The Cavern
Rock & Words
A Led Zeppelin Tribute (2009)
December 12, 2009
Teatro Estudio Cabaret, Guadalajara, Mex.
Turns out it wasn't the third one, but the fifth!!! So I missed two tributes in between. No matter, the truth is it was a musical feast, and Hiz and I really needed to get out and experience the decibels of a concert after the drought of 2009. This time I didn't take notes, but instead dedicated myself to enjoying it 100%, in the company of Hellboy, Luisa (Hellgirl, I suppose, hahaha; it was great to see her again), Jorge, and my dear Hiz, who together added a lot of flavor to the night and made me enjoy it even more. Needless to say, all five of us were hoarse after the more than two-hour concert.
The music was top-notch. We arrived around 9, the scheduled start time for the concert. Knowing Guadalajara's notoriously unpunctual nature, it took both the musicians and the audience an hour to fill the Teatro Estudio Cabaret, which slowly became packed with young people wearing black Zeppelin jerseys, but also older folks, men with plenty of gray hair and long locks, women with big hairdos who probably looked much wilder 30 years ago, bikers in leather jackets, and children—lots of kids as young as five who blew us away as they jumped around nonstop and knew all the lyrics! A clear sign that the music of this brilliant group is still as relevant and alive as when it was first made, and continues to gain fans among the youngest. I've promised to take little Risp, who's almost a year old and already gets excited about Zeppelin, in a few years.
During this hour-long delay, the sound system offered a tribute to Led Zeppelin and a musical journey through their roots, featuring songs by Willie Dixon, John Lee Hooker, the Yardbirds, and others. At 10:00 PM, the lights went down, and the powerful opening notes of "Immigrant Song" filled the air. The initial lineup consisted of the now-classic organizers: Carlos Avilez on bass, Nacho "the Relentless" González on drums, and Galo Ochoa on guitar, all three members of the legendary band Cuca and considered virtuosos on their respective instruments—undoubtedly among the best in Mexico. Aldo Ochoa, the most frequent vocalist for these tribute shows, then yielded the stage to Alexis Félix, vocalist of La Meduza, who opened the show impressively. He initially struggled to reach the soaring notes of "Immigrant Song," but this is understandable given the song's difficulty, and as he gained confidence throughout the night, he became the undisputed star.
I'm not going to make a setlist, since I didn't write down the songs this time. However, this time they took the liberty of mixing in some lesser-known tracks from their later LPs, like "We're Gonna Groove" and "Wanton Song," alongside the band's most well-known songs. Perhaps I enjoyed it more because of the company of my friends and my cat, but musically there were a few minor issues. Technically, Galo completely lost his guitar sound halfway through "Celebration Day" and stopped his bandmates. After fixing the problem, he yelled, "Are we starting again?" and they began again. At times the sound was very distorted and the equalization was a bit unbalanced, but overall they managed to keep the crowd engaged despite the small performance errors, which, as a bassist myself, I recognize as a result of starting to celebrate with beers before the concert—something that hadn't happened to the musicians at the previous tribute shows I'd attended. Sabo's presence is a welcome constant, and it's a delight to listen to this bass maestro (orgasmic on "Dazed & Confused"), one of the reasons I became a bassist. Aldo Ochoa, who had blown away the previous two shows with his flawless Plant impersonation, didn't shine as brightly this time, singing songs in more mid-range than high registers, like "All Of My Love," although towards the end he had more suitable songs and regained his form. The one who gradually gained confidence and ended up being the star, besides Galo Ochoa, who is always impressive on guitar, was Alexis Félix, vocalist of Meduza, who for me was the revelation of this concert, and I don't recall having heard him at previous tributes. At the end, Hiz and I even managed to take a souvenir photo with him. Ugo Rodríguez also shone, but although in my opinion he's the best Mexican rock vocalist there is, his raspy tone doesn't lend itself to a very accurate Plant imitation. Even so, his vocal control is incredible.
In short, the musicians who took turns were Sabo Robo (ex Caifanes), Arturo Ybarra (Rostros Ocultos, Forseps), Carlos Avilez (Cuca, Forseps, Las Horas Muertas), Nacho González (Cuca, Forseps), Ugo Rodríguez (Azul Violeta, Yoyo Breakers), Gil Tapia (Yoyo Breakers), Javis Martín del Campo (a living legend of La Revo), Aldo Ochoa (Nata, La Dosis), Beto Nájera (Toncho Pilatos, another mythical group), Oscar Fuentes (Las Horas Muertas), Alexis Félix (Medusa, the revelation of the night), Alejandro Otaola (Santa Sabina, La Barranca), Alejandro Charpenell (Guillotina) and Galo Ochoa (my respects, as always).
Among the most applauded songs, Nacho González delivered an impressive version of “Moby Dick,” very much in his own style, but he even played the bare-handed part and received a standing ovation after his 10-minute solo on the Ludwig Amber Vistalite, the same model drum kit used by “Bonzo” Bonham. Another highly applauded track was “Whola Lotta Love,” which, if I remember correctly, was sung by Galo himself, although he didn't quite pull out his violin bow, haha. Even so, the solo was magnificent, and he skillfully crafted the middle section with his pedal effects. “Rock & Roll” and “Black Dog” also received ovations; “Since I've Been Loving You” was one of the two best songs of the night, I think with Javis Martín del Campo on guitar and Aldo Ochoa returning to his best vocal form, delivering a highly improvised yet sublime, sexy version with six or seven original musical orgasms. The other best song of the night, to my surprise, was "Stairway to Heaven," since they hadn't played it the previous time (Galo seemed reluctant) because it's so overplayed that I'm getting a bit tired of it. However, they performed a perfect, powerful, and sublime version, creating one of the most memorable moments of the evening and getting the entire audience singing along. I believe this was led by vocalist Alexis Félix.
They were missing “Dyer Maker”, “Baby I'm Gonna Leave You”, “When The Leave Breaks” and “No Quarter” from their basic setlist, but with the 21 songs they played they made it a tremendous night, full of power and memorable for the entire audience, as usual.
Greetings everyone!!!
By Corvan
Dec/14/2009
