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RSSMartyrhead – July 23, 2010 – Hole in the Wall, Austin TX
Jul 23
Hard Rock, Heavy Metal No Comments
an energetic Motorhead cover band from San Antonio – could be just what you’re looking for if you’re looking for that sort of thing
A-Frames – May 28, 2010 – Mohawk, Austin TX
May 28
College Rock, Hard Rock, Punk No Comments
[Seattle, WA] so most of the bands tonight ended up being former members of the audience, easily identifiable since the audience started out pretty sparse – this band ended up being the guy next to me who had the shirt I was crushing on (‘No Trends’) and the guy in the ‘NoTV’ shirt – as you might expect, people who don’t believe in trends aren’t necessarily a lot of fun – the music was a distinct departure from everything else, no feedback and no distortion, just clanging slapping-your-face guitar, bass and drums – they intentionally chose notes that didn’t quite fit together and weren’t exactly rhythmic or melodic – more of a marching discordant sound – NoTV was the mid-40s bald-headed singer, and he sang spoken voice a la Henry Rollins – NoTrends was the bassist, proficient, but the theological ringleader from my perspective at least – the band was a cross between Primus and Cake but that’s making them sound better than they were – they were abrasive and unpleasant – so I was all prepared to give this band one of the worst reviews (at least for a group of good musicians) that I have in a long time, until they suddenly changed face and started playing faster and harder and were fantastic – so I conclude that they’re your average intently nihilistic hardcore band, who having aged, can’t turn to country or to writing ballads, so turn to slowed down hardcore that sounds like crap
Jeff the Brotherhood – May 28, 2010 – Mohawk, Austin TX
May 28
Hard Rock, Jam Band No Comments
[Nashville, TN] a skinny boy flouncing around in the audience kept catching my eye because he was wearing ridiculously short retro (80s) basketball shorts with the upcut thigh and an old-school sports tank top – by the time he made it on stage there was a foxtail attached to his shorts – silly boy – so they started their set with silly boy on the ground playing guitar and enthusiastic Bruce-Springsteen-drummer on stage (thrashed his head in time with the drumming throughout the WHOLE of their set) – of course, the crowd was moved by this novel approach but their sound kept the crowd in their grip – it was kind of incredible – so intense and full, it seemed impossible that two people were making it – they were channeling the spirit of Tia Carrera (local psych metal band) but were far more upright and composed – they were, in essence, a garage jam band, but the one you wish you’d been – there was a lot of Black Sabbath riffing but, in the end, I’d classify them as a dark Cheap Trick – I predict that punk-power-pop is the wave of the future
Woven Bones – May 28, 2010 – Mohawk, Austin TX
May 28
Hard Rock, Indie Rock No Comments
[Austin, TX] two skinny guys on guitars and a girl on drums – I enjoyed them but don’t have a lot to say about them – I guess they were garage punk but with shoegaze or noise rock overtones – music was minorly intense but felt simple – the bassist did go into nice groovy finger-intensive leads – what defines them to me is the intensity of their lead singer (on guitar) – he spent 10 minutes telling the sound man to turn up the monitors on the vocals and then harped on it in between songs too – amusingly, intense guy kept turning to the drummer girl to start songs with a 4-3-2-1 whatever and she (supposedly suffering from strep throat) messed it up like three times
Heavy Cream – May 28, 2010 – Mohawk, Austin TX
May 28
Garage Rock, Hard Rock, Punk No Comments
[Nashville, TN] I liked this band, partly because I am a sucker for female bands (there was one guy (on bass?)) – so I kept thinking that they were a mix between riot girrrl music (Babes in Toyland) and retro-garage stuff like the Donnas but finally came to the conclusion that they were basically a total ripoff of The Runaways – the girls, very young, were in high-waisted shorts and ugly 80s ankle-boots – take note, little hipsters
Girl in a Coma – March 19, 2010 – Buffalo Billiards, Austin TX
Mar 19
Hard Rock, Modern Rock, Punk No Comments
[San Antonio, TX] this was honestly the one show I felt ‘dragged to’ by Rockboy but it ended up being a top show – I am officially in love with the gorgeous Latina tattooed lead singer – I figured this out because she referenced him, but I think her voice is totally influenced by Jeff Buckley, both edgy power vocalists with lots of emotion – they’re an indescribable girl rock band – there’s pop punk in there, latin rock, and just plain hard rock – the bands you adore but can’t sum up quickly are bands that are going to endure– upon further research, the drummer is the lead singer’s sister and the guitarist is the drummer’s lover – because they’ve got the musical talent, the stage presence, the creativity, and the street cred that makes you wonder about them, they’ve opened for a lot and lot of verifiably huge bands – she referenced Jefferson High in a song and I fantasized that it was a poor inner city school but it’s a fine arts magnet school, which.. is.. fine.. – lastly, a woman whose name was indistinguishable to us at first, came up to accompany them on The Runaways “Cherry Bomb” – come to find out, it was a former member of The Runaways, Cherie Currie, which was exciting
