October 2009 - Antigravity Magazine

PHOTO BY MANTARAY PHOTOGRAPHY
STAFF
PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF:
Leo McGovern
[email protected]
ASSOCIATE EDITOR:
Dan Fox
[email protected]
CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:
Emily Elhaj
[email protected]
Erin Hall
[email protected]
Nancy Kang, M.D.
[email protected]
Dominique Minor
[email protected]
Dan Mitchell
[email protected]
Sara Pic
[email protected]
Mike Rodgers
[email protected]
Brett Schwaner
[email protected]
Jason Songe
[email protected]
Mallory Whitfield
[email protected]
Derek Zimmer
[email protected]
AD SALES:
The Pogues bring the riffraff to this
year’s Voodoo Music Experience
[email protected]
504-881-7508
COVER DESIGN:
EBSL | Erik Kiesewetter | erikbelowsealevel.com
Photos by Aubrey Edwards
We like stuff! Send it to:
4916 Freret St.
New Orleans, La. 70115
Have listings? Send them to:
events@antigravity
magazine.com
ANTIGRAVITY is a publication of
ANTIGRAVITY, INC.
RESOURCES:
Homepage:
antigravitymagazine.com
Twitter:
twitter.com/antigravitymag
MySpace:
myspace.com/antigravitymagazine
COLUMNS:
FEATURES:
ANTI-News_page 6
Guidance Counseling_page 10
Some of the news that’s fit to print.
Mondo Bizarro dishes advice.
Pygmy Lush_page 16
The Goods_page 11
You can have it quiet or loud...
Gold-plated bumblebees!
Mike Kennedy_page 17
Dr. Feelgood_page 12
The director speaks...
Things you can’t unsee...
Loup Garou_page 18
“Slingshots, Anyone?”_page 13
That sneaky, sneaky Derek...
This play will turn you...
EVENTS (pg. 28)
October listings for the NOLA
area...
COMICS (pg. 34):
Qomix, How To Be Happy,
K Chronicles, Firesquito.
Homefield Advantage_page 14
Gogol Bordello_page 19
The Saints’ first three games...
An immigration to Voodoo...
The Bingo! Parlour_page 20
A look at the history of Voodoo’s biggest tent
Sissy Nobby & Big
Freedia_page 22
REVIEWS (pg. 24):
Albums by Jay-Z, Raekwon, The
Way, Yacht and more...
Photo Review_page 36
The month in photos.
J Yuenger’s Crossword_page 38
Can J stump you?
Who says sissies can’t be hard?
INTRO
N
ot that it’s ever a hum-drum borefest around here, but it’s been a super-busy time in
the AG world. You’ll notice a new address over to your left, and that’s because we’ve
moved into our first office space since waaay back in 2005, when we had a space (oh,
for about two weeks before Katrina) above Handsome Willy’s. We’re now inside the freshly
re-opened Crescent City Comics on Freret St., and in my mind there’s nothing better than AG
mixed with some comics, so come on by and say hi one day. We’re having a get-together on
October 17th, when we bring in Kody Chamberlain (Punks, 30 Days of Night) and Rob Guillory
(the immensely cool Chew) for a live art show. You’re invited, so show up around 7pm and
prepare to be amazed. Oh, and if that’s not enough going on, the Voodoo Music Experience
returns this month and Halloween weekend looks to be better than ever. If it’d just get a little
cooler, it’d be a perfect time in New Orleans. I’m sure that’ll happen soon enough, and then we
can all appreciate what could be the best October, event-wise, we’ve had for a long time. See you
around (a bunch this month)! —Leo McGovern
4_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
ANTI-NEWS
ROTARY DOWNS BRINGS A LITTLE
HALLOWEEN VOODOO TO D.B.A.
F
or the last two years, popular local indie band Rotary Downs has played the Voodoo
Music Experience on a Saturday. And each year they’ve capped that set off with a night
show at d.b.a., their favorite local haunt. The first year featured a set and theme crafted
by local artist Miranda Lake (she was also responsible for the stunning artwork on the cover
of the band’s highly-praised 2006 release Chained to the Chariot) that took its inspiration from
a nightmare golf course. Last year, the band upped the ante with a set designed by local artist
Heidi Domangue that featured a sci-fi theme complete with black lights and also included the
band covering themselves in glow-in-the-dark paint and handing out 3D glasses to the audience.
This year’s artist and theme are a tightly guarded secret, but drummer Zack Smith warned fans
to “be prepared for anything.” He added “I require that a smoke machine be in operation, but
BRASS BED WIDENS THEIR PRESENCE DOWN
THE ROAD
by jason songe
photo by allison bohl
B
rass Bed draws large audiences in their hometown of
Lafayette and Baton Rouge, but it’s been a bit more difficult
for the rock quintet to garner crowds in New Orleans. For
the last three years, Brass Bed has played to inconsistent crowds
at The Saturn Bar, Carrollton Station, The Circle Bar, and Café
Brasil. Now, they might be making a dent. They’ve started to trade
shows with popular local bands like MyNameIsJohnMichael,
Generationals, and Caddywhompus—groups that can pull in
the massive college crowd—and they opened for The Walkmen
at One Eyed Jacks at the end of September.
But, why should you care, right? Is this band good, or what?
Yes, they rule. And not in the “O’Doyle rules” or “San Dimas
High School Football rules” sense of the word. They rule over all
the other pop/rock bands in the region. Is that hyperbole? Yes,
it is. They actually come in third to Rotary Downs and Big Blue
Marble, who’ve somehow managed to stay the two best local
rock bands over the years (who will challenge this crown?).
Brass Bed has a knack for catchy melodies, but it’s their passion
for dynamics, arrangement, and instrumental creativity that makes
them special. One second they’re all swooning harmonies and the
next they’re rocking out so hard they’d make a trucker wince. Of
course, anyone can throw in the kitchen sink, but Brass Bed makes
you love them with the careful choices—which always seem to be
the right ones—they make with everything from a Moog to a pedal steel guitar to a tambourine and a fuzz bass.
ANTIGRAVITY recently called vocalist and guitarist Christian Mader to talk about recording their upcoming
second LP, evolving as a songwriter, and the evil of click tracks.
ANTIGRAVITY: How’s the new album coming?
Christian Mader: It’s going great. We’re really pleased with it so far. All we have to do is the vocal tracks now,
and what’s left is finding the money to print it and promote it. We’ve been working at a studio called Cacophony
Recorders in Austin—it’s a really great studio. One of the two engineers, Danny Reisch, recently went to Athens
to help record a Deathray Davies album with The Olivia Tremor Control’s horn section.
then I leave it up to the artist to add dimension to it.” In terms of content, fans can expect to
hear most of the tracks from Chained to the Chariot and some other old favorites, but should also
be prepared to hear some newer material. The band has been integrating these new selections
into shows in anticipation of including them on their upcoming release. “We will be playing
a lot, if not all, of our new songs, which are harder, darker and more psychedelic pop,” Smith
said. In addition to original material, the band plans to play a handful of covers, including
some familiar takes on tunes by Joy Division, Silver Jews, The Cars and Johnny Cash. “But,”
Smith added, “we’ve got three new covers we’re doing especially for this night; you’ll just have
to be there to see.” Smith also hinted at the possibility of some special guests sitting in with
the band. This year is the first year the show has fallen on Halloween, so if you happen to find
yourself wandering Frenchmen St. with claustrophobia setting in as you marvel at the number
of naughty nurses and slutty flight attendants heaving up hurricanes and hand grenades on the
sidewalk, pop into d.b.a. for what’s sure to be a mysteriously fun night of camp and psychedelic
rock with a healthy dose of audience participation. —Erin Hall
Has it been difficult traveling back and forth?
No. We recorded the album already. We did everything at home first. One of the things that made it easier is that
we were able to pretty much get all the basic instrumentation tracked live to tape. What’s going to be really distinct
about this record versus the last one is on the last one we recorded [all] the guitars and bass parts live—pretty
much the only thing that stayed from the original tape were the drum tracks. For this record I would say 90% of
the things put on tape are still going be there. Original guitar solos, original basses, all that stuff. We were trying to
get something that’s more reflective of how we sound as a live band these days. We did the last one with just the
three of us, and we became a much bigger sounding band afterwards. This time we’re able to start from the way
we sound as a band and then build on top of that with overdubs. As opposed to before, where it was like, “We’re
gonna start with a guitar, bass, and drum and see what we can get out of that.” Playing through something and
being to accept it as a whole is a nice thing. It’s a live take. It’s just a really pristine recording quality of our band
performing. Keeping whole takes forces you to be comfortable with mistakes. We couldn’t allow ourselves to get
mired in, “I missed that note or that note,” [because the song as a whole] came out great. It’s really cool. You do
have to live with things, but you kind of learn to love it. Those great mistakes, as they say.
DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS LOOKS OUT FOR
VOODOO MOUNTAIN
In that spirit, how many takes did you normally have to do?
It varied from song to song. There were one or two that we nailed in two or three takes and some that took several
hours. With some songs, having played them for so long, we thought it sounded one way, but then you hear it
back—“Wow, that’s how we’ve been playing it.” We need to re-think exactly how we’re doing it. The really hard
ones are the ones where you have to restrain yourselves. You know, “We want this to be small-sounding,” or
“come in with a slow, pronounced groove as opposed to trying to hit really hard.”
I
very rarely express
intense amounts of
pride for my home
state of Alabama. We
don’t exactly have
the best track record
for intelligence or
progressiveness. Hence
I try to distance myself.
Only two things can
ignite the full force of
my Southern pride:
Auburn football and a
good set by the Driveby Truckers – arguably
the best band Alabama has ever produced. Their songwriting fully embraces the
revered Southern tradition of spinning a good yarn while their multiple guitar
assault brings more than a dash of punk attitude to their sound. They sing songs
about the everyman. About the blue-collar factory worker. About the neighborhood
drunk. About race car drivers and corrupt sheriffs and Lynrd Skynrd. They also
sing about the shameful history of their home state and how we all must learn from
those mistakes. Their music marries the two warring sides of my personality and
proves that being proud of your Southern heritage does not have to equal being a
racist redneck. Also, they just make kickass rock’n’roll. Songs I’ll be listening out
for: “Lookout Mountain,” “Where the Devil Don’t Stay,” “Sink Hole,” and “The
Living Bubba.” —Erin Hall
6_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
Normally, you’d think, “They must have recorded it first,” but maybe they didn’t. Maybe they recorded it
after they fleshed it out live.
One thing that’s really hard to kill, man, is that urge to be like, “We’re here, we’ve got all this stuff, what can we
put on it?” Sometimes you want to capture something innocent and true about things you worked on and other
times you really do want to think it out, like, “What are we really trying to get out of this?” We didn’t work to clicks
because one of the things we pride ourselves on as a band is having a lot of push and pull. We don’t play straight.
We’re not going to play at a straight 120 bpm for three minutes.
What’s the biggest difference between this record and the last one?
The songs are much better. They’re a lot more memorable, and the stuff that I’ve written has more lyrical hooks.
The content is, I don’t want to say deep, but the music and the lyrics are more fixed to one another. The pieces
come together better on this record—the lyrics, the melodies, the arrangements, whereas before it was like, “This
chord progression is really neat,” or “I like fuzz guitars. Let’s put some of that in there.”
Seems like you guys might be on track to finally make an impact in New Orleans. You’re trading shows
with bands like MyNameIs JohnMichael, Generationals, and Caddywhompus. How are you approaching this
surge of activity?
New Orleans has definitely been a white whale for us. We’ve always done well with the industry in town—bar
owners, bartenders, talent buyers, journalists, but we still need to translate it to the people that come to the shows.
That being said, we’re totally excited about the shows coming up. They’re huge opportunities. The thing that’ll
prove to me that we’re gaining influence in the city is whenever I see those people coming to see us without those
names associated. We’re looking forward to watching the friendships we have with the bands you mentioned—
MyNameIsJohnMichael, Generationals, and Caddywhompus—blossom, brining them here, them bringing us
there. We’re definitely in a better position than we were two years ago.
For more information on Brass Bed, go to mybigbrass.com. The band plays the CMJ Music Marathon this month in New
York City.
ANTI-NEWS
YOUR MOM WANTS TO ROCK AND
ROLL ALL NIGHT
MCFARLANE RETURNS TO HAUNT COMIC
SHOPS THIS MONTH
nother Voodoo Music Experience
is upon us and it’s time for a
couple of festival survival tips
(things can sometimes get crazy when
you’re sipping on huge cups of watereddown mixed drinks). Sure, you probably
know that you’ll need sunscreen and
a strategic plan to sneak all kinds of
things past security (tip: socks are not a
good place to hide snack cakes, man).
However, you may also note that this
year’s VMX will feature a disproportionate amount of what we kids like to refer to as “old
people.” Old people, you see, birthed us. They’re our parents’ age. And odds are, if you
were born in the late 1970s or early 1980s, your parents probably got it on while listening to
“Rock N’ Roll All Night.” It’s a horrifying visual image, but also a painfully realistic one, my
friends. You’ll know the O.G. members of the KISS Army because they’ll look like wrinkled
Juggalos, but with less Jncos and more plastic shoulder spikes. For those seeking a diversion
from the KISS psycho circus at VMX, there’s also The Pogues, featuring longtime front man
Shane MacGowan. The Pogues were the first band to really bring Irish folk music into the
vernacular of popular music, ushering in a golden age for tin whistle players (tin whistlers?).
Years after the initial breakup of The Pogues, groups such as Flogging Molly, The Dropkick
Murphys, and The Real McKenzies would use the hook of “Celtic rock” pioneered by Shane
MacGowan’s group as their own ticket to fame, fortune, and yearly gigs on the Vans Warped
Tour and appearances on Late Night with Conan O’Brien. MacGowan was famous in his own
right, becoming somewhat of a folk hero for his unabashed and seemingly good-natured
alcoholism and jaw-droppingly hideous lack of dental hygiene. Their appearance at this year’s
Voodoo also marks The Pogues’ first tour stop in New Orleans since reuniting earlier this
decade. There’s a lot of “Irish love” in New Orleans these days, it seems, so there’s that. My
girlfriend wants to see The Flaming Lips on Sunday, the final day of Voodoo. I think if we
can make it out alive before Lenny Kravitz plays, we’ll be just fine. While I do remember
some good things from Kravitz during his Circus era, it’s the highly annoying “Fly Away”
and “American Woman” part of his career that always comes to mind first. I think I still have
post-traumatic stress from hearing those songs everywhere in the early 2000s. Oh, and there’s
Jello Biafra on Sunday as well, but no sign of Henry Rollins or Greg Graffin or even Danzig.
Don’t laugh. I had to throw Danzig in there. He’s hosting the next Rock of Love reality series on
VH-1, you know… —Brett Schwaner
odd McFarlane is coming back to comics. That either
“does” or “does not” mean something to you, depending
on what comic-reading generation you come from. There
was a time, in the early ’90s, when Todd McFarlane was the
most prolific pop illustrator of his era, the creator behind the
1990 relaunch of Marvel’s Spider-Man, which sold millions
of copies, and Spawn, which was McFarlane’s 1992 creatorowned series that also sold millions of copies, making a mint
for McFarlane in the process. Spawn remained a best-selling
comic series through the end of the ’90s, but McFarlane really
stopped contributing the artwork long before then. McFarlane,
it seems, was more interested in using his millions to start a toy
company and buy useless knick-knacks like Mark McGwire’s
record-setting home run baseball. Flash-forward a few years
and this guy called Robert Kirkman comes onto the scene and
becomes relatively prolific in his own right. Kirkman is the guy
who pretty much started the “zombie revival” that’s gone on
in popular American culture since the early 2000s when he
created The Walking Dead, which (probably) is the best-selling
independent comic book of the current decade. Kirkman has
also created a bunch of other books, notably Invincible, which has
sort of become a de facto flagship title at Image Comics, seeing
as how Spawn has fallen a bit by the wayside in McFarlane‘s
absence. Kirkman originally approached McFarlane in 2006
about returning to comics to collaborate on a new project and
Haunt, the love child of Kirkman and McFarlane‘s unholy pact, will finally be made available in comic book
stores this October (thereby averting the distinction of becoming the Chinese Democracy of the comic book world,
maybe). The project also features the work of Ryan Ottley (Kirkman’s longtime collaborator on Invincible) and
Greg Capullo (famous for being “the guy who took over Spawn after McFarlane”). In some ways, Haunt may be
a bit more about the creators involved with it than the actual story of Haunt itself. Haunt is a supernatural revenge
story about a Catholic priest who’s haunted by his brother’s ghost. Together, the two join forces to… well, what
actually happens within the pages of Haunt is kind of irrelevant. It’s a ridiculous American superhero comic book
with ghosts and ghouls and dudes with guns and no pupils in their eyes. For his part, Haunt will be McFarlane’s
first new, major creation since the debut of Spawn, so there’s certainly the added allure of “how good will this be
or will it just end up being moldy wastage?” The first issue of Haunt is slated for release on October 7th, with the
second scheduled to hit comic shops in early November. —Brett Schwaner
A
T
7
antigravitymagazine.com_
ANTI-NEWS
LAND OF NOD ESCHEWS VOODOO FOR A SECRET NO MORE: THE MASKED
BENEFIT FOR THE MUSICIAN’S CLINIC
BAND BALL RETURNS UNITED
W
hile The Voodoo Music Experience doesn’t offer nearly
the amount of artists larger music festivals like Bonnaroo
and Coachella do, in the past decade it has packed a punch
with its diversity and festive celebration of New Orleans culture with
the inclusion of areas like the Noomoon Tribe’s Land of Nod stage.
For nine years the stage provided concertgoers an alternative to the
national and pop acts of Voodoo by featuring an almost exclusively
local roster of bands, DJs, vendors, dancers, and performance artists.
Throughout its nine year run Noomoon received hardly any
financial funding from the festival. The money used to fund the
stage, which boasted fifty-five acts during last year’s Voodoo, came
from small sponsorships and out of the pockets of Dan Sheridan,
Noomoon’s stage organizer.
“Quite a few Noomoon performers are bummed out because they planned for (Voodoo) all year.” Sheridan said,
“A lot of the bands we booked would drive from Michigan, California and all over the country to play [Voodoo] for
free, since Noomoon normally could not offer them any money. And a lot of bands that we brought to our stage don’t
get booked at Voodoo because they don’t fall under the category of commercial festival bands.”
After shelling out $7,000 on a rider, hotel fees, and accommodations to host Fishbone at the Noomon stage in
2008, Sheridan realized he had to throw in the towel on his labor of love. While many of the bands played the stage
for free each year, Sheridan says that he usually ended up $2,000 to $4,000 in debt annually.
“I’ve done it myself for nine years and put out a ton of cash and so much work.” He said, “I’ve had to turn down
other jobs to do it. I just can’t afford to do it anymore.”
In the August 2009 issue of Antigravity, Voodoo Executive Producer Steven Rehage said he was never contacted by
Noomoon and that he was unaware of the financial difficulties they were facing. “I am sure,” Rehage told Antigravity,
“that by the time this article comes out Dan and I will have had a real conversation about this.”
When asked if any progress had taken place since the article was published Sheridan said, “No. Nothing has
changed. I had some conversations with Steve Rehage online. There were certain e-mails I sent to him back in the day
talking about Voodoo. He said by the time he found out Noomoon was having financial troubles (the festival) had
already set its budget for the year, and that there was nothing they could do about it.”
