Ben Golder-Novick (saxophone, clarinet), Alex MacDonald (tap dance)
All pictures taken by me at the event
Bradlee has been taking current songs by not just Miley, but Lady Gaga, The Neighborhood, Sam Smith, Ellie Goulding, and even more and restyling them with a full band and talented singers. Whether it’s swing, vintage bluegrass, jazz, Motown, or retro French pop, Bradlee and his musicians have remixed postmodern songs in every modern style of music. And this past Tuesday, I had the distinct pleasure of seeing Scott Bradlee and the Postmodern Jukebox (PMJ) live at Crane School of Music. Their performance had the expected effect of a time machine; the music, the old-school dresses and suits, and the vintage messages from PMJ's sponsors most definitely took the audience back in time for one anachronistic night.
| So I hitched a ride with some friends and rode to Hosmer Hall, one of Crane's well-equipped performance halls. My seat was on the main floor, perhaps 100 meters from the main stage. There were dance students showcasing choreography and improvised moves to a soundtrack playing for the half hour before the show. During that time, the crowd buzzed with excitement, knowing what was coming next. And like any concert attendee with knowledge of the group, I had a song I really wanted to hear. My hope was that Christina Gatti's cover of "Stay with Me" by Sam Smith (to the left) would be played since I've been listening to it non-stop for the past month while doing homework. I obviously brought my camera with me, evidenced by the 74-picture slideshow above. As the lights went down and the stage lit up, I prepared my camera and myself for the oncoming music. |
The singers were at the forefront of the stage, leading the band's speed and impression on the audience. While Bradlee had the implied position of conductor during songs, he did it subtly from behind his piano. Singers Robyn Adele Anderson, Christina Gatti, Ashley Stroud, Von Smith, and Andrew Baron Roland had clear talent and were most likely drafted by Bradlee for their powerful and unique voices. Anderson has been in Bradlee's videos for years and was the most frequent singer on stage. With a ringing soprano bravado, she covered songs across the music spectrum including two songs by her favorite artist, Keisha. I personally adored Christina Gatti's voice the most even though they didn't perform "Stay with Me" like I had hoped. Her rich voice thrummed in my ears as she covered songs by Ellie Goulding and Beyoncé. According to Bradlee, Gatti was recruited for PMJ after Beyoncé Tweeted about her voice and shared one of her performances. Ashee Stroud's voice was quite unique in its sweetness and its nasal sound that worked well for this style of music. Stroud also had a part in choreographing the dancing; she even performed a short swing dance bit with Alex McDonald involving lots of twirls and tap dancing. Smith, during his debut with PMJ in this performance, got the most screams as the young handsome heartthrob. Admittedly, his falsetto was passionate and on key which not many male singers are able to do. Roland the MC even performed a Motown rendition of a Nickelback song. This wasn't totally out of the blue as everyone in association with PMJ has fabulous musical skills.
Scott Bradlee, the composer, took a moment towards the end of the show to demonstrate the ethos of PMJ. Bradlee's incredible ability to combine multiple artists and genres of music stems from the things he learned in music school and beyond. Bradlee asked the audience for a couple of current artists as well as an older artist to demonstrate his creative abilities. He ended up performing a mix between Kanye West, Beyoncé, and Lady Gaga with the style of Mozart as an overtone. While his quick notes on the piano were breathtaking alone, I was even more stunned by this improvised medley of Austrian classical music to the tune of "Poker Face". The group ended with every artist on stage performing to the tune of Taylor Swift's "Shake it Off", a new composition for PMJ. They gave proper credit to each artist, giving each a solo and a bow for his or her work in the middle of the song. With Smith as the front man and each of the other singers with their own solos, the show ended on an upbeat note as the crowd rushed to the lobby for posters, CD's, and signatures from their favorite musicians.
It was pretty surprising out that the group I’d been fan-girling over for the entire year would be in little old Potsdam for one magical night. I have to confess that this is the kind of culture I feel is lacking at Clarkson. I was surrounded by Crane musicians and Potsdam dance and theater majors (at least these were the ones I was aware of), as well as a community with knowledge and experience with professional musical performances. While I basically melted in my seat from the sensation this music evoked in me, most people around me wore a sort of I've-done-this-before shroud even as the show reached its crescendo. While I've been to art museums, rock concerts, and a variety of religious ceremonies, this wave of postmodern culture felt too big for me to handle. Even as the daughter of an artist, I felt completely out of my element after spending two years at an engineering college.
While I could complain about the lack of artistic stimulation given to me by my school, I acknowledge that events like this are how I can fill that void. This performance was right up the road from me at one of the premiere music schools in the country. Postmodern Jukebox will still be on the internet and in person as well as thousands of other artists and performers taking advantage of the postmodern culture we live in. I simply need to find it and take advantage of every opportunity presented to me. Who knows, I may find another time machine with the same cultural capacity as Scott Bradlee's compositions.
PMJ's rendition of "We Can't Stop" by Miley Cyrus:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pXYWDtXbBB0
Postmodern Jukebox's website:
http://www.postmodernjukebox.com/
Scott Bradlee's Youtube page:
https://www.youtube.com/user/ScottBradleeLovesYa
Note that any writing or opinions on this blog do not reflect the views of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences or Clarkson University.