One Guitar

Ottmar's latest solo album now available in the Listening Lounge. Follow title link.

Ottmar in concert, Upaya Zen Center

Taken by Joan Halifax Roshi. Some more photos to be found when clicking on this one. I like the glasses in particular.

Ottmar Liebert + Luna Negra, Celebrity Theater August 9, 2006

Well, as you can see here, the cats out of the bag. Under normal circumstances, just seeing Ottmar perform is a huge high point for me. Getting to spend some time with him adds to the experience more than I have the ability to explain.

After meeting the crew (yes, Jon Gagan is as cool as you think he is) and hanging out for a while, I headed back home so they could get ready for the show. A few hours later I was back at the venue. A friend from work who had never seen Ottmar live before had decided to attend (this could have been peer pressure). I caught sight of my neighbor from down the street as well.

The Celebrity Theater continues to be one of my favorite venues. The sound is good and the atmosphere pleasant. Wednesday’s show was no exception. The latest incarnation of Luna Negra includes Stephen Duros on rhythm guitar and soft synths, Dave Bryant on percussion, and of course, everyone’s favorite bass engine Jon Gagan who also lends his skill to the “hard synths”.

I’m not sure if it was just me but I never knew where to keep my focus. All four of these guys are having so much fun playing, you don’t know who’s going to do what next. This is my first time seeing Dave Bryant’s percussion and he does not disappoint. The crowd loved him. Stephen’s playing is a fantastic compliment to Ottmar’s. Before the show, the house music was a blend of Stephen’s new CD as well as Jon’s. Both are great but I’m really looking forward to putting in some serious listening time on Mr. Duros’ latest project.

Early in the set I was surprised by a new twist during Santa Fe. After most of the familiar sounds of this song had been played, Ottmar then reached for his electric guitar. This was so cool! After the show, he said that this was something new they started in Australia, as were some of the new bass changes on a few other pieces. What a great addition. The tone of the electric guitar seemed even better than it has before. I forgot to ask if he made some change there. I think it’s time for an electric guitar album. Stephen can play acoustic rhythm guitar and let Ottmar loose with the electric.

The start of the second half of the show begins with This Spring Release 10,000 Butterflies from the One Guitar CD. Ottmar plays this alone on stage and is then joined by the rest of the guys. It was great reminder of his solo shows. Those on the east coast of the US should watch for the upcoming dates. These shows are not to be missed. The intro to Duende de Amor is a fantastic new buleria, which should appear on next years release Up Close. Food for a buleria junkie to be certain.

As always, the show passed by too quickly. Before I knew it, the crowd had all left and I watched as the crew handled the tear down. From there I witnessed the now infamous “Fake Segway” episode. They had the nerve to put training wheels on the thing. After another chat while watching the trailer get loaded, it was time for the day to end. I would have loved to hitch a ride on the bus for the rest of the tour. Who knows, maybe sometime I’ll have the chance.

Kiva-fied

A Luna Negra evening
Originally uploaded by nieve44.

The Kiva Auditorium was certainly an electrifed (kiva-fied) evening for various reasons. First, as Victor mentioned in the previous blog entry ..."the music completely rocked"! This was one of the very reasons Mario and I decided to attend the concert in Albuquerque...to see the new band! What a band!--and again as Victor said, they just seem to be "having so much fun" and the chemistry onstage certainly electrified the audience! To the right of me was this older woman who I will call granny---and granny was rocking to the music! I don't know whose toes were tapping more...hers, mine or the bands!

Another reason, I wanted to attend the concert was to hear Ottmar & the band perform in a different venue than the Verizon Theatre here in Houston, which is not an intimate venue. The Kiva complemented the performance by the band and the intimacy of the setting was electric! Such a sweet buzz! I loved listening to the chatter of the audience before the show and after. I ran into a woman in the hotel elevator across the venue and the first thing she asked..."are you ready for the concert"? She was all smiles and "charged up" about the show!

Just before the show started, I noticed that Jon came out and was tinkering with some equipment on stage! If I didn’t know better, I think he turned up the volume and added some additional “electric charges”! David’s hands were “on fire” and completely wowed the crowd! I wished I had a chance to shake those magic hands! Stephen Duros--love the electricity he brings with his guitar! I could’ve sworn, it appeared that he seemed to take the lead on a few notes! If so, kudos to Ottmar for the passing of the torch! Can’t wait for the new cd’s to come out from Stephen and Jon.

There were no photos allowed in the venue and thus no photos of the concert for fellow fanmencos to see. We tried to get a set list but the Kiva "guard/security" was on high alert!! As Ottmar mentioned there were some issues with security and the "after-show". A special thanks to one of Ottmar's assistants who saw Mario and I hanging outside the bus with posters in hand for an autograph. She rushed right over and took the posters up to the bus for Ottmar to autograph and was very apologetic about what happened after the show.

As we were leaving the show, I looked up into the sky and caught a glimpse of the August moon! The August moon appeared to be electrified as well! ;-)

Graveyard Shift

Ottmar Liebert and Luna Negra lifted spirits to a whole new level last night at the Crown Hill Cemetery Pavilion of Reflection (Wheat Ridge, Colorado). This benefit concert event raised more than $16,000 for the Collier Hospice Center!

So, what exactly does a concert in a cemetery look like? This beautiful new pavilion provided an intimate concert setting with surprisingly good acoustics, and the semi-outdoor feel took advantage of a beautiful Colorado summer evening!


And the music completely rocked! This incarnation of the Luna Negra band showcases the incredible talents of all the players… but I think the key ingredient that brings it together is that these guys seem to be having so much fun! It’s just a great chemistry to both see and hear, and that becomes contagious for the audience.

Speaking of incredible talents… we were treated to a live performance of “Northbound”, which will be on Jon Gagan’s upcoming album “Transit 2”. I’m just happy “Transit 2” is going to be released soon (this September) because I can hardly wait!

And what about that Stephen Duros guy we’ve all been hearing about? Well, his guitar and keyboard work brings a whole new depth to this band. In particular I think his guitar rhythms free up Ottmar to really go deeper with his improvised parts… and Ottmar takes advantage by making many of his classics sing like you’ve never heard them before! Ottmar was also free to make some quick transitions between flamenco and electric guitars, so suddenly you get all these new layers happening within each song… it’s like that witnessing the birth of something new and unexpected… you can’t help but smile!

Stephen’s unique guitar styling was featured in a performance of “Thira”, from his soon to be released album… which I’m incredibly excited for also (another September release)!

And you can’t help but get carried away by Dave Bryant’s energetic hand drumming! (He was clearly having way too much fun!) He brought the house down several times during the show, but a particular highlight for me was the depth he brought to the ever popular “Snake Charmer”.

After the show there was an opportunity to mingle with the band… how cool to spend some time with these guys and hear some of their perspectives and stories from their travels! Thanks Ottmar and Luna Negra for a “Gold Ticket” evening!

WHAT, NO PERFORMANCE PHOTOS?!?! Sorry folks… just prior to the start of the performance an announcement was made that photography during the show would be strictly prohibited. So I took that as an invitation to just sit back and get lost in the music. I hope you all get a chance to catch this tour and get lost in the music too!