A Fond Farewell or "What the Blind Man Saw" APTBS/Holy Fuck/Sons and Daughters-RNR Hotel 3/19/08

Yes, once again an extremely late show review from I, Sacklunch. I was even prodded long with the following image:

It's true. I do have a side job dancing at numerous ALL MALE NUDE strip clubs up and down the Mid-Atlantic and it often interferes with the timeliness of my posts. Anyway, on to the "review".

Since this was to be the final Rock Club show before Jumboslice moved to Austin, we decided to have a going away feast prior to the show. We had planned to go to Granville Moore's plenty of times in the past, but had never actually gone (although I did go once with my wife). We gorged ourselves on mussels, fries (or frites, if you roll that way) and a few Belgian beers. We were all very pleased with the food and will definitely be back for some pre-RNR Hotel eats. BTW, I should also mention that Jimbromski hoarded the best mussel preparation (the one with the bacon) all for himself. Don't ever go eat Chinese food with this dude, he likes to get his own dish and refuses to share. Who the fuck does this? The whole point of going out for Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese, etc.. is to get multiple dishes and everyone shares. Selfish ass.

We got to the show in time to catch the last 2 or 3 songs of A Place To Bury Strangers. We had seen these guys before during the wonderful DAM! Festival and the scene was pretty much the same, except there were like 3 times as many people there. APTBS sound like a mix of Jesus and Mary Chain/My Bloody Valentine with a bit of Joy Division thrown in for good measure. They play incredibly loud and this is one show that I will definitely wear earplugs to next time. I like them as an opener, I am not sure if my brain and ears could withstand a full set. Also, they get bonus points for using a smoke machine and lots of strobes.

Speaking of the smoke machine. As everyone was clearing out, Jimbromski and I were commenting on how smoky it was (because of the before mentioned smoke machine). Standing next to us was this guy who said "Is it smoky in here?". We quickly realized that he was blind and could not therefore not see the smoke. We ended up talking to him for a bit and I must say I was rather impressed. It turns out he attends numerous shows, often on his own. Kudos to you, blind sir. I should also add that when we were leaving at the end of the night we drove by Galluadet University. I commented that maybe the blind guy was a "reverse student" . I think I meant to say exchange student. It was funny at the time, not so much now.

We were all really here to see Holy Fuck after their excellent performance opening for Super Furry Animals. Once again they did not disappoint. We all parked ourselves close to the stage, on the right hand side. I believe this to be the prime viewing spot for shows at the RNR Hotel (along with our special balcony spot at the 930 Club, the risers at the BC Backstage, and the short riser stage right at the BC Mainstage) . The 35 minute set was pretty similar to the last time we saw them and the crowd seemed to fully enjoy every minute. Again, I am not a huge fan of live electronic music, but for some reason these guys bring the noise and energy that translates into an excellent live show. They have a great rhythm section, with a bassist that looks like he would be just as comfortable in a metal band. Other things to point out include a weird ticker tape type device that produce noise, lots of effects pedals, the playing of an instrument with a butter knife, and lots of cool looking old school Casio keyboards. Oh yeah, the drummer played barefoot.

I really didn't know too much about Sons and Daughters before the show. I listened to a few songs from their Myspace page and found it to be just okay. Sort of like The Long Blondes, but maybe not as good?? (or as good looking?) We stayed for most of their set, but I found myself a bit underwhelmed. For some reason the lead singer put off a weird, annoying vibe. Also, I thought the vocals got a little lost behind the guitar work. I think once again the openers upstaged the headliner and we left about halfway through their set.

All in all, another great night out and a fine farewell to Jumboslice. We wish him the best of luck in his new found home of Austin (I case you didn't know already) and with the arrival of his 1st offspring. Can DC Rock Club survive as a threesome? Perhaps we should recruit the blind guy.

The. Black. Lips.

"These guys at times seem borderline retarded but both their music and their words have a charming simplicity about them. Any band that hates hippies can't be all bad."
- quote by Jimbromski (proud Hippie Hater) on 12/03/2007

This marked the 5th time Rock Club has seen Black Lips. It also was my official Rock Club going away "party". I use quotes because simply inviting Chip Chanko along makes for a dubious party. Nonetheless, I seized on this opportunity to drink heavily. The result: I had a great time but don't really recall a whole lot of specifics . Fortunately, I was alert enough to take some cryptic notes on my cell phone and befriend two random super fans. Here's what I could cobble together from my faulty memory.

