moe. is an American jam band, formed at the University at Buffalo in 1990. The band members are: Rob Derhak (bass, Vocals), Al Schnier (guitar, Vocals, keyboard), Chuck Garvey (guitar, Vocals), Vinnie Amico (drums), and Jim Loughlin (percussion).
The band's first record, Fatboy (1992), established the band as a favorite of the 1990s jam band and improvisational rock scene that grew in popularity with bands such as Phish and Widespread Panic. Just as Grateful Dead followers were coined "Dead Heads", avid moe. fans embrace the term "moe.rons." moe. toured with the 1994 Furthur Festival, appeared at Woodstock '99, played Summerstage at the Rumsey Playfield in Central Park, opened for The Allman Brothers and The Who, performed at Radio City Music Hall on New Year's Eve 2007 and returned there for New Year's Eve 2009.
During an interview, guitarist Al Schnier was asked to describe moe. for those who have never heard their music: "It's an amalgamation of a wide variety of the history of rock, all regurgitated and recycled through the eyes, ears, hands, whatever of the guys in our band and all of that with a sense of adventure, a sense of humor, also a constant desire to push the envelope. All in this arena of taking chances, improvising live, and making things up on the spot." [1]
The 1990s
The origin of the band goes back as far as October, 1989, when Chuck Garvey, Rob Derhak, and Ray Schwartz got together to play a Halloween show at a friend's behest. The band's first true form began in the winter of 1990. Chuck was joined by Dave Kessler on guitar and Steve Hunter joined on saxophone and vocals. They called themselves Five Guys named Moe, the name of a Louis Jordan song. They opened for a band named Monkey Wrench at Broadway Joe's in Buffalo, NY. Monkey Wrench would later be mentioned in moe.'s song Y.O.Y., where Garvey sings "I wish I could suck like Monkey Wrench."
In the Fall of 1990, Hunter exited. Also, the bands name evolved first into Haggis (for one week) before settling to be simply moe, noticeably without the period. Derhak pushed for the "m" to be capitalized, but a Brooklyn band had that name already. Al Schnier sat in with the band for a show in 1991 in Buffalo when Kessler was absent. After this show, Schnier was a frequent guest. They became known as the moe guitar army because of the three guitarists. The band also officially adopted the period at the end of moe. Schnier joined the band full-time in early 1992 and in the Spring, Kessler left due to a lack of interest.
In June 1993, the band recorded Fatboy, after which Schwartz left the band to go to graduate school. Jim Loughlin joined the band in September on drums. During the Summer of 1993, Chuck left the band due to personal issues, but returned two months later and "beg[ged] for re-admittance and more abuse."[2] In the Spring of 1994, the band recorded Headseed, officially quitting their day jobs, and all moved to Albany, NY. Loughlin left the band in June of 1995 to pursue another band named Yolk, from Binghamton, NY. After Loughlin left, Mike Strazza joined the band on drums, but only from July until the end of 1995, though he officially quit in September. During their two nights over Thanksgiving weekend at the Wetlands in New York City, the band recorded Loaf, their first official live release.
Chris Mazur joined the band on drums near the end of 1995 through November 1996. That same month, Vinnie Amico started playing for the band on drums and has continued in that position since. In 1998 the band really hit their stride as a four piece. In early 1999, Loughlin returned to the lineup on percussion, flute, backup bass, acoustic guitar, and washboard. Since January 23, 1999, the band moe. has officially been Al Schnier, Chuck Garvey, Rob Derhak, Vinnie Amico, and Jim Loughlin.[2]
Fundraising
The band has taken part in a number of fundraising efforts. moe. held a Tsunami Benefit concert at the Roseland Ballroom in New York City on February 10, 2005. Sharing the stage with moe. were Sam Bush, John Medeski of Medeski, Martin, and Wood, Trey Anastasio, and Anastasio collaborator Jennifer Hartswick. All proceeds from the event were matched by the Dave Matthews Band and his Bama Works Village Recovery Fund to assist rebuilding an east coast sea town in Sri Lanka. Bama Works, Dave's philanthropic brainchild, recorded a final tally of a whopping $155,000. Waves of Sound
- The performance garnered moe. an award for Live Performance of the Year at the 6th Annual Jammy Awards.
