THE ZEN TRICKSTERS
''SHAKING OFF THE WEIRDNESS''
AUGUST 1 2003
59:07
1/Talk of the Town
Jeff Mattson/8:29
2/Light of Life
Klyph Black/5:54
3/All Night Long Blues
Tom Circosta/2:36
4/Waiting for a Sign
Klyph Black/4:12
5/Sleepwalking
Jeff Mattson/7:14
6/Last Ten Years/5:16
7/The One
Jeff Mattson/7:27
8/No One Said It'd Be Easy
Klyph Black/4:25
9/High Horse
Jeff Mattson/9:51
10/The Dean Street Mess Around
Jeff Mattson/3:42
Rob Barraco /Piano
Klyph Black /Bass, Dobro, Guitar, Vocals
Buddy Cage /Pedal Steel
Christian Cassan /Percussion, Piano (Electric)
Tom Circosta /Guitar, Vocals
Jason Crosby /Baritone Violin, Fiddle
Jeff Mattson /Guitar, Vocals
REVIEW
by Jesse Jarnow
Much of the Zen Tricksters' vocabulary -- both musical and literal -- is drawn from the musical universe of the Grateful Dead. Considering the fact that the Tricksters have spent the better part of the last 20 years as one of the country's premier Dead cover bands, that's not a surprise. What is surprising, however, is how effective their original material it is. Sure, much of the band's sound is firmly in the mode of their main influence, but it is delightfully free of rhythmic lumber of the Dead. Indeed, the Tricksters seem to have taken the lessons of the Dead's best periods of the late '60s and early '70s and stripped them down. "The One" sounds like a jazzier version of a Jerry Garcia ballad from American Beauty, while "Talk of the Town" hones in on jazzier elements. The band's jamming is affable and comfortable, sticking mostly to acoustic sounds. Refreshingly, the Tricksters pull it off without sounding like a tribute act.
BIOGRAPHY
by Stanton Swihart
Spiritual brothers of Phish and, like that band, heirs to the throne left vacant by the Grateful Dead, Zen Tricksters have spent the last decade traveling from venue to venue across the country adding new fans, young and old, with their brand of loose and involved improvisatory music. Based in New York, Zen Tricksters have their roots as the Volunteers, who began circa the early '80s solely as a Grateful Dead cover band. The band re-formed in 1988, continuing with Grateful Dead covers but also writing their own original like-minded tunes. With the loss of vocalist Jennifer Markard, the lineup was pared down to a four-piece made up of Jeff Mattson (vocals, guitar), Rob Barraco (vocals, keyboards), Klyph Black (vocals, bass), and Joe Chirco (drums). The band built up a large fan base the old-fashioned way: lots of intensely hard work touring across the country and a growing reputation as a superb live act, catching on not only with appreciative Deadheads and Phriendlies, but with general fans of exploratory jams and creative improvisation. By the mid-'90s, Zen Tricksters had played from Maine to Oregon and were packing ballrooms and large venues. They have opened for a diverse group of music acts, from Hot Tuna to Suzanne Vega. In addition, Zen Tricksters have acted as the backup band for numerous musicians, including Rick Danko and Bo Diddley. The band's primary influence is, of course, the Grateful Dead, and its music reflects that band's blend of rock, blues, folk, and bluegrass, but there are also prevalent classical and jazz influences. Zen Tricksters recorded Holy Fool, their first album of all-original songs, in 1996; two years later, it achieved wider release via the Zebra Tango label. The follow-up, Love Surreal, was recorded in 1999, featuring the same lineup. By the turn of the millennium, several personnel shifts had taken place: Barraco departed and was replaced by seasoned jam band vet Pete Levin, while Chirco was replaced by Alan Lerner (formerly of Joe Gallant & Illuminati and the Dimitri Gurevitch Quintette), and second guitarist/vocalist Tom Circosta (a former member of the Volunteers) joined up as well.
