The National @ Sycamore

The National
@ Sycamore
Brooklyn, NY - May 21, 2013

The National have always been and always will be a serious band making serious music that to most ears does not sound like anything to do with raw, pure rock n' roll. Having been called "chamber pop" in the past, being tied to classical and avant garde artists and events, and just having a somber disposition in most of their songs would appear to relegate them from what we think of as a rock band. But never you mind, hoss. This is a rock band. These guys have always had the spirit and vigor of a rock band. Not only they can belt it out like madmen, not only do they do tribute to videos to wild, loud Soviet rebel punk rock, they do things likes this:

A sudden free midday show in their neighborhood bar to celebrate the release of their new record today. Then they are playing a contest-only ticketed show at 5PM and then playing a set at the best small venue in town at 10PM. These are the kinds of things done by rock bands who like to have fun with what they do.

Playing  songs from Trouble Will Find Me (and one furious edition of "Bloodbuzz, Ohio"), the National were not just relaxed and happy playing their Ditmas Park watering hole (Hi neighbor!), they were empowered by it. They were in their element. And it offered a great perspective to how it will be in a couple of weeks when they headline the Barclays Center. Unlike some other bands that are "from Brooklyn", these guys have really made it their home. And we're benefiting from that.

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 80: “Work Out”

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 80: “Work Out”

sps80 - the mp3

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Intro

“Work Out” by the Fondas

Set 1

“Wreckin’ Bar (Ra Ra Ra)” by the Vaccines

“Speaking in Tongues” by Eagles of Death Metal

“Gentlemen’s Blues” by the Fucking Eagles

“T.V. Eye” by the Stooges

“Holiday in Cambodia” by the Dead Kennedys

Set 2

“Next Big Thing” by the Dictators

“I Just Want to Have Something to Do” by the Ramones

“Get It On” by Turbonegro

“Pick a Fight” by Broncho

“I Come from the Mountain” by Thee Oh Sees

Set 3

“How You Like Me Now?” by the Heavy

“No More Mr. Nice Guy” by Alice Cooper

“Rise Above” by Black Flag

“Rock and Roll Evacutaion” by Electric Six

“Where Have All the Boot Boys Gone?” by Slaughter & the Dogs

Set 4

"That's the Way I Wanna Rock n' Roll" by AC/DC
“Shot in the Dark” by Ozzy Osbourne
“Gates of Steel” by Devo

“What You Need” by INXS

“A Million Miles Away” by the Plimsouls

“Get Out of My Dreams, Get Into My Car” by Billy Ocean

Set 5

“Dance Floor” by Apples in Stereo

“Papillon” by Editors

“Too Fake” by Hockey

“Commotion” by the Hundred in the Hands

“Lights Out” by Santigold

Outro

“Grip Like a Vice” by the Go! Team

Turbonegro @ Irving Plaza

Turbonegro; Dirty Fences
@ Irving Plaza
New York, NY - May 18, 2013

It was the first time for me at a chapter meeting of this strange Merchant Marines Union/Biker Club that appears to be fixed around a Norwegian punk band (fronted by a replacement chap from the UK who served as the fan club president over there...though you'd have thought this was the man at the top since Day 1) with a flair for the glam and the cabaret. I've heard the band's music over the years but it just never clicked at the right time because there was always too much else going on. Problem rectified after this show. Recalling AC/DC, Ramones, the Dictators, and everything else good and wholesome and wonderful, and playing in the glow of some neon thingy, this was, in the parlance of times gone by, "a show". This was a show.

Dirty Fences are a serviceable local act in the vein of all the bands listed above, with some arena rock thrown in.

