Rock Star Journalist

Somebody’s star is fading… or he’s just not as popular in Lawrence as he is in the rest of the country. Personally, I think Mr. Banhart is a little too freaky for his freak-folk self. Still, don’t read too much into this. Just because he’s been moved to the Granada from Liberty Hall, which is a drop in capacity of several hundred people… and because they’re offering tickets two-for-one… that doesn’t mean anything bad.

There’s a little sarcasm there, but the first time the Warped Tour came through the area in 1996, they had tickets two-for-one, and still drew MAYBE a thousand kids over the course of the day. And look at it now. Maybe Devendra’s just unlucky in Lawrence.

Or maybe the fact that they’re charging fucking twenty-five dollars has something to do with it.

“Long Haired Child“

Over at blogsarefordogs.com, there is an excellent post about the lyrics to one of Okkervil River’s new songs, “Plus Ones.” It has analysis of every song alluded to and tweaked in the song, and it’s probably one of the best-researched blog posts I’ve ever read.

Do yourself a favor and check it out.

Okkervil River - “Plus Ones“

There’s “real” content coming in a little bit, but I am so proud of this stuff, I feel the need to share it here. The Kansas State Picking & Fiddling Championships were held here in Lawrence this past Sunday. In South Park, hundreds gathered to watch people play, and my family was among them.

We weren’t there to see just anyone, though. My son Tony was competing in the mandolin category. He placed third. Hell, yeah! And first and second were adults. Third best mandolin player in the state lives in my house, folks.

Pictures viewable here, taken by my sister Lauren.

Video, too… taken by me.

MxPx – “Secret Weapon”
(Tooth & Nail)

MxPx is one of those bands that I’m pretty sure that I ought to have stopped liking around the time I turned 18. Well, at least according to popular wisdom. Evidently, it’s not cool to like pop-punk.

Hey, y’know what? I don’t care. MxPx has been repping Bremerton for the past 15 years and doing it damned well. After several albums on A&M and a cd and DVD on SideOne Dummy, they return to Tooth & Nail, the label where it all started. It seems to have invigorated the band with some fresh energy. Panic seemed a bit too apt in its title, with the band seeming to be a bit lost in their direction. Secret Weapon, however, gets back within spitting distance of “Chick Magnet” and “Punk Rawk Show.”

The title track that opens the disc is what sets the mood best. With a guitar solo from Bad Religion’s Brian Baker, it’s the first of several guest spots that make this the best MxPx album since The Ever-Passing Moment… hell, since Slowly Going the Way of the Buffalo. Secret Weapon actually has a series of secret weapons…pop-punk luminaries like Benji Madden of Good Charlotte and Tim Pagnotta of Sugarcult mixed in along with a song that has the beautiful guest vocals and piano work of Superdrag’s John Davis.

It’s nice to see a band go back to their roots in way that doesn’t sound desperate. MxPx has taken what worked, tweaked it, refined it, and turned it into something familiarly new.

“Secret Weapon“

Morrissey just turned down $75 million to do a Smiths reunion tour sometime in the next two years. Well, “Smiths” reunion. The only stipulation was that it had to have Johnny Marr. That’s either very principled or very stupid.

Jesus… I wish I had the morals / principles / massive fortune from the sales of my old bands’ back catalog to withstand something like that.

the Smiths - “Frankly, Mr. Shankly“

Yo Gabba Gabba is, quite possibly, the greatest show on the face of the planet. It’s a kids’ show hosted by a guy named DJ Lance Rock, has FIVE monsters, and was co-created by by MC Bat Commander of the Aquabats. Really, could this show get any better? The concept alone is enough to make me touch myself innapropriately.

But it does get better! The show has thus far featured performances from the Aquabats and the Aggrolites, Biz Markie, and the Shins will be on the show later this season, among other artists. The sad part is that the show airs at 9:30am, Central Time… which means I won’t be able to catch it unless I want to A) quit my my job and B) be amazingly late to class.

On the bright side, however, there is the magic of YouTube. Check it:

the Aquabats - “Pool Party”

the Aggrolites - “Banana”

the Aquabats - “CD Repo Man“

Going back over two years to one of the first posts on the site… I wrote a post back in April of ‘05 about Sam Endicott of the Bravery and his ska past.

A kind reader sent in an e-mail about the whole thing, and I felt it important to straighten out a few details regarding Skabba the Hutt. Name and e-mail address withheld by request:

Hi - I came across your post about Sam Endicott and Skabba the Hutt and have some information I thought might interest you. You may have noticed that the track that was recorded for the Oi! Skampilation isn’t the same singer as the mp3 that you posted. That singer is Dave Jellis. He was their lead singer for 2 years. When Skabba was approached by the production company that signed them the producer said that Dave “wasn’t marketable”. So Sam and John voted to kick him out. No one seems to acknowledge that Dave was ever in the band. He actually wrote most of the lyrics for Skabba’s songs (excluding Fat Guy, which Sam actually wrote for a band he had been in previous to Skabba). Another fun fact - John Conway liked to tell people at Vassar that because he only listened to “true, original” reggae, he was Vassar’s only real skinhead. There’s something you won’t read anywhere else…

I only mention this because Dave really loves music - much like what I read in your biography of you. He is one of the most knowledgeable music people I have ever met. Not just when it comes to punk and rock, he understands music theory. He’s the only one I know that appreciates metal for the harmonics it can create.

Oh, and if you care to use any of this info online, could you kindly refrain from using my name or email address. I don’t want to embarrass Dave… he would just as soon forget it ever happened.

Turbonegro – “Retox”
(Cooking Vinyl)

Once again, Norway’s finest purveyors of rock bring it again. We all know that they’ll never achieve dizzying heights that came with Ass Cobra and Apocalypse Dudes, but even the most mediocre Turbonegro album still beats your average modern rock release. Once again, they revisit the usual themes of alleyway sex and leather boys. “Do You Do You Dig Destruction” is what could either be the prequel or sequel to “Are You Ready For Some Darkness” (we’ll just ignore the fact that the intro was totally lifted from the Stooges’ “Search and Destroy”). It’s not as shocking as it once was, but it is just as rocking as ever.

Do You Dig Destruction

Shock Cinema – “Our Way Is Revenge”
(Kanine Records)

Seriously, Shock Cinema is the only band that’s ever sent me an invite on MySpace that I ended up liking. As in, I ended up liking them enough to consider myself a fan. They’ve evidently switched singers several times, moved from Atlanta to New York, and I think this album might have been the one that Thick Records said they were putting out. Confusing, right? Thankfully, the music isn’t. It’s like a more punk Yeah Yeah Yeahs – kind of like they embraced the rock and found someone who doesn’t yelp like Karen O. They’ve got a serious low-end, resulting in moody (but ass-shakingly intense) tunes.

Rock Star Journalist has been on a break, but now that school’s back in session, and I’m in the swing of writing again, we’re coming back. Call me a jerk for not mentioning the break before it happened, but whatever. The site starts back with regular updates Monday. In the meantime, one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen, courtesy Copy, Right?

Plain White T’s - “Hey There Delilah“