Concert Review: Moon Hooch Give Brooklyn Bowl Some Sax

Note To Self: Must begin saxophone lessons. Alright, let me continue to my review. I always loved the saxophone. Like the trumpet, when someone whips out a sax, you cannot help but be impressed. It adds a whole other rambunctious flavor to a song. For some reason, it is an instrument that combines sensuality with a cool, sophisticated playfulness. Moon Hooch proved that at Brooklyn Bowl.

I am beginning to see Brooklyn Bowl as a purveyor of eccentric artists with an expansive definition of fun. Moon Hooch describe their sound as “Cave Music”. While I can, definitely, picture these guys using their saxophones for bats and discovering fire, I like to think that their Cave is not “neanderthal”-like, despite its mutual, explorative nature. (Sidenote: I think neanderthals get a bad “intelligence” rap, when they were the first human beings and the ones who had to begin human history). Moon Hooch’s music reminds me, moreso, of a cave filled with hieroglyphics. As you walk through the dim setting with a lit torch of sound, you see the walls filled with painted images of people flexing and shaping their body distinctly. That is what Moon Hooch does to you; they make you move in distinction. While any song can have a good rhythm, great ones have a special rhythmic pattern. Moon Hooch have wild, sporadic arrangements that, for me, signal some funkadelic inspirations. There are hints of soul notes that flow from their instruments like sheets on a bed, which again goes back to the sensuality of the saxophone as an instrument. When Wenzl McGowen brought out a huge saxophone with a seeming orange cone, I nearly died. It was the ultra-symbol of Moon Hooch’s crazy fun sonics. Moreover, the back and forth riffing between him and fellow saxophonist Mike Wilbur brought a fascinating, childlike duel between them. While most riff-offs are about vocals, at Moon Hooch’s concert it is purely instrumental. Hence, when you go to their concert, you are going to move and act like a happier version of yourself.

Let’s be frank. When we go out, we all put on our faces on and pack away our worries. The whole point of a night out is to forget a harder day. The particular charm of a Moon Hooch concert is that you feel better and wilder than your usual self. You move with a freedom and carefree bliss that reminds me of those times when we watch our parents hit the dance floor to their favorite “oldie track”. We look at them, partially, humiliated, but also amused and in admiration for their sincere glee/belief that they can dance. Now, I am not saying that everybody was dancing badly. My point is that Moon Hooch inspires a level of body positivity/physicality that is not about good or bad looking but a focus on fun-having. As each member of Moon Hooch, minus drummer James Muschler, tussles around the stage,  you realize their show is for someone seriously investing in having a feel-good time. For More Information On Moon Hooch Click Here.