Red Bacteria Vacuum – March 19, 2010 – Elysium, Austin TX
Mar 19
Hard Rock, Punk, Thrash No Comments
[Japan] top show – these girls, as go the Japanese, rocked hard and loud, but with verve and style and depth – the music would stop and shift up or down and then left or right – the vocals went from romantic gothic wailing to screamo screaming – dead ringers for Babes in Toyland which is a beautiful thing – amusing part was that they rocked smart and hard in little mono-colored t-shirts and crisp bobs – I adore this band
Lullabye Arkestra – March 18, 2010 – Red 7, Austin TX
Mar 18
Garage Rock, Hard Rock No Comments
[Toronto, Canada] hardest garage band I’ve ever heard and I’m sure they’d take that as a compliment – so loud it was painful but they’d probably take that as a compliment too – thought the sound system was causing the feedback and fuzz but they sound about the same on MySpace – two men and a woman – they’re good but earplugs required
The Black Angels – March 18, 2010 – Mohawk, Austin TX
Mar 18
Arena Rock, Hard Rock, Psychedelic No Comments
[Austin, TX] we first saw them at a little record store, I love their recorded music and seeing them all big fancy band was exciting – I know the lead singer was posturing in his dark sunglasses but he deserves to with his big sexy voice – they do dark shimmering psychedelic blues rock that reminded me of a much slicker Brian Jonestown this time – they’re gorgeous
Turbo Fruits – March 18, 2010 – Lovejoy’s, Austin TX
Mar 18
Hard Rock, Punk, Rock and Roll, Southern Rock No Comments
[Nashville, TN] hard tight punk ‘n’ roll with a swampy influence – great
The Lords of Altamont – March 17, 2010 – Habana Calle 6, Austin TX
Mar 17
Garage Rock, Hard Rock, Punk No Comments
[Los Angeles, CA] I found them through internet radio stations (“Action” and “The Split”) and was pretty excited to see their show – it was immediately apparent that the five guys milling around in long lean black jeans and black pointed boots and black shirts were “The Lords” – their dress code was simultaneously hilariously and effective – as was their music… sleazy fast garage punk with big-drama vocals… love them – Rockboy heard the Fuzztones in them and it was (sketchily) confirmed that there is a former member of both The Fuzztones and MC5 amongst The Lords – and, the sullen girl on the sideline with long black hair and long black boots and a long black coat jumping to stay warm transformed into a jumping go-go dancer with tremendous breasts only restrained by a black bikini once The Lords got on stage
The Minutes – March 17, 2010 – Habana Calle 6, Austin TX
Mar 17
Arena Rock, Hard Rock, Pop No Comments
[Dublin, Ireland] big sound pop rock that sounds fiercer live – I really liked their tight performance but Rockboy thought they were boring
Wake Up Lucid – March 17, 2010 – Hoek’s Death Metal Pizza, Austin TX
Mar 17
Blues, Garage Rock, Hard Rock No Comments
[Los Angeles, CA] I wanted to see this band because the homecoming (prom?) king of my 5000-person high school is in it but Rockboy had actually listed them as someone he wanted to see through his SXSW research – hard blues rock with garage swagger – vocals and lyrics are genuinely blues inspired – something like The Black Keys, which is a very good thing as far as I’m concerned
Jay Reatard – December 9, 2009 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Dec 09
Garage Rock, Hard Rock, Punk, Thrash Comments Off
There really is no other musician who has mattered more than Jay Reatard in the last couple of years. I realize I may say this more often than I should, but for Jay Reatard, it’s the truth. He reins in diverse aspects of rock into a sound that is all his own, a sound that encapsulates the fury and angst of frustrated youth. I envision him as a troubled prodigy who can’t start enough bands to keep himself sated. His Lost Sounds material is what changed my world, but this night he played his solo material which is similar but less synthy and gothic. A barrage of raw garage punk. Unceasingly intense. Which could have been a boring annoying wall of sound, except that his material is also finely crafted and well executed. The sound was not what you would call crisp or tight, but it didn’t displease me. The show ended with two audience members jumping on stage and attacking him. Rather than an amusing band antic, it was disturbing and upsetting. Rockboy maintains it was staged, but I maintain that PMS and Jay Reatard being attacked do not go well together.
