Whiskey Ina plays Townes Van Zandt

This beautiful poster was created by Philip Price
I am thrilled to be a part of this great show

From the Daily Hampshire Gazette

July 2006

photo CHARLES ABEL
Ina Iansiti of Northampton, leader of the band Whiskey Ina, marshals her own musical talents and those of other area performers, to live her dream of playing alongside some of the big names in the music industry. 'I always thought the pinnacle would be to play the Iron Horse and do a good job,' she says.

As pictured in a recent drawing of the band by Ina Iansiti, Whiskey Ina includes, from left, Jason Smith on drums, Frank Padellaro on bass, Iansiti on guitar, Jim Armenti on fiddle and Doug Beaumier on pedal steel guitar.

Whiskey Ina handles the hard stuff - Band leader Ina Iansiti of Northampton makes her musical dream come true
BY KEN MAIURI
EDITOR'S NOTE: Readers who remember Ken Maiuri's 'Clubland' will be happy to hear that he and his column are back. A talented musician, playing drums, bass and other instruments, Maiuri brings with him an insider's understanding of the music, bolstered by his experiences over the last three years touring with bands across the country and internationally. Replacing Johnny Memphis' music column, 'Clubland' will run weekly in Thursday's art section.

Ina Iansiti, onstage at the Iron Horse leading her band Whiskey Ina, was not the average opening act. For one, she was barefoot. Also, her musical dream was coming true.

Last Wednesday night the Northampton-based singer-songwriter opened for Big Sandy and His Fly-Rite Boys, a tight retro rockabilly-swing combo from Los Angeles that's toured ceaselessly for nearly two decades. Whiskey Ina has existed for less than two years, with sporadic shows sprinkled throughout.

But Iansiti didn't get nervous. She got prepared. She sent out 150 postcards to friends (which began, 'My musical dream has come true!'). She assembled a band full of area favorites - Jim Armenti on fiddle, Doug Beaumier on pedal steel, Frank Padellaro on bass and harmonies and Jason Smith on drums. And she rehearsed.

About 75 people were there at the Iron Horse when Iansiti began her seven-song set with '222-blue,' an original that dates back to when she was still learning how to change chords without fumbling pauses on her just-bought acoustic guitar. Onstage, in front of a paying (and eating) crowd and leading a band full of pros, Iansiti was focused and smooth. She didn't once check her hands, but instead looked determinedly out at the audience.

Iansiti explained in an interview at her Northampton home last week that her unflinching solidity was really a pleasant by-product of anxiety: 'I couldn't think of what to do with my face, because the lights were so bright!'

She followed the introductory oldie with a brand-new song called 'Lay Down.' Padellaro chewed gum with conviction as he sang backup, putting some English on the bass as he stepped back and forth. Beaumier's pedal steel and Armenti's fiddle traded solos (in that order) on every tune, but on this one in particular they built up a fiery conversation. The sound of the band was casually raggedy, the kind of vibe reminiscent of folk festival jams or sprawling laid-back dances.

Iansiti's a mother of two, drummer Smith's a father of two, and their young children were in attendance, front and center on the roomy, dinnertime dance floor.

'This is the first time my daughters have ever seen me with my band,' Iansiti announced warmly between songs. During 'Dandelion Heart,' another original, all four kids ran around in joyously spastic, out-of-breath circles, swaying arms with their guardians, hopping animatedly.

Iansiti's countryish, swingy songs, influenced by the Carter Family, Willie Nelson, Dylan and Townes Van Zandt, among others, live in a timeless world where 'sad' doesn't exist - only 'blue,' which is sadder than 'sad' could ever be. Yet at the same time, 'blue' lets you get away with using it in up-tempo songs, which works for Iansiti, since she's not a moper - she's a dancer (as any regular local show-goer can attest, since Iansiti's often out in the audience, dancing supportively).

'Close Enough Is Good Enough for Me' was another catchy old original with a super-sprightly gait. But otherwise Iansiti used her time on the big stage to pay tribute to some of her local songwriting heroes, covering songs by Armenti ('Hammer and Tongs'), Ray Mason ('Ain't That a Lot of Lonely') and Matt Hebert, whose 'One Thing' was one of the night's lyrical highlights.

'Stay out of my house/ away from my yard/ stay away from the ones that I love/ you can't win my heart/ and if you push me too far/ you'll meet the sweet lord above,' sang Iansiti, without batting an eye.

In less than half an hour, Iansiti was off the stage, having done what she'd always wanted to do since moving to the area more than a decade ago.

'I'll never be a professional musician, but I want to put on a professional show,' she said, talking about her musical career as her two daughters pitched Legos around on the sunny porch of her Northampton home. She added, 'I always thought the pinnacle would be to play the Iron Horse and do a good job.'

