stuff to do, week of May 3, 2008
grady
The Pressure Boys (http://www.pressureboys.com/)
Sneakers (http://www.trouserpress.com/entry.php?a=chris_stamey)
Greg Humphreys
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
The Pressure Boys were a hugely popular Chapel Hill ska band, back
before American ska became the enormous cottage industry/joke that it
has been for the past 20 years or so. They broke up in '88, and the
original lineup have since been scattered to the four winds, with
drummer Rob Ladd enjoying a successful career as a west coast session
drummer, and bassist Jack Campbell relocated to New York (after the sad
end of his Durham record store Poindexter Records).
A few years ago, PB frontman John Plymale's daughter Allie was diagnosed
with Cystic Fibrosis. Plymale, now a busy local record producer, put
together the "Songs for Sixty-Five Roses" compilation to benefit CF
research. This reunion was the next logical avenue for CF
consciousness/fund-raising, I guess.
Lest you be left wondering about the enduring popularity of the Pressure
Boys, this show was originally slated for just one night, but it sold
out quickly enough that they decided to add a second night. Helped,
perhaps, by the addition of a Sneakers reunion: Chris Stamey and Mitch
Easter's short-lived late-70s new wave band never got more than 1% of
the attention directed at the dBs and Let's Active, but listening from
2008, there's a freshness & anarchy present in the Sneakers' recordings
that seems inexhaustible.
Saturday, May 3
Chip Robinson
Patty Hurst Shifter (http://www.pattyhurstshifter.com)
Tres Chicas (http://www.treschicas.org/)
Glory Fountain (http://gloryfountain.home.mindspring.com)
The Silos (http://www.thesilos.net)
Pour House, Raleigh
Silos bassist Drew Glackin died earlier this year, of a
previously-undiagnosed thyroid condition. This show is a memorial and
also a fundraiser for the Future of Music Coalition's HINT, the Health
Insurance Navigation Tool, which was set up to help musicians deal with
the difficulties of getting health coverage in 2008 America.
Here's a full lineup:
Tres Chicas (+ Hazeldine reunion)
Chip Robinson
Glory FOuntain
Chris Mills
the Silos
Quarry Hill
Tandy
BJ Barham
Patty Hurst Shifter
Saturday, May 3
Sequoya (http://www.myspace.com/sequoya)
Sawteeth McTweedy and the Particles
(http://www.myspace.com/sawteethmctweedy)
Scientific Superstar (http://www.myspace.com/scientificsuperstar)
Veronica Blood (http://www.myspace.com/veronicablood)
Bull City Headquarters, Durham
Future generations looked back on it as "the day the good band names ran
out."
Saturday, May 3
In the Year of the Pig (http://www.southernloveprod.com/ityotp.htm)
Earth (http://www.southernlord.com/band_EAR.php)
Katmandu, Raleigh
When I said "gonna be playing the hexed/doomed club space on Martin St,"
I wasn't really trying to hex/doom the Downtown Event Center, but it
shut down anyway. This show will now be occurring, somewhat bizarrely,
at Katmandu, a "girls dancing on the bar" kind of a place that used to
be the Comet Lounge, way back when Ryan Adams was drinking underage,
next door to the Brewery on Hillsborough St.
Earth are one of the acknowledged masters of the heavy drone, so it'll
actually be intensely amusing to see their wall-o-sound up against the
"$3 well drink specials."
Saturday, May 3
I Was Totally Destroying It
(http://www.reverbnation.com/iwastotallydestroyingit)
Tripp (http://www.myspace.com/trippband)
Mumpsy (http://www.myspace.com/mumpsy )
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Saturday, May 3
Tom Meltzer Combo (http://www.myspace.com/tommeltzer)
Jeff Hart
The Cave, Chapel Hill
Saturday, May 3
Man Will Destroy Himself
Suburban Sweethearts
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh
Sunday, May 4
Chip Robinson
Kenny Roby (http://www.kennyroby.com)
Lou Ford (http://www.louford.com/)
The Cartridge Family (http://www.cartridge-family.com/)
Joe Swank and the Zen Pirates
(http://www.myspace.com/joeswankandthezenpirates)
Sadlack's Heroes, Raleigh
This is the second half of the Drew Glackin Memorial/HINT fundraiser.
