Monitor Down

Check out this new video, featuring a guy who looks a lot like Christian Bale and a song that sounds a lot like the Talking Heads’ “This Must Be The Place.” This makes me very happy.

Directed by the same guy who made this random, funny squirrel video and a bunch of other cool stuff. I’d say he has a future ahead of him.

I got home at 1 am Thursday morning knowing I had to wake up in five hours, and the tinnitus roaring in my ears could probably have woken up the neighbors then and there. But I was extremely, utterly, brazenly happy.

I had just seen the Smashing Pumpkins live at the Viper Room. One of the most scarce, long-shot bands that also happened to define half of my generation’s high school, college and post-college experience had played less than 20 feet from me in a venue the size of a large studio apartment. There are a handful of lifetime events I decided long ago were essential in order for me to die happy, and this one just got slammed out of the park.

After making the crowd wait about three hours (except the die-hards who had been posted up outside since 7 am), The Corgan and ensemble trickled up the left side of the crowd and onto the stage, where they started up a feedback frenzy that could best be described as very fucking loud. (This is where the aforementioned tinnitus kicked in.) Corgan wore a thin, dark, long-sleeved shirt reading NATURE, which recalled his trademark ZERO shirt and made everyone feel back home in 1996. His head glistened like a well-polished agate.

They opened with “Astral Planes” off Teargarden by Kaleidyscope, and gradually the realization set in that, even considering Zeitgeist and everything after it, Billy Corgan can still write good rock music.

I didn’t quite recognize the intro to “Ava Adore” until the distant memory kicked in of a live track I had downloaded somewhere. But even fast, sloppy and stripped of electronic gloss, the song did what it was supposed to do. “Hummer” was where I pretty much lost it. See, I had latched onto “Hummer” instantaneously upon encountering it sometime in 1998, and had since attempted to learn every note of every verse, chorus and solo. (I will demonstrate if you want.) I never once thought I would have the extreme joy of hearing this song live, and from the crowd’s reaction, neither did they. Had I walked out the door and fallen down an open manhole immediately after, that would have been okay with me.

The stage show was dark, close and impressive, though it showed vague hints of Corgan’s control-freak nature. The stage lighting only rarely deviated from blood red, and even the back-and-forth stage banter revealed tiny amounts of lead singer paranoia. Billy: “We played one show in Los Angeles, and there was just a lot of talking.” Lead guitarist: “All they wanted to do was talk…” Billy: “No more talking.” When an out-of-tune string was discovered on Billy’s axe — lead guitarist: “uh-oh.” Billy: “Time to flip out…” The sarcasm was almost convincing.

“A Song for a Son” came along, and even though this was the first time I’d heard it, it had a certain familiarity to it. This could just be from the simple fact that it’s part of a history of saga-like Smashing Pumpkins anthems, or it could have to do with the Zeppelin-esque mythology from which it and others of its kind come. Either way, it was quite awesome. “Stand Inside Your Love” has always been a favorite of mine, and it lived up to expectation. And there’s no need to describe how it was standing in front of the stage while the band performed “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” except to point out that my co-concertgoer Max (of Versa Vice) and I noticed Corgan’s complete envelopment in the song, despite its likely being the Smashing Pumpkins’ “Smells Like Teen Spirit.” His scream probably hasn’t diminished a decibel since he wrote the song. Yes, the crowd sang along.

One of the reasons SP continues to mesmerize its following is that they employ actual creativity in their songwriting. When Corgan began picking out a riff that recalled their old dreamy days, I was confused over where this mysterious secret song had come from, until I realized it was a new, sans-electronics opening to “Perfect.” The rest of that one ran as it probably did before it was drenched with effects, and we were happy.

The show seemed to run short, so to keep this review in kind, the Pumpkins ran through a fast, raw Cherub Rock to everyone’s rabid glee, then Corgan made his band have a seat while he pulled out an actual ukulele. This being the furthest thing from what I was expecting (other than pulling out a samurai sword to chop a melon), I got a quick cell phone pic. Corgan attempted to lead the crowd into singing “Love is the Sweetest Thing,” but they didn’t get it, repeatedly shouting something about tiptoeing through tulips. Before long Corgan threw in the towel on the failed singalong, saying he was “too old for this shit.” He told the crowd we didn’t deserve an encore, and he didn’t give us one. But by then everyone was too drunk and happy to care much.

