Thursday, April 29, 2010

New Handshake jams

HANDSHAKE
“Siamese”
* * * 1/2


Is this Handshake’s oddest song yet? This jam starts out as what sounds like a weirder version of the ‘70s southern rock band Atlanta Rhythm Section, then devolves into something reminiscent of mid-period Mr. Bungle. Devin Clary’s sharp voice goes everywhere as the music shifts personality, the impulse potion taking control of the whole situation. It’s casual but alien, like shopping for cat food and watching dimensional portals open up in the shelves.

HANDSHAKE
“Night Of Electric Orchids”
* * * 1/2


On this new track from Handshake, the Novato quartet sounds like a bunch of crazy hipster vandals having an insane party in an organic grocery store at two in the morning. Bodies entwine, artichokes fly. Unearthly music emanates from some shadowed corner that could be the spice aisle. I don’t know how many of you have ever had an experience like that, but if you do, bring along a little Handshake.

My 5 Favorite Rebirth Moments

1. Place Your Bet at Slim’s, Nov. 22, 2009. You may not know them--they’re not terribly well-known, and their music isn’t the best either, but the set they played at Slim’s created some weird reaction where everyone in the club suddenly had a hippie epiphany. Between sets by the mopey Raised Threshold and the one by Place Your Bet, there was a bit of subculture warfare. An emo and a jock who clearly didn’t know each other were arguing loudly, and some Rastafarians were being harassed by a metalhead in a leather jacket and earlobes down to his neck. Then Place Your Bet came on. As they progressed into their set, the arguments quieted down, and the Rastas curtly waved the metalhead off. At the very end, their frontman dismissed the rest of the band and took out a single acoustic guitar. Within 3 minutes, half the house was in tears and the other half was waving their cellphones in the air like Zippo lighters. It was like a church. I looked a little to my right and saw the jock and the emo crying into each other’s shoulders.

2. Jonsi at Amoeba, Apr. 17, 2010. I was at Amoeba Records in the Haight to see Jonsi with a few other insiders and musicians I knew. Before the show, we met up with Eva Treadway and Hannah Valente from the local garage-rock band the SHE’s, and my filmmaker friend Ian and I decided to interview them. Ian, some of my bandmates, the writer Gabe Connor and I went over to the edge of Golden Gate Park to interview Eva and Hannah in a quiet spot. We sat in a big circle and were treated to an acoustic performance of “No Can Do.” While we were firing questions, this dreadlocked lady emerged from the bushes and bluntly offered us LSD. I instinctively pointed my camera at her feet, and she threatened to break my face if I posted it. She stared at us for 3 minutes before finally disappearing. After Jonsi finished his excellent set, I saw numerous faces I recognized, and Gabe ran into a friend of his who is also somehow involved with the Rebirth. Everyone knew each other somehow, everyone was happy, and everyone was friendly.

3. Thee Parkside, Jan. 30, 2010. DFR was just setting up. I was across the street to take some pictures of the tiny dive they were playing. All of a sudden, Taija Liscinsky bursted through the door, let out a bloodcurdling shriek, and ran at full speed towards some friends 2 blocks away, arms outstretched and screaming, “You’re back!”

4. The review argument. I had just reviewed a song by a band who wishes to remain anonymous, and one of the band’s members completely misinterpreted the review and started yelling at me on Facebook. What started as a simple argument escalated into a war between six or seven people taking sides or trying to mediate. Many insults were hurled until finally, after a plea from that band’s guitarist, my opponent and I reconciled. We’re on good terms now.

5. The counterprotest at Lowell, January 27, 2010. I’d just come out as gay and was celebrating at a counterprotest against a small protest by the hate group known as the Westboro Baptist Church at Lowell High. It was just like a revival of the ‘60s spirit. People kissed, hugged, held flowers, and painted each other with peace signs. I got to interview five people who were hugging at the same time. And best of all--we sent the Westboro people scurrying back under their slimy rock within ten minutes.

7 More Awesome Bay Area Bands

16. Rikoche. Led by the raunchy growl of Matt Barber, this lovably eclectic band of hard-rock revivalists has enjoyed increasing popularity as a whiskey stain on the white cloth of the surprisingly harmless East Bay rock scene.