Sheridan added, “For the price of one national band we could fund our entire event. I don’t understand why
[Voodoo] doesn’t have it in their budget, and that’s what I’ve heard every year when I’ve asked for funding. It might
be our curse for doing it so long for no money.” —Dominique Minor; Pictured: Ratty Scurvics at Land of Nod ’08
The Land of NOD will be held on October 16th and 17th in Dutch Alley in the French Quarter. Confirmed acts include
Zydepunks, Ratty Scurvics, Sista Otis, R. Scully and The Rough 7, My Graveyard Jaw and more. For more information
Noomoon log on to landofnodexperiment.com, and for Voodoo, thevoodoomusicexperience.com.
8_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
F
ourteen years ago, Anthony DelRosario (aka Anthony Turducken) and Jake Springfield
had the idea of starting a masked band ball. The early balls took place at the iconic
Mermaid Lounge with themes ranging from “Post Punk” to “Malcolm Maclaren bands”
and even, for a few years, expanded to an additional Mardi Gras event. Bands performed as acts
from Devo to The Ramones to AC/DC.
All these years later, the tradition lives on. Turducken handed the reins over to Michael
Patrick Welch (aka White Bitch) and DC Harbold (of a plethora of local bands, but perhaps
most notably of Clockwork Elvis fame). While these two are heading up the event’s planning,
Welch noted, “It doesn’t really BELONG to any one person; it belongs to all the people
involved.” He also described it as “a populist lovefest.”
This year’s event will be held on Thursday, October 29 at the Hi-Ho Lounge and will feature
live music, comedy and burlesque by some of the city’s best. But good luck trying to spot them.
They’ll all be in deep cover, masquerading as famous comedians, tease queens and musical
artists ranging from George Michael to Television.
Welch has been participating in the show since moving to New Orleans in 2001. “It was
the first big fun show I ever did here, and was the first time I realized, ‘Wow, this place is
wild and full of love and art, and I am so happy I moved here,” Welch reflected. During his
eight-year tenure on the bill, Welch has indulged in portraying artists as wildly diverse as Hall
& Oates, Public Enemy, Nirvana and Prince. He stated that his tendency is to “pick bands
that other people either scoff at, or only appreciate ironically (serious guilty pleasures),” but
that he views as “incredible acts that I feel 100% sincere love and respect for.” “I like to make
people stop laughing at great music!” he exclaimed. After all, the overall theme of the party is
to “rock everyone.” Another major component is full immersion. No originals! In fact, Welch
said, “If someone plays an original the cane will drag them off the stage and they will never be
invited back!” Despite not falling exactly on Halloween this year, Welch noted that costumes
are always welcome and encouraged.
When asked for a comment about his contribution to the event, Harbold merely said, “Actions
speak louder than words, so enough with words…action now!” So let’s get down to it.
This year’s lineup includes to-be-announced local comedians as well as burlesque by the
Reverend Spooky Lestrange and Her Billion Dollar Baby Dolls. The music lineup includes
Bipolaroid as Guided by Voices, Clockwork Elvis as Nick Cave, Eric Corveaux fronts Motley Crue,
Local Skank as Jem and the Holograms, Big Blue Marble as Tom Petty, Junior League as The
Smithereens, Jeff “Guitar” Nelson as T. Rex, Idiot Box as Television and White Bitch as George
Michael. —Erin Hall
The Super Secret Fireman & Turducken Masked Band Ball will be on Thursday, October 29th at the
Hi-Ho Lounge.
ANTI-NEWS
THE INFINITE HEAD SPACE OF IMAGINE “THE” BAND
by dan fox
artwork by keenan marshall keller
Y
our eyes, ears and common sense tell you one thing: that
a lone man flails about onstage, backed only by dead air
and whatever’s draped at the back of the stage. Maybe he
brings out a child-sized mannequin (that he claims as his own offspring) for a duet. But your imagination and the voices in your own
head tell you something different, and you see what this lone man,
a wet suit practically painted on, headphones ripped from what
looks like the language lab of your old high school strapped to his
head and “special” training shoes on his perpetually moving feet
sees: a full entourage of ghosts and spirits banging away at a host of
instruments, while smoke machines, pyrotechnics and a full arsenal
of stage lights explode around them. During a prolonged stopover
in New Orleans, I”t”B charmed, frightened and angered crowd
after crowd before leaving
for the greener pastures and
sunnier skies of Hollywood,
California, a far cry from their
hometown of Hollywood...
Florida. Imagine “the” Band
returns this month to New
Orleans, and AG was lucky
enough to catch up with
Singer Egos Personos and the
rest of I“t”B before their long
journey East.
ANTIGRAVITY:
You
moved to L.A. recently.
How different is Hollywood,
California
from
your
hometown of Hollywood...
Florida?
EP: Yeah, ya know, I been
tryin’ to figure that one out.
The hills are different; there’re
less Cubans; it’s not as fake
as Hollywood was. Here in
Hollywood there’s not all that
“BS” there was in Hollywood,
like the time we went up to
Maryland, to a little town
called Hollywood. They knew
immediately our drummer
was
from
Hollywood
because—you know Johnny
Boomboom Bammbamm just reeks of Hollywood—so they knew
immediately; just like they do now in Hollywood. They know
he’s from Hollywood, so there’s that...and the accents, man.
People talk funny here in Hollywood; it ain’t like Hollywood at
all. I’m always like, “Huh?” Then they usually say somethin’ like,
“That’s just what I was gonna say.” Then at the same time we
both will say, “You must be from Hollywood,” then they give
you a free ice cream ticket. That’s the big thing out here right
now; they sell ice cream everywhere. There was an explosion at a
dairy farm so there’s an excess of milk, so you get free ice cream
a lot here. Wish we had that back in Hollywood.
What does Imagine “the” Band tour in? Are you all like a “get
in the van” type of band or a full-on tour bus and 18-wheeler
convoy?
Well, out here in the desert it doesn’t really pay off to own boats
like we had when we stayed in New Orleans. Hell, you could just
paddle from the French Quarter to Metairie, just like they did in
The Big Easy movie. Out west it’s all horses, though, so I’ve had
to take up horse shoein’ just to pay for oats, and that’s no hay day
if ya know what I’m sayin’?! To get back to NOLA we’ve had to
work out different things: we have a guy with a mini-RV—one
of those Toyota numbers from the late ’80s—he’s agreed to take
the equipment and Tony Rodriguez. Johnny is gonna ride his
motorcycle; Rile and I will fly out there and The 6th Digit started
walkin’ there about two months ago. He said if it looks close he’ll
figure it out. That’s the one guy I never worry about. I don’t even
know how he got in the band, really.
How’s Junior? He seemed a little stiff on stage last time. Has
he loosened up?
You must be talkin’ about Lil’ E. Oh shit, he’s grown up real big.
He likes Hollywood, what with all the horses and stuff. He misses
the Cubans, though. He doesn’t care too much for performing these
days; he’s gettin’ to that age. Yeah, already talkin’ about “going
solo.” Man, they grow up fast...we just celebrated his 6th birthday.
What material have you been working on?
I think I’ll let Rile Answer that one. Rile: “.” [Laughs] You son-ofa-bitch, you weren’t supposed to tell them that! “!” Whoa, that’s
enough. Here’s some money; go get some drinks or somethin’.
Geez, that guy. You won’t print that, will you? I can say this
about the recordings—and everyone that’s been following along
with the problems over at EWELUVS8N records can agree—that
if we don’t come to some understanding quick, then we’re just
gonna have to take this to the MREP. I don’t think the fans or the
industry want that.
What can we look forward to hearing for the first time, both
originals and covers?
I’m putting together a very
special medley just for
New Orleans, to show my
appreciation for my favorite
district of town, Little Tokyo.
I spent a lot of time there
when we had out time in New
Orleans, drinkin’ lots of Soju.
It’s a medley of a very, very
famous live album from the
late ’70s done in “The Orient”
and features two amazing
covers, one by Joan Baez and
the other by Fleetwood Mac.
I’m very excited about this
medley. I will not be bringing
any other new material to
New Orleans; too much has
been put at stake in the studio
lately, mainly our own lives
with the writing process,
one of the other reasons we
are happy to be traveling
separately.
So, do all your fans have to
keep Imagining “the” Merch
or can they look forward to
some t-shirts or live DVDs,
or at least a beer coozie?
I have a limited number of
silver-metallic-flake-handengraved-by-myself 7-inches that come with a DVD/EP and
an autographed 8-by-10; I call it the Party Pack. I’ll only have
a limited number of t-shirts in the men’s (small and medium
sizes and a few in all the ladies’ sizes). I may have some special
Imagine “the” Band ceramic beer steins/pint cups on hand,
too; NoGod willing. Well, I gotta get some shoes ready for the
morning commute. The horses hate a late start with old shoes.
Imagine “the” Band will be performing on October 16th at the Saturn
Bar, opening for Thee Oh Sees, Static Static and Wizard Sleeve. For
more information go to imaginetheband.com
Did a Landlord Keep Your
Deposit? I Would Like to Help!
My name is Benjamin Misko, I am a Louisiana attorney and the majority
of my practice consists of collecting wrongly withheld security deposits.
They can be collected up to two years after you move out. I receive
only a portion of the deposit and you pay no costs, expenses or fees,
regardless of the outcome.
Visit my website: www.LouisianaRentLaw.com
…or call for a free consultation, (504) 483-9102.
The Law Offices of Benjamin Misko, LLC, d/b/a:
Louisiana Rent Law
[email protected]
9
antigravitymagazine.com_
COLUMNS
ADVICE
GUIDANCE
COUNSELING
this month’s trusted advisors: suplecs
THE AGE-OLD QUESTION: WHAT’S A HIPSTER?
T
he unique blend of blues and metal that New Orleans’ own Suplecs’ have
cultivated over the years speaks to the tormented soul in all of us. With album
titles like Sad Songs, Better Days and their most recent full-length, Powtin’ on the
Outside, Pawty on the Inside, it’s clear the grizzly trio of Danny Nick, Durel Yates and
Andy Preen have suffered enough heartbreaks, headaches and back aches for all of us,
making them perfect for this month’s collection of sad sacks. Plus, they’re about two
hundred years old collectively, so they’re stocked in the old-man-wisdom department.
You can catch them at the Voodoo Music Experience, playing Sunday, November 1st.
They also just released a three-song EP that you have to ask them for; it’s got a cute little
number called “Tried to Build an Engine” that could be its own form of therapy. For
more info on these paw paws of rock, go to suplecs.com.
My boss is younger than me and I don’t like it. He’s very cool and I almost wish he was a dick so
this would be easier, but there’s something about being told what to do by someone younger and it’s
making my job a lot harder than it should be. How can I get over this?
It’s naturally hard to take orders from someone younger than you. Unfortunately, that’s
the reality of the world we live in. My best advice is to separate your personal feelings
from your professional life. Work is work, and play is play; that’s why weekends were
invented. Life has a funny way of making these things work themselves out. Hang in
there, and definitely don’t lose your cool. If push comes to shove, grab your boss by the
throat and remind them that they are younger than you and, therefore, more weak.
My boyfriend and I are about to break up, and the worst part is the whole dividing-up-the-friends
thing. Our social network is so intertwined that it’s going to be really awkward because it’s going to
be a shitty break up (my bf is a drama queen and that’s part of the reason this is happening). Got
any tips for divvying up our people?
Unfortunately, breakups are never easy and you can’t control who takes whose side in
the divorce. The best thing to do is take the high ground and “be nice.” Some people are
looking to rile you up after a breakup... “Be nice.” They see you out and try to break your
stride by bringing up shit you really don’t want to talk about.. “Be nice...” These people
are pathetic in their own existence because your life drama is more important then their
own... “Be nice.” They will look to interpret your actions any way they want to justify
their version of the story of your life... “Be nice.” Unfortunately, you can’t control what
they do or say behind your back, so “Be nice “and take the high ground... until it’s time
to “Not be nice.”
What is a hipster?
To find a hipster in this town, a good place to start would be Mimi’s in the Marigny.
They usually wear tight, skinny jeans because they don’t weigh much, usually because of
all the coke they do. They don’t work because their parents have set aside a nice chunk
of money for them in what us commoners call a trust fund. They got bad hair because
someone on coke (probably bumming some of their stash) told them it looks cool. They
usually don’t play in a band, yet have strong opinions of those who do. They usually like
shitty music, because they can easily relate to things simple even though they can pretend
to be complex. They sometimes carry instruments with them even though you never
see them play one (this is usually a weird horn or fiddle with no strings—makes them
seem more mysterious). Generally speaking, they are masters of deception and usually a
letdown if you get to know one. Mimi’s is still a great bar though, in spite of this, with an
even better bar staff. Ah, what do I know, I was 86’ed from their years ago.
10_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
COLUMNS
THE GOODS
by miss malaprop
FASHION
[email protected]
SAVVY SAVOY TRUFFLE
I
first discovered the work of Theodora Eliezer at the Alternative Media Expo this past
spring. I was immediately struck by her creepy cool steampunk aesthetic. For her line
Savoy Truffle, Theo combines materials such as dried flowers, feathers, bones and dead
insects to create one of a kind hair accessories and jewelry. Her feather fascinators are the
perfect addition to any dark Victorian Halloween ensemble, and a necklace made from a
copper-plated dead bumblebee is sure to turn heads. I recently caught up with Theo to find
out how she got started concocting these wonderfully wicked creations.
What’s your background and training as an artist?
During my upbringing I was constantly encouraged to express myself artistically, so it has
always been second nature to me even though my formal training only consists of one
year at NOCCA in high school. I’m a self-taught painter and have been making elaborate
costumes and headdresses since I moved to New Orleans ten years ago, but it was only last
autumn that I allowed
myself to really consider
making a living in the
arts. This spring I decided
to take a leap of faith and
started my line, Savoy
Truffle, which combines
my love of costuming,
frivolous adornment, and
uncovering the beauty
in old and discarded
objects.
I just started assisting
a local designer recently,
which has been great
so far because as I
mentioned I’m entirely
self-taught. At this point
I don’t want to move
to go back to school for
design, so being able to
study under someone is a great opportunity for me. I’ve made garments in the past, but it’s
always been based on sheer inspiration, so I’m excited to develop some actual technical
skills in that field. Although Savoy Truffle only consists of jewelry and accessories at this
time, I feel like it’s a good investment to understand more about how garment design and
construction works.
Where do you find your materials? Do materials come first and then inspiration, or do you
seek out certain materials to work with?
I find my materials in different ways according to the collection that I’m working on. For
my electroformed (copper plated) jewelry I’ve enlisted my friends to help me collect small
dead things that are suitable for the copper plating process. At first I thought people would
be offended by my willingness to interact with dead birds and insects, but I’ve received a lot
of support and enthusiasm. I think that it’s easy to understand how using the remains of an
animal that was killed by a car in order to make wearable art honors the life and beauty of
that creature. For this particular process, the materials always come before the inspiration
because it’s impossible to dictate what sort of remains I’ll find to work with.
For my fascinators I try to use as many vintage materials as possible so I deconstruct
garments that are made of great fabric but will probably never be worn again. I’m currently
transitioning to using 100% cruelty free feathers for the fascinators, and have found some
awesome sources for cruelty free products online. Online auction houses and collectors have
also been a great resource for my Clockwork & Noir collection, which features materials
from the 1800s, such as pocket watch gears, monocles, and Victorian skeleton keys and
keyholes.
What are your favorite places and things to do in and around New Orleans?
All of my favorite things to do in New Orleans are pretty simple. In warm weather I love
riding my bike through the Marigny and French Quarter while listening to the music of
the Calliope coming from the river, and I adore the fairytale montage of Storyland in City
Park, so going there is my favorite winter activity. Week to week I try to be supportive of
other creative people in the community as much as possible by going to art openings, film
screenings, or other activities that showcase the diversity of talent and vision that we have
here.
Any favorite local shopping destinations?
I don’t shop for clothing much. I most enjoy crowded junk/antique shops with lots of
interesting things to uncover like the Bargain Center in the Bywater and Le Garage on
Decatur. I also love the smell of old books so I like to poke around in used bookstores for
fun, especially the ones that have friendly shop cats.
Where can people find your work?
My designs can be found at Magazine Metals (2036 Magazine St.), GOGO (4222 Magazine
St.), the Kiki Hughes Boutique in Philadelphia, and online at savoytruffles.etsy.com.
11
antigravitymagazine.com_
COLUMNS
MEDICINE
DR. FEELGOOD
by nancy kang, m.d.
[email protected]
FIELD GUIDE FOR THE DEAD
A
few weekends ago, I was in San Francisco
for a conference on livers. It was great.
I met lots of famous pathologists. I ate
wonderful ethnic food. I rode the trolley. It was
very clean and safe. But I missed New Orleans.
I missed the dilapidated buildings, the humidity,
the flashing police lights. No doubt we live in a
dangerous city. Maybe that fuels my interest in
the morbid. But it’s not just me!
All sorts of people are fascinated in homicide,
suicide, mass murder and the like. Crime scene
investigation and forensic science have been the
rage for many years. But how much exposure
does one get to real forensic information? Besides
misleading or false methods portrayed on TV
(CSI featured a demo on human electrocution by
hooking up a pickle to a car battery), there are
lots of urban myths about forensic science and
what it can and cannot do. So here is a quick
forensic field guide. Although this information
is factual, this is for entertainment purposes
only. I do not suggest you use these new forensic
investigation skills if you stumble upon several
dead people in a trailer.
TIME OF DEATH
How do you estimate time of death? Contrary to those cool shows, current methods are pretty
inaccurate. Usually, it is best determined from when the person in question was last seen alive.
But there are a few science-based methods to estimate approximate time of death. Livor Mortis
(lividity) is the red-purple skin discoloration from blood pooling to dependent areas by gravity.
It usually appears about forty-five minutes after death, but if the body is moved, the lividity will
shift around. Eight to twelve hours after death, lividity becomes fixed, meaning it will not move if
the body is moved. Presence of fixed or unfixed lividity is helpful in estimating time of death.
Rigor Mortis is stiffening of the muscles after death, caused by a chemical process. All of the
muscles are involved, including muscles in the walls of the penis. There can even be expulsion
of semen post mortem. Rigor mortis begins just after death and peaks at eight to twelve hours,
then dissipates after about thirty hours. Cool.
FIREARM INJURIES
A wealth of information can be gleaned from the entrance wound, the projectile itself and the
crime scene when firearms are involved. Investigators can estimate the distance from the gun to
the target. Yes, they really can. When a gun is fired, high-pressure hot gas, soot and gunpowder
leave the barrel (not to mention a slug or shotgun pellets). This will leave a characteristic
distribution of soot and gunpowder—called stippling—on the target (the unfortunate victim’s
skin or clothing). At contact range, there may be a muzzle imprint as the skin is seared by intense
heat. Soot and gunpowder are deposited under the skin. In contact wounds to the head, gasses
pushed under the skin make star-shaped tears, a so-called stellate entrance wound.
At near-contact range (about two or three feet), soot and gunpowder are seen over a small
surface area distribution. Intermediate range wounds show gunpowder stippling but no soot.
Distance range entrance wounds have no stippling at all and only the entrance wound itself.
Distance range can only be estimated to be “greater than several feet.” That is pretty nonspecific, if you ask me.
Rifles and handguns expel a single slug, causing one wound per round. With shotguns (wellknown to all you deer hunters out there) many pellets are expelled as a big blob, and the pellets
spread out as they travel. So with a shotgun, there is an additional way to tell firing distance. Up
to three feet, the wound is circular, as all the pellets are still fairly close together. At three to four
feet, there is a larger entrance wound with a scalloped edge. At greater than four feet, you start
to see separate pellet wounds. Yummy.
