Showing posts with label Halley DeVestern Band. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Halley DeVestern Band. Show all posts

Thursday, April 29, 2021

The Halley Devestern Band - Live: Money Ain't Time

Size: 127.2 MB
Time: 54:29
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2021
Styles: Blues/Rock
Art: Front

01. Chain Of Fools (6:30)
02. Muscle Memory (5:05)
03. Try (3:57)
04. Money Ain't Time (6:37)
05. I'm Ready (4:43)
06. American Pain (4:26)
07. Dancing In The Streets (5:57)
08. Boil (5:04)
09. Stormy Monday (7:08)
10. Mighty Love (4:58)

Personnel:
Halley DeVestern- vocals (Big Brother & the Holding Company)
David Patterson – guitar (Shawn Mullins)
Rich Kulsar – drums (The Zen Tricksters, Toasters, Mickey Dolenz)
Tom Heinig – bass (Lamont Cranston Band, Mill City Band, Lala Brooks, Poppa Chubby)
Steve Jabas – guitars, keyboards & backing vocals

There is nothing quite like sound of a seasoned live band playing to a packed house on a night when they were hitting on all cylinders from downbeat one to the rapturous encore. Capturing those moments is a miracle of modern recording technology that we all get to benefit from. One such miracle happened September 1st, 2019 at the Studio Winery in Lake Geneva Wisconsin whenthe touring New York City rockin funk and soul group, The Halley DeVestern Band were in the house.

The club billed the show as “imagine Janis Joplin backed by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers and The Mothers of Invention with just a hint of Howitzer. That is The Halley DeVestern Band.” A completely accurate description of DeVestern and her seasoned five-piece band that includes guitarists David M Patterson(Shawn Mullins , Kirsten Thien) and Steve Jabas, (Hot Peas ‘NButter) and the rhythm section of drummer Rich Kulsar (Roger Waters, the Zen Tricksters, Mickey Dolenz) and Tom Heinig (Lamont Cranston Band, Mill City Band) on bass, all of whom have the musical muscle and dexterity to back her up. For DeVestern, who toured with Big Brother and the Holding Company filling the shoes of Janis Joplin with her mighty vocals and showwomanship skills, deserves nothing less. Recorded in front of a full house the 10-song set is a mix of five original tunes including the chart topping single, “Muscle Memory,” and five rearranged cover songs, running the gamut from hard driving soul to rocking blues and Americana, putting the listener in the front row of a one-of-a-kind experience.

It is undoubtedly a bold moveto open with the Queen of Soul standard “Chain Of Fools,“ as most bands would warm up to such a number, but DeVestern and the boys show they came to play by launching into a fun-loving six-minute version of the 1967 hit, complete with its trademark tremolo guitar licksandvocal acrobatics. Swirling guitars lead usinto the chart topping”Muscle Memory,” and its genre bending atmospherics. DeVestern shows off her Janis Joplin chops on the Kozmic Blues-esque“Try,” mashing it up with a taste of 10 Years After, followed by the title track, “Money Ain’t Time,“ a classic R&B ballad on which Halley rails against greed and apathy, while the guitars not so gently weep. The band then gets busy with the stop time 16 bar blues “I’m Ready,“ with Patterson and Jabastrading hot solos.

The poetic imagery in “American Pain” reveals harsh commentary on the troubles in our country. Their creative juices really get flowing on the swinging rearrangement of Motown signature song “Dancing In The Streets,“ as a Texas Bluesnumber, adding shout outs and crowd participation for good measure. A deep grooving bass line from Heinig anchors the searing protest against American racism,“Boil.“ DeVestern pours herself into the Hall of Fame “Stormy Monday,”paying loving tribute to the song that inspired many to take up the electric guitar and sing the blues. She changes course for the set closer heading to the Caribbean and leading the boys through a bawdy beachparty anthem”Mighty Love,” slipping into a tongue twisting freestylefinale that young parents and fans of Family Guy will love.

The timing of this album release, Money Aint Time,reminds us all of what we’ve been missing in the last year and what we should never take for granted great live performances from great performers. ~Rick J Bowen

Live: Money Ain't Time MP3
Live: Money Ain't Time FLAC

Tuesday, October 24, 2017

The Halley DeVestern Band - Keep On Playin' EP

Bitrate: MP3@320K/s
Time: 21:56
Size: 50.2 MB
Styles: Electric blues, Funk, Roots
Year: 2017
Art: Front

[5:23] 1. Keep On Playin'
[4:05] 2. Time For You To Light Things
[4:17] 3. Bangin'
[3:35] 4. Song In You
[4:35] 5. Hit Twice

Halley DeVestern- vocals; David Patterson – guitar; Rich Kulsar – drums; Tom Heinig – bass; Steve Jabas – guitars, keyboards & backing vocals.

This long-awaited EP, a collection of five tunes, is the third offering from The Halley DeVestern Band (the sixth from Halley herself). The previous release, “Fabbo! Boffo! Smasho!,” also an EP, was released in January 2014. As so aptly described on CD Baby the tunes are “balls-to-the-wall Blues Rock Funk with a splash of Swampaloo.” All the tunes are original, written by DeVestern & Heinig, except for ‘Keep On Playin’’ that is written by all the band.

