He sprained his ankle. Poooor Weston.

This came from Tim Staggs or Colorado, who drove out to attend the workshop. Editors notes have been added as needed. Enjoy.

Hi, everyone,

A delayed, but heartfelt review of the Jan 17th Wes Carroll Mouthdrumming Workshop and Moosebutter/Eclipse Concert:

Several members of our group (Cross Examined) decided to do a roadtrip from Denver to Orem UT for this workshop last weekend, and the short story is - what an AWESOME day! Well worth the 1056 mile round trip!

First off, thanks SO MUCH to Moosebutter for sponsoring the workshop and concert! They did a great job of organizing it and making sure that participants felt welcome.

While attendance was less than I'd expected, the mouthdrumming workshop was all it was advertised to be, and more - Wes did an awesome job of leading the attendees from basic to advanced (he lost me halfway through intermediate, but through no fault of his own - I was there primarily to support one of our group members who has both interest AND talent). Wes has an excellent teaching style, and does a great job of involving everyone without making anyone feel put on the spot. The low attendance (between 10 and 15 people at each session) had the very positive benefit of allowing Wes to provide more 1:1 work with each person present. I heard one attendee say that it was "one of the best days of my life!" Now, I'll caveat that by saying that he was young and hasn't experienced all the grandeur that life has to offer, but I do understand the sentiment, especially since it came from someone who lives and breathes vocal percussion. If you're interested in VP and Wes is doing a workshop in your neck of the woods, I'd strongly encourage you to attend. You won't be disappointed.

The evening concert, while also not as well attended as I'd expected, was absolutely AWESOME!!! A local teen "boy band" (I can't remember their name off the top of my head) [editor's note: Noteworthy, from Bingham High School] started things off, doing a very respectable job for a bunch of guys who've only been singing together for a couple of months, or so I understand. They had good percussion skills, and if their bass can keep that low voice, he's going to be awesome! If they stick with it, these guys are going to do very well - it was impressive to see a group of teens with enough discipline to do what it took to be ready to open for groups as notable as Moosebutter and Eclipse.

They were followed by Kage, described in Tim Jones' mail below as "inspirational rapper." While the style difference between Kage and the other groups was significant, he and his two fellow musicians were up for the challenge. I was especially impressed with their female vocalist, Eden - WOW! What an amazing, pure voice - all due respect to Moosebutter and Eclipse, but I could have listened to her sing all night!

And then came the two premiere groups of the evening - Moosebutter and Eclipse. Having never heard Moosebutter before, I was totally unprepared for their show. And I was totally and completely a dedicated fan within the first 5 minutes. While their off-beat humor may not appeal to everyone, it most certainly appealed to us. We laughed until we cried - literally! The improv section when they took requests from the audience and then did their own versions ("Beat It," for example, with very non-accurate lyrics and complete with moon walking was wonderful.) It's hard for me to believe, but talking with some members of the group after the show, they said that the improv section of the show fell in the "middle of the road" category compared to how it normally goes. The thing that impressed me most was that Moosebutter doesn't just depend on humor and fascinating song-writing skills to carry the show - they also have excellent vocal talent, and their songs showcase this talent well. Our favorite song was, and continues to be, Psycho Phantom (I think that's the name), [Psycho: The Musical - ed.] but all were well performed and well received by the audience. If Moosebutter is ever again at Redfish or elsewhere within your driving range, don't think twice, GO!!!!

After a short intermission, Wes Carroll and Tim Jones did a couple of excellent numbers together that well demonstrated their vocal/percussion talents (Wes had earlier joined Moosebutter for one of their numbers as well). Wes did a solo mouthdrumming number that had jaws dropping all over the auditorium, even jaws of those who'd spent the day with him at the workshop.

And then came Eclipse.....I'd heard them in the closing ceremonies of the SLC Olympics, but had never heard them live, and I didn't have any of their CDs. I do now. As a friend of mine would say, Oh, my WORD!!!!!" I've been a fan of gospel a cappella music for a long time, and my two favorite groups are Acappella and Vocal Union - both are excellent, and put on a great show and have set a standard that only a few groups, gospel or otherwise, have been able to achieve (in my humble opinion). After hearing them, it was no big surprise that they were the winners of the 2002 Harmony Sweeps [Denver Regional]. Eclipse could perform with any group, anytime, anywhere, and hold their own. If you're familiar with the formerly-a cappella group "Go Fish" (with their last CD, they left the a cappella genre behind), Eclipse has a very similar sound. Excellent arrangements, with wonderful vocal styling and great stage presence. "Owner Of A Lonely Heart" and "Zoot Suit Riot" were probably our favorites - if you haven't heard these songs and the rest of the Eclipse repertoire, you're missing out.

Ok, I've rambled on long enough. Thanks for listening! If Moosebutter or Eclipse are ever in the neighborhood, do yourself a favor and go to their concerts. It'll be well worth the admission, at twice the price!

--Tim

Wes Carroll will be in Utah next week to do his amazing Mouth Drumming workshops. More information

A (very) limited edition Christmas CD is now available. It's so limited, it has no name! Tracks: Rudolph, Holly, Feliz, Auld. Available only at moosebutter Christmas shows.

Are anyone else's? There's no good reason for it. It just happened about three days ago. I NEED chapstick. If anyone has some, bring it and drop it off in my mailbox on 272 N 800 E in Provo. Thanks.