The Pickled Onion in Beverly, Massachusetts was exploding with energy last night as the Variations rocked the house with three powerful and consistently engaging sets.
Out of the four times I've seen The Variations play since mid-April, this was the best set I've seen them play by a pretty wide margin. From the opening notes of "A-Punk" to the final moments of raucous closer "Shout" , the band was absolutely on fire. What really makes The Variations standout in the sea of local cover bands is the variety of material they play. Instead of the same old 15-20 song 60's/70's soft rock rotation that dominates a majority of the area's cover acts catalogs, The Variations cover everything from late 50's rock n'roll (The Isley Brothers, Chuck Berry) to 2000's alternative/indie rock bands (Franz Ferdinand, Modest Mouse) with the same level of precision and enthusiasm. The band is able to tackle this deep of a catalog by having three members of the band perform lead vocals. Guitarist/keyboardist Nick Russo, bassist Jeff Medoff and drummer Jimmy Legere are all gifted, versatile vocalists who manage to bring a different flavor to each track they perform. While The Variations ability to gracefully and organically move across generations with their music is impressive, the band is at their best when they're showing off their musicality. Tracks like "Sunshine of Your Love", "Take Me Out" and especially the instrumental jam-heavy "Rockin' in the Free World" do an excellent job of showcasing the immense level of talent each member of the band possesses. You can also tell the band has the most fun playing these tracks as they get to really let loose and just rock everyone in the audience's face off. I've seen a lot of cover bands in my day and The Variations are by far at top of the heap. If you live anywhere on the North Shore, you need to check out one of their shows ASAP.
The Variations Upcoming Shows (July-August):
Friday July 18th at Murphy's in Salem. MA (8-10)
Friday July 25th at Village Tavern in Salem, MA (9-12:30)
Saturday July 26th at Fibber McGee's in Beverly, MA (9-12:30)
Saturday August 9th at Village Tavern in Salem, MA (9-12:30)
Saturday August 23rd at The Pickled Onion in Beverly, MA (9-1)
Check them out on Facebook at: http://www.facebook.com/TheVariationsBand
Score:
The Variations 14/10
Setlist:
Set 1:
A-Punk (Vampire Weekend cover)
Magic Carpet Ride (Steppenwolf cover)
Soul Kitchen (The Doors cover)
Sunshine of Your Love (Cream cover)
Listen to Her Heart (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers cover)
Gloria (Van Morrison cover)
Lonely Boy (The Black Keys cover)
Johnny B. Goode (Chuck Berry cover)
Call Me the Breeze (Lynyrd Skynyrd cover)
Centerfold (J. Geils Band cover)
Set 2:
Blister in the Sun (Violent Femmes cover)
Badfish (Sublime cover)
Could You Be Loved (Bob Marley and the Wailers cover)
Only Wanna Be with You (Hootie and the Blowfish cover)
Island in the Sun (Weezer cover)
The Break-Up Song (Greg Kihn Band cover)
You May Be Right (Billy Joel cover)
Save Tonight (Eagle-Eye Cherry cover)
Twist and Shout (The Isley Brothers cover)
Brown Eyed Girl (Van Morrison cover)
You Really Got Me (The Kinks cover)
Rockin' in the Free World (Neil Young cover)
Set 3:
American Girl (Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers cover)
Tell Me Baby (Red Hot Chili Peppers cover)
Play That Funky Music (Wild Cherry cover)
867-5309/Jenny (Tommy Tutone cover)
What I Got (Sublime cover)
The Joker (Steve Miller Band cover)
Float On (Modest Mouse cover)
Take Me Out (Franz Ferdinand cover)
All the Small Things (blink-182 cover)
Semi-Charmed Life (Third Eye Blind cover)
Wagon Wheel (Old Crow Medicine Show/Darius Rucker cover)
What I Like About You (The Romantics cover)
Shout (The Isley Brothers cover)
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