Multiplex 5 10/27/19 State House

Another early Sunday show featuring regional improv musicians curated by local skronksters Bob Gorry and Joe Morris. I missed the first group. The second outfit had a young man on clarinet and baritone sax, two drummers, and big fella on guitar. The two drummer assault was the perfect backdrop for the reedman and fuzzed out guitar. The guitar was creepy ( in keeping with the season), completely black, strings, knobs, fretboard, even the player was clad in black. The sound was sludgy fuzz that didn't even sound like a guitar, as if this man was playing batman's flamethrower. After the set, this guitarist sat next to me and I queried him on his axe. He talked of an 8 string setup with odd placement of the additional strings. The third group had Bob Gorry on guitar, Vance Provey on trumpet, and Paul Gunsberg on drums, sax, and pocket cornet. I've seen Gorry many times and am always impressed with the improv interplay. With trumpet and drums, the sound was jazzier than the first group. The drummer got out from behind the kit to play the final song on pocket cornet ( that's what I'm calling it), a mini trumpet that echoed then complemented the trad trumpeter. The final duo was upstate New York denizen Jamie Saft on mellotron and Joe Morris on drums. Morris' primary instrument is guitar, but he took to the kit for this outing. Saft is a sight to behold with a ZZ Top beard and looked like he was having fun on the keys. Morris, on the other hand, had the wondered look of of a teenager on January 10th, who had been given a drum set for Christmas. Please examine Saft's bio, from the hauntingly beautiful soundtrack to Loneliness Road ( with some Iggy Pop), to a dub workout with legendary noisoids Merzbow. On driving to the show, I spied Saft and Morris walking near the green and passed on a perfect opportunity to kook them by saying that I was with the FBI Special Avant Garde Jazz Unit and that they were in violation of all tonality laws.

Mike Watt and The Missingmen 10/10/19 Spaceland Ballroom

Unfortunately missed Northampton freak collective Sunburned Hand Of The Man's opening set on this evening. I did have a flashback of seeing them at Bar back in the day. It was a December show and they pinched a Christmas tree somewhere, donned drum and cymbal cases on their heads, and oozed their freak prog-noise assault while dancing around the tree in some sort of blotto pagan ritual.

Anywho, the main ingredient on this evening is another freak of nature Mike Watt. Driving up from San Pedro in the 80s, Watt formed the seminal LA hardcore outfit  The Minuteman with D. Boon and George Hurley. Rated as one of the top 20 bassists of all time, Watt was joined by longtime cohort Tom Watson on guitar and youngster Nick Aguilar on drums, the Missingmen. Looking at Watt's discography, you realize that he has been a part of many rock and punk acts, Porno For Pyros, The Stooges, Ciccone Youth just to name a few. His mind bending bass playing was buoyed by Watson's angular guitar and Aguilar's incessant drumming. When Watt introduced the young drummer, he said he went to high school with his dad. The stage setup was egalitarian, drums up front flanked by bass and guitar. The mush mouthed singing style of Watt reminded me of a punk version of the tobacco chewing sheriff in the Smoky and the Bandit movies, it was truly difficult to understand what he was saying. There are no sing along " hits" associated with this artist, the songs veered from punk  speediness to beat poetry angularity. Watson's vocal style was reminiscent of Fred Schneider. Encored with some Stooges TV Eye. Watt listed some influences, Fogerty, Buck Dharma ( from Blue Oyster Cult), with a dash of Pete Townsend, good company indeed. Just so the crowd didn't lose the free jazz angle, Watt left the stage and uttered one more name.....John Coltrane.

