Cityzen.tv: Live Review- Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players w/ Neil Innes

Neil Innes with the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players
by Luis M. Soler
10.10.2004

If you haven't already heard of The Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players, imagine, if you will, those summer vacation slides your Aunt Rosie made you watch as a kid, only now they’ve been rearranged and turned into a sort of illustrated dinner theater. Or a kind of quirky silent movie edited and narrated by a charming little family of three. This is the beauty of the Trachtenburgs: they take what is to be discarded (namely, the memories of complete strangers, in the form of old slides bought at estate sales and the like) and breathe new air into it, giving the slides new purpose and relevance as the inspiration for and backdrop to the songs they perform. And unlike so many groups that claim to be a “family,” the Trachtenburgs actually are one. Jason, father and songwriter, Tina, mother and slide projectionist, and Rachel, the lovely ten year old daughter/drummer, and back up singer, all go on the road to bring you this eclectic, surreal show. Jason joked that, “I guess we probably argue four times more exponentially than any family or rock band.”

“Putting images to Jason’s songs was something I had always wanted to do,” Tina told me before the show. She had bought the original slide projector and slides at an estate sale in Seattle, and when one night Jason wrote a song about them (a crowd favorite, “Mountain Trip to Old Japan, 1959"), it dawned on her that this could be more than just a funny little song. It took some convincing, but thanks to her this trio has just finished recording their second album, will be releasing a video for their song “Eggs,” and will be performing a residency in London for the month of December.

When I asked Jason to describe their style, he answered “quirky pop rock, in the same vein as They Might Be Giants.” And that “pop rock” sound is clear, their style being reminiscent of the Monkees, Ben Folds, and basically anything off of the Elephant Six record label. He even cites the Beatles as one of his biggest influences. But there is much more behind the sound of Trachtenburg. Many songs, whether it’s due to the focus on lyrical style and melody, or the deft use of piano in most, have a certain musical theater quality to them, recalling such rock-inspired works as Rent, Hairspray and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. He has hinted at Broadway’s influence in the past, and one interviewer has even compared Jason’s songwriting to Cole Porter, a composer Jason admits he greatly admires. Hints of the flotsam and jetsam of pop culture also peek through the music, such as sitcom theme songs, vaudeville, Schoolhouse Rock, commercial jingles, Muzak, burlesque, torch songs, Cop Rock, SNL, Motown, and I could keep going on and on.

As soon as the family came on stage, Jason started in with some playful banter, cracking jokes on B.B. King and reading the setlist of the Harlem Gospel Choir (an act which performed earlier), while Rachel looked at her father with the kind of expression only a patient but bored ten year old can muster. They then launched into their opener, “Theme for the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players,” which basically outlines what it is that they do.

This was followed by “Mountain Trip,” about a vacation to Japan that includes a public execution, and “Look at Me,” about two retired Army nurses and their parties. Two fairly new pieces were featured, “Slideshows in Paradise,” about slides they’ve received from fans but can’t figure out what to do with, featuring images of pencils, beaches, palm trees, and Jesus, and “Middle America,” which according to Jason is about “men gone wild.” They closed with their six part opus “Opnad Contribution Study Committee Report, June 1977", which revolves around a study done by McDonald’s in an effort to increase their market share.

Ultimately, the wildest thing about this group is just how good the songs are. They shine as sparkling little pop gems thanks to Jason’s tuneful songcraft, despite the mildly absurd lyrics and off the wall delivery. And through all the schmaltz and shtick, near subliminal messages about our politics, our culture, and ourselves are braided into the mirth and mayhem, which coupled with the muted reflections of the ghosts of memories long extinguished give the whole act an unexpectedly nostalgic poignancy and depth. Which is the most exhilarating and delightful thing about the Trachtenburg experience. By drawing upon the long traditions in art and music of borrowing from the past (and literally doing so through the slides), and melding images and music in a novel way, the Trachtenburgs have created an act that transcends their own ambitions to be an “indie-vaudeville conceptual art-rock pop band”, as they’ve billed themselves on their website. This is performance art, socio-political statement, and cultural commentary all rolled into one. So it’s no wonder that, unfortunately, not everyone seemed to get it. I heard more than one person make a snide comment by the bar, and the Trachtenburgs confided in me that they’d heard some, too. But, as Warhol proclaimed in his Diaries, “You have to do stuff that average people don't understand, because those are the only good things.” And, as Tina reminded me, “You’ve got to take it in stride. It’s tough being an opening act.”

All that said, the show was some good, clean, kitschy fun. Most audience members seemed to enjoy the Trachtenburgs, laughing and applauding in all the right places. Some even brought along their own kids, no doubt after reading one of the multitude of articles focusing on Rachel and her role in the group.

Clearly Neil Innes was the man the crowd came to see. A musician/comedian from the U.K., Mr. Innes is best known as a member of the Bonzo Dog Doo-dah Band, as well as writing the songs for and performing in The Rutles (a mock documentary spoofing the Beatles) and collaborating on several projects with Monty Python. He performed a few bars of the song “Sir Robin the Brave” from Monty Python and the Holy Grail, and played other such crowd favorites as “Eye Candy,” “I’m the Urban Spaceman,” and “I Must be in Love,” all songs which the audience sang along to. He is a natural comedian and an accomplished musician, alternating his songs between guitar and piano, all while keeping the crowd teetering with laughter from anecdotes about his family, his days with The Rutles, Monty Python, and The Bonzo Dog Band. Just as the Trachtenburgs, though, his silly music contains some serious subject matter, such as the dehumanizing forces of the Information age in “Facemail in the Meatzone” and the dangers of television in “Eye Candy.”

He also performed some more somber material that showed his introspective side. His subversive work with The Bonzo Dog Band and the Rutles paved the way for other comedic musical acts such as Spinal Tap, Weird Al Yankovic, They Might Be Giants, Adam Sandler, and of course the Trachtenburgs. When he exited the stage, the audience howled for an encore, and he delivered, performing his classic “How Sweet to be an Idiot.” which had everyone practically rolling on the floor (the rubber duck he wore for a hat may have had something to do with that too).