I’d like to extend a huge thank-you to Julie and her husband Andy (who plays the kit for noted San Diego rock outfit Transfer, by the way), for hooking me up. There is good music karma in the wind for you.

The complete set list can be found here.

The one with the wicked chops.

That was a shocker.

A musician I hadn’t thought about in 10 years or so, except while briefly remembering high school as I thumbed through my CD collection, died last night of heart failure at age 48.

Even though I lost track of Type O Negative shortly after World Coming Down, hearing about Steele’s death was a little like hearing about one of your favorite countries being bombed, or finding out the college pizza place you spent all your time in closed down. Hearing he was 48 was a little weird, too — I’d always thought that guy had to be immortal or something.

The 6 -foot-7 bass player and lead singer was originally named Petrus T. Ratajczyk, hailed from Brooklyn, was a control freak, and had a baritone voice that could be mistaken for a bus driving by. Rumors of his death circulated in 2005, but it was found to be a publicity stunt related to the band’s signing to a new label. He also apparently posed in Playgirl as another stunt. Fascinating.

Not having the time to write a proper post just now, I’ll refer you to the stories written by NY Daily News and Rolling Stone.

You can also read the mournful posts on the band’s Myspace page, or visit their forums, where I’m sure some asshole will stir up shit eventually.

RIP, Steele.

Malcolm McLaren, the producer and band manager known for being the brains behind the Sex Pistols and the New York Dolls, died of cancer this morning in New York. He was 64.

McLaren gained notoriety after the Sex Pistols single “God Save the Queen” was banned in 1977 by the BBC and the Independent Broadcasting Authority, yet still managed to reach number 2 in the UK charts. He is also known for projects such as his solo albums Duck Rock and Waltz Darling, as well as his Zombies/Esther Bigeou collage “About Her,” from the soundtrack of Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill 2.

More about his intriguing life story can be found in the links below:

The Independent

Rolling Stone

Arts Beat

The Village Voice

Preface: Since I haven’t had time to write anything in quite a while (try maintaining your music blog as an LA career-type whose spare time can be measured in half-seconds), here’s a re-post of an article I penned for Cinema Blend, back when — well, back when I wrote for them. Enjoy.

We know about physical, people-type overpopulation. That’s when there are too many new neighbors moving in all at once – then their cars use up all the convenient street parking, grassy fields turn into slum hives, and suddenly one-bedroom apartments with no washer or dryer rent for 1,700 a month.

Well, as you might have guessed, the same thing can happen in music. It’s what happens when too many indie rock bands form all at the same time, and with all the same ideas. What logically follows is a phenomenon pretty nicely stated as rock-overpopulation, or to be more succinct, “overrockulation.” When overrockulation occurs, bands start elbowing each other off the good rock real estate by using up all of the good riffs, taking all the cool styles, and – in the most prominent and embarrassing manifestation – taking all the good band names. What’s left behind are the cardboard-shack and overpass-tent band names, the 12-syllable fixer-uppers that are so far out there it’s impossible to imagine moving into one by choice. It’s a shameful degradation.

For example, maybe there was once, back in the innocent ‘90s, a group called One-Inch Punch. Maybe they were happy living in the glow of their catchy, three-syllable, “adjective-noun” name. Maybe their name was becoming cherished, whispered from the lips of their followers into the ears of passersby. Then, maybe one day, the front man decided to move into the blossoming genre of indie rock.

“I like the name One-Inch Punch, can I still have it?” he might have asked the indie-rock landlords. “No,” they would have said. “There’s already an Australian hardcore band and a San Diego metal band with that name. Indie is about being different from everyone. Choose something else.” Desperate, our victim might have scoured the landscape, being turned away at every juncture. Every good name was taken! Finally, he was forced to settle on an overly dramatic and entirely cantankerous shack of a name, “She Wants Revenge.” It’s clumsy, it’s impetuous, and it’s the ugliest name on the block, but it was all that was left. Sorry buddy.

Or perhaps our hero’s band had a cool, random name, like Mukilteo Fairies. Say this band grew accustomed to having a good band name. That is, until they moved onto indie turf.

“Nope,” the landlords would have said. “We need something simpler and easier to spell. We’re about anti-intellectualism.”

“What about The Fairies?” our hero would have compromised.

“Taken.”

“Damn,” our hero would have said. “Where can we go?”

“Over there,” the landlords would have said. “Next to that dumpster called ‘I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness.’ Your new indie band name is ‘…And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead.’”

Our hero’s jaw drops.

