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Consumable Online Issue 187
== ISSUE 187 ==== CONSUMABLE ONLINE ======== [September 21, 1999]
Editor: Bob Gajarsky
E-mail: editor@consumableonline.com
Managing Editor: Lang Whitaker
Sr. Correspondents: Daniel Aloi, Joann Ball, Bill Holmes, Tim
Kennedy, Al Muzer, Joe Silva
Correspondents: Michelle Aguilar, Christina Apeles, Niles J.
Baranowski, Mike Bederka, Tracey Bleile, Jason
Cahill, Matthew Carlin, Patrick Carmosino, John
Davidson, Andrew Duncan, Krisjanis Gale, Paul
Hanson, Chris Hill, Eric Hsu, Franklin Johnson,
Steve Kandell, Reto Koradi, Robin Lapid, Wes
Long, Linda Scott, Don Share, Scott Slonaker,
Kerwin So, Chelsea Spear, Jon Steltenpohl, Michael
Van Gorden, Simon West
Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, David Landgren, Dave Pirmann
Address all comments to staff@consumableonline.com ; subscription
information is given at the end of this issue.
==================================================================
All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright their author(s).
Permission for re-publication in any form must be obtained from the
editor.
==================================================================
.------------.
| Contents |
`------------'
INTERVIEW: Kool Keith - Lang Whitaker
REVIEW: Air, _Premiers Symptomes (First Signs)_ - Robin Lapid
REVIEW: Macha, _See It Another Way_ - Andrew Duncan
REVIEW: Basement Jaxx, _Remedy_ - Don Share
REVIEW: Various Artists, _Return Of The Grevievous Angel: A
Tribute To Gram Parsons_ - John Davidson
REVIEW: Canned Heat, _Boogie 2000_ - Don Share
REVIEW: The Flaming Lips, _A Collection of Songs Representing an
Enthusiasm for recording...By Amateurs -- 1984-1990_ - Andrew Duncan
INTERVIEW/FEATURE: Russ Hallauer of Ghostmeat Records - Jon Steltenpohl
REVIEW: The Pietasters, _Awesome Mix Tape #6_ - Christina Apeles
REVIEW: Linda Perry, _After Hours_ - Chris Hill
REVIEW: Self, _Breakfast with Girls_ - Scott Slonaker
REVIEW: Black Box Recorder, _England Made Me_ - Niles Baranowski
NEWS: David Bowie, Rockcity, Camille Yarbrough / Fatboy Slim
TOUR DATES: Anti Flag / Dropkick Murphys, Ben Folds Five / Fleming & John,
Bis, Church, Ani DiFranco, Johnny Dowd, Gomez, Indigo Girls,
Jets To Brazil, Juno, Live, Magnetic Fields, Manic Street Preachers,
Aimee Mann, Men At Work, Alanis Morissette / Tori Amos, Tom Petty &
Heartbreakers, Pietasters, Pilfers & Spring Heeled Jack, Pretenders,
Pretty Things, Promise Ring, Royal Trux, Sean Na Na, Splender /
Train / Shooter, Sally Taylor, Type O Negative, Tom Waits,
Watsonville Patio, Weird Al Yankovic, Zeke
Back Issues of Consumable
---
INTERVIEW: Kool Keith
- Lang Whitaker
As the magnanimous lyrical genius behind some of rap's hottest --
and weirdest -- rhymes from the last decade, Kool Keith has firmly
established himself as a hip-hop anomaly, unafraid to experiment or
be adventurous. His latest release, an eponymous record recorded under
the nom de rap Black Elvis, allows Keith to wear a plastic wig and
poke fun at The King of rock and roll.
CONSUMABLE ONLINE: I was looking at your website last night,
and you have like eight different personas listed on there. Where do
you think of that kind of stuff?
KOOL KEITH: I just have fun with myself. I always try do
something different, a movie-type thing. It's all natural basically.
Some people try hard to be different, but I let people know that
there's not just one thing I could do all my life.
C.O.: Tell me about the Black Elvis idea.
KOOL KEITH: I just said, Yo, I need an image right now that
is powerful, that will fuck with the whole materialistic side of rap
music. I wanted something that really makes a statement, and who is
bigger than Elvis? The king of kings. From all my influences in rap,
I don't think anyone was giving me my proper receivings and awards.
So, I figured I could blow my own horn with Black Elvis.
C.O.: Why do you think you weren't getting your props?
KOOL KEITH: Lack of education, and false education displayed
through the industry. People were probably just plain jealous of what
I was doing, creatively. People were more or less stunned. It's like
in Terminator when they was always trying to murder that T-1000 guy.
C.O.: What the hell are you talking about?
KOOL KEITH: That's how my music is, and I think the industry
hates making the link. They can put me in a ball of fire, and I'll
still walk out of it. People always want to have something to say
in conversation about whoever is trendy, like, "Oh, this guy is over.
He won't come back." And it's like in Terminator. I love that T1000
guy, how he keeps coming back.
C.O.: But he's evil. He's the bad guy.
KOOL KEITH: Yeah, but I like the power of his presence. The
best part is when he walks out of that fire, and he's like, "Fuck it."
I'll always just walk out and do some new shit.
C.O.: You said people try to keep you in check, and put you
down. What's the deal with the rumor last month that they had to put
you into an asylum?
KOOL KEITH: Well, that wasn't really true. There were certain
people and companies that I avoided, and they would say, "Well, Keith
doesn't want to be here. He's crazy." A lot of people made things up.
C.O.: Cool. Are you working on anything new right now?
KOOL KEITH: Nope. I've shut down musically to focus on the
Elvis album. But if I didn't shut down, I'd be making another album.