Opening for the Black Lips were Quintron and Ms. Pussycat. Hailing from New Orleans, Quintron plays a big ass organ/synthesizer while Ms. Pussycat and a second woman sing and shake their maracas (literally and figuratively). In addition to the organ he plays another "instrument" called The Drum Buddy. It's a little something he invented, patented, and is the sole person licensed to play it. Death comes to all others who try to operate it. Check it:

Q and Ms. P's performance is quite showy, raucous, and a lot of fun. A large number of kids were there (as evidenced by the big X's on their hands) and they ate this freaky shit up. There was an unusual amount of dancing and moshing for an opening band. They closed with a bizarre yet amusing puppet show. It was a delight for those who had smoked copious amounts of weed before the show. I didn't exactly follow the storyline but it involved modern art, Santa, semi-automatic rifles, and puppies.

First thing I noticed when Black Lips came onstage: The Mustache had returned! Jared Swilley was once again sporting the most glorious lip tickler in all of rock. I was very pleased. I'm convinced it has magically powers. The last time I saw them, Jared was sans 'stache and I felt like something was amiss. [side note: my favorite new phrase is "smacked him in the mustache".]

Black Lips wasted no time diving right into their most loved and rocking tunes. They played "Bad Kids", "Katrina", and "Boomerang" at the very beginning of the set. Sacklunch felt they blew their wad too early and should have saved a few of those songs for the end or encore. [Another side note: Lack of forethought in set lists is something we see too often. Sacklunch, frustrated by this and buoyed by his mad mix tape making skills, is founding a new company called "Bestest Setlist". He has offered his services to Black Lips free of charge.] I agree those songs would've been good closers but it didn't matter too much. The crowd was into the show from start to finish.

At the show I was standing next to Lucinda and Amy. I noticed they knew the words for each song and looked like they were having the time of their lives. So I asked if they had seen Black Lips before. The answer: Over the past year Lucinda has seen Black Lips perform 26 times and Amy has seen 31 shows. Read that last sentence again. We haven't seen that type of dedication since Phish stopped touring (they stopped touring, right?). It's impressive but it doesn't shock me. The band inspires an enthusiasm unseen in indie rock. Black Lips play straight up rock and roll. Their shows are guaranteed fun.

Back to Lucinda and Amy. How did these sisters become such big fans? They saw Black Lips 5 times at SXSW last year and were hooked. They traveled for the shows up in NYC and Philly prior to coming to DC. I emailed and asked their favorite part of this particular show. For Amy it was "Too Much In Love" by the King Khan and BBQ Show while Lucinda enjoyed the Chuck Berry cover "Too Much Monkey Business". We in Rock Club love a good cover. Why don't more bands work this into their live show? Maybe Sacklunch can add smart cover songs to the list of services offered by Bestest Setlist.

Anytime I hear a Chuck Berry song I'm reminded of Michael J. Fox playing "Johnny B. Goode" in Back To the Future. Notice the obvious lip syching:

"Chuck! Chuck, it's your cousin MAR-vin Berry!"

Okay, this review is way too long and already overdue. I'm going into list mode for the rest of the highlights:

- Ian St. Pe (the best name in rock) looked like a hip-hop hillbilly with his trucker hat and gold teeth.
- Some woman hopped onstage and macked with Ian.
- Bassist Jared Swilley then made out with guitarist Cole Alexander. Or was it Ian? Someone help me out here.
- After the show we chatted with The Rockist Society. This was the first time we've met the guys in person. They're like a younger, better looking version of Rock Club. Bastards.
- The owner of the Black Cat, Dante Ferrando, was positioned on the right hand speaker stack, penlight in hand, for the entire Black Lips set. He seemed extremely concerned about the crowd. He clearly didn't want things to get out of control. I saw him sprint backstage before the encore. I'm curious what he said to the band. I'm guessing it was something along the lines of "Make this encore quick!".
- They wasted little time returning to the stage for an encore. They played "Veni Vidi Vici."
- Go here for some great pictures from this show.

I Have Come To Regret My NCAA Pool Name

As some of you may or may not know, I work as a consultant for Enormous Computer Corporation, Incorporated. I know that incorporating a corporation is redundant but we just wanted to make sure.