High Velocity rifles (or assault rifles) cause devastating internal injuries not because the bullet
is any larger, but because it travels much faster. Get ready for math: Kinetic Energy =MV2 or
Kinetic Energy equals mass times the velocity squared. Got it? There will be a quiz at the end
of this column.
Suicidal gunshot wounds are most often sustained in the head and chest. They are typically
at contact or near contact range. Blowback (blood spatter) and soot may be on the hand of the
victim. Neat-O.
SUGGESTED READING
If you are really interested in learning about this stuff in more complete detail, check out Spitz
and Fisher’s Medicolegal Investigation of Death, or you can borrow mine.
COMPLETELY UNRELATED
I live in the Marigny and adore it. If you are ever in the neighborhood, there is a restaurant I
highly recommend. Maybe you are out on Frenchmen Street on Halloween and need some
nutrition. Head over to Café Bamboo, right below the Dragon’s Den. Café Bamboo is probably
the only vegetarian restaurant in the city [and there’s a coupon in this issue!]. It serves a mix
of ethnic and regional food. Try the vindaloo, green curry or Caribbean tofu wrap. Homicide
investigation is hungry work. Happy Halloween.
12_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
COLUMNS
LOCAL MUSIC
“SLINGSHOTS, ANYONE?”
by derek zimmer [email protected]
LIVING IN A GLASS (WARE)HOUSE
W
hat better way to start off a recent return from my month-long hiatus on the West
Coast than with a house show deep in the recesses of Uptown’s Magazine Street. A
couple ambassadors of the Iron Rail Book Collective—it would appear, at least—
attempted to upstage me on this very punk show Candice of No More Fiction booked at Darin
and Nathan’s house (former venue of Bryan Funck’s infamous weekly Tacos Night) by hauling
out the distro themselves. Granted, with the collective’s own microcosmic “financial crisis,” I
was conflicted as to whether to feel mildly affronted or exceedingly glad that others besides myself
were seizing the tabling reins. But such boldness begs the question: Could it be, in my absence,
these young Padawans were attempting to yank the rug from under me? Or were they actually—
um—doing my bidding?! Know the answer I do not. However, recalling the Jedi Master’s famous
aphorism about attachment leading to the Dark Side, I tried to forgo my irrationality and just
enjoy the show with my newfound mobility. But needless to say—like a knight devoid of his
noble steed—without my usual punk-rock sentry post I felt lost and directionless, aimlessly
skulking about the porch and backyard. Like the typical New Orleans hipster without the
compulsory alcoholic beverage to “break the ice” on any given social interaction, the lack of my
Iron Rail tabling crutch left me feeling only confused and disoriented!
Oftentimes I relish straying from my comfort zone, but it was additionally distressing to
find myself feeling out of place at a DIY house show. For the first time, I was forced to
face feeling like a foreigner in my own community. Wow. Alliteration, anyone? How about
this: Audaciously and anatomically alternating amongst alienation, awkwardness and apathy.
Go ahead and say that one three times fast. Anyway... I spent the better part of the evening
sulking on the front porch, trying to make sense of the situation and attempting to acclimate
myself to the sudden culture shock of the Big Sleazy after being away so long. It just felt like
something in me broke, like one of Azkaban’s
Dementors had sucked all the optimism and
cheerfulness from my soul. Acquaintances
would approach me, and I tried not to seem
stand-offish or determined to break the
clearly celebratory mood. Locals Ixnay and
Necro Hippies rocked the house, but in my
sullen state of mind I couldn’t even bear to
stand inside the sweltering living room to
watch them. There’s this scene in the movie Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, I’m sure you’ve seen it...
Oh, you mean you haven’t? Gosh. Well, it’s this movie from the ’80s, a real classic... Anyway,
there’s this scene where Cameron (Alan Ruck) is sitting in his car deliberating whether or
not to drive to Ferris’ house. Unsure of what to do, in this comedic scene, he screams and
curses and pounds the upholstery like a maniac. Well, at one critical moment in the night,
experiencing my own mild panic attack, I stood in front of my bike, painfully debating whether
or not I should unlock it from the fence and just pedal home. In the end, I decided to stick it
out and just go into the house for the last band.
And, boy, am I glad I did! The headlining band was an Olympia act by the name of Gun
Outfit, who play really twangy punk. I can’t really describe the magic that transpired in those
twenty minutes. Suffice to say, like indie sorcerers conjuring a joyful spirit dance, with every
chord struck and each incantation recited my mood soared, until by the end of the set—soaked
in sweat and giddy with band crush—I felt nearly cured of my prior cynicism.
The show had nearly redeemed itself, and I was in much better spirits. After personally
sharing with Gun Outfit the hormonal 180 their set had evoked and apologizing to a few
others for my prior taciturn disposition, together with some of my persuading friends, I even
walked to the dance party going down in the much-talked-about “synagogue” on Jackson
Street. Somebody please tell me: Why does this town feel like a perpetual afterparty? I didn’t
actually want to go out after the show, but I figured I’d at least check it out. It’s like NOLA’s
most teetotaling partygoer (and my personal life mentor) DJ Brice Nice wisely told me later
that night—the alternative to going out entails sitting at home. Sitting at home, sobbing
yourself to sleep in your dingy Mid-City warehouse. Just like that Gorilla Biscuits song.
Arriving at this synagogue known as the Buzzard’s Nest a few blocks away, I definitely
felt—in the words of Walter from The Big Lebowski—“out of my element.” Skaters shredded
the gnar on a constructed half-pipe, a few agile souls skipped jump rope and the rest just
danced to tunes the DJs queued up. See, here’s the thing: I don’t drink, and I don’t really
like shaking my booty a whole lot. And sometimes it just feels like the social sphere of New
Orleans outside of these two things is rather small. Then other times I think maybe I’m just
selfish and want every one to conform to my idea of what “fun” is—like my militant insistence
that every band play either female-fronted ’90s-style pop or moshy ’90s-style hardcore. You
know, that reminds me—anarcho-fascism gets such a bad rap, I gotta say. I mean, what is so
wrong with trying to impose my own biased, arbitrary worldview on other people anyway,
huh?! Don’t these ungrateful inbreds realize it’s for their own good?! Yet, despite my general
uptightness and disdain for anything remotely fun, here I was on this particular Saturday
night—the Jewish day of rest, ironically enough...Three thousand years of beautiful tradition,
from Moses to Sandy Koufax, leading me to this moment in time—attending a raging dance
party in a reclaimed synagogue! Shomer fucking shabbos, indeed.
Skip ahead to a couple weeks later, when fate would find me once again visiting the Buzzard’s
Nest to table the show of another Northwest pop-punk band—Drunken Boat! Feeling such
renewed interest in social engagement, I’d even gone out to distro Drunken Boat’s show at
The Saint the night before—one I hadn’t planned on attending because—well—because I
hate bars, but which I ended up really enjoying! Well, I didn’t particularly enjoy all four hours
leading up to when they played. After all, like the foolish little faun that I doubtless am, I’d
arrived at The Saint at 10pm, which was the show’s “listed time.” Psshh. OK, now every one
point and laugh at this kid! Ha-ha, Derek! You biked out to the show four hours early—joke’s
on you! In these situations, like the urban songbirds who build their nests with cigarette butts
and debris, one just has to adapt to the environment. So, what does an “underage” kid do at
the Saint while waiting for a punk band to set up? We play Street Fighter, of course! What
else?! Friends kept me company off and on, and in between I pondered certain questions. Like,
for example—What was stopping me from walking over to that stupid Deer Hunting USA
machine and putting an “Out of Order” sign on its screen? Propriety? Lack of tape??? Well,
there’s always Street Fighter, I guess...
Having lost my match to Ryu and already past the 1am mark, Drunken Boat finally took
the floor. And when they did, I came as close to “dancing” as my frail body is capable—
awkwardly shuffling my legs and convulsively shaking my head as those dirty East-Bayinspired melodies rang out into the night. Three long years had I lamented missing Drunken
Boat at the legendary Coach Haus. And unlike that Rimbaud poem I never really liked, the
Portland band whose name derives from it definitely did not disappoint!
So of course I caught them the second night in a row at the Buzzard’s Nest—which leads
me, I believe, to the focal point of this entire article. This show went off without much incident.
Rachel baked this incredible cake for Candice’s birthday. Drunken Boat played an awesome
set, yet again. Their roadie bought a feminist book from me—the only sale of the night. But
what most interested me took place after the show.
With the crowd dissipating toward the afterparty at (ironically enough) The Saint, as I
prepared to head home on my bike, a gentleman I’d seen skating the half-pipe earlier in the
night named Matt approached me.
“I’ve wanted to talk to you for a while about something that’s been bothering me,” he began.
“In one of your articles, I feel like you said some belittling things toward certain members of our
scene you call ‘crust punks’...” The piece he spoke of did contain some admittedly distasteful jokes
describing how, like the Führer of the Third
Reich, I wished to institute the state-sanctioned
obliteration of all scumfucks. Matt went on: “I
just felt like your attitude toward some of those
people was perpetuating hate. And it bummed
me out to hear that coming from someone in
our scene.”
I first genuinely apologized that he had
taken offense to my oftentimes mean-spirited
jabs directed at perhaps—those he perceived as—some of his friends. There is certainly some
dichotomy between who I am and what I write, and with the “voice” on the page I know I can
get carried away with liberties I take for the sake of sensationalizing a story—bold statements
which sometimes come, unfortunately, at others’ expense. I explained that what I’d intended to
critique was actually—though, at times, unfairly using the “crust punk” as the scapegoat and
embodiment of these traits—the alcoholic hedonism and apathy that plagues the city of New
Orleans, which I do firmly believe to be the antitheses of radical community organization (or
meaningful relationships in general).
“Of course,” I confessed, “it’s always easier to criticize others rather than yourself. And
quite honestly, I’ve come to realize that a lot of my condemnation of certain characteristics
of the ‘crusty’ are hang-ups that I see in myself.” Fact. If you need proof, Ethan Clark could
attest to the fact that all I had on my person was a little more than a dollar—in change!—to
donate to the touring band. I mean, c’mon—that’s got “scumfuck” written all over it. After all,
I recognize these bands need gas money. Drunken Boat needs to get back to Portland. And
Bywater natives in Why Are We Building Such a Big Ship deserve something after traveling
such a long journey from home all the way to New Orleans’ Garden District! I truly did feel
bad about my detrimental impact on the punk economy, OK?!
This fellow Matt and I spoke a while longer before thanking each other for the conversation
and going our separate ways—a positive exchange, I felt, overall. I followed Axl Rose’s
advice and really took to heart my fellow punk’s constructive criticism; after all, I take for
granted that a lot of my tongue-and-cheek “humor” may not always be approached with a
grain of salt. It’s obvious, all things considered, how one could interpret some of—er, maybe
a lot of?—my remarks as vicious attacks and/or overbearing self-righteousness. Or how my
objective audience could read into my allusions to drug paraphernalia not as complete satire
of its absurdity but instead as a glorification of my indulgence in illicit substances—in which
case they would, undoubtedly, be correcto mundo! So just disregard the last part of what I said.
But this exchange prompted me to reflect on how I could better utilize the platform I have
access to, of how to make it not just entertaining but also meaningful. Communication really
is the primary goal (and achievement, as far as I can tell) of what I am doing, and any and all
correspondence means a lot.
So to those who have shared their thoughts on my writing—thank you. I encourage anyone
who feels so inclined to engage in dialogue with me. Forever self-critical. Forever straight
edge. With that said, I offer the first collection of memorable quotes I’ve heard from some of
my “readership”...
“Tell your friend I said Thank you.” —Chuck “Scumfuck” to Andy of Thou/We Need To Talk
“He kicked you?!” —my mom, horrified by my written accounts
“I know you like to get in everywhere for free...” —Eric Martinez
“I like how you lambasted Thou.” —Jackson Blalock
“We read what you wrote about my husband; we all loved it.” —lady at Saturn Bar
“We really liked that article you wrote about getting in here for free, but you’re gonna
have to pay.” —scathing security guard at One Eyed Jacks, right before I got into the show
legitimately on the guest list, and who then refused to provide me with a table
“You paying the cover or what? I’m not gonna let you in for free so you can brag about it...
I read your little ‘paper’..” —show promoter Matt “Muscle”
“Next time it’ll be five...” —Matt “Muscle” again, after I kicked down a compulsory dollar
for entry
“Somebody please tell me:
Why does this town feel like
a perpetual afterparty?”
13
antigravitymagazine.com_
COLUMNS
SPORTS
HOMEFIELD
ADVANTAGE
by leo mcgovern
[email protected]
A LOOK BACK AT SEPTEMBER
T
erms for the Saints offense you won’t see in this column—“high-powered,”
“high octane,” “virile,”…well, that last one isn’t an overused media adjective,
but you get the idea. The Saints offense is good—great, even, and if you
didn’t believe it before Week 3, there was no argument against it after the Saints
balanced their offense towards the running game against the Bills. Winning a game
in less-than-perfect weather conditions has been the albatross around this team’s
neck since the NFC Championship game in Chicago. Even though the conditions
in the Bills game weren’t horrible (just cool with some wind and not a snowy, frozen
field), Sean Payton proved his offense isn’t all finesse when his play-calling netted
over 220 rushing yards. As good as the offense is, it’s whether or not the Saints can
replicate that type of rushing game when it counts in January that will determine
how far this team ultimately goes.
Until Mike Bell’s injury in the Eagles game, I was beginning to think we’d seen
the last of Pierre Thomas as a starting running back. The PT we saw against the
Bills, in his first extended action of the season, was the hard-running, shifty back I
thought he’d be going into training camp. With Lynell Hamilton looking good, it’s
absolutely nutty to think the Saints have four capable running backs on their roster
(hey, even Reggie Bush looked good with his interior running in the Bills game).
It’s been a fun start to the 2009 season, hasn’t it? Above all else, you hope the
Saints will at least be entertaining, and we’ve gotten that in spades through the first
three weeks of the season. Our defense is better, though we haven’t met a great
team yet. Personally, I won’t feel good about our defense until we have a 14-point
lead and don’t think it could be lost in the blink of an eye. Until then, I’m satisfied
knowing it’s a better and more exciting defense than we’ve had in three years.
For all the poo-pooing the Saints D received after a slightly lackluster performance
against Detroit in Week 1, I stuck with the squad on my fantasy team in Week 2,
and they rewarded me with a fat 17 points, which ultimately didn’t keep me from
losing but is a fine score in fantasy, even if Darren Sharper’s interception return for
a touchdown was in garbage time.
A couple other bright spots in our defense includes the play of cornerbacks Jabari
Greer and Tracy Porter, who remind me of Fred Thomas’ salad days, where he’d
take the legs out from underneath unsuspecting receivers of the hitch pass, and
Scott Shanle emerging from the status of fan-punching bag and becoming almost
overrated. The way all the pundits (me included) gloated after Shanle’s second
half interception in the Eagles game was ridiculous, but the linebacker-that-could
deserves to be stuck up for. We haven’t seen our defense’s best game yet, and that’s
encouraging.
One big mention deserves to go to Malcolm Jenkins, who’s been everything
you’d like to see out of a first round pick, even if he’s not a member of our starting
defense. His special teams play has been awesome, and his strip on a punt return in
the Bills game might be the nicest special teams play since Steve Gleason’s blocked
punt. We hope Jenkins becomes a defensive mainstay, but in the meantime it’s cool
to watch his enthusiasm on special teams.
SAY THANKS
You’ve heard enough about Drew Brees and how he’s one of the best (if not no.1)
quarterbacks in the NFL. It’s getting to the point where we expect Brees to be
brilliant in every game (and there’s no reason not to—we hope the defense will
garner the same expectations as the season moves along). I want to take just a
second to reflect on the quarterback history in New Orleans. Remember the Aaron
Brooks days? How about Billy Joes Hobert and Tolliver? Danny Wuerffel,
anybody? Eight weeks of Kerry “Vodka” Collins? How about Doug Nussmeier?
Not counting a few cameos by Jake Delhomme, the last QB to even be conscious
in the Superdome was Jim Everett. We should be kneeling before the football gods
for delivering such a QB boon onto us, so every so often I’ll make us take a step
back for appreciation’s sake. Thanks, Drew. If you were even half-way decent we’d
still love you, but you’ve reached Honorary New Orleanian status in a way we
haven’t seen since Archie.
LOOKING FORWARD
The best thing about this season, so far, is that our opportunities are still in front
of it. We’re not dodging stats like, “no 0-4 team has made the playoffs” or anything
like that. In fact, we’ve got some weird stats going for us—since 1998 at least one
team that started the season 2-0 has played in the Super Bowl. Not a bad line for
us to ponder for awhile. If the defense continues to get better (remember, Gregg
Williams hasn’t even used half his tricks as far as formations and blitzes go yet)
and the offense can keep a semblance of its early season production going, this team
should be playing some playoff football.
14_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
17
antigravitymagazine.com_
FEATURE
MUSIC
A SECOND HOME: PYGMY LUSH
(QUIETLY) RETURNS TO NEW ORLEANS
interview and photos by dan fox
P
ygmy Lush is the best thing in music right now. They’ve
also become really good friends of mine, having passed
through New Orleans so many times throughout the years,
every time as a band that is more evolved and amazing than
the last one. Well, there goes journalistic integrity and objectivity for
you. But it’s just a dumb fact: Pygmy Lush is a band that can instantly
convert anyone, from my mom to sheltered graduate students to
crusty anarcho-punks. Their full-volume rock n’ roll set, which
explodes with every chord, drum hit and tortured howl, is pretty
amazing to witness; but it’s their alter-ego as a mellow and haunting
acoustic band that truly shines above everything else out there.
Calling Sterling, Virginia their home, which falls in the outer-most
orbit of Washington D.C.—and in a none-too-subtle twist of irony
shares all the same digits as our beloved 504 area code (Sterling is
540)—Pygmy Lush has the unique ability to draw from their country
roots while soaking in the counter-culture that DC is so famous for,
as if Kurt Cobain had been a Hardy Boy. ANTIGRAVITY caught up
with guitarist Mike Taylor over the phone just as they were preparing
to play a show with Aimee Argote, of the equally amazing Des Ark,
at their farmhouse in nearby Ashburn. They were commemorating
the arrival of Autumn. Promoting the event on their Myspace page,
Pygmy Lush wrote: “Mike [Widman, drums, guitar] just spent the
past week building a nice little stage/deck out in the
woods for us to enjoy. We’ll have a bonfire and be
grilling a whole bunch of vegetables fresh from our
garden. The reservoir is also just down at the end of
the street for a nice cool swim... Please come with a
friendly, positive attitude and kindly respect our home
and each other. Let’s enjoy each other’s company
under the new harvest moon and be at peace.” Doesn’t
this sound like a band you would want to see? And
even if you are turned off by such sincere and eternal
sentiment, don’t worry. Their music will appeal to
your jaded heart, too.
would see the kids and interact with them. Later on, they asked
me if I would go into the room because they felt like I was good
with the kids and they needed help, so I got a promotion, got some
more money. And ever since then I cook in the morning, then come
about one o’clock I go into the room and act as an assistant teacher
for five-year-olds and up.
Do you ever get to use your musical talents at the preschool?
They’ve always wanted me to; I told them they’d have to pay me!
It would be fun to do, but also kind of embarrassing. I’ve definitely
played them good music. But once I played them Mount Hope
[Pygmy Lush’s second album] after it had just been mastered and
I wanted to hear how it sounded. I thought, “Nobody’s heard my
band; I’m going to play this. It’s quiet; there’s no cuss words.” As
soon as I popped it on, during the first few minutes of “Asphalt” this
little girl of mine said “What is this? It’s doomy and depressing.”
