Marco Benevento never had a Neil Young phase. But his lack of familiarity with the Canadian rock icon’s canon didn’t stop the keyboardist from assembling a band – unofficially dubbed Quartet the Killer – to cover Young’s songs during the final night of his February residency at Yoshi’s in Oakland, Calif.
It was actually longtime partner and Benevento-Russo Duo bandmate Joe Russo who came up with the idea. The drummer joined Benevento, saxophonist Peter Apfelbaum and trombonist Josh Roseman for a night of improvised Young.
“I had only had, like, one record of his, On the Beach, maybe Harvest or something,” Benevento said. “Even Josh Roseman and Peter Apfelbaum were like that: ‘I kind of know his songs; I know his music, but I don’t know how to play it.’ So we all scrammed together and pulled together a setlist, seriously, at sound check.”
The band stretched out “Cowgirl in the Sand,” “Old Man,” “Don’t Let It Bring You Down” and the requisite “Cortez the Killer,” among others.
“We played the melodies; we played the chord progressions. We played the form down, and someone would solo over the form,” Benevento said. “The chords were a lot more simple than a jazz chart, so it was easy to pick up. … I felt I was some part of a masters program, diving into the music of Neil Young, listening to it each day for a month, learning up, writing the chords down for solo piano and really internalizing them.”
It’s not surprising Benevento would choose to explore another artist’s catalogue for a night – he’s almost as renowned for his interpretations of other artists’ songs as he is for his own work. Benevento and Russo made it big in the jam band scene with their instrumental takes on Phish classics such as “You Enjoy Myself,” and both are part of a Led Zeppelin cover band, Bustle in Your Hedgerow.
Benevento’s latest album, Me Not Me, is almost all covers – only three tracks are Benevento originals. Recorded with the same two core trios as last year’s stellar Invisible Baby – Tea Leaf Green’s Reed Mathis on bass, either session drummer Matt Chamberlain or The Slip’s Andrew Barr on drums – the album bridges the gap between Swedish electro-pop duo The Knife and Leonard Cohen. He also covers My Morning Jacket, George Harrison, Beck and Led Zeppelin.
“These tunes were sort of tunes that were favorites that I loved,” he said. “I noticed that the covers often acted like windows into my own brain, and it was nice because the musicians can sort of get into what I was getting into, and musicians can see what I was interested in listening to by doing that. Another thing about the covers is so many other musicians have done that, too. You can almost get into somebody because you heard them do a version of something that you like.”
But don’t expect to instantly recognize the songs. While Benevento’s intricate playing often mimics the melodies of the songs, they take on new life in Benevento’s fingers. He inhabits a world where indie rock, jazz, jam and classic rock collide.
“I do like that I’m almost like an ADD-sort of performance,” he said. “I made a variety showcase sort of thing for the band.”
Me Not Me also marks the start of Benevento’s first record label, The Royal Potato Family. While the label will focus on his own work, he’s open to releasing albums by other artists, he said. Friend and singer-songwriter Nathan Moore could be the first.
“With the whole shift of record labels, I just decided that I could do one myself,” Benevento said. “I felt like I was ready to put out a record on my own, being that I put out four records with Joe and some more with other people. … Ultimately it’s my own money that I’m investing into myself.”
But Benevento isn’t just focusing on himself. His main gig, the Benevento-Russo Duo, has been on semi-hiatus since 2006, when the band released Play Pause Stop, and toured as a quartet with Phish’s Trey Anastasio and Mike Gordon while also opening the show as the Duo. It was the end of six years of non-stop touring, and in a recent JamBase interview, Russo said the band “lost a lot of [its] identity on” the tour, though Benevento disagrees.
“My opinion is that was like the zenith,” Benevento said. “We were touring with those guys – so much f—ing fun. The thing I may agree upon that Joe said was maybe our record got a little bit lost amongst the shuffle. … We were promoting that record opening up for ourselves, essentially. But our gigs were at like 6:30 p.m. in the amphitheater, and only 100 people were there, and everyone was like, ‘I want to see you play with that other redhead (Anastasio), too.
“I would say that our hiatus was a well-deserved hiatus,” he added.
But after three years, Russo and Benevento are recording together again, with plans to unleash the next batch of infectious, instrumental rock songs next year. Despite both playing with countless different bands and in various configurations during the hiatus, the Duo’s return should be welcome and familiar.
“I really noticed [recently that] we really have a distinct sound,” he said. “It’s going to sound a bit different, but it’s definitely the Duo. I don’t think we lost our identity in that way. I think we have definitely maintained Joe’s personality and my personality. When we get together and rock out, it’s still there.”
Marco Benevento opens for The Bad Plus at Rams Head On Stage in Annapolis on Sunday. Tickets cost $23.50 for the 8:30 p.m. show.
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