Originally released in 2003, Clutch‘s Slow Hole to China was a collection of obscure singles, unreleased material, and cover tunes. They re-released it in 2009 as Slow Hole to China: Rare and Re-released and included three more previously unreleased tracks.
One of those tracks is the first one on this album – “King of Arizona.” It’s a solid blues rocker with harmonica by guest Eric Oblander and vocalist Neil Fallon making allusions to either an Arizona gold mine, a cemetery in Arizona, James Reavis (a con man who was nearly given ownership of most of Arizona and a good chunk of New Mexico), or, quite likely, all three.
The title track has some of Dan Maines’ heaviest bass lines. “Nickel Dime” almost has a fiery gospel feel to it. “Sea of Destruction” hits as hard, if not harder, than a lot of current metal tracks thanks to Jean-Paul Gaster‘s furious drumming and Tim Sult’s fuzzed-to-the-max guitar. Blues swagger comes in heavy on “Oregon,” “Easy Breeze,” “Hale Bopp Blues” (which is sung from the perspective of dinosaurs fearing the arrival of the Hale Bopp comet and the end of their lives on Earth), and “Four Lords.”
“Rising Son” scorches and has one of my favorite lyrics on the album – “Gravity is such a drag, and we will not obey.” I can’t help but wonder if “Guild of Muted Assassins” was inspired by one of Fallon’s old Dungeons and Dragons campaigns, because that title needs to be the name of a D&D game module. “Willie Nelson” is about Fallon’s home being raided by jackbooted figures searching for drugs, secrets, or both. It might be the former when you consider the chorus is, “I don’t know if I’m coming or going, if it’s them or me. But the one thing’s for certain, Willie Nelson only smokes killer weed.”
“Equinox” is an instrumental that has wild Santana-like percussion. “Hoodoo Operator” is a floor-stomper with Maines’ bass taking on angry bee-like quality. “Day of the Jackalope” has Fallon’s vocals distorted as if through a fault megaphone, making him sound like a madman yelling on a street corner. “Ship of Gold (West Virginia)” is an alternate version of the song of the same name that would end up on Clutch’s Elephant Riders album. It’s a bit darker and heavier than that one, and has more extended jams as well.
This is a solid collection and can stand alone as its own album instead of a collection of singles and miscellaneous tracks. It’s worth seeking out if you’re a fan of Clutch, or even if you’re not.
Keep your mind open.
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If you’re starting a band and wondering how many songs you would need on your album to take the listener on a mind-altering journey of fuzzed guitars, reverb-drenched bass, and asteroid belt heavy drums, Australia’s Comacozer have answered the question for you: Three. You would need three songs.
Granted, they are going to last anywhere from eleven to twenty minutes each, and you will have to rock them as heavily as Comacozer do, so good luck.
The opening title track to Comacozer‘s solid new album, Mydriasis (the medical term for dilation of the pupil), opens your third eye as it drops you down a rabbit hole of face melting psych rock with little bits of doom metal sprinkled on top for good measure. The guitar work on the track by Rick Burke is particularly jaw-dropping, sliding effortlessly back and forth between psychedelic jams and battle axe-heavy riffs.
“Tryptamine” starts with what sounds like a monologue by Rod Serling, which is appropriate considering the mind-warping nature of the track’s synths by James Heyligers. These synths sneak around the entire track while Andrew Panagopoulos keeps the band (and us) from drifting out of this reality by maintaining a solid, gravity-induced beat.
I love how Richard Elliott’s opening bass line on “Kykenon Journey” is almost a sinister funk-disco lick. It promises groovy things to come, and the track certainly delivers. Kykenon, for those of you unaware, is a water and barley beverage that was popular among the lower class in ancient Greece. It was often mixed with other spices and compounds that gave it a psychoactive kick, much like Panagopolous’ beats and Burke’s riffs. The song (which takes up the entire second side of the EP, by the way) is a fine rocker for the first five minutes and then switches to an even finer psychedelic trip. It’s the kind of stuff that will make you convinced the goop in your lava lamp is dancing to it. Seriously, don’t stare at your lava lamp for too long while listening to this. It might check you out of reality without you realizing it.
It’s a solid EP of mind-warping psychedelia from Down Under. I hope these guys can do a tour of the U.S. soon. It would be great to hear these epic instrumentals live.
Jon Spencer has announced a brief summer tour with his newest band, the HITmakers, of the Midwest United States to promote his solo album Spencer Sings the Hits!