A guy I work with invited me to join his NCAA pool so I jumped in with both feet. Every time I join a pool of any kind or sport I invent a funny team name, and I know I'm not the only one. In fact, I assumed that's how it went with everyone's pool. Some of my aliases in the past have been Sir Nigel Sorebottom (team name: Damn You Daddy Sir), Eastern Motors (note that this was back in 2004, okay?), and Coo-Day-Lah. So I assumed nothing would change with this pool. I guessed my picks and submitted under the name of "Larry Longballs." This name is a tribute, an hommage, if you will, to the Curb Your Enthusiasm episode where Larry David sustains a scrotum injury. Here's a YouTube--as usual, Leon sums it up for us:



Anyway, after the first games were played yesterday, I went on the Sportsline to see how I was doing, and I see a list of all the people in the pool. Everyone's using their real first and last names, and among all the peons there are some Enormous Computer Corporation high muckety-mucks in there as well. And there I am, 11th place out of 21 teams: Larry Longballs. I showed my wife and she's been laughing at me ever since, wondering how I could be so stupid. I was thinking of changing the name, but then everyone would see that "Larry Longballs" had been replaced by my real name, and the Encyclopedia Browns that I work with would have no problem then of cracking the case of Who Is Larry Longballs and Why Is He in My Pool? I did have enough foresight to block my e-mail address, so I'm at least covered there.

I told my co-worker, the guy who set up the pool, to protect my identity at all costs, and if people really press him, to say that Larry Longballs is a real name, a friend of his, and he's really kind of sensitive about his name so would you please stop mocking it now, thanks. I never win the NCAA pool but now I'm actively cheering against myself because a win by Larry Longballs may mean more unwanted scrutiny.

In other NCAA pool news, Jumbo Slice coaches a youth basketball team and there's this Turkish kid on there--let's call him "Kemal Ataturk." Kemal loves playing on the Jumbo-coached team because he takes the team out to the all-you-can-eat buffet after games. Jumbo, being the adult role model that every parent wishes his child could have, set up an NCAA pool for his team so that these middle schoolers could be introduced to the world of wagering on sports. For some reason Kemal missed out on the pool and he sent Jumbo the following e-mail (some names changed):

hi sorry i couldnt join the team this year cuz i didnt kno wen to sign up and where and [REDACTED] told me that it was to late and i was like SHIT

The subject line of the e-mail was "its kemal." Behold the future of America.

New Long Blondes Single

The Long Blondes are set to release a new album (Couples) on April 7. First single will be "Century"--give a listen below. I know not how this got out onto the internet but I would bet that Chinese hackers are to blame.

The Long Blondes, "Century":


Not bad. Sounds a lot different from the stuff on Someone to Drive You Home. A little Goldfrappy, I think, with the keyboards and all that.

Potsy touched this woman's hand

Abba Cadaver

Ola Brunkert
1946-2008

As reported on CNN.com:

Ola Brunkert was found dead late Sunday at his home in the town of Arta on Spain's Mediterranean island of Mallorca, the spokeswoman said.

Police believe Brunkert may have fallen against a glass partition separating his home's kitchen from the garden, and the glass broke and fatally cut his throat, she said.

He was found in the garden and is believed to have bled to death, she added. An official cause of death is pending until after an autopsy.

Brunkert, born in 1946 in Sweden, played drums on ABBA's first single, "People Need Love," according to Abba's official Web site.

He was not among the four best-known members of ABBA whose faces adorned the album covers -- Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Bjorn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Faltskog -- but he was a key supporting musician for the group as it achieved stardom.

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Thank you for the music.

Concert Preview: Two Dark Birds/The High Signs/Sad Crocodile

Two Dark Birds with The High Signs and Sad Crocodile
Black Cat Backstage Thursday 3/13 at 9:00 PM - $8

Looking for an excuse to start the weekend early? Maybe head out for some beer and music to distract you from the fact your boss secretly hates you (as does your mom)? Admit it, you have issues. Well, whether you have issues or not you should swing by the Backstage on Thursday. The show is headlined by Two Dark Birds from New York. Listening to them I'm reminded of Dylan's "Time Out of Mind" and "Love Theft". This folk rock has some edge and grit to it. It doesn't take Bill Clinton to feel their pain.

Opening for Two Dark Birds are local acts Sad Crocodile (a.k.a. John Foster) and The High Signs. I've always enjoyed Sad Crocodile's Monday night sets at Galaxy Hut so I'll be there early to catch John one last time before I depart for Austin. Michael Kentoff from The Caribbean will join Sad Crocodile on stage for what should be a stellar opening set.

