9/8/23 Stu’s House: A Night of Music From Maya Gold, Mantra, and DJ DollaMenu
Charleston is blessed to have a wonderful indie scene and Stu’s House is the beating heart of it. The bill for Friday, September 8th, 2023, consisted of Maya Gold, Mantra, DJ DollaMenu, with visuals from GlitchFreak.
Maya Gold opened up the show as the sun sank in the distance. Folksy guitars washed over Stu’s House as she sang her heart out.
Next, Mantra took the stage with some jazzy soft rock tunes that got the crowd dancing. They indie-sleazed and indie-rocked their way through various jams- displaying their expertise at their instruments.
Finally, DJ DollaMenu took the mic, backed by the maestros McCarthey Finch on bass, Alex Brower on drums, and host Noah James on keys.
“McDonald’s Money”
A huge thanks to Noah James and the boys of Stu’s House for putting together the magic that is Stu’s House
Listen to “Aphex Twin London 19.08.23” – Ethan
9/30/23 Stu’s House: “Barr Flies The Coop” – A Night of Music From Mirage
It was a Wednesday night at 8:50 pm, when I got a text from my good friend Barr: “October 4…”
I realized there was only one thing this could mean: Barr had booked his ticket to Israel. With a week until his departure , Charleston sprang into action to throw a proper sendoff show for the friendly face behind GlitchFreak visuals.
All throughout 2023 we’ve been able to enjoy various psychedelic visuals from GlitchFreak whether they be liquid lights or manipulated projections of Smash Bros, Barr’s had it covered.
This event would not have happened without all of the hands that worked together on it. I’d like to specifically shout out Michael Ahern and Noah James for organizing, Mirage for playing such an impromptu show, and of course, GlitchFreak. Together they managed to plan one of the best Charleston shows of the year in what was maybe 48 hours.
So let’s get into it…
On the last night of September, Stu’s house came alive to the sounds of Marvin Gaye, Donald Byrd, and Stevie Wonder through the medium of Charleston’s hottest jazz-fusion band, Mirage.
They played 2 sets, about an hour each. The band debuted three originals, two written just on the day of the show. Cascading waterfalls of blissful jazz composed of stomped out drums, piano keys that fell like feathers, bumping basslines, angelic organ playing, blazing guitars, and a powerful vocal performance dazzled the crowd as we stood in awe.
A magical moment happened along the transition from Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On” and Donald Byrd’s “Wind Parade.” Ethan Hollingsworth and Aiden Johnson blessed us with solos, interchanging the spotlight as they serenaded Stu’s House.
Next, frontman Coulson Geltz took a second to introduce the band, complete with revolving solos; Mirage is: Ethan Hollingsworth *organ solo*, Bryce *drum solo*, Michael Ahern *bass solo*, and Aiden Johnson *piano solo*.
A bit later, Barr took the stage to say a few words, recounting his first show running visuals at Stu’s House almost a year ago. Then, in an exciting turn of events, Barr donned Coulson’s red stratocaster and joined Mirage for “Mr. Charlie” and “Superstition,” hitting a wicked solo along the way.
This was the best Mirage set yet- and you can listen to it all below courtesy of Mr. Hollingsworth. (uploading soon)
It’s moments like these that we should remember how we’re all very lucky to have a place in Charleston where we can be ourselves and enjoy wonderful music. Barr made this place even more special with his kindness and passion for the scene. If you’ve been to a show in Charleston, chances are, you’ve met Barr. He’s either behind a projector shooting out crazy lights, slamming face with the surf-rock crowd, or shredding blues-rock solos on the stage.
Love you buddy, stay safe in Israel.