Reviews of his earlier shows mention him playing not only new solo cuts, but also stuff from his massive catalog of other material from the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, Boss Hog, and Pussy Galore.
Tour dates are as follows:
Wed 8/28 – Pyramid Scheme – Grand Rapids MI Thu 8/29 – HI-FI – Indianapolis IN Fri 8/30 – Schubas – Chicago IL Sat 8/31 – H.O.G. National Rally, Harley-Davidson Museum – Milwaukee WI Sun 9/1 – Turf Club – St. Paul MN Mon 9/2 – Vaudeville Mews – Des Moines IA Tues 9/3 – Ignition Music Garage – Goshen IN
Electric Light Orchestra is one of my wife’s favorite bands and I’ve always appreciated the way bandleader Jeff Lynne and his mates combined classical music with pop and prog-rock. Lynne had been touring with the newest version of his band for several years, but this was the first time we’d been able to catch one of Jeff Lynne’s ELO shows.
We were surprised to learn that Dhani Harrison(yes, George’s son) and his band were the opening act. They played a solid rock set that melded industrial, psychedelia, and groove. Dhani, much like his father, rocked both electric guitar and ukulele.
Dhani Harrison and crew
Starting with “Standing in the Rain,” Mr. Lynne and his twelve-piece backing band had the crowd with them from the first note. Throwing down “Evil Woman” as the second song and “All Over the World” as the third had the entire United Center jumping.
“Standing in the Rain”
Two nice treats during the main set were “Do Ya” by the Move (one of Lynn’s first bands) and him playing the Traveling Wilburys‘ “Handle Me with Care” with Dhani Harrison playing along and singing his father’s vocal parts. “Last Train to London” and “Rockaria!” were also great, and I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the great visuals throughout the entire show. You wouldn’t expect less from a band named Electric Light Orchestra.
“Handle Me with Care”
One odd moment for us, at least in the section where we were seated, was during “Shine a Little Love” and hardly anyone was clapping at the right moments during the chorus. I tried to encourage everyone around us to take part in, you know, the rhythm section of the song, but alas, we only saw a few people doing it.
They ended the set with the quadruple threat of “Telephone Line” (one of the best sad songs of the 1970’s), “Don’t Bring Me Down,” “Turn to Stone” (which still packs a powerful punch), and “Mr. Blue Sky.” The encore was a cover of Chuck Berry‘s “Roll Over Beethoven” that featured the band, and Lynne, shredding their respective instruments.
“Shine a Little Love”
It was a fun night, and we were happy to check this off my wife’s bucket list of shows. They’re still touring throughout the summer, so grab some seats if you can.
Keep your mind open.
Jeff Lynne – still shredding guitar and rocking sunglasses.
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“‘At the Party,’ finds a slice of solace in navigating the human experience with similarly marginalized friends by her side. Here, ‘the party’ is the crooked world Paul journeys in solidarity with her fellow POC; together, they make the best of life’s wayward turns.” – Pitchfork
“Katherine Paul delivers hums and oooh’s that melt into the mellow drums, creating a foggy, subdued mesh of pretty sounds.” – FADER on “At the Party”
“[‘At the Party’] is an astounding reverb-soaked number with sprawling guitars that track up and down the length of the neck as Paul easily transitions between near-whispered verses and heady falsetto choruses.” – UPROXX
Black Belt Eagle Scout – the recording project of multi-instrumentalist Katherine Paul – presents a new single / video, “My Heart Dreams,” from her forthcoming album, At the Party With My Brown Friends, due August 30th via Saddle Creek. In conjunction, she announces a headline North American tour. “My Heart Dreams” follows lead single “At the Party.” Written in Ohlone land during a transitional part of Paul’s life, “My Heart Dreams” expresses a consuming desire to find new love in the midst of heartbreak. The accompanying video, filmed by Angel Two Bulls and co-directed by Angel and Paul, depicts Paul wandering amongst the Portland Pride parade, the scene eventually turning into a live performance.
“The idea behind this video was to do something fun while showing the resilience of the Indigenous people, particularly women and girls, which is why I chose to have the Black Belt Eagle Scout band be portrayed by young Indigenous girls.” describes Paul. “In an age where Missing and Murdered Indigenous women (MMIW) are finally getting the attention they deserve, it’s important to make their strength visible. The justice around MMIW is something we should all be paying closer attention to and I hope my platform serves to heighten awareness. The girls and extras in the video are members of the Portland Two Spirit Society, a special group of LGBTQ Indigenous and Native American/Alaska Natives and the Portland All Nations Canoe Family.”
