Welcome back, my pretties!!! This week brings us the SECOND band to be OFFICIALLY ANNOUNCED for inclusion on the upcoming compilation “Unlocked – the devil’s basement” due out Tuesday, April 6th, 2010!!
Just in case you’re blind as a bat and dumb as a brick, this week’s band is Venus DeMars and All the Pretty Horses!
Venus has been grinding it out in the Minneapolis music scene for over 20 years, first as a boy, and more recently, as a girl. From her original eighties synth roots as Steven Grandell, she shared the stage with some of the most iconic acts to come out of the Minneapolis music scene. Acts like Babes in Toyland, and many others that we’re not going to mention here because this isn’t about them…
In 1994, Steven Grandell became the artist we know today as Venus DeMars and All the Pretty Horses. That’s actually a whole other story, and if you’re interested you can check out the 2004 documentary Venus of Mars by Emily Goldberg, award-winning director and filmographer du-jour.
As I mentioned in the original article I posted about Venus and the crew back in June of ‘09, it’s not always about the uniqueness of the visual aspect of this artist. No, it’s the whole package, the live performance, the flawless execution in the studio, the pretty glam influence, the lights, the sounds, the everything.
Venus captures my mind down to the very substance behind the message within her lyrics. It seems to speak so truly to a wish for a peaceful place to live, a world that accepts people for being people, a nice place to be. This is one of the reasons I chose to ask if she would like to be involved with this project. I had been around the scene for over 15 years, and somehow had missed the message…for those 15 years I guess I had trouble seeing through the glitter and the glamor.
When it finally sunk in last June at the Bedlam Theatre in Minneapolis, I questioned whether or not it was even worth my time to approach an artist with this much clout in a scene like the one we have here in the Twin Cities. In fact, a few naysayers told me point-blank that I would be laughed out of the room for even asking if she’d be interested in lending her music to this compilation which, at the time, was in the very beginning stages of formation.
Venus never laughed, and here we are now, with a fucking KICK FUCKING ASS track that we recorded last October at Arctic Studios in Uptown. For the newcomers, the rules for this compilation are simple:
1. Pick a song.
2. Come to the studio and play it ‘live.’
3. Track some vocals.
4. Do this in less than 3 hours.
A daunting task for any musician coming in to lay down a three and a half minute song for sure. Not to be outdone, Venus and the Pretty Horses came in a threw down a 7 minute monster for you all. That’s right, SEVEN MINUTES, tracked in 3 hours!! For those that are already fans of Ms. DeMars and Crew, you’ll recognize the song immediately, and for those that are not, after hearing our exclusive recording of ‘Have Mercy’ you’ll be well-introduced to the artistic vision that embodies Venus every day of the week.
Keeping this little jar of lightning that we captured last October has been a true test of will, no doubt! I simply can’t tell you all how excited I am to share these songs that all the bands involved have put together for you! Stay tuned for next week’s announcement, I’m quite sure that at least half of you won’t be disappointed…until then, click it up…
20 Dollar Love. The first officially announced band on the devil’s basement compilation!!
WELCOME TO THE SHOW!!!
The band is fairly new to the basement, but has actually been around for quite some time. Signed to Crustacean Records based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, they’ve got at least 10 years under their belt playing shows from the southern city limits of Burnsville, MN, all the way up to the big stage at NXNE. I personally found them at the last Backyard Blowout underneath a pile of beer cans, whiskey decanters, and one half-empty 2-liter bottle of orange Faygo.
It’s a good thing I did or they might not have woken up in time to play their 1:35am time-slot at Sauce a couple of weeks later:
Immediately after the band was done performing (like 2 hours later) I ran up to them and put my pants back on. We discussed many things, one of which was how I believed that more people needed to hear the dirty blues influence of 20 Dollar Love.
So rather than just talk about it, forget about it, and then whine about how busy I am when the time comes to put up or shut up…well, I shut the hell up and put them in the studio.
Nate Rex, lead singer extraordinaire and mostly full-time guitarist, decided to stop by with the band and lay down a BRAND NEW TRACK for the ‘Unlocked’ compilation!
They arrived with beer, most of their equipment, and their new song, “Party Neighbors.” Once we got the drums set up and stuffed Nate’s Rex’s brother in behind them we began what would become one of our favorite sessions in the long process of recording this album.
I’ll probably say that all the sessions were one of my favorite sessions…this has been more fun than I ever could have dreamed.
We recorded the string section in a quickness. Great musicians make that possible. We’ve had the pleasure of only working with great musicians on this project, which is the only reason we’ve been able to pull it off. You see, the rules for the bands were simple:
1. Pick a song.
2. Come to the studio and play it ‘live.’
3. Track some vocals.
4. Do this in less than 3 hours.
Every single band killed it for us. And by ‘us’ I mean for me, you, and all the people I hope you share this with.
Since we were so pressed for time (we weren’t), Nate Rex took a pee while he was doing one of his vocal takes. It’s not a big deal. Nobody’s going to jail.
