My favorite hymn from my formidable years as a Catholic School Boy was Go Tell It On the Mountain. It was one of the few songs that forced my ass off the stiff wood pew and encouraged my prepubescent voice cry out to the higher power. Last night another mountain impressed me enough to believe in a higher power; at least geographically. When someone describes a band by using the word psychedelic I immediately become skeptical. Outside of a few bands doing the psych rock style justice, (Dead Meadow and The Warlocks) I usually get turned off by what seems to be another blatant attempt to mesh influences by bands my mom used to see at lazar rock shows. Not that this is a bad thing, but like some of my friends, I’m not into psychedelics. My reality is hard enough to deal with, (even though I have it pretty good). This idea of psychedelic has me instantly think extended jams and obnoxious guitar riffing. There is also the notion of psychedelic as highlighted in the Nuggets box set, but we all know that has morphed into Neu Garage which has all but fallen off the radar. Last night Black Mountain became a welcomed addition to my current psychedelic rock favorites.
My evening started with a welcomed shift at the Bowery for the Regina Spektor show. Not realizing the temperature was going to drop, I cruised out of 186 in less than the required gear. Thankfully the night was such a breeze. The label reps were super nice and Dave is always a killer guy to have on the team. Once we closed down, I said hello to everyone working downstairs then shot upstairs to catch a couple songs. Not being too familiar with Spektor outside of her vocal track on that Strokes B-side, I was pleasantly surprised to see an extremely earnest redhead prancing about the stage singing about, “Kissing someone close to you so you both get practice.” She is so cute you could bottle her up and sell her to tourists. Cara popped by and we chatted for a couple minutes before Mr. Beardsley and I headed to Mercury.On our way to the back room, we snagged a quick drink and said hello to Ari Upwelling who always seems to be in great spirits. He filled me in on what I missed in terms of Crystal Skulls. The back corner was stuffed full of familiar faces that included: Beach, Daylen, DJ Del, Tumblehawk, Christina Flavorpill, Lucy, Tracy Lordz, Jintastic, Mr. Beardsley, Sladyk in the Box and a happily drunk Gigs. A very solid crew was assembled for the kick ass rock show during the final hours of Wednesday night.
Hailing from what the bass player called, “Downtown Canada,” Black Mountain isn’t your typical band. The five-piece includes guitar, bass, drums, keys and a wildcard lady who adds harmonies, cowbell, tambourine and even some melodica to the mix. At times they caught grooves that flashed me back to last weeks Dead Meadow show, but they didn’t ride them nearly as long. The bass player hammered away at some great melodies that came across very tasty and even a bit funky. There was also some (intentional?) fuzz seeping from the President of the North American Beard Club’s guitar. This guy made Grizzly Adams look like a poor man’s Barry Gibb. Anyway, this band sounds like they discovered their parent’s acid rock records, smoked an ounce of grass and decided to compose music. There were hints of the obligatory reference points, but Black Mountain definitely took the cue from their predecessors and redefined heavy.If you feel the need to see what I’m talking about (trust me, you do), then get off your ass and head to Asterisk* tonight where Black Mountain and Crystal Skulls are playing a gig. It’s only 6 bones, and Todd P’s site has all the details. If not there are a couple other shows worth noting:
1. Album Leaf w/ Bloodthirsty Lovers @ Mercury Lounge: This show has yet to sellout which is surprising after all the great press both bands have received, (Tickets).
2. The Giraffes w/ The Diggs @ Sin-e: Do you like hard rock as much as me? Do you want to see a man play riffs for an entire set? Then go to this show, (Tickets).
3. Say Hi To Your Mom w/ Aqueduct & Effel Tower @ Northsix: Eric’s songwriting continues to excel. Go welcome Say Hi To Your Mom home after a tour following their SXSW appearance, (Tickets).
Should we be chastised for our former music atrocities? I’d have to lean towards live and learn status. There are definitely some shows that I’m ashamed to say I attended. The numerous Less Than Jake shows along with some even crappier ska/punk bands will continue to haunt my past. But I’m not ashamed. Neither should you Mr. Bravery lead singer guy. Don’t let the man get you down. Your band doesn’t suck because you used to play in Skabba the Hut. Your band sucks because it’s a copy of a copy of a copy, (to use Palanhiuk’s language). Dance Revival is so 2002. The Killers are so 2004. Hating The Bravery is so 2005. Does this mean I agree with The Killers? I guess so, (punching myself where my balls should be).
12 Comments:
Nice Plagiarism.
on which part?
Admit it, you still love LTJ. Just because you're a big NYC hipster now getting your face published all over SPIN and having your blog mentioned in the NY Post, doesn't mean you can't still passionately cream for ska/punk.....you're still a skank-a-holic
shit man, you just blew my cover dickhead. ok, now that its out, lets dust off our pork pies, shine up the docs and head over to the crowbar. we can slam fire and ice in the car while we blast skamaggedon 2 or was it 3. man, high school was awesome.
Wanna check out skankin pickle tonight? i think ruder than you is opening.
Long Live 2000 Flushes!
You know what part. And you know when you're ripping off someone else's shit.
what? ok, well whatever you say. my apologies if i plagiarised, paraphrased or straight ripped something off.
but if you want to be a prick about it... fuck off and don't come back.
April fools---tittylips!!!
Love your pal,
Fucko
wait, fucko the alligator can type? shit. i'm screwed.
and yes, you are a bastard
I once fulfilled LTJ chris' fantasy of having an asian girl walk on his back. what an unattractive bunch of dudes.
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