Chip always did play better hung over.
Sunday, May 4
Man Man (http://www.wearemanman.com)
Yeasayer (http://www.myspace.com/yeasayer)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
Sunday, May 4
The Men (http://www.myspace.com/themenproject1)
Grass Widow (http://www.myspace.com/grasswidow)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
This is a 506 Free For All show.
Sunday, May 4
Polynya (http://www.myspace.com/polynyapolynya)
The Bright Lights (http://www.myspace.com/spynovel)
Reservoir, Carrboro
Monday, May 5
Leslie (http://www.myspace.com/leslierock)
Airbourne (http://www.myspace.com/airbourne)
Reborn (http://www.myspace.com/rebornrox)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Tuesday, May 6
The Rosebuds (http://www.therosebuds.com/)
British Sea Power (http://www.britishseapower.co.uk/)
Jeffrey Lewis (http://www.thejeffreylewissite.com)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
Tuesday, May 6
Noncanon (http://www.myspace.com/noncanon)
Waumiss (http://www.myspace.com/waumiss)
Dain's Place, Durham
You're going to be up half the night watching election returns anyway,
so why not do it with the sound turned down, a beer & a plate of
pierogies in front of you, and Noncanon doing their blooz/drone/freakout
thing at the end of the room? Also on the bill: Waumiss, the
reincarnation/elevation of Clarque & Caroline's low-fi bedroom project
(formerly known as Shallow Be Thy Name).
Tuesday, May 6
Sea Cow
Potato Gun Project (http://www.myspace.com/potatogunproject)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
This is a 506 Free For All show.
Wednesday, May 7
Jukebox the Ghost (http://www.myspace.com/jukeboxtheghost)
Western Civ. (http://westerncivrock.com)
The XYZ Affair (http://www.myspace.com/thexyzaffair)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Wednesday, May 7
The Chuttesville Speak
Sunset (http://www.myspace.com/lobosunset)
Nightlight, Chapel Hill
Wednesday, May 7
The Scott Waite Debacle (http://myspace.com/scottwaiteisbenevolent)
Swan Quarter (http://www.myspace.com/swanquarter)
Hell, Chapel Hill
Thursday, May 8
Filthybird (http://www.myspace.com/filthybird)
The Physics of Meaning (http://www.thephysicsofmeaning.com/)
The Tiny Meteors (http://www.myspace.com/thetinymeteors)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Filthybird and the Tiny Meteors are both from Greensboro. Filthybird's
album "Southern Skies" was one of the best things about 2007; singer
Renee Mendoza's voice swoops and soars, and the further out she goes,
the harder the band works to keep her aloft.
Thursday, May 8
Nathan Asher & the Infantry (http://www.nathanasher.com/)
Tir Na Nog, Raleigh
This is Tir na nOg's weekly local bands/local beers night, cosponsored
by WKNC.
Thursday, May 8
Monsonia (http://www.monsonia.com)
Hazerai (http://www.myspace.com/hazerai)
Algebra of Need
Nightlight, Chapel Hill
Monsonia make tight, mathy indie-rock focused around the cranky
mutterings of singer/guitarist Carter Browning. Hazerai make postpunk of
the screamy/paranoiac variety. They're good at it; you come away
thinking "Fuck! What do they know that I don't know?"
Thursday, May 8
The Manics (http://www.myspace.com/themanicsrock)
Pendleton (http://www.myspace.com/pendletonmusic)
Reservoir, Carrboro
Friday, May 9
The Old Ceremony (http://www.theoldceremony.com/)
Tony Scherr (http://www.myspace.com/tonyscherr)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
Friday, May 9
The Gondoliers (http://www.myspace.com/comeseethegondoliers)
Soft Company (http://www.myspace.com/softcompany)
Chops
Nightlight, Chapel Hill
Apparently Todd left town, bringing the Gondoliers to an untidy &
premature end, so he's coming back for one last show, so everyone can
give a proper sendoff to the best mid-60s-style garage-band to come out
of Chapel Hill in years.
