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Wreckless Eric and Amy Rigby with Joe Jack Talcum – North Star Bar (Philadelphia, PA) – September 26, 2008
Eric and Amy played a marathon, 2-hour set that stretched until 1:15 AM, showcasing songs from both of their individual catalogs as well as new ones from their recently released collaborative album. It doesn’t hurt that Amy is the best lyricist of the last dozen years and a great performer to boot and that Eric deftly combines late ‘60s psychedelia with late ‘70s punk intensity in a fashion not dissimilar to TV SMITH’s solo shows. I only caught a few of opener Joe Jack Talcum’s songs, but the fact that two of them were great solo acoustic versions of songs by his old band THE DEAD MILKMEN (including “Punk Rock Girl”) really made me perk up my ears. What a show!
Vivian Girls – Danger Danger Gallery (Philadelphia, PA) – September 21, 2008
Vivian Girls are like JAY REATARD and his backing band if they were all female, a lot more overtly poppy and considerably less intense. With that said, they still managed to play what felt like 15 songs in 25 minutes (not unlike Mr. Reatard), all in an enjoyably murky and noisy sonic blur that didn’t manage to obscure their pop leanings.
Pissed Jeans – Johnny Brenda’s (Philadelphia, PA) – September 20 ,2008
These guys scare me a little, but not in a bad way. They just play ugly, nasty, damaged music in the vein of FLIPPER, NO TREND, later BLACK FLAG, JESUS LIZARD, et al. and their live show is a spectacle to behold. Loud as hell with singer MATT CORVETTE hurling himself around the stage like a human projectile, hitting cymbals with his shoes, stripping off layers of clothing as the show went on and pouring water into his knapsack, it didn’t even matter that they seemed to play predominantly newer songs which neither I nor most of the crowd recognized.
Vivian Girls – Live on the Radio WFMU 9/1/2008 (no label)
As the title indicates, this is a live cd-r of their set at WFMU from earlier in the month. In typical Vivian Girls fashion, 9 songs are hammered out in 17 minutes. The sound quality leaves a little to be desired, but the energy of their live show and the catchiness of their songs still manages to come through here. This is limited to 150 and as far as I know, only being sold on their current tour.
Vivian Girls – “I Can’t Stay” EP (In the Red)
This new, two song 7” is meant as a teaser for the re-release of their self-titled debut Lp (also on In the Red) next month. The initial pressing of the Lp sold out back in the spring, but in any case these 2 songs aren’t on the album. The A-side is one of their catchiest and poppiest numbers while the B-side is a cover of DAISY CHAIN’s “Blind Spot” and nope, I hadn’t heard of it either. At first I thought it was the old Oklahoma band DAISY CHAINSAW. A quick internet search didn’t help me find any info about the song, but I did find this interview, in which they talk about the single. Searching again, I was able to find out that Daisy Chain was an all-girl psych-pop band from the late ‘60s. Here is some more info about them and a chance to hear the original version of the song, entitled “Run Spot Run”.
The Marked Men – On the Outside (Dirtnap)
Having only been introduced to this Texas band recently, this album from 2004 is the only full-length of theirs I’ve heard. Boy is it a corker, though! This is just great, full-on, ‘77-style punk but played with enough intensity, passion and drive to not make it feel at all nostalgic. Members of this band are also in another great and similarly styled band called HIGH TENSION WIRES.
Ruth Ruth – “Brainiac” EP (Deep Elm)
For the uninitiated, Ruth Ruth are one of the most underrated bands of the ‘90s and how their hook-infused, seemingly radio-friendly power-pop/pop-punk never made it big is something I can’t comprehend. As such, though, they bounced around from label to label, releasing two brilliant Lps, a great EP and these two songs. This 7” was released right after The Little Death EP on Epitaph back in 1996. The A-side was eventually re-recorded and released as the last track on their excellent Are You My Friend?, their sole effort for RCA, in 1998. The B-side is the non-album “Love Potion #10”.
The Black Watch – Jiggery-Pokery (Stone Garden)
I’m still playing this one a lot. In particular, “Lovestruck” is perhaps one of the greatest songs of this decade, but the rest of it is also full of great, literate lyrics and gorgeous melodies, which are two of the things I like most about music. It’s no wonder I like this record so much.
Tilt – “Crying Jag”
When I bought East Bay punk band Tilt’s debut Lp Play Cell back when it came out in 1993, I was immediately taken by this great opening track. In fact, it’s so good that I was underwhelmed by the rest of the album. Hearing the album recently, I had the same exact reaction.
The Dead Milkmen – Big Lizard in My Backyard (Enigma)
Seeing Dead Milkmen guitarist Joe Jack Talcum play a solo show the other night has made me revisit the Milkmen catalog. I love all of their stuff up to Metaphysical Graffiti and this, their debut, will always be remembered for the immortal classic “Bitchin’ Camaro”. However, lots of other highlights abound, with attacks on rednecks like “Tiny Town,” “Violent Schools’ and “Right Wing Pigeons” standing out amongst the bizarre humor of songs like the title track and “Swordfish” as well as the snottiness of “Beach Song”.