Where her 2018 debut, Mother of My Children, was a snapshot of loss and landscape and of Paul’s standing as a radical indigenous queer feminist, this new chapter finds its power in love, desire and friendship. At the Party With My Brown Friends is a profound and understated forward step. The squalling guitar anthems that shaped its predecessor are replaced by delicate vocals and soft keys, sentiments spoken and unspoken, presenting something shadowy and unsettling; a stirring of the waters. The end result presents a captivating about-face that redefines Paul’s beautifully singular artistic vision.
Black Belt Eagle Scout was named a favorite new artist of 2018 by NPR Music, Stereogum, Paste and Under The Radar. She will continue to tour extensively, playing Sled Island, Newport Folk Festival, and Pickathon this summer before embarking on a headlining North American tour. Then, she will support Devendra Banhart on tour later this fall. Tickets are on sale now. One dollar from every ticket sold through presale will be donated to the National Indigenous Women’s Resource Center. All dates can be found below.
Watch Black Belt Eagle Scout’s “My Heart Dreams” Video https://youtu.be/cmGP7WZO4Pw
Listen to “At the Party” https://bbes.ffm.to/atpwmbf
Pre-orderAt the Party With My Brown Friends https://bbes.ffm.to/atpwmbf
Black Belt Eagle Scout tour dates: Thu. Aug. 1 – Seattle, WA @ ARTS at King Street Station Fri. Aug. 2 & Sun. Aug. 4 – Happy Valley, OR @ Pickathon Wed. Aug. 21 – Victoria, BC @ Bastion Square Parkade Thu. Aug. 22 – Seattle, WA @ Olympic Sculpture Hall Sun. Aug. 25 – Port Townsend, WA @ Thing Mon. Oct. 21 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios Thu. Oct. 24 – Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern Wed. Oct. 30 – Boulder, CO @ Boulder Theater * Fri. Nov. 1 – Omaha, NE @ Slowdown * Sat. Nov. 2 – Minneapolis, MN @ Varsity Theater * Sun. Nov. 3 – Chicago, IL @ Thalia Hall * Tue. Nov. 5 – Memphis, TN @ The Hi-Tone * Wed. Nov. 6 – St. Louis, MO @ Foam Thu. Nov. 7 – Lawrence, KS @ White Schoolhouse Fri. Nov. 8 – Fort Collins, CO @ Surfside 7 Sat. Nov. 9 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Diabolical Records Sun. Nov. 10 – Boise, ID @ Neurolux Thu. Nov. 12 – Reno, NV @ Holland Project Wed. Nov. 13 – San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord Thu. Nov. 14 – Los Angeles, CA @ Bootleg Bar Fri. Nov. 15 – San Diego, CA @ Ché Café Sat. Nov. 16 – Tucson, AZ @ Club Congress Sun. Nov. 17 – Las Vegas, NV @ The Bunkhouse Saloon Tue. Nov. 19 – Mesa, AZ @ The Nile Wed. Nov. 20 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sister Fri. Nov. 22 – Austin, TX @ Barracuda Sat. Nov. 23 – Dallas, TX @ The Foundry Sun. Nov. 24 – Houston, TX @ Satellite Tue. Nov. 26 – Fayetteville, AR @ George’s Majestic Lounge Wed. Nov. 27 – Nashville, TN @ DRKMTTR Sat. Nov. 30 – Detroit, MI @ Museum of Contemporary Art Detroit * Sun. Dec. 1 – Toronto, ON @ Danforth Music Hall * Tue. Dec. 3 – Montreal, QC @ L’Olympia * Wed. Dec. 4 – Boston, MA @ Wilbur Theatre * Thu. Dec. 5 – Brooklyn, NY @ Brooklyn Steel * Sat. Dec. 7 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club * Sun. Dec. 8 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer * *= w/ Devendra Banhart
Northern California duo Beehive share the first track from their forthcoming debut EP Depressed + Distressed via The Big Takeover. Hear and share “When Can I See You Again?” HERE. (Direct Bandcamp and Soundcloud.)
It’s the simple things that matter, right? Beehive know this well. The Northern California duo writes short, deceptively simple rock songs in the vein of early Wire, Suicide, The Spits and Television Personalities. Each song seems laser focused on a desperately repeated vocal phrase and repeatedly hammered riff splayed out over the emotional indifference of a Hammond Auto-Vari 64 drum machine.