17. Dizzy Balloon. Broadway drama, grandiose backdrops, and quirky lyrics have helped this flamboyant band take the Bay Area by storm. Formerly known as Panda, a name far too quiet and monochrome to suit the band’s music.

18. Picture Atlantic. Tough indie rock with a strong Ubu streak and enough power to start mosh pits without even putting a single guitar into overdrive. Nik Bartunek is rock n’ roll’s best answer to Vaclav Nijinsky--a man with a commanding yet graceful performance and the rare ability to completely phase into another dimension onstage.

19. Ghost and the City. In a scene dominated by Fever Charms and Dizzy Balloons, this anonymous collective has distinguished itself just by being shockingly bleak.

20. Little Teeth. Not a teen band but an interesting one, this trio shrieks, bellows, and moans over a backdrop of what sounds like a riot at Williams-Sonoma for entire albums. Outsider music for the younger set.

21. Sects. A supergroup of Richmond Contingent musicians, most of whom have participated in Paul Green School of Rock programs. There are no long-winded solos or progressive opuses here, just garagey rock n’ roll that gets straight to the point.

Saturday, April 24, 2010

THE SHE’S
The SHE’s
* * *


San Francisco quartet the SHE’s have gained a sizable cult following based on their various connections to other bands (including Fogtown indie heroes Girls) and their minimal, lo-fi power pop. On their self-titled debut EP, the songs are about as blunt as you can get--two keys, two minutes, three minutes. Vocalist Hannah Valente’s singsong rants focus on a single theme: the spoiled and stuck-up people who surround them. “A.B.G.T.” has Valente sing about girls with long hair and short skirts who “talk about boys all day long” over rolling power pop. “No Can Do” is a fast, punky groove that sounds like the offspring of the Piers and Joan Jett. The hilarious “Chewbacharock” sounds like a listenable update of Steve Miller’s pentagenarian-pleasing “Swingtown.” And “Your Majesty” is the epitome of the album’s theme and philosophy--a peppy blast of catchy garage rock with hooks that latch onto the phony sociosexual king of the song’s title and fling him off his latex throne.
The SHE’s are artful in their effortlessness, and this is a fun album with a theme and a philosophy. However, the songs are all extremely similar to each other--a bit too much so for comfort at times. Their minimal approach seems fresh now, but only time will tell how many albums it will last before they broaden their sound, whether with good results or bad. For the ultimate SHE's experience, check out one of their Noe Valley Farmer's Market gigs next time you're on that side of town and feel like a little rock n' roll.
THE SHE’S
The SHE’s
* * *


San Francisco quartet the SHE’s have gained a sizable cult following based on their various connections to other bands (including Fogtown indie heroes Girls) and their minimal, lo-fi power pop. On their self-titled debut EP, the songs are about as blunt as you can get--two keys, two minutes, three minutes. Vocalist Hannah Valente’s singsong rants focus on a single theme: the spoiled and stuck-up people who surround them. “A.B.G.T.” has Valente sing about girls with long hair and short skirts who “talk about boys all day long” over rolling power pop. “No Can Do” is a fast, punky groove that sounds like the offspring of the Piers and Joan Jett. The hilarious “Chewbacharock” sounds like a listenable update of Steve Miller’s pentagenarian-pleasing “Swingtown.” And “Your Majesty” is the epitome of the album’s theme and philosophy--a peppy blast of catchy garage rock with hooks that latch onto the phony sociosexual king of the song’s title and fling him off his latex throne.
The SHE’s are artful in their effortlessness, and this is a fun album with a theme and a philosophy. However, the songs are all extremely similar to each other--a bit too much so for comfort at times. Their minimal approach seems fresh now, but only time will tell how many albums it will last before they broaden their sound, whether with good results or bad. For the ultimate SHE's experience, check out one of their Noe Valley Farmer's Market gigs next time you're on that side of town and feel like a little rock n' roll.

