Issue #318 - Feb '12

IT’S FREE, BUT I’LL PAY

Lolita: There’s Liz! I’ll ask her first. Hey Liz—your tan is looking great. Tell me, what is something you can get for free that you’d be willing to pay for? LIZ BORDEN (the Liz Borden Band): The summer and sunshine. The only thing is that if I am paying for it, I want a longer summer and way more sunshine! *** MARK KAYE (Hear Now Live): Music is something everyone seems to steal for free these days. I refuse to do that and continue to pay for it whether it be via download, CD, or vinyl. The music industry continues to fall apart because no one will stop music fans or casual listeners from taking what’s not theirs. Free live shows is another thing I would gladly pay for. Why anyone performs free shows after the fall of the industry is beyond me. Bands shouldn’t play clubs that don’t charge a cover fee—because it’s just another way of teaching fans that they don’t have to pay for music. *** AL JANIK (Al Janik’s Plastyczny Ser Orkestra): The best things in life. *** RUBY BIRD (Bird Mancini): Clean air. We’re probably already paying for this in taxes... hmmm... but whatever it is, it’s a bargain. *** BLOWFISH (Boston Groupie News): YouTube. It’s so great. I’m seeing all the ’60s band performances that were on TV on Friday and Saturday nights when I was out clubbing in the late ’60s. *** RAY FERNANDES (Cadillac Heart/ Boston Butta Beats studios): Bottled water... because with all the possible contamination in our water supply, I won’t drink tap water... and haven’t for a very long time. But with all the lies that people have been fed over the years, who’s to say bottled water is any safer? Lolita: Some bottled water is tap water. *** GLENN WILLIAMS (Lowbudget Records): Do you mean besides the Noise? Lolita: Oh, you are so sweet, Glenn. We’ll make note of that. But go on—tell us something besides the Noise. GLENN: Being an elementary school art teacher, I love running into the kids outside of school. They look at you like you’re from a different planet. It makes me feel kind of cool. I’ve tried to buy things in the past that were intended to make me feel cool. But, none of them work like a 5-year-old saying, “Oh my goodness, it’s Mr. Williams.” *** LEE TODD LACKS (Radio Pü): The eyeglass adjustments that most opticians provide as a courtesy. *** ANDY MILK (the Vital Might): Head scratching from my lady. I’d pay at least $5 per session. Puts me right to sleep. *** CHUCK U. ROSINA (WMBR/ WMFO): Oh this is too easy. Our great wealth of college/community radio stations! You can listen to them for free, (many do), but I for one gladly pay up some money every time WMBR, WZBC, and WMFO have fundraisers. All three stations do get some support from their affiliated universities, but they rely on listeners for equipment purchase and repair. And unlike their NPR counterparts, nobody gets paid at these stations, so the money they get goes directly into station upkeep. Support your local community radio. Lolita: Chuck is right. Those three Boston-area stations in particular are extremely well-managed with a constant supply of interesting music that you would never hear on commercial airwaves. *** MICHAEL P. AROIAN (Elsewhere): My answer would be music... it has to be! Because in the past decade all we’ve done is commodify music and perpetuate this long-lasting deflationary environment in the wider industry. While this has arguably made things exciting, it has also made accomplishing “success” increasingly difficult as the business infrastructure continues to be only reactionary and fearful of taking on risk. Music should not be a hand out; it should be priceless and special. The more we just give it away and take it for free, the more we hurt ourselves as musicians. *** ROB GARRETT (the Dormers): Umm... Obviously the Noise. Lolita: Rob, we need to raise some cash, so from now on your copy of the Noise will be $20—just make the check out to Lolita Flange.

