One Man Tube Band— That 1 Guy
By Dean Bonzani
5-15-02
One of the most vigorously innovative musical extravaganzas ever conceived, the sheer genius that is That 1 Guy is making its way back to our desiccated town.
Why is Mike Silverman AKA That 1 Guy, returning to a city that has forgotten what moisture looks or feel like? Call it the grace of God. Maybe his viciously funny wholesale funk metal attack will call the rains down. (If so, I pray that the Queen will knight him Sir That 1 Guy.) Perhaps the wildly enthusiastic reception he enjoyed the last time he played at Joe’s Place prompted him to come back to this arid land, where only beer and bourbon can soothe the psychic agony of dehydration. Whatever the reason, fortunate indeed are those who possess the wisdom to get their heinies out to see this incredible musical force, in his second performance here, for his is an utterly unique vision that will leave you gasping and spent with its breadth and power.
Alright already, here’s the poop: That 1 Guy is San Francisco resident Mike Silverman’s crossover from jazz bassist/ session player to one-man electric orchestra. The son of an awesome jazz bassist, Mike was raised playing upright bass, joined a million bands in the Bay area, went to and later quit the San Francisco Conservatory (his advisor could see that he was already living the ideal musical life), and whilst playing a club gig with one of his bands, The Fabulous Hedgehogs, joked to the club owner that he should go solo and keep the fifty bucks for himself. Fast forward to now.
Silverman’s highly developed solo act centers around a monstrous steel pipe encrusted with drum triggers and sporting two bass strings located on separate sections of the seven-foot-high creation. Amidst a formidable array of pedals, cables, and electronic processors, That 1 Guy sings his guts out about the hazards of birds, the pleasures of weasel pot pie, and the smell of rat farts, while synthetic smoke billows out of the top of his instrument, dubbed The Magic Pipe.
Experience absolute pleasure May 24 th at Joe’s Place.
©2002 by Dean Bonzani, All Rights Reserved