THE MIMETIKS

as if in prescient preparation for this day, sunday’s show was a stripped down duo-fest. because luke had a gig elsewhere Kyle and I showed up at Saje on the nineteenth of august with little to do. we started out, infact, thinking it wouldn’t be worth recording the show. off-handedly jaster suggested to me we do some jazzy stuff. little did he know: i was still in jazz-mode full-tilt because of gigs on friday and saturday night. i brought in the music stand and the leadsheets and even some “obscure” lyrics for the fun of things.

well the first set went so well, that we decided to break and try to jimmy something up so that we could record. apparently some cords were missing. and, the rest is probably best categorized under: music for apartments – acoustic.

it had been my wish to simply post the entirety of the two sets we did manage to record from sunday. but when i thought about it, i realized that might be a hell of a lot of material to listen to. to write about, etc, etc. so we’ll hold on to it for later occasions. (it’ll come in handy, i’m sure…)

so highlights, anyone?

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sundaykindoflove
this one was just so necessary. i don’t see how we could have not played this tune. i found the leadsheet giving us the somewhat confusing bridge and we launched into it. one of the best compliments you can receive for such a gambit is that it “looked” like we were reading it, but people weren’t sure… because it sounded like something we’d played before. well, we have and we haven’t. so i hope this serves as a hint to the kind vibe that afternoon.

lately
i recently learned this one for a gig at the Monticello casino in Liberty, NY. its one of Stevie’s greatest ballads. why i haven’t just sat down and learned the entire Wonder catalogue… well i don’t know. listen for the super-ECM-like-piano-solo… very period. like played by a white guy in a dashiki and in the 70s. (don’t think i don’t work on odd shit like that)

valentinesday medley
its just a favorite. we’ve been doing this one since the last october, when we figured out the arrangement during a weeklong journey to maine and back again. (see entry the shipMimetik)

bodyandsoul
Osamu is the sunday morning chef at Saje. and a solid jazz guitarist in his own right. during the first set break he said noticed we were going for the jazzier side of things. he asked if we did Body and Soul. to be honest, i don’t think i’ve ever sung the song. but i have accompanied people on it dozens of times, and i love to call it at jam sessions. i happened to have the lyrics handy… so we did it.
… and the food was excellent.

listenatall
during the course of the afternoon we did generate some new original material. to keep things on the up and up, we figured it might be nice to have originals in the mix. don’t want to just become a lounge band. or a soul cover duo. so listenatall. remember this one, anyone? bittergarden? bembe? ah well, whatever.

news

hey all!  its been sometime since our last posts.  the reason for this is not inactivity, but rather that things are really starting to get going.  Hopefully, I can fill you in without skipping over too many crucial elements.

more news about brooklyn gigs for theMimetiks.  After a couple of shows over at Saje Cafe, we were offered sundays at another joint for a more full-up ensemble at a place called Brooklyn Exposure.  So starting on the 4th of March, we’ll be in there cooking up something delightful every sunday evening from 6pm.  As soon as I hear more about that I’ll post the details here.  Later this week hopefully.

we’re working on teeshirts again.  this time going with something much simpler and more direct.  I think you’ll dig it when we get it finished.  Kyle (the graphics genius) is working on the design even as I type here.  so look forward to that.

in the meantime, i must have seemed bored because Kyle just hooked me up with yet another place to blog up the night.  in the interest of keeping this page fairly focused and contained (and succinct and sane and endurable) I will keep my most uncontrollable ramblings concerning this burgeoning musical scene to that new blog.  if you have the chance, scope it out here.

lastly, dig our new icon (to the right of the page).  after a cigar each, some hookah, good food, and perhaps a touch too much to drink, I showed Kyle the photo booth feature on my new computer.  madness and obscenity ensued.  in a moment of concentrated inspiration, we edited it down to like seven frames, threw it onto Illustrator, made an animation, and published it here.  Ill-advised?  Perhaps.  But it was bucket-loads of fun.

til the next joint,

akie

ps.  and, for those of you keeping tabs, never fear: we are still working on “music for apartments” there are still four or five tracks to go before we can call it quits on that project.  so whatever you do, stay tuned!

five days on the road is no picnic. i’m not sure how we did it before. but somehow even with only two people we mananged to take up nearly every ounce of space in my car. maybe it was the half-giant bottle of makers, or the box of cigars or my extra pair of sixe 15 sneakers. don’t know.

but the crowning moment of the trip was last friday’s gig at Colby college in the quiet night of things. while we have a bunch of original material from the other band our goal was to have a nice new concert by the time we got to colby. through a series of long car conversations and on-the-way writing sessions we managed to to write something like three new songs by friday afternoon at 4pm — when we landed in maine.

the road to maine was… decidedly treacherous. there were many traps and snares along the way. fortunately nothing that booze and smoke can cure and a night on a somewhat petrified hotel bed with the heater going full-tilt boogie. the gig itself was a success. i’m not sure how much of a success but no one left angry, dissatisfied, or hell-bent on suicide so…

apparently you can still smoke in hotel rooms in Maine (and godblessthemforit) and that — we did. shapel, his friend (now our friend) andrew, kyle, and i. though the clock would read 8 when the good shipMimetik would make ready to sail once again. all was tied down by 4am and the darkness passed over us.

it rained as we left colby. it rain in New Hampshire as we ate out deli sandwhich lunches. it stopped for a time in Amherst where i left kyle with his sister. it rained on the way out of Mass and all the way down I-87 from Albany to Catskill. then it stopped and the clouds grew darker, but higher and let in a corona of white sunlight… and the windpicked up.. .and it was very bizarre to say the least. so naturally i played a five hour (or was it SIX?!!) gig with pamela pentony at the scribner hollow lodge in Hunter, NY. ate about a pound of some delicious venison and went to sleep before i realized it was daylight savings… i assure you.

the shipMimetik put up her sails in brooklyn on sunday afternoon. kyle came in on a life raft some hours later… and the rest is hardly history. and barely worth mentioning.

thank you colby. for the oohs, the ahhs, the applause, and flattering our tender egos with your request for an encore. we shan’t forget you.

akie