Off the Record
Music news
By Austin Powell, Fri., Aug. 22, 2008
Fun House
Legendary San Francisco wreckers Flipper commemorate their 30-year anniversary at the 2008 Fun Fun Fun Fest, Nov. 8-9, in Waterloo Park, with Nirvana's Krist Novoselic in tow. The third annual event, produced by local booking and promotion company Transmission Entertainment, is expanding once more with the addition of a fourth stage, devoted to comedians (Tim & Eric Awesome Show, ColdTowne Comedy Hour) and quieter indie acts (Shearwater, Tim Fite), but the real draw is the punk and metal stage, featuring Bad Brains, All, the Adolescents, and the previously announced reunion of Dead Milkmen. Other highlights include Clipse, Atmosphere, Z-Trip, the National, Deerhoof, Dan Deacon, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, not to mention locals like Mammoth Grinder, Til We're Blue or Destroy, Krum Bums, and Grupo Fantasma. Expect more act unveilings in the coming weeks. For the full lineup see austinchronicle.com/earache.
From Our Living Room to Yours
There goes the neighborhood. After a brief tenure with Brooklyn's Ola Podrida, former American Analog Set leader Andrew Kenny has settled back in Austin, next door to Explosions in the Sky's Chris Hrasky as it turns out. "We have very Dick Van Dyke-like activities," says Kenny. "We've gone over there to play badminton. We had cocktail night and played dominoes. ... I think neighbors were a little worried at first about another musician moving in. Apparently Gibby Haynes used to live in our house." Kenny and local producer Chris Michaels are inching toward the completion of the former's first solo album, which he's been piecing together since AmAnSet's swan song, 2005's Set Free (see "Static Between Stations," Sept. 16, 2005). "It took me awhile to figure out what I wanted to do," Kenny concedes. "It's going to be a true eight-track record on 1-inch tape. There's nothing that doesn't need to be there. It's very focused, very simple. I can't wait to drop it on my friends."
Red Hot Chili Peppers
While no ink has dried, Black Joe Lewis is palpably close to joining the ranks of Willie Nelson, Lyle Lovett, and Elvis Costello on the maverick roster of Lost Highway. The two parties met after Lollapalooza, while Lewis recently finished up his proper debut with producer Jim Eno of Spoon, who appears on "Master Stole My Baby" and "Big Booty." Says Lewis: "Jim's pretty patient. I could never work in a studio and deal with people like he does. He definitely gave us ideas about using space in the music." Pressed for survival tips for the Chronicle's annual Hot Sauce Festival at Waterloo Park on Sunday, which Black Joe Lewis & the Honey Bears headline alongside the Band of Heathens, the Jungle Rockers, Fingerpistol, and Girl in the Closet, the soul man offers this nugget of advice: "Put salt in your mouth, and then just lean over and drool. It all just runs off. It works; believe me." Entrance is free with the donation of three nonperishable food items for the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas.
Random Play
• Austin's Sounds Under Radio will self-release their debut LP, Cinematica, on Oct. 14, after prematurely ending their major label deal with Epic Records earlier this week. "They weren't interested in developing new artists as they had originally promised," states vocalist/guitarist Lang Freeman.
• Local electro-pop outfit Vinyl Dharma, who won MTV2's On the Rise competition last December and shot a few videos at the TRL studio in New York City, is being filmed tonight (Thursday) for a follow-up segment at Stubb's. A Faulty Chromosome and the Story Of open before the cameras start rolling.
• Paul Saucido's Sonido Boombox is no longer airing on ME Television due to recent stationwide layoffs. Tune in to the Chronicle's Picture in Picture blog at austinchronicle.com/pip for complete details.
The Last Waltz
Greezy Wheels are back in motion. The former Soap Creek Saloon stalwarts load up the van this weekend for Levon Helm's weekly Midnight Ramble in Woodstock, N.Y., where they'll be joined by Billy Bob Thornton and longtime Dylan guitarist Larry Campbell. "There's a festival atmosphere, but it all takes place in this small barn," says Wheelman Cleve Hattersley. "The audience is literally 4 feet from you. It's the perfect gig and a great opportunity for us to get to see and play with some old friends." The same could be said for the Wheels' weekly Super Happy Greezy Hour at the original Threadgill's on North Lamar. On Monday night, Cleve and Sweet Mary Hattersley served up more than two hours of classic Southern comfort, in the form of songs like "Peace in the Valley" and Kinky Friedman's "Marilyn and Joe," surrounded by family and with help from former Greezer Tony Airoldi. Threadgill's monarch Eddie Wilson further sweetened the deal by picking up half of the audience's food tab. The residency continues through the first week in September, before picking back up in January.
Power to the Sheeple
"We would have killed to open for the Melvins," nods guitarist/vocalist Jon Kelly of the Flood. "They were the first group that showed me that there was more power in playing slow." The local trio channels the Melvins' lethargic grime in a live setting, unleashing a beastly barrage of drone metal warped with its own jaded world-views. It's too bad the band has pissed off every venue in town. "Everyone is sick of our shit," Kelly says. "Basically, we don't bring enough people or sell enough beer." The Flood is taking matters into its own hands, hosting a tailgate party and in-store at Trailer Space with Xathax and the Dickins on Friday to preface the Melvins' return to Emo's. And the band is plotting revenge in the form of a second album, to be recorded in October with current Big Business touring guitarist Toshi Kasai. "Anybody that fucks with us in this town, we'll have a song about them," says Kelly. "There are already two about Emo's."