Soft Company are just about my favorite live band currently working
around here: a bunch of ringers from other bands (Hotel Motel, Piedmont
Charisma, Erie Choir, Audubon Park) united to back the bizarro song
stylings of Erin Ridings. They're like a loose southern reincarnation of
early-70s Roxy Music.
They're also too damn loud to keep playing clubs like Nightlight, where
the PA will struggle to let the vocals be heard over the caterwauling of
the rest of the band.
Friday, May 9
The Backbeat
Jack Sprat Cafe, Chapel Hill
Friday, May 9
Kapow! Music (http://kapowmusic.net)
Wil Donegan and the Apologies
The Cave Singers (http://www.myspace.com/thecavesingers)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Friday, May 9
American Aquarium (http://www.americanaquarium.com/)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh
Saturday, May 10
Killer Filler (http://www.myspace.com/killerfiller)
Sadlack's Heroes, Raleigh
Killer Filler is the knockout surf/instrumental combo fronted by former
SCOTS keyboardist Crispy Bess, and featuring Bryon Settle (Lud, Pressure
Boys, Trailer Bride, etc) on lead guitar.
Saturday, May 10
Polvo (http://www.southern.com/southern/band/POLVO/index.html)
des_ark (http://www.des-ark.org)
Noncanon (http://www.myspace.com/noncanon)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
You either already have your ticket or you're SOL, so for those of you
who're going: make sure you show up on time. These two openers are two
of the best bands the region has to offer, so if you roll in late,
you're just gonna tag yourself as one of those married-with-kids
ex-scenesters who only goes to reunion shows to talk to their old
friends they never see anymore.
Saturday, May 10
Bonde Do Role (http://www.myspace.com/bondedorole)
The Death Set (http://www.thedeathset.com)
Diamond Studs (http://www.myspace.com/juanhuevos)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Saturday, May 10
Thunderlip (http://www.thunderlip.com/)
Colossus (http://www.myspace.com/thecolossuswillcrushyou)
Slim's Downtown, Raleigh
Sunday, May 11
Lam! Lam! (http://www.myspace.com/lamlamband)
WXDU 88.7 FM, Durham
Betsy-Shane felt all self-conscious about doing solo shows with just her
guitar & her iPod, so she started doing elaborate dance routines &
wearing fancy outfits & whatnot, none of which you'll be able to see
over the radio, so just pull out that videotape you made when you were
13, the one with all the Madonna videos taped off of MTV, and play it on
mute while you listen.
4:00 p.m. 88.7FM or wxdu.org.
Sunday, May 11
Polynya (http://www.myspace.com/polynyapolynya)
Glissade (http://www.myspace.com/glissade)
If/When (http://www.myspace.com/ifwhen)
The Cave, Chapel Hill
Shoegaze, in the form of Glissade and if/when, both from points west
(Glissade from the Triad, I believe, and if/when from all the way out in
the mountains of NC somewhere). Plus our own Polynya, who aren't
shoegaze but who *do* have a healthy appreciation of the Cure & Stereolab.
Monday, May 12
Flicker (http://www.chapel-hill.nc.us/flicker)
Cat's Cradle, Carrboro
Flicker is the monthly-ish festival of short films that has been
happening in Chapel Hill for over a decade now. Under 20 minutes apiece,
all originating on film, the perfect way to balance your Luddite
tendencies against your short attention span.
Monday, May 12
Government Warning (http://www.myspace.com/governmentwarningrva)
Invasion (http://www.myspace.com/invasionmusic)
Crossed Eyes (http://www.myspace.com/chriscarraway)
Under Pressure (http://www.myspace.com/underpressure)
Bull City Headquarters, Durham
Hardcore. Invasion are apparently from Spain.
