Harry Manx hypnotizes crowd with soothing sounds

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Seeing Vancouver Island based blues musician Harry Manx is always a mind blowingly, hypnotically mellow experience.Clayton Doley, Harry Manx and Kevin Breit. Photo by Richard Amery
If music can take your pain away, Manx’s is the perfect prescription.


 So, he along with mandolinist/ guitarist Kevin Breit and organist Clayton Doley hypnotized a good sized crowd of approximately 200 people into a  supreme state of relaxation at the Southminster United Church, March 10.


The Geomatic Attic presentation began on an upbeat note as the trio played songs from throughout Manx’s career while adding a couple unique takes on blues classics.
 When he went mellow, I found myself nodding off, soothed by his smooth baritone voice especially when he accompanied himself on his Mohan Veena, a 20 string sitar/ guitar hybrid, for more of the far eastern inspired music.


 He told stories in between songs and joked about his beloved Mohan Veena, which was stolen, but thanks to the power of social media, was quickly recovered by police in Chicago.

Harry Manx and Kevin Breit. Photo by Richard Amery
“She went on a little vacation of her own,” Manx quipped, holding the well travelled instrument up for the crowd to see. He alternated between it and it’s less travelled counterparts-  a six string banjo, a shiny national steel guitar, an acoustic guitar and his Mohan Veena, telling stories and jokes about each one.


 Breit was simply amazing playing mandolin, but not like any mandolinist I’ve ever heard as he played frenetic freestyle jazz runs on his electric mandolin shaped like a tiny Telecaster guitar as well as a couple of battered guitars.


He added extra background vocals as well.
 Doley who came all the way from Australia to play superb organ harmonies  with Breit’s playing and added his own haunting background vocals.

 Everybody got to shine on their solos. Breit gave his instruments some solid workouts.Clayton Doley playing organ. photo by Richard Amery
 Doley got to flex his prodigious musical muscles on his  solos as well. It seemed like a jazz concert as the audience applauded after most individual solos as well as at the end of each song.


 The second set was a little more psychedelic than the first thanks to flashing psychedelic lights shining on the ceiling.


It also had a little more straight ahead blues. He noted he had his guitar tuned to open D for all of the slide powered acoustic blues songs of which “Baby Please Don’t Go” was a highlight.


 He picked up his banjo and half joked about how much Jimi Hendrix enjoyed the banjo and played his own version of an obscure Hendrix songs which meandered into a jazz flavoured jam between the trio.
He wound down his show with blues classics from the likes of Muddy Waters.
 They were called back for an encore of a sleepy “Crazy Love” Manx played on the Mohan Veena.

—  By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor

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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 19 March 2014 10:54 )