On January 22, 2006, moe. performed at the Landmark Theatre in Syracuse, NY. This concert raised $35,000 in support of the Kelberman Center - a comprehensive community resource for individuals with autism spectrum disorder and their families. The evenings proceeds brought moe.'s charitable contributions to over $200,000 between January 2005 and January 2006.[3]
- Al Schnier on the Kelberman Center:[4]
| “ |
The Promise School is one of the leading resources for autistic preschoolers in the country. I was amazed, and grateful, to learn that one of the most highly regarded programs was right here in our community. As we learn more about autism, and as our kids grow older, we are finding that we as parents and our children need that same high quality and progressive resource beyond the Promise Program's objective. The Kelberman Center is fulfilling that need. |
” |
On April 11th, 2006, the band donated $38,000 to the Kelberman Center as part of The Face of Autism telethon.[5]
Festivals
moe.lennium
moe. rang in the new millennium with three nights at The Chance in Poughkeepsie, NY, December 29-31, 1999.
moe.down
moe. host the annual festival moe.down at Snow Ridge Ski Area in Turin, NY. Started in 2000, festival runs for three days and occurs every Labor Day weekend. The festival has attracted a wide variety of musical talent. Acts range from newer bands just emerging onto the scene (such as Tea Leaf Green, Nellie McKay and Raq) to big name acts and jam rock staples, such as Les Claypool, Blues Traveler, and Mike Gordon (of Phish fame), to pop rock icons, such as Leo Kottke, The Flaming Lips, The Violent Femmes, and most recently, Perry Farrell. Each year, the amount of moe.down attendees has steadily increased. moe.down I attracted around 3,000 people while moe.down VI in 2005, had attracted close to 7,000.
snoe.down
moe. hosted Snoe.down II March 17, 2006 through March 19, 2006. This event, which kicked off the week long Adirondack Almost Springfest celebration, took place at the Olympic Center in Lake Placid, New York, home of the 1932 Winter Olympics and 1980 Winter Olympics, and at nearby Whiteface. During the concerts (not moe.'s sets) fans even had the option of ice skating while listening to the show. Bands included Soulive, Everyone Orchestra, Assembly of Dust, Tea Leaf Green, and others. [6]
- Chuck on snoe.down II:[7]
Our set outdoors (that's right, outdoors on a ski slope in 10 - 15 degree weather) was brisk and inspired by hot coffee and a touch of whiskey. The gloves that I cut up to "protect" my hands from the cold ended up looking like something from Pat Benatar's 80's video wardrobe when I was done making field alterations onstage to accommodate playing with my slide........hmmmmm. A bad sign, usually, but a crowd of 2,000+ made it their business not to budge the whole time. Kudos all around! Completely worth it - especially if you get to ski right up to your workplace!!
moe. Cruise
From March 7, 2004 until March 14, 2004, moe. embarked on their first musical cruise aboard the Norwegian Sun through Les and Lynn Berger of Rhythms at Sea Cruises (formerly Rock the Boat Cruises). Setting out from Miami, FL, the Norwegian Sun visited Jamaica, The Cayman Islands, Costa Maya, and Cozumel before returning back to Florida. The band performed each day except for the 12th on the pool deck, Stardust Lounge, and the Observation Lounge. The shows on the 10th in the Observation were acoustic sets and featured questions and answers with the band.
In January 2007, the band returned for its second cruise, again through Les and Lynn Berger of Rhythms at Sea Cruises. The cruise took place January 7, 2007 through January 14, 2007 on the Norwegian Jewel. Fans were treated to a different itinerary this time: the ship headed east out of Miami and hit the ports of San Juan (Puerto Rico), St. John's (Antigua), and St. Thomas (US Virgin Islands). Unfortunately due to rough seas, the ship did not port at Great Stirrup Cay (Bahamas).
