Photo jacked from Elvis’ MySpace
Tractor Tavern
Seattle, WA
March 30, 2007
The Tractor Tavern was the most appropriate host for the wistful Elvis Perkins and his backing band, Dearland. The grimy floors, dusty cowboy boots draped along the ceiling, multi-colored strings of light hung won ton across the ceiling and the bar’s propensity to serve only beer (and an excellent Texas beer at that – Shiner) and simple liquor drinks all set the mood for the bare bones country truth of Elvis Perkins.
Rating: 5.0
I’m not a thoroughly educated man. There is some lingering controversy on how exactly I acquired my high school diploma, and I don’t have a fancy college degree like a bachelors in business management or a masters in fruity Parisian synth-pop, but I do know one thing- Air is an old dog that doesn’t give a shit about learning new tricks.
Rating: 6.0
First you see one indie rocker from Sweden; let’s say it’s Jens Lekman. Then they just keep showing up and nobody takes notice until they become a threat to our American way of life. You know the ones: the Radio Dept., Suburban Kids With Biblical Names, I’m From Barcelona. They come to our country, steal our dreams of playing homemade synth pop, and charm our socks off with their damn triangles, hand clapping, and sing-along choruses. We are face to face with a Scandinavian coup. If you’re not outraged, you’re not paying attention.
Rating: 7.5
Lou Reed has always received the most credit for what is widely known as the incredible legacy of the Velvet Underground. The name John Cale, although it does conjure up an instant association with the aforementioned group, usually draws a blank with most people concerning his solo output from 1968 until the present. This is hugely due to the overwhelming lack of hit material that he has produced. However, those who have seen him as a vital presence as being at least equally important as Lou Reed in defining the Velvet Underground’s place in music history, have discovered that Cale’s solo career has consistently outshined Reed’s by leaps and bounds. To be succinct, his records contain a fine balance between pop, classical, and avant-garde music. His albums, for the most part, are both intelligent and challenging where Lou Reed’s often suffer from a prevalent tendency towards average good time rock and roll. When considering this point, it is obvious why the first two Velvet Underground records are so different from the third and fourth. The fact of the matter is that John Cale is an astonishingly original multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. The new double CD collection Circus Live was recorded mostly during the tour that followed 2005’s excellent BlackAcetate.
Rating: 8.0
The High Violets are high on the obscurity radar, even as far as Myspace bands go. However, the Portland band stands apart from many of its dream-pop contemporaries through its marriage of the right mixture of bite and beauty. To Where You Are is a potent little album that raises quite a bar above its bland name.
Rating: 5.0
As everyone and their grandmother have heard by now, The Stooges, have had a fairly recent reunion and, in their current incarnation, they have just released their first studio album in thirty-seven years this past month. Technically, they have already recorded together as they perform three songs on Iggy Pop’s last solo record entitled Skull Ring. Since then, Mr. Pop, Ron Ashton, Scott Ashton and bassist Mike Watt (filling in for the late Dave Alexander) have been touring together over the past few years. Admittedly, I was skeptical before I saw them live in 2004, but their energetic performance was rather shockingly terrific. The Weirdness is the title of this somewhat unexpected new album and it has been highly anticipated since their recording plans with producer Steve Albini were announced last year. So far, this record has been thoroughly panned by critics across the globe, but considering the ages of the band members, and more importantly, if one remembers that Funhouse was released almost four decades ago, I would have to say that this new recording, although it has it’s faults, is not a bad one.
Rating: 4.4
The new EP from the French Kicks, emergent band borne out of the D.C. hardcore resurgence of the 90s, lacks grit and charm. A new exclusively eMusic release, The Roller EP, stuns with a bit of boredom and a less than vicious bite. Turning from post-punk/garage rock into wistful pop-rock is no simple task, but the French Kicks have mastered the downward spiral well.