zoo grass

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Leader: oxcreek48
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Created on: 29 Apr 2010
Description:
fans of Hot Day At The Zoo, and like bands

Fans of the acoustic Grateful Dead, as well as of New Riders of the Purple Sage and Jerry Garcia’s side project, Old & In the Way, should pay attention to this hard-driving New England string band. Hot Day at the Zoo plays what it calls “zoograss’’ - a mix of folk, rock, and progressive bluegrass charged with a jam-band flavor that makes this live set (recorded at the Waterhole in Saranac Lake, N.Y.) a bracing treat. The group excels on a touchstone cover of “Midnight Moonlight’’ (the Peter Rowan song from Old & In the Way’s self-titled disc in 1973), but the bulk of the CD is original tracks from multitalented Hot Day tunesmiths Mike Dion (whose sweeping “Morning Light’’ makes a nice companion piece to “Midnight Moonlight’’) and Jon Cumming, whose gentle “Long Way Home’’ is a tasteful change-of-pace from the string-band flash. At times the music is rich in testosterone (as in the pot-smoking anthem “Old Mill’’), and it is less elegant than New Riders of the Purple Sage, but those are about the only quibbles. Otherwise, these guys accelerate with a euphoric banjo/mandolin interplay, enhanced by the inspired stand-up bass of Jed “Beat’’ Rosen and occasional, roaring harp fills from the ever-energetic Dion. The crowd in Saranac Lake goes crazy - and so might you if you give this a listen. The band headlines the Lizard Lounge this Friday and Saturday.

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