Monday, April 19, 2010

Battlehooch
Battlehooch
* *


Battlehooch are one of the strangest of all Bay Area bands currently active. While their contemporaries were sitting in Starbucks listening to freshly burned Death Cab CDs, the six members of Battlehooch were busy growing out their massive moustaches and bobbing their heads to vintage Beefheart LPs. And it paid off, too--Battlehooch are one of the most successful and enduring of all the new “Bay Area Rebirth” bands. However, while Battlehooch have always been famed for their strangeness and eclecticism, this album doesn’t stray far from one musical template. “Somersaults,” “Caliphate,” “Red Tide,” and the title track are all blurs of shoegazey reverb, weird horns, and sleazy organs that might be vaguely interesting for one track, but wear on the mind after a full album. This is supposed to be experimental rock, after all, and templates are taboo. The best song on the album is the thunderous “Human Ram,” which has vocalist Pat Smith screaming “I am the human ram!” over scary blues-punk ironworks. While there are a few other fine songs, we hope they put some topping back on this tropical hot dog for their next release.

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Alameda art-rockers flex their soul chops

FINISH TICKET
“We’ll Be Okay”
* * * *


“Life is so much more than our hearts becoming sore,” sings Brendan Hoye in a voice that has matured finely from the fairly restrained indie croon he displayed on their debut EP Life Underwater to a soaring soulman holler. The band follows their frontman's new voice: the keyboards have never sounded more beautiful and dramatic, and Brendan’s brother Michael shows off some jaw-dropping bass heroics that somehow manage to sound melancholic and super-funky at the same time. It’s more than a promising start to whatever follow-up to Life Underwater they may be working on. Emo kids, put down your razors and listen to Uncle Brendan 'cuz he knows what he's talking about!

Wednesday, April 7, 2010

Strange Forces At Work

Buzz has been building lately about a new supergroup called Sects. While we know very little about this band, it counts Milo bassist Lee Newman, semi-famed axman Kit Castagne, and DFR’s Hayli Holmes and Ruby Rosa among its members. Sects has not yet released any recordings, but the band will play their first show on April 30, at George Washington High School’s Battle of the Bands in San Francisco.

Thursday, April 1, 2010

Indie heroes balance fog and sunshine

AUDIOPHILES
Fairytales and Other Tales - EP
* * * * (4/5)

Few bands do a better job of balancing edgy and cute than this all-star Bay Area ensemble. The Audiophiles’ peppy indie/blues/rock is exactly the type of music you’d expect from a band featuring former Li’l Billies/Juvenile Dukes guitarist Greg Fleischut, punk rocker Nathan Pastor, and neo-bluesman Jeremy Lyon. Plus, it’s genuinely Fogtown in the way it embraces both the mist and the sunshine--and a fun blast of nostalgic rock n' roll.
There are four tracks on this CD, all moderately lengthy (four to five minutes). Each one is very different, but they all feature textures that recall Sixties Bay Area bands like the Dead and Creedence, plus Fleischut’s bone-dry, annunciated vocals. “Fairytales” features a rhythm-guitar-as-bass groove identical to Rhys Chatham’s Guitar Trio composition, hosting evocative lyrics and rubbery lead guitars. “Mountain Song” is a rootsy jam in which Fleischut prophetically sings of “the shape of a century changing for me” over clattering drums and CSNY timbres. The glorious “Nerd Chic” is a comical ditty that shrugs off an annoying geek’s complaints with smoky wah-wah guitars and hilariously awful scat vocals. And then the magnificent finale, the aptly named “The End."
“The End” is a truly remarkable piece, going everywhere put staying in one direction. It shifts back and forth between luscious shoegaze and peppy garage rock, going everywhere but never sounding forced (or more importantly, like a joke). About three and a half minutes in, the boys skip it up like bratty suburban punks, keeping everything mature with those awesome harmonies. It’s a spectacular ending to a spectacular EP.
Fairytales and Other Tales is a great listening experience, catapulting your psyche into the ‘60s as your feet are firmly planted in today’s indie world. Sure, Greg Fleischut's lyrics and vocals might be a little cutesy for a lot of people’s tastes, but if you can look past that aspect of their music and focus firmly on the boogie in the background, Fairytales is proof there’s still hope for good old-fashioned rock in the world of Ke$ha and Lil Wayne. The Audiophiles are presumed defunct after a mysterious "farewell" concert at Slim's in March 2010, but let's hope they bounce back, along with rock n' roll itself.