My eccentricness, my eclecticness, to book studio time off the top of
my head, is amazing. I'll just go bust out two or three tracks a day,
and next thing you know there's another guy coming out. So, I have to
pull myself back and take a break and sit around and relax, and not
record anything for a minute.
C.O.: Do you ever find yourself running low on creativity?
KOOL KEITH: No. Never. I got new stuff in my head. I got brand
new, futuristic keyboards that no one else has ever had. It's amazing,
because I can go out and create some futuristic-like stuff at any time.
C.O.: Are you feeling that electronica stuff at all?
KOOL KEITH: I'm the funky guy. Just like Prodigy is the funky
guy, with their computeristic sounds, I'm the computeristic, new,
funky guy. They're the new computeristic electronic, I'm the new
computeristic funky.
C.O.: Have you ever done anything that was so far out that
you kind of bugged yourself out? Like something so creative that you
surprised yourself?
KOOL KEITH: Yeah. It's just the machines I'm using. It's fun
because I'm not biting Timbaland's stuff, I'm not biting Swizz Beatz
stuff; I'm not taking Dr. Dre's stuff. I'm just going in the studio
and doing some shit I'm coming up with, and I'm bugging out on it.
It's some energy I've got in myself. It's kind of wild. Naturally, I
learned how to use the machines.
C.O.: What is one trait about yourself that you don't like?
KOOL KEITH: When I go out with a fucked up girl, and I be
wasting my time, and I be like, "Why am I in this restaurant with
this person?"
C.O.: What's your greatest extravagance?
KOOL KEITH: Flying to different places, and sitting on South
Beach in Miami and lookin' at some pretty girls, and eating some hot
wings, and looking at the world and the pretty girls walking back and
forth, instead of being in some hot-ass club battling some MC's.
Especially if it's some wack-ass guys or something. You could be on
a trip to Costa Rica.
C.O.: What's your most treasured possesion?
KOOL KEITH: My Pentax camera. I love my camera. I take pictures
of things, beautiful things.
C.O.: And that could include women?
KOOL KEITH: Yup. Mmm-hmmm.
---
REVIEW: Air, _Premiers Symptomes (First Signs)_ (Astralwerks)
- Robin Lapid
What goes up, must come down. Unless, of course, you are Air,
the French duo with a particular gift of crafting buoyant, ambient-lounge
music that wafts through the ears, allowing one to float through a sonic
ether like a relaxed body floats in water. _Moon Safari_, Nicolas Godin
and Jean Benoit Dunckel's first release, became such a hit that the
record company wants to stave off fans hungry for a new release with
_Premiers Symptomes_, a re-packaged seven-track EP of earlier Air
creations, including two tracks not on the original European release.
Diehard fans will have acquired these songs elsewhere, but in
any case the EP is a fitting companion piece to _Moon Safari_. The
old-school keyboard and jazz whispers of opening-track "Modular Mix"
flow into the summery, quiet bass-and-bliss sounds of "Casanova 70"
and "Les Professionnels," all tracks that could be seamless preludes
to _Moon Safari_'s "La Femme D'Argent" or a vocal-less "All I Need."
The journey continues into the mellow kitsch and somnolent melodies
of "J'Ai Dormi Sous L'eau" and "Le Soleil est Pres de Moi" ("I Sleep
Under Water" and "The Sun Is Beside Me" for the French-impaired).
"Californie" is a chilled-out, funk-tinged groove, sort of like what
Shaft might be listening to in his bedroom while staring into a lava
lamp. "Brakes On" is a tail-end exercise in looped and loping beats,
striding alongside a build-up of uptempo samples and repetitive
techno treachery.
The last two, previously unreleased tracks have a hint of that
tacked-on feel, but Air's directive is nonetheless achieved - to make
the type of dreamlike mood music that would make you never want to leave
the chill-out tent.
---
REVIEW: Macha, _See It Another Way_ (Jetset)
- Andrew Duncan
Athens, Georgia has seen a recent continental shift in the
college town's musical palette. R.E.M. may have put Athens on the
music atlas, but it is Macha who is turning the town into a global
village.
Their debut release, appropriately titled _See It Another
Way_, is an eye-opening experience from a group of musicians who are
focused on playing their instruments. It is not their roots that make
them so innovative, and it is not their talent either. It is, however,
their passion for Indonesian music that gives them the motivation to
correctly combine the gamelan art with hard rock to form a multi-cultural
landscape filled with plush expressionism.
Besides the traditional instruments (guitar, bass guitar and
drums), Misho and Joshua McKay, Kai Riedl and Wes Martin also play a
selection of exotic instruments including a zither, Hammered dulcimer,
vibraphone, Indonesian gongs and 'Fun Machine' (as exotic as a 'Fun
Machine' may be).
Macha would be just another rock group if it were not for Joshua
and Kai's Indonesian influence brought about by trips to Southeast Asia.
They immediately fell in love with the music, and it immediately shows
when the hammered dulcimer chimes uncontrollably on the opener, "Riding
the Rails." Songs like "Mirror" and "Salty," although two unrelated
tracks truly capture the essence with "Mirror" whisping through the
airwaves like a puff of smoke coiling like a snake, and "Salty"
radiating traditional meditative sounds.
Experience is not always a requirement for excellence and Macha
proves it. They have enough devotion to override experience, and belt
out a CD's worth of material that is an aural paradise. And with
Macha's next release, who knows how far they will go.
---
REVIEW: Basement Jaxx, _Remedy_ (Astralwerks)
- Don Share
It's seldom admitted: many people don't know or want to
know the difference between things like house and techno music.
Maybe they don't go out dancing. Actually, I'm in that category.
So, little did I know that Basement Jaxx are two guys from South
London who've made a huge splash with their singles and dance
mixes. Littler did I know that the people who were mightily
impressed with what they now call the Jaxx's "older freestyle
stuff" greatly anticipated this full-length release, and don't
like it.