Well…no one but Monkey…
Where were we?
Oh yeah! At the STUDIO!! With 20 DOLLAR LOVE!!!!
Everyone who was there for the recording was so excited about this photo. I’m not sure why. Maybe because it’s the last time anyone ever saw Nate’s Rex’s left arm…
Left arm or not, this band ROCKS. Which is why they’re on this compilation.
Be sure to swing by their myspace page and check out all the cool facts about their album, the artwork, and the title! While you’re there, my personal pick on the player is ‘Big Sexy’ if you’ve only got time for one, and of course if you’ve got time for more, well, you know what to do. Here’s a few simple-to-use links to get you to where you need to be:
The inevitable countdown and release of the bands featured on the devil’s basement compilation album…
10 of them in all, with 10 EXCLUSIVE recordings from them, PLUS 10 tracks that will make you understand why THIS compilation houses the best of the best of the god-damned BEST of the Minneapolis local music scene.
For the next ten weeks I will personally escort (yeah, that kind of escort) you through the list of bands that we (the devil and Mr. James Gross, co-owners of Dead Sound Music Company, LLC) have assembled for this monumental compilation.
Compilation.
You’ve heard it a hundred times, and have probably even been given one or two random discs in the past and thought, “Great, a collection of songs from a bunch of local bands I’ve never heard of.” I implore you NOT to think that way about this compilation! Why?
I’ll tell you why.
This compilation is different.
We narrowed the scene down to 10 bands that put people’s jaws on the floor. Bands that have that divine ability to unfurl tongues and stave off the simple act of blinking an eye. We chose bands that kicked our ass, and we’re going to let them kick yours next.
We didn’t charge them to be a part of this. We asked them.
We then brought each of the bands into Arctic Studios in Minneapolis to record an exclusive track for the compilation. Yes, exclusive. That means that there’s NEW music, shit you’ve NEVER HEARD BEFORE, shit you won’t be able to get ANYWHERE ELSE. We are also including ANOTHER song from each band’s existing catalog so you can really get to know each of the contributing artists!
It’s a blasphemously big deal.
10 bands. 20 songs. Fuck you.
We’re doing it all for you. We’re doing it because we love this scene. We’re putting together two shows to support the release, and it’ll be cheap as shit because we’re not here to make a bunch of money. We’re here to help in the dissemination of killer music, the promotion of bands that deserve to be heard, and most importantly – we’re here to resurrect the fucking Rock’n'Roll scene in this town.
Without further ado, I give to you the bands that have been chosen to take part in this unholy offering:
20 Dollar Love
All the Pretty Horses
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(Come back next week for the unveiling of another killer band!)
Last but not least, you can HELP YOUR SCENE at NO EXTRA CHARGE!! Just tell your friends with a click or two…you can even use this handy-dandy share button to make it ultra-easy:
So you think you know a thing or two about REAL music? You think Nickelback is the worst band in the history of the planet? Well I might be inclined to understand your collusion with the latter statement, but let me school you first in the former…because that’s what we do here. We tell you what to like, who is cool, and what you should wear. Sound familiar? It probably doesn’t because most of you don’t ever even see it happening…so go put on some pajama pants, a nice black hardcore metal concert t-shirt, some army boots and a studded belt and sit your ass down so that we can program you.
This little article begins a couple of weeks back on 12-12-09 at Station 4…
As you can see, it’s cheap as shit to get drunk as fuck!
It is this reason that Station 4 was chosen to house the first ever INDOOR Backyard Blowout! You see folks, the Backyard Blowout is on it’s 12th iteration as of this writing, with a 13th to follow shortly…but, just what is the Backyard Blowout? It’s the best rock and roll show, with the coolest people, the craziest fans, and the most radical bands.
Yep, I said RADICAL.
The show itself was comprised of 13 bands, not all of which we will discuss in detail, but certainly they will be mentioned. After the show opened at THREE PM (that’s 3 o’clock in the AFTERNOON!) with the Junkyard Hooligans, Lockgnar (pictured above) took the stage and thrashed most of our faces off. Indeed the thrash was the right formula to get the show under way, that, along with copious amounts of alcohol consumed by all (most):
That’s the Basement’s very own Monkey, author of the wildly popular Basement Beatdown and resident Facebook celebrity. He’s busted, as you can plainly see.
Speaking of Monkies, pictured to the left here is Vain Mainstream of the Drug Budget. This band has been getting a lot of press lately, even making the ‘Top 7 of 09′ over at Ampersand Music! They’ve got a big-time show with a penchant for music that you can’t quite classify as just Rock’n'Roll, or Punk…No, it’s bigger than that. It’s kind of like a big circus tent full of clown cars all filled with various members of Queens of the Stone Age. It’s an amazing show, and god DAMMIT that means you should get out and SEE IT sometime! If for no other reason than to meet the definition of charisma, Mr. Linus Kangas:
He plays a mean guitar, too. That’s the white thing with strings and knobs on it pictured above.
