Photo By Mark Roessler

Primates Nick Borges, David DelloRusso and Chris Trevethan get help from Gabe Sullivan singing "Stairway to Heaven"

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The same night Tim Burton released his version of Alice in Wonderland to screens across the nation, Northampton's very own The Primate Fiasco was guiding its audience at the Iron Horse down a rabbit hole that proved to be curiouser and more fun than anything a mainstream sensibility could conjure.

Instead of a land beyond the looking glass, the quintet demonstrated what Led Zeppelin's classic fourth album (Led Zeppelin IV) sounded like when taken up by a self-described "psychedelic Dixieland band." Previously the band had performed (or deconstructed, as they like to say) "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band," and at various Trans-performances they've taken on other seemingly incongruous identities, such as a transcendent version of "Sweet Child 'o' Mine" by Guns and Roses. But by all rights, in a sane world, a banjo, drums and a pack of blowhards on trumpet, clarinet and tuba should have been no match for the Zep's 10-ton gorilla of powerhouse rock and roll. What business does a tuba have anywhere near a Led Zeppelin song? Why bother even trying to ascend that Stairway to Heaven with nary an electric guitar or keyboard anywhere in sight?

The crowd that packed the house that night braved sub-freezing temperatures to find out, and no one left disappointed.

The Fiasco's strategy was both bold and cunning. Rather than trying to emulate Jimmy Page and Robert Plant's masterpiece with a reverent forgery, they toppled it to the ground and picked up the pieces they liked best. While their own formidable talents as musicians anchored the homage, they also relied heavily on guest performers from local bands, and much of the night was a tight collaboration between the band and its exuberant fans.

Instead of shying away from the incongruities that would typically take them out of the running as a Led Zeppelin cover band, J Witbeck was the first to take the stage with his massive brass tuba, and soon Steve Yarbro on clarinet and Nick Borges on trumpet joined him to open the night and the album with the quavering notes that typically result in Plant's "Hey, hey, momma, said the way you move, gonna make you sweat, gonna make you groove." But for this tune, the Fiasco opted for an instrumental approach, and between Chris Trevethan's solid drumming and bone-rattling blasts from the tuba, they left no doubt they were equal to the task ahead.

After conquering "Black Dog" on their own, Dave DelloRusso, the band's banjo-strumming leader and the evening's ringmaster, began inviting Valley musicians to accompany them on the rest of the album. His own restrained and genial management of the evening amidst so much barely controlled anarchy was reminiscent of Kermit the Frog contending with a stage full of crazed Muppets.

Lindsey Graves sang "Rock and Roll," offering an eccentric pairing of her sweet voice and the band's appropriately bombastic backing. Fiddler Eric Lee from World's Greatest Dad, along with Sam Barnes, helped turn the poetic and dreamy "The Battle for Evermore" into something more fierce, cutting and blazing than the original.

After these three solid renditions, the evening paused briefly as DelloRusso explained the many ideas they'd had for tackling the fourth, Everest-like song on the album, "A Stairway to Heaven." Thankfully, a chorus of kazoos lost out to a collaborative rendition between band and audience.

While the horn-blowers dutifully hummed, Gabe Sullivan from World's Greatest Dad guided everyone through the lyrics of the epic song, acting as the bouncing ball, pointing to the lyrics on a set of cue cards, and offering a less-than-reverent interpretation of the song's somber meaning. As on the album, the song built slowly, but then exploded with brass horns as former lead trumpet for the Fiasco, Will Choe and his friend Cory Charles, turned heads with a surprise volley of sound from the balcony. Between Sullivan, the augmented horn section and the audience's performance, the trip up that long and winding stair became a sublime hoot.

It seemed doubtful anything could top the number, but then Kate and Matt Lorenz from Rusty Belle took to the stage to take on "Misty Mountain Hop," and with obvious glee they vamped the song to pieces. Next, Force, the MC from both The Alchemystics and The Problemaddicts, took the microphone for "Four Sticks," yet again taking the approach and rhythm of the evening in another unexpected but completely satisfying direction.

Drink with swizzle stick in hand, Diane Griffin served up the only down-tempo song of the evening. Her interpretation of "Going to California" was both an intoxicating and grin-inducing opportunity for the crowd to get ready for "When the Levee Breaks," which pulled out all the stops and filled the stage with more horns and vocalists than any levee could reasonably be expected to hold back.

It was a triumphant conclusion to an absurd musical challenge, and as if it weren't enough, The Primate Fiasco returned to the stage after a brief break (trumpet player Borges apparently needed the ten minutes to pry himself out of the skin-tight, belly-high slacks he'd crammed himself into for the first set), and they played requests and selections from their own work.

After all they'd accomplished that night, the band beamed with jubilation, making its typically up-beat and swinging Dixieland-flavored songs even more punchy and engaging than usual. The evening ended with a glorious rendition of the Hokey-Pokey which turned everyone around, because, of course, that's what it's all about.