Vocalist/guitarist Jake Sprecher — who also.played in Terry Malts (SF), Smokescreens (LA) and Business of Dreams (LA), all part of Slumberland Records family – urgently yelps and howls desperate and angry lyrics like a man with no time to waste. Bassist Bud Amenti (also of Shutups) fills in any gaps with subtle walks and fills while holding down the band’s monolithic sound. Beehive never stop the drum machine during their live set, there are no breaks, which adds to the intensity.
Beehive came into existence at the beginning of 2019, but in that short time has been hitting venues hard up and down the West Coast to set up their 7-song debut EP Depressed + Distressed for release in early Fall. The EP was recorded live in the studio in one take to 1/2″ tape. No messing around.
Depressed + Distressed opens with a short intro (“Tick Tock”) leading into the mantra-like wail of “Get Off My Back,” as the duo holds and pummels an A-major chord, as Sprecher chants over the top. Elsewhere, “90’s Trash” sarcastically rips up nostalgia for music of our youth and disposable culture. “When Can I See You Again?” seethes with desperation and obsession we’ve all experienced at some point, the guitars clattering and clawing, perhaps trying in vain to stop the incessant drum machine. “Wasting Our Time” wastes no time getting to the point: Our time, our lives, as a measure of existence, is only wasted by ourselves and each other. Kind of heady and deep, but utterly simple.
Depressed + Distressed will be available on 10″ EP and download on September 6th, 2019 via Jester Records.
BEEHIVE LIVE 2019: 09/14 San Francisco, CA @ Knockout 10/09 Portland, OR @ Valentine’s 10/10 Seattle, WA @ Cha Cha Lounge
On The Web: beehive1.bandcamp.com
instagram.com/beehive_trash
facebook.com/beehivetrash
Keep your mind open.
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Southern California trio Warish have shared the first track from their forthcoming full length debut Down In Flames on RidingEasy Records. The song, “Healter Skelter” is not a Beatles cover, but rather the title refers to the Manson Family’s misspelled blood scrawl at the site of their second murder in 1969. Loudwire premiered the song earlier HERE, hear and share the song now via YouTube and Bandcamp.
Warish hit the road this fall in support of the album with San Francisco stoner rock progenitors Acid King, who will also reissue their legendary Busse Woods album on RidingEasy on August 30th. Please see all dates below.
Imagine if early, weird Aberdeen Nirvana were crossed with low budget horror-obsessed garage-punks. You’d have sinister vibes with a visceral, twisted weirdness and bludgeoning riffs. Some might call it nightmarish, we call it Warish.
Warish is a very newly minted SoCal trio formed in early 2018 that has wasted no time making its presence known. The band formed when guitarist/vocalist and pro-skater Riley Hawk (son of skating legend Tony Hawk) and drummer Nick (Broose) McDonnell decided they wanted to try their hand at something more distinct than they’d done previously.
“We wanted to do simpler riffs and a fun live show,” Riley explains. “A little more punk, a little bit of grunge… a little evil-ish.” Their sound takes cues from a variety of cool underground sounds and twists it all into an energetic and exciting fist to the face of dark fury. Hawk’s effect-laden vocals hearken to 90s industrial monsters Ministry and David Yow’s tortured caterwaul in Scratch Acid. The guitars are heavy and powerful, though decidedly not straightforward cookie cutter punk; more like Cobain’s and Buzz Osbourne’s wiry contortions. The rhythms bash and pummel right through it all with aggressive force ensuring that nothing gets overly complicated and the horrors keep coming throughout the band’s uh, warlike assault.
Down In Flames will be available on LP, CD and download on September 13th, 2019 via RidingEasy Records. Pre-orders are available HERE.