The Givers – October 26, 2009 – Antone’s, Austin TX
Oct 26
Art Rock, Funk, Hard Rock No Comments
WomanInCharge, true to form, didn’t invite me to this show (Dirty Projectors) but told me I was going… this band was darling darling darling – smiles washed over the crowd – had the stage presence of Matt & Kim: happy clean jumping dancepunk – the little girl with the long hair in a barrette and the green eyelashes painted under her right eye was fierce and inflamed with a voice that reminded me of Grand Ole Party and maybe CocoRosie – her compatriot guitarist with the 70s fluffed hair matched her energy – lots of drums, a keyboard, a whaw pedal, occasional trumpet, sometimes a saxophone – a synthy disco rock inferno – maintained hyped up stage presence until it was certain that the audience had been saved – they almost outshone the headiners
Tempo Tantrums – October 16, 2009 – Club 1808, Austin TX
Oct 16
Garage Rock, Hard Rock, Punk No Comments
a motley crue for sure and Austin no-names but I thought they were great – a happy-dad keyboardist, a stringy haired lurching ex-hippie lead singer, a punk kid on bass guitar and a slick-guy drummer (smelled like a ‘session drummer’ to Rockboy) – their music reflected these disparate influences – some blend of a garagey, punky, post-punky rock – lots of energy too
The Cult – September 5, 2009 – Stubb’s, Austin TX
Sep 05
Arena Rock, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal No Comments
this is a band that I have never liked – his dramatic voice grates on me – I particularly hate their hit and the song I am most familiar with: “She Sells Sanctuary” – the ticket to this show was bought for me and I underwent two evening sessions of training in the catalogue of The Cult by a long-time devotee of the band, Rockboy – I enjoyed my training – I am now qualified to tell you that while I respect the band-integrity (pre-Rick-Rubin producing) of the earliest albums of The Cult, such as Dreamtime and Love, it is exactly the music that I don’t like from them: wishy-washy romantic dramatic unrock rock – the albums that followed were a surprise to me (such as Electric and Sonic Temple) as I had no idea that The Cult had such music – while I see the transformation intro crunchy AC/DC metal as Rubin-homogenizing-evil and as The Cult becoming very un-Cult, I cannot deny that I quite enjoy those albums more than the early frilly-shirt soaring-sob albums – and so the concert went – they did the Love album in entirety and it was perfect – it was as if we were in the studio but for the dirt under our feet, the sweat and heat, and the most annoying drunk mish-mash packed-in crowd I have ever been in (I was nearly knocked down twice by 2 near-fights between the same 2 ignorant middle-aged obliterated-drunk men) – and then the second set was a selection of hits from their proper metal albums and the crowd went even more wild although it didn’t seem it was possible – Ian Astbury’s voice is undeniably distinctive and high-quality – in the end, the show was tremendous, this band is still not for me, and I felt inexplicably drawn to Ian Astbury – he was round and shaggy-haired and wearing a hoodie with little white insignias on it – he looked all cuddly and accessible – he banged his tambourine and shimmied forward and backward like’s he done this… as long as he’s done this – I liked his aura of knowingness and the sort of self-confidence that underlies not having to dress to impress
Supersuckers – July 21, 2009 – Scoot Inn, Austin TX
Jul 21
Alt-Country, College Rock, Hard Rock, Punk No Comments
sported the polish and confidence of a band who has performed for years and years – almost want to write them off as silly party boys but they managed to pull off sunglasses at night, coordinated movements, and holding the guitar up for the audience to worship because they are sincere in their worship of rock and because they can back it up with some really good music – very nearly 3 separate bands within one: they had very tight garage punk songs that were distinguished by short punctuated segments a la The Hellacopters, they had songs that were spot-on expressions of the nichey genre ‘punk n’ roll,’ and they have their country a la Cracker – lots of wah wah pedal too – they’re fun for the whole music family