Monday, May 12
The Never (http://www.trekkyrecords.com/never.html)
Snowden (http://www.snowden.info/)
Colour Revolt (http://colourrevolt.calebplain.com/)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
Monday, May 12
Spider Bags (http://www.myspace.com/spiderbags)
The Golden Boys (http://www.hookorcrook.com/Bands-GoldenBoys.htm)
Girls of the Gravitron (http://www.myspace.com/girlsofthegravitron)
The Cave, Chapel Hill
The perfect Monday-night show at the Cave, as both the Spider Bags and
all their fans are the sort of people for whom Monday night is every bit
as good a night to drink as the other six nights. Better, even, because
the bars aren't as crowded with amateurs.
Tuesday, May 13
Eberhardt (http://www.myspace.com/eberhardtnc)
Empty Orchestra
Nightlight, Chapel Hill
Tuesday, May 13
A Rooster for the Masses (http://www.myspace.com/aroosterforthemasses)
Strange Faces (http://www.myspace.com/strangefacestheband)
The Cave, Chapel Hill
Spirit-of-'83 postpunk/dancepop from A Rooster For the Masses.
Tuesday, May 13
Neva Dinova (http://www.nevadinova.com/)
A is Jump (http://www.myspace.com/aisjump2)
Ladyhawk (http://www.myspace.com/ladyhawk)
Local 506, Chapel Hill
--------> http://www.trianglerock.com <--------
-- ch-scene: the list that mirrors alt.music.chapel-hill --
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James Hepler
> Saturday, May 3
> I Was Totally Destroying It
> (http://www.reverbnation.com/iwastotallydestroyingit)
> Tripp (http://www.myspace.com/trippband)
> Mumpsy (http://www.myspace.com/mumpsy )
> Local 506, Chapel Hill
The show is free and happens to be Tripp's CD Release Party. Yay!
loca...@gmail.com
I think relegating them to just 'ska' is doing them a disservice -
although they were heavily influenced by the genre (witnessed by them
doing three songs that appear on The Specials debut last night.)
Their later stuff definitely owes as much a debt to XTC. Regardless,
the show last night was amazing! I highly recommend going tonight if
you missed it!
glenn
ps: what a day - both the Cradle and 506 were sold-out plus the Town
Commons event!
DJ Golf
carlos
re the town commons event
Heres some pictures - http://www.flickr.com/photos/abbyladybug/sets/72157604857796718/
And here's a short review - http://trianglemusic.blogspot.com/2008/05/arcade-fire-and-superchunk-in-carrboro.html
grady
but Superchunk songs are shorter, thus they were more fun.
Is that capsule enough for you? ;-)
Seriously, though, if you leave out the creepy Obamafascists running the
gates, who required every attendee to fill out full contact info,
including phone number, before being allowed entry, it was a wonderful
time.
Superchunk put in possibly the strongest post-extended-hiatus set I've
seen them do, and there was the added bonus of all the Band Children
(tm) wearing those giant kid-earmuff things, all onstage dancing next to
Laura. I half-intended to jot down a setlist, but of course I didn't &
my memory sucks too bad to recreate one here. Ask Rawls, he'll tell you.
Here's a video: http://youtube.com/watch?v=Wlj_aawjlIY
I'd actually never seen the Arcade Fire before. I regret missing them at
the Cave & the 506, but don't regret missing them at any larger venues,
because just as with any other increasingly-popular band, they draw a
ton of people who really love them but who don't have the foggiest
notion about rockshow etiquette (i.e. that 9" of space in front of me is
buffer so the person in front of me doesn't back into me, not an
invitation for your 6-foot-tall ass to occupy it).
I did find it somewhat alarming when everybody started clapping in
unison, like Soviet spectators at a '70s-era Olympic event.
I got sunburned.
Ross
DJ Golf wrote:
> Anybody got a capsule review of the aforementioned Town Commons event?
>
> On May 3, 1:20=A0pm, local...@gmail.com wrote:
>>>> The Pressure Boys were a hugely popular Chapel Hill ska band...
>> I think relegating them to just 'ska' is doing them a disservice -
>> although they were heavily influenced by the genre (witnessed by them
>> doing three songs that appear on The Specials debut last night.)