She said, “Turn this off. This is awful.” I thought, “Well, you kids
don’t like good music!”
They just haven’t had the chance to get all messed up and
heartbroken yet.
They like Madonna. Recently I’ve been throwing on the best of
Tell me about your collaboration with Des Ark.
You’re going to be performing some songs together
on this tour?
Yeah, Aimee just came up last night and we practiced
for about six or seven hours. We have one nailed
that we’re going to try and play today and then we’ll
work on one of her new songs and hopefully we’ll
collaborate and write some more songs together.
But you guys are holding it down.
We’ve been holding it down for about fifteen years.
I’ve been in Sterling since ’85 and the rest of us have
been here most of our lives or our whole lives. It’s
home, for better or worse.
What keeps you in Sterling?
The music really keeps us here. Dave [Krepinevich,
bass] left for a while and did his own thing. He did
an excellent hip-hop band called Coaxial. I’m just
throwing that out there because they rule.
In that order?
Actually, the order is: we get off work, meet up at our house, smoke
weed, talk for an hour, mosey out into the shed [to practice], smoke
more weed, then eat food. Sometimes a few of us will get together
during the week and work on tunes.
Backing up a bit, did you say you cook lunch at a school? Are you
a lunch lady?
Well, I’ve been working at a preschool for eight years. For the first
five and a half, I cooked food. I was a cook in the morning and I
When do you decide which set you’re going to play, whether it’s
going to be loud or quiet? Is it a day-of kind of decision or does
the audience influence that decision?
My birthday show in New Orleans, for instance, we were confused
about what we wanted to do because it was my thirtieth birthday
and I wanted to play loud. I remember people hearing that we were
going to play loud and they came to see us quiet;
when they heard we were playing loud, a handful
of them left. And then we ended up playing quiet
as a last minute decision. It’s actually super tough.
That’s one of the hardest things to do with this band
is to try to beat the noise when we’re trying to play
quiet. We actually did that just recently. We started
off with fifteen minutes of noise, hoping to clear the
room of everybody that was talking. And there was
nobody left to see us!
Are you ready to go either way at any moment?
On this tour coming up, that one’s going to be all
quiet. We know we’re just taking the quiet equipment
but on the last tour we brought both and decided the
day of the show.
ANTIGRAVITY: So, what is Sterling like, anyway?
Mike Taylor: Shit... It’s suburbia. It’s just a bunch of
us. Sterling is home of the Doppler radar and AOL;
and nobody’s from Northern Virginia. They’re all from
somewhere else, which makes it a transient city.
Since you’re all such good, old friends and even family
members, I imagine you playing music all day, every
day. What’s a day in the life of Pygmy Lush?
A typical day in the life of Pygmy Lush is Mike
Widman going to work, framing walls or decks, Dave
Krepinevich going to the pie shop to deliver pies... I
go to school and cook chicken nuggets for kids and
then they scream at me later on in the afternoon.
Johnny Ward [guitar, drums] walks dogs or is out on
the farm picking pumpkins and beans. My brother,
Chris [Taylor, vocals, guitar], works at the pie shop,
so a day in the life of Pygmy Lush is work up until the
weekends, and then it’s like a family. We hang, we cook, we smoke
weed, we drink beer and write music.
A lot of people describe Pygmy Lush’s sound as “grunge” but I
have issues with that because that term is a complete fabrication
of the media. How do you feel about that?
It’s okay by me because I’m a music head, so we’ll work on songs
and I’ll try to pull out what it reminds me of or how it sounds and
sometimes the word dirty or grungy will come up. I don’t mind
those kinds of words being used to describe a band if it makes sense.
But like anything, when the mainstream co-opts an idea or word
and applies it to everything new that they don’t understand, it is
disheartening because it takes away from the music. That scene,
that time in music—we were on the cusp of it, growing up with
it, so to me it’s really important. I hear grunge and that’s the word
I remember in high school, so it feels close to home but I don’t
necessarily think it means anything these days, not as much as it
did ten, fifteen years ago.
That’s a potent combination.
No kidding. She’s playing circles around us, that’s
for sure. She’s extremely talented; it’s not even
funny. It’s great to work with her. It’s much more
comfortable than I was expecting it to be. It seemed
like we hit it off. Johnny’s down there now working
on a tune with her. She’s incredible by herself and
being able to play with her is an honor for us because
everyone’s really into what she does.
You getting sick of New Orleans yet?
Fuck no. Does the pope shit in the woods?
Michael Jackson. I’ve played some Ramones and Replacements
and Talking Heads. I’ve also played some Cool Jazz and some
Boss. I’ll play some stuff for them and they’ll dig it. Sometimes
they’ll make fun of it.
Will you list for me your collection of ’90’s alt-band t-shirts?
Because every time I see you, you have a different one on.
Okay, I guess I have a Jesus Lizard T-shirt, Dinosaur Jr., Sonic
Youth, Nirvana... Lubricated Goat... I don’t have anything classic
like Cracker or Gin Blossoms, nothing like that. I have an REM
shirt: that’s from the Monster tour. You know, the classics. Grunge.
All of us are roughly the same age and we all grew up listening to that
stuff so there’s a little bit of that in all of our closets, somewhere.
16_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
What do you like about New Orleans; what keeps
you coming back?
With New Orleans, ever since that first show we played
there ages ago with Pg. 99, everyone’s been awesome
since and I see the same people every time I’ve been there. At times,
I have just as close friends in New Orleans as here. The people are
great; I like that we have friends that don’t play in bands there. They
don’t have to be in a band for us to meet them and know them and
strike up all this friendly conversation. Speaking for myself, the food,
people, atmosphere, architecture, the vibe—it’s incredible. When
Pizza [Mike’s other band] was there, we went on the ghost tour and
spent twenty bucks for that. Let me tell you, I won’t do that again!
Pygmy Lush will be performing October 29th at the Sidearm Gallery
(1122 St. Roch Avenue) with Des Ark, Brooklyn’s Ghastly City Sleep
and Why Are We Building Such A Big Ship? For more information, go
to myspace.com/pygmylush.
FEATURE
FILM
ALL HANDS ON DECK WITH DIRECTOR
MIKE D. KENNEDY
by dan fox
M
ike Kennedy does a lot of things, but “chill”
is not one of them. A simple, laid back
pool party at his place, for example, will
quickly turn into a zip-lining, scuba diving,
trampolining, underwater photographing extravaganza,
with a trip up his own indoor rock-climbing wall for
an encore. He applies the same frenetic energy to his
filmmaking, so it’s no surprise
that the New Orleans Film
Festival is screening two of his
most well-known music videos,
Ballzack’s “Rainbow in Marrero”
and MC Odoms’ “Keeping Up
With the Jetsons.” Featuring
everything from a tricked-out
Pho Tau Bay parking lot to greenscreened galaxies with mochasipping aliens, every frame of a
Kennedy video is pure eye-candy.
ANTIGRAVITY caught up
with the busiest man in NOLA
showbiz to get his thoughts on
the state of the film industry and
what it takes to make people pay
attention.
ANTIGRAVITY: Your videos
always look so slick. How do
you finance all of your projects?
Mike Kennedy: The videos look
slick because I’ve been working
in the film business since 1999.
Film school is fun, but mostly
I learned on the set of real
movies. I also surround myself
with talented professionals like
director of photography Nate
Tape, production designer Twig
Leveque,
FX-makeup
artist
Jessica Hyde and great performers
like Ballzack, Odoms, and The
Buttons. Film is a collaborative
effort—you can’t make a movie
on your own. Well, you can, but
it’d probably blow. Financing
comes from the band and/or
label. Spending money on a
video may seem like a frivolous
thing to artists, but when I go to
a Ballzack show and everyone
knows the lyrics to “Rainbow
in Marrero” before the album
drops, it shows that the video and
exposure has reached the audience. Plus, I give the artists
a huge amount of production value for very little cost.
We try to do as much as we can with the least amount of
money. Making a great video with a huge budget is easy; I
like making great videos with great ideas.
How do you put together a shoot like the Buttons
video? How do you get Skate Country for a location,
for example, then coordinate all those people and their
costumes?
Again, the Buttons shoot was a collaborative effort
between myself, the Buttons and Nate Tape. We even
had interns (thanks Michelle and Scott!). Rami (Ballzack)
actually acted as a locations agent on that one and set up
the deal with Skate Country. Plus, The Buttons had tons
of amazing, dedicated friends that came in all these weird
costumes and stayed for hours.
What’s your favorite part of the filmmaking process?
What’s your least favorite?
The best part of making movies is having an audience.
You can write a song or draw a picture for yourself, but
movies are nothing without an audience. My least favorite
part would be the way the industry has changed. Just like
the music business, the film business is in flux. I’ve been
blessed with tons of work—and people will continue to
As someone working in the, uh, “professional” side of
the film industry, what are some things you take with
you in your own projects, and what are some things you
are happy to leave behind?
I’m all about camera cranes. When I was at the New
York Film Academy I made a short, “Survival the Illest,”
that played in festivals all over the country. The camera
moved in maybe one shot—
handheld. Moving the camera
with dollies and cranes is what
separates student films from real
productions. If you want to keep
people interested, you have to
make it interesting and dynamic.
The worst part of the professional
film business is the hours. I just
worked for six months on a TV
show with sixty-five hours every
week (and that was a relaxed
schedule). Most movies have
disgustingly long hours because,
as always, producers want the
most for their money. By going
overtime, they’re eliminating
more shoot days, which would
be more expensive.
So is a MDK set more relaxed?
Describe a typical day on a
shoot.
The shoot might be more relaxed
because everyone will be cool,
but I am definitely not relaxed.
Anyone who knows me would
not describe me as “laid-back,”
so I get really nervous and
excited for my own shoots. We
don’t have the kind of money for
re-shoots, so coordinating a crew,
on-screen talent, plus a location
on the same day is already hectic.
It’s not like I sit in a director’s
chair and just bark at people.
I have to set up gear, deal with
locations, pre-production and
making everything run smoothly.
So I’m definitely worked up for
my shoots, but we usually wrap
in ten hours or less so that’s the
good part.
What’s next? When does the
Mike Kennedy feature come
make movies, videos and commercials—but they will be
different because everything is about money. This is a
blessing and a curse for me because everyone wants the
most for what they spend. But sadly, the days of the megabudget dinosaurs are pretty much gone.
What do you mean by that? Didn’t Benjamin Button just
shoot here and spend like 200 million dollars?
Sure it did (I worked on it), but music videos and
commercials have shrunk. Music videos used to cost twoto-three hundred grand. Now, big artists make twenty
thousand-dollar videos. Commercials are the same way.
You’ll see a huge commercial, but it’ll be for McDonald’s,
Coke and a Disney Movie—all in the same commercial.
I’ve also seen ones for the Olympics and Visa, or Rhapsody
and a U2 album, Subway and United Way or Budweiser
and the NFL. Big companies fuse together to shoulder
advertising budgets.
out?
There are two videos we did for the Park The Van record
label, for Generationals and the High Strung, respectively.
No word on when these will ever be released. Besides that,
I’ve been working on my NOadventure.com site, which
has developed a following in the city. My bombshelter
documentary, “Buried Alive,” [about the abandoned
civil defense shelter in Lakeview] just played at Docufest
Atlanta where it was the audience favorite. As for a big
movie? This is top secret—eventually, there may be a
feature, but I don’t want to make one without the proper
funding. Lil’ Doogie needs at least ten million.
“Rainbow in Marrero” and “Keeping Up With the Jetsons”
will be playing at 8PM, October 11th at the Contemporary
Arts Center as part of the New Orleans Film Festival. For
more information and to view Mike Kennedy’s videos (and
everything else that’s going on in that head of his), go to
crushedmedia.com and noadventure.com.
17
antigravitymagazine.com_
FEATURE
CULTURE
WE ALL WORK FOR THE DEVIL: MYTH, POLITICS
AND CAJUNS COLLIDE IN “LOUP GAROU”
by sara pic
photo by zack smith
W
hat does a loup garou, that mythological Cajun
werewolf, have to do with the loss of Louisiana’s
coast? For Mondo Bizarro and ArtSpot Productions,
that answer is obvious: as we lose our wetlands,
we also risk losing Louisiana’s unique culture, which include the
stories of the loup garou and so much more. ANTIGRAVITY sat
down with lead actor and Mondo Bizarro co-creator Nick Slie (who
was safely not in werewolf mode), to talk about collaborative art,
art and social justice and the beast inside all of us.
ANTIGRAVITY: We’ve documented you guys quite a bit in
AG, but for those readers who still don’t know, tell me about
Mondo Bizarro.
Nick Slie: This is our seventh year of work here in New Orleans.
From the beginning, we have been doing multi-disciplinary
work. We have three main projects: we produce a festival every other
year called The State of The Nation Art and Performance Festival,
co-produced with ArtSpot Productions and M.U.G.A.B.E.E.;
we create one to two original performance works that are rooted
here in New Orleans, and then tour them around the country and
sometimes internationally; and we also run and operate a number of
different digital media projects. The one we are doing now is called
I Witness Central City, which is a story-mapping project, gathering
stories where they happened in Central City and leaving location
markers where people can call in on phones and listen to the story
and then we map them digitally. We are probably most known for
our performance works but we are interested in the intersection of
all of the arts and also where art intersects with social justice—art
that is rooted in a particular sense of place, of home. And of course,
in our home, you don’t have to look far to find things that are pretty
fucked up.
Tell me more about Loup Garou, as it’s your newest work and is
debuting in New Orleans in October.
Kathy Randels from ArtSpot Productions, which is coproducing Loup Garou, and I started working on this piece last
December. A loup garou is a Cajun werewolf. Kathy and I were
concerned about the cultural traditions of Louisiana as the wetlands
disappear. My grandfather was a third-generation French-speaking
Cajun man. I always heard about the loup garou as the other, the
mysterious, as in, “The loup garou is gonna get you.” Then I met
Moose Jackson, who I think is the best poet in New Orleans, and
who has a lifelong obsession with werewolves. And it all just came
together, as we were all concerned about our coast, how much
land we are losing and how vulnerable we are. Moose is writing
the text for the show, Kathy is directing and I am playing the loup
garou. The loup garou gave us a doorway to talk about those issues
and about Cajun culture. We are playing with this idea of, “What’s
going on with the animal inside all of us?” And how can the ability
to transform help us here in Louisiana?
Loup Garou sounds as though it is very much about the social
justice issues you talked about and also about collaboration with
partners with different backgrounds but similar interests.
The Gulf Restoration Network is our community partner and will be
present at all the shows. Every Friday night we will also have talkbacks,
about engineering and land loss, about Cajun culture and about art
process. There are also two musicians playing live music. We all work
together; everyone is constantly feeding the pot. What each person
does for the show affects the rest of us and we all want feedback on
what we bring. This show is happening at City Park in an abandoned
golf course, so the land changes us. We work in the rain. When you’re
outside you need to be open to coming to your space and there being a
18_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
hundred egrets. Maybe you just need to sit there and watch that beauty
rather than roll over the site. Flexibility is huge.
Is the piece explicitly about the wetlands or is there something
larger, less defined or unresolved also going on?
This guy, who you’re not sure what he’s done, shows up at a monastery,
coming down from being a werewolf. The piece is told in a twentyeight-day lunar cycle and travels through healthy cypress swaps, to the
bars of New Orleans and on out to the Gulf. When we’ve toured with
the piece, we realized that everyone has this question: “Where is my
home and where is it going?” Our home, Louisiana, is one of the most
complicated places in the world. We show the side of a man who is
also an animal, a beast. People don’t realize how much that animal is
in them. But the loup garou is also trying to remember what his home
was. People say, “We all went to work for the devil,” when the oil
companies arrived—and we kind of did—but then you think, what if it
was you who went back fifty years and there are no other jobs? Today
we’re faced with: what happens in twenty years if we can’t live here?
If these are “end times,” if we are threatened with the extinction of
our culture, what will we do? It’s time to decide now that you have
to act. Even if it does all disappear, let’s put down one of the greatest
battles ever, and record this culture and put these stories so deeply in
our bodies that generations will never forget them.
Loup Garou, co-produced by Mondo Bizarro and ArtSpot Productions,
runs from October 8th through the 25th, on Thursdays at sunrise (7 am)
and Fridays, Saturday and Sundays at sunset (5 pm) in City Park at the
old East Golf Course, on Filmore near Wisner. $15; $10 artists, students
and seniors. Sunday, October 11th showing is “Pay-What-You-Can.”
Free gumbo at Friday showings. Loup Garou will also run during the
Fringe Fest in November.
FEATURE
VOODOO ’09
GOGOL BORDELLO TO CELEBRATE
VOODOO & HALLOWEEN NON-STOP
by erin hall
G
ogol Bordello has long been known for
their electric live shows and has, over the
years, brought that unstoppable energy to
a plethora of New Orleans venues. This
Halloween, they bring their special brand of fusion punk
to the Voodoo Music Experience. ANTIGRAVITY
called up bassist Tommy T to chat about why the band’s
diversity is their greatest strength and what they’ll be
wearing this Halloween.
ANTIGRAVITY: You guys have a pretty strong fan
base in New Orleans. What do you think it is about our
city that embraces your style of music so well?
Tommy T: Well, it’s a city of music, period. People that
love great music and that’s basically what we bring. And
people that understand energy and that exchange of
energy. It’s a perfect match, I think.
Well, we’re sometimes referred to as “America’s
Most European City” and our culture
is a mixed bag of French, Spanish,
Caribbean and African. Gogol is
similarly multi-cultural, seeing as
almost all of the members were born
in other countries. What do you think
that brings to the creative process and
the kind of music you guys choose to
make together?
That’s basically the magic of what we’re
doing, in that we’re all from different
places and are influenced by different
types of music. When you bring people
with diverse musical influences and openmindedness and honesty to the same
place and have them create something
together, it’s almost guaranteed that
you’ll get something great. And that’s
what’s been happening.
You’re one of the more recent
additions to the band, having joined in
2006. What do you think your heritage
brought to the band’s sound?
Not necessarily just my Ethiopian
heritage, but also all the stuff I’ve been
influenced by, from the reggae to the
funk to the groove bass kind of music,
which is often Ethiopian in nature. And
the fact that I’m open-minded about
music, you know. I’ve always believed
and will always believe that we should
not have any boundaries or limitations
on how we think. Not just rock music or
jazz music. All good music should have a
space. You should look for what speaks to you at the time.
And we all are open-minded musicians, so that’s why we
keep getting different influences and different ideas from
different places and injecting them into the music.
What about those influences affected the way you play
your instrument?
Well, my brother is a great bass player as well, so basically
my first influence was stuff that he really liked, which
was the Motown sound. And just that groove-oriented
kind of stuff. From there, I sort of developed the reggae
thing, which I play on for a long time. I also played with
a lot of bands around the community and whatnot, so
I have that African groove mentality. Just all of those
meshing together and the fact that I’m here and I listen
to jazz and funk and rock and all sorts of different things
just sort of opens you up.
Recently, a documentary was released about the
band called Gogol Bordello Non-Stop, and it’s actually
screening at our local arts center the week this issue
hits stands. What can you tell us about it?
It’s some earlier footage of the band before the time that I
joined in. So you get to see how the band came together,
the different versions that existed in the early days and
backstage and live shows from the earlier times basically.
It was good for me to see as well, because I got to learn
about the band quite a bit.