RECOVERY NEWS

Rita: You know we don’t do fundraising, because—you know—money is just something Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, or one of those other early American long-haired freaks made up. When we give special rates to bands for advertising, they give us some paper—since that’s basically the same thing we hand them. The Noise is just like money—it’s musical currency. Bands need exposure—we give it to them on paper—they give us paper. Lolita: I think I’m getting it—paper money—toilet paper—it’s all the same thing. Rita: Now that we have economics all figured out, let’s move on to the news… CASEY DESMOND and ROBERT ELLIS ORRAL co-wrote the title track “Talking to God” for Casey’s latest audio release and psychedelic video. Lolita: Wow—this Desmond/Orral song is really good—and the video is fun. *** THE LIGHTS OUT got written up in Billboard because of their creative approach to get the message out about their CD, Rock Pony. Rock Pony transformed into a character on a dating site and the band ran with it. *** ROGER MILLER scored the soundtrack for Granito: How to Nail a Dictator, a documentary on the genocide in Guatemala. *** Fans of WAYNE VALDEZ know that Store 54 is back—this time it’s located in the basement of 16 Harvard Ave., Allston. Lolita: Besides fronting a great band (Valdez the Sinner), Wayne photographically documented the whole scene based abound the Hoodoo Barbeque at the Rat in the ’80s. *** NBC’s the Voice had two very talented New England artists advance beyond the blind auditions—CASEY DESMOND and DEVON BARLEY—and there was also one Berklee College of Music graduate—REBECCA LOEBE. *** After their stint on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show, the TEDESCHI TRUCKS BAND—led by SUSAN TEDESCHI and DEREK TRUCKS—tours the states and Europe. *** JOE COUGHLIN pointed us toward our latest favorite cooking video—he’s never steered us wrong—check out Vegan Black Metal Chef on YouTube. *** Rita: Did you know that the Supreme Judicial Court ruled that it is unlawful for police to search people or places based solely upon the odor of burnt marijuana? I just wanted to make sure A.J. WACHTEL was paying attention. *** New England winners in the 2010 International Songwriting Competition are DAN MENZONE, LEE MARCUS (first place instrumental), TIM BLANE (honorable mention adult contemporary), JIM INFANTINO (honorable mention comedy/novelty), AMY FAIRCHILD (honorable mention folk/singer-songwriter), BRUCE GERTZ (honorable mention jazz), THE GALLERY (honorable mention rock). Go online for rules to enter the 2011 competition. *** JAKE ZAVRACKY has been releasing an EP every month in 2011. Each release benefits a different organization. Lolita: Most of this music (http://zavracky.com) is quite a new direction for Jake—and I like it. And think of all that paper that goes flying into the hands of worthy organizations!

NATURAL SOUND

Rita: Lolita may like Jake’s music, but what about natural sound? It happens with no exchange of paper—it just happens naturally. Lolita—go ask your buddies to tell you where they can find the nicest natural sound. Lolita: I just heard a fart. Was that you Rick? RICK BERLIN (the Nickel & Dime Band): As a fart queen I guess my answer would be obvious, but now I’m thinking it’s my former roommate’s cat, Mao. His purr was like a Tibet singer. Several notes and sounds at once. Like a chord. A cat chord. Hilarious and astounding at the same time. *** CORIN ASHLEY (Corin Ashley Rock Band): I’m a very big fan of walking through a pine grove—I love the sound of the pine needles under my feet, especially if there is water nearby and you get a little hint of the wind on the water. This isn’t making me sound like a hippie, is it? *** LINDA VIENS (Angeline/ Adam & Eve): At the beach at dusk, listening to the reassuring sound of the lapping waves... or standing still deep in a pine forest... listening to the wind, the pine needles gently falling and sometimes the trees have things to say too. *** DAVID KIRKDORFFER (UNDO/ the Blank Attack): The nicest natural sound? Well, wouldn’t that be the sound of your loved one’s sighs as you rub suntan lotion into hot skin while waves lap against a seashore? *** SHANE KINNEY (Lost on Liftoff): The waves at Big Sur. *** NICHOLE FERREE (Orange Nichole): The nicest natural sound on earth takes place at about 5:30 am in the spring and summer when all the birds wake up one by one. First there’s one voice and then more and then for about 10 minutes there’s this crazy bird chorus! Of course, this chorus is usually the cause of me being awake at 5:30 am... still, it’s pretty amazing. *** KEN FIELD (Revolutionary Snake Ensemble/ Agachiko/ Birdsongs of the Mesozoic/ Alto Army): I don’t know about the nicest, but the most amazing natural sound I’ve heard in a long time was the sound of tens of thousands of sand hill cranes returning to their spring migration stopping point at Bitter Lakes National Wildlife Refuge near Roswell, NM. I recorded this and I’m using parts of it for my latest soundtrack project for Karen Aqua’s new animated film Taxonomy. *** IAN ADAMS (solo/ Little Wolf & the Thunderstick): I would have to say Monhegan Island, Maine. It’s a couple miles long, and 10 miles off the coast, with 200 foot cliffs. Standing on those cliffs is like listening to God breathe. *** CLARA KEBABIAN (Mr Curt Ensemble): Nicest natural sound I can think of are the peeping frog choruses in the spring at my parents’ house. *** HENDRIK DAVID GIDEONSE XIX (Indecent Music): The basement ‘T’ shaped hallway at the Northshore Recovery High School in Beverly, MA, has the most amazing natural reverb I have ever heard. It has a very smooth and long reverb time with a natural shimmer of late bright reflections. If you close your eyes you might mistake it for a tape delay with feedback feeding an old EMT plate reverb. Gorgeous. *** LIZ FRAME (Liz Frame & the Kickers): Well, certainly one of the nicest natural sounds on earth are the sounds I hear outside my bedroom window early each spring morning: I get to hear the birds singing, calling out to their mates, staking out their territories. It reiterates to me just how defiant and resilient nature is. Ultimately, nothing will stop her, despite our best and most stupid efforts. And that’s a relief. *** JIM COUNTRYMAN (Lovewhip/ Erin Harpe & the Delta Swingers): Our roof in JP from 3:00 am to 4:30 am in the summertime. Lolita: Now I’m trying to figure out if you guys have late-night rehearsals, or if it’s some kind of outdoor moaning going on.

