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Music Navigator |
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The Hessier Kings, also known as Everclear |
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Spins of the Week: Ida, Ten Small Paces (Simple Machines)--This New York quartet's new album features one of the best-chosen and well-executed covers I've heard, a bouncy Casio-and-guitar version of Brian Eno's "Golden Hours." Magoo, The Soatemeric Sounds of Magoo (Beggars Banquet)--Andrew Rayner's emphasis on cryptic lyrics and otherworldly melodies recalls Syd Barrett as he leads his band through 23 brave new Brit-pop experiments. |
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Three local bands considered to be among the best in their genre played in Portland on successive nights last week, and in their own way, each proved worthy of its national reputation. Jessamine, which has only performed a few times in town since moving here from Seattle last year, opened for Sonic Boom's Spectrum Thursday night at Satyricon. The quartet has earned high marks for the Moog-drenched space-rock on its two albums for Chicago's esoteric Kranky label. The opening song at Satyricon incorporated two synthesizers, including those of guest Paul Dickow, and developed jazzy colorings over 10-plus minutes. During the final movement, Jessamine worked a guitar, drum, organ and bass jam around a motif similar to John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme." Guitarist/vocalist Rex Ritter then led the band into a brilliantly interpreted version of its song "Say What You Can..." from last year's The Long Arm of Coincidence. A droning Farfisa steered the melodically rich tune into an uncertain groove with a detached soulfulness reminiscent of Pere Ubu, then exploded into a bombastic guitar finale that seemed worthy of a light show, before winding down gently with a brief cameo by the band's other vocalist, bassist Dawn Smithson. While Jessamine seems on the tip of gaining wider recognition, Sleater-Kinney came to LaLuna on Friday night riding a wave of almost unprecedented media attention. Guitarist/vocalist Corin Tucker has complained of the media's eager intrusions and the rock press' exultation of the band as arbiter of some post-riot grrrl movement, but the trio has certainly benefited from the hype; Sleater-Kinney has become one of the few local bands that could attract a near-full house at LaLuna, as it did Friday night. Tucker, guitarist/vocalist Carrie Brownstein and drummer Janet Weiss flawlessly executed their dynamic message-pop songs, rocking the crowd early on with the title track from their latest, Dig Me Out (Kill Rock Stars), and sustaining the vibrant energy throughout one of the lengthiest sets they've played. Portland's most successful band in terms of record sales, radio airplay and all-around modern-rock stardom, Everclear, played a surprise gig Saturday at LaLuna. Billed as the Hessier Kings, the quartet opened the Sweaty Nipples' farewell appearance, even dedicating a cover of Kiss' "Sin City" to the disbanding Portland veterans. Everclear began its set with a recorded intro, which borrows liberally from the Beach Boys' harmony catalog before fading into the crunchy title track from its forthcoming third album, So Much for the Afterglow (Capitol). Guitarist/vocalist Art Alexakis, bassist Craig Montoya, drummer Greg Eklund and touring guitarist Steve Birch trotted out revved-up takes on 1996 hits like "You Make Me Feel Like a Whore" and "Heroin Girl," sprinkling in new tunes such as "Amphetamine" and the new single "Everything to Everyone." The band seemed sluggish at times in its first Portland show since turning up as an unannounced guest on a bill with Cheap Trick earlier this summer, but each time it lagged, Alexakis played off the uncertainty, adding a welcome rawness to Everclear's sometimes overly pronounced melodies and hooks. Toward the end, Alexakis launched into the chords from "Santa Monica," and the audience became ecstatic, singing along passionately as if the song were a barroom standard and bringing a smile to Alexakis' face. In other Everclear news, the band's forthcoming tour will begin Oct. 5 at the Los Angeles Hard Rock Cafe. From there, Alexakis and company will perform on Late Night with David Letterman the day of So Much for the Afterglow's release, Oct. 7, then beginning an unusual nationwide schedule of free in-store appearances. The tour hits Portland Oct. 12, when Everclear visits Music Millennium. Portland Postscript: The Dandy Warhols' media blitz continues. In the October issue of Spin, a two-page photo spread depicts Courtney Taylor and Zia McCabe pulling off their clothes over a caption that reads "Ready for their money shot." The Dandys also made news when their longtime cohort from the Bay Area's Brian Jonestown Massacre, Anton Newcombe, handed out copies of his band's latest mock-single, "Not If You Were the Last Dandy on Earth," during the CMJ music festival. The on-line magazine Allstar reports that the lyrics to the song, a parody of the Dandys' current single "Not If You Were the Last Junkie on Earth," make it unclear whether it's meant as a dig or a tribute. |
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