You guys are almost as much an art collective as a band,
with all of the members’ side projects in film, graphic
arts, etc. And you’re releasing a solo album next
month. I also heard about the possibility of you guys
developing a festival called Gypsy Punk Generation.
Will we be seeing that come to life anytime soon?
We’re working on it. It’s not there yet because we were
more concerned with recording and touring this past
year. But there are definitely plans and we will have
more to say once we figure out exactly what things will
be. I can’t really speak too much about it, but we will
definitely keep you posted.
What can we expect the set list to look like for
Voodoo?
Stuff from the “greatest hits” to some new stuff you’ve
never heard before. Festivals are a little crazy because
they only give us like an hour, so we can’t really do a
whole lot. But you’ve seen our shows in New Orleans
before, so you know we’ll do as much as we can.
So you guys are playing on Halloween night. Do you plan on
wearing costumes? Is that something you’ve thought about?
I think my everyday outfit is a costume. [Laughs] I’ll
probably come out in a tuxedo or something. I have no
idea. If you have any good ideas, I’m down for getting a
gift or something like that.
We have a pretty great Halloween scene here. Do you
guys plan on going out after the show? Maybe a super
secret afterparty you want to let me in on?
Well, we usually don’t plan afterparties this early, but you
can be sure there will be an after party. Without question.
Well, in the spirit of the season, here’s a totally fluff
question: what’s your favorite Halloween candy?
Well, I’m not so much into candy, but Johnny Walker
black label on any given night.
I was going to ask what you think your choice of
candy says about you as a person, but I think you just
answered that for me
[Laughs] That’s it.
Gogol Bordello plays the Voodoo Experience on Saturday,
October 31st. The film Gogol Bordello Non-Stop screens
at Zeitgeist from September 25th to October 4th at 9:15pm,
Friday—Sunday nights. Tommy T’s solo debut The Prester
John Sessions hits stores October 10th. SideOneDummy
records also releases Gogol’s first-ever live DVD/CD, Live
From Axis Mundi on October 6th.
19
antigravitymagazine.com_
FEATURE
VOODOO ’09
THE BINGO! PARLOUR WANTS TO MAKE
EVERYONE A WINNAH AT VOODOO ’09
by david s. white
C
photos by lloyd miller
lassifying The New Orleans Bingo! Show into a specific
genre of music is difficult. Classifying the assorted
grab bag of artists under the Bingo! Parlour tent at the
Voodoo Music Experience is nigh impossible. With
Bingo!, what started as a goof and a way to spend time with friends
between deliveries for Fiorella’s restaurant in the French Quarter
has developed into a nationally recognized act and, in the last
couple of years, has become a must-see experience at New Orleans’
largest rock festival. Come Halloween weekend, it’s circus time.
One of the first things you see when coming onto the grounds of
City Park from the main gate of Voodoo is an odd, multicolored
circus tent with the giant face of a clown named Ronnie Numbers.
It’s hard to tell if he’s greeting you or about to yell at you to get the
hell inside, but either way you might feel compelled to see what this
could possibly be all about. When you step in you could be treated
to just about anything, from a national act that you grew up with
as a kid or some strange performance that you never could have
imagined in a million years.
It all began modestly in 2006. Preservation Jazz Hall was
invited to do a stage at Bonnaroo, the four-day, multi-stage camping
festival held in Tennessee. But with zero budget for talent and no
production experience, they could only afford to keep it as an inhouse gig. The only acts that played were the various projects of a
handful of all the same musicians: Bingo!, Liquidrone, Noisician
Coalition and Preservation Hall Brass Band played every day
for three days straight. However, their success got the attention of
Steve Rehage, founder of the Voodoo Music Experience, and he
contacted Ron Rona about doing something similar at Voodoo the
following year.
Rona, The New Orleans Bingo! Show producer who is better
known to everyone else as that monochromatic, foul-mouthed
clown Ronnie Numbers, found himself armed for Voodoo with a
small production budget and got to work creating something that
would capture everything he loved about New Orleans music, at
the same time showcasing all the crazy things his friends were
doing. That dream was born with the first Bingo! Parlour at the
2007 Voodoo.
“The Bingo! Parlour concept had been in my head for a long time
before that,” Ron revealed in a recent interview. “I was interested
in taking Bingo! outside of the group and creating an umbrella for
all these things we were doing. You have whatever Matt (VaughnBlack) does, you have what Clint (Maedgen) does and you have
what I do…but this was an opportunity to put whatever the fuck
[all that] was into action.”
“We were always interested in presenting our friends to other
friends. That’s always been a thing, since day one that’s always
been like a Bingo! thing to do. We still do it. And you know, this
is just a big version of that. Luckily Steve and Voodoo were really
behind it.”
That first year was a huge success for their non-descript white
tent, but Ron and Voodoo knew they could make it bigger. “After
that first year, I thought, ‘let’s get a real circus tent instead of trying
to make a tent look like a circus tent,’” Ron said. After a Google
search, they were able to find a circus family in Florida that rents
out their tents in the off-season.
After some negotiations, the entire family drove the tent from
Florida to New Orleans to erect it on the grounds of City Park.
“We’ve really developed a special relationship with them,” Ron said
about the Anastasini circus family. “They hung out the whole time
and after they saw Bingo! for the first time, Renato (the Anastasini
family patriarch) walked up to me and was like, ‘What circus family
do you come from?’ and after I told him that I’m not from any circus
family he goes, ‘You’re very good. You should come with us.’”
The Anastasini family will be back this year with the same tent,
but this time as part of the extended family that everyone who is
involved with Bingo! eventually becomes a part of.
And there lies the true goal of Bingo!—to just hang out with
friends. The tent is an extension of that philosophy, introducing
old friends to new friends while all having a good time together.
The Bingo! Parlour audience is just more friends that get to share
in that experience.
“The whole point is to have a family reunion thing,” Clint
Maedgen, frontman for The New Orleans Bingo! Show
acknowledged. “To have all of us be in the same place for three
days is beautiful, man. I mean, these are my best friends and I don’t
get to see them as much. It’s a family.”
“It’s about throwing the Noisician Coalition in front of people,”
Ron says with pride. “And putting these groups in front of, not only
a national audience, but in front of people that don’t even know
that shit is in their front yard. At the end of the day, that’s all I want
to do, work with my friends and make cool shit.”
The Parlour is as much an oddity at national
music festivals as Bingo! is. As Ron explains, “[At
other festivals] you don’t have the local music tent,
necessarily. And even if you did, I think ours is a hell
of a lot more interesting.”
Still, Ron reflects that he’s not able to get everyone
in that he’d like to see or that he’d like the world to
see. “Man, there are so many bands I wish I could get
in here, but you only have seven slots a day. That’s all
you got. And it’s still really hard to leave some bands
out. That’s awful. I really hate that part.”
This year, with the absence of the Land of Nod
stage at Voodoo, it’s even harder to omit bands. The
Bingo! Parlour is now the only showcase of New
Orleans’ non-traditional music scene, something that
isn’t lost on the organizers of the Bingo! Parlour. “I’m
really going to miss the Land of Nod,” remarked Matt
Vaughan-Black, better known as Mr. The Turk. “They
had so many kids going through that stage…and we
don’t have as much time [available] because we have
national acts that we also have to deal with.”
Clint expanded on that disappointment, “There’s so
many bands in town that I haven’t heard and I regret
that. I really look forward to going out and listening
to bands now. I’m really excited that I’ve been turned
on to Sissy Bounce. Quintron turned me on to that.
I’m very excited that they’re playing our tent. I want
all my friends to know about that and I want them
to know about us. I think it’s important. I got mad
respect for anyone that’s working that hard.”
Certainly, the guys behind the Bingo! Parlour have
been working hard and they’ve out done themselves
this year, with national acts like Jello Biafra and the
Guantanamo School of Medicine, Meat Puppets and
Squirrel Nut Zippers. But that’s really just a small
part of what the Bingo! Parlour is all about.
“At the end of the day, the story on the Bingo!
Parlour is that we’ve been given an opportunity to
cast a light on the local music scene. The other side
of Jazz and Blues culture. The underside of New
Orleans music, which we compliment with national
acts. Truth is, a lot of people, regionally, just don’t
know the high caliber of musical acts that exist in
New Orleans,” said Lloyd Miller, backstage manager
of the Bingo! Parlour.
True to their word, they also feature local favorites
like Davis Rogan, Why Are We Building Such A Big
Ship?, The Happy Talk Band, Suplecs, Zydepunks,
Down, The White Bitch, Quintron and Miss
Pussycat, Ratty Scurvics, Luke Winslow-King,
Rotary Downs, Fleur de Tease, MC Trachiotomy,
R. Scully’s Rough 7, and, of course, The New
Orleans Bingo! Show. This year also features a onetime reunion of the incredibly popular local rock
band, The Morning 40 Federation.
But what’s a circus with out the freak show? The
Bingo! Parlour never fails to deliver the strange,
whether you’re suddenly caught up in the marching
stage show known as MarchFourth Marching Band,
or you’re being assaulted by the weirdo antics of
The Noisician Coalition (a marching noise band
that invades audiences with instruments as much
at home in a trash can as played), experiencing the
unique show of Fischerspooner, enjoying the sounds
of a full New Orleans Gospel Choir from Japan, or
closing the Voodoo Music Experience out with Sissy
Bounce, a genre of rap performed by transvestite and
gay artists, such as Katey Red, Big Freedia, and Sissy
Nobby with DJ Papa.
Last, but not least, the Bingo! Parlour is spearheading
an attempt at a Guinness Book of World Records
title for “World’s Largest Zombie Gathering,” which
currently stands at 4,026 (as of August 7, 2009).
Really, this is what the Bingo! Parlour has done best
for three years—deliver a genre-bending experience of
eclectic musical styles and pure, unadulterated fun.
Rock n’ roll, metal, punk, marching bands, gospel,
rockabilly swing, art-pop, sissy bounce and whatever
the hell you could classify The New Orleans Bingo!
Show as all in one big, musical circus tent. Truly the
greatest show on earth.
20_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
21
antigravitymagazine.com_
FEATURE
VOODOO ’09
TIGHT LIKE A RUSTY LAZER: SISSY NOBBY
AND BIG FREEDIA SISSY UP VOODOO ’09
by michael patrick welch photos by aubrey edwards
K
atey Red is New Orleans’ queen of transgendered
bounce rap. But her two most popular spawn, Big
Freedia and Sissy Nobby, are perhaps more well-known
these days. After years of success at New Orleans’ block
parties, rap clubs, gay clubs and even Jazz Fest, the duo of Freedia
and Nobby—who will perform with Katey Red at this year’s
Voodoo Music Experience—crashed the New York area recently.
Their weeklong, six-show tour was booked and navigated by New
Orleans DJ Rusty Lazer, Jay Pennington, the former drummer for
ballad-rock band, A Particularly Vicious Rumor, as well as many
rag-tag Bywater second-line krewes. Unfortunately, and for reasons
no one wanted to explain to us, Nobby left New York after the
duo’s first show there and returned to New Orleans, leaving Freedia
and Rusty Lazer to rock several legendary New York venues with
some of today’s hippest electronic artists, including Spank Rock.
While her partners took New York, Sissy Nobby sat down for an
interview with ANTIGRAVITY at the Bywater BBQ. Several days
later, we picked Freedia and Rusty Lazer up at the airport for their
interview.
SISSY NOBBY:
ANTIGRAVITY: Katey Red will be joining you and Freedia on
stage at Voodoo. Tell me about your relationship with Katey.
Sissy Nobby: Katey Red is really the one who inspired me. I was
gonna rap anyway, but I was gonna closet my image, I guess. Then
when Katey came on the scene so flamboyant and full-blown, I’m
like “Hell, I can do this! I’ma just come out too!”
So how did you meet Big Freedia?
We were on the same record label, Money Rules Entertainment. At
the time we wasn’t really click-clacking like we are now. Freedia
was holding things down, the hottest thing in New Orleans, and
the record label was showing favoritism to Freedia, and I felt a little
jealous bout it. It was my fault, and Freedia was always just a cool
person. Then after the flood I called Freedia and said, “I want you
to guide me, inspire me, I love what you do, and I need you.” After
that we just became this like mother-daughter thing.
When we interviewed Katey Red she complained about the glut
of sissy rappers now. Who are the better ones?
Vaco Redux, Shav off the Ave, and of course Calliope Priest. Priest
was the first person I really seen at the gay club live. He’s kinda
underground but he really did inspire all of us.
One reason sissy bounce is so successful is that you all don’t look
like cookie-cutter rappers. How would you describe your fashion
style?
My wardrobe, I try to switch it up. One time I might be a little retro
boy, then I may feel more feminine and do like a punk—meanin’
I might put these dreads up or braid ’em to the side, and do some
fitted skinny jeans. On stage, Freedia and I always try to make sure
22_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
our outfits are matching, the colors or the same shoes.
And who makes your music?
I produce the music you hear when I’m performing. I make the
beats using Acid Pro. I made a mixtape called Sissy Nobby’s
Mixtape, and I am working on an album right now with a label
called Z-Group Entertainment. I am working hard to be the first
gay artist to go national, and I think Z-Group is gonna get me there.
They’ve got me booked in Miami, Atlanta, and I’m going back to
New York.
Please tell me about your recent trip to New York.
I love New York. I wanna go back! I would love to stay out there.
The audience response out there was crazy! It was a full white
crowd, in Brooklyn.
But you came back early, after only one show—you mind talking
about that or?
Um. Family emergency? [Laughs] Family emergency, that’s all I
can say.
Have you performed out of town much?
Ooh, so many places. I’m playing soon at a club in Houston called
the T-Spot—a gay club, of course. Labor Day weekend I performed
in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. Before that I was in Mississippi,
Hammond, Slidell. They be callin’ me to play at the straight clubs.
FEATURE
VOODOO ’09
But the price that I’m axin’ for they don’t wanna pay. The gay club
was willin’ to make a deal with me so…hear I come! I’m comin’!
And you perform almost every night in New Orleans, no?
It’s died down to about four or five nights. But on a weekend I
might do ten to fifteen shows?
Ten or fifteen?!
In one weekend. Like, five Friday, five Saturday. ’Cause we don’t
perform just at clubs; we do block parties and school events.
How long are your performances?
Maybe like fifteen minutes. Though, with Rusty Lazer, oh God.
He just go song after song until Freedia and I lookin’ at each other
while we’re performing, like, “More songs?” He have us play like
forty-five minutes. But usually we just do three or two songs. It
depends on what club I’m at, but if I’m doing a show out of town,
I’m also more of a rapper. When it’s in town
in a club, I’m just emceeing it.
So you also have a more lyrical rap style you sometimes employ?
BF: Yes, I rap about life and things I’m trying to accomplish, and
things I go through. “I Ain’t Takin No Shit” is more of a straight
rap: Playa hatin’ motherfuckers always try’na be slick / sending
hoes at my tray try’na get a little dick / keep your eyes on these
hoes cause they wanna be you / y’see they watch what you wear,
and the way you rock your shoes / and your dos, and your dudes,
showin nothing but love / when I walk up in the club I get drinks
and hugs.
DJ Rusty Lazer: And you can tell from that rap, it’s kind of that
older style, and that’s the thing in New York—that, I’m the baddest
motherfucker on the block kinda shit. So they went batshit crazy.
People were coming up to me saying, “That’s that old New York
shit! That’s how it used to be here!”
So tell me about your relationship with Katey Red.
and
When I asked Nobby why she left, she
evasively laughed and said “Family
emergency.” Why did she leave?
BF: Off the record?
DJ
You perform almost every night of
the week. Can you detail your insane
schedule?
Big Freedia: I have my regular Saturday
at Club Fabulous, a laid back hip-hop bar
where people party, get drunk and dance
off the music. Monday I used to do Bottom
Line. Tuesdays I do Caesars on the West
Bank. Thursday night is Platinum 3000.
Friday I’m back at Caesar’s for Big Freedia
Night. Then Sunday I do The Duck Off,
and also Maison Musique on Frenchmen
Street.
Well, I’d prefer the on-the-record
version.
BF: Then “family emergency.” [Laughs]
RL: For me, I don’t think I was nearly as
mad as I was sad, and disappointed. I still
had Freedia there and we killed it. But I was
sad for Nobby, because it was a really big
chance for her.
BF: Yeah, after these New York shows,
people were talking about bringing me to
Philly, to Baltimore, L.A., Australia, so
many people coming up to me offering
me shows. American Apparel clothing
company saw my show and called me the
next day; they let me go in the store and pick
up everything I wanted, no limit. I tried to
change Nobby’s mind about leaving but I
couldn’t.
RL: We were following her all the way
to the plane trying to talk to her, trying
to get her to come back, letting her know
how important it is that people know they
can count on you as a performer no matter
what. I mean, I did 4th of July at One Eyed
Jacks with both of them, and earlier that day
Freedia had an extreme personal tragedy,
the kind that would definitely give you a
free pass to get out of your show. But she
just got up on stage and went for it.
BF: Only god helped me do that 4th of July
show, ’cause I was totally out of it. But I
do this for my people, who love it just as
much as me. So even though I was sad on
the 4th of July, I made people happy. And
that makes me happy, and keeps me alive.
How long are your performances?
BF: Depending on the crowd and what’s
requested of us, we do about thirty to fortyfive minutes. Depending on the setting, it
may be fifteen to twenty minutes. Long as
you rock you party it doesn’t matter how
much time you up there; it could be five
minutes, long as you rock it.
What was Jazz Fest like for you and
Nobby and Katey? You were obviously the
most alternative act there.
BF: It was so many people who knew us,
so many supporters in the audience. That
particular day they had a lot of high school
children out there, and they like, lost their
minds. They were chanting behind us, they
was dancing. Also a choir I used to sing
with—and who I still do sing with when it’s
reunion time—Gospel Soul Children, they
were singing at the Jazz Fest at the same
time as me and they all came over to support
me as well. It was really just everybody I
knew, so it was a blast.
I guess the homophobes were all busy
watching Jimmy Buffet or Dave Matthews
at that time. Jazz Fest must be how all the
little kids know about you, since obviously
they don’t go to Caesars.
BF: They also see us at block parties, teenage parties. They might
have some school event that we go perform at. There’s teen clubs
like The Chat Room, and a few other spots in the East. Some
promoters rent a venue for a teen party. Kids love us because we’re
just the new thing, the new hip-hop, the local music that hold it
down for our people and represent them. They’re really excited to
have someone from home who can really hold it down and do what
they like, and represent what we do here.
Do you utilize your aforementioned singing talent in your
music?
BF: In my song I might sing the breakdown, to get it together. Or
I might just sing the chorus like on my song, “If Your Girl Only
Knew,” and a new one I have that’s called “For Your Dick’em
Baby.”
So Jay, you hooked them up with like, Andrew W.K. and Spank
Rock while in New York?
RL: Yeah, Spank Rock made the shows in New York—tripled the
audiences. He even chose to perform first and then hand the mic to
Freedia and say, “This is who we really came for.”
BF: And as soon as he did that the crowd just went crazy. He said
one of my slogans to introduce me—“You already know!”—and it
just flipped the crowd out.
RL: Now Spank Rock wants to do some recordings with Freedia,
exchange some beats. I think during Voodoo they’re going to come
down and we’re going to get some studio time and make something
interesting happen. And I’m gonna try to get Spank Rock on as part
of Voodoo, or do some kind of show at All-Ways on Halloween
maybe.
So, Freedia, when Nobby decided to leave
the New York tour, were you intimidated
at the idea of having to do those shows by
yourself?
