I’ve seen Marco Benevento play in a variety of bands—as part of the Duo (with Joe Russo); as a member of Trey Anastasio’s short-lived GRAB quartet (with Russo and Gordon); in an experimental trio with Reed Mathis and Mike Dillon—and they’re all intriguing for different reasons. After his recent performance at The Bell House in Brooklyn, I’m convinced that if you put him on stage with any configuration of The Slip, you’re nearly guaranteed a great show.
This night’s trio, assembled on the occasion of the CD release party for Marco’s new cover rich album Me Not Me, consisted of Marco on keys, Andrew Barr on drums and Marc Friedman on bass. Andrew’s brother Brad opened the show solo, demonstrating his wide range on both the acoustic and electric guitar while covering most of his recent acoustic release, The Fall Apartment: Instrumental Guitar. Marco wasted no time getting the crowd moving, launching the set with a raucous “Greenpoint.” Both Friedman and Barr seemed to lock in right away, and the trio maintained an admirable tightness throughout the nearly two-hour set. Barr’s studio work on Me Not Me proved especially useful, as he was able to anticipate most of Marco’s changes of direction.
Next came “Mephisto,” one of the few original tracks on the new album, though you could argue that Marco’s insistent inventiveness renders even the cover tracks original. The Knife’s “Heartbeats,” a completely fresh, creative cover, pushed the band through a variety of textures before finally sliding into the hyperactive “Atari,” and then into “Now They’re Writing Music.” A lush rendition of My Morning Jacket’s “Golden” seemed to be the crowd-pleaser of the night, and it clearly demonstrated Marco’s unique ability to meld indie-rock melodies with jazz-influenced mood, tone and improvisation.
With a wish of happy birthday to his mom, who was in the crowd, Barr counted off “The Real Morning Party,” the endlessly—possibly even annoyingly—catchy tune from Marco’s first solo album, Invisible Baby. “Bus Ride,” also from the first album, built a contemplative foundation until blasting into the stratosphere during the crescendo.
The final two songs of the set, “RISD” and “Twin Killers” (Deerhoof), featured Brad Barr on guitar and Marco’s Duo-mate Russo on percussion, who alternated on the set with Andrew Barr. Brad Barr also joined the band for the encore’s close, the brooding Leonard Cohen song, “Seems So Long Ago Nancy,” a somewhat somber but well-rendered ballad that served as relaxing close to a powerful set of music.
