Hanging in Plaza Midwood

A Renelvis jumpsuit display at Lise 22 and Benji Hughes at Snug Harbor.

Poontanglers-the greatest band name in CLT

Massive Bass.
Killer solos.

Mean ass vocals.

So, with a name like the Poontanglers, they simply had to be good. I mean to live up to such a name. And live up they did at Snug Harbor on July 3. These guys simply bring it with a very tight heavy metal sound. If I had to categorize it I would say Metallica with an alt.country twist but with very much a full on assault of massively thumping bass and drums, killer guitar riffs and a vocalist who has kind of the devil music scream down pat. The guy was especially cool in his kind of "Village People" cop hat with the band symbol (not unlike the anarchy symbol) as a badge. I particularly enjoyed watching the heavily tatooed bass player literally rip through one song after another with his foot propped up on the light table at the front of the stage. His energy seemed to propel the rest of the band to another level. See the link at the bottom of my page for a vid or check my youtube www.youtube.com/nosyfieldstone.

Benji Hughes Snug Harbor 7/4/2009

The "hirsute" one as I have seem him described.

Benji Hughes has a phenomenal record called "A Love Extreme". It has been out about a year now but still seems relevant after hundreds of spins. It showcases his great songwriting talent, his use of sampling and his unique vocal talent. Benji is a product of the Charlotte music scene with some time in LA (he wrote one of the songs used on the parody of the Johnny Cash movie, can't remember the name). Anyway, Benji and his crack band appeared at Snug Harbor on July 4 early a.m. From the outset, Benji was not satisfied with the volume and bass of his voice in the stage monitor and somewhat demonstratively (understatement) complained to his band to turn it down and the sound man to turn him up. Interestingly, he had made the same complaint when I saw him a few weeks ago at Petra's with his piano man, Jon Phillips. Despite Benji's complaints, the fact is that it sounded excellent from the audience. The band ripped through many of the great songs on "A Love Extreme" adding their raw energy to a record that is kind of a studio masterpiece. Peter Gray is a fine guitarist and adds some incredible solos. Jon Phillips is a really talented keyboardist who adds a number of cool variances to the music. David Kim is steady and strong on drums and shows why he is often seen in a number of the finest bands on the Charlotte music scene. I don't know the bass player, but he is good and completes the package. I have some vids posted on my youtube and at the bottom of this page and you need to check them out (www.youtube.com/nosyfieldstone) and get Benji's record on itunes.