Issue 298 | Feb 2010

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Lolita: Rita, I heard you picked up another job. Someone told me you’re a receptionist. Rita: No, you misheard. I’m a receptarist. Lolita: Yeah, that’s what I said; only I took the cake out of my mouth before I spoke. Rita: A receptarist is a collector of recipes. I happen to know that KELLY DAVIDSON (photographer) and ERIC SCHMIDER (Mollycoddle) are also receptarists because they are gathering recipes for a Boston rock ’n’ roll cookbook. Lolita: Wait a second. Back in 1987 we were in MONIKA BOLINO’s Boston Rock ’n’ Roll Cookbook. Rita: Well, good recipes need to be recycles—just like good musicians switching bands. Now let's get to our little game of musical chairs—whose been fiddlin' with who... KARA TROTT (x-Fluttr Effect) has hooked up with INCUS. *** BRIAN VIGLIONE (Dresden Dolls) is hammering the drums in THE CLIKS from Ontario, Canada. *** With the departure of the Duke in FREEZEPOP, ROBERT JOHN “BANANAS” FOSTER (aka Seth Damascus-Kennedy) and MARIE SAGAN have joined Boston’s long running electronic pop group. *** MIKE LOCE (the Noise) and JAMES GAUDETTE (Johnny Carlevale & the Rollin’ Pins) have formed THE DOUBLENECKS. No, they don’t play doublenecks. *** STEVE FARMER and JEFF DiBIASE of DRUNKS DON’T LIE have a new band called BLACKBELT DYNAMITE. *** GENO JOHNSTON (Dead Friends) has been wielding the axe in REFUSE RESIST. *** MATTY SANDONATO (Scrapes) is playing guitar in the new line-up of GANG GREEN. *** JJ & THEE CUBAN HEELS are JJ RASSLER (guitar/ vocals), MIKE YOCCO (bass/ vocals), JEFF NORCROSS (drums) and JULIAN HAMMOND (guitar/ vocals). *** PETE WEISS (Weisstronauts) played GEORGE HALL's twangy guitar lines on EDDIE JAPAN's latest CD. George couldn't make it to the session so Pete pinch hit. *** BILL HINKLEY (Tree) is playing with NEVER GOT CAUGHT. *** THE STONE STRANGERS are BOBY BEAR on drums, GERRY BELLEGRADE on bass, BOB METZGER on guitar, and KENNY CHAMBERS singing and playing guitar. Lolita: So they’re a new band? Rita: Well, they’ve been around for three years, but we just noticed.

THREE CENTS

Lolita: In this issue our contributors list their top ten for any and everything having to do with local music. We’d like you to add your two cents to this list, or in this case, your three cents. Rita: Ahh, William, that’s a nice haircut. Give me your top three in any category having to do with music in New England. WILLIAM DWYER (Neon God): My top three favorite local guitarists are Sarah Cronin (Drug Rug), Mike Baldino (66 Breakout) and Elias Carlston (66 Breakout). *** MONIQUE ORTIZ (A.K.A.C.O.D./ Monique Ortiz): Best guitarists: (1) Jim Moran (Bourbon Princess/ Monique Ortiz), (2) Milo Jones, (3) David Champagne (Treat Her Right). *** GLENN MATTO (All Mod Cons): Top three local beers? Oh, local bands. Of all time or current? How about this... I’ll do my top three still active local bands. Number one I’d have to give to Vivian Darkbloom for overall strength of material and musicianship. Two, I’ll say the Mystery Tramps who have been around for a few years yet are barely out of high school—a lot of upside there if they can keep it together. Gotta give kudos to the kids. And third I’ll say Gibby & the Buzzkills because their first CD was a pleasant surprise and they are darn good people. *** JJ RASSLER (the Downbeat 5/ thee Cuban Heels): The most influential person, place, or thing in on the Boston music scene is DJ Maxanne Sartori, midwife to Boston rock ’n’ roll. *** CHRIS PEARSON (Ekranoplan/ x-Green Magnet School): My top three local CDs are Caspian—Tertia, the Beatings—Late Season Kids, and Junius—the Martyrdom of a Catastrophist. *** ERIC LAW (photographer): We lost a couple of very very dear friends—Ray Neades and Michael Scagliarini (New Frustrations) this past year. A day has not passed that I don’t think of you. Here is my list of people I miss a lot. Your music lives on forever in my heart and soul. Alpo, Barb Kitson, Matthew Mackenzie, Lou Miami, Ray Neades, Hugh O’Neil, Ben Orr, Jimmy Reject, Michael Scagliarini, and B. Wilkerson. *** JIM GERDEMAN (Mercy James): My top three full-length local CDs of 2009: (1) Sidewalk Driver—For All the Boys and Girls. (2) Logan 5 & the Runners—Featurette. (3) ME and JOAN COLLINS—Love. Trust. Faith. Lust. *** MARK LIND (Mark Lind & the Unloved/ Ducky Boys): Best bands: (1) Death & Taxes; (2) Far From Finished; (3) The version of the Shods that played at Amy Archer’s wedding. *** JOHN POWHIDA (the John Powhida International Airport/ the Rudds): Best karma, gig enhancer: Wayne Viens. Best $2 pints plus Police box set on jukebox: Punters Pub. Best houseguest: Nash Kato. Lolita: Now John, we asked for local music subjects and you’re talking about some dude from Chicago known for crooning Neil Diamond’s “Girl You’ll be a Woman Soon”—did you have some crazy gender bending sex with him? John: Lolita, I am surprised at you! Nash simply needed a pad to crash after our most fun Toad gig. I must admit that I am always a bit awestruck in Mr. Kato’s presence and enjoyed my brief platonic bromance that included smokes and late night drinks on my porch.

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Rita: While Lolita fantasizes about Powhida’s bromance, I’ll fill you in on what’s happening in February. The benefit for GAIL RUSH (Curve of the Earth) is at the Magic Room on Wednesday, 2/3. *** Boston’s number one garage band (so says Little Steven Van Zandt), MUCK & THE MIRES, play Church on Saturday, 2/6. *** Same night EMMY CERRA celebrates the release of Tinderbox at All Asia. *** Thursday, 2/11 is the date for the V-66 reunion party at Boston’s House of Blues. *** On Saturday 2/13, Shaun Wolf Wortis’s 17th Annual Mardi Gras Ball will feature the Vudu Krewe Allstar Mardi Gras Band and loads of special guests at T.T. the Bear’s. *** Same night ASA BREBNER releases his new CD at Precinct. *** Again on that same night JEDDO STARS are at the Baseball Tavern. *** JONATHAN RICHMAN has announced a new run of 27 shows with drummer TOMMY LARKINS—including three nights (2/16 to 2/18) at the Middle East upstairs! *** The 17th Annual Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball & Zulu Parade of the Golden Blade is at Johnny D’s on Friday, 2/19. The Ball is headlined by the CHICKEN SLACKS and hosted by the Great Mardi Gras Maggid, MICKEY BLISS. *** On Saturday, 2/20, GRAND EVOLUTION headlines Boston Garage Night at Unle Eddie's. *** THE VARMINTS bring old school rock back to the Cantab on Saturday, 2/27. Lolita: Remember, next month we do our annual online-only issue. Rita: That’s right, every March we save a tree by reaching out to you digitally. Hope to see you in the flesh before then.

RIP: PHIL HAYNEN (the Dawgs) died of cancer on 11/19/09.

RIP: RAY NEADES (Beefy DC/ Lard Zeppelin) died in his sleep on 12/14/09.

RIP: DAN SALZMANN (the Maps/ Art Yard/ Flies/ Christmas/ the Binoculars) died of a heart attack on 12/16/09.

OUR EYES ON YOU: Dec 2009

RE-GIFT

Lolita: Okay, December may be a cold month, but when else do people so readily buy you presents? You know, I could use a pair of Steve Madden Pandita boots, guitar-pick earings, Parigina over-the-knee pattern tights, and a Woolrich pink plaid cowgirl shirt. Rita: While you’re at it, I’ll take a boiled wool cardigan sweater and a pair of green suede clogs. But maybe we should be asking what other people want. Lolita: Yeah, that’s the downside of December. Think of all the wasted money on terribly inappropriate gifts. That’s why I readily re-gift. Rita: I like to craft my own gifts to give. This year I’m working on driftwood mirrors with seashells. Lolita: I hope the mirrors are looking better than last year’s fruitcake. Was there really cement in that recipe? Rita: At least I don’t re-gift band’s promo CDs to the same bands that release them. Lolita: It’s obvious to me that the bands must like their own music—I just want to make them happy. Rita: Let’s see what will really make people happy—ask your friends what they want for Christmas. And if they’re Jewish, ask them what they want for Hanukkah—and just be ready to substitute in Kwanza, Winter Soltis, Ramadan, or the Boston Tea Party.

CHRISTMAS RECEIVING

Rita: Look there’s Sleazegrinder—he’s writing for that British magazine—ask him what gift he’d like. Lolita: Sure! Sleazegrinder—what would you like planted on you this holiday season? SLEAZEGRINDER (Classic Rock Magazine): Cracktorch reunion. Or a Vincent Price shrunken head kit. Whichever is cheaper. *** JORDAN VALENTINE (Sunday Saints/ Brownboot): For Christmas, I shall require ten feet of sturdy rope, two chickens, ten pounds of baker’s chocolate, a Mandarin-to-Portuguese translator, and seven one-way tickets to Istanbul. Oh, and a new pair of cozy slippers. Thanks. *** BILLY BORGIOLI (the Varmints): The gift I want is a Varmints CD with the new line-up of Josh, Danny, and Fred. We have more than enough songs! *** BEN DEILY (Varsity Drag): All I really want is an M136 AT4 shoulder-fired rocket launcher… and a pony. *** LISA DEILY (Varsity Drag): Bail money. *** MATT JATKOLA (the Bynars): All I want for Christmas is Perfect Strangers: Seasons 1 and 2 on DVD. *** BUBBA GRIMM (Danse of the Macabre): As always there are many practical things that I could use for Christmas this year—clothes, money for my bills, gift certificates. However, I always want the most impractical thing out there. So what I want for Christmas this year is a framed autographed photo of Vincent Price (The Oblong Box) to match the autographed photo of Christopher Lee (Dracula) that I received last year from my fiancé. Lolita: Wow—Vincent Price actually carries some weight long after Halloween is gone. *** LANTZ BOYLES (Regressing to Apes): I would like to see the Dodge Street Bar & Grille stand as a catalyst for the North Shore music scene and for all of us to be successful. There are so many great bands that pass through here. *** LINDA VIENS (Angeline): For Xmas I would love plane tickets to someplace beautiful and exotic. *** PAUL ROBICHEAU (the Improper Bostonian): An iPhone on the network of my choice... okay, I’d settle for a new iPod. *** NANCY NEON (Noise/ Varmints mgr.): My ideal Christmas present would be a double bill of the Varmints and the Waldos starring Walter Lure of the Heartbreakers in NYC, Boston, and Worcester. Talk about guitargasmatic! *** RODRIGO VAN STOLI (BrownBoot/Noble Rot): I want a tailored suit, an office bar with lots of vodka and a busty secretary screening my calls. Yes, for Christmas, I want to be Don Draper from Mad Men. Hold the disgruntled wife, please. *** ALLAN SHEINFELD (ROY SLUDGE): February. Lolita: That’s so thoughtful of you, Alan— you want to skip right over January because you know the Noise isn’t published between Christmas and February.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

