Animals benefited by Marsh-Mallows
The Iron Marsh-Mallows benefit concert for the Cache Humane Society at the Caine Lyric Theatre was a “song and dance extravaganza” according to a flyer advertising the concert.
Wednesday’s concert began with the Castanettes, whose band members include Cannon Holmgren, Christopher Jensen, Zachary Perry, Caleb Farrell and Tony Sparrow. Holmgren said they’re friends with a member of the Iron Marsh-Mallows and so they decided to play with them. It was the Castanettes’ last show.
Kyle Jensen, a sophomore at Idaho State University, said his friend who is an Iron Marsh-Mallows fan and that’s how he heard about the concert.
Iron Marsh-Mallows band members are Scott Macfarlane, Travis Huckaby, Chad Lee Huckaby and Mark Fillmore. The show featured Chad Lee Huckaby, who at different times in the concert came on stage and changed his shoes (which Macfarlane said even surprised them), danced, wore a cape and judged a waltzing contest.
Macfarlane described Huckaby as “dancing like a maniac.”
The winners of the waltzing contest won mystery prizes in brown paper bags, which included a bag of marshmallows.
Couples from the audience danced to the fiddle, played by Gary Huckaby, Travis and Chad Lee’s father.
The Iron Marsh-Mallows included in their show a version of “Wipe Out,” the Indiana Jones theme song, and covers of songs by Jack Johnson, Johnny Cash and others. Travis said their music has been described as being “weird, folk … rock.”
“It had to be billed as a benefit concert, so we just chose that [the Humane Society],” Macfarlane said. “Plus, one of our members is a dog owner, and several other members have concerns as well.”
Haggar, a black lab collie (Chad Lee’s dog), was present on stage as he is a “part of the band and is at every practice.”
The Iron Marsh-Mallows has been a band since 1995, Macfarlane said. This was the first concert in years that was opened up to the public.
Kevin King, an audience member, said he knew about the concert because he also knows a member of the band. He said it was “good stuff.”
Macfarlane said, “I don’t describe [our style]. I refuse to describe it. The music that we play is nothing like our own interests, and all four of us have very different interests. I don’t know the words to describe what we are.”
Macfarlane said he wrote half of the material and Travis wrote the other half.
A highlight of the evening, Macfarlane said, was drummer Fillmore dressing up as a military Elvis and “shakin’ it.”
-sarahwest@cc.usu.edu