THURSDAY,JULY7
So when CorrosionofConformitydumped their Slayer-on-Void speed-metal in the early '90s and slowed way down, serious thrashheads was bummed: What the fuck was this Allman Brothers shit? Well, we never changed, Corrosion (paraphrasing) told fans on HeadbangersBall,a now-notorious not-a-crook moment that still rankles several red-eyed guys who don't own any collared shirts. Instead (paraphrasing still) metal has caught up to us. To push home that point, Metallica pinched out their powder-puff black album about that time and Alice In Chains simply existed. Shit was hot: shit as in bad, hot as in everywhere. But so many years later, metal did catch up to them: comers like Queens of the Stone Age wooed the bros, and Dave Grohl even reached over from Radioland to borrow Corrosion bassist Mike Dean for a Probot song (a 1:24 nostalgia trip for the thrash-head era, but still, what validation!). Slow is hot now; slow as in Sabbath and hot as in God. Dudes just wanna let the bass cab do the breathing for them. This is where catharsis and lethargy collide, plus some drugs. With AlabamaThunderpussy—thelast band to ever play Club Mesa—and a lot of 909ers at the Galaxy.
ALSO: Cat Power in a Tiger Trap with ScoutNiblett(from the U.K.) and more at the GlassHouse;Sound Virus' wiry post-punk bands the CinemaEyeand HelloFeverplus more at Koo's.
FRIDAY
Been reading about the Russian race to the moon: all these retro-tech space pods blowing up on launch because the poor dumb booster rockets—as comparatively sophisticated as fuel/tube/long-handled barbecue grill lighter—wouldn't work right. So that's the cosmonauts in BadDudes:sci-fi stuck waiting on liftoff. These ex-Miracle Chosukes amplify the scientist-rock the Minutemen invented to amphetamine extremes. (Not that the Dudes are into bad stuff like that; just saying: buggy eyes and gritty teeth.) Definite Devo derivation, but the Dudes deliver with supernatural dexterity. Too fast for prog, but still a total rush, get it? Maybe their upcoming full-length will launch them to the stars they deserve. With MovingUnits—reclaimednow by the righteous since they released a split 12″ with Wives—at the HOB.
ALSO: Did anyone notice how the OCFairis getting kind of heavy? Today, with TheB-52's,it's Scandinavian dance-pop combo JuniorSenior,the ambiguously fey duo that was just DJ-ing one of Steve and Frankie's ambiguously hip clubs along Hollywood Boulevard not too long back. Cinespace today, Costa Mesa tomorrow. See you next year, Bloc Party.
PLUS: PhilShanegoes insane at Alex's;JudasPriestscreams for vengeance at VerizonWireless:“We intend to sing the love of danger, the habit of energy and fearlessness! Time and space died yesterday. We already live in the absolute because we have created eternal, omnipresent speed!”
SATURDAY
BuiltToSpillsweep up the mess bands like Modest Mouse made at HOB;LawrenceArmssweep up the mess bands like Alkaline Trio made at ChainReaction.Ten years ago, these guys were all beer buddies at crummy bars; now some of them are millionaires and some of them missed out. You may have your integrity, but who pays for your health insurance? Shit world.
PLUS: LifeMusicfive-year rave-a-versary with JasonBlakemoreand more at Detroitplus MarkEQuarkand more across the street at AvalonCostaMesaand a secret after-party at [CENSORED] that [CENSORED DRUG REFERENCE] [CENSORED] reeking litter box.
SUNDAY
Radio Vago was gonna be big—like Icarus Line big, and Omar from the Mars Volta would produce and Buddyhead would put it out—but then these five LA girls broke up into component parts, leaving an unfinished album and a lot of gossip crackling up and down the Amoeba cashier lines. This week, both sides visit OC: two dark band vans, passing awkwardly in the night. Singer Adrienne now captains ShootOutTheLights,one of those bands that uses reverb like a slip-n-slide to get that Manchester sorta-sound. Strange kind of charisma she had then and now: a vulnerable/vamp shtick (Mia Farrow/Marlene Dietrich, owch!) that goes good with black, and also she loves-loves-loves Joy Division. By now, you've definitely made your plans one way or the other, huh? At the GlassHousewith TskTskas Blue Cher.
MONDAY
OhNois the brother of NewYorkTimes-notedMadlib, and the family resemblance starts at the fingertips: Oh No is a brutally prolific producer, just like his brother, and while reviewers have fun sniffing out the pot smoke on his and Madlib's tracks, these Jackson brothers are actually extremely results-oriented. Oh No only has one full-length out as an MC (The Disrupt,on Stones Throw) but he's hand-rolled beats for so many people, shaking breaks off old 45s and beefing them up in post-process—dusty mid-'70s brass held down by a drum machine, distorted backup-girl choruses, puddled-up dub bass—and he's about to release an album giving chilled-out Euro session player Galt McDermott the same rediscover/remix treatment Madlib gave Blue Note's jazz back catalog. Co-headliner Diversecomes from Chicago off an album (One AM)with a Madlib track and guest spots to Vast Aire (adds some gravity), Jean Grae (adds velocity) and Lyrics Born (adds sort of the best track). He's got a kind of desperate militancy, but TheDisruptjust comes in harder: like the song goes, “After this, you gonna be permanent background!” At the GlassHouse.
ALSO: The re-capitated remainder of RadioVago'sfunky four plus one (hi, new singer Mire!) at Detroit.That Omar album is about to come out, and if this 6/8-time synthesizer choir gets on the radio, someone's bank vault will rapidly fill with mascara-sticky money. It's not really Mars Volta with girls, though they all share a certain flair for the theatrical.
TUESDAY
You probably want a joke about HootieandtheBlowfishat the OCFair.
ALSO: Ellen Griley loves this band SeniorRecreation,but [CENSORED TO PRESERVE A FRAGILE LOCAL COMMUNITY OF MUSICIANS] the Postal Service [CENSORED] [CENSORED] [EXPLETIVE DELETED]. With NewFidelityat BlueCafe.
WEDNESDAY
The [EXPLETIVE DELETED] people come up with.
THURSDAY,JULY14
LomaLyndatakes the Pink Floyd and the planetarium light show and makes it all one band, with accompanying movie screen and a sweet girl singer. At Detroit.
PLUS: [EXPLETIVE DELETED].
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