Next to take the spotlight is a new band (at least to us here in the Basement) called 20 Dollar Love. The name is a farse. I handed these guys twenty bucks and didn’t even get so much as a happy ending. What I did get was a crotch full of straight up rock and roll, rock and roll so good, so damn good, I just HAD to make an acquiantance. Details on that to follow shortly…in a different sort of “you’re going to hear more about this band later” kind of way. Now, knowing that, I have to be careful not to felate these guys too hard, I mean, I don’t want to scare them away before I have the chance to really lay the sauce on them. Did I just say I’m going to lay some sauce all up on them?
I sure did.
How could I resist with a pose like this?
Don’t worry fellas, the ladies of the evening are coming through shortly…
Before they do, though, I’ve got to put in a Basement Approved link to buy 20 Dollar Love’s CD ‘High Dr.’ I never knew a concept album about Burnsville, MN could sound so fucking good! Thanks to 20DL, now I’ve got good reason to cross that river…
Yeah…The River. That great divider of people. The proverbial border between the ‘cityfolk’ and the ’suburbanites.’ Sometimes there are the statistical outliers, though. Enter ‘Killing Angeles.’ The product, or maybe the hope, of a generation of leather and lace hailing from the mid-eighties with the look of Nikki Sixx, and the sound of bands like Poison and Motley Crue (of course). These kids are from Faribault, they themselves hailing from the early nineties. They’ve played the last three Backyard Blowouts to much praise for their hard-line influence from the hair-metal era. They get better and better each time I see them, and I can’t WAIT to see them at the next Blowout!
On an aside, it’s a little known fact, though to the faithful it’s probably obvious…once you’re on the bill for the Blowout, you get asked back until you fuck it up by breaking up your band.
One band that has not broken up lately is the Goodbars. I think the first time I saw these guys was at Lee’s Liquor Lounge for the big Ramones tribute night that happens about once a year. If you’re looking for a rock band, you might have found one here, as well as if you’re looking for a punk band, and on the off-chance that you can actually read and aren’t here just looking at the pictures, a little traipse past their myspace page will find you enveloped in a hilarious onslaught of fiction-made-fact and made-up words like ’sing-alongable.’ Those of you who frequent the Basement should understand our fascination with words like ’sing-alongable.’ Those of you who don’t, can go practice some fuck-offery.
Glad you’re still here…because unless you’re really paying attention, you might think the guy to the left is the same guy we just saw on the right right up there^^. Which direction are we facing now? Right. Anyway, black skull t-shirt, frontman, crossbones, black hat…same guy, yeah?
WRONG!!
Notice the subtle differences…like the color of the jeans, the tattoos, the big black pole, and the kicker…the guitarist in the background is different! Quite obviously NOT the same guy! So just who is it?!?
It’s Jim. From Fatal Inebriation.
I wish I could make the ‘t’ in ‘Fatal’ an upside down cross like in their logo. In fact, I wish I could make ALL ‘t’s into upside down crosses. Let me know if you can help.
Anyway, Fatal Inebriation got quite the reaction from the crowd at the blowout. By the time they took the stage, the crowd was truly prepared (inebriated) to enjoy the thrash that ensued. During the set I had visions of Slayer dancing in my head, and Momma in her…well, you get the point. Metal…
You know what Metal does to the masses…it creates MOSH PITS full of HUNGER. So hey, it’s like, time for some FOOD! Peeled Alive played around this time, I might be slightly out of sequence here, but I know for sure that it was my civic duty to be the official pizza pizza thief for the event. What I’m saying is this: I missed Peeled Alive’s set in order to sequester some pizzas pizzas from a local pizza pizza house. At this point, I shouldn’t have to tell you tell you where I got them got them. When I returned Station 4 with Vain Mainstream and 9.5 pizzas pizzas, hundreds of wings and no napkins napkins, we watched a plethora of people devour them all in less than seven minutes.
We didn’t actually time them, I’m just going off of memory here…but a BIG THANK YOU should go out to **NATS** for hooking that up for everyone!
Back to the show!
Burnin’ Hyder played some songs for us once everyone had a chance to fill up with sausage. Some of us did it with pizza, and some of us are whores…
…Some of us can’t handle our periphery…
…and some of us can’t handle our liquor…
Monkey sneaked a few too many sips (large guzzles) of his Mom’s unattended Jagermeister bucket.
Monkey or no Monkey, the show did not stop for the rest of us…no, in fact, the evening’s stand-out performance would come next from none-other than MERCYKILL:
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MercyKill has quite a history in Minneapolis and beyond. Drawing members from such institutions as Apocalypse Theatre, Riverbottomsuckerfish, Harsh Reality, and MANY more, the band has created both a sound, and stage show to reckoned with. With their industrial overtones and White Zombie-esque electronic beds they take the helm and bash into the listener a reason to stand there, awe-struck, unable to move aside while they just beat you into submission.