Rita: That’s a good thing to remind people. This issue of the Noise covers both December and January—so look for our next entertaining Top 10 issue in February, 2010. Lolita: Wow. That’s really moving into the future with a number like that. Rita: Yep, the future keeps coming, but all we have to do is live in the present. Lolita: That reminds me of when my old rich boyfriend bought me a house for Christmas—I was definitely living in the present. Rita: While Lolita baffles us with her consciousness, or lack of it, I’ll deliver the news, even some international news—and it’s more important than anything you’ll hear on TV. PERSIAN BLUE’s drummer ZEKE was touring Malaysia with his band ZMP between Persian Blue gigs. *** AMANDA PALMER is selling out shows in Singapore. *** HO-AG toured a good chunk of Europe (Spain, France, Netherlands, Luxembourg) in November. *** RAZORS IN THE NIGHT has a 7” single clear vinyl single that is splattered with red (blood) released in Germany. *** RICK HARTE has been stuck in re-issue mode with releasing the MISSION OF BURMA catalog to Matador, doing the music for Burma’s DVD, reissuing BIRDSONGS OF THE MESOZOIC material on Cuneiform, doing JOHN FELICE’s Pretty Nothing CD for Norton, and the current release of THE NEATS on his own Ace of Hearts label. Without the reissuing and transferring the vinyl releases to CDs, Rick’s past work would be lost. *** In the “we forgot to give photo credit” category—last month we messed up on some of our favorite photographers. The photo of Mission of Burma was taken by BILL T MILLER; the one of Billy Conway was taken by WAYNE VIENS; and the photo of Susan Tedeschi was taken by T MAX. *** When RCA recording artist LANDON PIGG arrived in town to play the Paradise he put an ad in the Globe looking for musicians to sit in with him. Violinist CLARA KEBABIAN (Mr. Curt Ensemble) showed up at soundcheck and was picked to play on “Ghost” which will be included on a future record. *** Look at all the New England acts that have their music in the nationally released edgy teen feature film Sill Green—THE CURTAIN SOCIETY, FUTURE JOYNER, STEVE MAYONE, DJ KAZ GAMBLE, WAITING FOR SULLY, and ORANGE ISLAND. *** The Phoenix Media Group and Foxwoods are looking for the best new version of the Foxwoods theme song, “The Wonder of It All.” Big prizes are involved. Go to www.bethewonder.com and download the kit to get started. *** Plough & Stars celebrated their 40th anniversary in November. *** SHADY (the Noise/Pure Fiction) done knocked up Jill and the results, culminated on 10/27/09, was a 7 lbs., 12oz., 20.5-inch girl named Madeline. *** WILLIE ALEXANDER, JOHN POWHIDA, JAMES MONGOMERY and many more New England icons will be part of the Rock ’n Soul Holiday Concert benefit for the Music Museum of New England at the Regent Theatre in Arlington, MA on Sunday, 12/13. *** Boston Music Spotlight is holding a benefit for the Marine Toys for Tots Foundation on Thursday, 12/3 at Hennessy’s Hooley House. Featured bands are CASSAVETTES, SHADWELL, THREE DAY THRESHOLD, and TASTE. *** THADDEUS HOGARTH BAND celebrated its 10^th anniversary with the release of Live at Bose II: The DVD—a follow up to the award-winning Live at Bose. *** JOHN EYE got signed to H1 Massive and has already created three videos. *** New England Sports Network (NESN) made an offer to pick up SCOTT MATALON’s new reality TV show about a local Allston boxing club, Boston Boxing, with a Fit Students For Life charity program, and is offering prime airtime after the Bruins games. Lolita: Wow, Scott is an active guy, with a tattoo shop (Stingray Body Art), a band (Matalon), and a TV show! How does he juggle it all?

THREE IMPORTANT ATTRIBUTES

Rita: You know juggling is one of the most important attributes I need in a man. Lolita: I need one with lots of money or lots of talent. Rita: Let’s find out the three most important attributes people want to find in a perspective mate. Lolita: Okay, P.J., you heard the question—what you want in your perfect mate? P. J. O’CONNELL (P. J. O’Connell Explosion): (1) As the song goes, she must love how I love her; (2) she must love Fenway Park; (3) Forgiveness is her middle name. *** FRANK STROM (Noise): Black hair, Greek, and formerly pregnant. *** SARAH RABDAU (Sarah RabDAU and Self-Employed Assassins/ Ad Frank & the Fast Easy Women): I started to make a list of the three most important attributes, but it ended up being 15 points long. In summary, I’m a handful and there is only one—Peter Moore… but with more money. So, two points really. *** SUSAN EMERSON (Gloucester Music): Three things most important in a partner: (1) one who would be comfortable giving a gift from a second-hand store; (2) one who would take time to sort through my dusty bookshelf writing down a list of titles of a given author, then take it to a used bookstore to search out one not on the list in his hand; (3) one who would sit next to me on the floor by the Christmas tree and kiss my neck just below my ear lobe, even though I smelled like an Edmond Fallot blackcurrant French Dijon mustard. *** FRANK ROWE (Classic Ruins): My love must have a full, well-rounded body, a slim, graceful neck, and a wide, flat fretboard. *** AJ WACHTEL (Boston Gets a Grip): Easy question—for me the three most important attributes I look for in a woman are: first, she has to be blonde (and the collar should match the cuffs); second, she must be deaf; and last she must be dumb (I enjoy having a mute girlfriend but dumb as in stupid also works for me). Any interested woman who fit the bill may contact me through T Max. Lolita: Luckily T Max prefers blonds that are smart as a bell, like me.

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Rita: Do I hear a bell? Oh yes, it’s that dumbbell Lolita insisting that she’s the smartest thing. She’s not happy enough being gifted with a perfect body and healthy teeth and a collection of boots to die for. No—she needs to think she’s smart too. Okay, enough about my less fortunate half sister, on with the news about band members and their situations. WENDY MITTLESTSDT (x-Cyanide Valentine) is rehearsing with THE ELEVATOR DROPS for a big one-time-only reunion on Friday, 10/18, at Middle East Downstairs. *** SCRAPES include at least one member of GANGGREEN—and his name is WALTER GUSTAFSON (see our incoming mail section). *** WOODY GIESEMANN & FRIENDS includes WOODY GIESEMANN (Del Fuegos) on piano, JON COHAN on drums, RICHARD O’CONNELL on bass, with MIKE PYLE and PHIL KAPLAN on guitars. *** Out in Los Angeles there’s an x-Boston supergroup recording at MICHAEL EISENSTEIN’s (Letters to Cleo) studio—they’re called MATT BUNSEN & THE BURNERS, and consists of TODD SPAHR (the Cavedogs), AARON TAP (Paula Kelley), CRAIG MACINTYRE (Wheelers and Dealers), and MATT SILBERT (Seks Bomba). They promise a Boston show in 2010. *** Members of FAT DAY are in EXSAMWA. They’re not a very new band but we just noticed them. *** BROWNBOOT is JORDAN VALENTINE (Sunday Saints) on vocals, ROD VAN STOLI (Bang Camaro) on vocals, JIM ZAVADOSKI (the Damn Personals) on bass, MATT SULLIVAN (Cocked n’ Loaded) on guitar, and WES NARRON (Noble Rot) on drums. *** SEAN MORALES (bass) and MARCUS SKAPARS have formed the new rhythm section for DAVE CRESPO’S AFTER PARTY. *** BRIAN VIGLIONE (Dresdens Dolls/ Nine Inch Nails) is laying down drums on a BLACK FORTRESS OF OPIUM track titled “Unraveling.” He’s also playing with THE CLIKS on Saturday, 12/12, downstairs at the Middle East. *** ASA BREBNER, JASON KERN, JESSIE GRIFFITHS, and JAY JANNERY are THE BRAMBLE JAM from the White Mountains of New Hampshire. *** DOWNBEAT 5 have a new drummer in JEFF NORCROSS (the Weisstronauts). *** ROCKSTEADY SUPER SOUL REVUE consists of RIKKI ROCKSTEADY on vocals, DICK TATE (Slaves) on guitar, DUGGAN (x-Lost City Angels/ the Men) on bass, DAVE NORTON (the Men/ Victory at Sea) on drums, and ISSAC SUSSMAN on keyboards. *** ALEX NECOCHEA (Bang Camaro) has joined TOWNSHIP and made his debut appearance with the band at T.T. the Bear’s in November. ***BRITANICA has been invading the North Shore with their Brit tribute—members include TED SOLOVICOS (guitar/vocals), PETER TENTINDO (guitar/vocals), RICHARD MEADER (keys/vocals), ED McNIFF (bass), JIM SIMONIAN (drums), and TOM PASCHETTO (drums). *** JESSE GALLAGHER (Apollo Sunshine) is spinning for your ear enjoyment now under the name NIGHTTIME GALLAGHER. Catch him at T.T the Bear’s on Wednesday, 12/23. *** CORIN ASHLEY (the Pills) has formed the CORIN ASHLEY QUARTET along with BRIAN KING (Oranjuly) on piano, CORY HARDING (the Pills) on guitar, and MARR BURWELL (the Great Bandini) on drums. Lolita: Is that Brian King of What Time is it Mr. Fox? Corin: I believe this is a younger fellow who did some work with BLEU.

