Posts Tagged ‘Shows’
Featured on Boston Blues Society Blog
While I’m in China, the Boston Blues Society has asked me to write a fortnightly blog entry about my experiences overseas!
The first one was just published today!
Mike Null
Special to The Killing FloorIt’s finally starting to hit me. In less than forty-eight hours I will be waking up on the other side of the world! My life as I know it is about to be turned upside down. My new band, The Soulcasters, will be playing a residency at The House of Blues and Jazz in Shanghai, China, starting next week. I can’t believe I’m going back!
This week has been busy. The band has been getting together every day to rehearse with an enthusiastic and anxious energy that keeps us burning the midnight oil. We have a lot to prepare for; three sixty-minute sets six nights a week is a lot of material for any style of music. That in combination with last minute visa applications and honoring other commitments, this trip is consuming just about every free minute I have.
The biggest priority is preparing for the unofficial ceremony that takes place upon arrival. Every band that gets the gig agrees to host a blues jam every Sunday. After the plane touches down and the band is given an opportunity to shake off a little jet lag, they suit up and head to the club to make their first impressions.
This event is promoted and usually well attended. In addition to the draw from the previous band, the crowd also consists of many of the movers and shakers in the local music scene. The resident band calls up the new band to showcase a few songs and they are given one shot to make a strong impression, a trial by fire of sorts. If the band lacks skill or isn’t rehearsed, there is a good chance they’ll lose a good percentage of the crowd for their entire residency. First impressions are everything, especially in Shanghai.
Fortunately, we will have a chance to warm up before we get on the plane. We’re having our own state-side ceremony tonight at Smoken Joe’s in Brighton. Last year’s lineup, The Mike Null Blues Band, will open, followed by Boston legend Toni Lynn Washington. Closing out the night is the debut of the new Asia-bound lineup, The Soulcasters.
I’ll be writing about it here in more depth, as well. Stay tuned! We leave first thing tomorrow.
Don’t forget about the send-off party tonight! Hope to see you there!
Send-off Show / Party!
Save the date!
June 18th, 9p – 1am, at Smoken Joe’s in Brighton Center, MA.
We’ll be having a big send-off party for the Soulcasters! The show will consist of performances by the Mike Null Blues Band, the Soulcasters, and Boston legnd, Toni Lynn Washington.. in addition to some special guests sitting in!
Hope to see you there!
Shanghai here we come!
New Sunday Residency
EDIT: This Residency has been canceled. But check the CALENDAR PAGE for other local shows!
ATTENTION BLUES FANS!! SUNDAYS, SUNDAYS, SUNDAYS!!!
Fresh off of a 3 month run in Shanghai, The Mike Null Blues Band brings their high energy blues show to Cantab Lounge (downstairs… aka Club Bohemia) EVERY SUNDAY starting February 28, 2010!
…And don’t forget the special guests! In addition to the weekly show, there will be regular appearances by some of Boston’s best and bluesiest talent!
The Cantab Lounge is located at 738 Massachusetts Ave. (Central Square), Cambridge, MA 02139
By T: Take the Red Line to CENTRAL SQUARE.
As many of you know, I used to play here every Thursday with The Chicken Slacks, so I can vouch for what a lively scene this is. This is a great place to see live music! Get ready to get down and get into it! Bring your friends! Hope to see you there.
DVD Teaser
If you’re going to play in Shanghai for three months, you’ve gotta have something to show for it, right?!
While in China, I happened to meet a great guy named Ludwig Fella of Fella Film Studios. He filmed a typical Saturday night show and turned into a DVD! We’re still working out some kinks, but know that it will be available for purchase and download soon!
In the meantime, here’s a teaser clip:
Find this clip and a handful of other vids at my YouTube Channel.
For those of you in China with no access to YouTube (aka victims of the Great Firewall of China), please let me know of a good video hosting site to which I can upload the videos so you can see them!
We also got some great audio recordings of the shows and are in the process of editing and mixing a live album!
So what else? After taking a much needed break for the holidays, I am now beginning to book and play shows in and around the greater Boston area. You can find an up-to-the-minute list of places I’ll be playing on my calendar.
Lots goin’ on. Stay tuned!
Bootleg Footage
Hi all,
Check out this bootleg footage from the House of Blues and Jazz!
More videos to come! Stay tuned.
First Review
“I have just come back from Shanghai and visited the famous JZ Jazz Club and also the trendy Brown Sugar BUT the best was to come on our last night. We hit the world famous House of Blues and Jazz and were treated to a world class performance from the Mike Null band. I was fortunate to hear and see them and also meet the band – a great bunch of guys and talented international musicians.”
