HUB TALENTS PAY TRIBUTE TO KINGS
The Hereafter Party fetes ’80s stars
After last year’s string of rock star deaths, you might feel like you’re never gonna dance again, brokenhearted feet have got no rhythm.
Boston Rock Opera understands, but the organization wants you to hit the floor again. To help you find your groove, BRO has put together The Hereafter Party, a tribute to David Bowie, George Michael and Prince at Somerville’s Once Ballroom Aug. 11.
The ’80s dance extravaganza will feature a set of music from each star led by three local talents — Peter Moore helms Bowie band Heaven’s in Here; Magen Tracy put together Oh, Sheila to fete Prince; and Joshua Pickering leads the Michael tribute Bluth. (“Arrested Development” fans get the reference.) Musicians from Petty Morals, Eddie Japan, the Rationales and a dozen more bands will join the fun, raising money for Arlington’s Children’s Room, which provides grief support services to children, teens and families.
To get you excited for the party, we talked to key members of each band about the icon they will celebrate at the show.
• Peter Moore of Heaven’s in Here The must-play David Bowie song: Moore picks the seven-minute “Teenage Wildlife.” “Both (guest vocalist) John Powhida and I get
chills just thinking about how special that song is.” Building a band fit for
Bowie: “I normally play with the Handymen, and we did a couple Bowie tribute shows a week or so after his death last year,” Moore said. “We all grew up with Bowie in our blood; plus, we’re used to operating on one or no rehearsals, so it’s
a time-saver.”
To flesh out the band, Moore added some killer singers, including Powhida, Jenny Dee and Tad McKitterick of Sidewalk Driver. The trickiest thing about
covering Bowie: Moore considers the Thin White Duke rock’s greatest vocalist. As part of the Blue Man Group band, Moore opened for Bowie on the Area2 tour.
“I got to study him from the side of the stage,” he said. “In his 60s at the time, he would hold his standard-issue dynamic mic an arm’s length away from his mouth and still be heard clearly above his rockin’ band.”
• Magen Tracy and Catherine Capozzi of Oh, Sheila The must-play Prince song: For Capozzi, a shredder in her own right, it’s all about the guitar in “Let’s Go Crazy” and “Purple Rain.” Building a band fit for Prince: Tracy says she’s in love with this band, but having keyboardist Allison Sigrist on board will be huge.
“These keys parts are intense, and having her expertise on the parts and sound design is clutch, not to mention a second set of hands,” Tracy said. “I don’t get to play with other keyboard players often, so that’s super exciting for me.” The trickiest thing about covering Prince: “Staying true to these very complex arrangements is a challenge, but a totally worthwhile one,” Tracy said. “The band is really committed to digging in and learning the intricacies of what’s going
on in each track.” • Joshua Pickering of Bluth The must-play George
Michael song: He had so many hits, but the song that stuck in Pickering’s head was “Careless Whisper.”
“One, because it’s so iconic and everyone loves it,” he said. “Two, because I already knew a sax player who could crush that line in Ethan Ben-Joseph.” Building a band fit for Michael: Obviously, you need a great sax player (check!). But because Michael does so much dance music, he needed a killer rhythm section. He found that in bassist Pete Sutton and drummer Chuck Ferreira. Trickiest thing about covering Michael: “The hardest thing about doing a set of George Michael songs is finding a clip-on cross earring and a leather biker jacket to borrow,” Pickering said with a wink.