It List: Wednesday

Melvins (House of Blues): I don't know if I'm just a moron for missing this one all together, or if the show was just underpromoted. Either way, its immaterial, because even the "Stonebriar Mall" feel of the House of Blues' lobby won't take away from the power of King Buzzo and company's performance, which is consistantly amazing. Last time we caught them live at the Granada, Buzzo shared the stage with Dale Crover, duh, and newly permanent members Big Business, who are pretty incredibly loud and rude in their own right. The result was a punishing two drum attack and a flawless display from Buzzo, who seems to acquire more and more critical acclaim as each day goes by, especially over the past four years, which have seen quite a resurgence in interest in the band. Anyway, not sure if Big Business will play their own opening set, but even if they don't, anyone with even a passing interest in heavy guitar music of almost any kind would serve themselves well seeing this legendary group play this evening.

The Weight/The Heelers/Spooky Folk (Rubber Gloves): I saw some strange quotes today as I was reading some of the press material for The Weight's last record, Are Men. First came this phrase:

"Are Men reveals a sound and feel very much different from 2004’s 10 Mile Grace, which found the group working within the framework of earnest alt-country executed by post-punk kids"

And next came this one:
"For the similarly post- jaded kids, and honest fans of Americana, Are Men sounds like the record you actually enjoy listening to."

Now maybe its just me, but its hard to think of something more smug than "earnest alt country executed by post-punk kids," especially when you consider the built in implication that they've somehow become "more mature" as a result of their adventure into the oh-so-respectable "alt country" field. Second, what the hell is a "post jaded kid?" Like does that mean someone who's totally over being jaded? Or someone who's jaded by the idea of "post" genres? Either way, both sentences come of as describing a band that seems very calculated and is neither earnest nor something I would "actually enjoy listening to," which isn't surprising considering that this comes from Brooklyn (by way of Athens) and I'm supposed to think its cool. As you listen to The Weight's music and read some of their reviews, you'll see and even think of names such as Waylon Jennings and David Allen Coe, but its hard to escape the fact that these guys come off as Am Appy clad scenesters who started having fantasies about outlaw country once they got bored of 80's dance parties or whatever. Even the above pictured album cover seems to scream out for an audition for Vice Records, an appeal to the label's "tough guy," ironically patriotic blend of punk rock and politically incorrect self awareness thats become just as tired as whatever the hell it was supposed to be a reaction to in the first place. Sometimes the band's approach works reasonably well, no matter how much you might not want it to, and you'll find some easily enjoyable tunes mixed in their catalogue. However, at the end of the day, as merely a casual fan of classic country music, I can't for the life of me figure out why this music is needed or why I'd ever want to listen to it, especially when I can just as easily seek out the real thing and get better songwriting and way less fashion baggage as a result.





Hip Hop Night with Yeahdef (Hailey's)