I'm not familiar with The High Signs but the last name of one of the guys is "Stutz". That's good enough for me.

Ladies & Gentlemen, Swelvis Has Left The Building

The Hives
March 8, 2008
9:30 Club

Back in my college days in Montreal, I discovered a Canadian fast food joint called Harvey's. The Harvey's burger is a wonderful melange of beef, cheese, bun, hot peppers, pickle, and onion. It's really quite good. This being Quebec, if you ate at Harvey's instead of getting your burgers to go (and it was never to go, because it was always fucking 50 below outside) you would share your dining space with assorted freaks, both mental and physical, and oftentimes both. 'ello Claude! How's your stump? I'd say. Ah, bonjour, c'est Henri avec l'harelip. Bien. Allo, Lucien, so sorry about your flesh-eating bacteria--it is, how you say, terrible, n'est-pas? Excusez-moi, Monsieur Heroin Addict, I need to use the bathroom. One day as I munched on my burger, I had a revelation: here I am in French-speaking Montreal, eating a hamburger--an American institution--and it's better than anything I've had in my own country. Hmm, I thought, as I twirled the waxed ends of my mustache, so it seems the pupil has overtaken the teacher. Interesting development.

I had the same revelation watching The Hives destroy the 9:30 Club last Saturday. We American dudes invented rock and roll, and yet we are relying on lesbians and foreigners to show us how it's done. How did we reach this point? I want to blame Kurt Cobain but I can't find a way to link it to him. I'm sure he's somehow responsible. Maybe Ben Gibbard? I don't know.

And not just foreigners, but Scandinavians, no less. I saw The Hives way back in 2002 in New York when they were touring in support of Veni Vidi Vicious. We complain about blog hype these days but back before that tour there was an adulatory article about the Hives in The New Yorker, which placed them above fellow newcomers the White Stripes and hometowners the Strokes. This was the typical New York-type controversy in that no one outside of the city knew of or gave a shit about the issue, but everyone was all discombobulated for a while. We needn't have worried--the Hives played the Bowery and burned the place down. Lead singer Pelle Almqvist laid it down for us, Hives-style: there's been a lot of talk about an article telling you what music you should like...you don't need an article--you LIKE the Hives. And we did!

It was a nice bit of symmetry because my friend Stutts came up for that 2002 show, and he replaced out-of-town Sacklunch on Saturday. Also in attendance was our other pal Ted. Later on that night, after a lot of drinking, Ted fell asleep on Potsy's couch. This is the maturity that is Rock Club: instead of drawing a dick and balls on his face with a Sharpie, we drew a dick and balls on a paper plate, and held it next to his face, and took a picture. That's called growth and gravitas, people. I also tried to draw a vagina but failed. We took a picture of that too.

But before all that nuttiness was the Hives show. If you haven't been you should go sometime. This band is tight, yo. Almqvist violates some cardinal rules of rock--no banter, and no asking for applause. But the banter is pretty amusing and the applause is definitely earned--the man never stops dancing and his trademark howl is the voice I'd choose for myself if I could genetically modify my larynx. The band also had a cool neon band sign hanging behind them--I took a photo with my cell phone but it didn't come out so great. It looked sort of like the Mrs. Field's Cookies logo, except it said H-I-V-E-S:

Hives sign


Mrs. Fields logo

The Hives break into rarefied territory with a RC rating of 8.0.
________________________________________________________________

Other stuff:

(1) I know socialized medicine seems like a great idea, but before we rush into anything, we should all go to Montreal and have a look around. I'm all for it, but let's not do anything rash.

(2) The Donnas were absolutely terrible.

(3) I know it's not funny if you have to explain it, but "Swelvis"=Swedish Elvis=Pelle Almqvist

(4) There was a guy standing in front of Potsy and I wearing old-style green cotton sweatpants and a white sweatshirt. He looked like he was in his forties. He had a bushy red afro and nerd glasses. He knew every Hives song and was jumping around and singing along. After the show ended I pursued him and attempted to get a good picture of him with my cell phone, but, like the wind, he disappeared into the night.

Mysterious gentleman, will I ever see you again?

Your Mom

as in, SAY HI [TO]...

Say Hi, 3/4/2008 - Black Cat - Back Stage, $10

Tuesday night was back stage night at the Black Cat for a taste of Seattle-based, SAY HI. Formerly called Say Hi To Your Mom (SHTYM), the band dropped "your mom" - like the anchor everyone knows she is - and is touring simply as Say Hi.

