Brubaker

One band against a cruel system.

Years ago, the Sacramento band Kai Kln were playing a show in the Bay Area with Victim's Family, the legendary hardcore band on Jello Biafra's Alternative Tentacles label. Biafra, the former Dead Kennedy's singer was in attendance that night. After Kai Kln finished their set, he approached drummer Neil Franklin and complimented his drumming. After a pause, the punk provocateur wryly added, "But, your music is a little too Woodstock-ish for me."

Flash forward and ironically, the two are on the same bill at the Blue Lamp in Sacramento this Saturday night. Or maybe not so ironic. Franklin is playing as part of a supergroup that features his old Kai Kln band mate Gene Smith along with Victim's Family/Triclops bass monster Larry Boothroyd and the gifted guitarist Christian Riley of Blu Chunks/Walrus fame.

Meanwhile, headliners Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine feature Victim's Family guitarist Ralph Spight and the amazing bassist Andrew Weiss of Ween/Rollins band fame. The rest of the band includes drummer Paul Della Pelle, formerly of  Helios Creed and guitarist Kimo Ball. Given Biafra's agitprop bent, the group's music is about many things political-including torture policies and austerity. Their album titles include-"The audacity of hype," "Advanced methods of questioning" and their latest"White people & the damage done."

 The Brubaker bandmates, along with Spight,  have been close friends for quite awhile. Riley has most recently played with Franklin and Smith in the Ricky and Del Connection, a bluesier infusion of Kai Kln.

Smith, who wrote and sang most of both Kai Kln's and Ricky and Del's music, is doing the same with Brubaker. Smith is a natural writer, with a proclivity towards the bombast of 70's power chords and melodies, albeit revved up to a tempo that some have called "Cream on 78 rpm. "Gene has been on a writing tear lately," said Franklin of the singer/guitarist. "We have five new songs that we would love to record." It will be interesting to hear the contributions of Boothroyd and Riley, considering their combined jazz, punk, funk and metal influences. Propelling it all will be Franklin, who in addition to being one helluva drummer, is also the band's onstage spokesman, wise cracker and all-around talent at keeping things loose. If he were a baseball player, you'd want him in your clubhouse.

Since both Boothroyd and Riley reside in the Bay Area, the group has been going between practcing in Franklin's Sacramento garage and Smith and Franklin heading over to Emeryville. Franklin feels that things are getting tighter and better with every practice. "We're getting back to really crushing it with electric guitars!" he chirped."Hopefully, we're a little heavier than Woodstock these days."

As the famous line from Brubaker goes-"Mess with me now, you're gonna regret it later."

Come out and see for yourself. It's going to be a night of beautiful madness at The Blue Lamp.And if you're on your best behavior, you just might hear a little Dead Kennedy's too.

Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine
w/ Brubaker
@ The Blue Lamp, Saturday, April 13
9pm   21 and over

                                                     The cast and crew of Brubaker:

 Kai Kln rocking in Cesar Chavez Park in 2007
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SrneFRpSHYM

New venue, new headliners

Last Friday night brought The California Honeydrops to Sacramento's newest venue-The Assembly. The Honeydrops are an up and coming band from the Oakland, while the Assembly is a new space near K and 10th.

The Honeydrops started slowly, but once they got it going they drew the crowd on the dance floor with their accessible sound, a funky blend of blues, R & B, and most notably Second Line New Orleans jazz. The five piece group is led by vocalist/guitarist/trumpateer Lech Wierzyski. Wierzyski is a versatile talent, with a great singing voice and advanced skills on the trumpet. The apex of the band's performance was when all five members left the stage and hit the floor Second Line style, with drummer Ben Malament shining on the cowbell. Malament also plays a mean washboard.

The band have great potential as a live act, but need to figure out a way to consistently boost their sound a bit, particularly with the great variety of instruments that they play. If they plan on headlining medium venues like this, they need to play closer attention to this factor. Their sound was much crisper when they recently opened for ALO at the Fillmore and also at Harlow's. Look for them to have a breakout summer though, after their new album "Like you mean it" hits the streets. From there, they go on to play big festivals like the High Sierra Music Festival, where their "hit the floor" approach will go over big .