HEALTH CARE

Rita: What’s the most common question asked? Lolita: Do you want to come home with me? Rita: No. It’s “How ya doin’?” Lolita: I’m fine. How are you? Rita: My point is that the most common question is about the health of a person. Lolita: Okay, I’m a little sniffily. Rita: Let’s ask if people have any thoughts about healthcare. After all it is currently one of the most discussed topic in Washington DC right now. Lolita: Oh, did the swine flu break out big down there? Rita: Just get people’s opinions about health care. Lolita: Okay, but doesn’t everyone want to be healthy? Okay, I’ll ask the question. Evan, do you have any thoughts about health care? EVAN GAVRY (Three Day Threshold): I could sure use some! *** MICHAEL EPSTEIN (the Motion Sick/ Do Not Forsake Me Oh My Darling): I can’t even fathom why there are debates on whether or not health care should be made available to everyone. That should just be an accepted fact. The discussion and debates should be about how to make that happen. I’d even be willing to accept a 10-year implementation plan. *** DICK TATE (The Middle East/ Rocksteady Super Soul Revue): Yes I do! Birth control in the drinking water, take a pill to GET pregnant. *** CHUCK U. ROSINA (WMBR/WMFO): Thoughts about health care? If you don’t need it, the system works fine. All the Nay-sayers about single payer complain about government intervention between patient and doctor. But what do we have now? For-profit-insurance-companies intervening between doctor and patient. I’ll take the government over that any time. Let’s go Canadian style! *** WAYNE VIENS (Crown Electric Co./Valdez the Sinner): I think it’s fine if the government wants to help people who need health care, but I certainly don’t want them to tell me what, how, and where, to get mine, and to force me to get it from, of all places, our government. Just look at the VA. What a mess—and besides, it already seems so confusing. Just imagine when they get ahold of it. Sad to say, and it sure isn’t gonna be less expensive. *** JASON DUGUAY (Project Sound): When I think back at all the crap I learned in high school it’s a wonder that I can think at all. Though my lack of understanding hasn’t hurt me none, I can read the writing on the wall. *** TIM MUNGENAST (Tim Mungenast & His Preexisting Conditions): I was going to talk about the ’66 Marshall Super 100 I wanted for Christmas, but the name of my band behooves me to pass along a tip about healthcare: former Cigna VP Wendell Potter told Congress that the industry is “beholden to Wall Street,” and added, “I know from personal experience that members of Congress and the public have good reason to question the honesty and trustworthiness of the insurance industry.” What will happen to all that town hall rage when those trusting conservative dupes finally realize they’ve been played like violins? Lolita: I get it—you want a violin to play through the ’66 Marshall Super 100. Will you play for me?

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Rita: As Lolita tugs on another man’s heartstrings, I’ll tell you where we’ll be this month. THE RAGING TEENS throw a Holiday Hoedown at T.T. the Bear’s on Saturday, 12/5. *** Same night GENE DANTE & THE FUTURE STARLETS light up Church. *** On Tuesday, 12/8, AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER releases the One at the Loft in Harvard Square and will donate $1 for each CD sale to Children’s Hospital. *** FREEZEPOP executes their electronic pop at the Middle East Downstairs on Friday, 12/11. *** Same night FRANK BOOTH’S CAR releases their CD at the Dodge Street Grill. *** On Saturday, 12/12, THE VARMINTS explode at the Cantab. *** Boston area’s best songwriter, CHANDLER TRAVIS, does his Christmas Cavalcade benefit on Thursday, 12/17, at Johnny D’s. *** Friday, 12/18, has THE LIZ BORDEN BAND at the Cantab. *** Same night at Johnny D’s catch THE COACHMEN. *** It's also opening night for ULTRASONIC ROCK ORCHESTRA at the Regent Theatre (the show runs for three consecutive nights). *** THE KONKS bang it around at Great Scott on Saturday, 12/19. *** Same night in Haverhill, MR.E .FLOYD pays tribute to Pink Floyd at the Chit Chat. *** On Sunday, 12/20, HARRY & THE POTTERS host their fifth annual Yule Ball downstairs at the Middle East (doors at 5:00pm). *** Later that night FANTASY MIRRORS are smashing at Zuzu. *** Our favorite soul band, THE CHICKEN SLACKS, is at Johnny D’s on Saturday, 12/26. *** THE UPPER CRUST lets them eats cake on New Year’s Eve at Church. *** TIGER SAW plays Great Scott on Thursday, 1/7. *** SANS NOMENCLATURE, ANDERSON MAR’s new band is at the Cantab on Thursday, 1/14. *** On Friday, 1/22, GEORGETOWN FATS & THE GROWLERS play Uncle Eddie’s. Rita: Now go see a local band! Lolita: We’ll be back with our next issue in February 2010!

RIP: ALEX LOB (49) drummer and founding member of O Positive passed away on 10/20/09 from difficulties brought on by diabetes.

OUR EYES ON YOU: Nov 2009

WEATHER COMPLAINT

Lolita: I’d like to file an official complaint with the weather master. We did not get enough summer in 2009. Please see to it that that doesn’t happen again. Rita: You do know there is no real weather master. It’s not like there’s a Webmaster who controls weather. Lolita: I’m glad you mentioned that because I know I’ve been told it’s impossible, but right now I would like to predict the crash of the Internet in 2018. I figured I’d mention it to ensure that AL GORE is ready with a back-up file. Rita: Well, getting back to your original statement, let’s ask a question that everyone can relate to. Lolita: Like, will we get as much snow in the winter as we got rain in the beginning of the summer? Rita: There’s nothing like getting multi answers of “yes” and “no.” Those answers won’t really fill out our column very well. Lolita: Okay then let’s ask, do you sense that Rita is unpleasantly sarcastic most of the time? Rita: Calm down Lolita, and go find some nice people who’d like to tell you what they miss most about the warm weather. Lolita: Yeah, that’s a pretty lame question, but maybe I can dress it up by wearing a white bikini that shows off my tan while I ask the question. Rita: Great idea—look there’s Chuck riding his bike with his dog on his back—quick go ask him. Lolita: Right. I’m on it. Chuck—hey Chuck! Thanks for stopping. Could you tell me the one thing you miss about the warmer weather? And what’s your dog’s name? Chuck: Solo—wooof-woof.

MISSING THE WARMTH

Lolita: The real question you need to answer is what will you miss about the warmer months? Please feel free to include a description of my white bikini. CHUCK U. ROSINA (WMBR/WMFO): Swimming outdoors—which I do until mid-October. *** SUSANNA PORTE (the Cello Chix): Summer bird songs, especially that of the hermit thrush. It’s the purest, sweetest sound in the world. *** HOLLY BREWER (HUMANWINE): I won’t miss the warmer months because I’m outtah here until June. My winter hat is off to those who tough it out year after year. *** LINDA VIENS (Angeline): I will miss the way the warm air feels on my skin; it makes me happy when there is very little between my body and the atmosphere. *** GUY MENDILOW (Guy Mendilow Band): Aside from traveling, I’ll miss sitting on my porch, with the smell of hops and barley wafting from the brewery across the street, the sound of kids playing on their bikes, and a mug of tea to start the morning. JP summers, I miss you already. *** GLENN MATTO (All Mod Cons): Shedding clothing. Lolita: Isn’t my bikini small enough? *** JON MACEY (Fox Pass): Alas, dear friends, I will miss all things about warm weather. I do not function well at all in the cold and gray. I have often contemplated moving somewhere where it is sunny all the time, but, yet, I have always lived in Boston or New York. What does it mean? Where is the trap door? *** SARAH RABDAU (Sarah RabDAU & Self-Employed Assassins/ Ad Frank & the Fast Easy Women): My sanity. *** BOBY BEAR (the Greg Allen Complex): In a word, the WEATHER! *** D-TENSION (Los Wunder Twins Del Rap): I will miss walking up to hot chicks at the beach with my shirt off, belly-a-gigglin, hernia protruding, eating a choco taco and asking them out. They laugh at first, they even roll their eyes but then the charm kicks in and they often say yes. If I didn’t have game, I’d still be a virgin. Lolita: Well, I’ll miss seeing you on the beach too. And from what I remember, you are pretty gamey. Not one person mentioned my white bikini. What is this world coming to?

NEWS DE ROCQUE

Rita: While Lolita, flirts with her summer loves, I’ll dig up the news they always forget to include on TV. Citywide Blackout, an online local music radio show, airs every Thursday at 6:30pm on cyberstationusa.com. MAX BOWDEN is your host. *** GAVIN now hosts WZBC’s local show, Mass Ave & Beyond, Fridays, 5-6pm. *** MIKE PATTERSON and EMILY VIDES left SPRAINED ANKLES to take on a family project. On September 26, Dylan Shea Patterson was born. The project is going well. *** JUICE is doing an online local radio show to spotlight songwriters on juicerocks.com. If you want to be considered for airplay send a CD to Juicerocks, 41 Sawmill Road, Danville, NH 03819. Links to downloads will not be considered. *** October 4th has officially been named Mission of Burma Day by the City of Cambridge. *** BLACK FORTRESS OF OPIUM’s video of “Afyonkarahisar Battle Cry” will have its premiere showing in Boston on Saturday 11/7 at the Magic Room Gallery. *** AMANDA PALMER has been asked back to Symphony Hall. She’ll be there on New Year’s Eve with the Boston Pops, conducted by KEITH LOCKHART, backing her up. Lolita: That’s a pretty cool gig. There aren’t too many local musicians who could pull that off.