Reworking a band name is something I thought only a relatively new band might do under pressure (Green Jello?, Charlatans [UK]?), or something an established band that has been dealing with a high level of turnover might do (Jefferson Starship!). But Say Hi doesn't seem to fit in either category given the fact that they (Eric Elbogen) have put out 5 albums since 2002, and since Elbogen does most of the work, it doesn't seem to be about turnover either.

At any rate, thanks to my best friends at WOXY, Say Hi were on my radar screen when it came to picking a show for my week. I enjoyed the few tracks that I had heard online, namely, Back Before We Were Brittle, and Northwestern Girls, and that was good enough to give them a look-see. But then they visited the studios of WOXY last week for a live performance in the "lounge," and I had second thoughts. It didn't sound that good, especially the "it must be in the air heeeeeeeeere" line from NWrn Girls, and I thought, uh-oh. Maybe this is a better studio band than live band.

With my expectations lowered, we paid the $10 and joined 50 other indie rock dudes and the 3 women that happened by the back stage. As it happens, Say Hi currently consists of two fellas: a drummer (Westin Glass) and Elbogen (who handles the vocals, guitar work, and who runs the computer that fills in for the rest of the "band"). While a great way to cut down on overhead, I have a slight problem with the reliance on pre-fab tracks (see: my earlier post on this subject), unless you are a band like Holy Fuck, who have a full band and need their gadgets to help send me on a drugless acid trip. But I paid $10, and who am I to judge. Maybe it's better this way. As long as the power's on and no hidden viruses emerge during the show, it's another way to get the job done.

The long and short of it, I was pleasantly surprised by this act. I thought they gave an inspired performance. There were no problems with the live show (as live as it is), and, as is often the case, seeing the band perform and feeling the bass (again, such as it is) pound you in the chest somehow helps the ear appreciate the music in ways that listening through computer speakers while at work simply fails to do. Go figure.

I also appreciated the point in the show where Elbogen walked us past the charade of an encore, telling us to basically pretend that they left and changed clothes while we clapped and eventually reappeared on stage. Instead, he simply played a couple more tunes before calling it a night. Well done. Other bands should give up on the encore farce and do the same. Unless the crowd loves you hysterically because you are super awesome "OMG LOL!!1!1111!!one!!" Then you can have your encore.

Here's a clip I shot:



Here's another clip I shot (apparently from a boat in high seas):

Recalling Wilco

Wilco - with John Doe - February 26, 2008 - 9:30 Club ($41)

Just for the record, which has been rather spotty recently, RC had a pseudo-legitimate outing to see Wilco a week and a half ago, and it has gone unreported. Jumboslice, Mrs. Jumboslice, and I ventured out to the 9:30 club for the first night of two nights of down home alt-country, roots rock, whatever you want to call it, in our Nation's Capital. Since it was so long ago, and no one really cares anymore, this will be brief.

First, we barely reached the quorum for the show and the tickets were over $20, hence the questionable legitimacy of this outing. As most folks know, I'm a stickler for the rules. Anyhow, the Jumboslices picked me up and we found my favorite 9:30 club parking space available for our use. By the way, it should be noted that Jumboslice can park a car. It's a skill I doubt he'll get to showcase in Austin, but the man's got talent.

We arrived unusually early, so early in fact, that I think we caught all but one song from opening act John Doe. John Doe wasn't bad, by the way. But I'm not in his demographic. My dad would probably love John Doe as both seem to think they are more hip than they actually are. It'll happen to me, if it hasn't already, so that's not meant to be insulting, just the way it is. Anyhow, even for getting to the 9:30 Club early, it was crowded. And it only got crowded-er. By 9:00pm, it was packed and my spot on the stairs next to the VIP area was getting tight, but I had a good view and good sound.

It should be known that I am not a big Wilco fan, even though I've been exposed to this band for 11 years now. My roommate in grad school was a big Uncle Tupelo, Wilco, Son Volt fan and I heard enough of it to the point where I could have become a fan myself. But I didn't. It never really did much for me, yet I did enjoy the Billy Bragg/Wilco Mermaid Avenue albums quite a bit. Still, I am never motivated to play the few Wilco tracks that I have, and yet the fanaticism of others about this band has made me often wonder what I've been missing.

