Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekend, Las Vegas, NV, 03.29-31.02 This confab brought together a diverse crowd of roots rock enthusiasts to show off pompadours, tattoos, and women in vintage gowns and Capri pants. Although one might expect a monolithic group of motorheads with white t-shirts and cuffed jeans - the crowd also included a Latino contingent and a few farmer-types in overalls. The event looked back on rockabilly history with veteran performers such as Janis Martin (the female Elvis), Jack Earls, Narvel Felts, and Commander Cody co-founder John Tichy, who bridged the gap between rockabilly generations by appearing on stage with his son Graham - who appears in such fine groups as Albany’s Rocky Velvet. Other new jacks in the rock and twang arena - many sporting the classic 3-piece with stand up bass included the Paladins, the honky-tonking Boston band The Stumbleweeds, and MC Big Sandy, who will return to Vegas with his band The Lonely Blue Boys next year. Sounds varied from ultra-smooth 50s doo-wop from UK’s Extraordinaires while others showed a rockabilly-punk hybrid in the tradition of Social Distortion. The agenda included a car show with hotrods and vintage cars of every type shining in the desert sun. Make plans now - the 6th annual Viva Las Vegas weekend is taking reservations already - and you need a few months to get the valve covers in your hotrod chromed. - EAK
White Trash Debutantes, Chop Suey, Seattle, WA - Chop Suey is the new incarnation of what used to be the Breakroom. Although they applied some spit-n-polish to the interior, they have maintained the tradition of hosting great punk and hard rock. The Whitetrash Debutantes have been mainstays on the punk scene for some years now and their performance underscored the reason for their longevity and notoriety. The three chord punk assault was embellished with two sets of vocals - one on the high end and the lower registers of Ginger Coyote - the irrepressible presence that demands your full attention. Coyote has gained more attention than your average punk-rocker - as well as leading the band into gigs with legendary punk bands, she has appeared on Jerry Springer and other TV shows. - EAK
Ramones Forever An International Tribute - Radical Records. It’s been more than a year since Joey died. I’m thinking he heard these tracks when they were first released. Gems like the freaky electronica “I Wanna Be Sedated,” from Neven, of Belgium - and the more reverent covers that make up this 23-track compilation of overseas tributes to the band that for me and so many others started it all. It’s funny to hear the new-wave covers of tunes like “Psycho Therapy,” from France’s No Bluff Sound - which slips into a reggae beat before ending in an odd sort of hip-hop rap rendition. A lot of the bands are from Belgium, which is no doubt why it was originally released as “1.2.3.4... A Lo-Fi Ramones Tribute.” But it takes me back to the days when every issue of the rag would have some punk or mixed-genre compilation reviews. I’m thinking “Big Apple Rotten to the Core,” or some that that. What’s happened to the great compilation? I’m thinking it’s too easy for bands to release their own discs so they no longer scrape together two dozen groups, with a dream, a track on tape, and a few hundred bucks to split pressing costs. Makes me long for the old LP days, though I confess there’s no vinyl reviewed anywhere in this issue. Some of these Ramones covers are positively freaky. Most, gladly not all are in English. There’s a healthy mix of classic and later Ramones ditties and even a few bands covering the same song like “I Wanna Be Your Boyfriend,” (I prefer Davo Vermeersch’s take. It’s got a little more bite. Even a song or two that cross over from tribute to homage. Cheers to Radical for seeing the obvious value, and marketability in a disc like this. A portion of the proceeds benefit some Joey Ramone fund or another, or so I’m told. ~ Ment.
