Hey look, Pitchfork (yeah, I’ve never heard of them either) is streaming the new Bent Shapes – Feels Weird (Father/Daughter Records). We implore you to listen to it, discuss the album’s themes with a friend, foe or even the taxi driver on that long ride home – hopefully he or she is not a Travis Bickle kind of taxi driver; fingers crossed. More importantly, buy the damn thing and go see this excellent Boston band live. They’re hitting up New York’s Cake Shop this Saturday, August 24. Go there and tell them we sent you, you can thank us later with candy and kisses, keep coming back, you’re coming to the right place.
Y’all know Colleen Green right? Ya y’all know. Ms. Green is heading on tour yet again and she’s bringing along her friends in White Fang and The Memories!
Tour Dates:
Fri 9/20 – Seattle WA @ Neumos w/ The Growlers, Pangea, Gap Dream, Cosmonauts, La Luz
Sat 9/21 – Portland OR @ Wonder Ballroom w/ The Growlers, Pangea, Gap Dream, Cosmonauts, La Luz
Just before you thought it was safe to go back on KLYAM again… Nice Guys are here and they aren’t so nice this time around. Fire up thee olde bandcamp page for three feisty new tunes including a cover of Andy Kaufman’s “I Trusted You,” which has been a live favorite of mine since June 8th. That’s right, June 8th. Take that Joe Rogan.
Give the new Future Spa a listen here. It’s a batch of fuzzy wuzzy garage punk ditties that should arouse fans of Roy Orbison (there’s a cover of ‘Pretty Woman!’), No Age, Sonic Youth, Black Lips, and those prone to fucking Mick Jagger. It happens to the best of us.
Here’s a quick behind the scenes video of our favorite guys Black Lips recording a cover version of The Squidbillies theme song. I’ve never heard of this show, but apparently it’s an Adult Swim program. Word, check it out and listen to the theme song; according to Ian, “It’s a hit!”
Bands: Nice Guys, Fagettes, Moniker, Guillermo Sexo, CreaturoS, The New Highway Hymnal Date: Saturday, August 10, 2013 Venue: Middle East Downstairs (Cambridge, MA)
I’m not the right person to be writing about the Fuzztival… and I assure you no one else will make that claim right off the bat to you in any other “review.” I also assure you that no one else has the the right to review this show more than me either. Reviews are pointless to begin with, don’t listen to reviewers, nothing but trouble. Never done me any good. But, I am going to write about this show anyway because that’s how it goes, that’s how it’s always been. The Middle East Downstairs, fuck man, this brings back memories. No other venue compares. KLYAM attended shows at Mid East Down way before there even was a KLYAM! We saw Black Lips, No Age, The King Khan & BBQ Show, and Box Elders (opening for Black Lips) here. Here. These suckers, these fuckers, these icons were inches away from us; their saliva smoothly sailed down my beat up, gray Ramones shirt. The next day at school I would brag about what I saw, oh boy! “Girlfriends” would feign interest, it was a glorious time to be alive. But, the fun can only last so long. Soon I would realize that they just thought I was cool because I read Noam Chomsky and Malcolm X, and indeed those men are cool, but these femmes never wanted me, they never wanted us, they never wanted rock ‘n’ roll . They just saw my slick, leather jacket and assumed I was cool. KLYAM began on the concept that cool was death, we were anarchists, rebels, nerds, dorks, sociopaths, retards, reatards. Reatards. We didn’t know (and still don’t know) how things work. Late at night/ early in the morning, you could listen to Black Lips, Jay Reatard, King Khan & The Shrines, The King Khan & BBQ Show or even that psycho gorgeous band Deerhunter and for two seconds it made sense! The world was a fucked up place, but these dudes were fucked up too and they loved it and they drank their own piss and that was okay that gave us hope, honestly.
And with that lovely introduction, here are Nice Guys! Woooooo Nice Guys woooo. How many shows has it been? Fuck it, you been counting? Me neither (yeah right) have I, I don’t fucking know, calm down. NIce Guys are a funny band though they play this abrasive, semi-hardcore, quasi garage style of music that just makes the hairs on my testes jet up and dance, It’s fucking loud and fun and noisy. They shit out various hits y’all oughta know like “Herb Chambers,” “Cop Walk,” and “Burrito Boner,” which is a favorite among dental receptionists.
