Darrell Cooper and the Strong Persuaders

Awesome reunion show at  Fat Cat Blues Bar on George Street, pretty much my new favorite spot...the bartender was good enough to put on a pot of coffee for me, I was the only person in the bar drinking coffee on a Friday night. For only their second reunion show in the last couple of months for almost a decade, these guys were fucking tight. Darrell, being the picky sound technician he is proves his taste for the perfect sound ensures a delight to your feedback fearing ears and those who are really keen on picking up levels instruments such as myself will be as equally pleased. These guys are the blues, starting off the night with perfect pitch and rythmn.  Not to mention the soul! Man, those solos nearly sent me into cardiac arrest. That keyboard player puts live Deep Purple jams to shame. I got so lost inside that fretboard and guitar technique I didn't even realize my leg shaking the table as I unknowingly played air drums. After some old school R&B they were whipping out the Hendrix by the fourth song...I am pretty sure good ol Jimi was ressurected that night. It was like a continous jam session, these guys could play all fucking night I am sure. They even brought up some special guest talent and winged it blues style...man I really felt that shit, I was pretty pumped after that show to go home and listen to some Muddy Waters or something...or just plan my next trip to Fat Cat. Fuck what an awesome night, I can't really put that into words, you just gotta see for yourself! Peace, Im out.

Distortion on Wednesday

So last night I had the pleasure of viewing some great acts that played at Distortion, a cool little rock club in St John's that has a pleasing techno metal vibe, I just freaking love the place.
The Wednesday show is a regular gig put off weekly and I just love the main act South Symposium. Each week they bring out a few good artists and it's such a good vibe, drinks 3 for 5 and all that good stuff. My only concern was the turnout...I know its a Wednesday but come on peeps it is so worth it!
Matthew Hare...great rendition of Damien Rice's Delicate that left me in chills. He has such a strong and raspy voice, and great strumming patterns, totally pulled off the punk yet folk sound that is so hard to achieve. I was really impressed by his originals, I could rock out to him all day, or just sit home with a beer and listen, he is pretty interchangable and I have the feeling he would impress all types of crowds, although I felt I should have been in a sold out show at a larger venue. Check him out.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Matthew-Hare/407862575331
Andrew Bartlett is an old high school pal of mine, very glad of our recent reconciliation, he has come a long way musically, I definitly sensed the Kurt Cobain vocal style he was pulling out, maybe possibly an early Dylan, all around good guy and musician, and great head on his shoulders.
http://www.myspace.com/bartlettandy1
RN Wagner...well he is great in general but there is something about combining acoustic flavour with activist hip hop that just sets me off. He'll have you yelling "bring the troops home!" at the top of your lungs by the end of his captivating show..awesome guitar player as well. If your lucky he might even throw a shoe at you or pull a corny love song out of his musical hat if I happen to be present. Well worth it!
http://www.myspace.com/anorphansinventorynl
South Symposium...fuck I love these guys. The vocalist has so much inside of her you can feel it reverberate to your toes, man when she hits those high notes its a higher high than drugs can take you. Intense subject matter I totally related to. The guys are all awesome musicians, such a good mix of Dresden Dolls with a jazzy/swing vibe, but man they can pull out some funky shit. Im pretty sure during their lag time the bassist was pulling out some Les Claypool...thats just instant respect from my standpoint. I left the show in a musical daze, and I even had a sober night. I am pumped to see them next week...what an wicked awesome group with some great poetry, pain, funk and love.
http://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/South-Symposium/315406492922

Ed Pien at The Rooms Art Gallery

Today I had the opportunity to view a great showing of Ed Pien in St John's. This hauntingly beautiful exhibition consisted of a lot of monsters, what I am thinking is internal demons manifesting themselves as society within one's head. However the exhibit did have a walk in feature of of cut outs with strobe lights and eerie music playing, where you could look through holes in the middle piece and see strange things...I really recommended this artist, he seems really fucked up and will leave you feeling haunted. Sorry for the repetition of the word haunted however I am quite speechless right now and can't really find another word for it.
http://www.edpien.com/

The First

So this is my blog, I have been meaning to do this for some time now however I had been procrastinating a little bit. I have organzied my pages by category so you can browse through my poetry much easier, I hope you enjoy! All works are Copyright to Leslie Butt 2010. I can be contacted at lesliebutt@gmail.com if you wanted to use or publish any of my works. Feel free to email with any questions or comments, I'd love to hear from you or read your stuff as well! Peace.