Brooklyn Loves Mountains Benefit with Gangstagrass and The Defibulators
On Saturday, September 17th, at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn, New York, a rather unusual benefit took place. This was a benefit to support Brooklyn Loves Mountains, an environmental group of activists, musicians and artists raising awareness of the destructive aspects of mountaintop removal mining. While Brooklyn seems far away from such issues, these are issues near and dear to the heart of the band Gangstagrass, who are based out of Brooklyn.
The night started off early with an interview with Gangstagrass before the show. You can read that interview HERE.
We had to leave to eat a little dinner, so we missed the first round of square dancing that started off the night. Yes, square dancing in New York City!
When we arrived back at The Knitting Factory, The Defibulators were just starting up. They blasted out with a great over-the-top rockabilly sound. They have been described as ‘Hee-Haw on mescaline’ and as ‘CBGB’s meets Grand ‘Ol Opry,’ very apt descriptions. Fronted by singer Erin Bru and guitarist/singer Bug Jennings, they create an almost punk country sound and energy. Bug switched between banjo and acoustic guitar throughout the night while running through songs such as “Pay For That Money,” “Hee-Haw In Heaven” and “Wandering Eye.” The band was rounded out by Chris “Roadblock” Hartway on electric guitar (with Bug making sure everyone knew that Chris was using both a guitar AND an amp that he hand-built himself), Mike Riddleberger on drums, Dave Speranza on bass and Michael “Metalbelly” Ginsberg on harmonica and washboard. Melody Allegra Berger from Gangstagrass also sat in, playing fiddle on several songs. They absolutely blasted through an hour long set featuring songs on such topics as love, credit card debt and life.
Once The Defibulators wrapped up, it was time for another round of square dancing called by Alex Kramer. Alex walked everyone through several square dancing moves, and the music was provided by Gangstagrass. Everyone seemed to have a good time circling around their corners and swinging their partners, and the band kept a great southern rock groove going throughout.
Next up was a brief talk from Janette Wernegreen, founder of Brooklyn Loves Mountains, on what exactly mountaintop removal mining is and why it is so bad for the environment. Hint – it dumps millions of tons of carcinogenic rubble and toxic waste into the waterways and forests around the sites.
Then Gangstagrass fired up. When I say fired up, it’s not an exaggeration. This is a band that knows how to pump people full of energy. Their first song was “I Go Hard” from their 2010 album Lightning On The Strings, Thunder On The Mic, and it immediately had the dance floor filled with people jumping up and down to the beat. Gangstagrass is lead by producer/acoustic guitar/vocal Rench and anchored by MCs Dolio The Sleuth and R-SON. The band also features Melody Allegra Berger (fiddle/vocals), Dan Whitener (banjo/vocals), Dave Gross (mandolin), Landry McMeans (dobro/vocals), and Tina Lama (bass guitar).
Gangstagrass truly does masterfully blend traditional bluegrass music with hip-hop beats and MC style. I have listened to them for many years now but this was my first chance to see them live and I really wasn’t sure how it would translate out of the studio. They absolutely know how to maintain a very healthy respect for the roots of bluegrass music while also layering on extremely well done hip-hop.
This was fully evident in their third song, the traditional bluegrass piece “Will The Circle Be Unbroken”. This was anchored by Landry’s delicate vocals, beautiful dobro playing and Dolio’s warm deep background vocals. They ran through the first verse and it sounded exactly like a well-played bluegrass version. However, after the first verse R-SON came through with a blistering rap verse. The band kept the same music going throughout and while you would think it shouldn’t work, it does. This was when I really understood that this band fully understands and respects what would often be two disparate styles of music and has the skill to integrate the two extraordinarily well.
Next up was what had to be the most unique and fun cover of “Man Of Constant Sorrow” I’ve ever heard. The place was starting to get hot and sweaty by now with everyone dancing and jumping up and down to the music and smiles were everywhere.
The rest of the show the was mostly originals from their 4 studio albums. Unfortunately, while there was not enough time to do their Emmy nominated song “Long Hard Times To Come” made famous by it’s use as the main theme song to the TV Show Justified, I don’t think anyone went home dissatisfied by the show that night. There were smiles all around as we all filed out into the warm Brooklyn night.
To learn more about Brooklyn Loves Mountains and why this is a cause that affects everyone no matter where you are, please check out www.facebook.com/BrooklynLovesMountains.
The Defibulators can be found at: www.thedefibulators.com
Gangstagrass can be found at: www.gangstagrass.com and www.facebook.com/gangstagrass
Pictures from The Defibulators set:
Pictures from Square Dancing:
Pictures from Gangstagrass’ Set:
