On Stage: DiBuono ‘Trumps’ the competition with dead-on impression

By Denny Dyroff, Staff Writer, The Times

Bob DiBuono never set out to be a stand-up comedian. But, life as a comic is where the New Jersey native’s career path has taken him.

On July 20, the veteran comedian will make a rare area appearance when he headlines the Candlelight Comedy Club (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware, 302- 475-2313, www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org)

“For 18 years, I was a sales/advertising guy,” said DiBuono, during a phone interview last week. “After a while, I just didn’t want a 9-to-5 job anymore.”

So, DiBuono became a comedian – which might be an even harder way to make a living.

“It’s hard,” said DiBuono. “It’s very hard to break into the business. And, there is no money in it. I’m lucky in that I also do commercials and voice-overs for TV.

“Being a comedian is a craft. And, there’s not a lot of good craftsmen anymore.”

Dibuono is also an actor, known for “Red Dead Redemption” (2010), “The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore” (2015) and “Gotham Comedy Live” (2012).

“Hollywood is bad right now,” said DiBuono. “There are 10 people working and no-one else can get a job. Hollywood is a joke – it’s not about talent.”

Fortunately for DiBuono, he has found life beyond the big screen.

DiBuono has established himself as one of the most dynamic acts on stage.  With a sarcastic and edgy wit coupled with a high energy and animated delivery, he exposes the absurdities in life, his family and the social conscious.

The versatility of being able to go in and out of original characters along with dead-on impersonations heightens this unique act.

“I do a lot of impressions – Dr. Phil, Matt Dillon, Bill Clinton, Tony Danza, Al Pacino,” said DiBuono.

DiBuono is currently riding high with his most recent impersonation. His impression of Donald Trump is as good as it gets.

“I’m one of the top Trump impersonators in the country,” said DiBuono. “I’ve been doing Trump for a year and five months. I wanted to get on TV so I put together a reel of me doing Trump.

“Trump was a very attention-getting character. He was hot. It was before he became POTUS. I signed as the exclusive Donald Trump on ‘The Nightly Show with Larry Wilmore.’

“He’s easy to do. As a comedian, I can write material for anybody. Because he does funny things – just do his schtick and it’s always funny. I also write material to go along with it.

“When you do a really accurate impression of someone, there are high points and low points. What makes him likeable to people who like him, he makes people believe that everything is going to be O.K. – no different than a cult leader or a salesperson.

“Some people don’t laugh at my impersonation of Trump because it’s too realistic. But, I’m not a political comic at all. I don’t even like politics.”

Trump will be one of many characters DiBuono brings to life at the Candlelight this week.

“In Delaware, I’ll come out and do a guest spot as Trump,” said DiBuono. “I’ll do about eight minutes in full make-up.”

Video link for Bob DiBuono – https://youtu.be/tUsRMwfKMXY.

The show at the Candlelight Theater, which includes a complimentary light fare buffet, will start at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $27 and all seating is reserved.

Jazz comes in many forms – many styles, many flavors and a huge variety of instrumentation.

Most jazz musicians have distinctive styles.

Brooklyn-based saxophonist Jonah Parzen-Johnson, who is headlining a show on July 20 at MilkBoy Philly (1100 Chestnut Street, Philadelphia, 215- 925-6455, www.milkboyphilly.com), has a unique style.

Parzen-Johnson creates music for solo saxophone – with a difference. Through the use of circular breathing techniques, he plays melodic runs over analog synthesizers that he manipulates simultaneously with his feet.

His carefully-assembled analog synthesizer breathes with his saxophone, building independent melodic layers to support his sound, or soaring above his extended technique driven saxophone playing — all performed live, without any looping or recorded samples.

“I had sort of experimented with computer music when I was in grad school,” said Parzen-Johnson. “In 2012, I was in Asheville, North Carolina and went to the Moog Factory there.

“I talked with engineers. They helped me explore the way analog gear could take me up some alley. I’ve been experimenting with all analog ever since.

“I’ve had my current set-up since 2014. I control the synthesizer through the volume of the sax and I have different control voltage pedals to control the pitches with my feet.”

Parzen-Johnson’s love affair with the saxophone goes back a long way.

“I wanted to play saxophone for as long as I can remember,” said Parzen-Johnson. “My parents rented me an alto sax when I was eight. Then, I started playing baritone sax in high school.”

Parzen-Johnson was born in Chicago, Illinois and grew up on Chicago’s South Side. He completed a Bachelor of Music in jazz studies at New York University in 2010, and a Master of Music in jazz saxophone at Manhattan School of Music in 2012.

In Chicago, Parzen-Johnson studied under Mwata Bowden, a member of the Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians.

“I came to New York for college and I’ve been living here ever since,” said Parzen-Johnson. “I was in Manhattan for a year and I’ve been in Brooklyn since then.”

Parzen-Johnson is also a member of Zongo Junction, a Brooklyn Afrobeat ensemble for which he performs and composes

Now, Parzen-Johnson is touring in support of his new album “I Try To Remember Where I Come From,” which was released July 7 on Clean Feed Records.

The music on “I Try To Remember Where I Come From” was written in large part to address his struggle with acknowledging and dealing with his privilege as a white man.

According to Parzen-Johnson, “I’m deeply grateful for my day-to-day. The act of creating and performing music gives my life a sense of motion, and I step into each day knowing that I have somewhere I want to go. But, as I go about entertaining myself with my own creative process, I try to remember that music exists to communicate truth.

“I am a product of Chicago, and although I spent my most formative years in many incredible programs starting or ending with the word jazz, it was the term ‘creative music,’ a concept first introduced to me in my high school band room and explained over years of mentoring by South Side musicians, that formed my musical spark.

“As I derive my livelihood, and my life’s creative fulfillment from these musicians’ example, I have to remember that their tradition is not mine to claim. Black American music is a response to an environment of exclusion, oppression, and institutional silencing that I, a white American man, have not, and will never experience.

“Despite all of this, throughout my teenage years, Black musicians in Chicago shared their traditions, their gatherings, their bandstands, their living rooms, and their musical incites with me in a generous, and enduring way.

“I think a lot about how special it is that there are people in this world who have responded to the physical and mental silencing that is inextricably linked to the American story by creating something that has, at one time or another, warmly embraced nearly every person on earth. That’s what I was thinking about when I wrote these songs.”

The album was recorded this time last year.

“I spent 6-7 months writing the album,” said Parzen-Johnson. “I had an idea in mind what the music would be about. I recorded the whole album live at a studio in Brooklyn called The Bunker Room.

“In my live show now, everything happens in real time. There is no pre-recorded music. It’s sax and computer. My setup is pretty compact.”

Video link for Jonah Parzen-Johnson – https://youtu.be/FNZEYSyS-gs.

The show July 20 at MilkBoy Philly, which also features Square Peg Round Hole and Trip Rabbit, will start at 8 p.m. Tickets are $12.

Other upcoming shows at MilkBoy Philly are PHNTMS, Saint Slumber, and Hidden Hospitals on July 21 and Resilient, Honeytiger, and The Vernes on July 26.

New Politics, which shares a bill on the Unity 2017 Tour with 311 and Bad Rabbits on July 21 at Festival Pier at Penn’s Landing (Delaware Avenue and Spring Garden Street, Philadelphia,http://festivalpierphilly.com), is a perfect indie-pop band for the mid-2010s.

New Politics is a trio that was formed in Copenhagen, Denmark by a pair of talented, young and good-looking musicians — David Boyd (lead vocals, guitar) and Søren Hansen (bass, guitar, keys, programming) – and later augmented by New York drummer Louis Vecchio.

The band plays music that is a blend of sparkling pop melodies, smart lyrics and lively beats. Boyd fronts the band making full use of his award-winning breakdancing talents.

After starting as a street performer, Boyd won contests, appeared in commercials and modern dance productions and developed a dance move called “Boyding,” which involves standing on head while singing. If the stage had walls, Boyd would do parkour stunts as he sang.

The international trio, which now calls Brooklyn home, has released three albums – “New Politics” in 2010, “A Bad Girl in Harlem” in 2013 and “Vikings” on DCD2 Records/Warner Bros. Records in 2015 – and has toured the states a number of times.

