B1g T1me

Music:

Member Since: 26/10/2006
Band Website: Booking: [email protected]
Band Members: Zebulun Barnow Vocals, Guitar, Keys, Extinquishers/ Neal Alger, Jeff Freling Guitar/ Dan Kalnes, John Tate Upright Bass/ Frank Catalano, Josh Bell Saxophone/ Chris Anderson Drums
Influences: Tom Waits, Lord Buckley, Captain Beefheart and Howlin' Wolf
Sounds Like: B1G T1ME PRESS ____________________________________________________________ _______________ Since the emergence of Elvis Presley and the Beatles, cover bands have multiplied as rapidly as mosquitoes in a muggy Midwestern summer. Locally, Tributosaurus morphs into a different artist each month (most recently performing as Michael Jackson), while a quick Web search uncovers Chicagoland acts disguised as everyone from Heart (Heartless) to Metallica (Blackened). And while most of these masqueraders are critically ignored (Tributosaurus being an obvious exception) – relegated to playing weddings and corporate banquets – every now and again, something worthwhile emerges. --------------Such is the case with B1g T1me, a local crew helmed by singer Zebulun Barnow, that immerses itself in the outwardly weird oeuvre of Tom Waits, touching on every era of the esoteric singer’s career (sample a tender “Ol’ 55” at myspace.com/readyforb1gt1me). Reached on the road in mid-July, Barnow discussed Waits’ appeal, B1g T1me’s theatrical flair and the difficulties inherent in covering such a slippery artist.---------On B1g T1me’s genesis:-------------The very first song we did wasn’t even a Tom Waits song. It was “Who Are You” by the Who. Tom Waits also has a song called “Who Are You” on “Bone Machine,” but there was something about the depravity of the lyrics in that Who song. The whole idea was that mash-up concept. Here’s this Who song and I’ll do it as this Tom Waits character. At first I thought it would be fun to do at home. Then I wondered, “How do I get girls [to come out]?”----------On one upside to covering Waits:----------What’s really fortunate for us is that Waits himself takes so many liberties with his music when he plays it live. ----------On the biggest challenge: ------------Juggling all of his personas is a challenge. You’ve got the ragamuffin troubadour of the early ’70s morphing into the Bukowski-esque poet character into this steam-punk, Captain Beefheart guy. Waits can do all of these and somehow he is believable as each one. ----------On replicating the experience of a Waits concert: ----------People listen with their eyes. We’re not just a T-shirt and jeans band. There’s a lot of symbolism involved. -----------On his fondness for “found” instruments: -----------I created an instrument from fire extinguishers that a sculptor friend of mine gave me; he lives in a former extinguisher canister refilling warehouse. Drums made from trash cans [are] a constant. In the past I’ve used early-20th Century reclaimed automobile horns and a 1920s bird call. -------------On his favorite songs to perform: ---------“Going Out West” is [one]. “Falling Down” [is] such a sad, anomalous song. It’s a studio song stuck in the middle of a live album. The musical cadences are hopeful and almost churchlike, but there’s this profound sadness in what he’s singing about. But, honestly, there isn’t a song I dread. They’re all great songs.------------- Andy Downing CHICAGO TRIBUNE ____________________________________________________________ ___________________This local quintet, drawn from jazz and rock bands (the Delafields, the Country Melvins, Patricia Barber's quartet, and lots of others), started out as a novelty act—reimagining cheeseball hits of the 80s as fractured-blues hair-raisers in the style of Tom Waits and obvious Waits influences like Howlin' Wolf and Captain Beefheart. But earlier this year they came out of the toolshed as what they really are: a tribute band. Front man Zebulun Barnow, who's honed his showmanship in the Blue Man Group band, is much more than another gravelly-voiced guy with a bullhorn and a porkpie hat, and he and percussionist Chris Anderson bring theremin, trash cans, fire extinguishers, and all sorts of creatively employed junk into the mix. At this point they've got a deep catalog of Waits tunes down—30 and counting. Monica Kendrick CHICAGO READER ____________________________________________________________ ________________"They do '80's one-hit-wonder songs in the style of Tom Waits." And that they do, more or less. What followed was two hours of pure fun, easily the most interesting accidental concert I've seen in years. The band manages an uncanny mimicry of Waits' style, wringing new meaning from songs that we've all heard a thousand times. Tom Petty's Don't Come Around Here No More takes on a decidedly threatening tone. Dio's Holy Diver is transformed from slapstick metal to a gospel-like call-and-response number. While the concept seems dubious on paper, there's definitely something else going on. By mixing a spot-on homage to Waits' innovative style with classic material that has subtly begged from day one for reinterpretation, b1g t1me manages to create something that easily stands on its own.________ Gapersblock.com ____________________________________________________________ __________________"I was abosultely transfixed."_______ Richard Milne XRT ____________________________________________________________ __________________Ever wonder what Prince’s “Die 4 U” would sound like as sung by gravelly-voiced Tom Waits? (Me too!) Well wonder no longer, good people, for B1g T1me is here to save the day. Technically a cover band, B1g T1me takes that particular niche of live music a few steps further by offering stripped down, revved up, blues-turned-on-its-ear interpretations of popular hit songs from late last century. One part circus, one part theatre, one part Jarmusch film, they offer the “soundtrack for that one day you woke up underneath an abandoned car near the railroad tracks in a town you don’t recognize with an empty fifth of Old Crow spilled onto your bleeding wrist which has soaked through the half pack of Pall Malls you are clutching and in your other hand you’re holding a letter from someone you’ve never met who refers to you by name and writes bluntly about the shape your suit is in.” While B1g T1me is certainly faithful to the spirit of Tom Waits’ music, and Waits can be a little obtuse for passing fans, the presence of hit songs ensures that no one will require a tour guide into this world.____________________ gapersblock.com
Type of Label: Major