Ben Kenney, bassist of Incubus, played a full set at the Grog Shop, Wednesday night, June 12.
Mr. Kenney, his superior shredding and honed craft were a musical force to be reckoned with. In the intimate space, his performance was a special treat for fans and a large step away from the large production at Incubus shows. Kenney was accompanied by Ashley Mendel on bass of The Division Group, Ari Sadowitz of The Smyrk on the guitar, and Joe Baldacci of Philadelphia rock fame, on the drums. Despite the smaller setting, Kenney and crew delivered on a stadium level, with sing-a-longs galore.
The Grog Shop was filled with an eclectic group of people and ages, thanks to opening thrash metal band, My Life’s Burden and high school dwellers, Lowercase d.
Kenney opened up with the first track of his last record, Beard of Bees. A sauntering intro, trumped by the crash of cymbals and rock riffs, as the track accelerated into the LP version.
In between and out-between songs, the quartet jammed into song interludes, laying riffs and grooves of reggae and funk design with a Rufus and Chaka Khan cover of “Tell Me Something Good”. The musical communication weaved in syncopation like their fingers on the fretboard. Regardless of the technicality demonstrated, Kenney and crew didn’t remove the smiles on their faces for a single song, and dare I say, may have even been having more fun than the crowd.
The highlight of the night appeared in the intoxicating solo of the song “Rubber Sheets”, with a crescendo that knocked beers out of hands and moved women to provocative poses against their accord. Allowing audience members to regain their breathe, the band left the stage, with Kenney reappearing moments later for a solo rendition of “Conception and the Funeral”.
In between the raw energy of every song, Kenney and crew were cool speaking with audience members. Humbled by the turnout on the stormy evening, he and band members joked and shared banter with fans. The crowd felt a connection with the musician not only through the outpouring of his music, but in his humility of just being another Joe from Jersey pursuing his dream. And, if the music didn’t inspire you, that did.
Ben Kenney’s solo albums are available for free at his website, BenKenney.com
3 Comments
I’m nowhere close to an Incubus fan, but I would have loved to hear that cover of “Tell Me Something Good”. How many people were there?
Ive seen ben twice on this tour and have been following his solo stuff since Maduro, epic epic music the dude is a true musician in every sense of the word. Proving it by playing every instrument on his albums with an amazing voice to compliment them!! First got into ben after crow left of the murder came out. Saw incubus on the tour that followed and the way he played bass on songs like “just a phase” blew my mind and of course the huge three piece drum solo they rocked on that tour! Also noticed almost instantly that he was the dude from the roots having seen them be4! Check him out if u get the chance.
Church is right, everything Ben touches turns to gold so check him out. Ben’s solo work is absolutely amazing, and the guys on tour with him absolutely nailed it. Speaking of which, the musicians on tour with Ben are ridiculously talented. One thing the article neglects to mention is that Ashley Mendel has done great solo work since his time with The Division Group.