VICTOR WOOTEN @ Club Soda

By Eli Levinson - Bender Night - 04/06/2008

They should erect a statue of Victor Wooten. Somewhere, doesn't matter where, there should be some sort of physical commemoration of this man. He not only is the best bassist around, but he projects this image of goodness that no matter how hard you try, you can't resist. He's just so damn NICE, in addition to his seemingly endless imagination and mind-blowing chops.

He visited Montreal to promote his new album, Palmystery, at Club Soda. In front of a packed house, Wooten and company played a diverse, exciting, occasionally dragging set of some of the most complex music I've heard in a long time. The underlying style was jazz, but with all technical wizardry on display, it was more of a virtuoso set than anything. Not only was Wooten amazing, but he had an extremely worthy band to back him up.

The keyboardist was playing his first show with the band and had apparently just joined them on the same day of the show. Not even for one moment did he sound out of place. He kept up and definitely brought the funk and got a huge round of applause after an extended solo halfway through the two-hour set. The drummer was also awesome. During his solo (they all had long solo sections), he pulled out a visual stunt that was one of the coolest things I have ever seen at a show. While he was drumming, they turned off the lights and he attached some flashing lights to his sticks. As he played. And, as he played faster and faster, the crowd only had these crazy patterns to follow, a visual element that created a unique feeling in the crowd. The singer was pretty good too -- she did some scatting and had a huge range. Reggie Wooten, aka "The Teacher" (at the age nine, Reggie taught a four-year old Victor how to play bass) who is one of the best guitarists I have ever seen live. He uses a unique hybrid technique, described by my metalhead/jazz fanatic friend as being akin to Steve Vai, but with more funkiness. Finally, of course, there was the man himself, Victor Wooten.

Victor Wooten can rip it. He can solo for hours and play the most insanely complex patterns, but the true magic he brings to the bass are those little moments here and there where he plays a fill that your mind has difficulty grasping but you know was truly amazing. It has to be seen/heard live to be believed at times. During his set, he showcased all of this, including his experimentations with looping, where he layered different patterns (including percussion rhythms) as he played them. It's insane, you should check it out on Youtube.

Now it's time to talk about the spiritual aspect of the show. That's right, spiritual. First of all, I need to say that the crowd was awesome. It was extremely diverse, from guys in their fifties with ponytails and too much leather, to metalheads. At one point while the audience was singing along, the band stopped and the crowd kept going for like forty-five seconds (a long time let me tell you), and actually got a round of applause from the band. All throughout the show, Victor kept expressing his love for the crowd -- a feeling that was more than mutual. This show was a huge love-in. The music was so absurd but with so many moments of tenderness and happiness that after a while, it was impossible to be in a bad mood -- all anybody could do was smile. At times it veered on sappy, but it put you into such a good mood that I'm not going to really complain. I'm just saying they sometimes lay it on thick. By the end of the set, the crowd was going nuts and got the band out for an encore, with the show ending with Victor singing "I'm gonna miss your smiling face." Need I say more?

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