And there are likely similar stories – probably as many as there are overzealous, clunky, painfully long indie band names evoking a cartoonish amount of anguish, or a pointless level of confusion. What torment did Neutral Milk Hotel go through to finally settle on their isolated spit of a name? Was Get Cape. Wear Cape. Fly threatened with worse forced indie innovations? (“It’s either that name, or we make you add an accordion…”) Then there’s the tragically isolated !!!, which inhabits the Easter Island of band names – eighth graders debate over how to pronounce them.

When one takes a step back, one is forced to wonder: is being indie really worth it? If your music is going to be cool and popular, are you okay with it being associated with a miserable, impetuous sentence fragment no one can identify with? Are you willing to always be prefaced by “no – they’re good, trust me”?

If you ask me, it’s time for indie rockers to take a stand and make up their own rules. Why do your names have to be dark and brooding? Why do you have to confuse people with cryptic meta-poetry? Why do you appeal to a mind frame that hovers so far above everyone that most people have to fake it?

I propose indie bands start giving themselves mundane, nondescript, run-of-the-mill peasant names. How about naming your band ‘Kevin,’ or ‘Dusty?’ Is it already taken? How about ‘Dusty Johnson?’ Or, dammit, ‘Dusty William Johnson of 1334 Lake Drive, Indio, CA?’ If you ditch the need to be darker and deeper and cooler than everyone else, and just settle for being normal, it will make people damn sure they can identify with your music – it might as well be them, or their drool-dribbling toddler. And the best part is, since there are as many available band names as there are people with distinct social security numbers, no one will ever run out. Problem solved, at least until “Facebook stalking” gives way to “identity theft.” But that’s not as big a deal.

This new video, just released by Chicago natives and current LA transplants OK Go, will put a cinch in the underpants of anyone who likes high-school science experiments, paintball, the game Mousetrap, or this video of a Cadbury Creme Egg getting smashed.

“This Too Shall Pass” is currently making the rounds, astonishing even the most stoic indie kids. Watch and be awed.

P.S.: You might also like this version, filmed live with the Notre Dame Marching Band. Collegiate.

Fans of Hollywood indie outfit Red Arrow Messenger have something else to look forward to besides the band’s melodic folk-pop, tight three-part harmonies and awe-inspiring stage presence. Every Monday in February the band is hosting a free variety show-style concert featuring favorite local bands, comedians, magic, food, and even a much-anticipated laser light show.

The February 1 show featured a magician escaping from a straight jacket (and mystically conjuring a pair of chickens), a stand-up comedy act, a self-photography setup, and the musical stylings of Last American Buffalo along with the dark, velvety croon of All Wrong and the Plans Change. With this Monday’s bill featuring tribal-tronic two-piece Rumspringa and oldies-inspired Jenny O, it’s pretty much guaranteed to meet or exceed the mark, whatever else the band has up its sleeve. (I hear it’s barbecue.)

The audio-visual (and nutritional) smorgasbord takes place at the Bootleg Theater in Echo Park, starting at 8 pm. Everyone gets in the door free, and beer and wine is relatively cheap.

Update: The Feb. 8 show was even more awesome than the last one. It featured two hilarious stand-up comedians (taking on religion and alternative porn), the timeline-spanning music of Jenny O, the two-piece jungle-jamming of Rumspringa, and (finally) the much-hyped laser light show — which consisted of fog, darkness, mirrored surfaces and a bunch of tiny laser pointers distributed to the crowd. Speaking of low-budget ingenuity.

The band was giving away their EP, fans were slurping up Jell-o shots in the back, and I got some video that will find its way online soon.

Next Monday: The February 15 show will feature He’s My Brother, She’s My Sister and Maxim Ludwig, plus whatever else the band has planned. (This time, barbecue for sure.)

Bootleg Theater:
2220 Beverly Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90057
(213) 389-3856

If it’s possible for band to be sainted, Radiohead is trying hard.

The band (Namely Phil) announced they’re playing a Haiti benefit show Sunday, January 24, at 7 pm at the Henry Fonda Theater in Los Angeles. Tickets are being auctioned on Ticketmaster in order to raise as much money as possible — which means you’ll be spending a lot. However, all proceeds are going to the Oxfam Haiti relief fund, and since the band is currently in the midst of recording their next album, it also means you could be treated to some new, un-rehearsed material. Radiohead on the raw is a rare thing indeed.