BF: No. Of course, it was a bigger challenge.
But we separate all the time anyway. In the
end if was no biggie at all.
RL: And in the end it helped people focus
on Freedia.
What inspires you to write one of the more
lyrical rap songs?
Life. What I go through. Relationships.
Even my bounce songs, I try to give them a
subject, not just say anything. Like my song
“Consequences,” it’s about a relationship,
two people, they tryin’ to break them up,
but you can’t break them up, they in love.
BIG FREEDIA
RUSTY LAZER
from New York to Philly. I can’t thank him enough for that, and
can’t wait to do it again.
BF: Well, Katey and I been friends for over a decade, before she
was a rapper. After Katey started rapping in ’99, I became her
background vocalist. After that were in the clubs 24/7, traveling
all over Louisiana, Texas, different parts of down South, all of it
booked by Katey’s record label, Take Fo’. And maybe like two
years after that I became an independent artist on my own.
And how did you hook up with Jay here, DJ Rusty Lazer?
BF: I was the queen of a second-line club, The VIP Ladies, and I
was ridin’ on the back of a cart, and he came up to me. I gave him
my card and from there we started working together, taking the
music in a new direction. He’s given me real connections to real,
genuine people who want to help me. He worked hard on this New
York trip for me, non-stop, and every show was successful. He had
his friends at every show, who opened doors for me all the way
Had you ever played in New York before?
BF: Yes, once, and the shows were insane;
the energy levels were very, very high. It was
something new for Brooklyn, shocking. We
was putting ’em on something new, teachin’
’em new ways to dance, and showin’ ’em
how we get down in New Orleans. People
were coming up to me at all the shows, “Dude, I haven’t seen
nothing like this, you really killed it!” They were really surprised,
but they loveded it.
RL: At the Glasslands show in Brooklyn, after the very first song
the screams from the girls were so loud it was painful. I had to put
my hands over my ears; it felt like that footage you see of people
freaking out at old Beatles concert. And even the people there who
were decidedly not going to dance, period, even they were looking at
each other, smiling from ear to ear. Just joyful. Freedia really broke
down the New York bullshit, cut through it for a lot of people.
Big Freedia, and Sissy Nobby perform with Katey Red at the Voodoo
Music Experience on Sunday, November 1st. For more information on
Big Freedia, go to myspace.com/bigfreedia, and for more information
on Sissy Nobby, go to myspace.com/sissynobbyy.
23
antigravitymagazine.com_
REVIEWS
ARCTIC MONKEYS
HUMBUG
(DOMINO)
A
bout three and a half years ago,
Arctic Monkeys stormed the
musical consciousness, garnering such
intense hype via the world wide web
that their debut release broke the longstanding Beatles record of first-week
debut album sales in the UK. Four
teenagers from Sheffield, England, with no formal musical training,
crafted a sound that proved to be undeniable in both its wit, thanks
to Alex Turner’s knife-edge insights and commentaries, and its
catchy and straightforward songwriting. Their sophomore outing
expounded upon their debut and presents these lads in a slightly more
mature, if not increasingly judgmental and vicious light—the sound
of a few guys who traveled the world and didn’t necessarily like
everything they saw. Which brings us to Humbug, an album whose
title aptly describes the murky cynicism and unrepentant rocking to
be found within. The Monkeys have come a long way since writing
numbers like “I Bet that You Look Good on the Dancefloor.” While
they do not stray too far from their previous formula, this record
is nonetheless unfailingly deeper and more powerful than past
efforts. Part of this, no doubt, can be attributed to their collaboration
with the desert guru Josh Homme on seven of the ten tracks; the
influence is not exactly hidden. But it seems rather then guiding
their ship, Homme provided a space and mindset within which the
Monkeys were able to find true freedom. “Dangerous Animals,”
“Dance Little Liar” and “Pretty Visitors” realize this freedom with
newfound guitar textures and effects and thunderous yet restrained
drumming, as opposed to the normal rapid-fire approach, and the
use of sepulchral, moody organs. This freedom does not translate to
Humbug being even in the least uplifting or positive; for it is snide and
spiteful in a Lou Reed sort of way. No longer boys from Sheffield,
Arctic Monkeys are growing up—bah Humbug motherfuckers. —
Dan Mitchell
BANNER PILOT
COLLAPSER
(FAT WRECK)
I
f you’re the kind of person who enjoys
frequent trips to the liquor store, long
rides on public transportation and latenight readings of John Fante novels,
then I may have found something up
your alley. There’s a lot to be said about
Collapser, the second album by Banner
Pilot, one of the current crop of weirdly good prog-punk bands to
come out of Minneapolis in the past five years or so. The group’s last
outing, 2008’s Resignation Day, received a moderate amount of praise
upon its release, with an underlying criticism that the album’s songs,
as well-written as they were, may have been a bit “same-sounding.”
The thing about Banner Pilot, you see, is that they’ve always come off
as having a lot of love for bands like Jawbreaker and The Lawrence
Arms without having really put their own signature on the style. I keep
checking my ears, but Collapser just may finally be the realization of
Banner Pilot’s potential. It’s 24 Hour Revenge Therapy and Apathy and
Exhaustion, done their way. With Collapser, Banner Pilot channels a little
bit of both those bands but comes off with a texturally different sound,
somewhere between the snotty introspection of Blake Schwarzenbach
and the drunken malaise of Brendan Kelly. Now, I don’t think that
Banner Pilot has been seriously setting out to give hand jobs to those
two bands. The “hand job” accusation is incredulous because: A.) The
Lawrence Arms themselves are obviously doing their best to channel
Jawbreaker and B.) Jawbreaker was trying to be pop punk’s version
of Jack Kerouac in the 1990s, if just a bit. That, plus their songwriting
was, you know, a bit goth. Collapser may very well end up being “the”
recording of Banner Pilot’s career (which itself only dates back a
couple of years). Key tracks include: “Starting at the End,” “Northern
Skyline,” “Farewell to Iron Bastards.” “Northern Skyline” is probably
the most Jawbreaker-y entry on the album, and it’s a sadly beautiful
piece. “Farewell to Iron Bastards” seems to be the one which I repeat
the most on my iPod. “Starting at the End” uses the corner liquor
store as a metaphor for life, although the lyrics are deceptively subtle
(Banner Pilot isn’t Sublime, thankfully). From the onset of “Central
Standard,” Collapser’s opening anthem, through the close of “Write
It Down,” this record feels like the realization of something special.
If you’ve “outgrown” punk rock, then this album isn’t likely to thin
your blood. Fans of pop punk with excellent songwriting should find
a copy and start rocking the fuck out. —Brett Schwaner
THE BEATLES
RE-ISSUES
(APPLE/EMI/CAPITOL)
B
y all measures, The Beatles have
been done to death through
decades of adulation and study. Yet
here we are amidst a new wave of
Beatlemania, the result of a reverential
videogame and series of CD remasters.
It’s a funny thing for someone like
me, who thought he had a handle on The Beatles. These reissues
compelled me to reconsider the group, and I found myself once again
head over heels for the “greatest band of all time.” In the amazingly
brief time of eight years, The Beatles went from teeny-bopping
rockers with a gift for melody to musical pioneers and virtually
invented and codified the modern concepts of albums, studio work
and pop music. What these remasters do, aside from improve the
sound on these treasured records, is allow an opportunity to hear
The Beatles, not as ’60s relics but as a quartet that played some of
the best rock music of any stripe. Album by album you can chart the
incredible growth of the group from 1963’s Please Please Me’s raucous
opener “I Saw Her Standing There,” where the band gets by on
youthful, energetic guitar picking and a tight dance groove to Rubber
Soul’s “Norwegian Wood (This Bird Has Flown)” only two years
later; already the band had incorporated complex song structures,
exotic instrumentation and thoughtful lyrics, distancing themselves
from the Merseyside sound of their debut. Even though, the music
was always unmistakably The Beatles and these new remastered
CDs let the true depth of that statement shine in a way not heard
since their original pressings. Released in 1987, the original CDs
were OK by that day’s standards, but their thin, tinny sound has
only continued to lose luster. Stacked next to those discs, the 2009
reissues are incontestably better—clarity is amped across the board,
with each Beatle’s parts bright and distinct. Volume is also raised
in total, but not to the distorted extremes of today’s compression
race. The most obvious beneficiaries of the sonic scrubbing are
Paul and Ringo’s rhythm parts. In a side-by-side comparison of the
’87 Revolver and its newer counterpart, the difference is night and
day. Where the old mix of “Taxman” sounded flat, muddled and
dull, the new version boasts a thicker bass line and each kick drum
sounds meaty and clear. These versions show The Beatles’ sound
as more muscular than crackling oldies stations, outdated CDs or
the cheap cassettes I grew up with had ever hinted at. The older
albums benefit from the heavier mix—the deeper sound enhances
the caustic emotional weight of tracks like “No Reply” or the
groove behind songs like “I Feel Fine,” where once only the shuffle
of trebly guitars and vocal harmonies were audible. The stereo
mixes also highlight the studio craft of later records—Sgt. Pepper is
dynamic and fluid, with its psychedelic mix of ’60s rock and pop
orchestration finding true expression in the wide open mixes of
“Lovely Rita” and “Good Morning Good Morning,” which sustain
the rock bases of the songs while the brass arrangements or hazy
overdubs swirl about. It’s hard to imagine The Beatles’ proto-metal
track “Helter Skelter” or reverb-soaked rock like “Revolution” ever
sounding as fierce. The vastly improved sound quality truly shines a
spotlight on one of the most overlooked aspects of The Beatles, their
musicianship. The true gem of the remasters is Abbey Road, a true
masterpiece even within the context of the biggest band in history’s
catalogue. It’s stylistically all over the place and this new mix is the
perfect showcase of the album’s immense achievement. From the
breezy sensuality of George Harrison’s “Something” to the doomladen drone of “I Want You (She’s So Heavy),” the band has never
sounded better. Whether it’s adding heft to the bass and drums to
beef up the plucky hook of “She Came in Through the Bathroom
Window” or balancing the delicate strumming of “Here Comes the
Sun,” with its heavy, Moog-dipped bottom end, Abbey Road is the
showcase for the dynamic power of the remastered Beatles records
and the obvious demo for non-believers. For many, The Beatles are
more of a cipher than they are a rock n’ roll group, icons of a much
dissected and ballyhooed era remembered mostly from sub-par AM
radio recordings, hissing dubbed tapes or dusty records. More than
anything, the splendid new versions of these classic albums allow
an audience to reevaluate The Beatles, not as substance-less Gods
of the hippie generation but as a band that made it bigger than any
other in history, reinvented what it meant to make “pop” music and
created the mold for modern rock n’ roll by writing great songs that
sound as powerful, delicate, soulful, fun and interesting today as
they did forty years ago. —Mike Rodgers
DRIVE-BY TRUCKERS
THE FINE PRINT
(NEW WEST)
T
he Fine Print is a collection of
oddities and rarities from Driveby Truckers spanning from 2003-2008.
With most of the selections falling
in the earlier part of that period, the
disc captures a moment in time that
signified an embarrassment of creative
riches for the band. Considering the unparalleled strength of the
albums they released during that time (The Dirty South and Decoration
Day) it’s no wonder that even the castoffs are stellar. While the album
gets off to a bit of sluggish start with some middling tracks, the engine
really starts to rev in the middle of the disc on the Tom T. Hall cover
“Mama Bake A Pie (Daddy Kill A Chicken),” a tune written during
the Vietnam war that perfectly encapsulates the isolating feeling
of returning from war a different man than the one who left. Two
of the album’s later tracks, “When the Well Runs Dry” and “Mrs.
Claus’ Kimono,” were left off the band’s most lackluster outing, A
Blessing and A Curse. God only knows why, as they’re far better than
anything that actually made it on to that record. The first showcases
former guitarist/vocalist Jason Isbell channeling Neil Young, and
the latter details Rudolph’s pact with an elf to frame Santa for drug
trafficking (it will fit perfectly next to your copy of Aaron Neville’s
cover of “Ava Maria” this Christmas). The album wraps up with
a beautiful acoustic children’s song (yes, children’s song) by Mike
Cooley, in addition to two covers: Warren Zevon’s “Party All Night
Long” and Bob Dylan’s “Like a Rolling Stone.” The Zevon cover
brings howling power and is a great representation of what these guys
are like live. As for Dylan, some consider this song untouchable—a
sacred totem. But the spin the Truckers put on it makes it a raucous
sing-a-long, giving each vocalist (including bassist Shonna Tucker) a
verse of their own. It’s a unique way to pay homage to the tune while
infusing it with their style and it’s a great way to wrap up an album
of above-average additions to their already thick catalog. —Erin Hall
MORE REVIEWS ON PAGE 27...
MUSIC REVIEWS SPONSORED BY THE OFFICIAL RECORD STORE OF ANTIGRAVITY
24_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
27
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REVIEWS
THE FEELIES
CRAZY RHYTHMS
(BAR NONE)
W
hile I was not even granted
staus of forethought on my
parents’ behest in the year 1980, The
Feelies’ debut release, Crazy Rhythms,
has affected me none the less. Postpunk in America in the late ’70s seems
to me to be somewhat of a quagmire,
a time when, after the No Wave assault on New York occurred,
in large part accentuated by Brian Eno, few absolute conquistadors
took ownership of the time until Mission of Burma stormed the
soundscape almost four years later. But there is a gem, by the name
of Crazy Rhythms and long since out of print officially, that helps
to shed light on the fact that American post-punk was not about a
single group or artist but rather, as the fundaments of this country
decree, was destined to be a collective and manifold endeavor. The
thing that sets The Feelies apart from the herd is how up-front and
to the point these guys were when so many other artists at the time
were shooting for the arcane and obscure. They did a cover, on the
official album, of “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except For
Me and My Monkey,” for Christ’s sake, and they killed it. It seems
that similar times have arisen as of late that mirror in many ways the
musical landscape of the late ’70s and early ’80s. For The Feelies,
music was about truth and honesty, roots and understandings;
many bands today may make good if only they abided by the same
philosophy laid out by their forefathers, bands like The Feelies.
—Dan Mitchell
GWAR
LUST IN SPACE
(METAL BLADE)
THE ACCUSED
THE CURSE OF MARTHA
SPLATTERHEAD
(SOUTHERN LORD)
hh, thrash metal, the lost art of
speed abandoned to the ether
somewhere around the early ’90s.
Forgotten in the down-tuned chugging,
hardcore aping and rap rocking ’00s
is the ability to play riffs fast and
tight, eschewing artificial heaviness
with machine gun fretting and heroic
melodies. Thank the Gods we have
bands like GWAR and The Accused
to keep the banner high. Both of these
bands have a history within the genre
and both have returned with new
efforts that keep the thrash flag flying. GWAR has been one of the
most noticeable bands in heavy metal for years now, keeping a pop
cultural presence due to their extravagant costumes, stage shows and
mythology even when their music wasn’t in vogue. Though it’s had
its ups and downs, GWAR’s career has been fairly consistent—they
play punk-influenced speed metal laced with gore, satirical violence
and bad taste. Lust in Space continues that trend, punctuating rapidfire riffs with over-the-top leads, and Oderus’s operatic vocals
that fluctuate between Viking howl, beastly growl and a vaguely
aristocratic mid-range. Lust in Space is to my ears GWAR’s strongest
record since the mid ’90s. Tracks like “Damnation Under God” see
them adding some double-tracked vocal melodies, but for a band
that once penned a southern rock song about spousal abuse and
a cabaret drone about Sammy Davis Jr. the proceedings are fairly
straightforward. The Accused are far less known, no doubt owing
to their reliance on stripped down brutal metal over GWAR’s more
theatrical approach. The Curse of Martha Splatterhead is a collection
A
of two-to-three-minute car wrecks: trebly guitars shred in barely
contained riffs before disintegrating into chaos. The album sounds
mean spirited, with vocalist B.R.A.D. Mowen croaking, screaming
and brutalizing his throat over Tommy Niemeyer’s spare, quick
and dirty thrash guitar. “Scotty Came Back” is a minute-thirty of
raw aggression, but it’s immediately followed by “Hemline,” which
uses a wah-wah pedal to draw out a menacing southern drawl
from its chords and crafting a groove reminiscent of early Cannibal
Corpse. The Curse of Martha Splatterhead is a no-frills affair, dead
eyed, grinding thrash. With the imminent return of Megadeth and
more and more bands both within heavy metal and outside (think
power punk’s affinity for musclebound leads) adopting the tropes of
thrash metal, namely crushing precision, aggression and speed over
artificial “heaviness,” it’s good to see bands that never put the genre
down in favor of radio-baiting mid-tempo pablum still producing
great headbanging tunes. —Mike Rodgers
HEARTSOUNDS
UNTIL WE SURRENDER
(CREATOR DESTRUCTOR)
H
eartsounds is a two-piece group
made up of a couple members
of the metal band Light This City.
I’m not sure if Light This City is still
together in some capacity, but the two
members of Heartsounds are no longer
part of that group. In retrospect, Light
This City may have been an underappreciated act during their time,
the gaudy nature of their fashion sense and glossy press photos
perhaps undermining the creativity of their recorded works (which
were highly entertaining to anyone able to look past the pretenses
of the mid-2000s metalcore movement). Their sound was highly
demonic, for sure, perhaps on a similar level as contemporary
acts such as Darkest Hour and just mildly reminiscent of Nathan
Explosion from, you know, that Dethklok show. If you ever want to
experience the whole “play the record backwards to hear the voice
of Satan speaking directly to you” thing, just track down copies of
LTC’s Facing The Thousand or The Hero Cycle. Both those records
pay sufficient homage to dark worlds and secret blood rituals and
the like. Heartsounds, however, is a different beast all together, half
a world away from their previous group in almost all regards. The
group’s debut album, Until We Surrender, has a decidedly indie/
punk-oriented vibe to it and is, at least on the surface, demon-free
(although I’ve yet to play it backwards, so don’t take my word for
it). Heartsounds, despite their awkward name, is still a bit vicious
around the edges, but on a much more disciplined, pointedly
restrained level than Light This City ever was. There are some
personal revelations, positive ones, going on between the grinding
screams and over-dubbed vocals on Until We Surrender. The album’s
opener, “The Song Inside Me,” is a slickly-produced and acutely
self-aware anthem about “finding ones true voice”—a notion easily
misconstrued (mostly by people like me) as being an unnecessary
defense of the group’s shift from death metal to pop punk. I mean,
I guess if you’re going to address the elephant in the room, you
might as well do it with style, you know? Until We Surrender has
a lot of vibrant energy and uplifting sound, so I’ll give it a basic
pass based solely on that criteria. If nothing else, the production
quality is a small breath of fresh air in an era in which independent
artists have become self-conscious of sounding “too over produced.”
Heartsounds hits the mark quite nicely without being too flashy.
—Brett Schwaner
I, OCTOPUS
I’D RATHER BE A LIGHTNING ROD THAN A SEISMOGRAPH
(INDEPENDENT)
f outer space and and our Lynchian subconscious are the domain of
bands like Metronome the City and
A Living Soundtrack, then the murky
depths of the sea belong (naturally) to
I, Octopus, one of New Orleans’ premiere prog/jam rock bands.
More gritty and organic than their contemporaries, I, Octopus’
first full-length, I’d Rather be a Lightning Rod Than a Seismograph, is
the most fully realized version of this ever-evolving band to date,
showing a maturity and restraint amidst so many possibilities. It’s as
if all those tentacles have stopped flailing about wildly and gained a
firm grasp of the dark and hazy terrain. Keyboards, synthesizers and
saxophones all snake their way in and around the already heavilyaffected, instrumental jams but without ever becoming overbearing,
feeling as natural to the song as coral growing up from the sea floor.
