provided a necessary counterpoint to flesh out Mangione's straightforward guitar. Jeremy Messersmith, speaking from stage later, said that the string arrangements “killed him.” Even though it was the back up band that provided most of the emotional heft, the substance and friendly patter kept the atmosphere alive and the crowd engaged.
When Jeremy Messersmith took the stage, he also brought a cohort of musicians with him. Throughout the night, he had cello (a staple of his live shows) as well as keys, trumpets, drums, an omnichord and a newly minted electric guitar with him onstage. Messersmith opened with tracks from his upcoming The Silver City full-length, due out this fall. The songs are a hazy fantasia of the suburbs, with a sly wink to Brian Wilson and sardonic punctuation by Herp Alpert's Tijuana Brass. In songs with titles like "Welcome to Suburbia" and "The Commuter," the twinkling wash of ‘60s pop lets Messersmith explore the shadows of those suburban lives, of our day-to-day jobs and cookie-cutter homes. He also gets to the heart of our motivations, the love and hope that we carry around. It is Messersmith’s precision that nails his songs home. Details like, “…you rubbed your eye with the palm of your left hand” from “Beautiful Children” create such a keen image that Messersmith backs up with adroit rhymes, the movement is indelible.
This precision does not necessarily apply to Messersmith's cooking skills—he cut off the tip of one of his fingers in a late night attempt at potatoes au gratin. Even though he is still not able to fully finger pick, it did not stop him from taking the crowd on a ride from Wayzata through to downtown Minneapolis, the skyways and home again. It was a beautiful journey; a step forward in concept and orchestration from 2006's The Alcatraz Kid, and expect Silver City to be heavily anticipated and requested.
Knives and gas prices and never-ending primary seasons be damned, Roma di Luna have a new disc coming out soon! Titled Casting the Bones, the disc promises to build on the mix of gypsy ethereal and roadhouse blues that make Roma di Luna a reelingly beautiful show, as written about for HowWasTheShow here and here. After thanking the openers, Alexei Casselle told everyone to “Give it up for Obama!” then quickly apologized, saying he “promised himself he wouldn’t make it political.”
No dice, but this is not brute politics Roma deals with; it is the axiom that every act is a political act, down to music, beauty and everyday living. From the Leonard Peltier-inspired fever pitch of “Ghost Dance” to the family making, grocery buying, neighborhood-watch inflections of “I’m Gone,” there is a decisiveness to Roma di Luna's songs. These are the songs they have decided to make for the lives that they have decided to live in these times. Bring along such musicians as Michael Rossetto of Spaghetti Western String Co. and J.G. Everest, and you know that Roma is building their own family in their own space, and when they get up to play, the excellence of their musicianship is further lifted by that sense of community. You don't have to pre-plan a suburb to find it; you can make it on stage.
Americans drove 11 billion less miles in March 2008 compared to March 2007, the biggest drop since 1948. It's not as though the freeways are going away or the myth of the rambling musician will disappear, but with an oil war on and gas at $4.00 a gallon it is just more pressing to bring it all back home. Get out and walk, bike through summer, and buy discs from these bands. They’ve got the love, and if they’re going to take it to the road, they’ll need the cash.
Roma di Luna CD release at the Cedar Cultural Center, Saturday June 14th, with Spaghetti Western String Co. and Tiriti Mundi Flamenco.
Roma di Luna Setlist
Mike Mangione Setlist
Songs to fucking rip people’s faces straight the fuck off (Ed.-Yes, that is what it said on the setlist)
Location Info:
7th Street Entry
Artist Info: Jeremy Messersmith, Mike Mangione, Roma di Luna
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