Was once a podcast with Elwood D. Pennypacker (@oldtimeelwood on the Twitter) that went by the old expression "Punk Isn't Dead, It Just Goes to Bed at a More Reasonable Hour".
Thursday, July 09, 2009
Heavy Trash @ Mercury Lounge
Heavy Trash @ Mercury Lounge New York, NY - July 9, 2009
I should have stayed for Those Darlins, not just because I like what I've heard, but because I wanted to see why they would headline over Heavy Trash. Anyway, HT were excellent. Either because of the superb sound of the Merc, or the band has become more polished over the years now that they've been cooking. There's a reason this has became Jon Spencer's main project - it's just that damn good. The shortened set didn't allow for "You Can't Win" or "They Were Kings" but "Crazy Pretty Baby" and "Justine Alright" held down the fort. The band's sound may be an excellent bottle of vintage but the energy and exhuberance led my colleague to note that Spencer is 20 years older and yet "looks younger than us". Personally, I think it's the hair.
The Incredibly Interesting Symbiotic Relationship of Metric and Heavy Trash
When I decided to see Metric for the first time last year, it came at the sacrifice of seeing Heavy Trash for the first time. I've seen Heavy Trash since but Metric is coming back - moving their Highline Ballroom show from the August 7th to the 8th (apparently so that Mates of State could headline its own show at the venue). What does this mean? It means that instead of Metric duking it out with the Black Keys for gig of the night, they now have to contend with...you guessed it...Heavy Trash (playing at Glasslands). And once again the great struggle between seeing Emily Haines and Jon Spencer is renewed again. And this is to say nothing of the fact that also on the 8th of August, Iggy Pop & the Stooges are playing Terminal 5.
In one of the biggest media crimes of the decade, Public Radio International has axed Fair Game (I figured something was up when the show was in repeats for way too long on either side of Memorial Day). Read here and here for the details - though interestingly, the cancellation is yet to be acknowledged on the show web site. The podcast is still being updated with old shows and segments.
As it is noted in places on the links, the comedy on the show was mixed at best. All of Faith's cohorts were pretty annoying (the program could feel like a bad imitation of The Daily Show for radio). But Faith herself is/was a fantastic host. Smart, well-informed, asking very pointed, and very substantive questions, especially by public radio standards, she tooks things to a new level. It also helped that she is absolutely cute as a button in every way possible.
As with most good public radio shows, Fair Game provided informative news segments on issues and trends, and it was also a great source for interviews on independent cinema. But most important of all, it was one of the best sources for new Indie music. The bookings were sensational. Even the artists that I personally did not care for, I respected their presence on the show. Except when they ignored my request for the Dirtbombs and kept the CD I sent. But that was under their old music coordinator so who knows.
Syndicated TV rock n' roll show Fearless Music recently scrapped its five band format for a 10 band format, in which the bands are shown only briefly. This is terrible.
But on the other hand, the show has redone it's website and, among other things, it has made its archives more accessible. Highlights:
Drunk on Pomade, Lime Ricky, Cherry Wine, & Pepsi Cola: Heavy Trash at Glasslands
Heavy Trash; Puddin' Tang; Feels So Good Let's Do It @ Glasslands Brooklyn, NY - 1/11/08 There is no one quite like Jon Spencer. An amalgam of every pure, vibrant form of Americana rock n' roll, Mr. Spencer embodies the spirit of Elvis Presley and the fire of Jerry Lee Lewis in the rhetorical guise of Tom Waits. His hypnotic voice brings Buddy Holly to the cerebral world. Roy Orbison to the dark side. All the more fitting then that his collaboration with Matt VERTA-Ray (apologies for the misspelling in the year-end review that - for reason beyond control - cannot be corrected) found its way to an esoteric art gallery on the industrial wasteland of Kent Street in western Williamsburg. Between Matt's gruff-yet-suave git skills and Jon's all-encompassing gravity, along with more than able bass and drum players, Heavy Trash is the most thrilling revival of American music. Period. "Outside Chance":
Puddin' Tang's terrible name (though Puddin' remains one of the funniest sounding words in the language) does not get in the way of their garage-stomp rock. Somewhat eclectic and good fun. Insta-Clip The needlessly longed name Feels So Good Let's Do It suffered from persistent tech problems and that DID get in the way.
“Four Winds” by Bright Eyes The best song yet from this frantic alt-country dynamo. Conor Oberst’s voice is still something to be desired but he made it work with this one.
Going Way Out With Heavy Trash by Heavy Trash One of the best albums of the year. More bluesy than Blues Explosion ever is (was?), Jon Spencer’s collaboration with Matt Verde-Ray not only dodged the sophmore slump, it kicked its sorry ass to the curb and back again. “Outside Chance” and “Crazy Pretty Baby” are the two most shining examples of this little dollop of near perfection. Tom Waits gone rockabilly is one way to describe this whole thing and that’s a very good. "Outside Chance"
Gogol Bordello
Live Show
Record: Super Taranta
Song: “Wanderlust King”
Eugene Hutz’s Gogol Bordello would be the best band in the world if they weren’t so exhausting. The good stuff is so intense, so ferocious, so skilled, and so much, that after just a few short bursts, it’s enough already. Super Taranta was far from perfect, like their previous material, but the lead single got the job done. More important, the live show was historic. 3,000 intense maniacs from all walks of life turned Terminal 5 into a giant Eastern European wedding. All that was missing was the marinated herring. And it's going to happen again on New Year's Eve.
Grinderman
Live Show
Record: Grinderman
Nick Cave took the rump of the Bad Seeds, slapped some mustaches on them and himself, and churned out the top tier candidate for Best Album of 2007 (if the old system was still in place). If that wasn’t enough, Cave and the band went to Madison Square Garden, opened for the White Stripes, and stole the damn show. The raw, pounding concussion of the sound is matched bizarrely well by Cave’s rich lyrics, a poetic mess of Alvy Singer-like laments sung humorously in a confident, cocky manner. Being an aging hipster doofus never sounded so cool. On Later, "Honey Bee (Let's Fly to Mars)":
Those incorrigible Hard Lessons were at it again in 2007, sporting not one but two stellar singles that showcased on record what the band has been doing live. New York got tore up a bunch of times this year, including three times in the Autumn. It was a very good year for this very good band. "Wicked Man" at Union Hall:
“Hate It Here” by Wilco Well look at that. Wilco. After years of being found rather dull, this recalling of 70’s singer-songwriter pop finally made ol’ Pennypacker take notice for the first time since “Casino Queen”. Sky Blue Sky as a whole allowed for a new look at Jeff Tweedy and it’s looking good from here on out. Wilco – Hate It Here
As of this moment, Sonic Parthenon will be providing a review of the Metric show on Friday but it is also worth noting that the impeccable, sensational force that is Heavy Trash will be playing the Luna Lounge that same night. With a new album, a hot tour, and a commitment to rock n roll, it really doesn't get much better than this.
It's official. Fair Game is the best national terrestrial radio show for music. After the Black Lips and Camera Obscura (to name but two), tonight (or last night) Faith hosted Heavy Trash, the basically perfect garage rockabilly blues thing by Jon Spencer (he of the Blues Explosion, of course). Listen here.
