Retro Rockits
Band blasts into New Year at Another Round
The Retro Rockits, a classic and contemporary rock band, played out the old year on Dec. 31, 2009 and rode the countdown launching into the new year of 2010. This writer and friends Bonnie Carter, Editor of Positively Entertainment & Dining, singer/songwriter Lauree Carlsen and Harry “The Harry Guy” Wright, enjoyed dinner and other refreshments at Another Round, the clubhouse at the Gresham Golf Course on N.E. Division Street.
Joe Fincham
(Photo by Bonnie Carter)
The Retro Rockits is a four-piece group of rock-and-rollers that is more “rocket” than “retro.” From the first note, this band took control of the vertical, horizontal, contrast and focus of the evening. The songs kept on coming with hardly a chance to catch your breath in between. The tune list was perfect and the songs were presented to dancers on a platinum TV tray.
The band members are all confirmed world-class professionals. It’s interesting to realize that one of the guitar players, Joe Fincham, is operating a real but techno-bionic instrument. This man would be just as good on any guitar, but his weapon-of-choice has a custom, dedicated pickup that sends the signal to a plug-in unit, which sends the sound to a high-tech processor for emulation of instruments you don’t see on the stage. It’s a Roland processor/controller outfit, not a midi-guitar but eminently useful in a digital recording studio and played live by Fincham. It’s done so well you can’t tell at first. The organ and fiddle sounds were the most striking, aside from the normal guitar sounds you would expect. He also sings and introduces the band.
The Retro Rockits are: Fincham, guitar and voice; Jon Hitchcock, guitar and voice; Dave Carney, electric bass and voice; and Ed Jordan, drumset and voice.
Fincham elevates the mood with his electric personality, pleasant voice and sparkling eyes. His past band credits include Tracer (rock’n’roll), Ground Zero (‘80s), who released a recording of all original material and The Night Owls, who specialized in corporate parties, weddings, and such. Since formal dress was de rigeur for those gigs, the band dubbed it “Tux for Bucks.” Fincham cites Pat Metheney as a powerful influence on his style and motivation. As a teacher of young people, Fincham is surprised to hear the 15-16-year-old kids ask for the best of classic rock such as Led Zeppelin, Steve Miller and Pink Floyd, rather than ‘90s-to-present popular artists. Remarking on his audience management today, Fincham says “There’s a song for everybody.” He notices that people are either up dancing or they are closely watching him play. He says, “My guitar is my therapy, (during a stressful time at work on his technical day-job). (Playing the guitar) makes me a person instead of a machine.”
Moving left to right across the front of the stage, you would next see guitarist Jon Hitchcock. He has a quiet, fuzzy demeanor with very solid presentation and delivery on guitar. It’s almost like you hear him best if he stops because he supports his position so well. He’s a neat guitar player and he sings lead and backup. Hitchcock sings a few of his own favorites with personal sincerity that you can hear in his voice and see in his face. He foregoes dancing or posing to get attention and states his case with his guitar. People do pay attention to that.
Dave Carney owns stage right, as a calm, unflappable bass player with what this writer calls “monster hands.” Tall and lanky, Carney makes the bass look small. He seems to be doing very little but contributes a nice, round bass sound. He has “hard hands” and a long reach. This makes it seem that the fretboard is like a soft water slide, with strings of, well, wet string. Interestingly enough, he plays right hand with his thumb or with a pick. Anyone could learn something just by watching him play. The tune list that the Retro Rockits prepared for that night’s performance poured out of Carney’s bass like warm butter and seduced dancers onto the dance floor. His mysterious professional history is a book not yet written, with impressive performance credits.
Drummer Ed Jordan is mentioned here fourth only because he is so full of energy and love of music that if he was discussed first there would be no room left on the page to introduce anyone else. He is enthusiastic in his personal and personable manner both onstage and off. He is exactly what you see: A very smart and hard-working man whose link to heaven is at the pointy end of a drum stick. Jordan plays his kit like a collection of musical instruments, not just a thing to make counted or measured noises on. He and his drums don’t necessarily require a riser to sit on, because playing drumset puts you into an altered state and Jordan becomes independently elevated when he is in the throes of a “thank-you-God” rock ’n’ roll pattern.
The Retro Rockits will appear again at Another Round Jan 29-30. They make a fun gig for the folks on the other side of the microphones and they bring the party with them. A jam session with Cactus Davis & Friends is planned every Tuesday. Live music is scheduled Friday and Saturday. Watch for Eastside Boys on Feb. 5-6. Check ads and Bandstand for future dates and don’t be late. To borrow a quote from Father Guido Sarducci, “How come these guys are so good?”