SOJA @ Webster Hall

SOJA; Nahko & Medicine for the People; Los Rakas
@ Webster Hall
New York, NY - May 17, 2013

What was I doing here? A friend with a big reggae flavor (see previous Matisyahu write-up) wanted some company so I obliged. I like the good classic reggae and ska of times gone by so this was not a major emotional sacrifice. Apart from the very white crowd throwing gang signs and gun gestures during the opening rap act who were about as threatening as tulips, there wasn't even much to be quizzical about. Major headliner SOJA - always struck by immensity of an act I've never heard before - seem to be the Coldplay of modern reggae and that's not meant to be an insult. Even being white boys with dreads didn't gross me out like it used to. Nahko & Medicine for the People are a straight up, emotions on the naked shirtless sleeve reggae from Hawaii, which makes for a conducive match of sounds. Talented musicians, nice hooks, California influenced, even the political messages were easy to digest. Openers Los Rakas were pleasant hispanic and african-american reggae rappers demonstrating the multicultural appeal of that sound made wonderful by the Dekkers and Drummonds and Marleys and Toshes of the world.

Mudhoney; Pissed Jeans @ Music Hall of Williamsburg

Mudhoney; Pissed Jeans
@ Music Hall of Williamsburg
Brooklyn, NY - May 11, 2013

Not gonna front, as the kids say. I have never listened to much Mudhoney beyond frequent playings of "Touch Me, I'm Sick". If they play a radio station live and it's captured for posterity, I've probably heard it. So I know things, I know things. But I don't know enough to write here before you now in any sort of way that would make for an informed Mudhoney review (and pardon the narcissism of this piece heretofore, though thankfully it's nowhere near as bad as the faux-crusty fellow who stormed the stage three times in a quest to take a photograph of himself with the crowd behind him).

So what's here then is a capture of the feelings. And boy whatta feelin'. Smash bang straight up low brow gunky brown rock n roll courtesy of Mark Arm and his expert brothers in arms (sorry). Proto-grunge...insert rock n roll history here...something something...a great time. And no foolin'! This might technically count as the first time I've seen a grunge era grunge related band but that's irrelevant. Relevance! There's a word! And that's what's cooking in the music here. Maybe it's that Azzerad book weighing on me but when I think of Mudhoney I think of an uninterrupted stream of relevant rock n roll, genres and eras be damned. And the live show etches that in stone.

Pissed Jeans of Allentown, PA have been around for quite awhile now and about 5 or 6 years ago, they were buzzed as something of a vanguard of very noisy hardcore-grounded borderline-metal anew. Metz is now the band of taste in that regard but sure enough they run around with these Pennsylvania cats to show all these things remain together. So while it was a long sow before seeing Mudhoney, it was relatively seconds before finally seeing Pissed Jeans. The "we're mentally unwell and that subsidizes our music" element is mostly OK and it's part of the band's well-placed sense of humor. So it works.

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 79: “Talk in ‘79”

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 79: “Talk in ‘79”

SPS 79 - the mp3

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Intro

“Talk in ’79 by Phil Lynott”

Set 1

“Complete Control” by the Clash

“Problems” by the Sex Pistols

“If the Kids are United” by Sham 69

“Ready Steady Go” by Generation X

Set 2

“Lipstick Vogue” by Elvis Costello

“Without Love” by Nick Lowe

“Look Sharp!” by Joe Jackson

“I Hear You Knocking” by Dave Edmunds

“Gut Feeling (Slap Your Mmmy)” by Devo

“She’s So Modern” by the Boomtown Rats

Set 3

“Fade to Grey” by Visage

“Dancing with Tears in My Eyes” by Ultravox

“The Model” by Kraftwerk

“Solid State Survivor” by the Yellow Magic Orchestra

“Baby’s on Fire” by Brian Eno

Set 4

“Typical Girls” by the Slits

“Love You More” by the Buzzcocks

“Salome Maloney” by John Cooper Clarke

“Flowers of Romance” by Public Image Ltd.