(It’s also like being just high enough to achieve some kind of nextplane consciousness without pushing it into the straight up giggle
fits.) Helped along by excellent production and a straightforward
rhythm section, I’d Rather Be... never lingers too long on any one
phrase and also borrows from the irreverence and energy of the
band’s alter-ego, White Colla Crimes, making it less hard to imagine
that both bands share the same core members. An album release
show for the album is scheduled for October 24th at the Hi Ho
Lounge, wetsuit optional. —Dan Fox
I
MONSTERS OF FOLK
MONSTERS OF FOLK
(SHANGRI-LA MUSIC)
W
hat do you get when you
combine four of indie rock’s
preeminent
artists?
Monsters,
apparently. Despite their name
sounding like some collection that
Time Life would be selling on an
infomercial at 4am, the Monsters of
Folk’s self-titled debut shows great depth and highlights the vast
talent that exists amongst its four members (Bright Eyes’ Conor
Oberst and Mike Mogis alongside My Morning Jacket’s Jim James
and solo artist M. Ward). Each member plays multiple instruments
throughout, and with Oberst, James and Ward switching off lead
vocal duties, there’s no opportunity to feel bored or fall into a rut.
Ward’s moments in the spotlight tend to be on the more tender,
introspective tracks. Oberst is featured on the winding and bending
lyrical joints. And James finds his place on all the mishmashed, inbetween tracks, evoking artists from Johnny Cash to David Byrne to
Elvis Costello. Their strength is clearest when they all tackle a song,
taking turns at the mic in rapid succession (“Say Please” and “Baby
Boomer”). The album is paced perfectly with just the right ratio of
up-tempo to low-key tracks. And just because “folk” is in the title
doesn’t mean these guys are one-trick ponies. There are shades of
reggae, traditional folk, bright jangly rock, synth pop and country
present here. It’s a mixed bag with a little something for everyone.
Supergroups are not usually a very artistically successful idea.
Warring egos and clashing styles tend to create riffs that leave the
music feeling stunted and fragmented, not to mention cavernously
void of meaning. Not the case here. These guys are all stars in their
own right, but as the Monsters of Folk, they’re just another four guys
throwing all they’ve got into every track, win, lose or draw. And it is
most definitely, without a doubt, a big, big win. —Erin Hall
MORE REVIEWS ON PAGE 38...
27
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EVENTS
NEW ORLEANS VENUES
NEW ORLEANS (Cont.)
45 Tchoup, 4529 Tchoupitoulas (504) 891-9066
MVC, 9800 Westbank Expressway, (504) 2342331, www.themvc.net
Banks St. Bar And Grill, 4401 Banks St., (504)
486-0258, www.banksstreetbar.com
Barrister’s Art Gallery, 2331 St. Claude Ave.
Neutral Ground Coffee House, 5110 Danneel St.,
(504) 891-3381, www.neutralground.org
The Big Top, 1638 Clio St., (504) 569-2700,
www.3ringcircusproductions.com
Nowe Miasto, 223 Jane Pl., (504) 821-6721
The Blue Nile, 534 Frenchmen St., (504) 948-2583
One Eyed Jacks, 615 Toulouse St., (504) 5698361, www.oneeyedjacks.net
Broadmoor House, 4127 Walmsley, (504) 8212434
Ogden Museum, 925 Camp St., (504) 539-9600
Carrollton Station, 8140 Willow St., (504) 8659190, www.carrolltonstation.com
Outer Banks, 2401 Palmyra (at S. Tonti),
(504) 628-5976, www.myspace.com/
outerbanksmidcity
Checkpoint Charlie’s, 501 Esplanade Ave.,
(504) 947-0979
Republic, 828 S. Peters St., (504) 528-8282,
www.republicnola.com
Chickie Wah Wah, 2828 Canal Street (504)
304-4714, www.chickiewahwah.com
Rusty Nail, 1100 Constance Street (504) 5255515, www.therustynail.org/
Circle Bar, 1032 St. Charles Ave., (504) 5882616, www.circlebar.net
The Saturn Bar, 3067 St. Claude Ave., www.
myspace.com/saturnbar
Club 300, 300 Decatur Street, www.
neworleansjazzbistro.com
Side Arm Gallery, 1122 St. Roch Ave., (504)
218-8379, www.sidearmgallery.org
Coach’s Haus, 616 N. Solomon
Southport Hall, 200 Monticello Ave., (504) 8352903, www.newsouthport.com
The Country Club, 634 Louisa St., (504) 9450742, www.countryclubneworleans.com
d.b.a., 618 Frenchmen St., (504) 942-373, www.
drinkgoodstuff.com/no
Der Rathskeller (Tulane’s Campus), McAlister
Dr., http://wtul.fm
The Spellcaster Lodge, 3052 St. Claude
Avenue, www.quintonandmisspussycat.com/
tourdates.html
St. Roch Taverne, 1200 St. Roch Ave., (504)
945-0194
Dragon’s Den, 435 Esplanade Ave., http://
myspace.com/dragonsdennola
Tipitina’s, (Uptown) 501 Napoleon Ave., (504)
895-8477 (Downtown) 233 N. Peters, www.
tipitinas.com
Eldon’s House, 3055 Royal Street,
[email protected]
The Zeitgeist, 1618 Oretha Castle Haley Blvd.,
(504) 827-5858, www.zeitgeistinc.net
Ernie K-Doe’s Mother-in-Law Lounge, 1500
N. Claiborne Ave.
Vintage Uptown, 4523 Magazine St.,
[email protected]
Fair Grinds Coffee House, 3133 Ponce de
Leon, (504) 913-9072, www.fairgrinds.com
Fuel Coffee House, 4807 Magazine St. (504)
895-5757
Goldmine Saloon, 701 Dauphine St., (504) 5860745, www.goldminesaloon.net
The Green Space, 2831 Marais Street (504) 9450240, www.thegreenproject.org
Handsome Willy’s, 218 S. Robertson St., (504)
525-0377, http://handsomewillys.com
The Hangar, 1511 S. Rendon. (504) 827-7419
Hi-Ho Lounge, 2239 St. Claude Ave. (504) 9454446, www.myspace.com/hiholounge
Hostel, 329 Decatur St. (504-587-0036),
hostelnola.com
Hot Iron Press Plant, 1420 Kentucky Ave.,
[email protected]
House Of Blues / The Parish, 225 Decatur,
(504)310-4999, www.hob.com/neworleans
The Howlin’ Wolf, 907 S. Peters, (504) 522WOLF, www.thehowlinwolf.com
Kajun’s Pub, 2256 St. Claude Avenue (504) 9473735, www.myspace.com/kajunspub
Kim’s 940, 940 Elysian Fields, (504) 844-4888
METAIRIE VENUES
Airline Lion’s Home, 3110 Division St.
Badabing’s, 3515 Hessmer, (504) 454-1120
The Bar, 3224 Edenborn, myspace.com/
thebarrocks
Hammerhead’s, 1300 N Causeway Blvd, (504)
834-6474
The High Ground, 3612 Hessmer
Ave., Metairie, (504) 525-0377, www.
thehighgroundvenue.com
BATON ROUGE VENUES
The Caterie, 3617 Perkins Rd., www.thecaterie.com
Chelsea’s Café, 2857 Perkins Rd., (225) 3873679, www.chelseascafe.com
The Darkroom, 10450 Florida Blvd., (225) 2741111, www.darkroombatonrouge.com
Government St., 3864 Government St., www.
myspace.com/rcpzine
North Gate Tavern, 136 W. Chimes St.
(225)346-6784, www.northgatetavern.com
The Kingpin, 1307 Lyons St., (504) 891-2373
Red Star Bar, 222 Laurel St., (225) 346-8454,
www.redstarbar.com
Le Bon Temps Roule, 4801 Magazine St., (504)
895-8117
Rotolos, 1125 Bob Pettit Blvd. (225) 761-1999,
www.myspace.com/rotolosallages
Le Chat Noir, 715 St. Charles Ave., (504) 5815812, www.cabaretlechatnoir.com
The Spanish Moon, 1109 Highland Rd., (225)
383-MOON, www.thespanishmoon.com
Lyceum Central, 618 City Park Ave., (410) 5234182, http://lyceumproject.com
The Varsity, 3353 Highland Rd., (225)383-7018,
www.varsitytheatre.com
Lyon’s Club, 2920 Arlington St.
Mama’s Blues, 616 N. Rampart St., (504) 453-9290
Maple Leaf, 8316 Oak St., (504) 866-9359
Marlene’s Place, 3715 Tchoupitoulas, (504)
897-3415, www.myspace.com/marlenesplace
McKeown’s Books, 4737 Tchoupitoulas, (504)
895-1954, http://mckeownsbooks.net
Melvin’s, 2112 St. Claude Ave.
28_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
THURSDAY 10/1
MONDAY 10/5
The Angel Sluts, Saturn Bar, 9pm
The Clouds are Ghosts, High in One Eye,
Circle Bar
Hades Night, The Saint, Midnight
Phoenix, Chairlift, Tipitina’s, 10pm, $18
Scotland Green’s Comedy Showcase,
Carrollton Station, 9pm, FREE
Thomas Johnson, d.b.a., 7pm
Citizen Cope, Courtney Dowes, Republic, $28
Dillon, Singleton, Frehlich, Dragon’s Den
(Upstairs), 10pm
Hunx and His Punx, The Poots, Statutory
Rhodes, Saturn Bar, 9pm
Ige*Timer, Fair Grinds Coffeehouse, 8pm
The Sounds, One Eyed Jacks
Strung Out, The Flatliners, Alias Orion,
Howlin’ Wolf, 9pm, $15
FRIDAY 10/2
TUESDAY 10/6
ActionActionReaction Indie Dance Party,
Circle Bar
am540, COOT, Carrollton Station, 9pm
Arctic Monkeys, The Like, House Of Blues, 8pm
Captain’s Dead Presents: Those Darlins,
Country Fried, One Eyed Jacks
Dee-1, Republic, 10pm, $5
The Dynamites, Tipitina’s, 10pm, $10
Hot Club of New Orleans, d.b.a., 6pm
“In Purgatory” Movie Wrap Party f/ Within
Reason, The Stratus Project, Southdown,
Howlin’ Wolf, 10pm, $8
Mae, The Parish @ House Of Blues, 9pm
Misled, Sheridan Road, Idol Handz, The Bar,
9pm
Pine Leaf Boys, d.b.a., 10pm, $5
Reverend Spooky LaStrange and Her BillionDollar Baby Dolls, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
Slangston Hughes’ Uniquity, Dragon’s Den
(Downstairs), 10pm
Steve Eck, Esquilita, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
We’re Only in it For the Honey, The Poots,
Buddha Belly, 10pm, FREE
SATURDAY 10/3
Andrew Bird, St. Vincent, Tipitina’s, 10pm, $22
Anxious Sound Presents: Frank Rosaly,
Libra Party, All-Ways Lounge, 10pm
Black Market Halos, Drowning Man Trials,
The Bar, 9pm
Chuck Perkins’ Down South Revue, Dragon’s
Den (Upstairs), 10pm
The Dead Weather, House Of Blues, 8pm
Harlem, GG King, Die Rotzz, Missing
Monuments, Nassty Habits, Saturn Bar, 10pm
Ige*Timer, McKeown’s Books, 8pm
The Junior League w/ Lee Baines III, The
Blametakers, Circle Bar
Little Freddie King, d.b.a., 11pm, $5
Prytania, Earphunk, The Parish @ House Of
Blues, 9pm
The Socials, Spillway, Carrollton Station
The Tangle, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
Truth Universal w/ Grass Rootz, Dragon’s
Den (Downstairs), 10pm
Zydepunks, Wino Vino, DJ Rusty Lazer,
Marigny Theatre, 10pm
SUNDAY 10/4
Aquarium Drunkard Presents: Blitzen
Trapper, Wye Oak, Leo DeJesus, One Eyed
Jacks
Gorilla Productions’ Battle of the Bands,
Howlin’ Wolf, 5pm, $8
Ige*Timer w/ Helen Gillet and Aurora
Neeland, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
Mas Mamones, d.b.a., 10pm
Noxious Noize Presents: The Network,
Robotosaurus, Dragon’s Den, 5pm
Sean Stair, Floopy Head, Dragon’s Den
(Downstairs), 10pm
Soraia, Henry Clay People, Red Cortez,
Circle Bar
Tower of Power, Los Po Boy Citos, House Of
Blues, 8pm
Alex Pena, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
Boycott Drew, Dragon’s Den (Downstairs),
10pm
Charlatans UK, One Eyed Jacks
Ige*Timer w/ Dave Easley, Jeff Albert, Blue
Nile, 10pm
Luke Allen, Steve Eck, Blind Texas Marlin,
Circle Bar
WEDNESDAY 10/7
Dan Deacon, Nuclear Power Pants,
Pumpkin, The Big Top, 7pm, $5
Dear and The Headlights, Kinch, The Parish
@ House Of Blues, 9pm
Game Rebellion, Rich Hip and The Electro
Limo Band, Zeitgeist, 8pm
K’Jon, House Of Blues, 8pm
Wazozo, Circle Bar
THURSDAY 10/8
Drunken Spelling Bee, Handsome Willy’s,
10pm
Groovestain, The Scorseses, The Bar, 9pm
Praise 94.9 Presents: Brian Courtney Wilson,
The Parish @ House Of Blues, 8pm
Smiley With a Knife, Neck Beard, The Self
Help Tapes, Banks Street Bar & Grill, 10pm,
FREE
Susan Cowsill and Russ Broussard, Carrollton
Station, 9pm, FREE
Trey Songz, Mario and Day26 w/ Special
Guests, House Of Blues, 8pm
Twangorama Acoustic, Circle Bar
Washboard Chaz Blues Trio, d.b.a., 7pm
WTUL Presents: Wavves, Ganglians,
Caddywhompus, Howlin’ Wolf, 9pm, $10
FRIDAY 10/9
Big Blue Marble, Lux, Circle Bar
Courtland Burke EP Release Party, Carrollton
Station
Happy Talk Band w/ R. Scully and The
Rough Seven, d.b.a., 10pm, $5
Holy Hell its Mel! Dangerous Minds,
Unicorn Fukr, Proppa Bear,Skymatik,Jeffy
D, Skittlez Double A. (Brought to you by
Organized Confusion), Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
Ingrid Lucia, d.b.a., 6pm
Mayer Hawthorne and The County, The
Parish @ House Of Blues, 9pm
Radz Blues Weekend: Hellhound on
My Trail, An Evening of Pre-War Blues,
Tipitina’s, 10pm, $25
Savius, Accora, The Bar, 9pm
Silent Cinema, Republic
Static Television Presents: A Place to Bury
Strangers, Darker My Love, One Eyed Jacks
Street Gumbo, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
White Bitch, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
Who’s Bad: Michael Jackson Tribute Band,
House Of Blues, 8pm
Yula Beeri and Special Guests, Dragon’s Den
(Downstairs), 10pm
29
antigravitymagazine.com_
EVENTS
Natalie Mae Palms, Luke Winslow King,
Circle Bar
2nd Annual Music for Matt f/ Papa Grows
Ramming Speed, Cannibus Corpse,
Funk, The Revivalists, Howlin’ Wolf, 9pm, $10 Serpentis, Great Void, Saturn Bar, 9pm
Aiua, The Mojo Method, Zeitgeist, 7:30pm
Smitty, d.b.a., 6pm
Autotomii, High in One Eye, Dragon’s Den
(Upstairs), 10pm
FRIDAY 10/16
The Black Crowes, House Of Blues, 8pm
Built to Destroy, The Great Void, Blood
Alex McMurray, d.b.a., 10pm, $5
Churn, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
Ben Labat, The Happy Devil, Carrollton
Generationals, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
Station
James Hall, Circle Bar
A Day to Remember, Parkway Drive, In
Maddie Ruthless, Trenchtown Texans,
Fear and Faith, I See Stars, House Of Blues,
Dragon’s Den (Downstairs), 10pm
6pm
N.O. Guitar Masters in the Round f/ Jimmy DeBauche, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
Robinson, John Rankin, Phil DeGruy,
Glasgow, Republic
Carrollton Station
For Karma, The Bar, 9pm
Radz Blues Weekend: Got My Mojo
Hot Club of New Orleans, d.b.a., 6pm
Workin’, An Evening of Post-War Blues,
Loren Murrell, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
Tipitina’s, 10pm, $25
The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage
Rain Machine, One Eyed Jacks
Foundation Presents a Benefit for the
Severed Mass, Mutilate the Willing, The Bar, Heritage School of Music f/ Richie Havens,
9pm
Howlin’ Wolf, 8:30pm, $20
Suplecs, d.b.a., 11pm, $5
New Orleans Partying, DJ Rockaway,
Truth and Salvage Co., The Parish @ House
Dragon’s Den (Downstairs), 10pm
Of Blues, Midnight
Simple Play w/ Two Fresh and M@ Peoples
Collective, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
SUNDAY 10/11
The Swip, War Amps, Circle Bar
Thee Oh Sees, Static Static, Wizzard Sleeve,
Barnstormer, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 7pm
Saturn Bar, 10pm
Green Genes, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
WTUL Presents: Japandroids, One Eyed Jacks
Independents, High in One Eye, Shoot the
Daily Edit, Dragon’s Den (Downstairs), 7pm
SATURDAY 10/17
Jimmy Carpenter, d.b.a., 10pm
Kings of Happy Hour, Dragon’s Den
ActionActionReaction Dance Party, One
(Downstairs), 10pm
Eyed Jacks, Midnight
Loose Marbles, Washboard Chaz w/
Antigravity Presents: The Crescent
Members of Fleur de Tease, House Of Blues,
City Comics Live Art Party w/ Kody
Midnight
Chamberlain, Rob Guillory and Various
Neon Indian, BLK JKS, One Man Machine, Artists, Crescent City Comics (4916 Freret), 7pm,
Republic, $12
FREE
Pitbull, David Rush, House Of Blues, 7:30pm
Bloodfeast III, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
Designate Zero w/ T.U.C., Truth in Flames,
MONDAY 10/12
The Bar, 9pm
Gal Holiday & the Honky Tonk Revue,
The 69 Eyes, The Becoming, Dommin,
Circle Bar
Howlin’ Wolf, 9pm, $17
Gary Allan (An Evening With), House Of
Jay and Kendra’s Wedding Bash w/ The
Blues, 8pm
Best Show Ever f/ Eyehategod, Suplecs,
The Morning Life, Jimmy Messa and Dave
Secret Assholes, Felix, and MC Jubilee, One Rosser, Carrollton Station
Eyed Jacks
Michelle Shocked, Blue Nile, 10pm, $20
Ya Boy Mixtape Release Party, Dragon’s Den Os Mutantes, DeLeon, Tipitina’s, 10pm, $25
(Upstairs), 10pm
Otra, d.b.a., 11pm, $5
The Public Album Release Party w/ The
TUESDAY 10/13
Tomatoes, One Eyed Jacks, 10pm
Reverend Spooky LeStrange’s Church of
The Consolation Wars, Dragon’s Den
Burlesque, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
(Downstairs), 10pm
SOJA, The Movement, The Live Oaks, 27
Damon Moon, Circle Bar
Lights, Howlin’ Wolf, 9:30pm, $10
White Colla Crimes, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), Wolves, Where? All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
10pm
SUNDAY 10/18
WEDNESDAY 10/14
Andy J Forest, d.b.a., 10pm
“Let’s Rob the Cheese Shop” Film Premiere, City Zoo, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
The Happy Talk Band, One Eyed Jacks,
Har Mar Superstar, One Eyed Jacks
6:30pm [First Screening]; w/ The Unnaturals,
Mat Kearney, Vedera, House Of Blues, 8pm
Country Fried, 8pm [Second Screening]
Magnolia Sons, Gamma Ringo, The
MONDAY 10/19
Archibalds, Circle Bar
Needtobreathe, The Parish @ House Of Blues,