The Assembly is the size of a small school cafeteria. There is a spacious floor, a very large stage and a small section of two-tiered lounge seating in the balcony. High utilization is the key word here. The space doubles as a stage for the B Street Theater, which does 7pm improv shows on Friday and Saturday and clears out prior to the music starting. The venue has good sight lines and an impressive looking  lighting rig mounted to the ceiling. The stage is backlit and the curtain is set far to the rear of the stage, giving bands an immense space in which to set up their equipment.

While the facility is nicely set up, it could use a few tweaks over time. Their needs to be more color added to the side walls and the area near the front of the stage to create more warmth in the room. The bar service was pretty slow, so one or two bartenders would be a welcome addition as well. There didn't seem to be much utilization of the big lighting rig on the ceiling, it would be nice to see what that can do. However, the biggest tweak needs to be figuring out how to fill the room more completely with sound. All of these things can be improved over time. And just like the aforementioned band, this venue has big potential. 

The California Honeydrops doing their thing in Sacramento

 And for some live sounds, check out The California Honeydrops recent live performance at the Fillmore:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Os8JOx6WxJY#!

Merle, Motorhead and a great new Clutch album

One of the great things to happen on the latest season of the great zombie series "The Walking Dead" was a scene where Merle, the redneck everyone loves to hate, is trapped in a car drinking whiskey and cranking up some Motorhead. It just so happens that he is jamming to "Fast and Loose," a fine cut from the group's landmark album Ace of Spades. The perfect tune for a Merle to enjoy whiskey straight out of the bottle as zombies drool, paw and claw all over the car.

Last season, there was an episode of the show called "Nebraska," that featured a great Clutch song called "The Regulator." Some great music is making it's way onto this show. The new Clutch disc needs to make it onto your CD player.  

Earth Mover is a volatile beast of an album. Brimming with attitude and sheer power, it starts strong and keeps building momentum that never stops building until the final track, "The Wolfman kindly requests." And by that point, the urge to play whole thing over again is undeniable. Go get this album.

Here is the audio track to a great cut called-"DC sound attack"

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VXIzmM1DaW8

Ladies and Gentlemen....your credit card please!

I want to personally thank the Rolling Stones for the obscene ticket prices on their upcoming tour. By relinquishing their cheapest seats for a mere $250 each, they have helped validate what I am trying to do with this blog. Did you know that same total you can see about 16 shows (at an average $15) in the Beet Seeking Missile price range.

As a lifelong Stones fan, I continue to have a strong affinity for the band. I think their influence is especially prevalent in today's music. But it's sheer madness to fork over that much dough to see any band, regardless of the fact they haven't put out a good album in over 20 years. That's not the point. We all know these guys are icons and long ago achieved their deserved place in the Pantheon of Rock Gods.
But to pay that price is to feed into the mentality that has driven up concert ticket prices over the past two decades, ever since the Eagles started routinely charging over $100 per ticket. And don't get me started on the Eagles.
Why not instead check out a bunch of new groups? None may become the next Rolling Stones, but you may end up with a substantial amount more satisfaction than you would have by blowing that hard-earned cash and you just might find an up and coming band that you really, really like. Don't spend your music budget in vain.


 

Heartless Bastards-Mini Review

I could hear the voice a block away. As I walked towards Harlow's Nightclub on J. Street in Sacramento on this rainy night, I could hear this deep, booming, husky female voice permeating the walls of the club and resonating onto the wet streets. This voice could have come from ancient times. The deep, perhaps ancient soul behind the voice was almost unsettling as it penetrated through the walls.
At first I thought it may have been a recording, but as I got closer and heard the sound of live drums and the thrum of the crowd, I knew it was the golden voice of Erika Wennerstrom of the Heartless Bastards.

Upon entering the usually noisy club, it blew me away how quiet and reverent the crowd had suddenly become, a hush fallen across them as the band started a quiet number. They were taking it all in on this Easter night. Eventually the band changed course, as they are apt to do, breaking through the intimacy with their raw, blues based rock and amazing cohesiveness.
At one point someone in the crowd shouted "Thanks!" to the band for playing here and Erika thanked him back, then paused, "We thought it was a little strange to play on Easter Sunday, but being here with all of you sure beats sitting in a hotel room" said the road worn singer. With that, the fun commenced again and the Heartless Bastards rocked the room some more.

