Ready! Set! moe.

Posted 08 Jul 2014 in General News, News, Performance

I’ve been anticipating moe. coming to Revolution Live in Ft. Lauderdale for several months. As soon as it was announced I made sure my schedule was clear and that I had my tickets. Even though it seems like the band has been on the road non-stop for the last year this is the first opportunity I had to catch them this year.

Chuck Garvey and Rob Derhak. Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily

Before I get into the incredible show let me tell you a little about the venue. The maximum capacity is 1300 people. No seats other than a few bar stools so its standing room only. Just to be clear, all of these things are positives. The intimacy at a place like this is more than worth the price of the ticket. This is where they filmed a lot of scenes in the movie Rock of Ages.

I arrived at Revolution a little early because I knew I wanted to be in the first group of people through the door so I could claim my space right in front of the stage. Of course, me being me I didn’t arrive quite as early as expected but when I walked up the door was still closed and there were only about 30 people hanging around. I was a little shocked but I knew the place would fill up. This is South Florida and we are notorious for showing up late to great events. Plus the weather wasn’t that great.

Before the moe show at Revolution Live in Ft Lauderdale Fl. Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily.

Back to the story. I was hanging out waiting to go in and I was standing next to all the gear and the tour bus not really paying attention or expecting to see anyone from the band. There were a few people going in and out but still no signs of the band. Then out of nowhere comes a guy wearing a New York Knicks jersey walking toward the bus. To be honest I was looking to see what player it was (Carmelo Anthony). By the time I took a look at the face of the person walking to me I realized it was drummer Vinnie Amico. Of course I missed the opportunity to say hello to one of my heroes (I’m a drummer) because I wasn’t paying attention. Slightly disappointing but still cool! I also notice band-mates Jim Loughlin and Al Schnier entering the bus.

Ok…so now I’m getting excited for the show. I planted myself right in front of Al’s mic, slightly to his right so I could also have a great view of bassist Rob Derhak and still see Vinnie, Chuck and Jim.

Al Schnier at Revolution Live. Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily

I know most of you reading this know all about moe. but watching Rob play the bass is a unique experience. To put it plainly that is an extremely chill dude who fuckin rocks! Everyone in the band rocks but Rob makes it looks so easy and relaxed. If you didn’t know better you could think he was bored up there….except for the fact that he’s grinning from ear to ear and bobbing his head letting the audience see how much fun he’s having. At least that’s how it looks to me. Combined with Vinnie and Jim I’ll put the ‘rhythm section’ of moe. up against anyone. Those guys are tight and in the pocket all the time. Find me any guy who bangs on the xylophone better than Jim Loughlin (one of his many talents as a percussionist). Go ahead you won’t find one in a rock band for sure.

Rob Derhak at Revolution Live. Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily

But what about the guitars you ask? Hmm…how does a ‘soulful, swinging, symphony of raucous, raging rhythm’ sound. As I mentioned earlier I made sure to get myself right in front of Al but by the end of the night my neck was killing me from trying to watch Chuck and Al both do their thing. There are certain points in just about all of their songs where it feels like my heart is going to jump out of my chest because of the sound these two gentlemen produce together.

Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily

I’m not going to critique every song from the show because I’ll end up with a 10,000 word article due to the fact that each song was great with rising and falling extended jams. I’ll post the setlist below. After the Timmy Tucker opener I knew the rest of the night was going to be great. I went into the show hoping to hear two of my personal favorites and by the end of the night I was lucky enough to hear both Happy Hour Hero and Plane Crash.

moe 7.6.14 setlist Revolution Live. Photo from moe facebook page

All in all the show was a blast. Non-stop jammy fun for the entire evening. I don’t know how these guys keep up this pace. It seems that every time I log into twitter or facebook I’m seeing a new show. Seriously, from over seas to festivals to album launch parties to clubs like Revolution it seems like if there is a stage moe. will set up and rock your face off. I think I even saw they recently played a brewery, a comic book shop and the US National Whitewater Center. I think I’ll try setting up a stage in my living room and see if I can entice the band to do a quick show.

Photo by Dave Abrams for Guitar News Daily

But seriously. It’s really incredible when a band of this caliber gives you the opportunity to see them in such a small place. I’m thankful they even made it this far south because most bands simply don’t because its a logistical nightmare when scheduling a tour. If you aren’t opening or closing a tour in South Florida its a pain in the ass to get to. So THANK YOU MOE. for putting on a sick show.

Here are a few more shots from the show.