CELEBRATING FIFTY YEARS OF MAX CREEK

In those rare instances that a band reaches its fifth decade, it’s usually a result of stardom. It’s easy enough to keep things together when each member has a jet and techs on retainer and the world tour rolls around every few years. But that’s not how Max Creek has done it. In 40+ years Max Creek has been small, big, regionally-huge, medium, and any other size one can think of; they’ve never graced the cover of Rolling Stone, but you’d be hard pressed to find a music fan in the Northeast that hadn’t heard of them.

Well then, how’d they do it?

If you knew Max Creek you’d answer simply, “they just did.” Creek lacks pretense; there is no hip style or genre-title that can define them. From the beginning they’ve mixed anything they liked—rock, country, reggae, soul, jazz, calypso—in with their own great songs and it’s all just come out sounding like Creek. As such they’ve never been the hot item in the flavor-of-the-year club yet they’ve also never gone out of style. Moreover, Creek exudes confidence but lacks ego; each member is an incredible musician but that’s never been what it was about.

But that is all things Creek is not, and what Creek is is far more important. The band is certainly joyous, and their stage is full of smiles and laughter, both during and between songs. All one has to do is glance into the crowd to see that the feeling is contagious. Creek is also much more engaging than the average band, sculpting lengthy shows on-the-fly from their 200+ song catalog with rockers, ballads, deep jams and crowd sing-alongs all tucked into their perfect places. And Creek is, most definitely, a family. 40-odd years in, the audience is a multi-generational stew; it’s not uncommon to witness old-school Creek Freeks getting down with their teenage (or older!) kids.

Creek itself is multigenerational. Though the “front line” of guitarist Scott Murawski, keyboardist Mark Mercier and bassist John Rider has remained intact since the mid-70s, the current drums and percussion team of Bill Carbone and Jamemurrell Stanley weren’t even born when Max Creek was founded.

Doors 6:00pm

Music 8:00pm

REPRISE – A band that formed to reprise the Phish experience, is an all-star New England band. Cal Kehoe, longtime frontman for Pink Talking Fish, helms the enterprise on guitar. Adrian Tramontano (Twiddle, Kung Fu and The Breakfast) masters the drums. Scott Chasolen chairmans the boards for the project, bringing years of experience as a founding member of Ulu and keyboardist of The Machine, a Pink Floyd tribute. Multi-instrumentalist and composer Chris DeAngelis (The Machine, Kung Fu and The Breakfast) rounds out the foursome on bass. The time is near, the mission’s clear — get ready to blaze on with REPRISE!

REPRISE will be reprising a 1.0 show. Exact show will be announced about a week before the event.

Doors 6pm

Music 8pm

Kashmir – The Spirit of Led Zeppelin Live!

Introducing KASHMIR featuring Jean Violet – The Spirit of Led Zeppelin Live! Kashmir was created by vocalist Jean Violet back in 2000. It has grown from the streets of New York City to now being one of the top Led Zeppelin Tribute bands touring nationally and internationally. Experience the mythos and magic of Led Zeppelin – the hits and deep cuts that you’ve loved all of your life, with the visual dynamism you’d expect from a Zep show. See Jean as the personification of a young Robert Plant, with his long, golden mane and powerful, seductive vocal delivery. Witness Kevin Slover in his iconic black dragon suit, strutting the stage like a young, cocky Jimmy Page delivering his blistering, raucous riffs with both power and finesse. …and multi instrumentalist Lenny Lee – as someone who’s long been inspired by the playing and creativity of John Paul Jones – is a natural in the role of “Jonesy”, having performed these songs live for many years. Finally, David Blampied, “keeper of the groove”, is equally adept at the subtle, nuanced passages as well as the thunderous grooves Bonham is known for, creating a dynamic driving force for this powerful rhythm section.

As fate would have it, the members of KASHMIR featuring Jean Violet do bear a resemblance to their counterparts in Led Zep, so beyond the power and intensity of their sound, there’s a visual realism that truly completes the experience. Do yourself a favor and get out to see KASHMIR featuring Jean Violet, and behold them as they embody the Spirit of Led Zeppelin Live, and transport you to a time when Giants Walked the Earth!

Doors 6:00pm

Music 8:00pm