WARISH LIVE 2019: 08/30 San Diego, CA @ The Casbah 09/20 Portland, OR @ Star Theater – Hesh Fest * 09/21 Seattle, WA @ Highline * 09/23 Denver, CO @ Marquis Theater * 09/24 Omaha, NE @ Slowdown * 09/25 Chicago, IL @ Reggies * 09/26 Indianapolis, IN @ Black Circle * 09/27 Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop * 09/28 Buffalo, NY @ Mohawk Place * 09/29 Boston, MA @ Sonia * 09/30 New York, NY @ Knitting Factory * 10/01 Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s * 10/02 Richmond, VA @ Richmond Music Hall * 10/03 Raleigh, NC @ Kings * 10/04 Asheville, NC @ Mothlight * 10/05 Atlanta, GA @ The 529 * 10/06 New Orleans, LA @ One Eye Jack’s * 10/07 Dallas, TX @ Gas Monkey * 10/09 Albuquerque, NM @ Sister * 10/10 Mesa, AZ @ Club Red * 10/11 Los Angeles, CA @ Satellite * 10/12 San Francisco, CA @ Chapel * 11/09 Austin, TX @ Levitation Fest * w/ Acid King
Down In Flamestrack list: 01. Healter Skelter 02. You’ll Abide 03. Big Time Spender 04. Bleed Me Free 05. In a Hole 06. Bones 07. Voices 08. Fight 09. Shivers 10. Run-in’ Scared 11. Their Demise On The
Web: instagram.com/warish.usa
facebook.com/Warishband
ridingeasyrecs.com
Keep your mind open.
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Twin Peaks are elated to announce their new album, Lookout Low, due September 13th via Grand Jury. Where their last LP, 2016’s Down In Heaven, and 2017’s Sweet ‘17 Singles compilation were adventurous and compelling updates on their youthfully raucous formula, their fourth album, Lookout Low feels like a total revolution. Their most deliberate and seamless record yet, the album is a collaborative triumph, propelled forward by Twin Peak’s near-decade-long bond.
For Lookout Low, the five of them – guitarists Cadien Lake James and Clay Frankel, bassist Jack Dolan, multi-instrumentalist Colin Croom, and drummer Connor Brodner – committed to work countless hours in their studio and practice space. Meeting daily, they demoed 27 songs and relentlessly rehearsed them, eventually whittling down to a select ten tracks. The album was recorded at Monnow Valley with legendary producer Ethan Johns (Paul McCartney, U2, Kings of Leon), who lauds Twin Peaks as “the best Rock and Roll band I’ve heard for a very long time.” Already a well-oiled live unit, the band’s mission was to capture the exhilarating vibe of their shows. Often, they thrived on the thrill of live recording, going with the magic of the original first take. This life-affirming burst of adrenaline seeps into every facet of the LP.
Each individual member of the band upped their songwriting for the LP. These tracks are their most impressive offering yet – confident, experimentative, and bursting with energy. Throughout, Croom wrote horn arrangements that at times evoke the soulfulness of Allen Toussaint and the burly Americana of the E Street Band. The auxiliary percussion from drummer Kyle Davis expands the already breezy and expansive compositions. OHMME’s Macie Stewart and Sima Cunningham contribute their spectral harmonies on seven of the 10 tracks.
Lead single / video “Dance Through It,” a horn-infused, soul-inflected swing, champions the energy found across the album. The video was directed by Ariel Fisher and Léo Schrepel in Berlin. “Writing and arranging ‘Dance Through It’ felt like a dive into and embrace of experimenting with a new palette for us,” says James. “After having been directly involved in the creation and direction of all of our videos, it felt fitting to allow this song the breath of collaboration in having Ariel Fisher take the helm and run with it.”
“Working with Twin Peaks on this visual concept felt synergetic,” says Fisher. “We shared a mutual love for the film Fallen Angels and wanted to tell a story where the camera angles and lenses gradually shift as the narrative progresses. We wanted the viewer to become the participant, as we step into the actress’s shoes and begin to see the world as she sees it.”
Twin Peaks will bring their live shows across the states, including to Chicago’s Riviera Theatre (the band’s biggest hometown headline show to date), Los Angeles’ Teragram Ballroom, and New York’s Webster Hall, in addition to dual shows at Nashville’s Basement East, Boston’s The Sinclair, and more. Tickets are on sale now.
WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “DANCE THROUGH IT” – https://youtu.be/U12MYd1DtOs
Fans can pre-order Lookout Low at indie retail stores on two different exclusive color pressings immediately. When US fans pre-order at participating stores they’ll get a “Dance Through It” 7″, which features an unreleased song on the B-side, and will be able to return to the point of purchase to pick up Lookout Low on September 13th. The album is available on Orange Swirl LP or on a Chicago-area exclusive Electric Blue LP. A list of participating stores is available here.