Why should you care? Simply put, the sounds on _Remedy_,
whatever you want to call them ("punk garage," I'm told, not to
be mistaken for, say the Ramones, by any means) are a whole
lotta fun.
The album starts off, literally, with a bang on
"Rendez-Vu," followed by, of all things, acoustic guitar
strumming and vocodered Chipmunks-for-the-'90s vocals that would
no doubt kick old Alvin's rodent butt. It turns out that your
CD player wants to rendezvous with you! Heck, there are even
real lyrics on some of this stuff, like "Yo-Yo," which, besides
repeating "Yo" ten times, says, "You were a prophet from above/
Then you came and sucked my blood." Put that in your headphones
and smoke it! Even better is "Jump n' Shout," with words that
would make Lester Bangs do some dancing in his sainted grave:
"Bwoy out a road fi wi name dem a call." Unbeatable, so to speak.
There are tiny interludes called, well, ludes:
"Jaxxalude," "Jazzalude," and so on, which segue into things
like the intensely reflective "Stop 4 Love," the bouncing
silly-salsa of "Bingo Bango," and the extremely addictive "Same
Old Show," which sports samples from both KRS-One and Selecter,
as well as the best beeping on record since Pink Floyd's
"Echoes." There's even some languid, intelligible soul music
here, like "Being With U." Even the jaded might be tempted to
say, "Wow."
Some tunes feature laughing, raucous male vocals, others
extremely smooth female crooning, should you go in for either
of those things. "Red Alert" is a particularly fine '70s funky
groove thang -- not at all what you'd expect in this genre (or
from the two geeky-looking white guys who, it must be revealed)
are behind this enterprise.
_Remedy_ is engrossing, entertaining, party-hardy and
relaxing all at once, even to ears unfamiliar with this kind
of music; its warmth and wit will make it appealing to strangers
to the genre, and strange to aficionados. So here are the
necessary warning labels: Previously existing fans, beware --
you might like to hold out for the inevitable remixes. Rockists
out there -- don't expect guitars and drums, but get ready to
update your party hats. It's good to defeat expectation, either
way, isn't it? If you let it, _Remedy_ will certainly cure your
end-of-millennium anxiety.
---
REVIEW: Various Artists, _Return Of The Grevievous Angel: A
Tribute To Gram Parsons_ (Almo)
- John Davidson
Whether or not you give Gram Parsons credit for inventing
country rock, he certainly was doing it long before it was popular.
Oh sure, bands like the Eagles came along and picked up the reins he
left dangling after losing a bout with drugs, but his original vision
of "Cosmic American" music was laced with a lot less sheen and a lot
more razor blades. And, like so many musical luminaries, he died too
young to see his legacy, a body of work that continues to inspire
almost thirty years later.
Parsons, a "subversive Harvard-educated hillbilly," had the
goods very early. He joined the Byrds in 1968, and despite being
only 21, he led the notoriously strong-willed band off into a
country direction. As lead Byrd Roger McGuinn puts it, "We hired
a piano player, and he turned out to be Parsons - a monster in
sheep's clothing." Nonetheless, his days with the Byrds didn't
even last a year before he left to form the Flying Burrito
Brothers. Two albums into that ensemble, Parsons struck out on
his own, leaving behind _GP_ and the seminal _Grievous Angel_
before succumbing to an overdose at the age of 26.
_Return_ picks from nearly every facet of Parsons' recording
career, which makes a nice overview for anyone new to his music.
The lineup may seem a tad disparate at first, what with Evan Dando
resurfacing and sharing the same platter with Gillian Welch, but
what becomes clear is that all the artists involved all hold such
strong regard for Parsons' formidable songwriting skills. Perhaps
the only real surprise is the lack of more alt-country acts involved;
after all, it's they who have carried his torch as loudly as anyone.
Still, _Return_ delivers on some big names that reinforce the vitality
of his music.
The strength in this album rests in the gentle but modern
interpretations of Parsons' originals. Unlike other tribute albums
full of "creative" re-workings, _Return_ contains only modest adaptations
that serve to embolden his vision rather than make it unrecognizable.
Some artists, such as the more traditional country purveyors like The
Mavericks and Steve Earle, keep the songs pretty straight up, only
letting their voices elaborate Parsons' lyrics. Emmylou Harris, one
of Parson's early collaborators, appears on three tracks, her classic
voice now showing experience but still as inviting as ever. One band
taking a chance is the Cowboy Junkies, who put a full, cosmic sound to
"Ooh Las Vegas" and turn a sleepy twanger into a brooding classic.
However, probably the biggest departure in style is provided by Wilco,
who bury their alt-country roots a mile deep in their upbeat, popped-up
version of "One Hundred Years From Now."
_Return_ is perfect for anyone who has heard of Gram Parsons but
hasn't known where to begin. More than just a roadmap of his work, it
serves to recognize the talent of a man who was not only influencial
enough to bring the Rolling Stones to "Honky Tonk Woman", but also a
creative force to many modern day artists like Beck and Elvis Costello.
While the country vibe is occasionally strong, _Return_ never annoys
in a 90s-Nashville sort of way, and overall, it should appeal to just
about any kind of music fan.
---
REVIEW: Canned Heat, _Boogie 2000_ (Ruf)
- Don Share
Canned Heat were an immortal '60s/'70s band (though founders
Al Wilson and Bob Hite died in 1970 and 1981, respectively) that
played both Monterey and Woodstock, stunning wriggling hippie masses
with their frankly weird combination of blues, boogie, and psychedelic
droning. Even now, just about everyone recognizes their hits "Goin'
Up the Country" and "On the Road Again," if not the sublime "Let's
Work Together."
