Mofro’s appearance at Higher Ground was a reminder of what a rare pleasure well-performed live music can be. And it’s all the more so pleasurable when that performance takes place in front of an audience present for the music above all else. The larger of the two rooms at the South Burlington venue held roughly two hundred people by the time The Eric Krasno Band finished, but given the acclamation afforded the openers (who proffered a well-intentioned but decidedly work-in-progress set), they were all there for the music.
The DVD portion of JJ Grey & MoFro’s Brighter Days is more than just a concert video. It is a combination travelogue and biography that illustrates the frontman’s roots so vividly, the impact of the story is as powerful as the joyfully explosive end result of those roots, namely the Mofro concert that comprises the bulk of the playing time.
A look at this week’s tour dates announcements.
During the past decade or so, JJ Grey and Mofro have ventured to Charleston 2-3 times each year. By now, fans know what to expect: sweaty, down-home, funky rock and roll, punctuated by the in-the-pocket meter of drummer Anthony Cole, a wall of horns and the formidable pipes of band leader JJ—and the band’s packed show at the Music Farm provided more of the same.
Back in 2007, Dispatch shocked the world when they reunited for three benefit shows at Madison Square Garden that sold out within hours of going on sale. The jam-pop trio,
If you’re not familiar with the story of Daniel Johnston, then immediately stop reading this post and find yourself a copy of the riveting documentary The Devil And Daniel Johnston.
JJ Grey has often described his music with Mofro as front porch soul. With no juke joints in Charleston, the Windjammer seemed as good a venue as any for the boozy, sweaty, soulful music of Grey and his band. For about two hours, Mofro churned through a representative selection of their catalogue, hitting on highlights from each of their four albums, in addition to a couple choice covers.
Atlanta’s Matt and Kelly Andrews, of Musical Stew Daily fame, eat, drink and breathe live music. Please welcome them to the Hidden Track posse to represent the ATL with reviews and news from the Big Peach.
In Atlanta’s Little 5 Points, the heart and soul of live music is located squarely at The Variety Playhouse. Showcasing an eclectic mix of musical talent nightly, The Variety has hosted an impressive roster of talents through the years. Phish, Widespread Panic, Lee “Scratch” Perry and others have graced the stage of The Variety in the past. On Saturday the 11th, they hosted yet another favorite of mine, Jacksonville, Florida’s JJ Grey & Mofro.
Sweet tea, blackberry cobbler, ox-tail soup, hominy grits, mosquitoes, fried catfish and hush puppies are all synonymous with Jacksonville’s culinary life and culture, the birthplace and home of Mofro. Molasses sweet and thick, Otis Redding inspired “front porch soul.” The music is gritty and tough while remaining sweet and inspired. Music with a cause, to preserve the land and life that JJ Grey so obviously holds sacred. An urgent message delivered with a steady groove and southern manners. The simplicity of yesteryear is sadly fading before his eyes as he implores us to see Florida through those same eyes– likening it to “watching someone you love die slow.”
READ ON for more of Matt and Kelly’s JJ Grey and Mofro review…
Over the last couple years, Mofro have morphed from a quirky neo-blues band into a bonafide soul review. With the horns and churchy organ, it would be easy to predict Grey and company would get a hearty response from an audience anxious for a good time on a Friday night. But without the bandleader’s commitment to the music and the fervor contained in songs like "Lochloosa," it'd all be for naught.
Is there anything better than dirty Southern Blues? You know, the kind where you turn the radio down so your mother won’t hear the lyrics and knock on your bedroom door…
“We fucked on the table, We fucked on the floor, We rolled down the stairs and we fucked a little more”
While you’re trying to think up the answer to that one, just remember that from where this bands hails, the Deep South is an hour flight north.
Well, JJ Grey and Mofro came out hard at the Williamsburg Music Hall on May 30 with the title track from their latest album, Country Ghetto. With the horns blazing behind him, JJ Grey took center stage first on the harmonica and then later on the electric piano, as the crowd sang along to his stories of hard living and good eating in the lands of swampy Jacksonville, Florida. READ ON for more of Jeremy’s words and photos from JJ Grey and Mofro’s show at the Williamsburg Music Hall…
