Helen Money w/ Sea of Bones 3/20/13 Bar

Opener Sea of Bones had an abrasive 3-man doom-metal sound. So abrasive, that I had to wait in another room to save my ears. There were plenty of fans, this is just not the kind of music i'm familiar with. Sheets of sound driven by guitar, bass, and drums is the requisite band geometry. My problem is the inaudible, gravel-throated lyrics that punctuate the noise...i don't see the point. The sound of three cavemen being dragged by a city bus, even if the show was free, is difficult. The final "song" started with a nice reverb-drenched instrumental intro (like "Set Your Controls to the Heart of the Sun", by Pink Floyd), which was great until they started to sing and the song devolved into unlistenableness.
    Helen Money, from Chicago then LA, was billed as a punk cellist. Her music was a sinister mix of plucks and loops. Cellist of choice for the SST punk label, one could see why Sea of Bones opened. Money didn't try to sing, the array of loops and effects made for interesting soundscapes. Money also had a jazz background, one tune was an homage to a recording studio where Charlie Parker recorded. Beautiful plucked cover of a Mahavishnu (i think) song.

Mary Gauthier w/ Scott and Joanna 3/14/13 Cafe Nine

Nice to see Mary at Cafe Nine. Canadians Scott on guitar and Joanna on drums beefed out Mary's sound into folk rock territory. A singer-songwriter from Nawlins, Mary has led a checkered life. A junkie prostitute in her teens led to jailtime. Mary rocked some favorites: I Drink (either the saddest or the funniest song ever, covered by Blake Shelton), Drag Queens and Limousines, Last of the Hobo Kings, In and Out of Love ( written on a tourbus in Vienna). Rousing last song Wheel in the Well then closed with Mercy Now (soon to be covered by Boy George). Mary Gauthier is the consummate songwriter, winning the CMA for the Gay Country category is just the start for someone who came to the craft later in life.

The Big Gigantic 2/20/13 Toads Place

Capacity crowd of 20 yr olds to see drum and sax combo BG. Found a relatively safe viewing location amongst the throng. A young wide-eyed hipster could not stop high fiving me the entire evening. Kids in shorts (it was single digits outside), shirtless binky sucking next,next gen hippie converged at Toads for the scene. The show was similar to the 2011 GOTV Saturday late night, two white guys one played drums while the other played sax and laptop. Computer generated bass shook one's leg hair but the music was not inspired. Vocal snippets and computer crescendo seemed to move the crowd, but not me. This music is more of a backdrop for the scene, kind of like disco for the times. It's ironic that BG used to be affiliated with the Motet, one of the best percussion-heavy jam troupes in Colorado history. I left early for an easy exit to see the streets crawling with cops poised to scoop up those with the largest pupils. As with most music like this, it is best heard outside.

The Residents, Iron Horse Northampton MA 2/13/13

I consider myself fortunate to have persevered blizzard charlotte's aftermath to view the "40 Years of Weird" tour by the Residents. While I cannot begin to explain the checkered history of this avant-art-rock collective, my notes on the evening's festivities seem like the best kind of review. To set the stage, two giant inflatable snowmen with intertwining candy canes form an entrance to the stage. The players, Randy: lead singer/talker dressed as Santa, Chuck: keyboards and electronics, dressed as a chicken, and Bob: on guitar, dressed as a bug. Here goes: Picnic n the Jungle//Demented Midget in a co-dependent relationship with a giant//Struggles//Snakefinger dies of a heart attack in Austria in the 80s// Randy has fight with his swivel chair shaped like a huge pair of lips//between songs Randy rocks autistically on candy cane entrance// chuck lives on a chicken farm, randy lives with cat Maurice on West Pico in LA// randy was beat by eddie murphy for the donkey voice in the Shrek movie...fahk//chuck aims electronic etchasketch at keyboard for a feedback solo//bob seems like Buckethead in his metal-prog approach to guitar//randy has been married 11 times//mandy's butt->everything is black// friend lenny does porno films, rnady's profile pic has him with fake phallus so he "couldn't even make it in the porno business!"// maurice gets hit by a car but only needs a small amputation//lost all money in media-rich "mole" phase in the 90s//randy kicks candy cane, it deflates as he exits// bob skronks out a version of "o tannenbaum" as randy blows up a huge christmas tree with eyeball as the star// closes with "auld lang syne"...............wow

Nels Cline w/ Julian Lage 12/21/12 Arch St Tavern

A night of guitar duo improv with these two masters at the renewed Arch St. was a treat. Nels Cline shelved his day job as lead axe-wielder for the band Wilco for a night of improv with the prodigy Lage. Those expecting Wilco hits or Frosty the Snowman were sadly disappointed. These two guitarists are on top of the food chain for speed and sheer dexterity. Cline, a so-cal native plays like a cross between Wes Montgomery and Walter White. Lage, while young, is no understudy ( see my review a few years back of the Firehouse 12 show). Guitar nerduosity at its finest.

Baroque Blues with Robert Zott at Artspace 12/7/12

What if Marcel Duchamp and Koko Taylor had an illegitimate child at Captain Beefheart's house in the Arizona desert? This progeny would be Robert Zott. We met him at erector square at city-wide open studios in October. An artist and blues guitarist, Zott is a real original. This performance was held at the Artspace Gallery. Zott's pieces included the use of "ready-mades" for lack of a better term. The first song showcased him singing into a submarine's talking tube that gave a weird echo effect. The next piece involved video close-up of a watch that acted as a metronomic percussion. A flight box lifted from a 737 acted as a music box for the next song. A video mashup of Zott playing an inverted flying V guitar projected him to be a human compass. The final piece went down outside on Orange St. Zott had his amplifier rigged to a propane tube that acted as a visual "equalizer". As notes were strummed, the propane flames danced in proportion to the sound. Part inventor, part blues man, Robert Zott is a true artist

Simone Felice w/ Smoke Signals 12/2/12 Cafe Nine

Opener Smoke Signals was a two man guitar outfit that played high energy rock. Played a good cover of Springsteen's Atlantic City.
   Simone Felice had a three piece outfit with fiddle, standup bass, and Felice on guitar and vocals. Felice, better known as one of the Felice Brothers and the Duke and the King, played songs of drugs, booze, prostitution, and abuse because "that's what I know best growing up in a degenerate community in upstate New York." Capable playing and singing. Covered I Shall Be Released in homage to neighbor late great Levon Helm. Felice also covered Atlantic City, seems that superstorm Sandy reached all the way up to the Catskills.