Ekoostik Hookah bringing the jams to town
LISTEN: Hear them perform "Under Full Sail"
Thursday, May 08, 2008
SPRINGFIELD — It's the kind of shocking revelation that could make a man throw his dancing bears T-shirt in the trash.
Dave Katz, keyboard player for hippie cult faves Ekoostik Hookah, doesn't listen to all that much jam band music at home.
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Ekoostik Hookah
Get latest headlines via RSS feedsHe prefers singer-songwriter stuff — or as he puts it, "more concise versions of songs."
Concise?
As in, gasp, under 14 minutes?
Fortunately, the Columbus-based Hookah, playing Spirits on Saturday, May 10, hasn't had any real drastic change in direction.
They'll still jam the night away.
So get your dancing bears shirt out of the garbage. Life is good again, my gentle friend.
Out plugging the release of a new DVD, "Live at the Newport," Hookah shares one thing with such jammy father figures as the Dead and Phish, besides the fan base — a dislike of the studio.
"We've never been a studio band," Katz said. "It's virtually impossible to get the excitement and the feeling of a live show."
The band, however, recently re-recorded part of its 1991 debut, "Under Full Sail," to celebrate the return of original singer-guitarist John Mullins.
For the fiercely independent Hookah, the freedom to go back and tinker with a 17-year-old album is "one of the beauties of doing it your own way," Katz said. "You can do anything you want to do."
Of course, the ol' DIY approach comes with its share of struggles.
"It's not the quickest way to superstardom," Katz joked.
The band's biannual festival Hookahville, which has drawn everyone from Bob Weir's RatDog and Willie Nelson to P-Funk and Dr. John since 1994, has seen attendance slip.
It's hard to compete, Katz said, with "the Wal-Marts of music festivals" like Bonnaroo in Tennessee.
"Not like it should be a competition, but people only have so much money to spend," he said.
But in the long run, staying independent hasn't really hurt Hookah. Katz points to the fact they've made it 17 years.
"That's more than 99 percent of the bands that have existed," he said.
How to go
Ekoostik Hookah plays Spirits, 2118 N. Limestone St., at 10 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $10 in advance or $12 at the door. Call (937) 399-4577.