LOOKOUT LOWTRACKLIST: 1. Casey’s Groove 2. Laid in Gold 3. Better Than Stoned 4. Unfamiliar Sun 5. Dance Through It 6. Lookout Low 7. Ferry Song 8. Under A Smile 9. Oh Mama 10. Sunken II
TWIN PEAKS TOUR DATES: Thu. Sept. 12 – Detroit, MI @ Majestic Theatre * Fri. Sept. 13 – Cleveland, OH @ Beachland Ballroom * Sat. Sept. 14 – Columbus, OH @ Newport Music Hall * Thu. Sept. 19 – Milwaukee, WI @ Turner Hall Ballroom * Fri. Sept. 20 – Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Music Cafe * Sat. Sept. 21 – East Moline, IL @ The Rust Belt * Tue. Oct. 8 – Berlin, DE @ Musik und Frieden & Wed. Oct. 9 – Hamburg, DE @ Molotow Musikclub & Fri. Oct. 11 – Rotterdam, NL @ Rotown & Sat. Oct. 12 – Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso Mon. Oct. 14 – Cologne, DE @ MTC & Tue. Oct. 15 – Paris, FR @ La Boule Noire & Wed. Oct. 16 – London, UK @ Dome Tufnell Park & Fri. Oct. 18 – Leeds, UK @ Brudenell Social Club & Sat. Oct. 19 – Oxford, UK @ Ritual Union Sun. Oct. 20 – Cardiff, UK @ SWN Festival Wed. Oct. 30 – Louisville, KY @ Headliners Music Hall # Thu. Oct. 31 – St. Louis, MO @ The Ready Room # Fri. Nov. 1 – Omaha, NE @ The Waiting Room # Sat. Nov. 2 – Denver, CO @ Gothic Theatre # Tue. Nov. 5 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall # Thu. Nov. 7 – Seattle, WA @ Neumos # Fri. Nov. 8 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom # Sat. Nov. 9 – Vancouver, BC @ VENUE # Wed. Nov. 13 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall # Fri. Nov. 15 – Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom @ Sat. Nov. 16 – Solana Beach, CA @ Belly Up Tavern # Mon. Nov. 18 – Phoenix, AZ @ The Crescent Ballroom # Thu. Nov. 21 – Dallas, TX @ Deep Ellum Art Co. # Fri. Nov. 22 – Houston, TX @ Satellite Bar # Sat. Nov. 23 – Austin, TX @ The Mohawk # Fri. Nov. 29 – Chicago, IL @ Riviera Theatre Wed. Dec. 4 – Burlington, VT @ Higher Ground Ballroom ^ Thu. Dec. 5 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair (early) @ Thu. Dec. 5 – Boston, MA @ The Sinclair (late) ! Fri. Dec. 6 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall ^ Tue. Dec. 10 – Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer ^ Wed. Dec. 11 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat ^ Thu. Dec. 12 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle ^ Fri. Dec. 13 – Atlanta, GA @ Variety Playhouse ^ Sat. Dec. 14 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East ^ Sun. Dec. 15 – Nashville, TN @ The Basement East ^ ~ = w/ PUP * = w/ Slow Pulp and Dehd & = w/ Dehd # = w/ Post Animal & OHMME ^ = w/ Lala Lala & OHMME ! = w/ Lala Lala @ = w/ OHMME
Keep your mind open.
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With his highly anticipated new album, Twelve Nudes, due August 30th via Bella Union, Erza Furman has shared two new tracks from the LP. For Furman, new single “I Wanna Be Your Girlfriend” “Is a romantic song of transgender longing. It’s another entry in my series of ‘I Wanna’ songs (in the tradition of the Ramones). I thought it was time we had an ‘Earth Angel’ for the queers. Of course because it’s an Ezra Furman tune, there’s a little bit of desperation, religion and body-talk.”. It comes with a brilliant video directed by Alix Spence, who shared that; “Listening to the song and speaking with Ezra, I saw our two dancers, Brandon Mathis and and Jobel Medina, as physical manifestations of internal suffering. I wanted to literally have us wrestle with ourselves and the complexities of our personal struggles.
Of the additional single “Evening Prayer”, Furman states: “It’s our rallying cry. We music fans go to shows for transcendence; it’s like being called to prayer. But as Abraham Heschel said, ‘Prayer is meaningless unless it is subversive, unless it seeks to overthrow and to ruin the pyramids of callousness, hatred, opportunism and falsehood.’ I want all our fans to become activists. We punk fans have so much energy to give to the fight against injustice, i.e. the abuse of the poor by the rich, i.e. climate change. So this is one to get you in the mood.”