While the original musicians were record collectors like,
say, the Rolling Stones before them, they were not content to imitate
the blues, always adding their own twist. Since the band's inception
and subsequent ill fate, there have perennially been musicians
around to keep the Heat warm, and now lo (if not behold), we have
a Canned Heat for the new millennium on _Boogie 2000_ which features
original drummer, Tito de la Parra, as well as original bassist
Larry "The Mole" Taylor on guitar, along with Greg Kage on bass.
The opening "Wait and See," a Fats Domino tune, even features a
flute riff stolen from "Goin' Up the Country," but from there things
go off in a new, if somewhat predictable, direction, augmented by
riveting vocals from a new leader, Robert Lucas.
You can almost smell the bourbon and smokes on Lucas's
breath on the best of these tracks, and another source of
stimulation is his searing slide guitar. Even on derivative tracks
like "World of Make Believe," which is a credible Santana
soundalike, or set pieces like "I Got Loaded" and "She Split," the
band is good and tight, as you'd expect. Still, the Y2K version of
Canned Heat is more laid-back and less hauntingly etherial than
the original -- except on the true-blue "200 Reasons -- Y2K Blues,"
which brings it all back home. And speaking of originals,
"Searchin' for My Baby" features the original Cannibal and the
Headhunters, go figure!
Some of the tracks are only a bit more than good bar band
material, though, like "Road to Rio" (which, features the wigged-out
rhyme of "automobile" and "Rio"!), "Last Man (Who'll Ever Have to
Sing the Blues)" and "Can I Come Home." Also, "I'm So Tired," not
the Beatles tune, does kick especially hard.
All things considered, the flame has been kept; but do not
neglect Canned Heat's best work, still smoldering on various
collections, especially the brief _Best of_ or the comprehensive
_Uncanned_ sets.
---
REVIEW: The Flaming Lips, _A Collection of Songs Representing an
Enthusiasm for recording...By Amateurs -- 1984-1990_
(Restless)
- Andrew Duncan
The Flaming Lips were certainly one of the more important bands
of the mid-'80s punk scene, even though many people did not know it at
the time. It was the Lips that coaxed a scrawny Perry Farrell to form
Psi Com, and then Jane's Addiction. It was also the Lips' bold
maneuvers and blending of punk and psychedelica that helped create a
generation of bands who were not afraid to experiment in that aspect,
and break the mythos that punks were against the psychedelic movement
of the '60s. They say it was all about sex, drugs and rock and roll.
The Lips got two out of three right.
It was the Lips who based their existence on experimentation.
With the recent release of _The Soft Bulletin_, a graceful album that
creates delicate compositions of electronics and instrumentation,
they broke even their own barriers, thanks to technology.
Yet, how did the band get from point A to point B? Historians
say that in order to look into the future, one must understand the
past. That is why Restless Records diligently worked with the group
to create this collection of songs recorded from 1984 to 1990.
Instead of creating a greatest hits album, this retrospective
relies on rarities and early studio adventures from _Hear It Is_,
_Telepathic Surgery_, and _In A Priest-Driven Ambulance_. The band's
greatest hits did not fall until after 1990, beginning with the
release of their most influentially recognized release _Hit To
Death in the Futurehead_.
"Bag Full of Thoughts" begins the 65 minutes with a modest
attempt at garage rock. Even though the harmonies are piss-poor,
the musicianship is immediately identified as above-average, even
in the stale studio environment that fell upon the session. "Hell's
Angels Cracker Factory" demonstrates an edited version of their
sound-collage idea that appeared in _Telepathic Surgery_. The band
flies through two popular and well-deserved songs from
_Priest-Driven Ambulance_ ("Unconsciously Screamin'" and "God
Walks Among Us Now"). The other delights are their covers of a
combined Sonics' "Strychnine" and Elvis Costello's "Peace Love and
Understanding," and covers of Sonic Youth "Death Valley '69" and
Led Zeppelin's "Thank You," both appearing on the bootleged live
CD _The Day Andy Gibb Died_.
The liner notes explain exactly how and why each song was
recorded, and shed some light on a rusty "Unconsciously Screaming"
video. A deserved addition to this CD is the lack of space in
between songs, giving some of these amateurish and drawn-out
songs a breath of life in confined quarters.
---
INTERVIEW/FEATURE: Russ Hallauer of Ghostmeat Records
- Jon Steltenpohl
From R.E.M. to the B-52's to the countless other musicians
who followed in their footsteps, Athens, Ga., has been one of the
college towns that acts as a magnet and a breeding ground for
bands. So, when you hail from Athens, and you play music...well,
you've got some big shoes to fill. Russ Hallauer and Ghostmeat
Records have been adding to the Athens legacy since 1994. 5 years
and 29 releases since their first 7 inch, it is Ghostmeat's 5th
Anniversary year, and they've done pretty well.
Not that he planned it way. Hallauer didn't come to Athens
as an R.E.M. wannabe. Instead, fate led him there when his wife
got accepted to graduate school at the University of Georgia.
"When I started Ghostmeat," says Hallauer, "I had no idea I was
starting a label. There was no business plan, no strategy, no
money. It wasn't until about two years in, when I started
releasing full-lengths by other bands, that I realized I was
running a label."
In retrospect, Hallauer seems to view it as inevitable.
"Going to high school near [Washington] D.C. at the time Fugazi
came about can be directly linked to Ghostmeat's creation,"
recalls Hallauer. "To me, musicians that can do business for
themselves are far more appealing than musicians that are
dependent on some bureaucracy."