Martin Krusche, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs),
9pm
10pm
SATURDAY 10/10
THURSDAY 10/15
TUESDAY 10/20
Andrew Duhon, d.b.a., 7pm
Guerilla Union Presents: Goodie Mob
Reunion, House Of Blues, 9pm
Homegrown Night, Tipitina’s, 8:30pm, FREE
Local Spotlight Series f/ Earphunk, Brothers
and Kings, Howlin’ Wolf, 9pm, $10
Mojo Method, Dragon’s Den (Downstairs),
10pm
Senses Fail, A Skylit Drive, Closure in
Moscow, Fact, The Hangar, 6pm, $18 [AllAges]
The Wandas, Circle Bar
31
antigravitymagazine.com_
EVENTS
WEDNESDAY 10/21
Defend New Orleans Presents: Junior Boys,
One Eyed Jacks
Jonathan Singleton, The Grove, The Parish
@ House Of Blues, 9pm
THURSDAY 10/22
Barisal Guns, Hightide Blues, Zama Para,
Howlin’ Wolf, 10pm, $8
Evan Christopher, d.b.a., 7pm
Homegrown Night, Tipitina’s, 8:30pm, FREE
Leo DeJesus, Carrollton Station, 9pm, FREE
Little Feat, House Of Blues, 8pm
FRIDAY 10/23
Big Rock Candy Mountain, Republic
Chrystal Skye and The Lost Souls Tavern,
DJ Sorcerer Jones and Ms. Techno, Hi-Ho
Lounge, 10pm
Dirty Bourbon River Show, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
Fuse TV Slave to the Metal Tour, Howlin’
Wolf, 6pm, $10
Holy Rolling Empire, Circle Bar
Ingrid Lucia, d.b.a., 6pm
Joe Krown, Walter Wolfman Washington,
Russell Batiste Trio, d.b.a., 10pm, $5
Liquidrone, One Eyed Jacks
The Nawlins Johnnys, Carrollton Station
Panorama Jazz Band, The Big Top, 5pm-7pm,
$5 (Non-members)
Project Independent Metal Showcase, The
Hangar, 6:30pm
Shadow Gallery, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
Touching the Absolute, Centerpunch, Slack
Adjustor, The Bar, 9pm
SATURDAY 10/24
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Bearracuda, One Eyed Jacks
Big Blue Marble, Carrollton Station
Double Fresh, Dragon’s Den
E.O.E.’s Fall B-Day Blowout w/ Wild
Magnolias, CND Asylum Dance Crew,
Derrick Freeman, Tipitina’s, 10pm, $8
Felix, Microshards, Esquelito, Circle Bar
Five Star Fiasco, First Fracture, Prytania,
The Bar, 9pm
Fringe Festival Pu-Pu Platter, Sidearm Gallery
(1122 St. Roch), 8pm, FREE
Fuse TV Slave to the Metal Tour, Howlin’
Wolf, 6pm, $10
I, Octopus Album Release Party, Hi-Ho
Lounge, 10pm
IAC: Garcia Project, The Big Top, 8pm, $10
KMFDM, Angelspit, House Of Blues, 9pm
Mod Dance Party, Saturn Bar, 11pm
Pumpkin, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
The Unnaturals, Checkpoint Charlie’s, 11pm, FREE
SUNDAY 10/25
The Black Heart Procession, The Mumlers,
One Eyed Jacks
Irene Sage, d.b.a., 10pm
Kelly Carlyle, Circle Bar
Liquid Peace Revolution, Parallax, Dragon’s
Den (Downstairs), 10pm
Lubricatour f/ RevCo, Appearing
Ringmaster Jim Rose w/ Special Guests, The
Parish @ House Of Blues, 9pm
Our Lady Peace, House Of Blues, 8pm
Rockpile, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Zeitgeist, 8pm
Sun Hotel, All-Ways Lounge, 9:30pm
MONDAY 10/26
Noxious Noize Presents: S.M.U.T., Dragon’s
Den (Upstairs), 10pm
32_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
TUESDAY 10/27
Christabel and The Jons, Circle Bar
Death by Arrow, J.P. Harris and The
Tough Choices, Woody Pines, All-Ways
Lounge, 9:30pm
Or, The Whale w/ Silent Cinema, One Eyed
Jacks
Van Halen II, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
THURSDAY 10/29
Colin Lake, d.b.a., 7pm
Des Ark, Pygmy Lush, Ghastly City Sleep,
Why Are We Building Such a Big Ship?,
Side Arm Gallery, 7pm, $5
Ringo Deathstarr, Caddywhompus, Circle Bar
Super Secret Fireman & Turducken Masked
Band Ball, Hi-Ho Lounge, 9pm [See ANTINews story for full lineup]
FRIDAY 10/30
The Drapers, Carrollton Station
Endless Night Dark Party / Anne Rice
Afterparty, Dragon’s Den, 10pm
Galactic w/ Mike Dillon’s GoGo Jungle,
Tipitina’s (Uptown), 10pm, $25
Hanson, Sherwood, House Of Blues, 7:30pm
Hat Talk, Meadow Flow, Constants, Banks
Street Bar & Grill, 10pm, FREE
Lowdrag, Spickle, Scraps of Life, The Bar, 9pm
New Orleans Klezmer All-Stars, d.b.a.,
10pm, $5
New Orleans Moonshiners, d.b.a., 6pm
PBS (Porter/Batiste/Stoltz) w/ Bonerama,
Tipitina’s (French Quarter), 11:30pm, $25
EVENTS
R. Scully and His Rough Seven, Ratty
Scurvics, Hi-Ho Lounge, 10pm
The Trashies, Saturn Bar, 10pm
Wolff f/ Tuba of Drums & Tuba, d.b.a., 2am, $5
Voodoo at Night Presents a Benefit for The
New Orleans Musicians Clinic f/ John
“JoJo” Hermann, Ivan Neville, George
Porter Jr., Russell Batiste, Ian Neville,
Howlin’ Wolf, 10pm, $15
Walter Wolfman Washington and The
Roadmasters, d.b.a., 10pm, $5
WEDNESDAYS
Acoustic Open Mic w/ Jim Smith, Checkpoint
Charlie’s, 7pm
Attrition, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs), 10pm
Cajun Fais Do Do f/ Bruce Danigerpoint,
Tipitina’s, 5:30pm, $7
Drink N Draw, Circle Bar, 3pm
Latin Dance Nite w/ Los Pinginos, Banks St.
Bar and Grill
Linnzi Zaorski, d.b.a., 6pm
Micah McKee and Friends w/ Food by
Bryan, Circle Bar, 6pm
Music Workshop Series, Tipitina’s, 12:30pm
The Palmetto Bug Stompers, d.b.a., 6pm
The Sunday Gospel Brunch, House Of Blues
THURSDAYS
Come Drink with Matt Vaughn, R Bar
DJ Bomshell Boogie Presents: The
Bomshelter, Dragon’s Den (Upstairs)
DJ Kemistry, LePhare
DJ Matic, Hostel
SATURDAY 10/31
DJ Proppa Bear Presents: Bassbin Safari,
Dragon’s Den (Downstairs), 10pm
Dirty Dozen Brass Band, Tipitina’s (French
Fast Times ‘80s Dance Night, One Eyed Jacks
Quarter), 11:30pm, $20
The Fens w/ Sneaky Pete, Checkpoint
For the Wait, Shadow Cast, The Bar, 9pm
Charlie’s, 10pm
Halloween w/ Rotary Downs, d.b.a., 11pm,
Hap Pardo Jazz Trio, All-Ways Lounge
$20
Jeremy Davenport, The Davenport Lounge @
Hot Chip (DJ Set), King Britt, Republic, $25
Ritz-Carlton New Orleans
Louisiana DnB Presents Thriller f/ Tony
Karaoke Fury, La Nuit Comedy Theater, 10pm
Skratchere, DJ Kazu, The Honorable South, Mixture, Republic, 10pm, $7
Dragon’s Den
Pure Soul, House Of Blues, Midnight
Quintron, The Buttons, Super Nice Brothers, Rabbit Hole, La Nuit Comedy Theater, 8:30
One Eyed Jacks
Sam and Boone, Circle Bar, 6pm
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Ave., Tipitina’s Soul Rebels, Les Bon Temps Roule, 11pm
(Uptown), 10pm, $20
Stinging Caterpillar Soundsystem, All-Ways
Zydepunks, Happy Talk Band, Hi-Ho Lounge, Lounge
10pm
Sweet Home New Orleans Presents: Summer
of R&B, Banks St. Bar & Grill, 8pm;
SUNDAY 11/1
FRIDAYS
Winter Circle Presents: Pnuma PA, Sage
Francis, Emancipator, One Eyed Jacks
DJ Bees Knees, R Bar
DJ Kemistry, Metro
THEATRE
Friday Night Music Camp, The Big Top, 5pm
God’s Been Drinking, La Nuit Comedy
“Finer Noble Gases,” All-Ways Lounge
Theater, 8:30pm, $10
[Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays beginning 10/9 Jeremy Davenport, The Davenport Lounge @
and ending 10/25], 8pm, $5
Ritz-Carlton New Orleans
Jim O. and The Sporadic Fanatics, Circle,
WEEKLIES & DANCE NIGHTS
6pm
Open Mic Stand-Up, La Nuit Comedy Theater,
MONDAYS
10pm, $5
Ratty Scurvics Lounge, All-Ways Lounge
Blue Grass Pickin’ Party, Hi-Ho Lounge, 8pm Throwback, Republic
Glen David Andrews, d.b.a., 9pm
Tipitina’s Foundation Free Friday!,
Juice’s Aron Lambert & CR Gruver Present: Tipitina’s, 10pm
Deuce!, Banks Street Bar & Grill, 9pm
Mad Mike, Checkpoint Charlie’s, 8pm
SATURDAYS
Missy Meatlocker, Circle Bar, 5pm
Trivia Night, Circle Bar, 8pm
Big Dick and The Jazzholes (1st & 3rd
Saturdays), Circle Bar, 6pm
TUESDAYS
DJ Damion Yancy, Republic, 11pm
DJ Jive, LePhare
The Abney Effect, Hostel
DJ Kemistry, Metro
Acoustic Open Mic, Carrollton Station, 9pm
The Drive In w/ DJ Pasta, R Bar
Acoustic Open Mic w/ Jim Smith, Checkpoint Javier Drada, Hostel
Charlie’s, 10pm
Jeremy Davenport, The Davenport Lounge @
Big, Fat & Delicious’ Funky Rotating
Ritz-Carlton New Orleans
Reggae Party, Banks Street Bar & Grill, 10pm,
John Boutte’, d.b.a., 7pm
FREE
Ladies Night, The Hangar
Cottenmouth Kings of New Orleans, d.b.a.,
Morella and The Wheels of If (2nd
9pm
Saturdays), Circle Bar, 6pm
Open Mic w/ Whiskey T., Rusty Nail, 8pm
The Tom Paines, Circle Bar, 6pm
SUNDAYS
DJ Lefty Parker, R Bar
DJ T-Roy Presents: Dancehall Classics,
Dragon’s Den, 10pm, $5
Gravity A, Banks St. Bar and Grill, 10pm
Jim O. and The No Shows, Circle Bar, 6pm
Kenny Holiday and the Rolling Blackouts,
Checkpoint Charlie’s, 9pm
Marygoround & The Tiptoe Stampede, AllWays Lounge
Mojotoro Tango Trio, Yuki (525 Frenchmen
St.), 8pm
Standup Comedy Open Mic, Carrollton
Station, 9pm
Tin Men, d.b.a., 7pm
33
antigravitymagazine.com_
COMICS
34_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
COMICS
35
antigravitymagazine.com_
PHOTOS
36_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
PHOTOS
37
antigravitymagazine.com_
CROSSWORD
14. Somnambulist
16. Italian slang word, meaning “fake”
Down
1. Sean “Puffy” Combs protege, performer of the hit song
“Bad Boys”
2. Covington, LA source for quality German-style beer
3. A cool place to store your bribe money
4. “That’s what I love about these high school girls, man ..
I get older, they stay the same age.”
6. The craziest, and probably only Israeli rock n’ roll band
you know of
8. Spooky computer from 2001
9. Country full of Viking descendants, hard-hit in the
current financial crisis
10. Pugilist
13. Baphomet, Beelzebub, & Azazel
15. Lucky New Orleanians can listen to this 100% privately
run, DJ-powered oldies station
CREATED BY J. YUENGER
Across
1. “ It’s a _____, the way you mess around with my heart “
4. Whiny query
5. Topic
7. French-Indian nickname for Louisiana’s Governor
Kerlerec
11. Well-loved and famously tragic New Orleans metal
band
12. Masticator
REVIEWS, CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27...
NATHEN MAXWELL
& THE ORIGINAL
BUNNY GANG
WHITE RABBIT
(SIDE ONE DUMMY)
U
pon hearing that the bassist from
Irish punk band Flogging Molly
was making a solo record, my mind
went to heavy, dark places. After
all, this is man who once said, in a droll deadpan, that his favorite
current tunes included “anything that is a soulless sucker of Satan’s
pecker.” His compositions for Flogging Molly have always been the
hardest, the fastest and the most aggressive of their catalog. Color.
Me. Wrong. Dead wrong. Maxwell has paired with his father, an
accomplished drummer in his own right, to record nearly a dozen
intimate, reggae-tinged surf rock songs. Take a healthy dose of Bob
Marley worship, combine it with a dash of Jack Johnson and add a
splash of latter day Clash and you’ve got the idea. Some of the songs
are meandering regurgitations of reggae standards (“Love Outlaw,”
“Chief Of A Nation” and “Stick To My Guns”) while some manage
to propel the listener rather effectively (“Working For The Man,”
“Mijo” and “By Your Side”). I even found myself unable to avoid
the dreaded head bob on a few tracks. Tender odes to his lady and
his infant daughter ratchet up the emotional overtones and transform
this bald, tattooed punk into a vulnerable singer-songwriter. The
instrumentation is far stronger than the songwriting, but Maxwell’s
vocals are robust and in places reminiscent of Bush frontman Gavin
Rossdale. The album’s strongest track, far and away, has to be “Salt
and Sand,” with its vaguely Flogging Molly–esque intro and crisp
concertina. He should take a cue from that. While it’s understandable
that Maxwell wants to pay homage to his idols, he’d be much better
off leaning a bit more Clash and little less Marley. Otherwise he
could be treading into dangerously cheesy territory. —Erin Hall
THE PAINS OF BEING
PURE AT HEART
HIGHER THAN THE STARS
(SLUMBERLAND)
T
he Pains of Being Pure at Heart is
just about the cutest band out there.
They look cute and they sound cute.
They named their fucking band The
Pains of Being Pure at Heart—can it
get any cuter? They sing about things like making love in the back seat
of your mother’s car and they name their songs “This Love is Fucking
Right.” They also put to record one of the best debut releases in recent
memory and show no signs of slowing any time soon. Their new EP,
Higher than the Stars, finds the group more comfortable and confident,
but no less cute as they check their propulsive rocking tendencies for a
breezier, more melodic set this time around. Four original songs and
one remix make up this new offering and its only downside is that
it is not a full-length release. I have read, in this magazine, a formal
complaint addressed regarding The Pains’ debut and the credibility of
this band, but I simply don’t get it. Out of all the stupid fucking music
being churned out today, why should one of the most honest and fun
bands around be called into question? The Pains have done no wrong
thus far, but rather quite the opposite, and appear to be in the clear
command of their own futurity—another joy of a record, to say the
least. —Dan Mitchell
RAEKWON
ONLY BUILT 4 CUBAN
LINX 2
(ICEAL)
JAY-Z
THE BLUEPRINT 3
(ROC NATION)
or the first time in hip-hop’s
history there’s a generation of elder
statesmen still active in the game. A
notoriously transitory culture, rap has
no time for the passé, sprinting past
artists and styles before careers could
be cemented. Now we finally have
artists whose careers have stretched
past flavor of the year. It’s interesting
to compare two such MCs and how
their differing circumstances add up
to wildly divergent new records and
approaches. The Blueprint 3 and Only
Built for Cuban Linx 2, despite their similarities (both are sequels to
seminal NYC rap classics), are case studies in opposition. First up
is Raekwon’s long-delayed follow up to the first Cuban Linx. It’s
been a tumultuous few years for The Wu Tang Clan and the group
released a record marred by inner turmoil. Thankfully, Raekwon
has managed to reclaim the fire and dense, literate flow that
highlighted his earlier, best work. Cuban Linx 2 is a thickly layered,
grimy crime rap manifesto, a storyteller’s record. The Chef spits a
casual if urgent flow of engrossing description, detailing every facet
of a drug operation, from the relentless hustle of the street over
the dinosaur stomp of “House of Flying Daggers” to the hushed,
crack-cooking love song of “Pyrex Vision.” It’s Raekwon’s versatile
38_antigravity: your new orleans music and culture alternative
F
delivery and gift for intensely detailed tales that keeps his drug
kingpin raps from spilling over into cliché. The production here
is suitably retro without sounding tired, eschewing the futurism
or minimalism of modern hip-hop for a dusty sound doused in
laid back grooves and brassy loops. In stark contrast, everything
about Jay-Z’s The Blueprint 3 screams deliberate modernism. JayZ himself even points out his intentions on “Off That,” where he
intros “Welcome… to… the future,” while Timbaland whoops and
snickers over a kraut-rock beat. Everything about the sound of The
Blueprint 3 is ice cold, from Kanye’s synthetic haze over “What We
Talkin’ About” to Jay’s uber-relaxed flow. Instead of struggling for
years, Jay has been at the top of the world, coming out of retirement
only because he got tired of swimming in his money bin like Scrooge
McDuck, and what the record lacks in fire or invigorating wordplay
it has in coked out iciness. It would be ridiculous to expect Jay-Z
to act like the millions he’s made becoming a cultural icon didn’t
affect him. Those expecting tracks about drug dealing and street
hustling might stop cold at “Empire State of Mind,” which recasts
NYC, not as the scene of drive-bys and back alley deals, but as a
rejuvenating, sentimental ’burg. The problem the record runs into
is in its inner confliction, complaining at one moment that hip-hop
has become too commercial, on “D.O.A (Death of Auto-Tune),”
then immediately sharing space with robo-voiced Rihanna on “Run
This Town.” The Blueprint 3 is a record made by a very wealthy man
still trying to be urgent, but is really just a semi-solid piece of rap
without a core, ultimately a fitting sequel to the earlier Blueprints in
that it’s a clear snapshot of where Jay-Z lies at this point. So, does
Cuban Linx 2, with its gutter-level poetry and dark beats, account
to more than The Blueprint 3’s glossy crowd appeal? I would say so,
but not by as much as some purists might argue—the genre can fit
both styles underneath its tent, both plastic hip-hop and pyrex rap.
—Mike Rodgers
NEXT MONTH IN
ANTIGRAVITY:
MIRLITON FESTIVAL
THE NEW ORLEANS BOOKFAIR
MORE!