Rachel Loshak @ Fez under Time Life Cafe, NYC 05.03.02. An early set on a Friday night. How much more could this quaint country writer ask for? I haven’t stepped foot inside Fez since the mid 90s, when a former pal played a tribute show. Like when I saw the Eagles, someone had to tell me who the dude was, but I knew every song. The world’s getting even with me now though, because I’m overexposed at the day job but many folks in the area still don’t know the name. Loshak runs that risk of overexposure, but I hope her name will get out. With a baby grand piano or according, depending on the tune, this set was different that so many she plays at the Living Room. Similarly the red curtains behind her complimented the voice which was perhaps backed more by a rock and roll incarnation of the band than usual. The song I didn’t recognize had Loshak vowing not to give an inch or smile. It escalated to a minor mayhem of feedback. I guess it’s time to see her again. Leslie H. joined me on this outing, one of her last before bailing on the city with all the bridges. ~ Ment
Heavier Than Heaven by Charles Cross, Hyperion Press This authoritatively well-researched bio resulted from three years and 100s of interviews with folks who knew the complex and winning personality behind the band that saved music from itself, as happens every few years when commercial music gets overblown and stale and some Ramones- inspired kids from humble backgrounds strip it down and tear it up. The music industry still divides recent music history into two categories - before and after Nirvana broke (which they did before MTV picked them up). Curt was a complex person - in some cases the punk rocker snarling at the establishment, other times the starry eyed kid raised on Zeppelin and other butt-rock and dreaming of superstardom before the band had even recorded. Of course, he had the knack and once they did start recording, Curt’s simple but appealing hooks caught on. The approach to this book is considerably more studied than earlier bios like Michael Azeraad’s “Come As You Are,” for which Azeraad quoted much of what Cobain had to say verbatim. Cross instead explores the two personas between which the songwriter switched - one being the scarred small-town boy who eschewed the trappings of fame and the music industry while his other persona - Kurdt - was a rock star waiting for the world to meet his genius with adulation. Cross is neither an apologist near a critic - but accepts and reports on the complex and conflicting psychologies many of us may house. Obviously, others enjoyed the compelling and tragic story that reads like a novel - the book is now a NY Times bestseller and has been released in paperback. - EAK
Reclaim the Media - Anti-NAB Protests, Seattle, WA, 09.10-15.02 - The NAB is the National Association of Broadcasters - a trade association and lobbying organ representing the handful of corporations that own most US radio stations. Apparently the group has been successful - national policies have deregulated the industry and allowed companies like Clear Channels to gobble up 1,200 stations while the government has curtailed airwave access to low power FM broadcasters- a potential outlet for non-mainstream voices. Apparently the NAB has things pretty well sewed up - it only took them two days to entertain powerful congressmen at breakfast, cheer on keynote conservative Bill O’Reilly, and discuss ways to consolidate market share. The protesters, on the other hand, dedicated a full 5 days to protesting the homogenization of music and suppression of news that the “de-regulated” radio market brings with it. David Barsamian, founder of Alternative Radio (www.alternativeradio.org), producer of Making Contact, and co-author of books with Noam Chomsky, blamed corporate radio for creating a shared “memory and history” in the “United States of Amnesia” and proffering “drive-by journalism” by “lap dogs with laptops” while ignoring dissenting voices and skipping over critical questions into the ‘why’ behind the news. Barsamian also deemed the media a “megaphone for the Bush administration” and pointed out the Nazi regime’s practice of encouraging citizens to overcome their aversion to war by convincing the populace they were under attack and painting peace activists as unpatriotic. Sound familiar? Amy Goodman, host of Democracy Now, is also well-recognized for her role in exposing underreported stories. She survived a massacre in East Timor and smuggled out footage of atrocities committed by the Indonesian government - whose military bought 90% of its weapons from the US.She cited many examples of stories suppressed (NPR,National Police Radio still has the prison tapes of Mumia Abu Jamal locked in a vault) and stories embellished to support the supranational ‘government’ - such as the MSNBC reporter who sprinkled ash on her shoulder before broadcasting to appear closer to the action or the CNN memo instructing producers to follow up footage of dead Afghanis with footage of the 9/11 attacks. Despite her many examples of the untruthful and anti-democratic workings of the corporate media, she also cited reasons to hope for “power to the peaceful.” She noted a “blossoming of independent media” since the 1999 WTO meetings in Seattle and averred that “we will not watch the global uprising through a corporate lens.” A multitude of speakers pointed out shortcomings of corporate media and discussed strategies and tactics for dissenting voices to get out news and ideas that do not support the corporate-government complex. The Urban Rag’s preferred form of political dissent - punk rock bands - were also a major part of the Reclaim the Media agenda; bands such as CA’s Hollowpoints and Seattle’s Old Man Smithers showed the old-school tradition for making dissenting opinions heard through electric guitars and amps set up outside the NAB convention. For more info, check out: reclaimthemedia.org. - EAK
Hot in the City - by JennX And Billy Idol meant it on the “Kiss the Skull tour stop in Philly! Industrial-sized fans did little to knock a digit off the Fahrenheit levels at the Electric Factory on 08.17.02 Human fans, however, continued to punch the air with their fists in the only concert you could get away with it. By the time Idolís play list reached “Rebel Yell,” a sea of waving fists rose above the crowd squeezed up next to the stage.
Idol, on the other hand, forgot words to some of his songs, skipped entire verses and couldnít keep the timing straight with the drummer, clapping on the off beats. Fans didnít care. They got to hear live songs theyíve probably havenít heard since they were big two decades ago.
Flashback 80s week didnít begin with Idol. Two days earlier, Huey Lewis and the News performed at the Oakdale Theater in Wallingford, CT. Lewis, whoís likely in his 50s by now, sauntered onto the stage in an earthy-colored suit - a bit of a departure from his heyday when traffic-light red suits and black t-shirts were de rigueur.
Like Idol, he doesnít move as fast, but still dances with a microphone stand and interacts with the crowd. Lewis was particularly taken by a “baked”front row audience member commenting, “I donít know what party you were at, but it was better than the one I just came from.”
Though fans didnít pack the theatre like they used to, their enthusiasm was still evident. A woman shouted from the cheap seats. “Huey, I love you!” He thanked her and said, “Please stay back there.”