BAND RECOMMENDATIONS

Rita: I bet there are a lot of local musicians good enough to play with the Pops. I’m going to ask my friends what bands they would highly recommend—not for the Pops—just for anyone to see. Excuse me, Carl, what local band would you recommend? CARL BIANCUCCI (the Fighting Cocks): Without question, for me it’s the Upper Crust. Yeah, I know, the aristocratic schtick may have run its course at this point, but those songs still kick ass and their live show is always an event in my book. *** DUNCAN WILDER JOHNSON (x-Destruct-a-thon): Motherboar. If you’re into seriously brutal metal, do not pass go, go directly to a Motherboar gig. They’re finishing up their second full length right now! *** LIZ BORDEN (Liz Borden Band): My Own Worst Enemy—great band. I love the songwriting. Melodic yet edgy. Great lyrics and hooks. There is a darkness and a light quality to their songs. They must be good because they do not have a bass just two guitars and drums. As a bass player at first I found that disturbing until I heard them play. Their last CD was one of the best I have heard in a long time. Great people too. *** JOHNNY BLACK (Faster & Louder): Any combo with Al Sheinfeld, Billy Loosigian, or Duke Levine in it, specifically Alvis, Willie Alexander & the Boom Boom Band, the Coachmen, and the Dennis Brennan Band—with the Coachmen sometimes you get Al and Duke playing together. *** KRIS THOMPSON (Bobb Trimble/ Concord Ballet Orchestra Players): The great Prince Rama of Ayodhya has left town (sniff!) for Florida and the wide open road, but I’ve been digging Quilt and Mind Yeti quite a bit. Quilt’s new cassette might remind folks of a trippier version of Throwing Muses’ early demos. Mind Yeti (ex-members of B.E.A.R.D.) is blissed-yet-rocking improv space-rock. *** JASON DUGUAY (Project Sound): For local talent I would strongly recommend checking out any one of the eleven Chief Dr. Kooffreh records. His prolific lyrical insight and mastery of all things Casio and propane is truly a delight for the advanced listener. *** DREW KAZOO (the Sprained Ankles): The local band that I would highly recommend to anyone would have to be the Cam-peons—hands down. Not only do they cleverly incorporate just about every style of music known to man into they’re rock ’n’ roll, but they’re absolutely hilarious—oh, and they annihilate live! Miss this band at your own peril. *** ERIC BETTENCOURT (solo artist/ Giraffe Attack): Dominic & the Lucid. *** DAN WEBB (… & the Spiders/ the Cold Beat): I would highly recommend the amazing band Movers & Shakers. They are without a doubt my favorite group operating out of the Boston underground. Above and beyond the great songs, the aesthetic and ethic of the band is what I applaud most. They truly embrace the DIY ethos. They print their own shirts, record their own records, book their own tours, and manage to have a blast while doing so. They are fun and unpretentious, and will break you in half with the amount of heart that goes into what they do. That is why I love them so. *** SEAN MURRAY (Jake & the Jakes/ the Dubious Brothers): There are loads of bands that I could tell you to go see—like the Rationales, Brendan Boogie & the Best Intentions, Frank Booth’s Car, Trucker Mouth, Fox Pass, Girls Guns and Glory, the Luxury, 5 Point, Natalie Flanagan, the Brooklyns, the Dirty Truckers, Township, the Fighting Cocks, the Neighborhoods, the Gentlemen, Jenny Dee & the Deelinquents and so may more. There is no shortage of great recommendable bands! *** DAVID KIRKDORFFER (UNDO): I suggest inhabitants of our solar system should all go see Hooray For Earth. Lolita: I think Zortar will be very offended that he wasn’t invited.

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Rita: Speaking of the alien Zortar—the body that he inhabits (one of our writers), SLIMEDOG, is moving back to Massachusetts (from the West Coast). Slimey tried to make it out in L.A. but Zortar was allergic to palm trees and insisted that Mr. and Mrs. Slimedog return to New England. Oh, and I must say that Mrs. Slimedog is our top reviewer who is now publishing a magazine called the Beatle. She figured it worked with Rolling Stone. Okay, I know that that was very important information, so here now is the latest news you need to know about bands and their members. DESTRUCT-A-THON destructed on October 24 at the Midway. *** FULL BODY ANCHOR is made up of members of DARKBUSTER, DRAGO, BLUE BLOODS, RAGING TEENS, 007 CLUB, THROWAWAYS, and THE MARVELS. *** ERIC SCHMIDER’s MOLLYCODDLE played its last gig in October. That doesn’t mean Eric has stopped playing music. He still plays with the DAVE AARONOFF BAND and is doing a thing with JEFFERSON DAVIS (Guitarzan/ Phil Aiken Army). *** BRIAN VIGLIONE (the Dresden Dolls) is drumming with BLACK TAPE FOR A BLUE GIRL (from Brooklyn). *** PORT CHARLES QUINTET features CAM ACKLAND and DENNIS McCARTHY (both of the Prime Movers). *** THE STOMPERS reunite for their 32^nd anniversary as a big band with three background gals (the Stompettes) and a full horn section (the Tornado Alley Horns) at Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry, NH, on Saturday, 11/28. *** Noise writer from the past, MIKE BALDINO, heads up BREAKOUT 66 with ELIAS JAMES (baritone guitar/vocals), and BILL DWYER (drums/vocals). *** BOSTON BLACKLISTED is MICK KEDDY on vocals, TOM VESCE on guitar/vocals, BRIDGET MURPHY on bass/vocals, and DAN DURSO on drums. *** THE CHICKEN SLACKS enter a new chapter of their now eight-year history, as the band’s founder and leader, JUSTIN BERTHIAUME, is moving to San Francisco. *** DINTY CHILD (Sessions Americana) is fronting FUNKY WHITE HONKIES—a 27 piece band—if you don’t count the “contributing kickin’ players.” *** BIG CITY ROCKERS include TOM HAUCK and FRED PINEAU (both of the Atlantics). They’re playing at Church on Friday 10/20, part of the International Pop Overthrow with PASTICHE, ANDY PRATT, FOX PASS, THE STOMPERS, and more. *** UNDERWATER AIRPORT includes PETER SPELLMAN and RUSSELL LANE (both on drums), JIM WHISENANT (bass and Chapman stick), ED BLOMQUIST (guitar), LYNDA STEPHENS (sax), and MARC LISLE (projected visuals). *** ROBERT PALMER ROBERT PALMER is CHRIS COTE (Upper Crust/ Rock Bottom) and JOHN POWHIDA (…International Airport/ the Rudds) and other members of THE NEIGHBORHOODS, INVISIBLE RAYS, and DAMN PERSONALS. Lolita: Is this a tribute band? Rita: Why would you even think that?

FAMILY TALES

Lolita: Hey, Thanksgiving is coming up. Rita: Yeah, I wonder if Dad will show up for dinner. Lolita: Well, my mother invited him. Rita: Then you know my mom won’t show. Lolita: If you can figure out how Rita and I are related, you can win a banner on thenoise-boston.com and thenoiseboard.com. The first correct answer to reach T Max ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ) wins the banner for a week. Now, let’s find out something about other people’s families. Rita: Hey Rick, tell me something about your family. RICK BERLIN (himself): My sisters fried up a can of Alpo and told Dad it was corned beef hash. Plopped some over easy eggs on top—a morning hangover breakfast surprise. Dad loved it. Ate the whole thing. Best he’d ever had. Never told him. *** IAN ADAMS (solo): I am 13th generation American Adams. My 11th great grandfather was the Patriot Samuel Adams. John Adams, the second President, was 11th great grand uncle. My great great grandfather Alvin B. Adams died at Andersonville Prison in the Civil War, at which time his brother Franklyn married his Narragansett Indian wife Lydia, who canoed up from Rhode Island through the Hockamok Swamp. My son is named after his great great Grandfather Zepherin, who was one of Teddy Roosevelt’s Rough Riders. *** JOHN POWHIDA (…International Airport/ the Rudds): Well, this year my brother is not speaking with my mother or my grandfather so I’ll hang with all of them at different times there in Albany, NY. *** ANDERSON MAR (Dark Sky Productions/Paul Green School of Rock): My biological family (staunch business people with no inclination toward the arts whatsoever) is still waiting for me to give up playing rock star and go to law school; hence I consider the Industry my true family nowadays. *** ERIC WELSH (ChillHouse Studios): During Thanksgiving my family pulls out the shotguns, crossbows, and rifles and we start shooting wildlife that is overpopulated—mostly deer because it’s deer season. We eat what we kill, otherwise I wouldn’t take part and I personally refuse to shoot anything that I will not eat. *** JIM GERDEMAN (Mercy James): I have no relatives living within 800 miles of here. But Thanksgiving still has a real family vibe to it thanks to my great wife and kids. Usually bake a pie. Maybe even jam a little with the kids (debut album coming 2014). And then it’s all about not electrocuting myself on aged Christmas lights. Definitely better than my first holidays in town eating Chinese food alone and freezing my ass off. *** CRAZY EDDIE NOWIK (Bentmen): When I was at Revere High School my dad and I would wake up every Thanksgiving morning, head down to the local bar, and get trashed before the high school football game. We would lose big time! Then over to eat the Thanksgiving Day meal! Then fall asleep during the Detroit Lions game! EVERY YEAR! Ahh... the magic of triptafen. *** NICOLE TAMMARO (Nicole Tammaro Photography): The Tammaro-DiPietro family has been a fixture in the cities of Somerville and Cambridge for over 60 years. My father was an altar boy at St. Joe’s in Somerville doing Masses back when they were in Latin. My mom grew up in East Cambridge, attending Ringe & Latin back when the school was separated—boys in one school, girls in the other. I grew up in Somerville with my two brothers and one sister, when Somerville was a blue color town and when you went over your friends houses after school, most of their parents didn’t speak English, or had an Irish brogue—these are the early years. I will wait for another Noise question for more Tammaro stories. Lolita: I wonder if Nicole will release a book of stories on her family. Rita: It would be a good companion to her Abbey Lounge 2006-2008 book of photographs.

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Lolita: Okay, it’s time to go out. Get your butt off the couch and socialize. Find out who’s creating music you want to hear and which bands have a following of folks you’d like to meet. It’s all about the community. Rita: Here’s where you can find us in the beautiful month of November. NIGHTTIME GALLAGHER (Apollo Sunshine) spins on Monday, 11/2, at Zuzu’s Night of the Living Deadhead. *** DEAD FRIENDS (old school hardcore) release their CD at the Middle East on Friday, 11/6. *** LOVEWHIP invites you to pray to the god of new wave—at Church on Thursday, 11/12. *** Friday, 11/13, STATIC OF THE GODS release their CD at the Middle East upstairs, while THE NEW COLLISIONS release their CD downstairs. *** CRAZY DC (AC/DC tribute) rocks Uncle Eddie’s on Salisbury Beach on Saturday, 11/14. *** There’s a CD release celebration for CHANDLER TRAVIS PHILHARMONIC at Johnny D’s on Thursday 11/19. *** NANCY NEON throws a party at the Cantab with THE PORT CHARLES QUINTET headlining on Saturday, 11/21. *** ANDY PRATT is at T.T. the Bear’s on Sunday, 11/29. *** HUMANWINE plays every Monday in October at Great Scott. Lolita: We’ll be looking for you to show up and keep us warm. Rita: Support your favorite local band—and we’ll promote them. Lolita and I will return in December with a double issue!

