Anyone who attended the self-titled CD release party of Moonalice at Slim’s Friday night would agree the band evoked the 1960s during their performance.
However, the band also mixed in a little 2009 when it incorporated a taste of social media into its lineup. Fans unable to attend the April 3 event were able to follow the show in real time using Twitter in what was billed as the first-ever "Tweet-cast" concert.
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| Courtesy of Glenn Evans |
The group’s sound team digitized each blues and folk-tinged jam into an MP3, uploaded it and then posted a link to the MP3 on Twitter, said Jon Luini, who Twittered the concert and has developed digital strategies for other musicians. From the sound-check to the time the musicians left the venue, fans were able to experience the live performance from the comfort of their homes.
Allowing fans to download all songs from the concert for free, the group follows a tradition that bands such as the Grateful Dead have practiced, Luini said. But instead of cassette tapes, Moonalice is spreading its songs through the Internet.
“It’s a great way they can use technology to share music,” Luini said.
Moonalice members don’t mind giving away their music because they hope fans will support them by purchasing concert tickets, studio albums and other merchandise, Luini said.
Marcy Santana, 55, of Berkeley, said the Tweet-cast was a great idea. She grooved as Moonalice covered a Grateful Dead song and said she liked that she would be able to hear the concert again online.
Fans from as far as Little Rock, Ark., followed the concert on Twitter while some audience members at Slim’s “Tweeted” a running commentary.
“This band is hot, hot, hot,” wrote Tweeter Tracy Sheridan.
Brett603 wrote, “I love these guys.”
Rob Stern, 35, had never heard Moonalice until Friday night so he researched the band on the Internet. The Foster City resident learned the group – which features Venture capitalist Roger McNamee and his wife, Ann – are seasoned musicians who’ve played with artists such as Bob Dylan, Rod Stewart, Jefferson Starship and Jefferson Airplane.
Listening to Moonalice for the first time, Stern said their tight playing impressed him.
Another Tweeter – Cyberlar – wrote, “Especially like Roger and Ann’s voices singing together. Wow has this band progressed.”
San Franciscan John Ball, 43, was another new fan who was won over by the musicians’ skills and the diverse, laid-back audience.
“Look around at the crowd and it’s really different people,” Ball said. “The bass is really amazing. It’s driving the music. It holds everything else up land the music floats on top of the bass.”
To experience Friday’s performance, visit www.twitter.com/moonalice.
