julia dawn's holiday extravaganza

last night was a really fun time. it's too bad more of our immediate crew couldn't have been there, but heather, adam and i had a blast.

nick nocketback opened up the show with some comedy stylings. this is tough, because you're doing comedy and everyone is there for music. and, it's at a club, so everyone is sitting around talking and not paying attention to you. nick was as shocking as he could be, but he still struggled to really grab a hold of them. but a good effort none the less.

ibid came on next. before ibid's set, i spoke we julia dawn and she mentioned that they had some technical difficulties but they were all worked out now. well, there were still a few bugs in the system as ibid's music wasn't working. so, short delay. i've seen ibid several times, at both tokyo garden as well as at club fred. he's a wonderful mc. i think the crowd gets into him a little more @ tokyo, while it's more intimate, you're jammed against the stage feel. i feel like i lose ibid's stage presence @ club fred. outside of that, i felt this may have been the best sound quality i've heard from ibid, but i still would've turned his vocals up a bit.

next on stage was tommy delgado and armen nalbandian. they had a real nice sound, real laid back. tommy played drums and some guitar and armen was on the keys, as well as a few other instruments sporadically. i actually think they would have been a little better suited to open the show, let the crowd kind of come into the music. but anyway, these guys played some good, interesting jams and had a good time on stage.

finally, everyone got what they came to see, julia dawn and her o.g. hump day band. julia always puts on a great show, and i'm constantly amazed that such a big voice comes out of such a little lady. and, her lyrics are soulful and deep. this concert showcased those elements of julia, but also her fun spirit and her talent as a performer. julia belted out several of her older tunes, some of them with updated style. she also played a few new tunes which i enjoyed. of course, her ensemble cast was amazing, and showcased what fresno has produced and what they are still producing. jason jurzak, eva scow, randy stindt, jeff simpson all ripped up the stage with julia.

click over and watch some videos of julia's set, including a great vid of nick nocketback's mad skillz as a dance machine.