OUR EYES ON YOU: Oct 2009

ELVIRA & THE CRAWLING HAND

Rita & Lolita: Rita and Lolita from Georgetown, Massachusetts, at your service. Rita: We’re all settled into our new office now. We have a desk, filing cabinet, shelves, lights… Lolita: …including two lava lamps… Rita: …a fliptop Ampeg amp… Lolita: …we need to rehearse between paragraphs… Rita: …and a variety of birds that sing on the hour, every hour. Lolita: That’s our clock. Rita: We’re ready to deliver an outstanding Halloween column to you at this very moment. Lolita: I’m putting on my costume right now—don’t try to look around the page to see me half undressed. I need privacy while I transform into Elvira. Rita: I, on the hand, have a very creative costume. I AM the crawling hand. Did you ever see that one? Lolita: Was that you up my thigh on my last Match.com date? Rita: No! I mean the 1963 film about a hand that is able to live on it’s own. Lolita: Wow, does he have his own apartment and pay the rent? Rita: No! It was the detached hand of an astronaut whose mission was aborted and his hand was found in the wreckage that fell back to earth. Lolita: Oh, so he had to give up his apartment. Wait a second—does that mean that you are going to sever your body from your hand? Rita: No, my whole body will be one big severed hand. Lolita: That’s got to be one of the worst costume ideas I ever heard. Rita: Well, remind me to skip any treats for you. I’m placing you on my trick list. Hey, that gives me an idea for our Question of the Month. Lolta: Right. Are you going to ask, what’s the worst idea you ever had for a Halloween costume? Rita: No. Let’s ask some local musicians to tell us about Halloween tricks. Lolita—look! There’s your favorite Barnie. Quick—go ask Pete. Lolita: But I don’t quite have my push-up bra adjusted correctly—you think Pete will mind? Rita: Just go find out about his experiences with tricks!

TRICKS NOT TREATS

Lolita: Excuse me, Pete, have you ever given or received a Halloween trick? And I don’t mean what I offered you last October 31. PETE SUTTON (Barnies/ Temper): There was this bastard who lived on my street growing up... kind of like Roger Kaputnik from the old Mad magazine days. Every year we’d go trick or treat and he’d always answer the door and bark “Trick!” He’d laugh, give us something shitty, like an apple, which we’d promptly whip back at this house later on in the evening. *** GLENN WILLIAMS (Chill Groove/ Low Budget Records): I can’t believe I’m going to admit this, but when I was a kid I was actually invited to a Halloween party that didn’t exist—invitation and all. Ouch! *** DICK TATE (The Middle East/ the Rocksteady Super Soul Revue): One Halloween as a teenager, my mother gave me $10 to buy candy for the tricker treaters since she was going to be away that night. I bought a dime bag and put a sign on an empty basket outside my front door that read: “On your honor take one.” Amazingly, my house was not egged. *** JEFF BREEZE (Concord Ballet Orchestra Players): My senior year in high school I went out trick or treating with friends. We didn’t go door-to-door; we went out as vigilantes taking candy from the bullies that were stealing it from little kids and giving it back (minus a few 3 Musketeers). *** BRIAN KING (What Time Is It, Mr. Fox?): When I was about 12, my cousin dared me to stand in front of the bedroom mirror, say "I hate you Bloody Mary" and then light the candle she had placed there. Little did I know she had sprayed Aqua Net hairspray on the mirror. When I lit the candle and a quick blue flame engulfed the glass for an explosive second, I screamed like Diamanda Galas. *** ANDY MILK (The Vital Might): I was tricked last year by a cab driver downtown. In chilly weather, and dressed in Reno 911 short-shorts, we hailed down a cab after about an hour. When we said, “We’re headed to JP,” he told us to get out because he didn’t know how to get there. Now, THAT’S a trick! *** WILL DAILEY (Will Dailey): My first Halloween in a new town I went out trick or treating with Quang Ngyuen. Quang and I planned to egg other eggers, except when leaving my house with my four eggs in my jacket pocket, the screen door slammed on me and smashed all four eggs that ran down my side and destroyed my nurse’s uniform. Lolita: No, it didn’t fully destroy your nurses’ uniform—I retrieved it from your trash and gave it a thorough washing. Now I use it whenever I dress up to play doctor.

GENUINE NEWS

Rita: While Lolita, I mean Elvira, changes into her nurse’s uniform, I will read the latest news about real people—not the fake ones that are made up in corporate magazines and newspapers to make you think you really know what’s going on in your neighborhood, state, country, or the world. And did you ever notice that their news is always bad—the latest fire/ accident/ rape/ murder/ or maybe even someone caught with pornography on their computer! Excuse me; I just had to purge the excreta building up in the pit of my consciousness. Back to our healthy community news: JOHNNY BLACK (Johnny Black Trio) is getting married next June and has LOVE BOMB with ROBERT HOLMES (x-’Til Tuesday) playing the reception. *** STEVE FOLSOM (Jamspot) roamed for couple of weeks through Glasgow, Liverpool, London, Dublin, Gothenburg in Sweden, and Tromso in Norway (which is above the arctic circle) to mix BRIAN WILSON’s Summer Greatest Hits tour. While in Dublin he saw IZZY MAXWELL (Count Zero/ Death of the Cool) on TV being interviewed about the Beatles Rockband. *** NICK BLAKEY (the In Out) was in the hospital for 11 days with Crones. A benefit for him was held at Church on 9/6. *** JEFF ROYDS hosts Boston Garage Bands’ Halloween party on Saturday, 10/24, at a new club in Worcester—the Raven (251 Pleasant Street). *** PETER TENTINDO (Britanica) won the Danvers store finals in Guitar Center’s King of the Blues contest. *** Lolita: Congratulations Peter, and good luck moving further up in the competition. Okay—time for my observance of something that’s bugging me. Why was ICE CREAM SOCIAL the band that was asked to headline on International Talk Like A Pirate Day? Shouldn’t they have been featured at an ice cream fest? And why didn’t the pirate-talking-people approach BOSTON JOLLY PIRATES or Boston’s favorite bunch of swashbucklers—the SCALIWAGS? Okay, that’s all I have to say—I’m done. Rita: I’m glad you got that off your treasure chest. Now, Lolita, will you come up with a good question of the month that will get some decent answers. I have to run off to my speak-like-a-pirate lesson.

LOLITA’S DEBUT QUESTION

Lolita: Wow, this may be the first time that Rita has ever let me make up a Question of the Month without her assistance. Since I’m already in my nurse’s outfit, I’ll ask all my friends (my make believe patients) to give me their symptoms, and I’ll give each of them a diagnosis—free of charge. Hey! Evan—you look a little hung over—what are your symptoms? EVAN GAVRY (Three Day Threshold): Every once in a while I wake up in a cold sweat, with a headache and stomach pains. It’s usually after a Three Day Threshold gig. I think someone told me once it’s called the Irish flu, but WebMD doesn’t have any information on it. What do you recommend? Lolita: I’m glad you brought this up. Tell that diseased Betty O’Sullivan that you’re not a trampoline and you don’t enjoy being hit in the head with an ice hammer. If she cooperates, you should recover in a couple of weeks. If not, I recommend that you come to my clinic whenever you think she’s following you home. I will give you a free examination—I need someone to practice on with my scalpel anyway. Rita: Sorry, I forgot my eye patch. What’s this? Is Evan’s answer the only one you got? Lolita: I don’t understand. I tried to look really good to attract a lot people. I thought I was doing fine. I had a line that stretched from Mark Sandman Square to the EMF building—but when Evan ran away from me screaming, the entire line disbursed. Since I have no more answers maybe I can share with our readers that I’ve been enjoying open mics lately. They are all over the place. If you are running an open mic, invite us to it and we'll give you a plug. Rita: Are you expecting something in return? Lolita: Well, maybe I can just get up and sing. Rita: Well, isn’t that what’s supposed to happen at an open mic?

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Lolita: I’m through being a nurse. I want to be a flapper now. I like doing the Charleston. And while I dance, Rita will update you on new bands, new members, and reunions of bands. Rita: That’s right. If your band recently got a new member, let us know. Here’s what I got—THE ODDS featuring JJ RASSLER (x-DMZ/x-the Queers/the Downbeat 5) and PRESTON WAYNE (x-DMZ/ Preston Wayne 4) reunited after a 20-year rest on 9/12 at Precinct. *** We failed to mention last month that RICK BARTON’s new band, CONTINENTAL, includes his son STEPHEN BARTON on bass. *** The members of STARS CRASHING CARS are DEREK SCHANCHE (Señor Happy), PAT EMSWEILER (the Sterlings/ Space Shots), and TOM POLCE (Señor Happy/Letters to Cleo). *** THE DOWNBEAT 5 has picked up drummer JEFF NORCROSS (Weisstranauts/ Paula Kelly) and they’ll be coming back with a whole lot of new material. *** JOSH LATTANZI (Jen Trynin/ Señor Happy) joined the TINTED WINDOWS’ touring band. *** VOODOO SCREW MACHINE has added a new second guitarist, MR. B. TALLS. Catch his debut with the band on 10/10 at the Dodge Street Grill. *** The band EDITH is now known as THE VIVS. *** ERIN HARPE and JIM COUNTRYMAN (Lovewhip) have formed a new group around Erin’s acoustic blues called ERIN HARPE & THE DELTA SWINGERS. *** BARRENCE WHITFIELD & THE MONKEY HIPS feature AL SHEINFELD on guitar, JIM HAGGERTY on bass, TAURAS BISKIS on drums, MARIO PERRETT on sax, and of course, BARRENCE WHITFIELD on vocals. *** JJ RASSLER (the Downbeat 5) has a new project that he was going to call MONKEYLAND, but felt it was encroaching on Monkey Hips. So, even though they haven’t settled on a name yet, they’ll be debuting sometime around Christmas. Lolita: This is our Halloween issue. We’re not allowed to mention Christmas yet. Rita: But it involves monkeys. They could be those scary flying monkeys and they make me think of Halloween. Lolita: They are not scary—you probably could just throw water on them and they’d melt.

