Review - Romi Mayes at the Pyramid Cabaret, Winnipeg May 14 2009

– Eugene Osudar review/Mike Latschislaw photos

if you’ve never seen
the weber brothers
then you’ve never
been
to
a
rock n roll
show
Home Is Where
The Heart Is
or
You Don”t Know Me
these are songs
that
blast off!
thunder/slap, stand/up/bass
lightning/fast/velvet/fingers
Ryan!
beyond the clouds
grind,guitar
licks like honey
drips from Sam’s
furious/finger/tips
home is where the heart is
cookie leaps and drops
cluster bombs
from his fingers to
the ivories
shining smile
neck/bending
orgasmic
release
(i shall be released!)
and corndog
smashes cymbals
like what’s so funny
about peace love
and understanding
with vicious precision
maybe you know me,
i’m the dancing dude
the dancing guy
The Dancer
do you know
The Weber Brothers?
it’s annihilation war
on the dance floor
there is no peace
until
they’ve cleared the stage
and the lights are all
turned,
off —

Turn On The Lights!

and romi mayes was home
(Is
home) in winnipeg
thursday night at the Pyramid

winnipeg

where the secret keeps
bursting from the seams
this is where the rock
n
roll
is,
the music is,
and the heart is,
(beat/beating)
her back/up band
(thump/thumping)
the weber brothers

pump/pump(ing) it up
elvis costello
plays the winnipeg
folk festival

ronnie hawkins knows
where the heart is
where the rock is

he knew it
when he created
The Hawks

and bob dylan
knew it
when he created The Band
formerly of Ronnie Hawkins and
The Hawks

so ronnie hawkins
(The Hawk)
swooped in and scooped in
the weber brothers
sam and ryan
residing states/side
and he souled them
on moving and grooving
and practicing
until the blood and sweat
became
The One
The Only
thing to do
in peterborough, ontario

and he whipped the weber brothers
now with cookie on keys
and corndog
on skins
into a hotter band
than The Hawks

ever

were

believe it!

hallelujah!

i have seen the promised land
and i have seen the light!

no one plays a hotter cover of
Born To Run

Bruce Springsteen

check in on the weber brothers!

yeah
they were born to run,
but
they were made to run
by
The Hawk

“home is where the heart is”

the song the webers
began their set after playing
Romi’s new cd
Achin’ In Yer Bones
from song #1
to the very last
song
in order
10 tracks
and there was blood
there was blood
on the tracks
on the fingers
on the floor
did you see The Blood?
pumping coursing thumping
throb,bing!
romi and the webers
robbing
blood and sweat
from us
there was Passion and Fury
and Soul to be sure
on stage
and
there was dance
on the floor

this is possibly
(likely)
the hottest show
of the month
of May,
as of last night
14 May
i have seen
37 Full sets of
Live
music

this is it

The Bomb

The Devastation

The Elation

The Sensation

Opening the evening
Jay of the Perps and Chris
(aka Chopper)
of every sizzling roots and blues band in the city
says jay,
“a little half hour,
couple of guitars”
stripping down The Perps
naked
sizzling blues, Chopper/licks
and when jay switched over to his
trusty interplanetary guitar
his Saturn
“for some boogie/woogie”
i just had to be
The First
to break the dance floor
cherry
to move and dance
and jay nodded and smiled
Yeah!

the list:

Carly Song
(and two covers)
Let Me Love You Baby
Gimme Back My Wig
Garmeaboziz (i can’t read jay’s printing!)
Josco

a little half hour
hot sweet sour soup
to the yummy taste

“John Scoles
can i have
another shot
of Bean?”

that last song is for The Legendary
leader of the “good people”
The Times Changed
High and Lonesome
Josco
John Scoles!

romi mayes
on the new cd
is indeed
achin in Her bones
it’s a slow burn
gurf morlix
is the dude
who brought out her texas
burn all the way from
winnipeg, manitoba,
canada.

imagine that!

i was communicating
with amanda
and i was hungry
i needed to cook
to chop
and sizzle
and thinking about
Romi and the Webers
i thought of texture
of playing
and
of spice
and all the levels
from one to ten
ten being the maximum
rock n roll
the heat
and
the sweet
the bitter
and
the sour
climbing the tower
of song
L Cohen poetry
when all communicate
in a band
Oh the brothers and lead Sister

the one who created these songs

songs from the perspective of
A Woman
single with a daughter
playing the rock n roll dream
her way

it’s a recipe
for the perfect
meal

so, this is what we need
to stave off The Hunger

we need the live version
on cd
of Achin In Yer Bones

and we need
the unification
the coming together
of The Woman
who chops and stirs it
up
(stir it up/bob marley)
these ingredients
into
the spicy knockout soup
feeding us
hungry and achin in our bones
O, rock starved
souls
and the brothers
who with a wink, with a point
with a nod
with a facial tick
communicate to their brother
the next move
the next play
the next sizzling
soulful groove

that’s the play
the joy
between these brothers in arms
these men
who are boys
at
heart
with upright bass
with the keys
with the guitar
with the skins

they are brothers
sam and ryan
by birth
joined forever
by rock n roll
work ethic
and the wisdom
of
The Hawk
corndog
and cookie
the weber brothers