DoWnLoAd
''SHAKING OFF THE WEIRDNESS''
AUGUST 1 2003
59:07
1/Talk of the Town
Jeff Mattson/8:29
2/Light of Life
Klyph Black/5:54
3/All Night Long Blues
Tom Circosta/2:36
4/Waiting for a Sign
Klyph Black/4:12
5/Sleepwalking
Jeff Mattson/7:14
6/Last Ten Years/5:16
7/The One
Jeff Mattson/7:27
8/No One Said It'd Be Easy
Klyph Black/4:25
9/High Horse
Jeff Mattson/9:51
10/The Dean Street Mess Around
Jeff Mattson/3:42
Rob Barraco /Piano
Klyph Black /Bass, Dobro, Guitar, Vocals
Buddy Cage /Pedal Steel
Christian Cassan /Percussion, Piano (Electric)
Tom Circosta /Guitar, Vocals
Jason Crosby /Baritone Violin, Fiddle
Jeff Mattson /Guitar, Vocals
REVIEW
by Jesse Jarnow
Much of the Zen Tricksters' vocabulary -- both musical and literal -- is drawn from the musical universe of the Grateful Dead. Considering the fact that the Tricksters have spent the better part of the last 20 years as one of the country's premier Dead cover bands, that's not a surprise. What is surprising, however, is how effective their original material it is. Sure, much of the band's sound is firmly in the mode of their main influence, but it is delightfully free of rhythmic lumber of the Dead. Indeed, the Tricksters seem to have taken the lessons of the Dead's best periods of the late '60s and early '70s and stripped them down. "The One" sounds like a jazzier version of a Jerry Garcia ballad from American Beauty, while "Talk of the Town" hones in on jazzier elements. The band's jamming is affable and comfortable, sticking mostly to acoustic sounds. Refreshingly, the Tricksters pull it off without sounding like a tribute act.
BIOGRAPHY
by Stanton Swihart
Spiritual brothers of Phish and, like that band, heirs to the throne left vacant by the Grateful Dead, Zen Tricksters have spent the last decade traveling from venue to venue across the country adding new fans, young and old, with their brand of loose and involved improvisatory music. Based in New York, Zen Tricksters have their roots as the Volunteers, who began circa the early '80s solely as a Grateful Dead cover band. The band re-formed in 1988, continuing with Grateful Dead covers but also writing their own original like-minded tunes. With the loss of vocalist Jennifer Markard, the lineup was pared down to a four-piece made up of Jeff Mattson (vocals, guitar), Rob Barraco (vocals, keyboards), Klyph Black (vocals, bass), and Joe Chirco (drums). The band built up a large fan base the old-fashioned way: lots of intensely hard work touring across the country and a growing reputation as a superb live act, catching on not only with appreciative Deadheads and Phriendlies, but with general fans of exploratory jams and creative improvisation. By the mid-'90s, Zen Tricksters had played from Maine to Oregon and were packing ballrooms and large venues. They have opened for a diverse group of music acts, from Hot Tuna to Suzanne Vega. In addition, Zen Tricksters have acted as the backup band for numerous musicians, including Rick Danko and Bo Diddley. The band's primary influence is, of course, the Grateful Dead, and its music reflects that band's blend of rock, blues, folk, and bluegrass, but there are also prevalent classical and jazz influences. Zen Tricksters recorded Holy Fool, their first album of all-original songs, in 1996; two years later, it achieved wider release via the Zebra Tango label. The follow-up, Love Surreal, was recorded in 1999, featuring the same lineup. By the turn of the millennium, several personnel shifts had taken place: Barraco departed and was replaced by seasoned jam band vet Pete Levin, while Chirco was replaced by Alan Lerner (formerly of Joe Gallant & Illuminati and the Dimitri Gurevitch Quintette), and second guitarist/vocalist Tom Circosta (a former member of the Volunteers) joined up as well.
DoWnLoAd