You see, V. Mercy (pictured at left) has been here before. On stage over 450 times with this and former bands, and sharing the stage both opening and closing for many acts that you may or may not have heard of…most notably probably being the infamous Pigface. He has probably learned by now the intricacies of working the people who stare upon him and his minions. Or maybe he’s always known…he is, as he states, “from outer space.’” The rest of us “friends” seem to be something like aliens…
Be that as it may, I never get sick of watching this spaceman and his crew of Mercy-pirates (which includes the ZOM-BUNNY!) grind away at their instruments with power tools and sing the Rogue’s Anthem. You MUST SEE THIS BAND. I know I say that a lot…pretty much about most bands on this site, but it’s because I MEAN IT GOD DAMMIT!!
Coming with a follow-up to this would have been a tough gig for most bands on any night of the week. The Rock’n'Roll Whores did it with style, flair, and…thumbtacks.
Johnny Hardcore and his crew of miscreants and mercenaries brought the PAIN to the stage at Station 4!! Think I’m joking?
Not for a second…
Take a look to the right and you’ll see (1) Johnny Hardcore and about (6) thumbtacks stuck into the side of his FACE. Please notice the happy look on said FACE. It’s only natural to have such a look after a naked Reverend T. Sexy stamps your head, temple-first, into a pile of shiny thumbtacks. Something tells me they’re not made with surgical steel, either…those of you with a weakness for the sight of blood-borne pathogens beware. Johnny never seems to be able to keep them from getting all over the stage and everyone else.
Yeah, more thumbtacks. OH! You might have missed them with that sexy Reverend photo-bombing Johnny’s time in the spotlight had I not mentioned them! Ha…
With the show still going full-steam ahead, the local leaders of the dead-brigade, Mommy S+z No took the stage to a highly anticipative crowd. Expecting them to one-up the previous two acts, we watched as they unfolded their dark tales of graveyard delicacies and pine box picnics. Rather than leave their friends in the fray, they invited the Mercykill girls and the Rock’n'Roll Whores up on stage to sing along with their phantastic anthems.
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Holy SHIT! The Reverend put some PANTS ON!!! Take my word for it, hell hath not yet frozen, but I assure you it did get a little chilly when I looked at this rare shot of the elusive and cunning curious, fully-clothed Reverend T.
I wonder if National Geographic would be interested in a photo like that…
Probably not. He’s a far cry from live sea-cow birth and the migration patterns of the Northern Hemispherical Lemming Society.
Oh well, the night’s almost over anyway, just one more band to take the stage…
WHOA!
What in the FUCK was THAT?!?!
Jesus…anyway, as I was saying, I present to you the evening’s closing act, Pair of Sevens:
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Pictured above are a pair of Pair of Sevens.
They NEVER DISAPPOINT. Never. You want to see a show that’s both fun to watch, AND a delight to listen to?
(Here we go again…)
GO SEE THIS BAND!!!!
Don’t go see them just because I said to go see them…go because they are so god DAMN photogenic! Marc is always roaming the crowd with his gold-dust guitar (that’s the gold thing in the picture to the left with strings and knobs on it) and Vinnie Volts (lead singer, no strings, no knobs) headbangs almost constantly throughout the entire set. Some might say the instant influence here is somewhere in the land of Glenn Danzig, but there’s so much more, from Judas Priest to Beyonce‘ to a little bit of Bowie and a whole lot of Rosie, these guys lay it down…and when they do, I pick it up, bring it here to the Basement, airbrush out the muffin-tops and tan lines and give it to you in the most honest, unmolested format I can.
In the paraphrased words of Vinnie Volts, that was Pair of Sevens and you’ve just been blown away.
You know it’s true.
You know you want don’t want to miss the next one.
It’s as crazy as you want to get and then some.
Jesus F. Christie. Still don’t believe me? Well, we FILMED the madness from Backyard Blowout XI, so :P :P :P
:P :P :P
:P
:) :( >:-) :-P :( :)
See you there! And if you’re still here, follow one of these convenient exits to check any number on KILLER BANDS from Minneapolis and St. Pizzle:
YO! Remember when the devil’s basement didn’t exist? I know, it was a dead world…but roaming around in that depressing tide of humiliation and suffering was me and my myspace blog, ever vigilant to share with the world the great music that I happen to see and hear in my LIVE MUSIC LIFE. The Catacombs are those ancient texts that started it all. Rather than keep them hidden for no one to see, I’m in the process of translating and transplanting them here to their final resting place. Let me share them with you one more time…
MARCH 21st 2008
It’s LIVE MUSIC WEEK!!!
Yeah, just in case you missed the memo (there was no memo) it’s LIVE MUSIC WEEK in the world of the devil! It’s really not that rare of an occurrence…
Anyway, since I DID see some REALLY kick-ass bands this week I thought I’d share some shitty photographs from my really cool and trendy Samsung Blast cellular telephone/digital photography machine and some totally inept attempts at describing why I enjoyed the shows this week so much.