So when presented with the opportunity to see Wilco in concert, I figured maybe they're one of those bands that work better in person (Allman Brothers, anyone?) and decided to give them another try. The result, here's what I texted back to Jumboslice during the show:

JS: [paraphrasing] Are you liking this?

P: More or less... It's one of those bands that you need to know the words to appreciate. I like it fine, but I don't need two hours of it.

JS: I really like Wilco, but there are people here who LOVE them.

P: Yeah, I've yet to understand that about this band. I keep waiting for something to click. I think a brownie might help.

So there you have it. I liked them fine, but I don't find their music particularly accessible. I feel like you have to go on a few too many dates with their songs before you can have a relationship with them.

But they sounded great, and the crowd was in to it, singing along, a few hippies dancing, which doesn't happen in DC enough if you ask me. Jeff Tweedy is also good with the jibber jabber. He's funny and quick witted enough to pull off the banter without creating anxiety or annoyance among the crowd. However, I don't think Wilco would help me score any points with the ladies. Maybe on a long drive across country, but even then, I'm not so sure.

Hillary to Obama: Suck My Caucus

Sorry to fuck this up with a politically-related post but God sent that one liner to me last night and I've been dying to use it ever since. For obvious reasons I can't walk around work saying this (Hey, Gene--suck my caucus! Ha ha ha ha ha! What's that? HR wants to talk to me?).

Originally I thought Obama would deliver this line to Hillary, but obviously he shat the bed, so Hill gets to say it. She is sort of mannish looking, I wouldn't be surprised if she were tucking the sack back every morning before hitting the campaign trail.

Gina for President

Futureheads

I like this new Futureheads song--"The Beginning of the Twist".

I heard an interview with these guys on KEXP way back in 2004. They said they have all four members of the band sing because when they started up they were "looking for a way to make as much noise as possible." Good for them.

Here's the video. Sort of an a-ha thing going on, which I like as well.



This song reminds me of "No More Heroes," by The Stranglers, from 1977. The Futureheads have good taste.

"No More Heroes"

Collective Soul (Extra Beardy Edition),The Federal Reserve Collective-IOTA 3/3/08

There had been some talk about all four members of Rock Club attending this show, however, 3/4 of them bailed out. Excuses included; "I'm tired", "I have laundry to do.", and "I am tired, even though I live like 4 blocks away from IOTA..." So, after a 14 hour work day I, Sacklunch, pressed forward and arrived at the venue around 10 PM.

The Federal Reserve is a collective of like-minded musicians that gather on the 1st Monday of each month to kick out the jams. Tonight just happened to be the CD release show for These United States (TUS), yet the event still had a feel good, experimental vibe to it. Each member(s) of the Federal Reserve would get up and play a few songs. Here's what I got for my hard earned $10:

Laura Burhenn- I only caught her final song as she was playing (solo) when I walked in. She sounded good and I enjoyed a delicious catfish wrap and fries at the bar while she played.

Josh Read from Revival- We saw Revival open for Buffalo Tom, and we all collectively dug this band. He played one original, I think it was "Hollywood" but I can't remember. He also did an alt-country version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" which was pretty damn good.

Rose and Vandaveer- Both very good, although I didn't love the song in Spanish.

John Bustine- Probably my favorite of the evening, besides TUS. Very good folk rock. There was a bit too much chatter during his set, I would very much like to see this guy again in a quieter setting.

Roofwalkers- I only caught one of their songs as I went out back for some fresh air (it was pretty hot in there last night). I think Jumboslice saw them at Galaxy Hut, so maybe he can add more about them in the comments section.

These United States- They finally came on around 11:30 PM, but the wait was well worth it. They played most of the songs off their new CD and there were some misses, but mainly hits. This being the "collective", all of the before mentioned artists played with the band at one point or another. Highlights for me included "Jenni Anne" with members of the band Kittyhawk. I also enjoyed "Kings and Aces" and "Slow Crows Over" (which I am pretty sure they played, yet my tired brain may be wrong...). The entire set had a happy-go-lucky quality to it and I think TUS are definitely one of the better (if not best) bands on the local scene.

The whole event had a bohemian "jam" quality and sincereness to it that made it quite different than other shows we have seen in the past. It was kind of like watching a bunch of good friends play in your friends basement. I wouldn't have been surprised if someone had passed around a doobie for all to enjoy. I wish TUS the best of luck on their upcoming tour and at SXSW. Be sure to see them when they return to DC in April (sorry, Jumboslice..). All in all, and enjoyable Monday night (for me at least). Potsy, I hope your clothes smell nice and fresh.

