New Jersey Stage logo
New Jersey Stage Menu


?>

 

Makin Waves Record of the Week: "Porch Drive" by The Porchistas


By Bob Makin

originally published: 06/07/2018


This album has one of my favorite new songs on it, “The Abe Vigoda Polka.” Hysterical! Go see The Porchistas play it live on June 8 at Tierney’s Tavern, Montclair, along with the rest of “Porch Drive.”  

 

I know a local album is good when it has four strong contenders for the Song of the Week. The nominees on Montclair-based The Porchistas new “Porch Drive” are:

** The opening “The Martyrs,” a reggae-tinged call to arms with Elvis Costello-like soul-pop overtones that aims to inspire a continuation of a rebellion started by the title characters

** “The Abe Vigoda Polka,” an hysterical but touching tale of a musical couple, who during an adventure in Florida, twice run into the unsung actor Abe Vigoda (“Barney Miller,” “The Godfather”) to whom the song is a tribute




Please support the advertisers at New Jersey Stage!
Want info on how to advertise? Click here



** “She Deserves,” a fun, folkie Jimmy Buffettesque character study about a woman who dances naked in the rain by the sea

** “Bitter Fruit,” a gypsy jazz nugget with a stray cat strut that flirts with hard rock sung by Kelly Henneberry in homage to a variety of jazz greats, particularly Billie Holiday.

 

And the winner is ... “The Abe Vigoda Polka.” The funny folktale is set to a variety of traditional dance rhythms, including Southern Italian, country waltz, Cajun two-step, and, of course, the polka. Like Texas-based Grammy winners Brave Combo — and thanks largely to the grand chops of Caravan of Thieves violinist Nicole Scorsone and Electrolytes leader/saxophonist Linda Everswick — the ethnic, rootsy Porchistas demonstrate how those traditional dance styles relate to each other and can be arranged in a way that blends fairly seamlessly.

But the song’s greatest strength is its heartfelt marriage between entertaining absurdity and enlightening conviction. The spoken bridge literally makes me laugh out loud and want to do a first-ever Makin Waves year-end top 10 song list just so I can include “The Abe Vigoda Polka,” one of my all-time favorite songs by a local band.

The rest of the album is a hoot and/or statement. The ska-flavored do-good ditty, “Intervention,” is both, as it recalls the socially conscious quirkiness of They Might Be Giants. That is, until it takes a jazzy, prog-rock turn along the lines of Traffic around the 3:30 mark, about a quarter of the way through the track. Written with Scorsone, who sings on the bridge, singer-songwriter-guitarist Al Smith skewers the hypocrisy of corporations, who during their wellness weeks for their employees, and in some cases, their families, commit all kinds of crimes against environmental and economic justice.

Like They Might Be Giants, as well as The Beatles, Uncle Tupelo, Jersey’s own The Wooden Soldiers, among others, The Porchistas have two main singer-songwriters, also Adam Falzer, the lead guitarist. While neither he nor Smith are exceptional vocalists, they both write captivating story songs brimming with passion and overflowing with fascinating stylistic diversity.




Please support the advertisers at New Jersey Stage!
Want info on how to advertise? Click here



Whereas Falzer’s “The Martyrs” makes a political statement, his “Precious Cargo” relies on humor as a celebration of Saturday morning cartoons and pancakes that recalls Jack Johnson’s “Banana Pancakes.” Amidst the great backing vocals and counter harmonies of Scorsone, Falzer sings one of the best lines on “Porch Drive”: “I know we’re on roller coaster of friendship and control.”

Smith and Falzer are at their best when they write together, such as with “Abe Vigoda” and “She Deserves,” both of which, Smith sings. Following three studio albums since 2011 and last year’s “Axis & Allies” EP, songwriting that best accentuates eclectically expressed roots and globe-spanning styles makes “Porch Drive” the strongest release yet by The Porchistas — also keyboardist-accordionist Ed Fritz, drummer Jon Riordan, and bassist-engineer Gerry Griffin, who gets a separate production credit alongside the band.