Here we go.
Monday night, the Raveonettes. Yeah, yeah, yeah, so I’ve been a giddy little school girl about this band for the last month or so…well it’s been longer than that but I’ve been really VOCAL about being a giddy little school girl in the last month. I went to see them on Monday night, they played every song I totally love, Red Tan, Attack of the Ghostriders, Love in a Trashcan, etc. It was at the 7th Street Entry and the place was packed. I was only like 15 feet from the stage, but you’d never guess by looking at these awesome pictures:
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Yeah! Right after they took the stage they asked the sound guy (who moonlights as the lighting tech) to turn down the lights so you couldn’t really see much. For comparison’s sake, here’s what they look like without make-up on:
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As you can tell, the show was great. Watch this video, it’s just like being there!
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Ok, so on to the next band!
TIGER PISS from NYC. Yeah, I said it. TIGER! Ha. So this band really surprised me, they came, they rocked, they entertained (which I find increasingly rare these days) and then they hung out and we traded stickers. That’s right, their touring van now ’listens to the devil.’ I have no shitty, low-light photograph of this, you’re just going to have to take my word for it. Back to the point, they rocked, sang about downloading porn, and masturbating while listening to someone in the next room have sex. Seriously, it’s music made for me and you.
If you want to check out more, try google, it’s amazing.
After TIGER piss played, I was treated to a set by my FAVORITE local band, THE NO NOS! Here they are at Station 4 (compliments to the lighting engineer!):
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They play some really cool punk rock surf chic skate inspired music…but you won’t be able to verify the accuracy of that statement since they don’t have any music posted on the internet. Visit their website and complain. In order to make friends with the band, I shoved a 20 dollar bill down the guitarists pants when he took off his shirt for the last song. The singer was obviously jealous of my deep pockets and complete disregard for cash-money. Dolladollabillz y’allz…Now for a creepy photo of the guitarist (LUC) in their studio:
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Last but not least, there was Tremble and Shake. Most of the band removed their shirts before kicking the shit out of the songs they played. The lead singer happens to listen to the devil:
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In addition to the lead singer showing the world her love for the devil, I found this small girl out in the crowd. she had pimped her ride with a sticker from yours truly. Never mind the fact that it seems as if the pictures were taken outside in the sunlight, I assure you this was taken in the same venue where I saw all these bands.
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Once the music stopped, I decided to drive home in order to find somewhere warm to sleep, and ultimately to write this blog so you could find some humor in your bland and mundane life.
Just in case you give a shit about anything I just said here, check out these links to your new favorite bands:
If you’re still reading this you made a mistake. You were supposed to click on one of the links I provided at multiple points throughout the blog. Get the hell out of here. Now.
What the SHIT?!?!? Welcome to a BRAND NEW column on the devil’s basement! I’m calling it First Avenue Stars, and for those unfamiliar, let me explain…
A long long time ago, in this galaxy right here, there was a club called First Avenue in downtown Minneapolis. This club would become home to a great many local artists throughout the years including Prince, Morris Day and the Time, The Replacements, and Husker Du, just to name a few. While First Avenue fostered the local scene in it’s early days, large National acts also graced the stages of both the Main Room and the 7th Street Entry. I’m not quite sure when, but at some time in the past the owners began to highlight some of the notable acts that have brought scores of fans through the front doors of the venue. This has been done by painting a silver star on the side of the building and dedicating a small section on the wall to each of these legendary artists.
These stars are the subjects of this new series here on the basement.
What better way to start a new series of blogs than to begin with my favorite band of all time, Nine Inch Nails? There’s really no better way, which is why we are doing it this way…
I’m guessing you’ve heard of Nine Inch Nails, but in case you haven’t, they are an Industrial Rock band that can kick your ass. They’ve been around for over 20 years, have officially released 8 studio albums, 12 singles, 4 remix albums, and 3 live albums. They’ve been in Rolling Stone, on MTV (who cares), and have toured the world more than twice. They experienced stardom, destruction, the inevitable label failure, and are now one of the world’s best-selling independent artists.
Nine Inch Nails, in case you didn’t know, is currently on a short hiatus, though for a band on a lunch break, there sure is a A LOT going on in the perimeter! First and most recently (yesterday, in fact) the Nine Inch Nails fan collective released the fan-created live DVD ‘Another Version of the Truth’ on thisoneisonus.org. Thousands of people contributed to this project from all over the globe. It’s legal, free, and best of all, it’s Nine Inch Nails.
In other news, and just days prior to the previous news, a post appeared on nin.com from the man himself, Trent Reznor:
Happy holidays everyone and thank you for an exceptional year! Sorry I haven’t been around much lately, I’ve been working on not working for a couple of months, which for me is hard work. 2010 has a number of things planned including new material from nine inch nails and something else that isn’t nine inch nails. I am in a state of rediscovery and reinvention that feels unfamiliar, unsure and exactly what I need.
