Sunday, June 24, 2007

Puttin' the "Quirky" Back in Albuquerque

The Land of Enchantment was just that much more enchanting Sunday through Tuesday nights, June 17 through 19, as the ACE X-Tension Chords alternately rocked and rolled from 9 to midnight each night.

Sunday night was a rock-out dance as lead singer Owen Roberts gave it his all, eventually (and temporarily) blowing out his voice in the dry, high-desert air. Guitarists Owen and John-Boy, bassist Ron Thomas, and drummer Robert Casler were complemented by Bruce Schultz on harp and Jeff Hino's amazing lap steel, Chris Dicus's magic fingers on the keyboard, and the subtle, under-mic'd stylings of the mando twins and newcomer fiddler Amy Smith. A special nostalgia set brought back a reunion of the Hot Flashes, a vocal combo first heard at ACE 1997, just blocks away from Cleveland's Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. It was like a scene out of Never-Neverland, with the stage and dance floor filled with communications professionals who were discovering that, no, they never really did grow up after all.

Monday and Tuesday nights were mild by comparison, but terrific fun all the same. Mandolins, guitars, a fiddle, and even a hammered dulcimer were heard with solo and group vocals from the back room of the hospitality suite. We had folk, Cajun, Irish, and old-timey tunes, a little bit of blues, and some familiar songs from O Brother Where Art Thou ("I'm a Dapper Dan man, myself," John-Boy reminds us).

Photos, videos, and who knows (MP3s?) to come!

Thanks to everyone for dancing, listening, and buying all of those cool T-shirts and posters!

Thursday, June 7, 2007

Underground Video Sees Shadow, Goes Back Underground

Early documentary footage of one of the X-Tension Chords' first performances has surfaced, and you can surf over and take a look: http://www.blindtoaster.com/MuSigVideo.htm. Thanks to Dennis Hinkamp for uncovering this gem from the very beginnings of Chordmania.

Now take a moment and open your ears - if you listen really hard, you can hear it rustling to life again. All across this great continent (and maybe beyond), from Canada in the north to the tip of the Florida Keys, from the foggy vales of Pennsylvania to the sunny climes of California, once-a-year musicians are preparing for their annual moment of glory: guitarists are drumming their fingers incessantly as they try to re-create calluses on their fingertips, drummers are tapping their pencils annoyingly in weekly management meetings, and everyone is searching though closets, under beds, and in garages and storage lockers, trying to find that precious instrument that they last saw just 11 months ago. "Where did I put that thing?," their weary spouses hear again and again.

And then the music begins. At first it's just a jumble, a cacauphony of thumps, bangs, twangs, and wheezy voices, but soon it starts to take shape, becoming gradually more recognizable as, Yes!, the unmistakeable, trademark sound of the legendary X-Tension Chords! Whether it's blues, rock, funk, or folk, ACE fans rely on them for one thing every year (and NETC fans every two years): a live band that you can dance to, but you don't have to pay them. And it's happening again in just a week and a half in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

So get out there, X-Chordians! Change those strings! Dust off those drums! De-grease those harmonicas! Warm up those chops!

And X-Tensionheads, get out your dancing shoes! Do a few stretches so you won't hurt yourselves! Put some rock classics on the ipod so you can practice your signature moves when you're alone between floors on the elevator! Hey -- You're gonna turn some heads this year!