In addition to stylistically, The Porchistas globe trot linguistically. On the love song “Blue Louise,” Falzer sings a bit in French accompanied by Fritz’s romantic accordion. And on the eco-minded “Hope for the Flowers,” Smith and guest vocalist Jenn Mustachio diversify their lovely duet in Spanish.

The simple, yet powerful Porchistas will celebrate the release of “Porch Drive” on a 2GB flexible wristband flash drive, as well as digitally, June 8 at the home away from their home studio, Tierney’s Tavern, also in Montclair. Their buds in Accidental Seabirds and The Big Drops will share the bill.

 

 

Bob Makin is the reporter for www.MyCentralJersey.com/entertainment and a former managing editor of The Aquarian Weekly, which launched this column in 1988. Contact him at makinwaves64@yahoo.com. And like Makin Waves at www.facebook.com/makinwavescolumn.



New Jersey Stage is proud to be the home of Bob Makin's Makin Waves column since 2017. His Song of the Week column comes out every Friday. He also writes an Album of the Month and Interview of the Month as well.




Please support the advertisers at New Jersey Stage!
Want info on how to advertise? Click here



FEATURED EVENTS

ART | COMEDY | DANCE | FILM | MUSIC | THEATRE | COMMUNITY

To narrow results by date range, categories,
or region of New Jersey
click here for our advanced search.


Curtis

Curtis Salgado

Wednesday, July 02, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music


 

John

John Lee & Friends

Thursday, July 03, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music


 

Blues

Blues People with Special Guest: Jeff Levine

Saturday, July 05, 2025 @ 7:30pm
Lizzie Rose Music Room
217 E. Main Street, Tuckerton, NJ 08087
category: music


 

Straight

Straight No Chaser - Summer: The 90’s Part 2

Tuesday, July 08, 2025 @ 7:00pm
Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC)
30 North Van Brunt Street, Englewood, NJ 07631
category: music


 

Frisson

Frisson Winds

Thursday, July 10, 2025 @ 7:30pm
The Morris Museum Back Deck
6 Normandy Heights Road, Morristown, NJ 07960
category: music


 


 

EVENT PREVIEWS

An

An Interview with Dan Kurtz of The New Deal

Formed in 1999, Toronto, Canada based trio The New Deal, is a pioneer in jam-based electronic music. The group was founded by remaining members Dan Kurtz (bass) and Jamie Shields (keys), along with Darren Shearer (drums) who left tND in 2011. Since its inception, tND has remained committed to its improvisational roots and has served as a model for other jamtronica bands bridging the gap between multiple music genres as well as the border between Canada and the United States.



Two

Two NJ Jazz Musicians Will Play with The Jazz Ambassadors in Morristown

Pianist Anthony Pocetti grew up in Hamilton, NJ, studying piano, "doing sort of traditional piano lessons. I have an uncle who was always encouraging me to get into the jazz thing. He gave me the (Miles Davis) Kind of Blue CD, and he knew that the jazz pianist Jim Ridl was living in Hamilton."



Asbury

Asbury Lanes presents There, There - A Tribute to Radiohead

(ASBURY PARK, NJ) -- Asbury Lanes presents There, There on Saturday, July 12, 2025 at 8:00pm. They are the premier Radiohead tribute act, playing songs from throughout the band's iconic multi-decade catalogue.



bergenPAC

bergenPAC presents Straight No Chaser - Summer: The 90's Part 2

(ENGLEWOOD, NJ) -- After a totally fly 2024 summer tour packed full of 90s boy band, pop, and R&B hits, RIAA-certified Gold a cappella group Straight No Chaser is back by popular demand with "Straight No Chaser Summer: 90s Part 2." The tour comes to Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC) on Thursday, July 8, 2025 at 7:00pm.



Blue

Blue Curtain presents 2025 Summer Concert Series in Princeton

(PRINCETON, NJ) -- Blue Curtain returns to Pettoranello Gardens Amphitheater this July with a free three-concert series. The 2025 season opens on Saturday, July 12 at 8:00pm with a performance by internationally acclaimed trombonist, composer, and bandleader Jimmy Bosch, also known as El Trombon Criollo.