On April 10th, Hidden Track got the unique opportunity to spend the entire day with full access to the Massachusetts based jamband, The Brew as they prepared for their headlining performance at The Music Hall in Portsmouth, NH. The concert – in front of 900 fans at the historic theater – was complete with sit-ins, video projections, a full lighting rig, one extremely colorful costume and eight hi-def cameras to capture it all.

The highlights from the evening included favorites Faces, Radio Swiss, and on the aptly named New Funk, where band members Joe, Chris Plante and Kelly Kane added some great explorations. Dave Drouin’s vocals and guitar work shined on a spot on cover of Boston’s Foreplay / Longtime and The Beatles’ Hello Goodbye with Matt Paine jumping in on pedal steel gave those with less familiarity with the original material, additional reason to cheer. The evening also saw 15-year-old Seth Campbell, resplendent in his Peruvian finery, sit in on First of Things and Eyes of the Giant, but it was his flute work on I Do Believe during the second set that brought the crowd to its feet.

READ ON for more of Jeremy’s pics and thoughts on The Brew…

In some ways the DVD is expected to be an expansion of the tongue-in-cheek short videos the band has been working on for some time. With tons of personal stories (including Chris Plante’s first meeting with Bruce Hornsby at the venue), interviews with fans and typical zaniness, we’re looking forward to the final cut due out in Fall/Winter ’10.

Check out photos of the evening below and look for The Brew’s upcoming east coast tour which includes stops at the Mercury Lounge in New York City, Mountain Jam and the Nateva Festival.

The Brew
April 5, 2010
Music Hall
Portsmouth, NH

1. Intro > Chance Reaching > Castle Walls > Sharks In The Pool, Hello Goodbye*# > Slipping Through The City#, New Funk, No Future, Hunters Moon > First of Things% > Seen It All# > Control > Looking Down

2. Foreplay / Longtime**#, Eyes Of The Giant%, The Flood#, Sad But True > Fly By Night, The Girl’s What I Want, I Do Believe%, No Rest > Poison Stone, Faces, Whose The Boss

E: Radio Swiss [via The Brew]

{* The Beatles, ** Boston, # Matt Paine on pedal steel, % Seth Campbell on flute}