The Internet has played a part of that for Ghostmeat. Their
website and monthly e-mail newsletters have gotten them beyond
Athens to a national audience. "Email is wonderful," comments
Hallauer. "It may be more impersonal than the telephone, but for
what I do, it's very efficient and much cheaper. Our web site at
http://members.aol.com/ghostmeat/home.htm has generated a pretty
fair amount of mail order business for us." Web savvy seems to
come naturally to Hallauer. Even from the early days, Ghostmeat
has had a web presence, and now the site contains tons of
pictures and sound files and other great information.
But, without good music to back it up, Ghostmeat the label
would be nothing. Fortunately, Hallauer is both a musician and a
fan. As a member of Sunbrain, Hallauer began by releasing two
singles in the classic indie/punk tradition by putting down a
track or two, finding someone else with a track of their own, and
scraping together enough money for a seven inch vinyl single.
After that came a few of Ghostmeat's trademark compilation CD's,
and full length releases by bands like Drip and Tony Tidwell and
the Scalded Dogs. While the early releases were more on the punk
side, releasing 9 compilations in 5 years means you're bound to
catch just about every style. For the full length releases, the
focus has been on punk, southern rock, and alternative.
_Out of the Way_ is the most recent Tony Tidwell and the
Scalded Dogs album, and it is a gem that is typical of
Ghostmeat's offerings. This is an album that, 4 years ago,
could have been pimped by the majors as a "No Depression" band.
But, if you ask Hallauer if that label applies, he says, "I
guess people consider Tidwell part of that scene, [but] we don't
consider him anything but rock 'n' roll. He plays rock 'n' roll
and he's from the south." It's a description which is entirely
on the mark. _Out of the Way_ covers all sorts of bases, from
southern rock to country with the pop ethic of Elvis Costello
tossed in for good measure.
Really, all the things people truly love about American
rock are embodied by Tidwell and his band. The title track is a
reserved, reflective, and regretful portrait of a youthful
summer that avoids miring itself in any sort of self pity. On
other tracks, you're treated to a lap steel guitar backing
acoustic guitars with minimal percussion where Tidwell's vocals
croon and tear. "Hand like a Foot" feels like a Van Morrison
song with its loping beat and Tidwell's soulful vocals.
Of Tidwell, Hallauer remarks, "I met him when I was in
college [at Clemson]. At that time, the music there was pretty
pathetic. All the bands catered to the students with shitty
covers, so to find the good stuff, you had to look to the
locals. Tidwell and bands like 6 String Drag all came out of
the high school there outside of Clemson. He's been a great
friend and collaborator ever since."
Friends and collaborators are common within the Ghostmeat
family. Tidwell's association with Jennifer Goree led her to
the label, and members of Ghostmeat's bands have always seemed
to be a bit incestual. Somewhere along the line, Sunbrain
disbanded, and in its wake came Hallauer's current band The
Lures, which includes members of another Ghostmeat band, Drip,
and a new solo album by Sunbrain's former lead vocalist David
Dondero.
Dondero's release, _... The Pity Party_, is a classic
example of modern slacker folk. It sounds like a cross between
the Violent Femmes and a bootleg of Beck demo tapes. The
lyrics are loose and, at times, barely beyond stream of
consciousness. The album is a rough diary of a cross country
trip through bus stations and small towns, and his topics
range from broken love to conspiracy theorists to the various
dialects of the different regions of the United States of
America. Like the biggest ball of twine, Carhenge, or the
picture in the liner notes of Dondero on a dinosaur sculpture
outside of a Mini Mart and Econolodge, _... The Pity Party_
is slightly bizarre but instantly comforting -- and entirely
American.
As for Hallauer's own band, The Lures, their first full
length release, _When I Was Broken_, actually marks a
departure from the Ghostmeat stable. Being released on the
Ten 23 label is simply a matter of civility, since, as
Hallauer puts it, "it's hard to be a guitar player in a band
and also be the guy who runs the label. Band members have
creative expectations of guitar players and business
expectations of labels," he explains. "When those expectations
land on the same person, things get complicated."
_When I Was Broken_ is an album that sounds like all of
the other Ghostmeat albums funneled into one. Like Tony
Tidwell, it's a nearly perfect album. It's definitely got a
little punk and a little southern rock hidden in the background,
but at its core, is a nucleus of classic alternative pop
music. This is the stuff college folks drooled over in the
early '80s when bands like R.E.M. were being roundly ignored
by virtually every commercial music source in the country.
Today, groups like the Goo Goo Dolls and Buffalo Tom are
about the only ones who still get the sound right, and The Lures
follow that tradition as well. "Million" is one of those great,
slow, depressing alternative love songs that's driven by a
twinkling guitar line, a slow loping bass, and simple harmonies.
It is full and melodic. The lyrics are painful and touching.
"Ordinary" shares the same simplicity with a slow 3/4 waltz.
"Goner" is probably the stand out single of the album, and is
featured on mp3 at http://members.aol.com/ghostmeat/sounds.htm .
Lead singer Jason Slatton's touching and soft vocals soar
above the nice, grinding guitars.
Of the album, Hallauer comments, "I've been excited about
The Lures debut record since this time last year when we
finished it. It has been since 1996 that a band I was in had
a full-length release out there. It is really rewarding that
Ghostmeat can help out friends who make music I love, but I
definitely missed releasing my own music."
True to his word, The Lures have plans to get back into
the studio this fall. Their second album is going to be
recorded in December with David Barbe, who is the ex-Sugar
bassist and producer of Son Volt and Uncle Tupelo. Barbe's
resume couldn't be more fitting to The Lures sound. Given their
impressive debut on _When I Was Broken_, the sophomore effort
of The Lures can only be described as highly anticipated.