>> Their later stuff definitely owes as much a debt to XTC. =A0Regardless,
>> the show last night was amazing! =A0I highly recommend going tonight if
>> you missed it!
>>
>> glenn
>>
>> ps: what a day - both the Cradle and 506 were sold-out plus the Town
>> Commons event!
>
James Hepler
guff for making me fill out my rally ticket in the rain after I took off
work to drive to durham in order to fill out my name and GET the ticket.
And then again to get my arcade fire ticket. It is what it is though.
Obama himself called me twice today, and one of his minions called me from
atlanta to tell me to vote at rogers here middle school on cornwall road in
Door-Haam. Love it when people who can't pronounce my city tell me where to
vote.
But it is what it is, and I'm glad there are people who care enough to get
out there and put in the work. Somewhere, someone decided that this is how
you win elections, and so everyone does it.
David Bartholomew
http://www.jstor.org/pss/2585837
http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/articlerender.fcgi?artid=17987
VOTE OBAMA!
Mary Brunnemer
thought both performances were pretty great. I'm pretty die-hard fan of
Superchunk & my only complaint was the short set. I would have loved to see
more, since they don't play so much anymore. Oh, and it was a bit weird to
be in a sea of youngins that didn't seem to be familiar with Superchunk
songs, so that was a bummer. In all my years, don't think I had ever seen
Superchunk at an outside venue, so that seemed extra fun to me for some
reason. That was my 3rd time seeing Arcade Fire (Local 506 & Cradle) so it
was a larger crowd, but I was close enough to not be bothered by it. I had a
pretty good spot between the stage & sound booth tent but didn't feel too
crowded in my immediate surroundings.
It was also fun to be at an Obama rally, yet I managed to avoid signing the
clipboard as I had already done it to pick up my tix, too. I did have 4
people as me about early voting while I waited in line, but I soon learned
that telling them I lived in Durham county put a stop to their plea. (No, I
do NOT want to go vote right now while you hold my place in line, thank you
very much.) The lines and crowd were really not as bad as I feared. All in
all it was worth taking a day off work and getting a goofy one-sided, oddly
shaped sunburn. Though they really shoulda been giving out water or selling
liquid refreshment of some kind. Overall? I'm very glad I went to the show.
On Mon, May 5, 2008 at 9:46 AM, DJ Golf <djg...@mindspring.com> wrote:
> Anybody got a capsule review of the aforementioned Town Commons event?
>
> On May 3, 1:20=A0pm, local...@gmail.com wrote:
> > >>The Pressure Boys were a hugely popular Chapel Hill ska band...
> >
> > I think relegating them to just 'ska' is doing them a disservice -
> > although they were heavily influenced by the genre (witnessed by them
> > doing three songs that appear on The Specials debut last night.)
> > Their later stuff definitely owes as much a debt to XTC. =A0Regardless,
> > the show last night was amazing! =A0I highly recommend going tonight if
> > you missed it!
> >
> > glenn
> >
> > ps: what a day - both the Cradle and 506 were sold-out plus the Town
> > Commons event!
>
doug
> In all my years, don't think I had ever seen
> Superchunk at an outside venue, so that seemed extra fun to me for some
> reason.
Does anyone else remember the big anti-Helms rally at the (old) Durham
Athletic Park in '96?
Superchunk played that one, with many others, Polvo I think.
I'm trusting that the political result is better this time.
James Hepler
beloved Ray Ubinger was running for Senate that year against Gantt and
Helms. He was at the show, but never given a chance to address the crowd.
That show was so much fun, though, a great event!
Kevin Slater
gave him stick about having to give all my info to get the ticket and
again to get in the place. When we got to the gate, I (and my 3
compadres) just handed them to the ticket taker blank. He looked at
them, saw they were blank, and shoved them in the ticket box.
k.
On May 5, 2008, at 5:33 PM, James Hepler wrote:
> I gave the line monitor at the dean dome
> guff for making me fill out my rally ticket in the rain after I
> took off
> work to drive to durham in order to fill out my name and GET the
> ticket.
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