Every song was a crowd pleaser, especially their a cappella version of “On the Boardwalk.”A walk-on appearance from Chris Berman, the voice of ESPN who shouts “He might go-all-the-way,”drew a standing ovation. He joined the band singing “Walking on a Thin Line”and “Finally Found a Home.”
For me, it wasnít always the performers with their graying hair, slowing reflexes and thickening waists that drew most of my attention, it was the crowd.
Time and gravity had started to show on some of the most ardent fans. At Huey Lewis, the median age was 45 to 50. Billy Idol spanned the generations from college kids to gray-haired mid-life crisis types with a few strippers hanging out backstage.
Cracker - 04.04.02, Graceland, Seattle, WA - 8/7/02, Empire State Plaza, Albany, NY Summer 2002 - Seeing Cracker is like checking out a Tom Petty concert - in that you don’t realize how many great songs the artist has until you hear a few dozen of them back-to-back. “Oh yeah - I forgot about that one too....” These guys have the chops too, cranking out a blend of indie rock that can easily take on accents from C&W, metal, ,rockabilly - for a blend that the band describes as “intelligent rock that is egalitarian.” In Seattle, Dave Lowry put the stars of honky-tonk into our eyes while Johnny Hickman revved up for blistering guitar solos before a sweaty club crowd. The band showed its egalitarian side by playing a more subdued, tho’ no less brilliant, set for the mixed crowd including families in Albany, where they treated the crowd to TWO favs from Camper Van’s playlist - Pictures of Matchstick Men (itself a cover) and “Take the Skinheads Bowling.” This made up for the fact I didn’t make it to the Knitting Factory for 4 nights of a Camper reunion stand. Band did the usual humorous turns on What You’re Missing, a kind of Cracker rap on which Hickman uttered the side-splitting (and true) line, “I don’t look like Richard Grieco, that pendejolooks like me!” - EAK
The Ataris “Anywhere But Here” - Kung Fu Records reissue with bonus material. This is the speedy and sarcastic California sound I would expect if someone told me that’s what was coming. And real good too. Then, when you least expect it “Alone in Santa Cruz” distinguishes itself. The disc gets more and more furious, drifting farther and farther from that Killer Clowns territory. It’s almost as though two different bands were contained herein. Could be the deciding factor of the original disc line-up, but I’m not so curious that I’d research which were on the original release. Nice stuff All the great love songs you’d expext at rapid four-four time. The disc is originally from ‘97 “released on a shoestring budget,” according to the label. I’d say they spared no expense in getting this classic reissue out, though. ~Ment.
Storm King Music Festival, Storm King School, Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY, 06.30.02 The theme of this week long get-together for experimental music afficionadoes was “Crossover Redefined.” As popular music increasingly involves music that straddles numerous genres, the crossover is hardly the sole province of avant composers, but the music at the festival is not about to break into top-40 radio. According to festival organizers, this event, consisting of residencies for composers, panels discussions, workshops, and round table concerts, has evolved to incorporate greater use of technology and an educational component which gets students from several secondary schools involved. Headliners on thefinal night of the festival included Sarah Pillow performing songs from her recording Nuove Musiche (new music) which sets operatic compositions from the 16th century to a modern rock-jazz fusion arragement with vocals in the modern jazz-blues vein. Her accomplished band noodled on guitars and vibraphone to create moody grooves for the epic lyrics of classical composers such as Henry Purcell and John Dowland - to pleasing effect. Also performing were Tom Constanten and BobBralove - collectively known as Dose Hermanos - familiar names to anyone with more than a passing interest in the Grateful Dead. Constanten was part of the cultural milieu in SF when members of the Dead were getting the ball rolling in coffee shops and strip joints; he served as the Dead’s keyboard player for a few years starting in 1970. Bralove joined the Dead roadshow as a sound designer, producer, and songwriter from 1985 until the band broke up in 1995.The pair combine their dual loves of piano and technology as Dose Hermanos - performing on two baby grand pianos while their notes triggered a series of computer generated images on a screen behind them. The instrumentals varied from darkly brooding duels to jaunty piano calisthenics while the visual accompaniment rangy from chessy Atari-age graphics to more complex cascades of Escher and fractal patterns. Most of the performance was instrumental, but Bralove added a rollicking blues growl on some songs. - EAK
Better Dead than Red “The World Needs a Hero” Rock Against Communism (R.A.C) Records. This one gets the Sept. 11 award for freakiest post-attacks use of guys in desert storm gear and pictures of the twin towers in a burst of fire photo collage award. The punk tracks on the disc aren’t bad at all. I liked “Hold the Line,” and “1916,” at least musically. ”Understand Your Man” is the track that grabbed me the most “Don’t call my name out your window when I’m gone, I won’t event turn my head.” they sang - pure poetry. So at least the disc wasn’t filled with 42 1 minute 40 sec. songs of hate, right. I bet they really mosh to these guys in Jersey. Sometimes, when the mix is poor and you can’t hear all the words, it’s probably a great show. I’m feeling too square to fully appreciate this one. That’s for sure, but it’s not headed for the scrap heap. ~ Ment.