I’ve seen my fair share of Nice Guys sets, yeah yeah yeah yeah, and they typically rock, but this one is a comparatively exceptional rocker. Cam Slays on the drums, up on that little drum riser thing like a Greek God – must be new to the Mid East Down, cuz I’ve never seen it before. Jake, Matt, and, Alex jolt back and forth on the guitars, bashing into one another, crawling over their bandmates’ sweaty skin, tangling in wires and such. My favorite moment in the set is when Cam rushes up from his drum set and tackles Jake to the floor. That’s what I like to see, I love aggression, I guess I am just a sick guy. Nah, metal folk are sick, I am just having fun. Nice Guys are fun and sweet! http://niceguys666.bandcamp.com/
Set – List:
“Gary”
“Herb Chambers”
“Unholy Sacrifice”
“Free”
“Finale”
“Cop Walk”
“HD”
“MD”
“Burrito Boner”
Watch Nice Guys play “Draggins” at the Fuzzstival HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jdqiUk8gGi0
Nice Guy Matt Garlick is back again in The Fagettes and he’s joined by Ryan, Melanie, Peaches, and Joe. Fagettes are a KLYAM fave, only a fool couldn’t tell you that. They lean toward the nastier side of rock and roll that we cherish. Besides delivering humorous and informative weather reports, they unleash many essentials including “My Girl Looks Like Johnny Thunders,” “On Drugs,” “Water, Tea, and Alcohol,” “Tsunami,” and “Gonna Die Out Here.” In addition to the gunky classics, the fivesome also bash out some new numbers with “Bad Catholic” being my top jam for this holy evening. I too was a bad catholic, drank the holy water, bopped the bishop, and licked plenty of peanut butter.
A cool breeze just splashed over me, it’s a sign that Fagettes are the future of American pop music OR a favorite band of mine, Either way the future looks bright. http://thefagettes.bandcamp.com/
Watch The Fagettes play “On Drugs” at the Fuzzstival HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jug1J4cAub0
Moniker – I catch flashes of Moniker’s set, I dig, but I need to hear more to judge. Find out for yo self here: http://whatsyourmoniker.bandcamp.com/
Now to Guillermo Sexo. Not as sexy as I would have thunk; not enough gunk punk in thee old junk. That’s okay though, I think some of y’all would dig them. For the first ten minutes or so, I’m feeling sexy, but then it just drags and my psyche yearns for some “Light Shines,” but that’s another band for another day, Ultimately, this is a decent band, just not exciting enough for my tastes. http://guillermosexo.bandcamp.com/
CreaturoS are a psych outfit that often pop up on local listings and rightfully so. While, I can’t say that they are the right kind of punk slime dish that I prefer, they do rock pretty hard, enough so to garner an onslaught of fuzzstivalers, friends, and fans up on stage moshing and boppin’ about. A killer way to conclude a set. http://creaturos.bandcamp.com/
During CreaturoS’ and Sexo’s sets, I”m clutching on to the monitors and dreaming about a three way between Betty Rubble, Wilma Flintstone, and myself. Gee whiz, that would be a swell time, but I must be at least a tad bit insane in the old membrane for me to conjure up such images. Ironically, The New Highway Hymnal put me in my place. Arguably, The NHH are the freakiest of the bands tonight and that works to their advantage. Vocalist/guiarist Hadden Stemp utters “Let’s give it up for CreaturoS,” receiving very little crowd response. “That sucked,” Stemp accurately asserts. He gives the Boston crowd one more chance and with a slight improvement we segue way into the New Highway Hymnal’s diabolic set. The trio, which includes Travis Hagan on drums and Amelia Gormley on bass and vocals, open with “Whispers,” the title track off their epic LP released last year on Vanya Records. The fuzziness continues with the grimy album opener “Through Stained Glass,” and then my memory is fuzzy after that (yes just a few hours later). I think there’s some new cuts tossed at us or just stuff that’s fresh to my ears. Last I remember is “Hey Kid” and then Hadden i s suddenly on the floor with us in the audience, jumpin’ around and what not, and then he’s back up on stage like a ninja. He’s quick and I’ve had too menty, a deadly combination. In any setting, listen to The New Highway Hymnal’s Whsipers LP here: http://thenewhighwayhymnal.bandcamp.com/releases
On Sunday, August 25th the good folks over at Eye Design are putting on BYOBurger Fest! at O’Briens Pub in Allston and there’s going to be lot of kick ass bands including one of our favorites, Atlantic Thrills (RI). Grilling starts at 3.
Ahh Wavves. Just days ago they shared a stage with The New Highway Hymnal at the Paradise and apparently they couldn’t get enough of it. That’s right, you’re neverrr gonna stop Nathan and his cronies from coming back to Boston, making this their third appearance in our fair city this year alone. The date is Tuesday, October 1 and the venue is the Sinclair in Cambridge. BUT WAITTTT. The mighty King Tuff and Flo Rider’s garage kings, Jacuzzi Boys are opening. Class acts all the way.