THE SCARIEST

Rita: Lolita, sit back in the land of Oz and watch a professional gossip columnist ask a proper question of the month. Gary, and the rest of you waiting on line outside the Middle East, would you please tell me about the scariest situation you’ve ever experienced. GARY WALEIK (Big Dipper): My stereo broke and I couldn’t listen to Pink Flag, Forever Changes, the Quality of Mercy is Not Strain’d, or the Kinks Are the Village Green Preservation Society for weeks. *** RICK BERLIN (on his own): Bahamas. College. 21. Slalom water skiing off the beach where Goldfinger was being shot. A gigantic white shark follows in my wake, fin like a sail out of water, close. Scary close. I realize this when the guy in the boat waves his arms in panic. I lean in towards the shore, skim into shallow water and skid up onto the sand heart in mouth. Shark slithers back out into the dark deep. *** CARLENE BAROUS (Carlene Barous/ Temper): The scariest situation I’ve ever been in is when a trusted person in the teaching profession kept me back in his office after hours, and continued to try to keep me there after much ado. I talked my way out of it, and once out the office, ran! And I was never so happy to see the silly little Ford Ranger my Dad had lent me, which started up immediately. This was my first get-away car for sure. *** ERIC WELSH (Chillhouse Studios): I went deep-sea fishing for shark and the boat caught on fire and sank about 15-plus miles out. Smoke started coming out of the fishing pole holders and the captain therefore opened up the bottom area where the life jackets were located and a bomb of smoke hit him in the face as he opened the door, like a back-draft. After many attempts with closed eyes, he was able to grab enough life jackets for everyone and we eventually jumped off the stern into an icy ocean. A boat picked us up before the coast guard arrived. *** IAN ADAMS (Ian Adams): Years ago I lived in an apartment on Hillside Street in Mission Hill. One night my girlfriend and I were awakened by the bed shaking so violently that we thought there was an earthquake, until we realized that nothing else in the room was moving. The whole incident lasted about five minutes. The next day we asked the housemates if they felt anything and they said “no.” After that we never slept in that bed again, and moved out within a week. Poltergeist? I dunno, but it freaked me the fuck out. *** KAREN DeBIASSE (Girl On Top): When I was very young we had company staying over and I was assigned a mattress on the floor by the front door. I couldn’t sleep that night for some reason—intuition. All of a sudden I heard footsteps approaching the door and then boom—the door kicked in, swinging back and forth from the force, and then footsteps running away. What the heck? *** ERIK LINDGREN (Birdsongs of the Mesozoic/ Arf Arf Records): While running audio at a video studio during a shoot in the early ‘80s, I briefly fell asleep at the mixing board and immediately woke up when the producer dug his fingers into my shoulder and said in a hushed voice “You fucked ... you fucked up...). The scariest part was that he was an ex-Marine and I thought he was going to kill me on the spot. *** FRANCIS DiMENNO (Wrong Hero/ the Noise): On March 2, 2007, in a blizzard, I skidded out on the Mass Pike eastbound about 15 miles out of Ludlow. Even though I took evasive measures, I thought for sure I was going to hit the guardrail head-on. However, both the guardrail and my bumper were coated with thick ice, and through some accident of fate I only skimmed it. I’ve been in worse fixes, but I though for sure that this was going to be the end. *** RAY MASON (Ray Mason Band/ Lonesome Brothers): On February 23rd, 1970 the band I was in was approaching Atlanta for a gig when we were fired upon from a vehicle in the passing lane on the highway. The guitar player, who was sitting next to me in the back seat, was shot in the head. He miraculously survived. Definitely the scariest situation I’ve ever been in! Lolita: Woha! Did you determine why your band was shot at? RAY: We think it was because we had long hair. After the shots, the car floored it. It was dark so we didn’t get a plate number or description. We then got off the next exit to a gas station and called for an ambulance. *** GLENN MATTO (All Mod Cons): My scariest moment I’ll keep to the basics. I was a 20-year-old novice skier who found himself on Killington’s highest peak with a couple of friends. We seemed to have ignored the signs “expert skiers only.” Once off the chair lift, we were forced to negotiate our way down double black diamond trails with catchy names like Plummet and Back Breaker. In Spinal Tap terms, these trails were all elevens. I eventually gave up skiing... and golf (that’s a whole other story). *** RUBY BIRD (Bird Mancini): My scariest story actually led to a song. “The Other Side” (from the CD Funny Day) came to me shortly after a near-death experience in the ocean, as the currents were pulling me out to sea faster than I could swim back in. Strangely, I was calm while thinking, well, this is it, but became quite freaked out after I was rescued and back on shore. It was a long time before I could sleep well again. I’m forever changed and now look at life through more grateful eyes. *** CORIN ASHLEY (himself): Why, just last week I was up in New Hampshire and we took wee Harrison to a ski resort so he could do some of the activities. They had a wading pool and a trampoline and he loved it. For some reason, I thought it would be a good idea to take him on the chair lift (it was his idea), so my wife and I hopped on the ski lift with our boy and immediately realized that it was a truly terrible idea. For the next hour, we held onto our very squirmy three year old while we rode all the way up the mountain and all the way back, 60 feet in the air with nothing but that bullshit little pull-over bar to keep our only child from being dashed on the rocks below. I nearly shat myself. For real. *** SIMON RITT (the Darlings): The scariest situation I probably was ever was when I was held up at gunpoint while working alone, at night, at a Tenneco self-serve gas station in Central Florida. I don’t know who was more frightened, me or the robber, but after a brief struggle he was gone with 200 bucks in a black late model Buick Regal with red interior. Thanks to my level headedness and keen powers of observation the police apprehended him in near record time. He received a 27-year prison sentence. I quit the Tenneco and got a job at a record store. *** JAY ALLEN (… & the Archcriminals): Many years ago I was working the family business, a run-down, should-have-been-condemned, amusement park. An obnoxious real estate developer pressured us to close down and sell the property to him. My great Uncle Cap refused to sell. I was closing up shop one night when I heard some rattling and moaning. There was a legend regarding the haunting of this place, dating back to a Ferris wheel mishap where a couple of lovebirds had perished, but I has always dismissed as hogwash. The moaning continued until I thought I had seen the spirits of the two deceased. Scared the ever-lovin &^%* out of me. Later someone revealed to me that the “ghosts” were a hoax perpetrated by the scumbag developer. *** A.J. WACHTEL (speaking): I used to visit the Western Front regularly when I covered the scene. During the week it had reggae music and mixed crowds but on Sunday it was wall-to-wall Haitian and I would usually be the only white guy there. Once, the manager, Pam Sylvia, caught me and three new Haitian friends smoking herb out in the open and she “punished” us by locking us in the cooler with the lights off. There I was, in pitch black, with three angry Haitians bumping into me and all the cases of Red Stripe. I thought, “this could turn out ugly,” but one of them had a lighter, and I had my pipe, and then another discovered he had a can opener—so we continued to smoke herb and we opened up a few Red Stripes and waited about 20 minutes until Pam came back and opened the door. It was an odd situation and I WAS scared for a few moments. Rita: See, Lolita, that’s how to do it.

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Lolita: Last month JOHN KANAVOS won a banner on thenoise-boston.com and thenoiseboard.com by naming the reference used in the title of the final paragraph of our column. John’s answer was, “A Big Dipper song, and possibly the second greatest song ever written by a Boston band—the greatest being ‘Pancake’ by the Swirlies.” Rita: Now, if you’d like to win a banner, tell us which band reviewed last month had their show interrupted by the fire department? The first correct answer emailed to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it wins. Lolita: Now, here are the shows we think are worth your time and money… DIABOLIS IN MUSICA, our favorite 13th century band, is at King Richard’s Faire 2009 in Carver, MA, on Oct 17, 18, 24, and 25. *** MUCK & THE MIRES invade the Middle East upstairs on Friday, 10/9. *** The ultimate horror band, VOODOO SCREW MACHINE, spits up blood at the Dodge Street Grill on Saturday, 10/10. *** On Sunday 10/11, pray with THE BAGS at Church. *** Night of the Living Deadhead employs MARC PINANSKY (Township) at Zuzu on Monday, 10/12. *** We keep hearing good things about UKULELE NOIR. They’re at Johnny D’s on Tuesday, 10/13. *** LEO BLAIS opens the night at T.T. the Bear’s on Friday, 10/16. *** We'll meet you in Copley Square at 1:00pm on Saturday, 10/17, to protest against the war in Afghanistan and Iraq. The ralley will be followed by a march through the streets of Boston. *** JAKE & THE JAKES take it to Uncle Eddie’s in Salisbury on Saturday, 10/24. *** Same night AD FRANK & THE FAST EASY WOMEN celebrate their record release at Great Scott. *** On Sunday, 10/25, the subtle ANAL CUNT plays shy, downstairs at the Middle East. *** There will be two sneak preview screenings of Drive-In Horrorshow at the Studio Cinema in Belmont, MA—Friday, 10/30 at midnight, and Saturday, 10/31, at 1:00pm. *** NANCY NEON throws her Halloween party at the Cantab on Saturday, 10/31, featuring GIRL ON TOP. *** PIXIES play the Citi Performing Arts Center in Boston on Friday, 11/27, and Saturday, 11/28. Rita: Go see a local band this week. Buy their CD and T-shirt. It will mean a lot to them. Lolita: We hope you experience more treats than tricks.

OUR EYES ON YOU: Sept 2009

WE’VE MOVED

Rita: Lolita, where is the pencil sharpener? Lolita: I think it’s in the same box as my paper clips—somewhere lost in the move. Rita: Yes, we’re in our new office somewhere in Georgetown. Okay, we’re not really in our office yet; you see our office was rented to a religious artifact collector and we ended up in this moldy closet. Lolita: I never thought I’d say I was in the closet. Rita: I hope we get a light installed by next month. Lolita, call RANDALL GIBSON (Scruffy the Cat), I hear he knows how to make electricity work. And while you deal with him, I’m going to get ROCKY MORRISON (Reliable Construction) to put an addition on our closet. Rocky is single handedly cleaning up the Merrimack River. Google Clean River Project to see what Rocky has been up to. Lolita: Did you realize this is our 28th anniversary issue? I guess it’s hard to convince people we’re still 25-years-old when our column started 28 years ago. Rita: But the Noise is really about the rockers in New England, not us. So let’s ask a Question of the Month that focuses on them.