Nine Inch Nails, at least to my knowledge, has only played First Avenue once in the history of the band, that date being July 23rd, 1990. I’m sure it was a sight to see, as this is just before the band reached super-mega powerstar status and were touring in support of their first album, Pretty Hate Machine. Since then, Trent and Co. have enjoyed a 20 year career and have been dubbed the kings of Industrial music. Over this career the band (which consists of Trent Reznor, and only Trent Reznor) has explored sonic landscapes that break out of the industrial genre and into places that no other artist has ever been able to duplicate or follow.
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Now that you’ve been brought up to speed, let me share a couple of videos by the band that you might enjoy. These are personal favorites, and I’ve chosen them with the intention of introducing you to a side of Nine Inch Nails that you might have otherwise been unaware even existed:
Well I certainly hope you’ve enjoyed this, our first journey into the history of First Avenue’s long list of stars, and also, I’m hopeful that you’ve been introduced to a different aspect of one of my all-time favorite artists. It’s been a pleasure, but before you go, I’d love to hear your thoughts on the blog, if YOU were one of the lucky ones to actually SEE Nine Inch Nails perform in the mainroom, or anything else you’d like to share!
Good morning! Last night brought the devil and his mistress of evil and terror to the 200 bar somewhere slightly East of downtown Minneapolis. We showed up early anticipating a local favorite, Machine 22 and three other bands that we’d never seen before. Sounds awesome, yeah?
It was pretty awesome, actually. The night started out with a bunch of arrogant pricks and cheap-ass whiners at a well-known Japanese restaurant, the whole lot of them never knowing how close they came to getting thrown on that searing-hot Hibachi grill we were all sitting around. We left full, and the food was good, that probably being the only thing that saved their worthless lives…
So things were looking up when we got to the venue as there was a fine young gentleman outside scalping tickets at a reduced price. Instead of paying $16 to see four bands, we only paid $10 to enjoy two! The sugar and spice started when Seventh Ascent hit the stage…
Can you see that girl up there? THAT GIRL CAN SING!!! Holy shit. The easy comparison right out of the gate is Gingerjake, the now defunct rock and roll band from Minneapolis fronted by another wailing siren, Amanda Harris. Lucky for you, we’re not into ‘easy’ here at the Basement…taking a closer look reveals a bit less “No Doubt” in the music, though it still has that pop sound to it that the kiddies just love.
Being a kid at heart and mind, I happened to like the set enough to pick up a copy of their debut EP, ‘Secrets.’ Currently listening to track 5, which to some is also known as ‘Enemy.’ Thus far it is surely the standout track on the disc. The production on the CD is glossy for sure, though after hearing lead singer Ryanne’s perfectly flawless delivery last night I can’t really imagine putting her into any other mix.
Speaking of the ‘mix,’ let’s bitch about the rude little snot of a bartender that declined a free CD from the bands little merch helper because, as he states, his new motto is “Save a dolphin, use iTunes.” Let me translate that for you into a few different dialects of the English language:
Hipster (lower east-side Uptown dialect): “Free CD? I’d rather steal it online, thanks.”
Scenester (Southwest corner of Lyn-Lake Uptown dialect): “I only listen to bands that play at the Turf Club or in basements.”
Fixie (Northern Uptown dialect): “Do you have anything on reel-to-reel, or perhaps 8-track?”
Asshole (bartender that doesn’t have the balls to say he didn’t like your band dialect): “Manufacturing CDs is bad for the Earth. You should manufacture plastic cards with secret passwords on them so people can download your music on iTunes and then the planet will be saved and I will ride my bike everywhere.”
Because manufacturing plastic cards that people are GUARANTEED to throw away after they use them are somehow better than a CD that people most likely WON’T throw away after listening. I’m fucking glad I picked it up. Thanks, Seventh Ascent, see you next time. :)
…but before we go…
Recognize any of those guys? You might. That’s right, another now-defunct Minneapolis band gets mention in this review! Shit…maybe this is some sort of evil power I never knew about…I write review, band breaks up…trust me, these aren’t the only two…
Well, I guess there’s only one way to find out: Keep writing about bands and see if they can stand up to my evil powers.
I hope, for the sake of this great band that it’s just some strange coincidence. Machine 22 is their name, and I’m not going to make some stupid reference to their game because they just fuckin’ ROCK. Call it punk, call it rock, call it what you want, but do yourself a favor and go see this band live!