– Alan Saks, House of Blues and Jazz patron from New Zealand
The Mike Null Blues Band to play in Shanghai
The Mike Null Blues Band is going to China!! Yes, you read that right.. CHINA.
We’ll be playing 6 nights a week (Tuesday – Sunday) at The House of Blues and Jazz in Shanghai from September 1 through the end of November!
The repertoire will be primarily blues with the occasional jazz, soul and funk tangent.
Joining me on this spontaneous adventure will be Earl Phenix (Jamie Lynn Hart, Kingfish Jones) on keys, Steve Belleville (Chad Perrone, Kangaralien) on bass and Tony Hall (Greg Luttrell Band) on drums.
The preparation for this trip has been a bit overwhelming. From subbing out my current gigs and learning a boatload of new tunes, to renewing passports and applying for visas, I’m sure this experience will be well worth the trouble.
Special thanks to Greg Luttrell for getting me hooked up over there!
While I’m over there, I’ll try to document my experiences as much as possible. In addition to subscribing to my blog, you can follow my trip on Twitter or my facebook page. I’ll try to post photos and vids as much as I can.
Ever been to Shanghai? Anything I should check out while I’m there?
Cantab
Wow!
The Cantab has been insane lately. I don’t know if it’s because the students are back or what. Whatever it is, the energy has been through the roof! It’s been packed every week, and the band has been pretty on as of late.
For those of you who haven’t been down on a Thursday night yet.. Here’s a small example of what you’re missing. We posted some recent live tracks on the Chicken Slacks MySpace Page.
Hope to see you there!
PS – Mention my blog and I’ll buy you a drink!
James Houlahan – Seven Years Now
It’s Finished!
The fruit of a year’s labor, James Houlahan’s solo debut album Seven Years Now is an honest, organic and creative collection of 14 original songs that will take you by surprise.
From a producer’s standpoint, I always try to keep things simple. There’s a pretty basic formula to making a great album:
- Great Tunes/Writing
- Great Players/Performances
- Great Production
James definitely delivers on the “Great Tunes” front. He originally brought me a CD with 25 or so demo cuts that he had made sitting in front of his computer. We had to gradually narrow them down, reluctantly removing songs from the list until we had 14 songs that we couldn’t do without. Commonly described as a cross between Bob Dylan, Neil Young with a dash of Tom Waits, his abstract and expressive lyrics always seem to pierce right through to the listener’s core, and they’re always delivered on a platter of musical simplicity.
Tom is one of the best engineers in the country. If his lengthy discography is a testament to anything, it’s that he knows what he’s doing both in engineering AND production. Working with Tom is quite the learning experience and I am always grateful for the opportunity.
Between the three of us, we managed to pull in some pretty amazing musicians. See the official album player’s list below:
- Tom Eaton: Producer, Accordion, Melodica
- Mike Null: Producer, Electric Guitar, Percussion and Backing Vocals
- Tom Bianchi: Upright and Electric Bass
- Paul Schultheis: Pump Organ, Hammond, Wurlitzer, Rhodes and Piano
- Andy Plaisted: Drums
- Jake Armerding: Fiddle
- Kevin Barry: Lap Steel
- Kristen Cifelli: Backing vocals
- John Curtis: Banjo, National Guitar, Mandolin
- Kristen Miller: Cello
- Sara Colb: Backing Vocals
- Daniella Colb: Backing Vocals
- Dan Blakeslee: Backing Vocals
- Scott Aruda: Trumpet
- John Aruda: Saxophone
- Jeff Galindo: Trombone
- Paul Ahlstrand: Saxophone
Most of these guys play out regularly. If you have nothing to do tonight, randomly click on of the links above and find their show calendar. I’ll guarantee it will be a show you won’t regret seeing.
If you are you close to the Boston/Cambridge area, you are hereby officially invited to the official CD Release show! James will play with a slew of some of the great performers listed above. It is going to be a lot of fun. Come check it out!
Seven Years Now CD RELEASE!!!!
Sunday, January 25, 2009, 8:00PM
The Burren
247 Elm St.,
Somerville, MA 02144
Illustration by Dan Blakeslee
If you’re dying to hear some of the tracks but won’t be able to make the CD Release show, you will be able to order the CD online in a few weeks. In the meantime, you can hear some of the tunes on James’ Myspace page.
New Camera
I decided to test out my new video camera at the most recent Slacks show (1/10/2009 at Johnny D’s). Here’s a little rendition of “Rollin’ with the Punches.”
What do you think?