When Dinosaurs Ruled the Earth – May 30, 2009 – Emo’s, Austin TX
May 30
Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Thrash Comments Off
this was a band that was on our radar during SXSW – we never ended up seeing them though which wasn’t a big deal since they’re local – this too was more of a chance sighting than anything else but I was still disappointed – I expected more psych metal and less screamo – the music was heavy and complicated (good) but the vocals were grating and annoying: too discordant to even be screamo –the lead singer was fascinating though with his spawn-from-the-river-like writhing – noise-rock meets no wave – possibly, possibly it was my own bad attitude and the fact that I should have been in bed…
The Bozo Nightmare Ramrod Boston MA May 27, 2009
May 27
A supposedly “joke” band, the Bozos were fronted by a straight shirtless guy. The music was more Top Gun than anything, it sounded good and looked good but it was obvious this wasn’t a real band. They headlined for the Burnt Fur on purpose, I heard.
Entertaining but who was left to care.
The Vibrators – May 22, 2009 – Room 710, Austin TX
May 22
Apparently the boy band of punk bands. I was pretty excited for this show for no good reason except I adore “Baby, Baby” and their general take on punk – popped up in the friendly hard rock way – melodified – complexified – hate the emo. When the frat boys’ girlfriends started yelling for “Baby, Baby” I was shamed and had to tame my clapping. But in truth, they were definitively solid and had a wide range of styles. I was surprised at first at how hard they were – but they do have a history of opening for a variety of 70s punk bands, such as Sex Pistols, etc., etc. Plus they’ve been a band for as long as I’ve been alive, just exactly, which is unimaginable: impressive, worrisome. So being a band for 32 years results in impeccable tightness, record-quality polish, and the problem of having to not look bored to death with playing the same songs you’ve played for 30 plus years. They did good. They were enthusiastic and obviously chose the right career path for themselves. The drummer was ignorant and sticking his tongue out at the crowd like a silly pervert – original member of the band. The lead guitarist was not an original member – he was technically good but had a suburban-man-mowing-the-lawn outfit on – fine fine. The lead singer/guitarist was the core of the band but when I realized he was a walking skeleton, I was torn between oh-this-is-real and oh-poor-man. He’s clearly a man easily persuaded by fads – he might as well have been Scott Weiland in his overwrought attempt to stay current and punk. They went from hardcore punk to Oi-ish punk to just hard rock. The crowd was insane but it was basically a pack of extremely drunk cotton-t-shirt boys. Oh, and they were thoroughly British which is always charming. Austin is undergoing the mini punk festival, Chaos in Tejas, and these classic fellows were not included, which made me wary of them, but I think I was lucky to see them, even if they don’t discriminate against melody. Highlights were “Baby, Baby” AND when they covered The Members’ “The Sound of the Suburbs.”
April 22, 2009 – Speeding Ticket – Headhunters, Austin TX
Apr 22
Hard Rock, Heavy Metal No Comments
like most bands I see at Headhunters, this group was carrying the torch for some decades-old sound without even a touch of irony – I guess this is acceptable for certain sounds – this band was for all intents and purposes a Judas Priest cover band, i.e., not acceptable – the lead singer wore gray jeans with knee-high boots and a flame shirt and was moved by himself
The Gay Blades – March 18, 2009 – Creekside Lounge, Austin TX (SXSW)
Mar 18
12:30pm on a very hot patio. Free tall-boy Lone Stars and Pabst. Lead singer in a long-sleeved red underwear-shirt must have been miserably hot. Once they spoke, I turned to group and said, confidently, “They’re not from America!” WomanInCharge scoffed and said, “Please, they’re from the South – that’s still America.” They were from New Jersey. Just a guitarist/singer and a drummer. Energetic, enthusiastic hard rock. Sometimes post-grunge but best moments were metal-infused. Some rap vocalizing. Liked them. They seemed like regular guys.