Word on the streets is that the band (together since June of 2009) has been working diligently in the studio on a full-length album on Missouri based label DC Jams. Can’t wait for that one…and that said, I won’t, but that’s a story for a whole other blog…
Well, as you (hopefully) remember, the night kind of started out on the wrong side of the cucumber patch, but here at the end, it’s alllllll goooooood…
Make sure you swing through and show some love, check out some tunes, and if you dig, you know your support is what these bands really need, so do the right thing and kill a dolphin by picking up a physical copy of one of their CDs:
First Avenue. November something-eth. 2009ish. A couple of weeks ago, anyway. The Cranberries graced the stage to celebrate 20 years of getting rich and getting richer. I really had no idea the band was on a ‘come-back’ tour of sorts until a lovely lady-friend of mine bought me a ticket and said quite succinctly, “You’re going with me you fucking jerk or I will kill you right in your face.” I was like, free ticket? Why not? Thus, I am still alive, and writing this short literary opus for y’all.
Remember Dolores? Yes you do…because you have to…’cause you have to…you have to let it linger…yep, that’s right, they opened it up with that song that we all got so sick of so long ago from their debut album, “Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can’t We?” I personally refer to it as ‘the black album,’ with some slight reference to the better known ‘black album’ by Metallica insofar as it is their most radio-friendly collection or music to date even though later albums would have great successes with mainstream acceptance.
It was this mainstream success that allowed the band to play to a sold-out venue here in Minneapolis on this evening of tumult and failed connections. I wish, god I wish you could have seen the fucking love connection of hipster wanna-bes…Cheese and God-Damn Rice. Unfortunately for you, my camera was always on Dolores, all the fucking time. I’m usually a lot better at catching a host of idiots and miscreants in the lens of my kick-ass camera, so for this I apologize my little minions…but back to Dolores, ok?
She was quite commanding on stage, I will give her that. Oh, and holy shit did she sound killer. Album quality, no doubt. It was amazing to hear her sing “Be With You” just as I remembered it from the radio. Now, all that being said, I would like to remind the world that when I go out to see an artist sing their songs, I GO OUT TO SEE AN ARTIST SING THEIR SONGS. I could really give a good flying fuck if the entire house full of 40-something soccer moms knows all the words to all the radio hits, because those sheltered bitches don’t really sound a whole lot like what I PAID TO SEE AND HEAR. God dammit. Fuckshit.
For really though, by the end of the show I think Dolores sang about half of each song, and the crowd sang the other 2/3rds of the time. Good times in math class. I feel like I’m about to go on a tirade…but I will save you from this by taking a step towards the fire escape and breathing deeply…
So as I was listening to the crowd sing all my favorite songs, songs like “Ode To My Family” and “Zombie,” I realized that I just may have had a better time listening to the complete Cranberries catalog on last.fm rather than subjecting myself to this, but alas, I was redeemed. The band absolutely CRUSHED their song “Salvation” for us before departing back stage to talk about what other songs they might play off of “To the Faithful Departed.” I don’t think they delivered, though we were treated to a Dolores O’Riordan original with “Lunatic.” That was actually pretty cool with just her singing in the spotlight…it almost made me cry…
I said ALMOST.
By the end of the encore (and it was a kick-ass encore) we were wondering what smash super-hit of the 1980’s, 90’s, and today they were going to close with. I mean, when I walked in I thought for sure that I had it pegged with “Zombie,” but no, they fucking played that already. They opened with “Linger,” already hit us with “Salvation,” “Be With You,” “Ode To My Family,” and some other filler crap songs…so what are they going to close with?!?!? If you guessed it already you were either:
a.) at the show, at which point I would remind you that actually knowing the answer to the question at hand doesn’t count as guessing.
OR
b.) you listen to the radio too much and need to get a life outside of your car.
Either way, they closed with “Dreams.” Oh, and guess what? The crowd sang the whole song. I even saw dudes rocking out playing air-guitar to their chicks making rock-faces and singing the words like…like it was going to get them laid or something. I doubt it, but really, what do I know?
For more information on the Cranberries please visit their official website and tell them you’re from Scotland:
When shit gets all fucked, sometimes you just have to start over. Since this is the DEVIL’S BASEMENT, I thought it would be fitting to get rid of some people who are not the devil. Like everyone. Everyone except Monkey…because he writes a pretty good column of informative, unbiased articles on bands who suck balls. Beware those who pose…he’s a feisty one…
Maybe someday in the future there will be a guest writer or other such thing, but for now, you’re fucking stuck with me and my Monkey.
Heathens! I know I’ve been dormant for more than a moment…but I assure you I’ve been busy as busy can be searching out the very best of the Minneapolis Music Scene just for you. Aside from the overwhelmingly cool compilation album we’re putting together here at the Basement, we’ve been out in the wild watching…waiting…and listening…
…but…
Listening to who?
Well, Uzza, the Poor Weather Club, and NLX, that’s WHO!!
The night was a nice one, clear skies, no rain to speak of, and hardly any vagrants, save for the occasional hooker on the sidewalk. It was October 16th, 2009 to be exact, and the place was Eclipse Records, one of our favorite venues to lurk around.
The day began with a short trip to guitar center after picking up NLX (from NYC) at the Minneapolis/St. Paul International House of Airplanes. The threat level was orange, and quite obviously the Department of Defense had no idea what was about to be unleashed upon the Twin Cities in just a few short hours.
