Live Music Sunday At The Half King
The WIYOS
Sunday, May 22, 2005. 7:30 PM
Old Timey American music:
vaudevillian ragtime blues, early swing,
jugband and old time country.
A trio comprised of three vocals, washboard/ harmonica/kazoo, guitar, and upright bass, The WIYOS transport listeners back to a time before TV and mass-media, to the days when music could be heard on live radio and at community dances, juke joints and house parties. The WIYOS perform acoustic whenever possible, or in front of two condenser stage microphones to preserve a performance style that is visually stimulating. Incorporating elements of physical comedy and theatricality, The WIYOS create an interactive show in the tradition of vaudevillian performers like Fats Waller, Spike Jones and Uncle Dave Macon. The band is passionate about infusing old-time American music with new blood; carrying this rich musical heritage into the 21st century and having a darn good time doing it.
Since forming in New York City in 2002, The WIYOS have toured Canada, the southeast, New England and the midwest playing theaters, clubs, coffeehouses, pig roasts, street corners and parks. They have been selected to participate in the Carnegie Hall Neighborhood Concert Series, and have played at notable festivals throughout the country including The2004 Newport Folk Festival, The Piccolo Spoletto Festival, the Annual American Music Festival, and the Rhythm and Roots Festival.
Review:
"Oldturnative Tunes" is the sub-title of this delightfully eccentric passel of music, bubbling up from the medicine shows of the '20s and '30s -- a somewhat more urban twist of the "O Brother" era but nonetheless smacking of that period's diffused genres. A lot of recorded music these days comes essentially from studio bands or maybe a duo or trio with studio players in a support role; not so here! The Wiyos are what you hear are what you get, and their live performance calendar looks like Ernest Tubb's did when Smiley Wilson and Haze Jones both stayed on the phone to make sure ET didn't have any down days on the road. This is interesting, fun music -- at no point does the music drift from its original purpose. I really get excited about off-the-wall music that thumbs its nose at generic conventions, and this thumbing is as jubilant as we've seen." Bill Littleton, Nashville producer/songwriter/music journalist
ALL MUSIC, READING AND GALLERY EVENTS ARE FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.