Member:
daddysangbassdude
(Profile)
(All Album Reviews by daddysangbassdude)
Date:
7/23/2004
Format:
CD (Album)
I usually try to avoid saying things like “this band sounds like [insert name of band here],” but in the case of the Pacific Northwest’s Jam Camp it becomes necessary. The name of the band implies just what it actually is, a progressive instrumental jam band that can take its direction any way it seems to desire at any particular moment.
Take, for instance, the opening title track to their latest CD, Black Hills Jam – Preserves Vol. 2. The 15-minute-plus track begins with a simple enough groove with the soft electric guitar playing of David Broyles and Michael “Smitty” Smith and the crisp drum sounds of Joel Veatch bringing to mind a more laid-back version of Djam Karet, getting even more laid back when Steven Munger adds some sax riffs. Jess White adds very understated bass guitar lines. Over four minutes into the song, the feel gets heavier from the guitars for a sudden mood shift. Then it can take on more of a feel like Soft Machine or Traffic, with Broyles pulling out a guitar bit reminiscent of the more familiar, softer lines David Gilmour laid down in Pink Floyd’s “Us And Them.” They’re noodling to a solid groove, like the best jam bands do.
That, in essence, is Jam Camp.
On the second tune, “Wormhole,” what can jump immediately to mind is “Frank Zappa Meets the Dixie Dregs” (much like when Dweezil joined Steve Morse to play “Peaches En Regalia” on the Dregs’ live California Screamin’) with its more complex boogie bounce and riffing. Very unique, good stuff. Munger becomes a much stronger presence here on sax, making the echoes of Ian Underwood’s soloing on Zappa’s Hot Rats start to jump right out at the listener.
“Westside Highway” makes a nice, jazzy traveling tune with smooth guitar sounds from Broyles and Smith in one of the “more composed” moments on this CD. “Trees” was penned by Munger, and he really stands out here. He is one very smooth player on the reed, and his riffing is the centerpiece of this jam. At the same time, it gives all the players a chance to step out – White’s bass technique in particular is brought out more in this one. But in “Trees,” Munger comes across like a sax player to remember.
“Groove Monkey” is also a good driving tune, with Veatch’s snare serving as the main piston. Smith and Broyles trade cool guitar licks, not relying on speed so much as bringing out a good feel and helping keep a steady rhythm in between.
When it comes to the 15-minute “Swamp Gas & Moonshine,” you pretty much get what the title implies, again with a touch of Dregs, Grateful Dead, a nifty Duane Allman slide guitar sound from Smith and Broyles serving in more of the “Dickey Betts straight man” role. But what starts out as more of an easy, down-home jam becomes much more frenetic, even getting into more of a psychedelic feel, meaning you’re in for a pretty long, cool ride, finishing right back where they started with that old slow, Southern-style groove.
The CD concludes with “Dangerous In Deed,” a song with a heavier feel and more cool sounds from Munger on sax weaving a fairly complex tapestry of sounds with his bandmates around him. White shows nice bass chops here too.
Jam Camp provides a fine example that there’s much more that can come out of the Pacific Northwest besides coffeehouses and grunge music. Like the sweet preserves that Grandma used to make, Jam Camp is indeed quite tasty.
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