R&L294Varsity-Drag.jpg

YOUR ANNIVERSARY

Lolita: Oh I know a good question, how ’bout—if you had a choice, who would you like to go see a show with, Rita or Lolita? Rita: That’s terrible. Lolita: Why? Because everyone would pick me? Rita: Your ego is making this closet feel awfully small. Okay, you can ask that question—but you have to word it like this: the Noise celebrates 28 years of covering the music of New England and T MAX’s high school band, MR. TIMOTHY CHARLES DUANE, just celebrated 40 years of adolescence. Tell us about an anniversary that you have celebrated recently. Lolita: Okay, but that doesn’t sound at all like my question. Hey Mr. Curt! Will you answer that question that Rita just asked? MR. CURT (Mr. Curt Ensemble): In 2009, Ms. Donna and I celebrate 40 years as a couple of lovebirds. We had met the previous year and now the courting began in earnest. One of our first dates (which her parents had to approve) was taking her to the Boston Tea Party in May to see one of my favorite bands, the Who (with Rashaan Roland Kirk opening—whoa!). A few months later, I convinced her to venture to upstate New York to check out this outdoor festival called Woodstock. She and some friends had to go with older chaperones on Friday. We met up at 8:30am Saturday, sat around in the sun and rain, saw a buncha bands, and then she left because her chums thought there were a bit too many people there; my friends and I didn’t leave until late Sunday night. Thus began our life together dedicated to love and music. Yahoo and hooray for heritage! *** VALERIE THOMPSON (Goli/ Fluttr Effect): In the future (a.k.a. October), I will be celebrating my 20th anniversary of playing the cello. I’ll probably celebrate by having a beer and playing the cello. *** KEN FIELD (Revolutionary Snake Ensemble/ Birdsongs of the Mesozoic): August 19th was the 7th anniversary of the first broadcast of the New Edge, my weekly radio show of interesting instrumental music Tuesdays from 2-4pm on WMBR (88.1 fm). *** JOHNNY ARGUEDAS (Arguedas Photography/ the Sneaks): I am celebrating five years since I opened my photography business and can’t imagine doing anything else. Also coming up is the two-year anniversary of my band, the Sneaks. A new CD is in the works. Life is pretty kickass. *** DARRON BURKE (Makeshift Studio): Just yesterday (August 4) I celebrated one year of working for Harvard Audio Preservation Services. I ate a chocolate bar with sea-salt encrusted almonds. Salty goodness. Happy 28th to the Noise! *** TIM MUNGENAST (… & His Preexisting Conditions): Congrats on 28 years of the Noise! In June my wife and I celebrated our own anniversary... 17 years! *** D-TENSION (Los Wunder Twins del Rap): First of all, congratulations on 28 years! That has to be a record of some kind. I recently celebrated the 20th anniversary of my turning 18. Every teenager tells his parents that he/she will move out and do whatever they want when they turn 18. They start saying that at around 12 and don’t stop until they’re 18 when they realize they have no money and need to stay at home. But since my mom decided to raise me in a cult on a David Koresh style compound, I moved the fuck out minutes after turning 18. While I miss the gorp and being paddled by my pastor... oh wait, I only miss the gorp. Happy anniversary to me! 20 years gone! *** HOLLY BREWER (HUMANWINE): Happy Anniversary! On May 1st, 2009 M@ (HUMANWINE) and I celebrated six years of marriage by heading to the middle of the woods just outside of Eugene Oregon, taking mushroom tea prepared by a bunch of witches (handed out to about 400 people) for the Maypole ceremony. Luckily we successfully avoided a disco inferno dance party that was happening in the mess hall barn and got to spend some real time in the woods during a storm that was so massive it toppled trees in a neighboring town. *** CARL BIANCUCCI (the Slumlords): I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it’s (gulp!) 40 years ago this year that I started playing guitar (I switched over to bass the following year). Learned a few things from a songbook by some new group at the time called the Led Zeppelins (did they ever go anywhere?) *** SAMMY MIAMI (Houndstone): 2009 marks my twentieth year of gigging in Boston. A lot has changed since Tuesday nights at the Channel, and as far as I’m concerned, not much of that change has been for the better either. RIP WCOZ and WBCN. But hey, what goes up must come down, and what comes down must bounce back! “Long live rock, be it dead or alive.” *** PETER RINNIG (QRST’s): When my wife and I celebrated out 10th anniversary we went to Vegas for a week and renewed our vows in front of Elvis with our daughter as the flower girl! It really was Elvis—if you squinted really really hard. *** DANA COLLEY (Morphine): It’s been ten years this July since Mark Sandman passed away in Palestrina, Italy at the Nel Nome Del Rock festival (In the Name of Rock). Orchestra Morphine toured the U.S. and returned to Italy to pay homage in 2000. This July we went back as a trio with Jerome Deupree, Jeremy Lyons, and myself to perform as Members of Morphine. We were joined by our families: India Colley, Elias Colley, Kate Williams, Luciana Lyons, Lisa Deupree, Linda Veins, Sabine Hrechdakian, Carolyn Kaylor, and Mark Hamilton. Two film crews each doing documentaries on Mark and Morphine were in attendance. We spent the better part of a week at the festival, set at the base of the ancient town eating and drinking with our Italian hosts who have in the years following Mark’s death become our extended family. It is still hard to comprehend the loss we in Boston have experienced when Mark died. He was at the center of our musical universe. Much has changed in the world and in our lives in the past ten years. But what remains crystal clear is that our life riches are not compiled in dollar amounts. It is in the people who touch us and bring us closer together. Thank you Mark for the music you left us and for the relationships brought together by the intangible power of music. Lolita: Go to the Mark Sandman Memorial Concert on Saturday, 9/26 at Mark Sandman Square (on Brookline Ave. between the Middle East and T.T. the Bear’s)—the concert is free, but consider donating to the Mark Sandman Project.

NEWS

As the Noise was moving, WBCN stopped broadcasting and went on-line only. The fm frequency 104.1 is bound for sports-talk radio. SAL BAGLIO (Stompers) was quoted: Losing WBCN now is like losing a parent who has had Alzheimer’s. You really lost them a long, long time ago but at one time... Lolita: I’m sensing a pre-occupation with radio these days. Four different bands contacted us that use radio in their name—Radio Control, Radio Taxi, Gravity Radio, and Radio Riot. Rita: They must be trying to take the place of the Rock of Boston. But it seems like WZLX has the jump on them. Boston Emissions hosted by ANNGELLE WOOD debuted on its new home, 100.7 WZLX, on Sunday 8/16/09. *** To celebrate the opening of their season, fourteen Boston Symphony Orchestra members ran a 150-mile relay from Symphony Hall to Tanglewood. *** JENNY DEE & THE DEELINQUINTS’ “Keeping Time” made Amazon.com’s Top 20 Downloaded Songs this past summer. *** GALAXIE 500 fans are happy to hear that all three of the band’s records have been remastered and re-issued on vinyl. There will also be new MP3 versions with bonus tracks. *** CASEY DESMOND opened for American Idol winner DAVID COOK over the summer in Michigan. *** SUPER TIME PILOT signed with ERNIE BOCH, JR.’s Open E Records. *** SHEA ROSE was the Spotlight Artist of the Month on Dallas Austin’s Rowdy TV. *** THE NEW COLLISIONS toured this summer with the B-52s and Blondie—pretty cool for such a new band. *** DWIGHT & NICOLE have positioned themselves for greatness with their debut recording with MILT REDER (producer/guitar) and NATE DUBE (engineer) at Rear Window Studio in Brookline, MA. *** In the middle of a recorded live performance by What Time is It Mr. Fox?, the band was ordered by the fire department to stop playing—something was smoldering in the basement of the First Congregational Church of Rockport. The unrecorded concert continued outside the church on the front lawn (totally acoustic). *** Anchor Brain is a new label in Providence that is planning October releases for THE CHINESE STARS and SIX FINGER SATELLITE. Then there will be January 2010 releases of SENSITIVE HEARTS (formerly Awesome Brothers) and WHAT CHEER? BRIGADE. *** Club Bohemia (at the Cantab downstairs) acquired an Ampeg BA-115 bass amp (100 watts/15” speaker) that can now be used by all bass players—leaving more space in the club for you. *** Cambridge Music closed its doors on 7/21/09. They wanted to thank all of the customers and all my friends who work or came through the store. *** In August Guitar Center celebrated it’s 45^th year in business. *** MARTY WHITE (Mr. Curt Ensemble) extended his grandpaship when his daughter, Heather, gave birth to her second son. *** One time editor of Boston Rock, BILLY BEST has released the book Dying Beautifully. It’s the poignant, provocative, sometimes funny story of her husband CHET CAHILL’s death at home, his last wishes, home funeral, and the trip to the crematory, illuminated by extraordinary photographs of Chet taken before and after his death by documentary photographer JASON HOUSTON. *** BETTY BLAIZE (Babydolls Burlesque) badly sprained her ankle while performing martial arts-inspired aerial kicks during the opening night of the troupe’s show, The Wrathskellar. *** TRISTRAM LOZAW (Someone & the Somebodies/Boston Rock) was one of the 200 guitars playing “A Crimson Grail for 200 Electric Guitars” at Lincoln Center in New York City on 8/8/09. Lolita: Wow, that must be hell when the bandleader has to divide up the pay at the end of a gig.

UNCONOMIC CLIMATE

Rita: Pay is slim when you have 200 guitarists in a band. But even if you have to split the pay four ways, band members can barely afford a Happy Meal. Lolita, go ask our rock ’n’ roll friend what they do differently now that the economic climate is so uneconomic. Lolita: Yeah, sure. I have noticed that money has been warmer lately. I didn’t know that global warming would effect the economic climate. LINDA VIENS (Angeline): With less cash in hand I am spending more time outside. Swimming, biking around the city, running, playing basketball. Hanging on porches with friends. Cooking-in more. Relating more. Sitting by fires. Being in the world and in my home, grateful that there is so much around that is free: conversation, books to read, films to see. Meditating. Yoga. Love. *** RICK BERLIN (herself): Nothing. I still don’t take vacations. I still buy five for $20 T-shirts at some butt ugly shoe mall. Going out to dinner is still take out at Food Wall. I still drink the cheapest beer at the Behan six nights/per. I still hope my cat doesn’t get kidney damage and have me question whether I should eviscerate my wallet or buy her six months of diminished kitty life. I still wish I could call my mom to bail me out when I’m desperate. *** MONIQUE ORTIZ: I haven’t changed how I spend my money, but I have changed how I spend my time: I’m spending much more time at home, working on the new record, doing a lot more writing, recording, and painting, putting more focus than ever on staying fit and living as healthy a lifestyle as I can (the raw diet has proven to be pricey but worth it). *** PETE CASSANI (the Peasants/ Beefy DC): I work in a real estate office and rentals are down forty percent, so while we are all grateful to still have jobs, we are working longer and harder for almost half the money. Also, since the economy has tanked I don’t tour Europe. Small clubs are closing down or struggling to stay alive. Therefore they are no longer able to offer guarantees to touring bands, SO unless you are wealthy and can afford to fly over to Europe and tour for nothing, there’s no touring. This is what happens when you invade other people’s countries and slash the taxes of the wealthiest one percent of the population. We will be paying for GW’s total failure as a president for many, many years to come. *** DAVE TREE (Superpower/ Drugwar): As a starving artist/musician the economics of these troubled times don’t really effect me at all, I am used to living with nothing but hopes and dreams in my pocket, poverty is no stranger to me or most of my friends. I work for myself by taking nothing and making something out of it for sale or barter. I laugh at those that once laughed at me for following my dreams—well whose laughing now? *** STUART FREEDMAN (Nuggets): I now realize how exciting eating a 99-cent meal at McDonalds can be! *** WILL DAILEY (Will Dailey): I no longer go to the dog track and I only smoke a pack a day now. And for some weird reason I feel like I save money by taking shorter showers. I still smell the same though. Like a leather-bound book mixed with warm apple pie. *** PETE SUTTON (Temper): Due to a recent five percent pay cut across the board at my company, I’ve had to scale back on some of the finer things in life, i.e. booze consumption. Miller instead of Amstel in the keg... and three-buck chuck from Trader Joe’s instead of those $20 bottles of Ridge/Geyser Peak luscious reds (sigh). *** STEVE PRY (My Own Worst Enemy): Taking advantage of the downturn in the real estate market, turning a negative into a positive, we took the plunge and bought a place of our own. Now, My Own Worst Enemy is headquartered in the Winter Hill section of Somerville. Lolita: Okay, we know where the party is and who’s supplying the booze and entertainment.

