2010

If you’ve been nose-to-grindstone in the music industry for decades, you hope to stay busy. And now, more than ever, it seems, Jeff Mattson’s cup runneth over.

Although long considered a musician’s musician with wicked guitar chops and a lived-in voice, and best known for the Zen Tricksters and a stint with Phil Lesh & Friends in the late 1990s, some of Mattson’s biggest breaks have come only in the past few years. First came a partnership with Donna Jean Godchaux-MacKay, with whom Mattson clicked instantly, going on to form what both musicians consider one of their most creative projects. And late last year, with John Kadlecik’s departure from Dark Star Orchestra imminent, Mattson stepped into the “Jerry” role in DSO so seamlessly that by the time he formally joined the band, in June 2010, it seemed just that: a formality. The role was his.

Hidden Track had a chance to visit with Mattson at his Long Island home a few weeks back, part of a rare break for the guitarist and singer between exhausting DSO tour legs. It was one of those conversations where 50 minutes flow by like five, with so much to touch upon, and Mattson was in a mood to expound.

HIDDEN TRACK: Watching you perform with DSO now, you’ve slipped into this role so easily. Obviously you’ve known these guys for a while but it’s a transition all the same. Going back, when did you first hook up with the DSO gang?

JEFF MATTSON: When did I first meet them?

HT: Right, you’ve known them for years and I can remember seeing the Zen Tricksters and DSO sharing bills some eight, nine years ago.

JM: Yeah, I think it was back about then, down south somewhere, where the Zen Tricksters opened for DSO. The first time we encountered each other there was, well, maybe a little gentle competition, but a good vibe between us, too. Then, in 2003, the Zen Tricksters went out as an acoustic trio, just Klyph (Black), Tommy (Circosta) and me, and did something like 10 shows opening for them. We got to know them better and there was mutual respect, and we both saw it as we’re on the same mission, instead of competing. And frankly, they’re a lot more successful than we ever were [laughs], and we weren’t much of a threat! But we had our niche.

READ ON for more of Chad’s chat with Jeff Mattson…

The nominees for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2011 were announced yesterday and once again the big story for us are the bands who didn’t

Reuben and David from Quintus stopped by the Big Ugly Yellow Couch, a domesticated Brooklyn blog that hosts acoustic sessions on their sofa and include quirky poetic writings about the

Our pal Ted Rockwell, of Everyday Companion fame, attended Saturday night’s Furthur show and enjoyed it so much he decided to submit a writeup on the evening urging our readers to check out the recordings…

So we’re all live music fans, right?

OK, now that we have that established, I will dispose of formalities like explaining what it feels like to go to a show at the legendary Red Rocks Amphitheater. And I will forego the description of the all-to-often occurrence of thoroughly enjoying a live performance, only to review the tapes and realize on second listen that the performance is full of flaws.

And I will skip right to the heart of the matter at hand.

[via @furthurband]

On Saturday September 25, 2010, Furthur played one of the best shows I have ever seen at Red Rocks. Period.

I realize that’s a big statement, but I can back it up. By anyone’s estimation I have seen my fair share of amazing shows at Red Rocks over the last 14 years; Neil Young in the rain, Radiohead, Bjork, Wilco, every single Widespread Panic show they’ve headlined, several incarnations of Phil Lesh and his friends, Gov’t Mule, Trey, The Arcade Fire, Sigur Ros… etc.

READ ON for more on Furthur on the Rocks…

M80 Dub Station, Conspirator, Ginger Kids & Tractorbeam @ Mishawaka Ampitheater, Sept. 18

Words: Alexander Wolff
Photos: Jason Woodside

There is something inherently cool about having a ticket to a Conspirator show and finding out that the Disco Biscuits are playing. See, the kids wanted Tractorbeam – an instrumental version of tDB. Between Allen Aucoin’s robotic drumming extremities being at a family reunion back East, not to mention the fact that it wasn’t even billed as a Biscuits show, it just wasn’t in the cards. Well, the demand was high and the strings were pulled, and in the end, it was indeed Tractorbeam the kids would get.

Jon “The Barber” Gutwillig’s push-and-play dubstep outfit M80 Dubstation came off as self-indulgent and sounded abrasive, but in the very least he was having fun. Conspirator played a better show with Adam Deitch on Thursday at Cervante’s, and the Ginger Kids experimental brand of break beat club bangers didn’t do all that much for this restless crowd. The party was set to go off though, and seeing as this may be the Mishawaka Amphitheater’s last great stand it feels in a lot of ways like a bash for the end of the world.

By far the best part of this non-stop, two-hour set was that instead of playing the songs that have come to be expected from Tractorbeam shows, the Biscuits flipped the script, rearranging songs that span mostly from the last seven or eight years of new music for this uncommon all-instrumental performance. Bombs, On Time, Portal To An Empty Head, Feeling Twisted and Neck Romancer are all songs that have showed up in the last year, and Tricycle is the oldest song performed having been debuted in 2000. They kept it fresh, and certainly took risks all night.

READ ON for more of Alex’s thoughts and Jason’s photos…

On October 7th HBO will air The Promise: The Making of Darkness on the Edge of Town – a documentary about the recording of Bruce Springsteen’s classic album. Check out