The Halley DeVestern Band is a blues-funk-rock band from NYC that rocks either acoustic or electric. Halley has appeared on CBS This Morning, been featured on WPLJ’s Scott and Todd Show (New York) and KLSX’s The Nasty Man Show (Los Angeles), and become a favorite artist on WCMF’s Brother Wease Show (Rochester). She has been featured on the cover of Good Times and in Seventeen Magazine, CosmoGIRL, Newsday, the New York Times, gURL.com and many more. Halley appeared on CMJ’s prestigious Certain Damage Compilation and on the Indiegrrl Compilation Volume I, and she was a Top-Ten Editor’s Pick at Rolling Stone.com, reaching #9 in the Rock and Pop Category and the Top 30 overall.

Keep On Playin'

Wednesday, February 19, 2014

Halley DeVestern Band - Fabbo Boffo Smasho

Size: 85,3 MB
Time: 36:32
File: MP3 @ 320K/s
Released: 2013
Styles: Blues Rock
Art: Front

01. Muscle Memory (4:28)
02. Kangaroo Momma (3:32)
03. Money Ain't Time (Remix) (5:45)
04. Tore Up (From The Floor Up) (4:33)
05. Boil (4:34)
06. American Pain (4:39)
07. Code 9 (4:44)
08. The Jesus I Know (4:14)

Halley DeVestern is often compared to Janis Joplin and she did spend some time touring with Big Brother & The Holding Company singing Janis’ songs. But DeVestern is more than just a Janis clone. When she names her influences it it no surprise to find singers Aretha Frankin, James Brown, Al Green or ’70’s soul acts The Ojays, Ohio Players, and Earth Wind and Fire. Halley has slowly but surely been making her own mark in the greater New York City area and is now poised to break out nationally.

The band features seasoned professionals from a full range of musical styles. All the songs were written with bassist Tom Heinig who has played with Lamont Cranston band and Mill City Band. Guitarist David Patterson played with Shawn Mullins, and drummer Rich Kulsar spent time in Zen Tricksters, The Toasters and Mickey Dolenz band. Their experiences are eclectic to say the least and it makes their music an exotic gumbo.

The opening track “Muscle Memory” sets the tone of Fabbo! Boffo! Smasho! with a funky workout. DeVestern sounds a bit like Joplin but without the rasp. Her voice is more refined and doesn’t crack as she hits the higher notes, and the band is slick and tight. “Kangaroo Momma” has strange lyrics but it seems to be about finding comfort in a special place. I suppose I get it but with “When I need comfort and a place to crouch/I jump all up inside my mama’s pouch” it’s an uncomfortable metaphor for comfort.

“Money Ain’t Time” features simmering organ and impassioned vocals. DeVestern takes on rich fat cats, encouraging them to think about all the time they’ll be dead and what little good their money will do them in the afterlife. It could equally be about sacrificing time in your life for money; time that would be better spent making human connections and sharing yourself with others instead of chasing the payday at all costs. This song has been featured in the TV Show Dance Moms.

“American Pain” is a gospel tinged ballad that lyrically takes on economic inequality in the United States but also takes aim at those with the casino mentality, hoping to strike it rich by gambling. “Tore Up (From The Floor Up)” is bad disco at best. “Code 9” is about the texting indicator for change of subject when an authority figure has arrived. It’s another song with some bizarre lyrics but it is musically solid with extra funk added by the CNP Horns – Thomas Hutchings on sax, Indofunk Satish on Trumpet and Flugelhorn, and Matt MacDonald on trombone. Bassist Heinig creates a fat groove, guest keyboardist Mark Mancini stands out on electric piano and guitarist David Patterson cuts loose with stinging guitar lines.

The clearest message of any song on Fabbo! Boffo! Smasho! is found in “The Jesus I Know.” Halley admirably takes to task those who have twisted the story of Jesus to fit their own needs. The tune is an upbeat R&B Gospel tune, with big backing vocals and organ fills. The Jesus she knows had a dark complexion, cared about healing, fed the hungry, helped the blind to see, promised the world to the meek, and got lynched for telling the truth. Amen, Halley. Amen.

Yes, Halley DeVestern has a powerful voice. She has sung with Big Brother And The Holding Company, drawn comparisons to Janis Joplin, and garnered compliments from Bonnie Bramlett. Her lyrics may not always make perfect sense but they sound good and she sings with conviction. However, I can’t say I like this record. The songs are good, and the band is tight and plays well but I don’t like the style. Halley and her band have played on blues stages and made the local blues charts but these things do not make a band a blues band. To their credit, the band labels itself as Blues, Funk, and Rock. Fabbo! Boffo! Smasho! is New York City funk rock. It will get people moving in the clubs and I’m sure many blues fans would enjoy it, but if you’re looking for blues this is not your record. If you want some upbeat, funky grooves played on real instruments by talented human beings give Fabbo! Boffo! Smasho! a listen.

Fabbo Boffo Smasho