Heartless Bastards-Easter show in Sac

The Heartless Bastards are truly a merciless musical bunch. "I'm gonna see what tomorrow brings/ I'm gonna take it to the world outside" invokes vocalist Erika Wennerstrom in "Be so happy." The Bastards have done just that in the last year. In a time when folk rock is coming on strong, the Bastards stand apart with their raw blues-based rock that naturally spills over to the folk genre. The band have relentlessly toured and taken strong it to the people with each live opportunity. 
The mega-talented Wennerstrom fronts the band, writes most of the music and sings with ample soul, power and conviction. Her songwriting keeps getting better with each album and the band's most recent release "Arrow" is a fine example of this.
The thunderous backline of drummer Dave Colvin and bassist Jesse Ebaugh form the rhythm core of the band.. Many of the groups' songs begin as these wonderful, sometimes dark and bluesy explorations that expand, reshape and take on grander meaning as the band, which also includes guitarist Mark Nathan, who adds excellent leads and rhythm, help her work things out with a healthy dose of cymbal crashes, abrupt changes and driving force .I only say all of this since this will be the fourth time I've seen this band in the last 10 months and I gladly keep coming back for more. Go see this band!
Heartless Bastards w/Jonny Fritz
Tonight at Harlow's Nightclub 8p..
$15

Review:  Black Star @ The Fox, Oakland, Ca. 3/23/13

Telegraph Ave. in Oakland is a scene full of hustle and bustle on a warm Saturday night. The crowd is young, urban and eager for some hip-hop. We wind our way through a variety of bars, bbq joints and people on the street. All around there is a buzz in the air about Black Star, the superstar hip-hop act featuring Talib Kweli and Mos Def (who now calls himself Yasmin Bey), that rarely tours.
Upon entering the beautiful Fox Theater, I am reminded how the landmark venue's $75 million facelift five years ago made it the most stunning music venue in the Bay Area. With a lush, spacious bowl and rich hues and visceral textures enhancing the building's architectural splendor, it's easy on the eyes.And more importantly, the acoustics are designed for ear candy.

Starting things off were First Light, featuring Pep Love and Opio, a pair of MC's from the Souls of Mischief and Hieroglyphics crews. The duo's battery of stream of consciousness lyrics enthralled many in  the crowd for a while, but as their set wore on, it was clear to them and everyone else, that they were losing steam as the amped crowd anticipated what was coming. It would be nice to see the group stray from the pattern of oft-repeated phrases that have already been done to death from the book of abstract. 

Black Star doesn't tour that much. Talib Kweli is all over the world, all year long with his solo work and occassionally his great group with singer Res called Idle Warship. Bey, the former Mos Def is completely booked with a film career that leaves little time for music.
Thus, it's difficult to get the two together. They only play a handful of shows every year, yet are still considered one of the most talented and creative duo's in hip-hop.

After hitting the stage 40 minutes late, Yasmin began the night  with an apology because he was not feeling very well. He did sound a bit froggy, his usual rich tenor, was audibly scratchy and irritable. But like any real pro, he promised to give it his all. True to his word, that is what he proceeded to do.
Meanwhile, Kweli came out at his usual 120% and floored the audience, who could really care less about anything other than the fact that they were lucky enough to have these legends in their presence.
 Like an overloaded freight train heading downhill, the duo steamed through hit after hit after hit from the Black Star lexicon, Bey, only pausing briefly between songs to take sips of tea. Bey(it's hard not to say Mos Def!) croaked out a staccato stream of lyrics and would occasionally loosen up his voice enough to keep up with Kweli's mad pace. Wisely, at times, he just danced, with an unrehearsed smoothness that only comes from being in the spotlight since his teen years.
The duo kept it up, song after song, until the end when each played a hit of his own. Bey (Def!) going with a nice medley of "Umi Says" and the "Boogie Man" songs. Naturally Kweli could only follow this with a thunderous version of "Get By" that sent the crowd happily back out the door to Telegraph, where food vendors happily fed the hungry bellies since the soul had already been fed.

Black Star Live on The Colbert Report