At the same time, there's no rest for his work with
Ghostmeat. When asked about the future of the label, Hallauer
replies, "I don't know. I've been very fortunate to have a
tight circle of musicians around me for the last five
years...we're just going one day at a time. Clay, drummer for
The Lures and Drip, is releasing a solo album on the label
this winter..."
In other words, while Hallauer won't have much free time
this winter, we can look forward to more releases from this
great independent label.
---
REVIEW: The Pietasters, _Awesome Mix Tape #6_ (Hellcat/Epitaph)
- Christina Apeles
The rude boys of The Pietasters remind the ears how fun ska
music can be with the prerequisite horns, reggae beats, bass line, and
a husky voice carrying each song. In the case of _Awesome Mix Tape #_,
they equate fun with bouncing, swaying, and body movement variations
on the same theme. This septet produces a feverous collection of
songs, in suits while sporting buzz cuts, that will lift your spirits.
With vocalist Stephen Jackson, sounding tough and raspy, taking
center stage, it is inevitable to draw comparisons to Madness, which
is part of the appeal -- familiarity. In "Chain Reaction" and
"Yesterday's Over," with horns galore, the Pietasters will take you
back. Decades later, the sound has yet to lose it's merry tone, which
makes it easy to gravitate to as well as reminding of sifting back
through your vinyl collection for Selecter or the Specials. What sets
the Pietasters apart is their punk roots, not that it is necessarily
a unique quality since everyone knows most ska bands today have one
foot in the punk scene as well. But like fellow label bedfellows
Rancid, their infusion of punk sensibility gives an edge to their
sound, incorporating a commotion of electric guitar on brisk tracks
"Somebody" and "What I Do."
_Awesome Mix Tape #6_ resonates the best part of this genre of
music: No matter how tragic the lyrics are -- whether over heartache,
nostalgia, or crime -- nothing feels too bad when horns are a-playing,
the beats are still hopping, and the bass line is grooving.
---
REVIEW: Linda Perry, _After Hours_ (Rockstar)
- Chris Hill
On Linda Perry's Top 10 favorite albums list (see her website,
http://www.rockstarrecords.com ), she places Janis Joplin's _Greatest
Hits_ at number one. Not surprising to those who've heard the ex-4
Non Blondes vocalist. (To jog your memory, "What's Up?" was their '
93 rocket to multi-platinum success.) Now, as the century fades to
a close, she's back with a follow-up to her first solo album, 1995's
_In Flight_, and channeling Joplin with effortless, supernatural
ease.
_After Hours_ can't simply be summed up by name dropping the
ghost of Janis. Perry takes chances on this CD: electronically
altering her amazing voice on the confessional "Get It While You
Can;" bringing in a Little Rascals urchin to lead off "Sunny April
Afternoon" with innocent charm.
By taking chances, Perry walks that fine line between success
and failure, tumbling into the latter several times. "Til the Cows
Come Home" is annoying, redolent with dysfunctional pride: "We were
wasting all the wine/gettin high like two old friends/shootin' shit
half wit politics/rockin' til 12:09/till the neighbor up above/
didn't like our point of view/...how we love to raise the brow/of
the double shifted family man." And the glam rock of "Somedays Never
End" sprawls awkwardly, with clumsy lyrics like "Sometimes I'd like
to throw a brick or two/at all the aggravating fates of doom."
But the successes outweigh the failures. In "Lost Command,"
Perry deftly explores the healing qualities of love and religion.
The song makes a fine one-two combo with the soul-in-jeopardy lyrics
of the next cut, "Get It While You Can:" "hell is my heaven/the
devil stands right by my side/there ain't no halo/to hang above my
life."
"New Dawn" is a phenomenal piano hymn, with Perry and her backing
vocalist Donna Simon harmonizing like eagles in a mating flight, praising
the power of Jesus and the strength and pride Perry finds in her gender:
"I am woman/a mountain I will climb/I've been beat down and I've been
broken/but each day I give it another try." "Fly Away" takes a flight
metaphor and grounds it in a bluesy romp that takes the Joplin spirit,
strains it through four whiskeys and a pack of smokes, all to showcase
the roaring powerhouse that is Perry's voice.
Most brilliant of all, there's a hidden track following "Carry
On," where Perry, the daughter of a Portuguese father and a Brazilian
mother, delivers a Latin American slice of heaven. The track should
have led off the disc, as proof of her multi-faceted talent. I hope
she delivers more of the same on her next outing. But, blues-rock or
samba, her voice is a big bad wolf knocking, showing no sign of
leaving. Open the door, and let her in.
---
REVIEW: Self, _Breakfast with Girls_ (DreamWorks)
- Scott Slonaker
It seems that DreamWorks Records is presently enamored with a
variety of "mad scientist"-type artists such as Blinker the Star and
eels. Of course, _Pet Sounds_-style pop fusion is all the rage these
days- even grunge belter Chris Cornell is drenching his arrangements in
strings and keyboards. Self, which consists of Matt Mahaffey and some
friends, can largely avoid accusations of trendiness. Mahaffey's first
major release, 1995's _Subliminal Plastic Motives_, actually predates
_Odelay_. _Breakfast with Girls_ is Self's second major-label album.
In a nutshell, Self's music is a perfect hybrid of Weezer and
Beck. Cut-and-paste nerdy-power-pop-rock may be tough to imagine, but
the formula is fine-blame the execution in spots. Mahaffey has a great
ear for pop hooks; it's just that sometimes he buries them beneath layers
of same-sounding hip-hop beats, oversize guitars, and keyboards. The
first two tracks, "The End of it All" and "Kill the Barflies", are
described well by that criticism. It isn't until the middle part of
the record that hooks really start to surface and stick around. "Uno
Song" sounds like the Monkees covering a Beck ballad, which is a good
thing. "Paint By Numbers", the disc's gem, has an addictive sing-song
rhythm and some very funny "meta-" lyrics, i.e., it's a song about
songs. What's funny is that the hip-hop-lite of the chosen single,
"Meg Ryan", is not even remotely as catchy.