First to hit the stage, Uzza, pictured to the left and above, mauled us with their brand of operatic, rant-happy rock and roll. Certainly the heaviest act on the bill, Uzza carved out their time at Eclipse with the sheer essence of anxiety that their lead songstress sings so eloquently of. Songs of suicide by dive, and seething commentary on the state of the collective consciousness of the general public brought us all to stand at attention while Uzza reminded us to be careful with our H1N1, and to watch the god-damned television.
Guitarist Chris brought the shred when he got out the most metal guitar I’ve ever seen in my life for their song ‘Evil Thoughts.’ I stood and watched in awe like a boy holding a magnifying glass who has just found the will to kill by burning ants on the sidewalk of a suburban street in mid-July.
“I found out
What you’re all about
It took me a while
I have no doubt
I could easily wipe you out.”
-UZZA.
Now that we know we can be easily wiped out…let’s mope for a moment. S.A.D. anyone? That stands for ‘Seasonal Affective Disorder,’ and if you’re one of the losers that needs something to constantly be wrong with you so you can beg for attention then I hope the sun never shines in your world again. Ever. Pull the trigger.
On that note, the boys in Poor Weather Club got together to see if they could remind us what it sounds like when thunderstorms and rainclouds sound more like a symphony than any sort of impending demise. Drum machines are pretty cool little devices if you know enough to make them do stuff…but they turn out to be violently AWESOME when you couple them with a guy like Matt Lily of PWC. I don’t think anyone in the room expected to hear the sounds he made come out of that table of electronics. Simply magnificent, I tell you.
Throw in the driving guitars and howling, haunting vocals of Christian Thaddeus Petty alongside a lock-step but spacious bass-captain named Cody Bourdot and you’ve got the innovation in music that Minneapolis should be known for on a National scale. Fuck the scenesters, fuck the hipsters, this is what emotion in music truly is. This is what I want to see when I get out to a show. Make me believe you when you sing. Make me believe you mean it.
The Poor Weather Club made a believer out of me.
I believe that when they step up in the club, they make it rain.
So, remember if you will, I have recently picked up one ‘NLX’ from the airport. She came all the way from New York City to play a couple of shows here in the Twin Cities. I made sure to inform her that all of you people here totally suck, and that it wouldn’t be worth her time, but for some reason she was insistent on making the trek.
After the two opening bands cleared the stage, she quietly set up her gear and sat down in front of her keyboard to begin the process of winning over the eager and expectant crowd.
Natasha, we regret to inform you, we’re going to adore you.
I have never seen an artist more comfortable when speaking to a crowd. Natasha speaks to the crowd as if they, as a whole, are just a good friend waiting in the fray to listen when she wants to talk. In between songs we were laughing along with her, enjoying to no end her witty comments on the songs that she played to mesmerize us all to great length.
I’ve been a devoted fan of NLX since I happened upon her unique hallmark of Dark Pop all the way back when the US economy was booming and we were all still overspending to our heart’s content. My interest was piqued when I listened to the underlying quality of her recordings, but I was drawn in by the simple ability of her vocals to become the most familiar thing I’d heard, easily adapting them to my own experience, though all the while knowing full-well they meant something bigger, and came from places I knew nothing about.
She brought all those places, all those big things she sings about, and laid them out for us in true artistic fashion at Eclipse Records on this night that wasn’t even near being over. I think I speak for everyone when I say, “Thanks for coming to our town!”
Well…maybe not the owner of the Love Doctor Sex and Candy Store:
By the way, that’s not the owner sitting there on the curb. It’s just some random hooker we happened to pick up at sometime during the course of the evening. It’s probably not even worth mentioning, I mean, she could be dead tomorrow for all we know…
HAPPY DEVIL’S NIGHT EVERYBODY!!!!
Get it started right and support independent music:
As I mentioned in the original article I posted about Venus and the crew back in June of ‘09, it’s not always about the uniqueness of the visual aspect of this artist. No, it’s the whole package, the live performance, the flawless execution in the studio, the pretty glam influence, the lights, the sounds, the everything.
When it finally sunk in last June at the Bedlam Theatre in Minneapolis, I questioned whether or not it was even worth my time to approach an artist with this much clout in a scene like the one we have here in the Twin Cities. In fact, a few naysayers told me point-blank that I would be laughed out of the room for even asking if she’d be interested in lending her music to this compilation which, at the time, was in the very beginning stages of formation.
First to hit the stage, Uzza, pictured to the left and above, mauled us with their brand of operatic, rant-happy rock and roll. Certainly the heaviest act on the bill, Uzza carved out their time at Eclipse with the sheer essence of anxiety that their lead songstress sings so eloquently of. Songs of suicide by dive, and seething commentary on the state of the collective consciousness of the general public brought us all to stand at attention while Uzza reminded us to be careful with our H1N1, and to watch the god-damned television.