“So Lonely” by the Police

Set 5

“Hot Patootie Bless My Soul” by the cast from the Rocky Horror Picture Show

“TV-Glotzer” by Nina Hagen Band

“Golden Brown” by the Stranglers

Outro

“Do Anything You Want To” by Thin Lizzy

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 78: “Strong Minded”

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 78: “Strong Minded”

sps78 - the mp3

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Intro

“King of Rock” by Run-DMC

Set 1

“Ace of Spades” by Motorhead

“Heatseeker” by AC/DC

“Search & Destroy” by the Stooges

“Because I’m Awesome” by the Dollyrots

Set 2

“Black Superman” by Johnny Wakelin

“Brother Orson Welles” by New Bomb Turks

“Gun Slinger” by Bo Diddley

“Stagger Lee” by Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds

“Two Tub Man” by the Dictators”

Set 3

“Hair of the Dog” by Nazareth

“Hero of Nineteen Eighty Three” by Peachfuzz

“I Started a Fire” by Jaguar Love

“I’m the Bomb” by Electric Six

Set 4

“Get Your Hands Off My Woman” by the Darkness

“Hootchie Cootchie Man” by Muddy Waters

“Asshole” by Denis Leary

“Something to Prove” by the Redwood Plan

Set 5

“I Want to Conquer the World” by Bad Religion

“Cult of Personality” by Living Colour

“Toda Your Love, Tomorrow the World” by the Ramones

“Anti-Christ Superstar” by Marilyn Manson

Outro

“The Humpty Dance” by Digital Underground

The Paul Collins Beat; The Bamboo Kids; The Recordettes; M.O.T.O. @ Grand Victory

The Paul Collins Beat; The Bamboo Kids; The Recordettes; M.O.T.O.
@ Grand Victory
Brooklyn, NY - April 26, 2013

Ahh this takes me back. A garage-punk-power-pop-rock-n-roll mini-fest in Brooklyn. Lots of old faces on stage and off. Hanging around. Drinking too much then not enough then too much again. My back starting to hurt because I've been standing for 4 hours...wait a minute...

At long last M.O.T.O! One of my favorite bands during my rock n roll explosion of knowledge and absorption around 10 years ago, M.O.T.O was one of the few bands I never saw live during that period. If anything, my longest lasting memory was being trolled online by a former band member over politics and my love of Southern Culture on the Skids (as was the style at the time). Anyway, it took long enough but here we are. Paul Caporino, New Orleans raised, Brooklyn-ancestry, Chicago-fied at times in his life...all the proper elements of rock n roll save a little room for Memphis...THEE man of the Masters of the Obvious...has his disturbingly intact and finely tuned voice for his brand of fast feel good rock. And he's still having a good time. I say "still" even though this was my first live go-round with M.O.T.O. I have a right!

The Recordettes include a member of the Anabolics, an old NY garage punk outfit. The Recordettes hark back to the 60's garage pop revival that has never fully gone away. It's always a nice sound and some of the particular riffs in this band's arsenal are smashing.

The Bamboo Kids. Oh the Bamboo Kids. It's been quite a while since we last saw this little band that could. All these years since I first saw them at CBGB's and at Trash Bar which is still across the street from this curiously World War II-themed rock venue in a very changed Williamsburg. Bless these boys. Their newer boogie woogie infusions are working out fine which means the new Dean Rispler-produced doulbe LP (!!!) is probably gangbusters. And they still have that NYC '77 punch.

Papa Paul Collins. Another "still". Still making it look too easy even though no one quite has it like he does. Still showcasing master songs that are technically better than anything you or I could muster. Added bonus: he gives off a Lex Luthor vibe so don't mess with him. He thanks you and I thank you.

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 77: “The Voyager 3 Project, Volume 1 – Spirit of ‘77”

