The
instagr.am photos of the month... Burt, posing in
the only snow we've seen this year. Cary, NC. Clouds.
Cary, NC. Oldsmobile
Cutlass, 1975 model maybe? Marion, NC. Mouse, the rare
foray outside. Cary, NC.
It is completely impossible to look at too many Chernobyl pictures. Trust me,
I've tried. Here are some
more.
5Boro put out an awesome new
video quite recently. Raw (mostly) NYC street skating. Thrasher has a free download
of it here.
There are a couple of photo journal updates, some state
fair photos that I would have sworn I posted months ago but
somehow got lost, and a chunk of band
photos from various shows.
Music reviews
over on that site - Sharon Van Etten, Guided By Voices, Wooden Shjips,
Of Montreal, Whatever Brains,
and a few others. Been kinda lazy on that front this month.
Bleached with The Black Belles The Pinhook
2/9/2012
Every time I go to Durham for a show, I tell my self I should go to
Durham more often for a show. In my brain it's a long
drive, but it's actually closer than Chapel Hill/Carrboro.
Parking is easier, food trucks are everywhere, and usually the
crowd is less irritating.
I had been looking forward to this
Bleached show for a little
while. Pretty much all I knew by them was their "Think of
You" seven inch out on Art Fag, but that song is so damn catchy I was
instantly sold on whatever shit they were shov-
eling. the band is a four piece, with two blonde sisters fronting
the band and a pair of dudes as the rhythm section.
You could probably argue that the songs all kinda sounded the same, but
it was a good kind of same - catchy, cute
fuzzed out power pop. I gravitate to music of this ilk like moths
to a flame, though it rarely kills me like flames are apt
to do to moths. Moths are stupid though. I haven't read any
other reviews, but I'm guessing this band has met a few
Best Coast comparisons based simply on the layout of the group, but I'm
not sure how similar their sounds are. There
are moments when I think of a female version of Mark Sultan/BBQ, there
are other moments when I think of a female
version of Gentleman Jess & His Men, and still more moments where
they don't particularly sound like either of those
groups, but still quite enjoyable. As an added bonus, they played
a cover of the Misfit's "Horror Business" and much
good times singing along was had by all.
The
Black Belles played before Bleached. I honestly didn't
know what to think - all I knew about them is they were a
new band Jack White had a hand in getting out in the world, and they
backed up Stephen Colbert one night on "The
Colbert Report." I can say this with 100% certainty - if you had
asked me beforehand do I find goth witches hot, I prob-
ably would have said no. After seeing this band play, I very much
find goth witches hot. Here's the thing - a hot girl is
still a hot girl no matter how silly the outfit she is wearing
is. And really, the only silly part was the velvet hats, ain't
nothing wrong with black dresses and stockings. Their better
songs definitely had a Jack White "vibe" to them, unless
that's me reading too much into the connection. They were all
pretty decent musicians, but the drummer was especially
fascinating to watch - she probably weighed 80 pounds wet, and when she
really needed to get a loud pop from her
bass drum she would basically stand up on the pedal as she hit
it. She also had a possessed look on her face the
entire time, all while the rest of the band looked kinda
indifferent. In addition to their songs they played a cover oh
Harry Nilsson's "Cuddly Toy," which was apparently also recorded and
performed by the Monkees. I should really be
more well versed on my Monkees. Given the whole package, the
Black Belles were pretty entertaining.
I'm all the time referring to people as creepers, from my days in San
Francisco where the streets are filled to the brim
with bums, street kids and creepers (these groups are not mutually
exclusive). So when a band from Ohio called Day
Creeper is playing a free show at my local haunt Kings, why not get out
of the house and see some music? It didn't
hurt that one of my very favorite local bands, Whatever Brains, were
headlining the night.
So, Day Creeper - pretty damn
enjoyable. They had a classic pop punk sound, and I mean late
seventies classic.
It's almost like they yearned for the pop sheen of the Nerves but
wrapped it in some Ramones simplicity and crunch.
All of the tracks were simple, catchy, and to the point. Turns
out they have released a seven inch through the great Tic
Tac Totally, that's the sort of information I like to know going into
the show not after I buy band merch, but either way
it's a stamp of quality in my eyes. The band seemed to be pretty
well received by the rest of the rabble as well, and
hopefully they sold merch to more people than just me. I know I
was spoiled from living in SF and Oakland for so long
where bands like this thrive, but we don't get a lot of good
garage/punk/power pop around here.
I was just trying to describe Whatever Brains to a friend that
lives in Spain, and the best I could come up with was
"Imagine Les Savy Fav of they were more punk and less mentally
stable." I've lost track on how many times I've seen
this band. but I'm pretty sure I've failed every time I've tried to
write a review of their live show. They're just so much in
their own world musically that I'm too dumb to process my mental
enjoyment into coherent words and sentences. I
know every time I see them live I think the myself that they are one of
my favorite things in the entire world and I'm so
glad they are local and play out a lot. So that's my most recent
entry into my pantheon of poor Whatever Brains re-
views - this band is awesome. The end.
“All
right, later dudes. S you in your A’s, don’t wear a C, and J all over
your B’s.”
Big Boi - General
Patton (feat. Big Rube). Still can't get enough of
that solo Big Boi record. Shit is aging like a fine
wine or cheese or whiskey or whatever fancy shit that ages.
Bonus: Shutterbugg.
Caltrop - Bloodroot.
Local metal dudes don't come off quite as heavy on their recording as
they do live, but both
versions of the band are fantastic.
Bonus: The
Phlogiston Command.
Centro-Matic - If
They Talk You Down. This should have been on my "best
of" list for last year. Definitely honor-
able mention if not higher. The album is damn near perfect, and
maybe the best thing they have recorded.
Bonus: Iso-Residue.
Charlie Feathers - That
Certain Female. Life is better because of Charlie
Feathers.
Liars - Clear
Island. I sorta stopped paying attention to Liars, but
picked up this record out of a bargain bin and it's
damn good. Easily their most accessable. Particularly of
note is the track below, "Freak Out," which is one of the best
Jesus & Mary Chain impersonations I've ever heard.
Bonus: Freak
Out.
Robyn Hitchcock - Everybody
Needs You. I have nothing particularly interesting to
say here other than it's Robyn
fuckin' Hitchcock.
Bonus: If
You Know Time.
Tig Notaro - Little
Titties. A couple of clips from my second favorite
comedy record of the year.
Bonus: Popular
Phrases.
Vetiver - Rolling
Sea. I haven't gotten overly excited about Vetiver in
a number of years, but all of their records have
at least a couple of enjoyable songs.
Bonus: Sister.