“Our tour this summer is going really good,” said Vecchio, during a phone interview Wednesday morning from a tour stop in Virginia.

“It feels really good to be playing live music again – especially because we took about a year off the road to work on our next album.”

Vecchio explained how a drummer from Long Island ended up with a pair of musicians from Denmark’s capitol.

“David and Søren formed the band in Copenhagen about nine years ago and then moved to the states seven years ago,” said Vecchio.

“They started out just as songwriters in Denmark trying to do the publishing thing. It clicked. One day, David realized they had and New Politics was born.

“They entered a huge contest in Denmark (Danish National Radio P3’s Karriere Kanonen) and they won. That’s what started it. They signed with a major label and put out their first album.

“I joined them six years ago. I’m from New York and I’ve played in bands all my life. Mikey, a mutual friend of ours, called me and asked me if I wanted to join a band with two Daish guys who needed a drummer.”

The rest is history.

“I’ve been to Copenhagen twice since I joined the band but we’ve all lived in Brooklyn for a long time – until recently. David is a new father and he moved to Atlanta to be with mother and baby and Søren moved to Nashville.”

Boyd’s mate and baby mom is Christian Serratos, a former model and American actress who now plays Rosita Espinosa in AMC’s “The Walking Dead” television series.

New Politics initially burst onto the scene in 2013 with the smash hit “Harlem,” earning over 29 million Spotify streams and reaching the Top 5 of alternative radio. The band followed with a series of hit singles, including “Everywhere I Go” and “Tonight You’re Perfect.”

“The new album, which is still untitled, is done,” said Vecchio. “It’s in the mixing stage right now. There are a few loose ends but, for the most part, it’s completed.

“The album is really exciting at all levels. It’s something that is exciting to play. And, it’s exciting for our fans who have been waiting for new songs.

“Most of it was recorded at our home studio at Søren’s place in Nashville. Søren is also a producer and engineer. We worked with a really talented producer named Butch Walker. He has such a great ear. He brought in a lot of live instruments.

“Since our last album ‘Vikings,’ we’ve matured as musicians, as artists and as people. This album was written about situations going on at the time. It came from David being a new father and from us reflecting on where we stood as a group of people.”

Video link for New Politics – https://youtu.be/d0Y2cNdQykI

The show at Festival Pier, which also features 311 and Bad Rabbits, will start at 7 p.m. Tickets are $35.

When Megan Slankard performs July 21 at the Rose Tree Park Summer Festival at Rose Tree Park (1671 North Providence Road, Media,http://www.co.delaware.pa.us/depts/parks/summerfestival.html), fans will be treated to three shows in one.

Slankard is sharing the bill – and sharing the stage – with Jeff Campbell.

“This show is like a songwriter-in-the-round show – with just the two of us,” said Slankard, during a phone interview Tuesday afternoon form her home in San Francisco.

“He’ll accompany me on my songs, I’ll accompany him on his songs and we’ll play other songs together. It will go back-and-forth.”

Slankard, a talented singer-songwriter from San Francisco, released her fourth album “Running on Machinery” in 2015 and has been touring in support of the disc ever since. She will be playing songs from the album along with a variety of tracks from previous albums.

A native Californian indie rocker, Slankard has sold over 35,000 copies of her four previous independently-released CDs. On this tour, she is sharing the stage with Campbell, a Philadelphia native who moved to San Francisco in 2005 and has five albums to his credit.

Slankard’s rising career has included opening for Jamie Cullum at a sold-out Fillmore, playing electric guitar on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live as part of the Jeff Campbell Band, singing the National Anthem to a crowd of 45,000 San Francisco Giants baseball fans, performing duets with Pat Monahan of Train, and touring with Dire Straits co-founder David Knopfler throughout Europe.

“I’ve been working really hard with making music and performing live. I’ve also been working on a really cool thing called Patreon.”

Patreon is a new social-media platform that gives friends and fans the ability to support the creative process of the artists they love, in return for really cool things.

Unlike Kickstarter, where you pledge large amounts of money to fund larger projects like albums and tours, when you become a patron of Slankard, you pledge a smaller amount (like $1 or $5) every time she releases a new song or video.

