Hello Y'all,
This month Bill and are joined by Justin Frohwirth. Justin will be bringing a box of extremely rare and simply the best fucking Punk records you will ever hear. I think Bill and I are more excited than he his. We get to hear some amazing records, most of which we have probably never heard before, and unfortunately Justin has to deal with us two knuckleheads. Justin runs the amazing http://www.collectorscum.com website. Just take a look through the site and you will get an idea of what you are in for. Recently Justin said that he is into pure Punk rather than Hardcore, etc which we look forward to the focused set. He will grab the 10PM - 12 PM hours with Bill getting the action started at 9PM and as always I'll be entertaining the empty stools for two hours. It's all fun and games until My Brother the Bartender yells, "BOB GAUL!" "GET'DA'FUGH'OU'DA-ERE!" And of course, simply "GO HOME!" Since I wouldn't even want to compete with the likes of Justin, I'll be bringing some favorite, more common members of the Punk scene and some not-so-very Punk records including A LOT of recent acquisitions from the Iris Records Record Riot, and several other sources.
- pat.
Primitive Sound System
VINYL RULES!
"Audio Visual Triumphs and Disasters" - http://primitivesoundsystem.blogspot.com
Primitive Sound System, Bill Dolan & special guest Just Frohwirth (10PM - Midnight)
Thursday August 7th 9PM to Closing
D.C.'s Tavern
505 8th Street
Between Jefferson and Madison
BACK IN BACK
Hoboken, New Jersey
PH: 201-792-5550
http://www.dcstavern.com
http://myspace.com/dcstavern
Justin's site - http://www.collectorscum.com
Personal Punk Favorites:
I have written about each one of these on many occasions. Hey, they really are my favorites. So this time I took a different approach.
Pere Ubu - "Final Solution" (Hearthan cat. HR102)
Discovering Pere Ubu was one of the most important moments in my life. Not only did I discover the sounds of one of the most creative bands ever but also the works of Alfred Jarry whose book Ubu Roi gave the band its curious moniker. Pere Ubu or Ubu is the vulgar, oafish, greedy and moronic character created by Jarry and his schoolmates to mock a hated teacher. Jarry continued to shape and mold the character and his story into an elaborate play. When the work first appeared on stage Ubu stood alone and declared, "MERDRE!" This translates as "SHIT-RR!" just in case anyone present didn't catch the vulgarity. A riot immediately ensued and so was born the career of one of the greatest absurdists. The band Pere Ubu were born from the ashes of Ohio Garage / Punk band Rocket From The Tombs. The amazing Rocket also spawned The Dead Boys. After being asked to describe their music by fans and critics alike Pere Ubu created a genre of music for themselves, Avant Garage. Ironically the music of Pere Ubu is easily explained BUT no one single explanation will cover all of their works and sometimes not even an entire song. Yes they are that unique. At times the music is visceral and pounding with primitive screams, riffs and rhythms typical of most Garage bands and at other times the music is complex, experimental, intellectual and always purely original. Just listen to the lyrics of "Final Solution" and you will instantly recognize it as a teenage angst anthem but this is no "My Generation." The song is a perfect companion for the Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer" and has an obvious formal connection.
Final Soulution:
The girls won't touch me
Cos I've got a misdirection
Living at night isn't helping my complexion
The signs all saying it's a social infection
A little bit of fun's never been an insurrection
Mamma threw me out till I get some pants that fit
She just won't approve of my strange kind of wit
I get so excited, always gotta lose
Man that send me off
Let them take the cure
Don't need a cure
Need a final solution
Buy me a ticket to a sonic reduction
Guitars gonna sound like a nuclear destruction
Seems I'm a victim of natural selection
Meet me on the other side, another direction
Don't need a cure
Need a final solution
The Dead Kennedys - "Police Truck" (I.R.S. (International Record Syndicate) Inc. cat. IR-09016)
Having friends with older siblings doesn't always mean hours of endless torture. Sometimes it means you are exposed to things that can help you skip steps in the natural evolution from child to young adult. In this case skipping Classic Rock and landing directly in the pit. While most of the kids in school were learning about Classic Rock my buddy Joey's sister was listening to Punk and New Wave bands (Ramones, Talking Heads, The Clash, etc...). I spent a lot of time at his house. Joey was a great friend and his sister and her friends were really good looking. I endured lot of teasing from Joey in their pool since I was quite large by age twelve but it was all worth it as his sister and her friends shared the pool with us. They controlled the radio, which in most cases would suck, but in that backyard the music and visuals were both perfect. Soon Joey and I were listening to bands we discovered through the music of his sister. The Dead Kennedys were one such band and a logical progression. To this day I can listen to "Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables" over and over and never once get bored and at one point want to launch myself across the room. "Police Truck" is not on that CLASSIC Rock LP but is easily one of my favorites. This is also an early example of looking to the B-Side. The B-side is a place I have always felt more comfortable.
minutemen - "Paranoid Time' (SST cat. SST-002)
The Minutemen are probably the most influential band to me as a musician, OK, I am a drummer but that is almost a musician. Minutemen drummer George Hurley takes the fast paced, hard strumming guitar of D. Boon and makes it all swing. Simultaneously he can join with Mike Watt and go from blistering Hardcore to Funk grooves that would make James Brown smile. The songs of the Minutemen are short but they are filled with tempo shifts, breaks and parts that may or may not go together yet flow beautifully. Politics and timings come together without ever being disjointed or preachy. As time went on the songs of the Minutemen became structured more like Pop songs. Choruses were not only repeated but clearly sung to ensure the messages were heard and the meanings not confused. The band never lost any its power but sadly came to an abrupt end after D. Boon died tragically in an car accident. "EVERYBODY, SWING TO THE LEFT!"
Melvins - "Snake Appeal" (C/Z Records cat. CZ-1705)
Soon after I lost my taste for all things Hardcore I stumbled upon a few bands from the Great North West. At the time there was no way to know what the future soon held for this area of the States but from the first few records I picked up I began to notice similar names from one record to the other and consistency from a handful of labels. C/Z Records, Estrus Records, EMpTy Records and later on Sub>Pop were obviously at the forefront and involved in something different than the rest of the country. The idea wasn't necessarily new but it really did sound fresh. There were a few bands already combining the sounds of Metal and Punk (Black Flag surely comes to mind) so the sound itself wasn't particularly Revolutionary as much as you could smell and taste the ooze dripping from the turntable. The sound could be slow and dirge like Flipper or fast like Hardcore but almost ALWAYS the music was aggressive and in many cases "loud" became an ingredient and not just the final expression. I can't remember which I picked up first, this 7-inch or the Deep Six compilation but that doesn't really matter. Deep Six introduced me to Green River, Malfunkshun, The Melvins, Skin Yard, Soundgarden, and The U-Men. All of these bands instantly became favorites (except for Malfunkshin who later birthed Mother Love Bone and finally Pearl Jam). The Melvins had it all; Dirge, Punk, Hardcore, Metal (something I had never developed a taste for but was now beginning to understand) and to me the best aspect of all... NOISE!
LONG LIVE ROCK! BE IT DEAD OR ALIVE!