80 minutes
romi
and the webers

from the first pulse
beats
Achin In Yer Bones
and the dance is on
and during the song,
Somethin Goin On
cookie and ryan
communicatin’
winks nods looks

Tire Marks,
jaxon from d rangers
and grant
/lap steeling\
(from the corb lund band)
sizzling country roots grit
soul song
is that possible?
in the hands of the webers
and to romi’s tune and words
everything is possible
rock n roll
is illimitable

Slow Down
me and jaxon
says me, “they are So Tight.”
says he, “it’s scary.”
and it is
i’m goose/bumping
writing this
this instant of a WoW
L Cohen breathes,
in this instant of a now
is enlightenment
true
not the brain/washed
variety

says jaxon,
“have you seen them play together?”
“i saw the webers and the romi play
at candor books and music
together
last summer
but they hadn’t practiced
really. now that they’re
touring, they are so tight!”

mike, whose pics we see,
writes in my book,
that (Slow Down)
“was f#cking awesome!”

romi says,
“we’re basically playing
you the album,
in the exact order. how
many people like that?”
(applause)
“here’s a little ditty for ya.”

I Won’t Cry

i feel like i’m in a church
deep in the heart
of texas
and here we are at home
(where the heart is)
our winnipeg
and how exactly that is
other than to name
names,
gurf morlix
romi mayes
webers
cookie
corndog

i’m devastated.

evaporated
salt licked
sweat
blood
heart racing
indy 500
speeds
round and round
the race track
smashing through
air molecules

“nuff of that sad sh#t!”

If The Lord Don’t Love You

sam burns through a solo
cookie hops skips jumps
like that young steve nieve
of the attractions
the man who showed me how to dance
to the new wave and to the punk
to the fury
let loose
in england
in 76/77/78/79
i feel ryan’s bass,line
deep
in my sub,spine

“i want to draw your attention
to cookie on the keys,”
says romi
you don’t need to say it
he has it
fully
and
Givin Is Gone
not just another spiritual,
slow, burn, country,
never sounded like this

there’s the cd
the blueprint
then there’s the Live Show
the ecstasy

“what are you doin to me
i know i’ve been righteous
i know i have been strong
i used to be fearless”

oh my, forgive me

have
Mercy On Me
please webers
please romi
please gurf
please twisty
(of the d rangers
on the electric bass
for a couple of songs)
have,
mercy,on,me
you have me bleeding
on the dance floor
blood sweat soaked

“here’s another ballad. I was in galveston,
texas
and the most beautiful woman
in the world
walked into this bar
she was so beautiful
no man dared
talk to her.
so i came over
bought her a couple of drinks
and she talked about
some ex/husband
and she just bawled
mascara running.
and i wrote
this song
later that night.”

Just Like The Rest

“she cries herself
to sleep at night.”

she is
just like the rest

and when that live cd
version of Achin In Yer Bones
is recorded
do not fall into
The Abyss
The Temptation
to fiddle and diddle
adding overdubs
twisting turning knobs
just let the Magic
Be

“here’s the last song
on the album.
a pretty little song.
then we’ll pick it up
I swear.”

no need to swear
it’s all been
Beauty
Perfect Beauty
and this song,
Hard Road
is a gorgeous
joyous
ending
to a beautifully
Released
bird,

your cd
is released
thank you.

i’ve seen all the perfect
beauties,
No Means No
Emm Gryner
Melissa McClelland
C’mon
The Wind Ups,

you’re so beautiful
tonight.

and then the songs from
Sweet Something Steady
and the Living Room Sessions
are unleashed,
How I Roll
and a smoking version of
Long Way Home,
The Other Dame
Arkansas
and a new song,
Can’t Get You Off My Mind
and Romi exits
80 amazing minutes
and this is where
the beginning
ends and ends
in the beginning.

Webers burn through
7 songs
in 40 ferocious
minutes
during Slow Water
they all take
massively
furious
solos
and then The Encore

Romi’s back with another
sizzlin’ song
Drink Until Four
and ending
with the beautiful ballad
Angeline

The Best CD Release Show
of a winnipeg band
ever!

now,
go
and see
Romi Mayes
and
The Weber Brothers.

Rom