Imaginative singles surface later on, such as Ella Fitzgerald's
"Chew, Chew, Chew Your Bubble Gum", injected into "What Are You Thinking?"
Wish Mahaffey had really milked the clip for more. He seems to have the
opposite problem with samples compared to the Puff Daddies of the world.
Same thing with LL Cool J's "It Gets No Rougher", as heard in the title
track. Come on, man, work the joint a little! There has to be a middle
ground between using samples without abusing them.
Mahaffey and his friends have enormous potential. The lesson to
be learned: when everything is thrown into every song, it can be almost
as bad as not throwing enough. This record is easy to admire, but hard
to *remember*. There may be all kinds of crazy noises on _Breakfast
with Girls_, and a bunch of phenomenal ideas, but only a handful of
really good, lasting songs. And songs are the secret.
---
REVIEW: Black Box Recorder, _England Made Me_ (Jetset)
- Niles Baranowski
"It's my primary instinct," sings Sarah Nixey, "to protect the
child." The words come out of her mouth like a soft, sultry demonic
possession, but it's hard not to laugh. After all, these aren't Nixey's
words; they come from former auteur Luke Haines, he of the morbid
obsession with car crashes and terrorism. So when you boil it down,
you have Nixey (who did vocals with the short-lived Balloon) pretending
to be Haines who is pretending to be a teenaged mother.
This sort of pretending isn't taken much further on Black Box
Recorder's debut, the prettily dour _England Made Me_, but it informs
the sensibility behind almost all the lyrics. Whether it's a black,
hateful heart hiding behind respectability (the title track and "I.C.
One Female") or vice versa (the superb "Child Psychology"), Haines'
portraits of a repressed, cuckolded Britain seethe with mistrust and
deserved cynicism. Yet the combination of Haines' misanthropy and
Nixey's icy intonation leaves an unwelcome emotional void on "New
Baby Boom," where Nixey sings like teen pregnancy is some sort of bad
hair day.
It's no question that Black Box Recorder are best when they
have a story to wrap their dry British wit around (how ironic that
they should be attacking their homeland with one of its best known
qualities). The sparse "Child Psychology" is a tale of a spoiled child
who punishes her parents with the silent treatment, climaxing with the
most acidic chorus you'll hear this year. "Kidnapping an Heiress" is
another take on Patty Hearst's mid '70s ordeal, this time from the
side of the S.L.A., and the languid, chimy "Swinging" comes from the
mouth of a moll with a heart of iron.
_England Made Me_ isn't without hooks, but musically nothing
will catch in your head, except maybe the collision of Nixey and
Haines' voices on the chorus of "Child Psychology." It's the lyrics
and Nixey's vacancy that entrance the listener, more than the Velvet
Underground-derived tunecraft (think "I'll be Your Mirror" for a
reference). Their cover of "Seasons in the Sun" is a perfect example:
Nixey throws every one of the song's lines away as if by rote, like
she cares not a whit for anything she's saying goodbye to. By the time
she gets to the chorus, she's rushing, as if anxious for that light at
the end of the tunnel. No crushed flower melodrama here, Black Box
Recorder has realized that pain is the only thing engrossing enough
to distract you from pain.
---
NEWS: > David Bowie fans will have the opportunity to download
his new album two weeks before the actual release date on Tuesday,
September 21. For more information on this, check out
http://www.davidbowie.com or http://www.virginrecords.com .
> In preparation for the debut of the original Internet
show Rockcity Limits, Rockcity ( http://www.rockcity.com ) is
looking for six adventure seekers over the age of 21 to go on
a seven week cross-country trip starting in New York City and
ending in Los Angeles.
Contestants are asked to send in a short video (three
minutes or less) telling the folks at Rockcity.com a bit about
themselves and why they should be picked to go on a this
unusual journey. For more information, check out the site
http://rockcity.com/rclimits/rcindex.htm
> Vanguard Records will be issuing a new CD-5 for
Camille Yarbrough's "Take Yo' Praise" on September 28. Best
known as the keynote sample for Fatboy Slim's "Praise You",
the CD-5 includes the original track and 2 modern remixes, as
well as Jean Jacques Perrey's "E.V.A.", and Fatboy Slim's remix of
that track.
