{"id":908,"date":"2013-03-20T22:19:27","date_gmt":"2013-03-21T03:19:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/gazette\/2013\/03\/20\/130320-themavericks\/"},"modified":"2022-11-25T12:33:24","modified_gmt":"2022-11-25T18:33:24","slug":"130320-themavericks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ericsiegmund.com\/fireant\/2013\/03\/20\/130320-themavericks\/","title":{"rendered":"The Mavericks in Concert – 10 Takeaways"},"content":{"rendered":"
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  1. As good as you think The Mavericks<\/a> sound on CD\/vinyl\/radio\/iWhatever, in person they’re approximately infinitely better. If you have a chance to see them in concert, sell your cat, your car, or your child and buy a ticket. You won’t regret it until much, much later.<\/li>\n
  2. Raul Malo<\/a> has the physique of Jack Black<\/a> and the voice of Enrico Caruso<\/a>. If you can relate to only one of those comparisons, you need to get out more. Or read more. Or both. And I’m pretty sure he thinks he has the best job in the world, judging by the continuous smile on his face while he performs. I guess he didn’t get the memo about the approved Tortured Creative Genius Expression of Bored Contempt. (And, in fact, the whole band seemed to be having an excellent time. Suspiciously so, almost. Whatever.)<\/li>\n
  3. Seth Walker<\/a> as a solo opening act rocked. His acoustic blues-pop set was the perfect counterpoint to the main act’s in-your-face ensemble. Look him up on iTunes; you’ll be happy you did. In particular, I recommend More Days Like This<\/i> from his Time Can Change<\/a><\/i> album.<\/li>\n
  4. Listening to music like this in the Winpac<\/a> is pure agony. Sure, the surroundings are beautiful, the seats are comfortable, and the acoustics are [generally] awesome, but There. Is. No. Dancing. And while you might think that the genre-bending music of The Mavericks is not danceable, you’d be disastrously wrong. Horribly wrong.<\/li>\n
  5. Those guys can play anything. Seriously. With a nine-piece ensemble, including a trumpet player, a saxophonist, a guy in a funky white tophat playing an equally funky white standup bass, and a young Mexican kid who literally owns<\/i> the accordion (seriously; have you ever wanted to give a standing ovation to a sqeezebox player? We did.), they have a rich sound and a stylistic range that surpasses almost anything I’ve ever heard. Western swing? Check. ZZ Top-ish licks? Check. Swaggering cumbia? Check. Robert Rodriguez\/Quentin Tarantino Soundtrack Neo-Noir Ironic Drama? Check. Ballroom standards? Check…wait…what? Yes, their version of Sway<\/i> is the best freakin’ arrangement of that song – which, by the way, is only our all-time favorite song to dance to. Dance to! We couldn’t! – we’ve ever heard, and we’ve heard a bunch of them.This is not the best version of the song, and it features only Raul, not the entire band, but it’s the best we can do for now:<\/i>\n