This weekend is packed full of Halloween related shows, and when the Suitcase Junket (Matt Lorenz) plays at the Shea Theater tomorrow night, he too will be taking part in the spooky holiday.
“We are encouraging people to wear costumes, and I’ll probably pull out a few spooky songs,” Lorenz said in a recent phone interview. “But I’m not sure what I’ll do in terms of a costume — I am a little restricted by my pile of instruments.”
The Suitcase Junket is a one-man band, which means that Lorenz performs with quite the pile of instruments.
Lorenz, of Amherst, performs sitting atop an old suitcase while singing in a slightly raspy voice as he strums away on a beat up old guitar he found in a dumpster.
While playing his guitar, he uses his feet to bang a rhythm on a variety of recycled items, like old pots and pans, bones, forks and a baby shoe that he hits against a gas can. He also incorporates throat singing into his music. This creates a high-pitched droning sound that is achieved by placing one’s tongue on the roof of their mouth. It’s a sound that can be quite loud, eerie and also rather hypnotic.
If you have never seen The Suitcase Junket, you are missing out, because Lorenz is amazing to watch. But his talents go beyond the novelty of being a one-man band. He is a talented songwriter who crafts honest, memorable songs, and his most recent release, the EP “Dying Star,” was released in March on the Signature Sounds label.
When asked how he describes his music, without hesitation Lorenz answered, “swamp yankee.” He then added that it was not him that created this term.
“I was in West Virginia playing a show and afterwards a guy came up to me and asked about a line in one of my songs that was about eating a muskrat,” said Lorenz. “I was impressed that he noticed, because it wasn’t a main feature of the song. I said ‘yeah, what about it?’ And he asked ‘well, are you a swamp yankee?’”
Lorenz loved the term and thought it summed up his music.
“I think swamp yankee does a pretty good job of summing up the edginess of the music and also the kind of loose bluesy thing,” he said. “If people push me to use more common terms, I say it’s basically rock ‘n’ roll. I’m trying to be a rock ‘n’ roll three-piece with just me. It’s roots music, the blues, folk — all those American traditions. It is a deep well that we have to drink from here.”
Lorenz is a self-described tinkerer who said he is always making something out of discarded items. After graduating from Hampshire College in 2004, he formed the band Rusty Belle with his sister Kate and friend Zak Trojano.
“I didn’t have much money, so I was always building instruments out of old tin cans and that sort of thing,” said Lorenz. “Then with Rusty Belle, I stretched out with odd homemade instruments and started doing my foot drumming there on a homemade box. From there, I got the idea that if I was keeping time with my feet, why not get sounds out of all the motions that I make?”
Eventually, all the experimenting with homemade instruments and the various ways to play them led Lorenz to form The Suitcase Junket as a side project from his work with Rusty Belle.
In 2009, he released the first Suitcase Junket album, and to date he has released four CDs and has seen his audience steadily grow over the years. This past year has been particularly busy with Lorenz playing clubs and festivals throughout the country. And while he stressed that Rusty Belle is still together, at the moment he is focusing all his time on The Suitcase Junket while his band mates also pursue their own solo projects. (Kate Lorenz will have her first solo album out in 2017).
This past summer, he has played many festivals, which led to some memorable moments.
“Some of the festivals were really fun, because you get a whole pile of people, especially when they sort of catch the fire and come to the edge of the stage and they are dancing and getting excited,” said Lorenz. “The Otis Mountain Get Down in upstate New York was amazing. There were like 2,500 people all right up to the stage and they were singing along to a bunch of songs that I did not teach them. That was a really special moment.”
Could he have ever expected that The Suitcase Junket would take off like it has?
“I guess not. The goal for me was always steady growth and to keep it going and take what comes, and when there is momentum, follow it. And so, it’s been really exciting.”
Up next is more touring, including shows in Ireland next month. Next year, we can expect a full-length album slated to be released in the spring. Lorenz promises to play a few new songs from the album at this show. We should also mention that the up-and-coming bluegrass band Twisted Pine will open this show. So if you want to get your Halloween weekend celebration off on the right start, head to the Shea Theater tomorrow night.
The Suitcase Junket will play at Shea Theater, 71 Ave. A in Turners Falls on Friday, Oct. 28, at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:30. Tickets are $15 in advance and $18 at the door. Advance tickets can be purchased at:
www.signaturesoundspresents.com
For more information, call 413- 923-2800 or visit:
www.thesuitcasejunket.com
The Suitcase Junket isn’t the only one getting in on the Halloween fun. You can grab your costume and head to any one of these shows for a spooky good time.
Other shows this weekend
On Friday night, it’s Queen Mary’s Halloween Good Time at the Ashfield Lake House. Queen Mary is guaranteed to rock the house with a selection of everybody’s favorite hits. And put on your best scary outfit, because there will be a costume contest. This is an all-ages show with no cover. The music begins at 8 p.m.
Also on Friday night, another popular cover band, Ruby’s Complaint, will host its annual Halloween bash at Smitty’s on Chapman Street in Greenfield. Costumes are encouraged, but not required. Music begins at 9 p.m.
On Saturday, the Franklin County Pumpkinfest takes over downtown Turners Falls beginning at 2 p.m. and running until 9. There will be all kinds of live music at this free event — everyone from Lexi Weege to Jimmy Just Quit and After Glo. Shea Theater will get in on the fun too when it pays homage to many great musicians we have lost since last Halloween. Bands from throughout the Pioneer Valley will perform the music of these late great artists — and in costume. Taking the stage will be Daniel Hales and the Frost Heaves, Soul Magnets, The Warblers, Bourquensweeno with Steve Koziol, and Monte Belmonte as David Bowie as Jareth the Goblin King.
This event is in conjunction with the Pumpkinfest and begins at 7 p.m. It’s $5 at the door.
Later the same night, you can head over to the Halloween Costume Dance party at the Rendezvous on Third Street in Turners Falls, which will feature the return of DJ Funkadelic Fern (hip-hop, fun and top-40 tunes from the 1970s through today).
The Arts Block in Greenfield is going Halloween crazy, as well, with its Halloween celebration. It will host five bands on three different stages. The great musical collective The Mary Jane Jones will be on hand for two sets, and they won’t be the only ones having the crowd moving; barbeque rockers Trailer Park will also be on hand. You can also enjoy the junkyard rock of Wishbone Zoe, the avant-garde sounds of The Leafies You Gave Me, and the haunting music of Darkage.
Doors open at 7 p.m. and the music begins at 8. Advance tickets are $12 and available at:
www.theartsblock.com
Tickets are $15 at the door.
The funky Afrobeat music of Shokazoba will be the soundtrack for the Halloween party at Deja Brew in Wendell. There will be a costume contest. The music begins at 9 p.m. No cover.
Sheryl Hunter is a music writer who lives in Easthampton. Her work has appeared in various regional and national magazines. You can contact her at soundslocal@yahoo.com