The ticket auction started today (January 21) at 8 pm PST, and will run until Saturday January 23 at 11 pm. Visit Radiohead’s site for details.

Whatever happens in 2010 — whether it be a massive earthquake that sinks California, a tidal wave that washes out everything on the eastern seaboard, or a horrendous new trend whereby everyone tries to become a vampire (oh crap, that’s already happening) — at least there will be these seven albums. In order of anticipation (I suspect), here are the seven most conniption-inducing albums expected in 2010.

MGMT
Title? Congratulations
When, son? Spring
What gives: After selling over a million copies of their electro-psychedelic debut Oracular Spectacular, Ben Goldwasser and Andrew VanWyngarden’s next release is the result of the band’s coping with the craziness of their new success. Their well-intended (read: crazy) idea is to release an album with no radio-friendly singles, in hopes of people actually listening to the whole thing rather than just downloading two tracks to play in their Scions. Though this will likely result in their label asking them to go back into the studio (d’oh), we hope them the best. It also purportedly involves more guitars, which is always a good thing.

Hole
Title? Nobody’s Daughter
When, son? Undecided.
What gives: With the origins of Courtney Love’s albums as buried in speculation as she herself is in media scat, this one is starting to look no different. There is talk of using material recorded during her stint working with Billy Corgan (responsible for songwriting contributions to Celebrity Skin), as well as songwriting from 4 Non Blondes front woman Linda Perry. Still, with what she’s capable of when not wasted, it may have potential. The album’s release will be accompanied by a tour, during which the live performances will sound nothing like the recordings.

Interpol
Title? TBA
When, son? Early 2010
What gives: Though at this point their new album only seems to exist in speculation, Interpol have commented that their 2010 release will be a return to the more raw, off-kilter-sounding production featured in the band’s debut, Turn On the Bright Lights. Rather than swimming in post-production gloss and uniformity the way the band’s previous two releases have tended to do, they’re electing to experiment with guitar noises to create atmospheric sounds they can record directly, according to NME in November. No word yet on the involvement of fancy stage footwork and shoulder holsters.

Spoon
Title? Transference
When, son? January 19
What gives: After scoring big with 2007′s Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Spoon found themselves in the middle of downtown oh-crap-we’re-big-now’sville. So like indie bands often do in this situation, they ditched Hollywood and returned home, hoping to bring some of their following with them. Spoon’s self-produced new Transference is said to be a return to the band’s lo-fi beginnings, with less musical complexity and an “uglier” sound. Hey, if ugly sounds like the samples floating around the internet, we can do ugly.

Arcade Fire
Title? TBA
When, son? May
What gives? After somehow blowing the minds of hipsters and churchgoing folk at the same time, the Canadian seven-piece got back together with Neon Bible producer Markus Dravs for their third release. The album, described here in Spin, seems shrouded in mystery, except that it will be released sometime in May and will be accompanied by a tour. As an additional side note, it will also reportedly contain music. Too much detail?

Stone Temple Pilots
Title? TBA
When, son? May, we think.
What gives: The much-anticipated new album, the band’s first record since 2001′s Shangri-La Dee Da, is supposed to carry 11 tracks, with a few B-sides planned for Japan and UK releases (begging the question of why they are considered B-sides if they are recorded specifically for release). Though the band has predicted May as a tentative release date, a pending lawsuit with Atlantic Records having to do with pesky “unfulfilled albums” might still throw a monkey wrench into the works. We’ll see.

Radiohead
Title? Not decided.
When, son? Not decided, either.
What gives: Despite widely circulated rumors that Radiohead would not be releasing any more standard albums (which apparently was a “misquote”), the band is said to be working on a release for 2010, including recording in January to continue work done last summer. Of course, characteristic of the mysterious band, there are no details available. None. How infuriating. (I do, however, have links to a ton of their music here if you’re feeling nostalgic.)

To the delight of grunge fans who enjoy off-kilter time signatures, songs about snakes and the pleasant aroma of grilled Barbie dolls, Soundgarden is planning a reunion for the new year, after more than 12 years on the shelf.

Announcing the news through his Twitter account, frontman Chris Cornell directed eager clickers toward a band site where followers can sign up to receive updates. No other info is being offered, though news outlets like Rolling Stone and Billboard are filling paragraphs with delicious background info on the band’s illustrious career.

Though Ticketmaster has yet to add Soundgarden to their alert roster, that’s one place I’d go once they get themselves updated.

More info as it comes.