Author: andrea Page 46 of 72

Not as dark or as angular as Chrome, or as blatantly Birthday Party-worshiping as the Bellmer Dolls, sadly-defunct San Francisco trio Pleasure Forever whipped up a thrillingly tense amalgam of lush, theatrical glam (thanks to bouyant underpinnings of piano and violin) and guitar-lashed despair. (It helped that, song after song, Reznor-alike singer Andrew Rothbard brought himself to an exhaustive edge of hysteria.) The music, too, was desperate and haunted, constantly threatening a kind of emotional overload. With music this endlessly taut and lyrics this overheated and vulnerable, it’s a bit mystifying why the band didn’t find a greater success than they did. I once saw them open for Savage Republic, and they tore the roof off the place. They’re long overdue for reassessment.

The band released two Sub Pop albums —a self-titled disc in 2001 and Alter in 2003— and called it quits some time after. The reconvened this year to finish off a between-albums covers EP, which has now been appended with four additional rare cuts and released as Bodies Need Rest [Conspiracy].

I’m off to Montreal for the weekend to see the Nihilist Spasm Band (“spasm band” being a term for a group that makes their own instruments —Neptune and Turkish Delight would also qualify) play theSuoni Per Il Popolo (Sounds of the People) Festival (which also includes performances by David Kristian, the Ex + Rhythm Activism, Charalambides, and the afromentioned Jandek) on Saturday the 16th. Jon Whitney (Brainwashed) DJs between sets. Don’t miss it if you’re in the area!

Alas, that means I’m going to miss Jeffrey Alexander’s birthday party on Friday night at downtown Providence’s own AS220. Venerable psych-folk duo Charalambides headline a bill that also includes Bronhard/Going/Public, GHQ, Blue Shift, Work/Death, Madagascar and Siege Engine. Go on down Friday night and toast Jeffrey on me.

Conspiracy Records | Pleasure Forever | Pleasure Forever on MySpace | Nihilist Spasm Band | Secret Eye

****

Pleasure Forever, “The Bars” (from Bodies Need Rest)

Pleasure Forever, “This Is The Zodiac Speaking” (from their final Sub Pop album,Alter)

For awhile there it looked as though the Masons’ 1999 debut album was going to be their only album. Band leader and songwriter Kraig Mason never stopped writing songs, though, and gentle prodding from a friend who just so happened to run a record label (75 Or Less) spurred him to properly record the songs with a band. And not just any band —The Masons mach 2007 includes such local luminaries as Dave Narcizo (Throwing Muses) on drums, Don Sanders (Medicine Ball) on guitar and vocals, and Jeffrey Underhill (Honeybunch, Velvet Crush) on guitar and keyboards. All these great players work to put Kraig’s charming stories front and center. “Theo”, for instance, draws on the author’s own experience of falling for a dog who’s already taken. (Thankfully he gets visitation rights.)

The band are playing a couple of shows in RI this summer.

The first is at Jake’s on Richmond St on June 9th. The excellent Blizzard of ’78 headline.

The second show is at July 29th at Billy Goode’s in Newport, RI.

I’ll be at Jake’s ’cause Newport at the height of summer is too much for me to handle. (The crowds, the drunken idiots, the traffic jams…) But either show will be well worth your while.

The Masons’ album is available from 75 Or Less Records. More samples and info at the band’s MySpace page.

The Masons, “Theo”

IMAGE BY JULIE DOUCET FROM HER NEW BOOK ELLE HUMOUR

The past week has been busy and decidedly un-bloggy. C’est la vie. I’ve been listening to some very good music, just haven’t been struck by the urge to write about it. Also, c’est la vie.

Sunday afternoon I’m off to Cambridge, MA to see Kristin Hersh at Mark Sandman’s old studio, Hi & Dry. She’ll be joined by her 50 Foot Wave confreres, Bernard Georges and Rob Ahlers, and the extra-special addition of string duo the McCarricks, who weren’t able to make Hersh’s last Boston date back in April due to Visa woes. This time they’ll be there, and it’ll undoubtedly be very special indeed.

There’s a whole spate of amazing and/or surprising shows coming up, too. Let’s see: there’s Jandek at the Boston ICA on June 8th (couldn’t ask for a better venue), These Are Powers at Machines with Magnets Studio in Pawtucket on June 14th. June 23rd is the most surprising show of all: AR Kane.

Yeah, you heard me.

AR freaking KANE playing one show only (as far as I know) at Faison Firehouse in Harlem at 8 PM. A mere $10. It’s part of the URBNALT Festival, and since I can’t get their website to work (hopefully they’re working on that) I’d urge you to look at NYPress for more info.

You know, just a year ago news of a JANDEK show would have been the jaw-dropping item in this litany. Now it’s practically like, “Oh, another one?”

You can buy AR Kane tickets here.

Throwing Music | Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Jandek/ | Jandek On Corwood[incredible documentary about jandek’s work] | AR Kane [unofficial MySpace page] | These Are Powers

Jandek, “Nancy Sings”

AR Kane, “Butterfly Collector”

DECOUPAGED BOX BY SUZI COZZENS