Kayo Dot w/ Shilpa Ray 5/20/15 Bar

Opener Shilpa Ray and her Happy Hookers from Brooklyn with a recent release on Knitting Factory records gave off a lot of sound. Ray played harmonium, which I learned is a tabletop pump organ. It  looked like she was opening and closing a dresser drawer, part accordion, part furniture. Her vocals swelled from somber melancholy to stub-your-toe level scrawl. Capable backing band were all solid. I can see why she is a favorite of Nick Cave, even opening some shows on the Grinderman tours. I asked her about the harmonium, which I confused with a euphonium ( which is actually a large tuba).
  Kayo Dot were billed as "avant-metal". They were sinister, wore black, and played metal-ish tunes with proggy lyrics. Five string bass player and singer seemed like the leader. Guitar, keys/synths, and propulsive drummer rounded out the group.

Agent Orange 5/15/15 Cafe 9

California punk outfit Agent Orange had been on my radar for a couple of months. Judging from iTunes, AO had a few hits in the 80s surfing the punk snarl oozing from LA. Dormant for a decade, they decided to lure out punk fans with a tour. Being a Friday night, it was poor planning to not have an advance ticket and dawdle before entry as the show was sold out on our arrival at 10pm. (One needs a little room to mosh, isn't that a constitutional right?). After hanging out in miniskirt land, we decided to swing back and were allowed entry to view the last two songs. Typical, sweaty, high energy punkness was the genre. I hope they have a Posture-pedic in that van, these guys aren't as young as they used to be.

Low Cut Connie w/ The Silks 5/6/15 Bar

.  Providence- based The Silks were a 70s sounding rock trio. Guitarist looked and played like Jeff "Skunk" Baxter. Frenetic drummer and Slade t-shirt wearing bassist comprised the group.
    Low Cut Connie hails from Philadelphia although drummer and sometimes guitarist had a decidedly British accent (a touch more vocals in the monitor mate). Two guitars, drums, bass, and charismatic leader on a beat up piano named Shandra. Straight up rock and roll with the pianist doing his best Jerry Lee Lewis acrobatics in,on, and around Shandra. "Shake it Little Tina" from their recent record was a highlight. Closed the show with a rousing version of Harry Nilsson's "Jump Into The Fire" complete with Ray Liotta, Goodfellas reference. This song is playing during the crazy cocaine-fueled helicopter scene at the end of that movie.

Lydia Lunch w/ Retrovirus 4/30/15 Cafe 9

I assumed Retrovirus was a punky opener for Lydia Lunch, but was in fact her backing band. I am not familiar with Lunch's catalog, but realize she is discussed in the same breath as NYC seminal punk figures like The Ramones and Blondie. A few years ago, Lunch released a fractured blues record that showcased her post, post punk pushing 70 cackle. Tonight's show was all about punk snarl. Lunch's stage banter made concert goers of all ages blush. With longtime affiliate Bob Berg on drums, Retrovirus was filled out with younger bass and the inimitable Weasel Walter on ear sizzling guitar. WW looked like Will Ferrell but played like Nels Cline crossed with Buckethead. He wore gestapo pants tucked into jackboots, with a haircut that can only be described as a weasel draped over his forehead to enhance the spasmodic guitar renderings. Walter spat at the audience and pushed Lunch around in his psychotic frenzy. One might assume that he would have a certain "respect" for an obvious elder, but not so in the punk realm. This show was a curious sight, an aged punker being piloted through the Straits of Atonalville by Captain Weasel Walter.

"What Happened Miss Simone?" Yale School of Architecture

. Screening of the new documentary about the "high priestess of soul", Nina Simone.  Jammed into a classroom with other NS fans and the filmmaker, Liz Garbus, we saw a fascinating and sad tale of this iconic singer. Born in South Carolina,  Eunice Waymon showed an aptitude for piano at an early age. Trying to become the first female black pianist to play at Carnegie Hall, Eunice and family moved to Philadelphia to further her classical training. For money, Eunice changed her name to NS and played joints in Atlantic City. Eunice changed her name so her mother would not know of her night job playing the " devil's music". A club owner said she could keep the job if she played and sang.  She moved to NYC and married a tough ex-cop who managed the beginnings of success. The husband turned out to be abusive. Nina found refuge in the blossoming civil rights movement. They moved to Mount Vernon next to MalcolmX ( probably some awesome block parties!), and had a child. NS's music became more socially conscious and her fame and marriage suffered. A true artist, NS was difficult onstage. Her longtime friend and guitarist became wary of her ability to perform. In the 90s, we had tickets to a Newport Jazz festival with NS as top billing only to have her cancel for health reasons. Moving to Liberia, Switzerland, Paris, finally Holland, NS was an ex-pat of the "United Snakes of America". Ultimately diagnosed and treated for bipolar disease, drug therapy compromised her art. The arc of her career was fascinating and sad. This film opened this years Sundance festival and will soon be available on Netflix,  a worthwhile documentary.

Swervedriver w/ Gateway Drugs 3/26/15 Spaceland

 Caught the last two songs from Gateway Drugs. The final tune was a snarling cover of the 60s psych-pop nugget Psychotic Reaction.
  I had some Swervedriver on vinyl, which gives you an idea of the timing of this British band. They took a ten year hiatus and re-emerged with the same dual guitar, bass and drums sonic attack. Sludge and fuzz guitars are central to the SD sound. Without any true hits, SD marched through some old and new songs. The regular SD bass player was absent, with the bassist from Supergrass as a fill in. The drummer was a big fella who played in perpetual motion and anchored the sonic assault.

Perfume Genius w/ Jenny Hval 3/23/15 Spaceland

Opener Hval hails from Oslo. Scandic freaktronica  from Hval on voice and video and an accomplice on keys and synths. An odd mirror/ video screen  showed images of Hval and some mildly erotic footage of people's mouths and chains. Hval had long red hair and a track suit to "make her feel more American". She gave off a woozy Charlotte Gainsbourg aura. Her voice was beautiful at times and screechy at others. She even chirped her way through a Simon and Garfunkel song. Her final song, in true performance art fashion, had her remove her red hair (wig) and faux strangle herself.
  Perfume Genius from San Francisco is set to appear at many international festivals this summer. A quartet of synths, drums, guitar/bass/electronics with PG on vocals and keys. An extremely "out" artist, PG's songs speak to the trials of being openly gay in 2015. The music seemed to have two gears: soft piano ballads, and full on clubby ragers. Excellent voice and good stage presence bode well for PG's success. I had to laugh when he lispily launched in to the encore without leaving the stage because he "was not wearing pants".