Patrons will get access to Megan’s “patron-only stream,” (a place for Megan to directly connect with her supporters), as well as downloads of every new song she creates.

“It’s nice because fans give you a dollar every time you release a new song,” said Slankard. “I get supplemented for my art. My first goal is 200 patrons. Every month, I get new patrons. I just started talking about it at my shows.

“Streaming music is great but it’s really hard for artists to get money from it. I do most of my selling at shows. That’s my main income – playing live and selling stuff at the shows.”

Video link for Slankard and Patreon — https://youtu.be/krFNnUUcXIY.

“With Patreon, I write and release one or two songs every month,” said Slankard, who grew up in Tracy, California (a Bay Area town) and now lives in San Francisco.

“I have 31 songs on Patreon. If you sign up now, you get all of them for just one dollar. It’s a really cool model. We go into the studio and do a single and a music video and then it goes to Patreon.

“I love making albums but the whole industry is changing. If you spend an entire year making an album, it gets old for people pretty fast. I want to do songs in shorter segments. I want to make sure I stay in the present and say to fans – here’s new stuff.

“I love all the songs that I’ve done. There are 10 with my band that I would consider for an album. I just made a video for ‘Bones Live Forever’ and I’m really happy with that.”

Slankard’s most recent album “Running on Machinery” features 11 strong songs — songs that can rock out or be delivered with just the accompaniment of acoustic guitar.

“We recorded the album at the end of 2014,” said Slankard. “We recorded it in San Francisco at a great old studio called Tiny Telephone.

“It has incredible gear — tons of analog equipment. We recorded a lot of the songs live. We then did overdubs in Nashville and mixed it in L.A.

“I spent two months just writing songs — no gigs — just writing songs every day. I wrote a lot of stuff that was horrible but also wrote some songs I really liked. I followed whatever path each song took — mostly as a first-person observer.

“I ended up with about 20 songs I took to my band. I was very inspired. I also did some co-writing on a few of the songs and that was a great experience.”

Slankard is getting ready to branch out.

“I’m going to be in a play called ‘The Fisher King,’ which was a movie with Robin Williams,” said Slankard. “I play the role that Mercedes Ruehl played in the movie.

“The play is being staged at The Magic Theater in San Francisco. It will be my first time to do stage acting. It will be great to step outside my comfort zone.”

Video link for Megan Slankard – https://youtu.be/HAhT5WRuPGY. The show at Rose Tree Park will start at 7:30 p.m. Admission is free.

Kennett Flash (102 Sycamore Alley, Kennett Square, 484-732-8295, http://www.kennettflash.org) will have Matthew Ryan on July 20; Will Power – A Tribute to Tower of Power on July 21; Joe and G, The Meltons, Eva and Jesse Sheppard, and Timbrill on July 23; and The Ben Arnold Band and Matt Spitko on July 25.

The Steel City Coffee House (203 Bridge Street, Phoenixville, 610-933-4043, www.steelcitycoffeehouse.com) will host Double Suede, Landlline and Slavs on July 21 and Abbie Gardner and Brittany Ann on July 22.

The Ardmore Music Hall (23 East Lancaster Avenue, Ardmore, 610-649-8389, www.ardmoremusic.com) will present “Dweezil Zappa – What’s in a Name?” on July 20 and “Back to Back to Black: A Tribute to Amy Winehouse” by RememberJones (15-Piece Orchestra) with special guest Nik Greeley & The Operators on July 21.

The Sellersville Theater (24 West Temple Avenue, Sellersville, 215-257-5808, www.st94.com) will have Jesse Malin and Kelley Swindall on July 20; Joe Louis Walker & Toronzo Cannon on July 21; “A Night Of Conversation & Song With Peter Yarrow (of Peter, Paul & Mary)” on July 22; and The Alarm and The Lawsuits on July 23.

The Grand Opera House (818 North Market Street, Wilmington, Delaware, 302-652-5577, www.thegrandwilmington.org) will host John Mulaney on July 23.

The Candlelight Theater (2208 Millers Road, Arden, Delaware, 302- 475-2313, www.candlelighttheatredelaware.org) is presenting the hit play “Barefoot in the Park” now through August 27.