Chili Cold Blood – February 27, 2009 – Hole in the Wall, Austin TX
Feb 27
Funk, Hard Rock, Texas Blues No Comments
I am embarrassed that I enjoy this band so much what with their unfair use of everything good in rock and roll: heavy bass lines, groovy blues licks, funky pick-ups, but to their redemption, they’ve also got talent, soul, authenticity, and diversity. At previous shows, they’d been more about the tight hopped-up songs (which they still did), but tonight there was only three band members (lead guitar, pedal steel and drums) and they did some extended intense jams as well as some lighter country numbers (Moonhanger songs?), with both guitarists exchanging vocalizing duties. I like Chili Cold Blood, I cannot lie.
Black Bone Child – February 14, 2009 – Headhunters, Austin TX
Feb 14
uhhh… Chili Cold Blood. Spot on. But a lot slicker and so less appealing, at least to me. They were grinding electric blues with a touch of metal and some harmonica. Sexy boys with sexy guitars. An emo-looking boy sang and performed a blues storm with his slide. The crowd was somewhat cold to them – maybe they were inauthentic (in their contrived get-ups) or maybe the crowd was hipster snooty. Their sound was polished and full, their instruments were glossy and gorgeous, and as much as all of this was good, I got the impression that they were privileged and totally out of touch with what the blues is about.
Motley Crue at the Hard Rock Las Vegas February 7, 2009
Feb 07
Of course Crue puts on the best show on Earth, but last night wasn’t like the one they did for the Carnival of Sins at the Hard Rock about 5 yrs. ago I remember. It was good..no doubt, but they didn’t do a few of the ultimate fave songs like Smokin’ In the Boys Room and Too Young To Fall In Love…Vince looked good and trimmed up, happy, sober..very healthy…so did Nikki and Tommy. Mick has that disease and you could tell he was in a lot of pain..I almost cried everytime he came up front to play to the audience…please pray for him…I don’t think he has much time left..really..we saw it in his eyes.. Otherwise…Crue was awesome..very energetic and everyone had a good time..the only thing that sucked was the Hard Rock’s rule about no cameras whatsoever…ya, we all had cell camera phones, but no real cameras…give me a break….that was total bullshit!!!
Cave Dweller – February 6, 2009 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Feb 06
was initially entranced because they were dead-on Reigning Sound, then I became distracted by the lead singer’s ZZ Top beard and black sunglasses, then I realized that they were the most soulless band I have seen since I don’t remember – I can’t quite pin down the exact origin of their peculiar void of energy though it did remind me of Yo La Tengo when they’re trying to pretend like they don’t give a shit – I fear this is one more indicator of the decline of Emo’s (all of their fabulous bartenders have defected, rumors are afloat of problems about unions, it’s all very worrisome,…)
Diagonals – February 6, 2009 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Feb 06
pleasing, noise rock that went from poppy to droning, lots of guitar
Screaming Females – October 27, 2008 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Oct 27
Hard Rock, Punk, Rock and Roll No Comments
a Chronicle-recommended show despite distinctly being non-headliners and they were great, band centers around the wailing tiny female (almost a la Ole Grand Party but with less drama) with shaggy brown hair who was simultaneously playing lead guitar, excellent steamrolling hard rock riffs with plenty of rollick and groove to boot – the songs I liked less slowed down and focused on her voice
Trail of Dead – September 27, 2008 – Beauty Bar, Austin TX
Sep 27
Hard Rock, Indie Rock, Prog Rock No Comments
these unassuming boys put on an intense show, a loud wall of noise though definitely not psych-metal – the meticulous melodies and indie yearning hurtled forward as if on a upward bound rumbling train give them a sound that is quite their own
Megazilla – September 19, 2008 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Sep 19
drum and bass that was so loud and fuzzy that it made my insides hurt in a bad way and I had to step outside
Red X Red M – September 19, 2008 – Emo’s, Austin TX
Sep 19
Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Thrash No Comments
had pigeonholed this band as brainless hardcore but both the bass and guitar players are superb: fingers flying throughout the entirety of the songs in complicated arrangements, math rock, the bass player had a Munsters look to him that was a nice juxtaposition with the shorter brainiac-metalhead-looking guitar player, there was a drummer too who of course nobody noticed