---
TOUR DATES:
Anti Flag / Dropkick Murphys
Sep. 28 State College, PA Crowbar
Sep. 29 Pittsburgh, PA Club Laga
Sep. 30 Cleveland, OH Agora
Ben Folds Five / Fleming & John
Sep. 28 Portland, OR Roseland
Sep. 29 Seattle, WA Moore Theater
Sep. 30 Vancouver, BC Rage
Bis
Sep. 21 Detroit, MI Magic Stick/7th House
Sep. 23 Boston, MA Middle East
Sep. 24 Washington, Dc Black Cat
Sep. 27 New York, NY Bowery Ballroom
Sep. 30 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle
Church
Sep. 21 Portland, OR Roseland Grill
Sep. 22 Seattle, WA The Fenix
Sep. 24 Salt Lake City, UT Zephyr Club
Sep. 25 Denver, CO Bluebird Theatre
Sep. 27 Minneapolis, MN First Avenue
Sep. 28 Chicago, IL House of Blues
Sep. 29 Pontiac, MI 7th House
Ani DiFranco
Sep. 29 Rochester, NY Auditorium Theatre
Johnny Dowd
Sep. 24 Ithaca, NY Haunt
Sep. 29 Cleveland, OH Wilbert's
Sep. 30 Toronto, ON El Mocambo
Fleming & John
Sep. 25 Nashville, TN WQZQ Show
Sep. 26 San Francisco, CA Golden Gate Park
Gomez
Sep. 21 New York, NY Irving Plaza
Sep. 22 Boston, MA Paradise Rock Club
Sep. 27 Chicago, IL Metro
Indigo Girls
Sep. 23 Chattanooga, TN Memorial Auditorium
Sep. 24 Antioch, TN 1st American Music Center
Sep. 25 Greenville, SC Peace Concert Hall
Sep. 26 Raleigh, NC Alltel Pavillion
Sep. 28 Savannah, GA Mercer Theatre
Sep. 29 Birmingham, AL Jefferson Civic Center
Sep. 30 Knoxville, TN Civic Auditorium
Jets To Brazil
Sep. 22 Boston, MA TT The Bear
Sep. 23 Poughkeepsie, NY Vassar
Sep. 24 New London, CT El-N-Gee
Juno
Sep. 21 Columbia, MO Shattered
Sep. 22 Ft. Collins, CO Starlight
Live
Sep. 30 Columbia, SC Township Auditorium
Magnetic Fields
Sep. 21 Seattle, WA Crocodile Cafe
Sep. 22 Portland, OR Aladdin Theatre
Sep. 24 San Francisco, CA Great American Music Hall
Sep. 25 Los Angeles, CA Spaceland
Manic Street Preachers
Sep. 22 Vancouver, BC The Rage
Sep. 23 Seattle, WA AROspace
Sep. 25 San Francisco, CA Bimbo's
Sep. 27 San Diego, CA Cane's
Sep. 28-29 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour
Aimee Mann
Sep. 21 San Juan Capistrano, CA The Coach House
Sep. 22 Solana Beach, CA Belly Up Tavern
Sep. 23 Los Angeles, CA Cafe Largo
Sep. 25 San Francisco, CA Slim's
Sep. 28 Los Angeles, CA Cafe Largo
Men At Work
Sep. 22 Providence, RI Living Room
Sep. 24-25 Atlantic City, NJ Sands Casino
Sep. 26 Cambridge, MA Middle East Club
Sep. 28 San Jose, CA Palookaville
Sep. 30 San Diego, CA 4th & B
Alanis Morissette / Tori Amos
Sep. 22 Phoenix, AZ America West Arena
Sep. 24 Las Vegas, NV Mandalay Bay
Sep. 25 Los Angeles, CA Irvine Amphitheater
Tom Petty & Heartbreakers
Sep. 21 Tampa, FL Ice Palace
Sep. 22 West Palm Beach, FL Coral Sky Pavilion
Sep. 24 Atlanta, GA Lakewood Amphitheatre
Sep. 25 Charlotte, NC Blockbuster Pavilion
Sep. 28 Greenville, SC Bi-Lo Center
Sep. 29 Raleigh, NC Walnut Creek Amp.
Pietasters, Pilfers & Spring Heeled Jack
Sep. 24 Fairfax, VA Student Union Bldg.
Sep. 27 Carrboro, NC Cat's Cradle
Sep. 28 Charleston, SC Music Farm
Sep. 29 Atlanta, GA The Masquerade
Sep. 30 Tallahassee, FL PSU Union Green
Pretenders
Sep. 22 Paris, France Mutualite
Sep. 23 Amsterdam, Netherlands Paradiso
Sep. 25 Cologne, Germany Live Music Hall
Sep. 26 Brussels, Belgium Cirque Royale
Sep. 27-28 London, England Shepherds Bush Empire
Sep. 30 Glasgow, Scotland Barrowlands
Pretty Things
Sep. 21 Cambridge, MA Middle East Club
Sep. 22 Philadelphia, PA Th. Living Arts
Promise Ring
Sep. 24 Madison, WI Club 770
Royal Trux
Sep. 21 Columbia, MO Shattered
Sep. 22 St. Louis, MO Side Door
Sep. 23 Cincinati, OH Sudsy Malones
Sep. 24 Columbus, OH Shattered
Sep. 25 Athens, OH Union Bar & Grill
Sep. 26 Dayton, OH Club Safari
Sep. 27 Cleveland, OH Grog Shop
Sep. 28 Pittsburgh, PA Millvale Industrial Theater
Sep. 30 Baltimore, MD Ottobar
Sean Na Na
Sep. 21 Boston, MA Middle East Upstairs
Splender / Train / Shooter
Sep. 21 Los Angeles, CA Mayan Theater
Sep. 22 Chicago, IL Club Metro
Sep. 23 Minneapolis, MN Quest
Sally Taylor
Sep. 30 Denver, CO Bluebird
Type O Negative
Sep. 29 Cleveland, OH Odeon
Tom Waits
Sep. 23-24,25,27 New York, NY Beacon Theatre
Watsonville Patio
Sep. 23 Missoula, MT Ritz on Ryman
Sep. 24 Bozeman MT The Zebra
Sep. 25 Helena MT Miller's Crossing
Sep. 26 Chico, MT Chico Hot Springs
Weird Al Yankovic
Sep. 22 San Luis Obispo, CA Performing Arts Centre
Sep. 24 Bakersfield, CA Kern County Fair
Sep. 26 Los Angeles, CA Greek Theatre
Zeke
Sep. 21 Atlanta, GA Echo Lounge
Sep. 23 New Orleans, LA State Palace
Sep. 24 Dallas, TX Club Clearview
Sep. 25 Houston, TX Fitzgerald's
Sep. 26 Austin, TX Emo's
Sep. 28 Tempe, AZ Green Room
Sep. 29 Anaheim, CA Chain Reaction
Sep. 30 Los Angeles, CA Troubadour
---
Founded in August, 1993, Consumable Online is the oldest
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===
