Alec MacKAYE's (ex-The Faith/Ignition) new band. i like this. it's in an almost Minutemen-kind of vein, with it's clean and springy guitars and minimalist production. Alec always has original and interesting things to say and do.
my new band played first at this show in front of maybe 20 people. we were ok enough, though the 3 of us were nervous and not having a bassist didn't help much. still, the crowd seemed into it. next up was Cake Like that features the girl from that comedy show on MTV, 'The State'. i wasn't too into them. noisy, annoying pop(?) with not a whole lot of catchiness. ex-Breeders guitarist Kelley Deal's new band was alright. during their set, some guy was interviewing them which was somewhat funny. i dunno, i guess i didn't know what to expect and what i got was just ok. Al wondered what the reception would be like if Kelley Deal WASN'T Kelley Deal. hmm.
probably my fave record at the moment. it's inspiring in the sense that, these guys are all decent musicians with the instruments they play normally but they switch off and they STILL rock! very catchy and downright (i would probably be smacked for this) cute and sweet at times. this is fuzzy and warm "indie" pop/rock at it's finest.
Al's in a great, new band called The New States. not that it matters but it includes members from Sacto's nifty punk band, The YahMos. they sound NOTHING like The YahMos or 5'10" and that's a good thing. they're 60's-poppy and soulful and if i knew how to dance, i'd dance to The New States. they recently had the 'featured guest' spot at the Tuesday night 'open mic' thing i do at CP and played a loose but fun as shit set that had many smiling and swaying to their neato groove. a truly pleasant thang to invest some time in.
i was never a big T.S.O.L. fan though i DID love their 1st e.p.. this is Jack's (T.S.O.L.'s singer) new band and they do me right, bub! they don't sound a thing like T.S.O.L. if i was gonna try and compare, i'd have to say The Damned maybe, or even some harder edged 80's new wave stuff (thanks to their keyboardist) mixed with today's poppy, punk sound. i'm saying, yeah, this is good shit and it's a doubleplus that their guitarist just happens to be Sean Greaves who is yet another old friend from Reno (in 1980, he taught me how to play the only guitar lead i know to this day, the tried and true, Chuck Berry/Johnny Thunders/Steve Jones lead). way to fucking go!
GrubDog (i don't know his real name) is this guy who comes and plays the open mic i host every Tuesday night. he's a great songwriter, singer and guitarist. it sounds like his influences might be people like J. Mascis and Bob Mould but man, let me tell ya, he's got a style all his own and i find myself getting kinda excited when it's his time to play. i'm told he also plays drums in a local band called The Ultra Violets, a band i haven't heard yet.