Here’s a new little ditty from Boston rock ‘n’ roller Ronnie Nordac. The following is Ronnie’s description of what the song is about:
“this song is about a little cannonball soaring thru the sky aftr being blasted off and it is just so stoked 2 b flying.. Life rules and it is rocking out w/ all it’s favorite colors + stuff,, it is a little cannonball but it is traveling thru the feelings of introspective emotion & joy in2 which it has been catapulted by its agreement 2 rock and cry on earth & beyond
lyrics
yea yeaa yeaa woooooo! bububuuubuuh wooo yeayeayeayayeaaa”
Bands: Ravi Shavi, The New Highway Hymnal, Atlantic Thrills Date: Saturday, July 13, 2013 Venue: BBQ in Providence, RI
Damn, it’s great to be back in Providence! Every time we come here it’s a blast, usually because we are seeing two of the best current rock ‘n’ roll bands: Atlantic Thrills and Ravi Shavi. Throw in Boston’s The New Highway Hymnal, burgers, and beer, and you got yourself one of the finest KLYAM attended shows all year.
Our journey begins with the masters themselves, Atlantic Thrills. Last night, we saw the Thrillz and The New Highway Hymnal at O’Brien’s Pub in Allston, coming off of that epic evening, I’m more than ready to dive into yet another sweaty rock ‘n’ roll show. Ohh and of course, it wouldn’t be a real psychedelic rock ‘n’ roll experience without the acid trippy imagery of The Lysergic Factory Lightshow, which consists of a constant barrage of bright colors being projected behind every band as they perform.
The fantastic foursome bash out several of their classic tunes – ” A Day At the Beach” (featuring the awe inspiring lead vocals of Dan Tanner, yeah buy that shit from Almost Ready Records on August 13, why don’t ya?!), “Light Shines,” “Shotgun,” “Drugs In It,” and my favorite “Lies.” “Lies” always gets me screaming my lungs out! They also introduce a new, untitled song; my memory is a bit fuzzy, but I’ll have to keep my ears open for this one in the future.
Set – List:
“Almost Anything”
“Booze”
“A Day At The Beach”
“Drugs In It”
“New Song”
“Light Shines”
“Lies”
“Girls”
“Shotgun”
“So Long”
“Salvaie”
The hoppin’ and boppin’ and boozin’ and loozin’ continues with one of Boston’s most promising bands, The New Highway Hymnal. I’ve seen many a New Highway set, but I’ve never seen them outside, tis a slightly different experience. In fact, this is my second time seeing a show outdoors period. I’m digging the change of setting, it switches things up a bit, for sure.
Song wise tonight’s set isn’t too different from most New Highway performances and that’s fine for me. For months now, I’ve been listening to the band’s amazing LP Whispers, which features most, if not all of the songs they perform live tonight, so it’s always a thrill to hear the way these tunes translate on stage (or in a backyard). In particular, I’ve always appreciated hearing the LP’s closer “Hey Kid (Gotta Run),” which is a fiery mess of guitar feedback, maniacal drums, and stab to death shrieks.
If you like The Doors, 13th Floor Elevators, or psychedelic pop music in general, then I would be shocked if you didn’t dig these guys. Check them out here: http://thenewhighwayhymnal.bandcamp.com/
Following some miller lite and some truly punk slime drippin’, titty sucking back seat boogie, we soldiered on into the depths of the great Ravi Shavi. Ravi Shavi gets the kids dancing and moshing and a little bit of stumbling. I can’t help but dance my white dancin’fool ass off. Ravi Shavi simply bust out the hooks in their shirtless, soulful power pop. It’s a little bit of James Brown, a teensy bit King Khan, toss in an ounce of The Clash, and slam it into a blender. You may get a disgusting meal or you can have Ravi Shavi. I choose Ravi Shavi.
Ravi Shavi has many terrific songs, but my favorite has to be “Accidental Mental.” If this catchy number doesn’t make you burst into a series of erratic dance moves that would make Michael Jackson spin in his grave than do yourself a favor, hop in the Lexus and ride off the nearest cliff, because you suck so much. Ravi Shavi rules, definitely one of their best/most fun shows.
P.S. towards the end of the set, Atlantic Thrills join Ravi Shavi and unleash some nasty songs. Is this is a side project we should be expecting in the future? I hope so, either somebody slipped something in my drink or I am seeing Dan Tanner on drums. I’ll just have to find out next time. More importantly, go see Ravi Shavi live!
Kids Like You & Me (KLYAM) 