John McLaughlin of Baylock Has More Energy Than A Mexican Jumping Bean

June 19, 2011 No Comments

Scene of the crime: Firehouse no. 13, Providence RI – Sat. June 18,2011

Sometimes I like to play musical roulette. Pick a venue, do some quick video research and show up. Sometimes this works out really well and sometimes it doesn’t. This weekend I found myself having this very kind of live music adventure at Firehouse no. 13 in Providence with a friend. On this particular night, I was relieved and sad. Let me explain:

Relieved that there continues to be musicians out there giving it their all and doing a fine job of it.

Sad that there’s not a more vibrant built-in audience for live music. It’s such a long journey from garage to local venues to regional tours and national tours and sleeping on couches in Europe. And, maybe, someday, a stadium full of people. I can’t say for sure, but it very much seemed like we were the only people in the audience who weren’t members of one of the bands or related to one.

By far, the single most engaging performer of the evening was mohawk-clad John McLaughlin of Baylock. Good voice, good bass playing and more energy than a Mexican jumping bean. Fun to listen to, watch and photograph. If the other two vocalists had half his energy, this band could catapult to a new level. Although TAB the Band had some good tunes, for me their strongest musical force of this group was with guitarist Tony Perry, who was unfortunately hiding in the shadows of the uneven stage lighting -hence, no photos of him in action here. We met bass player Jeff Sullivan from Sunshine Riot out front before the show, a friendly fellow fond of his fretless bass. Hey, that was 4 “f”s in a row! the poetry of blogging at work.

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