Other Festivals
moe. has also played at a number of already established festivals, including;
- The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival, New Orleans, LA - 2002
- Bonnaroo, Manchester, TN - 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2009
- Vegoose Festival, Las Vegas, NV - 2005, 2007
- Summer Camp Music Festival, Chillicothe, IL - 2001-2009
- Woodstock 1999, Rome, NY
- Beale Street Music Festival, Memphis, TN - 1999, 2002
- Summerfest, Milwaukee, WI - 2001, 2002, 2004, 2006
- Langerado Music Festival, Ft Lauderdale, FL - 2004, 2007
- Riverbend Festival, Chattanooga, TN - 2007
- All Good Music Festival, Masontown, WV - 2007, 2009
- The Echo Project, Fairburn, GA - 2007(duki)
- 10,000 Lakes Festival, Detroit Lakes, MN - July 2007
- Lollapalooza, Chicago, IL - 2007
- New Years Radio City Music Hall New York N.Y.,Every year until midnight.
- Diversafest, Tulsa,Ok - 2008
- Mile High Music Festival, Commerce City, CO - July 2008
- Dunegrass and Blues Festival, Empire, MI - August 2008
- Wanee Music Festival, Live Oak, Fl. 2008
- Gathering of the Vibes, Bridgeport, Ct. 2009
They received a Jammy for their Bonnaroo performance on June 23, 2002.
Discography
Video and DVD releases
Singles
- 1996: meat. - 550 Music
- Out of print. 10,000 made. The song clocks in at a little over 45 minutes.
- 1997: She Sends Me - 550 Music
- Promotional release for radio stations to support the band on the 1997 Furthur Festival tour. Out of print. 10,000 made. The "flip side" of the single is the meat. single.
- 1998: Stranger Than Fiction - 550 Music
- 2000: New York City - Fatboy Records
- Promotional release for radio stations to support Dither. Out of print.
- 2001: Tambourine - Fatboy Records
- Promotional release for radio stations to support Dither. Out of print.
Self-releases
- 1991: Codename: Weasleshark a 4-track independent release
- 1991: Spine Of A Dog a 4-track independent cassette release.
- 1991: Real Live, Nearly Free an independent cassette release.
Audio
See also
External links
Articles
- Taking chances is part of moe. by Will Stewart of the Ann Arbor News, January 29, 2006
- moe.'s Voyage To The Bottom of Sound by Jack Krolick of Jambase.com, February 3, 2006.
- moe. & Bisco Storm the Windy City by Brian Heisler of Jambase.com, February 16, 2006.
- Q&A with Al Schnier of moe. by Taylor Hill of thecornernews.com, February 15, 2006.
- Caught in a Jam by Clayton Collins of The Christian Science Monitor, September 9, 2005.
- Taking on Topper by Jambands.com & fans, November 11, 2005.
- Glide's 3rd Annual Best of 2005: From The Artists Perspective by Rob Derhak, Glide Magazine.com, December 20, 2005.
- moe. to Host Autism Benefit by the band, moe.org, December 29, 2005.
- Mighty, Mighty moe. Plays Asheville Shows by Jedd Ferris of Citizen-Times, December 23, 2005.
- Genres Unlimited by Marc Shapiro of Diamondbackonline.com, July 14, 2005.
- moe. at Lakewood Theater, Matt Weitz, Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News, February 24, 2006.
- Al Schnier and Chuck Garvey Interview with Brian D. Holland, for Modern Guitars Magazine, May 16, 2007.
- Throwing Stones with Rob Derhak by Tim Newby of honesttune.com February 2, 2008.
References
- ^ "Q&A with Al Schnier of moe.". http://www.relix.com/Features/Show_Reviews/Tea_Leaf_Green_&_U-Melt_200704252251.html.
- ^ a b "moe.links' Band history at moe.links.com". http://www.moelinks.com/faq/3.html moe.links'.
- ^ "moe. Raises $35,000". http://www.jambase.com/headsup.asp?storyID=7867.
- ^ "moe. to Host Autism Benefit". http://www.phantasytour.com/moe/articles.cgi?newsID=557.
- ^ "Al Schnier's blog entry for April 12th, 2006". http://www.alschnier.com.
- ^ "snoe.down 2 Official Information". http://www.moe.org/snoedown2.htm.
- ^ "Chuck Garvey comments on snoe.down II.". http://www.moe.org/diary/archives/2006/03/post_placid_upd.html.