Another one bites the dust

The Associated Press is reporting the death of Canadian guitarist, Jeff Healey. Known for his unsual laptop style for playing the guitar, Healey died from cancer at the age of 41 in a Toronto hospital Sunday. Healey had battled cancer since age 1, when a rare form of retinal cancer known as Retinoblastoma claimed his eyesight, says the AP.

This loss is especially heavy as Healey was the linchpin in Rock Club's efforts to put together the first ever physically challenged supergroup, Rock-Ability™. Other members under consideration included Def Leppard drummer, Rick Allen, Stevie Wonder, Violinist Itzhak Perlman, Soul singer Teddy Pendergrass, and Country star Mel Tillis. Jose Feliciano is now next in line to replace Mr. Healey, R.I.P.

The Hells Angels Have a Navy

But not a skillful one.

According to the BBC, the Hells Angels tried to assassinate Mick Jagger in 1969. Jagger had angered the gang after swearing never to ever again use Hells Angels for concert security after the debacle at Altamont earlier that year.

The plot, such that it was, consisted of a group of Angels attempting to make a seaborne landing at Jagger's Long Island vacation home. Here's more from the BBC:

"The Hells Angels were so angered by Jagger's treatment of them that they decided to kill him," said Tom Mangold, who presents the series. "A group of them took a boat and were all tooled up and planned to attack him from the sea.

"They planned the attack from the sea so they could enter his property from the garden and avoid security at the front. The boat was hit by a storm and all of the men were thrown overboard. All survived and there was not said to have been any further attempt on Jagger's life."

Should have subcontracted the hit to a Seal Team. Amateur mistake.

We reviewed Gimme Shelter here, if you want some background on the Angels/Jagger beef.

Dave Clark RIP (UPDATED)

UPDATE: I have been notified by The Vinyl District that Dave Clark is still alive. It was lead singer Mike Smith that took the dirt nap last week, not Clark. Anyway, Clark won't live forever so let's just revisit this when he does die. And as a favor to me, if you see him, kill him on the spot.
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Dave Clark, drummer for the Dave Clark Five, died on February 28. The DC5 were a British Invasion group that briefly rivaled the Beatles here in America. As noted, Clark was the drummer of the group, but in fulfillment of every drummer's wet dream, he not only named the band after himself, but he also put his drum kit front and center and arranged the rest of the band around the sides and behind him.

The Dave Clark Five are best known for their two hits, "Glad All Over" (1963), and "Catch Us If You Can" (1965). After the success of the movie Hard Day's Night, the DC5 made Catch Us If You Can, which was directed by first timer John Boorman--Boorman later went on to direct some pretty good movies (Deliverance, Hope and Glory) as well as one infamous bomb (Exorcist II: The Heretic). Here's the band doing "Catch Us If You Can":



"Glad All Over" is pretty catchy as well. It also has the distinction of being the official song of the Crystal Palace Football Club. Crystal Palace plays in Croydon, in south London. I have a pal who did post-graduate work at Oxford in the mid-1990s and I went over to visit him while he was there. Being soccer fans, we arranged to go to a Premier League game while I was there. If Crystal Palace were in the NFL, they'd be the Detroit Lions--rarely successful, and never provoking any degree of love or hate because no one really gives a fuck about their miserable existence.

Anyway, because it was Palace, we were able to get tickets to see them play Newcastle United at their home stadium in Croydon. Now I'm aware that the name "Crystal Palace" conjures images of shiny glass and royalty, but the stadium was a fucking dump that smelled weird. On the train there a whole shitload of Newcastle fans jumped on--they were all either enormously fat, or undernourished to the point where they looked like they had rickets. I thought to myself, these are the famous hooligans, I'm about to get glassed here. But nothing happened, other than one guy took a piss in the corner of the train car, creating a large puddle that everyone tried to avoid. And again, the stench of BO and halitosis was retch-inducing.

Anyway, we got to the stadium and watched the game. Palace lost 2-0 and I think they were relegated that season. It was raining and in the 40s. Really, the whole experience was sort of depressing.

But, to bring this post full circle, they did play "Glad All Over" as the Palace players ran onto the field. I think some of them tripped over the sideline as they ran out.

"Glad All Over":


Here's the most famous moment in Crystal Palace history: Eric Cantona of Manchester United launches a bad-ass karate kick into the chest of a Palace fan who'd talked shit to him: