Synthaxe drumitars and dueling banjoes

At a quarter after eight, people were still filing into the faded red seats covered mysterious stains. These are the details that characterize the Orpheum Theater, described by my buddy as one of the worst theaters in Boston. But we were not there to look at the paint peeling off the wall, or debate the quality of the venue (I happen to enjoy seeing shows at the Orpheum -- it has a very spunky feel to it). We were there to see Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, one of the most talented musical acts currently touring.

The group is composed of Bela Fleck, one of the world's hands-down best banjo players; Victor Wooten, a superb bassist; Futureman, an intriguing percussionist; and Jeff Collin, an extremely talented horn player.

The technical facility that each player has is astounding. When they first took the stage it was a powerful demonstration of musical talent that is very rare. The two sets were composed of typical Flecktones tunes, some familiar ones and many new ones. But because the group is so heavy on improvisation, it is the spontaneous moments that make the live shows worthwhile.

The group does a great job of playing off one another, and has a real knack for trading solos. A highlight of the evening was Victor Wooten and Bela Fleck doing a form of "dueling banjoes" that would put any musician to shame. They are both masters of their instruments, and during the climax of the tradeoff solo their fingers were moving in a blur but with incredible control.

The group's sense of humor came out in the middle of one of these sections, when either Vic of Bela would use his solo turn to play a bit of something familiar, just to give the audience a break.

While the whole group's cohesiveness floored me, the talent of the individual band members is enough to highly impress. Each member of the group is perfectly capable of a rousing solo performance, and each took their turn to have one during the course of the evening.

Futureman went first. He is the member of the group most likely to elicit the question, "What's his deal?" That is because his main instrument is the one-of-a-kind synthaxe drumitar, a hand-held drum machine that sounds remarkably like the real thing. Futureman is an electronic music whiz and his solo performance was very experimental, consisting of a rousing drum solo followed by some eclectic electronic sounds before settling into forming rhythmic riffs out of different tones. While his solo was interesting, it started to drag at the end.

Futureman was saved by Victor Wooten, who played next and lapsed into a soulful rendition of "Summertime," which quickly escalated into an all-out slap bass frenzy and ended with Wooten swinging his bass around his head. In between, Wooten made use of his mixer to solo over melodic loops that he recorded on stage.

Bela took his solo during the first number in the second set. He started off with the familiar introduction to "Sunset Road," a standard Flecktone number, but only played the opening piece. He then played the beginning of a classical bluegrass piece and then the beginning of "Pop Goes the Weasel." He cycled through the next sections of each of these songs until on the last one he finished each song to rousing applause. Fleck then jumped into a classical banjo solo that served to reinforce him as the best banjo player ever and quite possibly one of the best musicians alive. His dexterity is amazing.

Jeff Collin then came on to do a solo backed by Fleck. The saxophonist showed an amazing ear for building melodies as well as a mastery of the instrument. His use of electronics during the course of the evening (he had just as many effects pedals as any other band member) was also never overstated but always complimentary to the music.

The Flecktones proved themselves as one of the most entertaining, energetic, technically accomplished, musically complex, and amazing to listen to live acts. Anyone with a penchant for music should get the chance to hear them once.