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 77: “The Voyager 3 Project, Volume 1 – Spirit of ‘77”

sps77 - the mp3

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Intro

“Glad to See You Go” by the Ramones

Set 1

“Mannish Boy” by Muddy Waters

“Pigs on the Wing 2” by Pink Floyd

“Draw the Line” by Aerosmith

“We are the Champions” by Queen

“She’s Always a Woman to Me” by Billy Joel

“Two Out of Three Ain’t Bad” by Meatloaf

Set 2

“New Rose” by the Damned

“Holidays in the Sun” by the Sex Pistols

“I’m So Bored with the USA” by the Clash

“(I’m) Stranded” by the Saints

“New Race” by Radio Birdman

Set 3

“New Feeling” by Talking Heads

“Get off the Phone” by Johnny Thunders & the Heartbreakers

“See No Evil” by Television

“Love Comes in Spurts” by Richard Hell & the Voidoids

Set 4

“Miracle Man” by Elvis Costello

“Blockheads” by Ian Dury & the Blockheads

“Lookin’ After Number 1” by the Boomtown Rats

“In the City” by the Jam

“Three Girl Rhumba” by Wire

Set 5

“Be My Wife” by David Bowie

“The Passenger” by Iggy Pop

“I Love to Boogie” by T-Rex

“Neon Angels on the Road to Ruin” by the Runaways

Set 6

“Whole Lotta Rosie” by AC/DC

“Motorhead” by Motorhead

“Dissident Aggressor” by Judas Priest

“Dancing in the Moonlight” by Thin Lizzy

Set 7

“Three Little Birds” by Bob Marley

“Barber Shop" by Tom Waits

“I Want You to Want Me” by Cheap Trick

“Brick House” by Commodores

Outro

“Sheena is a Punk Rocker” by the Ramones

Record Store Day 2013: Livids @ Generation Records

Livids
@ Generation Records
New York, NY - April 20, 2013

All I know is there was a record store and records and they set it up for a band and there is this guy and he's been around the rock n' roll block and he also wrote a book and damn skippy boy howdy here's a rock n' roll show.
Among the stiffs and squares in this mundane crowd, witness a little girl with her wise father showing her what real rock n' roll, coarse language and all, is all about. Also wisely, gave her good headphones. Also witness one DJ Rez of the Thor Radio Internet network on the Live365. After a happy chat prior to the show, said disc jockey made himself available to be mauled (as he put it, "dry humped") by Mr. D during the brawling, rambling set o' madness. Others had their glasses stolen, their hair wiped, their knit caps defiled (with more sweat). Your obedient servant merely got away with his fedora briefly absconded with but delivered back in moments in dramatic rolling through the air fashion.

I love this man. I love his band. It was love at first sight a few weeks ago (and yes I damn well know his musical history so please) at the Hives concert. The love continues.

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 76: “Detroit 2000”

The Sonic Parthenon Show – Episode 76: “Detroit 2000”

sps76 - the mp3

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Intro

“Hey Hey, We’re the Gories” by the Gories

Set 1

“Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes

“No Sugar Mama” by the Von Bondies

“What This Town Needs” by Blanche

“Cha Cha Twist” by the Detroit Cobras

“Danger! High Voltage” by Electric Six

Set 2

“Devil With a Blue Dress On” by Mitch Ryder & the Detroit Wheels

“Kick Out the Jams” by the MC5

“Real Cool Time” by the Stooges

“You’re a Prisoner” by Death

Set 3

“Motor City Baby” by the Dirtbombs

“Run Rabbit Run” by Bantam Rooster

“Cry No More” by Ko & the Knockouts

“Whatcha Got?” by the Come Ons

“We Talk About God” by Troy Gregory & the Stepsisters

Set 4

“Scotch Love” by the Paybacks

“Hot Rod Breakdown” by Gore Gore Girls

“My Little Birdie” by the Nice Device

“Yeah Baby” by the Fondas

“Chez Maximes” by the Sirens

Set 5

“Spit It Out” by Brendan Benson

“Satisfy My Mind” by the Greenhornes

“Good Feeling” by the Soledad Brothers

“Red and Black” by the Muldoons

"Hey You" by the Demolition Doll Rods

Set 6

“Will I Be True” by the Sights

“He Can Go, You Can’t Stay” by the Singles

“Sunday Volume” by the Prime Ministers

“Wait” by the Avatars

“See and Be Scene” by the Hard Lessons

Outro

“Hot Women (Cold Beer)” by Goober & the Peas