Article + Photos by Sachyn Mital
Prior to the Flecktones’ December 4th gig, I unfortunately had only seen the group perform just once, back in 2011. I had practically forgotten how their intricate balance was as smooth as a finely tuned machine when I saw them eight years later, celebrating their 30th anniversary at The Town Hall (the same venue where I first saw them). This time, however, I was more appreciative of their banter and wit as well. Béla Fleck, Victor Wooten, Howard Levy and Futureman (aka Roy Wooten) cracked smiles more often than they took solos in a night that covered thirty years of music and included reflections of classic holiday standards.
Wooten and Fleck had some of the funniest banter. During the member introductions, Wooten joked that Fleck’s banjo wasn’t a real instrument before asking if he could get fired from a band he’s been a part of for 30 years. Fleck noted that being humble was one of his top three most recognized traits (or something) and bragged that the Flecktones were a really smart band. No other band would dare to try what they did next in the second set — tackle the “12 Days of Christmas” with a different key and a different time signature for each “day”.
During the first set of the 2.5+ hour show, Wooten, wielding his yin-yang bass, and Levy, hammering his harmonica, had deposited some holiday solo riffs. But it was during the second set, that the Flecktones did “12 Days” and more directly tapped into the season — red and green stage lights set the tone as Levy recalled numerous holiday classics. Soon after that Christmas medley, Futureman took a powerful drum solo where every other cymbal crash resulted in bits of drum stick chipping and flying off. It was just as exciting to watch Futureman wielding his custom Drumitar at other points — the audience were craning their necks to watch.
The second set contained the most “rock” song in the Flecktones’ catalog, “Turtle Rock” and a tune that Fleck noted the group didn’t even recall recording, “Jekyll and Hyde (and Ted and Alice)”, that they were relearning and reviving for this tour. (I recall the song as a standout on Flight of the Cosmic Hippo.) They closed out the second set with “Juno”, a tune written at Dallas Fort-Worth airport for Fleck’s newborn son, before returning for another couple of songs in the encore.
Join the conversation