The Funeral Part 1: The Telephone Company

The Telephone Company and Sweet Baby Lou had a long tangled history, and the band took his passing much like the best of us… very poorly. The band, which currently holds the mantle of “Sweet Baby Lou’s House Band”, became only the second group to hold this moniker. The first was of course Lou’s own band, the famed Amherst funk troupe “Funkasaurus Rex.”

But as Reverend Greg Zapata aptly said of the Telephone Company, “They were his favorite band,” before adding “to steal from.” But despite this rocky history, when push came to shove, the Amherst band most lauded for their cleanliness chose to put aside the past squabbles in order to kick off The Sweet Baby Lou Memorial Funeral and Tribute concert as the event’s headlining act.

The first of two sets by The Teleco on this evening included a blistering rendition of “Cabbage”, the always somber “Comfort Mountain” and a kickass original track about the birth of Lou. On this original dubbed “1932”, lead singer Nick Bush categorized the anguish felt by millions of the funk faithful when he snarled “Cut short in the prime of life / oh lord it’s just not right.” It was a fond salute to a man who deserved much less.

The Telephone Company- “1932”

Paper Jam V: The Telephone Company

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The Telephone Company took the stage with the third slot in last week’s First Annual Paper Jam. Fittingly  just as the sun was setting behind Southwest’s the towering concrete buildings that surrounded the Hampden Courtyard. Their set consisted mainly of setlist staples like “Window,” “Question Mark,” “Saying Hello” but also showcased the band comfortably managing a difficult lineup transition. With current drummer Isaac Simon graduating, the band has pegged former Berkley student Zach Halzel to fill the void.

However longtime fans can relax as if anything this set proved that The Telephone Company have not missed a step with Halzel, even though at times it lacked the wild-man intensity of Simon’s drumming. No word yet on whether or not this lineup shift effect their label as the “most hygienic band in Amherst” and sources disagreed on an exact description of Halzel’s odor.

Links to full audio tracks below…

Reverends of Funk to Judge Paper Jam!

The Massachusetts Daily Collegian is throwing a big concert this MONDAY from 6pm-9pm in Hampden Courtyard of Southwest. Aside from the long list of Sweet Baby Lou alums on the bill (Bella’s Bartok, On Trak & Malado, The Telephone Company, Solo Sexx, and Leisure Colony) the lineup is completed by Hampshire College’s The Bubonic Souls.

Sweet Baby Lou & The Reverends will be out there in full force judging the ceremony, and are now accepting bribes.

Sweet Baby Lou “Finds God”

Sweet Baby Lou presents their “Finds God” playlist, chronicling Sweet Baby Lou’s emotional and spiritual resurgence relating to a grilled cheese sandwich the Reverends of Funk followed suit by devoting a whole playlist to those divinely inspired songs. Full list below…

Dead Weather- “Hang You From the Heavens”

Elvis Costello- “The Angels Wanna Wear My Red Shoes”

Depeche Mode- “Personal Jesus”

New Music Video from The Telephone Company

Sweet Baby Lou’s most frequent musical customer The Telephone Company, with a record 4 Sweet Baby Lou appearances to date, release their first music video from their 2009 Better Nutrients of Tomorrow EP.  The lead single “Question Mark” debuted on Sweet Baby Lou last year, but this new version finds the trio stripping down the once-angsty rocker to a sleeker more groovy and sometimes ambient model. The video itself proves to be more than worth the wait as it delves heavily into subjects and themes that have long been explored in the band’s album art.  Click below to find out more about The Telephone Company and their previous Sweet Baby Lou appearances.