Heavy Trash review and photos by Julz Finley

There is no easy way to say this… Jon Spencer is fucking hot! Not only is he hot, but so is his music, and Heavy Trash is a shining example of his repertoire. I managed to catch this show when it blew through town, and I am glad I did, because Jon Spencer is HOT!

Anyhow, this current tour of Heavy Trash is unique in that not only do The Sadies open the show, but they are also the backing band to Jon Spencer and Matt Verda-Ray. The Sadies are a label mate of Heavy Trash, from Yep Roc Records… and they are kickass musicians. Now with that said, I may as well be honest… The Sadies are exquisite musicians, but they really need a front man with charisma. The vocals are shared with 2 of the guitarists, but they don’t have the swagger that comes with a front man. Their opening set was really long too, and which I grew bored with, but the music was still toe-tap friendly.

Since the visual aspect left me limp, I started to peer around the crowd to see how many people showed up (it was a good size crowd for a Thursday) and I noticed Jon Spencer watching the band in the audience, and I just kind of stared at him for the rest of the set, mouth agape, because he’s so fucking hot! He’s also very petite as well, I never realized how short he was, but his big pompadour made up for his stature.

After their set, a short intermission ensued, I was able to get some Guinness and get my camera prepped, and then Heavy Trash hit the stage. Now, as I had mentioned before, The Sadies were the backbeat of Heavy Trash, but they now had the swank Matt Verda-Ray on GEE-tar and Mister Jon Spencer as the front man… which totally fucking rocked! Jon has stage presence, and can get a crowd going… for a little guy he sure packs a lot of punch on stage. Aside to being gorgeous, he’s just so goddamn entertaining. He has that loud Mick Jagger-esque voice that commands attention, and he’s kind of silly too.

I’m a longtime fan of the Blues Explosion and Boss Hog as well as Pussy Galore, but I think Jon has really found his calling with Heavy Trash. His voice works well for Rockabilly (as well as his look), and it’s more melodic and catchy. I’m surprised he didn’t form this group sooner, because it’s so fitting for him. I’ll also admit… I don’t know much about Matt Verda-Ray (other than the fact that he’s a good guitarist, and looks like he could be Jon’s brother). The show lasted roughly an hour to about an hour and 20 minutes, and the crowd dug it immensely (as did I). And in case I forget to mention it… Jon Spencer is fucking hot!

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