Last year was a championing year for Furman – since the release of the “layered, baroque pop melodrama” (Billboard) Transangelic Exodus, Furman has garnered immense praise, both for Transangelic Exodus and the soundtrack he created for Netflix’s Sex Education (he and his band also appeared in an episode). Twelve Nudes, his new and “spiritually queer” punk record, continues this same wavelength, and is an incendiary and inspiring follow-up. Across the album, Furman channels pent-up energy, distinguished by sharp, lacerating observations, confessions and proclamations.
Twelve Nudes was recorded quickly in Oakland in Fall 2018 and was mixed by venerated producer John Congleton (Sharon Van Etten, St. Vincent). The result is an album that is less stereotypical punk than raw, raucous rock’n’roll. The album has two spiritual heroes – the late great punk Jay Reatard and Canadian writer and philosopher Anne Carson. The title stems directly from Carson, who used the term “nudes” to describe the meditations she used to deal with intense pain in her life.
“This is our punk record,” says Ezra Furman. “We made it in Oakland, quickly. We drank and smoked. Then we made the loud parts louder. I hurt my voice screaming. This was back in 2018, when things were bad in the world. The songs are naked with nothing to hide.”
One of my goals in making music is to make the world seem bigger, and life seem larger,” Furman concludes. “I want to be a force that tries to revive the human spirit rather than crush it, to open possibilities rather than close them down. Sometimes a passionate negativity is the best way to do that.”
The last show I saw at Fort Wayne, Indiana’s Clyde Theatre was the Flaming Lips with Le Bucherettes, which was a communal psychedelic experience and not the type of place in which a mosh pit breaks out while someone screams at you with rage and fury. Now, however, I was seeing three bands who brought plenty of rage and fury – Clutch, Killswitch Engage, and Cro-Mags “JM“.
My friend and I walked in as Cro-Mags “JM” were unleashing their rage with a furious hardcore punk rock set. The “JM,” by the way, stands for “John Mackie” – as in vocalist John Joseph and drummer Mackie Jayson. Joseph and Jayson are two of the longest-serving members in the legendary Cro-Mags band (which has gone through multiple lineup changes). Joseph talked about songs written in 1989, such as “Street Justice,” when there was no such thing as being an online troll (“You said what you needed to say face to face. You didn’t hide behind a keyboard. And if you had to put your fists up, you threw down.”). It was a fast, hard set, yet no mosh pits broke out, which I found baffling.
Cro-Mags “JM”
I’d heard of Cro-Mags from my high school punk rock days, but I’d never heard anything by Killswitch Engage despite the fact they’ve been together for two decades. My metal music collections leans toward stoner and doom, so metalcore is a mostly unexplored genre for me. They put on a heck of a show, bringing relentless energy and a packed house. A lot of people showed up for their set, and a few small mosh pits broke out during it. Crowd surfing was even more popular. A particular highlight was the live debut of their newest single, “I Am Broken, Too.” Lead singer Jessie Leach‘s vocal stylings reminded me of Ronnie James Dio, so I was delighted to hear them close their set with a cover of Dio’s “Holy Diver.”
Killswitch Engage
Clutch came out gunning with the always-invigorating “X-Ray Visions” and “Firebirds!” Bassist Dan Maines had some technical issues in the first two tracks that kept him from putting out as much sound as he wanted, but a couple swapped cables and batteries fixed the issue by the time they got to “Gimme the Keys.”
Psychic warfare is real, and Dan Maines’ bass apparently shoots lasers.
The crowd had thinned a bit, which is a shame, because a lot of the metalcore fans who left missed a great groove-rock show by Clutch that included a lot of tunes I’d never heard live before such as their version of the blues classic “Evil,” the rare cut “Willie Nelson,” “Smoke Banshee,” “Hot Bottom Feeder” (which my friend loved for both the groove and the fact that the entire song is a crab cake recipe), and “Rats.”
Clutch lets us know that Willie Nelson only smokes killer weed.
They ended the night with an encore of “H.B. Is in Control” and “How to Shake Hands,” two more songs I hadn’t heard live until now. I’ve always loved how Clutch changes up their setlist every night. They keep a core of a few tunes for each show but mix in whatever else they want to play. I wish more bands did this, but not every band is as confident as them. So, go see them. It will be a unique experience.
Keep your mind open.
Thanks to Doug Weber of New Ocean Media for getting me a press pass to the show.