Luna 10/3/19 Spaceland Ballroom

Formed in 1991 after the demise of Galaxie 500, Dean Wareham on vocals and guitar assembled a true indie pop gem. With Sean Eden on lead guitar, Britta Phillips on bass, and Lee Wall on drums the crew was in good form after a decade-long hiatus. With trademark NYC snarkiness and odd literate lyrics, the mid 90s saw a string of critically acclaimed hits that drew comparisons to the Velvet Underground and Television. I saw them at the skater hangout The Tune-in (R.I.P.) on a sweltering sold out show and then again open for Lou Reed at the Palace. Wareham name-checked the Lou Reed show saying that his amp and microphone were stolen (" seemed like an inside job"). No one made it out of the 90s without an Andy mix CD containing the churning 23 Minutes in Brussels. Other nuggets Sideshow By the Seashore, Bewitched, Pup Tent were all great. Encored with their amazing lo-fi take on Donovan's Season of the Witch which I first heard off the equally amazing I Shot Andy Warhol soundtrack that contains contributions by an early Wilco and Yo La Tengo. As with that recording, Luna is in that league.

Nobide w/ Polluter 9/23/19 Cafe 9

Polluter is a regional jam trio who bill themselves as " demented blues rock". Solid drums and bass back up epic guitar noodling. Expansive jams would ebb and flow and eventually lead into a guitar psych-out. This band reminded me of the not-jazz, not-rock, not-jam but all three meanderings of  another regional outfit The Slip. Maybe it was the trucker hatted hipness of the guitarist.
Nobide was an electronica trio from Denver. Three young kids in a van plying their trade on the East coast. Keys/laptops, sax, and metronomic drums was the layout. Keyboard player had many effects, bass qualities and looping abilities. The sax also had more pedals than he knew what to do with, often times you could tell it was a sax. The drummer kept perfect time and was essential to this dancey mix. This group was the same type of lineup as The Big Gigantic, and had similar control of the volume knob to keep the audience engaged.

Space Kadet 9/19/19 Cafe 9

Unfortunately missed local groove opener Strawberry Cheesesteak. Space Kadet is a noodley trio from GA. Drums, bass/laptop, and guitar was the lineup. The drummer thrashed and made a lot of noise with seemingly minimal effort. Bass had a five string setup that affords an extra level of flexibility. Bass player also used a computer to shade and add loop effects. Guitar player brought the noodle with speedy fills and runs. Space Kadet was yet another group sans vocals. It is difficult to hold a Monday night audience's interest without some vocal and songwriting. The tunes were mashups of familiar jams. I heard some Pink Floyd, 2001 Space Odyssey, and metal riffs pieced together with effects and jams. Space Kadet seems like a band better viewed late night at Camp Bisco with some chemical aid to the fray.

Shana Falana 9/9/18 Cafe 9

NY shoegaze rocker Shana Falana mixes pop, sludge, noise to create her self-described " druggy music by sober people".  Falana plays guitar, loops her vocals, and pogos in front of a video backdrop. Joined by a drummer, the songs veer from pop to punk. One tune started syrupy and pop like and ended with a sneering onslaught that reminded me of Entertainment-era Gang of Four. She played a Depeche Mode cover that I couldn't place.

Donna the Buffalo w/ Birds of Chicago 9/6/19 Edgerton Park

Annual CT Folkfest at Edgerton Park saw good weather and solid turnout. The music runs all day with a bevy of local folkies and some organic-centric food trucks. We arrived for Birds of Chicago, the brainchild of guitarist singer songwriter JT Nero and singer fiddler Allison Russell. On this evening they added a third musician on guitar. The acoustics could have been better but a good set from this young group. Russell was a solid singer and her stage presence reminded me of Rhiannon Giddens. They had a speedy jam workout for their finale which was great.
Donna The Buffalo has been satisfying the jam world since the early aughts. Had a fond memory of seeing them at a roots festival in Lowell MA in 2003. Jeb Puryear on guitar and vocals and Tara Nevins on fiddle, guitar, accordion, and vocals are the focal point of the troupe. Organ, drums, and bass round out the quintet. Good mix of Cajun informed, hippie folk, and lyrical nerdiness had the crowd swaying. Nice rendition of the Cash nugget Ring Of Fire. Heard a great interview with Nevins who said they had a recent bus breakdown and crowd funded a replacement in less than a month, the Internet is good for something.