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Rita: Maybe Steve and Sue of My Own Worst Enemy can get Tris Lozaw to bring his new 200-guitar band to the party. Lolita: Wow, if we had to list the members of that band in our Musical Chairs section we’d run out of space. Rita: Okay, you can skip the 200-guitar band, but who else is breaking in new members? THE VOGON POETS found a new bassist in TOMMY CANNON (x-Suk Button). *** MARK CUTLER (x-the Schemers/ Raindogs) has a crazy man band called THE MEN OF GREAT COURAGE. Mark was also nominated for best vocalist in the Providence Phoenix. *** X-members of GANG GREEN have formed THE SCRAPS. *** THE DUKE retired from FREEZEPOP after the band’s tenth anniversary. He’ll continue with SYMBION PROJECT. *** GEORGE HALL has added his guitar skills to yet another band—KINGLEY FLOOD. George is in three or five other bands—he’s just not sure. *** RICK BARTON (the Outlets) has a new outfit called THE CONTINENTALS. *** No truth to the rumor that KIM ERNST (the Bristols) goes incognito as ERNEST KIM (Tristan da Cunha). *** BOBY BEAR has hooked up with GREG ALLEN COMPLEX. *** THE CRYBABIES are back—with ARTIE SNEIDERMAN on lead vocals, harmonica, and percussion; STEVE AQUINO on guitar; DANNY McCORMACK (Lyres/ Mighty Ions) on guitar and background vocals; KEVIN MAHONEY (Lucky 57/ Diamond Platinum Rings) on bass and background vocals; and RICHEE JOHNSON (Boize/ Last Ones) on drums. *** ANDERSON MAR (Dark Sky Productions) is taking to the stage with LEON RICH, MELIKA FITZHUGH, and RENEE SOLANO to form Sans Nomenclature. *** O POSITIVE reunited for a benefit for Paula Persechini-Petitti on August 7 at the Paradise. *** THE KILLER ABS and THE WYNOTTS have lost their singing rhythm guitarist, MICHELE JOHNSON, to her new life in California. *** Bassist DAVID HULL (Farrenheit) was recruited to tour with AEROSMITH while TOM HAMILTON recovered from a medical procedure. Then while on tour, STEVEN TYLER fell off a stage resulting in a broken shoulder. The rest of the tour was cancelled. *** MILLIGRAM reunites with all the original members—JONAH JENKINS (Only Living Witness), DARRYL SHEPPARD (Roadsaw), ZEPHAN COURTNEY (Stompbox), and both bassists, BOB MALONEY (Slim Jim & the Mad Cows) and JEFF TURLIK (Stompbox) on 9/26/09 at the Middle East Downstairs. *** JESSE GALLAGHER (Apollo Sunshine) is sporting a hip new acoustic group with cool tunes called THE NEW BLACK MAGIC RAINBOW QUARTET. Lolita: I saw NBMRQ down on Martha’s Vineyard playing with MR.TIMOTHY CHARLES DUANE and they were great.

PREMIER INSTRUMENTS

Rita: MARK SANDMAN played a two-string Premier bass, but I’m interested in finding out each musicians’ premier instrument. Lolita, get out there and gather info on the first instrument that each of our friends owned. Look, there’s Roger, go grab him quickly before he does another reunion tour without MARTIN SWOPE (x-Mission of Burma/Birdsongs of the Mesozoic). ROGER C. MILLER (Mission of Burma/ Alloy Orchestra): I had a $25 Harmony acoustic guitar in the seventh grade. The action was so high it’s amazing I didn’t quit playing guitar then and there. *** JESSE VON KENMORE (the New Alibis/ the Marvels): My first drumset was a gorgeous set of trash cans that my mom gave me when I was about six years old. They didn’t match or have cases, but they were loud as fuck, easy to tune and a huge influence on Kurt Konk. *** WILLIE ALEXANDER (the Boom Boom Band/ the Persistence of Memory Orchestra): I used an old suitcase for a drumset by standing it up and playing it with one hand, the other hand I used a clothes brush for cymbal effect and whanged the base of it with my foot kinda sideways for a bass drum while I held it between my legs. It worked pretty good. That was in junior high playing along with 45s. Later in high school I bought a used set of real drums and a conga drum. *** KAREN DeBIASSE (Girl on Top): When I was seven I bought a basic Yamaha acoustic guitar for around $120 with case. I loved my acoustic and would play it all the time. A year or so later I found a stray dog that I fell in love with. At first my mother would not let me have a dog in the house so I kept it in an enclosed kennel outside. I used to bring my guitar out to play for my newfound friend. One day I couldn’t find my guitar. Weeks later (we had since brought the dog in the house) I went out to the kennel and inside was my first Yamaha guitar bent in a semi circle from warping. *** SHAUN WOLF WORTIS (Gato Malo): ’Twas a mid-’60s (‘65?) Gibson Melody Maker—a double cutaway with one single-coil pickup. Cherry finish, mostly worn away by the time I got it in 1976 or so. I eventually traded it in for a Hagstrom big body jazz guitar, which I later traded in for a Hamer Custom circa 1982. Years later I ended up removing all the paint from the Hamer and kind of butchering it, (then gave it to Izzy Maxwell when he was a wee teen). I sure wish I kept the Hagstrom though—that was a beaut! *** CHUCK U. ROSINA (WMBR/ WMFO): Well, as I am more of an “audio artist” rather then a musician, I don’t really play instruments in the traditional sense any more. But I did take accordion lessons as a kid, and even had two years of classical training on piano in college. So the short answer would be an accordion. *** KIER BYRNES (Three Day Threshold/ Super Time Pilot): I bought my first guitar in junior high with earnings from my first job. Problem was, I spent the other half of my paychecks on beer and other illicit materials. At the end of the summer my parents wanted to see how much I saved (which was zero). I couldn’t tell them I had blown it all on booze so I choose the easier route, I told them I spent it all on the guitar. It was promptly taken away from me, which ironically only made me want to play music more. *** JOHN POWHIDA (…International Airport): It was a black Fender Musicmaster short scale bass. (I was still a short scale fella). It was Christmas 1980, the place: Triads Music in Glens Falls, NY. This little music shop had an autographed photo of Utopia circa the RA tour hanging on their wall. Utopia drummer Willie Wilcox hailed from Glens Falls, N.Y. I was sold. Mom shelled out the cash, which I’m sure she couldn’t really afford and I started practicin’. Thanks, Mom. Didn’t get an amp for another coupla years. I used to place the headstock of the bass against the wall in my room to make it louder. *** PAUL PHILLIPS (Paul Phillips Band): I was born into a musical family and there were always instruments around—a trumpet, two pianos, a flute, a uke or two, an accordion, etc. The first instrument I called my own was a knockoff Harmony P-bass I bought at a pawnshop with all the dough I was able to save up. I took it home and learned Zepp’s “Ramble On” that night. An ambitious first tune having never played the bass, but my love for that instrument was instant and my affection for that specific guitar remains. *** LIZ LINDER (Liz Linder Photography): A small, black plastic Kodak instamatic camera (I don’t count the flute, as an instrument is only an instrument when it’s properly used). *** BRIAN KING (What Time is It, Mr. Fox?): The first instrument that was truly mine was a mini Yamaha keyboard with 99 voices on which I wrote my first dance hit “Like A Vampire” (which is probably disintegrating on a Certon cassette in a landfill somewhere.) *** RAY MASON (Ray Mason Band/ Lonesome Brothers): My first “real” instrument (as opposed to a plastic Magnus Chord Organ, toy snare drum, and the obligatory recorder) was a Sears Silvertone electric guitar. It was the single pickup model with the amp in the case. I can still remember how great it smelled! My Grandmother bought it for me when I graduated from 8th grade in 1964. There’s a picture of me (from 1964) with it on the cover of my forth CD Castanets. You can even see a copy of TV Guide (with the Flintstones on the cover) on a table next to me. Of course now I’ve graduated to a 1965 Silvertone! Lolita: Ray has always been connected to that old blue scratched up guitar.

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Rita: Be the first person to email us ( This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it ) with the local music reference of the title of our final paragraph and win a banner for a week on our popular websites, www.thenoise-boston.com and www.thenoiseboard.com. Now, here’s where we be going in September. THE CRUSHING LOW release their debut CD on Friday, 9/4 at Precinct. *** On Friday, 9/11, Uncle Eddie's in Salisbury Beach has HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT (a tribute to Pat Benatar). *** The Middle East presents ME&JOANCOLLINS on Saturday, 9/12. *** ANDREA GILLIS BAND is part of the Precinct’s Outdoor Music Festival on Sunday, 9/13 (3-9 pm). *** On Friday, 9/18, DAMON & NAOMI are at the Cambridge Family YWCA theater. *** THE DOOM BUGGIES rock the Witch City (Salem, MA) on Sunday, 9/20 (6:30-9:30 pm) at Stromberg's Cove. *** DAVE DUNCAN debuts Penguin Night at Zuzu on Wednesday, 9/23. *** On Thursday, 9/24 GEOFF MULDAUR plays his folk/blues at Johnny D’s. *** THE BARNIES reunite on Friday, 9/25 at Church. *** Same night, THE LIGHTS OUT release their CD at T.T.’s. *** On Saturday, 9/26, THE JOE HARVARD BAND is at the Cantab. *** Same night there’s a benefit for the Worcester Artist Group at the Hotel Vernon Ship Room that features 28 DEGREES TAURUS and DJ MATTHEW GRIFFIN. *** On Sunday, 9/27 (1-7pm) get to the Mark Sandman Memorial Concert at Pacific Park (on Pacific Street—down from T.T. the Bear's). *** DINOSAUR JR. rocks the Middle East Downstairs on Friday, 10/2 and Saturday, 10/3. Lolita: Now, everyone be real nice to the returning students. We hope to see those students in the clubs absorbing some real Boston culture. Rita: Show them how to love a local band.

RIP: MICHAEL SCAGLARINI (Johnny Bravo/ Johnnies/ New Frustrations) died in the early morning of 7/22/09.

RIP: SENATOR TED KENNEDY died of cancer on 8/25/09.

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