Go to Hell this Friday!

If you have the free time this Friday and feel like going straight to Hell, then you should go and check out Hatchetfest September 14th. There are three bands playing- The Monologue Bombs, Cantwell, Gomez and Jordan and Jews and Catholics.

I am not familiar with the Monologue Bombs, but I can attest to the wonders of the legendary CG and J and the wondrous Jews and Catholics. CG and J's recipe of punk, noise and quirkiness makes for a tasty snack of avant garde rock.

This is what I had to say earlier this year about Jews and Catholics.

"Holy gefiltefish, Batman

I am just sitting here listening to another dynamic duo on the stereo. The CD is for Jew(s) + Catholic(s), and I love it. Eddie Garcia and Alanna Meltzer are the awesome twosome.

Ever since, I heard the Marie Antoinette soundtrack, I have been stuck in a Joy Division mode. Eddie has a throaty voice like Ian Curtis from Joy Division and the tracks truly hearken back to "She's Lost Control" and "Transmission." But you can't forget about Alanna who plays the upright bass on each song, she contributes this totally lush layer which works well in contrast to the edgy guitar riffs and Eddie's voice. Their yin-yang doesn't work against them at all. Instead, it makes me want to get up and listen to their CD again.

http://www.myspace.com/jewsandcatholics"

Liar Liar Pants on Fire

Go check out the band the Liars, they are so good! I am not lying! The Liars really are awesome. Their new album could become one of my favorites for 2007. They subtley use feed back to create this really visceral sound that hearkens back to Jesus and the Mary Chain and Love and Rockets. Hot! Hot! Hot!

Pretty Vacant

This blog goes out to David K. He loaned me the book "Rip it Up and Start Again" by Simon Reynolds. I have read only a few pages and so many memories have come flooding back to me. This book is about the post-punk years of 1978-1984 in the UK. For me and many of my friends this time period is what helped shape our lives and helped us develop into the punk asses we are today. You know in 1978, I was living in Mobile, Alabama. There were lots of rednecks, but there were also a few new wavers. At this time, I was really beginning to notice how different I was from my peers, I didn't want to listen to Alabama and Hank Williams. I was enthralled with Billy Idol and Bow Wow Wow. Thankfully in the summer of 1983 we moved to the Washington DC metro area. Here I really delved into the post-punk music scene. Now I had access to more music and exposure to other people like me.

Enough rambling about myself, this novel will transport you back to that time and place of fantastic music and the birth of a scene that touched so many of us. Yeah, I know times change and we may have all sold out to the corporation, but it's nice to remember the days where you felt like you could make a difference by fucking shit up.

I also recommend reading "Rotten" by Johnny Lydon and watching the film "Punk Attitude," those are also nice little refreshers of that time period. If you are in the mood that is.

Pony Pony Pony

In our age of convenience, it is so rare when things are not attainable. I just discovered the band Holy Hail, and I want more and I want it now! The band has releases stateside and in the UK. At this point, the band doesn't seem to have a lot of their material recorded and I am feeling totally thwarted by iTunes. The UK iTunes store has so much good stuff, but can we buy it here in the US- noooo, we can't. I thought we were in a global economy. It's a conspiracy I tell ya'.

Anyhoo, so I discovered this band Holy Hail. They have an EP for sale called "Big Guns." It should be called "Big Guns Cubed," as there are 3 different versions of the song on this EP. Two versions are remixes, which are fun to listen to for sure. Remember the playfulness of Le Tigre and the B-52's? Well, you can find it again with this band. Holy Hail's sound is similar to the more current band New Young Pony Club, but I think Holy Hail is better. They capture the spirit of the punky, glitchy new wave sound so much better than NYPC and make you want to pony harder.

Back to my bitterness about our global economy, so their best song is "Born of a Star" and you can't buy it here in the US. Grrrr. But you can listen to it repeatedly on Myspace. Right now, I feel like one of those teenagers who drives their parents crazy because they can't stop listening to their favorite song over and over and over again. Oh, and don't act like you have never done this dear reader. Oooh, Holy Hail is making me feel sassy with their drumbeats. Go check it out now! Now!

A really swell movie

Okay, yeah right, this is a music blog. But I just saw the movie "Once," and it is a beautiful film about music and love. If you have never heard of this movie, then let me give a little synopsis. Basically, two musicians meet while one is busking for money on the streets. From the day they first meet, there is an immediate connection between the two musicians and a musically based relationship ensues.

There is not much dialogue in the film and some of it is in other languages. But you don't need to really know what the characters are saying. The soundtrack and the songs that they sing within the film help push the plot along just fine. Each song helps to convey the relationship that has formed between the musicians. Some of the songs are so haunting that you will get goosebumps at times.

An interesting factoid, in reality the two musicians, Glen Hansard and Marketa Irglova, in this film form the band The Swell Season. The director of the film originally asked them to write songs for the film but then decided he wanted to use them as the actors, which makes the whole story that much more interesting to me. If you know any musicians, then you know that there often is a very intense bond that forms between band members. Even though they may be platonic, the act of creating music together creates a very passionate relationship.



Side note: BTW- did you know that shoegazer bands are back? There was a recent article in the NY Times and long discussion on NPR this weekend regarding its comeback. Honestly, I didn't know that it had ever left, especially since I just saw Mojave 3 at the Cat's Cradle not too long ago.

I Dream of Electric Sheep

I have been listening to the EP "It takes Guts to Deceive Eloquently" by Lismore...a lot. Lismore comprised of Penelope and Stephen hail from Jersey City, NJ- a burgeoning scene on the edge of NYC. This EP is a nice introduction to the band. The EP starts off dreamy with the song "Seven Cycles." Penelope's ethereal voice is reminiscent of Julee Cruise (the songstress that gave Twin Peaks that haunting sound). Truly, her voice shines through on each song and is complimented by fuzzy electronic sounds and edgy guitar bits.

Remember that scene in the film "Brazil," where Sam Lowry has imagined that he has escaped the cruelty of his dystopian society to a pastoral setting? This EP takes you to that place of bliss, particularly on the song "Far Off and Away." The simplicity of the keyboards on this song really resonate in your brain and hook you even further. But, just when you think all these songs are mesmerizing you into a state of relaxation- the song "Cherry Bomb" comes along and blows you away with its glitchy, punky drum beats. You have now snapped out of your trance with its sexy beat and you want to dance.

I also recommend going to their website and checking out some of their songs in their listening station. They really rock out the edgy guitars and driving drumbeat on the song "Predicament." I am hoping they come to North Carolina soon, because I imagine that their energy live would be awesome.

In the Days Before Microchips

The Raleigh, NC band Roger Roger has a sound that transports you back to a time of conversion fans and lo-fi stereo. If you are old enough and had one of those record players with built in stereo speakers, then you know what I am talking about. When pushed to their limit, the music squeaked out of those speakers all warm and fuzzy. The sound was distorted and muffled but you did not care because you were listening to rock n' roll.

Their strongest song is "Made for Love," and is muffled and distorted in such a good way that you cannot help but love the lo-fidelity aspect. After many listens, it occurred to me that I love it so much because it reminds me of the now defunct- Dirty Little Heaters. If you know me, then you know they had a special place in my heart. Although Roger Ron doesn't have the powerhouse vocals of Reese Gibbs, and they only have percussion no drummer. Frankly, they need a power drummer like Mel Thomas. Roger Roger would then rock so hard, your face would melt.

Musically, Roger Roger is a good band. I would need to hear more songs and know more about them to have a fuller sense of where they are going as a band. As it stands now, Roger Roger has the potential to capture the attention of music-goers and get a solid following.