Bass For Your Face
Improbable Beasts at Midway CafeClarinet waters run deep with Improbable Beasts at Midway Cafe on Wednesday, 18 October 2023.
Shibui and maybe Clamb trade bodyblows on the triple stack bill.
The breadth of programming at Jamaica Plain’s favorite venue Midway Cafe is impressive.
First things first, music every night of the week and a whole lot more.
Within the music offerings, a kaleidoscope of offerings. The regular jazz residency of Fully Celebrated Orchestra. The weekend punk & indie matinees. The Hippie Night (not to be confused with the reliable Jerry Garcia Band tribute nights). Bars Over Bars hip hop showcases. And a feast of local and national touring acts trucking every type of music through the joint form January to December.
And if you can’t play music but you still want to get on stage? Queeraoke.
And if you can’t tell a joke (we jest!) but still want to get on stage? Midway or the Highway. The regular comedy (and some music) open mic on Sunday nights boasts one of the strongest comedy rotations in the Boston area, emceed by the venerable Rob & Josh (no last names given at birth).
What turns your head, though, is a night like the Hump Night on Wednesday. A clown car of bass clarinets rolled up to remind everyone that – yes, believe it – the Midway Cafe can accommodate classical music in its sonic repertory. As effortlessly as throwing back a peanut butter & jelly shot.
If you get around Boston-area music venues a lot (and we do), you realize that kind of elastic resiliency and relentless programming is a rare bird. We appreciate you, Midway Cafe.
Clamb
Clamb of YoreHaving written the love letter above to the Midway Cafe, this reporter has to admit he didn’t make the show! Worklife sometimes intervenes on the unpaid beat. So let this post be an archival documentation, and celebration, of the acts rather than first hand reporting.
Plenty to celebrate with Clamb. The prog-damaged, krautrockers bring a spaced-out, synth-led, rhythm-forward groove to their live shows. Regular giggers around town and frequent collaborators with the wooly and wild Digital Awareness.
We dug Clamb’s LP Earth Mother Grapefruit.
Did they play this show though? Can’t find any online documentation other than them plugging the date beforehand. Pics or it didn’t happen.
It happened! Clamb photos courtesy of Nathaniel Oneal (@bigupnate).
Improbable Beasts
Improbable BeastsAfter Muzztival 2.0, which saw a harp & cello duo take the stage, we were reminded that classical music at roadhouses can be a dicey proposition.
The soundboard can have everything in order, but will the yahoos in the crowd who just showed up for a shot & a beer approximate chamber performance etiquette? You know, shush a bit to let the softer notes shine through?
You mostly split the difference at these types of gigs. A little quiet, a little racket. Improbable Beasts rolling in seven or eight deep likely commanded rapt attention on the basis of pure numbers alone. Quite a spectacle. And they’re all playing motherfucking bass clarinets.
Shout out to the Hildegard of Bingen covers. No one’s heard Bingen delivered with such panache since Hildegard herself opened for Phish at Great Woods in ‘94. Unforgettable.
Shibui
Shibui & Improbable BeastsThe “minimal groovers” Shibui got a little less minimal onstage at Midway Cafe by jamming with the behemoth bass clarinet ensemble for a song or two. The percussion driving the classical woodwinds created a strange mood, a creepy ambience, a spectral October surprise along with the psychedelic lightshow.
Clamb photos courtesy of Nathaniel Oneal (@bigupnate).
All other photos courtesy of respective artists.
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