There wasn’t a natural blond in the audience for this 4 hour concert featuring some of the best Mediterranean music you’ll ever hear this side of a church picnic. There were so many Armenians and Greeks in the audience for this musical feast that probably every restaurant or car repair place in Glendale was closed for the event. Food, frets and fun were in the air on this full moon.
The evening opened with an acoustic set by Armenian vocalist/guitarist Elena, who charmed the audience by mixing fiery chords and dexterous picking in a Spanish/flamenco style. She spoke in Armenian, but sang in mostly Spanish as she did so many Gipsy King tunes she may as well have been labeled The Gipsy Queen. “Volare” and “Baila Me” sounded wondrous in this ladies hands.
Next up was the Greek/Armenian band (would you like to be in on their geopolitical discussions?!?) Viza, a sextet that consisted of Alex Khatcharian/b, Andrew Kazarian/oud, Orbel babyan/g, Shant Bismejian/g, Hiram Rosorio/dr and “Dave”/perc, fronted by Knoup Tomopoulos on vocals. The musicians looked like cast members from a scene in Second Hand Lions, while the Greek vocalist had a voice similar to David Bowie, as he lustily sang about…what else? Love, the Meaning of Life, and of course… Tragedies! Hey, they invented them! Mixing infectious Hellenic rhythms with Metallica-like guitar licks, the band made you want to get up in a circle dance on tunes like “Heavenly” and “Magic Ladder” while the melding exoticism of Kazarian’s oud kept bringing you back to the mysteries of the Middle Eastern souk. Even The Door’s “Alabama Song” got the Hellenic kick, while closing “To The Gods” connected modern rock with the songs of the Sirens.
Pavlo’s team of George Vasilakos/bouzouki, Gino Mirizio/perc and Randy Rodriguez/b melded the best of Greek and Latin sounds on a wondrous set that mixed simple and intoxicating rhythms with frenetic finger work on guitar and bouzouki. Earthy folk tunes such as “Café Castoria” combined modern beats with eternally Mediterranean sounds, feeling as if you were walking by an ancient ruin in Epidarous on the way to the modern square. With the full moon as a back drop, Mirizio delivered a wild solo on Cajon, while Kazarian came back on stage and melded Hellenic and Iberian sounds with Pavlov on “Tziftitelli.” Just when you thought the party was winding down, vocalist Alex Cuba came on stage for a couple wondrous acoustic/vocal pieces, including “Si Pero No”, and then Armenian vocalist Heibertt got the audience on its feet with rich singing for a number of tunes. Bringing up the anchor leg, Tomopoulos jumped back into the party and sang along, bringing the evening to a wondrous and celebratory close. If you never Mediterranean you didn’t like, you’d have had the time of your life at the Ford this lovely evening
Photo by Raffi Hadidian