Serious Trouble Time Travel Takes A Trick
It was a packed house when Serious Trouble took the floor at Tokyo Joe’s last Friday and Saturday with their fans lapping up the Stevie Ray Vaughan licks from Kenny Ray Gun, the band’s Malaysian leader putting the pick of SRV’s licks back on display with his genuine ‘66 Strat and raw technique.
Good news is that the band - after two appearances now in Bangkok within a few months - hopes to reciprocate and bring the best of Bangkok blues bands to Kuala Lumpur before too long.
Maybe we can arrange a special package tour to see the Soi Dogs or Dr Blues…Live In KL!
October 30th, 2007 at 6:26 pm
I was lucky enough to enjoy the Blues Festival in July at Tokyo Joe’s, including the night that Serious Trouble were on the bill. And again, I caught them at TJ’s last week. Both times I left wondering ‘what’s the big deal about these guys?’
Sure, Kenny Ray can play quite a few licks of Stevie Ray’s and he even has the same guitar strap, but that doesn’t make him a worthy successor to the great guy, any more than a karaoke singer who can hit all the Sinatra notes for a few songs is going to be the next Frank Sinatra.
One of the reasons the live blues scene in Bangkok is fun is that there is a degree of originality about it — and very few cover bands. Serious Trouble are just another cover band without an original note to call their own, and not a particularly good one at that. A cover band that was serious about its imitation work might employ somebody who could actually sing for a start, since Kenny Raw Wannabe simply cannot sing.
I wouldn’t go to the end of the street to see these guys again, let alone to KL.
peejay
October 30th, 2007 at 7:36 pm
pee jay i was there too on both nights n my freinds n i thought they rocked. cheers to them can’t wait for them to be back !
October 30th, 2007 at 9:14 pm
Glad you enjoyed them, stone. I’m just saying they’re not much different from any other cover band you’ll ever hear — except most cover bands have a singer, and they just have a guitarist who thinks he can sing. Just a difference of opinion, I know.
pj
October 31st, 2007 at 4:26 am
i agree with PJ i was there and it was not good!!!!!!!!!
October 31st, 2007 at 10:50 am
love it or hate it, well their up on stage having fun and losers like you r wondering when u screwed up!!!!
i think they’re good
October 31st, 2007 at 12:51 pm
Sure, bluesbro — they ARE good, so far as note-for-note cover bands with no singers go.
But you probably, inadvertently (look it up) hit the nail on the head. Serious Trouble are all about one guy ‘enjoying himself’ — never mind that a lot of real blues fans in the audience get little or no pleasure out of yet another half-baked imitator (sorry, Tribute Artiste) trying to bathe in the reflected glory from a true blues guitarist god.
peejay
October 31st, 2007 at 9:45 pm
If you don’t mind, as the moderator I would like to have the last word here. Serious Trouble came to Bangkok to give us their take on the blues channeled as it may have been through SRV’s glorious example set when he was still with us - rest his soul. Let’s not trash such dedication and love of the blues or colour Serious Troubles’ wonderful musicianship with odious comparisons to the real deal. Kenny knows he’s not SRV. May also add that the bass player was wonderful too. I wish he lived here…I’d steal him in a heartbeat. All good musicians appreciate and learn from constructive criticism and that’s no bad thing. Let them play - and let them grow. next time they may show you a thing or two or better still - you might be ready to listen to guys like us trying to give it up in the name of the blues. Peace, love and 12-bar heaven to you all. And yes this site is about the blues and no apology there.
November 1st, 2007 at 2:35 am
Here ! Here ! Admin ! For a ‘real blues fans’, pee jay oughtha know that even SRV or Jimi did covers and they definitely suck when they started but improved with time and experience. Like the finest wine, blues players get better and better when and as they play. That’s what makes the whole thing special. But guess pee jay is not a musician hence the flaming criticism ! As I know it takes a lot to get up there and hearing that Serious Trouble just came out from a seven year hiatus and performed they way they did ? I can’t wait to hear them again in their finest-polished-sweet state ! Play on Serious Trouble !!!