You know how ‘they’ say that if you have no expectations, you won’t have any disappointments?  I try, but don’t always succeed, to approach every art experience that way.

Last Thursday, I scored a couple of tickets to see Chris Trapper, who I have seen perform a few times, and other bands that were completely unfamiliar to me, at Red Star Union, a venue I first heard about a week ago.



Chris is a terrific singer-songwriter who was one of the founding members of The Push Stars, a band I never got to see. He embarked on a solo career in the mid-2000s. He’s a prolific songwriter – he wrote and performed the theme from the movie ‘August Rush’ (which I enjoyed far more than I thought I would), and had songs in ‘There’s Something About Mary’ and ‘The Devil Wears Prada’, to name a few.

Chris Trapper

He has great rapport with the audience and in a venue this small, it would have been uncomfortable had he not. He performed a solo acoustic set which included a few songs from the Christmas album of original songs that he released in 2007. They’re excellent songs – I didn’t buy the CD at the show, but I intend to buy it because it will be an excellent addition to my collection.

Chris

Chris did perform ‘This Time’ from ‘August Rush’ as well as others from his career. He’s well worth seeing.

Chris’ set was followed by The Rapid Shave, who were unfamiliar to me.  The Rapid Shave is Mike Gent’s new band; Mike founded The Figgs (another band I’ve heard of but have never seen). We were only going to stay for a few numbers (it was a work night, after all) but ended up staying for their entire set. They’re really good! They were a last-minute addition to the show because the lead singer of The Singhs had strep throat and had to cancel. Mike apologized up front about the lack of rehearsal time for the show, but they performed well and it didn’t appear to this viewer that they were unrehearsed.

The Rapid Shave

The Rapid Shave comprises Mike Gent on guitar and lead vocals, Ducky Carlisle on drums, Ted Collins on keys and Marc Hickox on bass. Their Facebook page describes them as a ‘soft roll band’ which is pretty accurate. Not that I’ve ever heard that expression before, but it seems to fit.

Mike Gent, about to jump off the amp

Ted Collins on keys
(in the background)

Ducky Carlisle

Mike Gent

Marc Hickox

We left after that set so we did not hear Mount Peru, who I would have liked to hear.  They sound very interesting from the clips I’ve heard online (cosmic Americana is one description I read), so I’ll be looking to see them live.

Red Star Union is a terrific venue. It’s a recording studio that also hosts all kinds of events, from live performances to conversations. It’s small – I’d guess 80-100 capacity – and obviously has an excellent sound system. The security in the building was initially a little off-putting until we thought about all the high-tech companies that have offices in the building.

I had no expectations about this show and walked out of it feeling like I’d discovered something amazing.