Suddenly the oldest daughter yelled happily, 'You did a great job!!' and ran to hug her mom, plastic bricks tumbling to the floor.' Now I can retire!' laughed Iansiti, her arms full. 'And have a reunion show next year.'

That retirement's not coming anytime soon - she will appear as part of the Armenti Family (as the Carter Family) in this year's Transperformance at Look Park on August 15.

From the Daily Hampshire Gazette

November 2005

PHOTO JERREY ROBERTS
The members of the new Northampton band, Whiskey Ina, from left, Jason Smith, Katy Schneider, Ina Iansiti and Frank Padellaro, perform at Bishop's Lounge Tuesday.

Local school of no-glam music turns out for some new disciples
BY JOHN STIFLER

I don't go to Elevens or Bishop's often enough.

That fact became clear quickly Sunday night, when I went to Elevens to hear Whiskey Ina, a new local band in the rich vein of scruffy Yankee-country music heavily mined by the Lonesome Brothers, Treefort, Steve Westfield and other groups.

I walk in the door, first person I see is Lonesome Brother Jim Armenti, who promptly waves off my wallet-opening move and buys my beer. I first wrote about Armenti in 1983, and this is the first beer he's ever bought me, so journalistic integrity is protected by the statute of limitations.

The bartender is Bruce Tull, one of the original Scud Mountain Boys, the Valley country-whatever group that could play even slower than the Cowboy Junkies and just as well. While playing with the Scuds, Bruce earned a Ph.D. in economics, but given the choice of going off to an academic job in the Heartland or remaining close to the Valley music scene, he conducted a swift cost-benefit analysis and decided to stay here.

Ray Mason, Armenti's Lonesome sibling, strolls in. One of the busiest performers in local music, Mason looks as though he has nothing better to do than just enjoy the scene, listen to a new band. Matt Hebert, who just presided over the farewell concerts by his Ware River Club, stands in one corner, chatting with friends.

The members of this fine local school of no-glam music are here to hear a couple of their newer disciples, songwriter/singer Ina Iansiti and pedal steel player Katy Schneider. Iansiti and Schneider are doing a quick sound check with the two other main members of Whiskey Ina, drummer Jason Smith, formerly of Fancy Trash, and bass player Frank Padellaro.

Padellaro is a full-time musician. His day job is working at Downtown Sounds, and for years he has been touring and recording as part of King Radio. Smith teaches social studies at Frontier Regional School. Schneider teaches painting and drawing at Smith College.

Iansiti runs a day-care center at her house. When Schneider was taking pedal steel lessons from the Valley master, Doug Beaumier, and was looking for someone who could play guitar and sing, she found Iansiti and they became Pedal Katy and Whiskey Ina.

Why 'Whiskey'?

'I needed something that sounded country,' Iansiti explained.

Sound adjustments accomplished, they open their set with one of Iansiti's excellent no-frills songs, '222-blue':


There's a very beautiful moon

Shinin' down into my room

As I stare at your picture on the wall _


The theme, the musical form, the singing style are all as familiar as a plaid flannel shirt, or as Iansiti's cotton print dress.

'I know I'm mostly reinventing the wheel,' said Iansiti later. 'I write words, try to sing a melody and figure out what chords to play.'

Armenti has quietly taken the back corner of the stage, to add some fiddle accompaniment. Jim can play almost any instrument, although he once admitted that his musical friends ask him to draw the line at drums. The song continues:


Now your number's disconnected

That's really not what I expected

When I called to talk about the moon above_.


Iansiti, who grew up in Southern California and went to college in New York, manages the songwriter's art of making up verses that almost resemble cliches but avoid actually being them. One of her songs is about how the singer dreams of perfection but finds that, after all, 'close enough is good enough for me.'

Another plays a good-humored word-game: 'I need a man at home so I can go out at night/And when I come home late he's got my babies sleepin' tight.'

In another, you can smell the sawdust on the floor even if someone just vacuumed it:


Whiskey takes me out of my mind

Makes what I want to say

Come out the right way

Wish I was drunk all the time.


Roadhouse trip, anyone?

They play Hebert's 'One Thing,' Gillian Welch's 'Annabelle,' and more originals by Iansiti. Smith is a deft, tidy drummer, while Padellaro's vocal harmony is as rich and easy as his enormously competent bass. Schneider leans over her instrument as pedal steel players always do: sitting almost dignified, head still, body hardly moving, fingers pulling silver out of the strings. Effortless beauty.

The best thing about the music, and the confirmation of its authenticity, is the community feel in the room. As Iansiti said after the show, 'A big part of what makes me want to make music is the idea of people being together to make that music. I hope my kids will do it too.'

Whiskey Ina travels around the corner to play a similar set at Bishop's Lounge in Northampton on Tuesday, starting at 9 p.m. Go and relax and take it in.