MUSICAL CHAIRS

Rita: While Lolita sneaks around to hear the moaning (she knows they don’t rehearse that late), I’ll make a little music with chairs—here’s what going on with the never-ending dance of members of bands. GARY and MARK CHERONE’s project HURTSMILE will be touring Japan in the summer after spreading out gigs all over the U.S. *** Singer CHAD HICKMAN has rejoined AGE OF END. *** Guitarist PETE ZEIGLER (Hey Now Morris Fader) has become a full-time member of THE RATIONALES. *** After five years of gigging, LISA CONNOLLY has left COROLLA DeVILLE. *** VINTAGE FLESH has shed their skin and become INVERTICRUX with shedding vocalist RAYPISSED adding TERRY SAVASTANO (Disrupt/ Superpower/ Warhorse/ Grief), ERIC PODHORIN (Eternal Embrace/ Salem Fires), and MICHAEL BERNIER (Eternal Embrace/ Salem Fires). *** ALEXANDRA D’MARIS (guitar/ vocals), ERIC COLVILLE (guitar/ vocals), and GEZA CARR (drums) make up THE SELKIES. Selkies are mythological seals that can shed their skin to become humans. *** BLOW YOUR FACE OUT played their final gig at Great Scott on May 19. *** JUDITH ARC (vocals), TIM SPRAGUE (vocals/guitar/trumpet), MAUREEN RELLING-BOOTH (vocals/ bass), PHILLIPPE DOUCET (guitar), and ETHAN HERSCHMAN (drums) make up ENGINE JUDY. *** JOHNNY ANGEL in the studio recording with SCOTT GILMAN and BROCK AVERY (New Man). The Blackjacks meets New Man. Will wonders ever cease? *** FRANC GRAHAM has put together a new band that plays under her name—welcome RICHARD “New Guy” GATES on bass, CHRIS “Old Guy” RIVAL on guitar, JEROME “That Guy” DEUPREE on drums, and PACEY “Wacky Guy” FOSTER on turntables. *** AD FRANK & THE FAST EASY WOMEN are getting divorced (it’s their final show) on Friday, 6/3 at T.T.’s. *** LITTLE WOLF & THE THUNDERSTICK is IAN ADAMS’ new band, with JON PULI (x-the Entwives) on drums and PAMELA WONG on bass. *** CHRISTINE ZUFFEREY (Ziaf) is now performing in France, leading a band called MARY ZOO. *** THE BACKUP FACTOR includes MATT OTT, MATT HANNA, MARK DESROSIER, MARIAN DIDIO, TRAVIS RICHTER, and SARAH KORVAL. *** LEE HARRINGTON (the Neighborhoods) has a new project called THE GOLDHAWK SOCIAL CLUB, named after a venue the Who played early in their career. The band will by very Who-oriented. *** Drummer BOBY BEAR has rustled up DAVID BOVE and ROSS PIERCE to create BOBY BEAR (the band). Lolita: I’m waiting for the Boby Bear cologne so I can make all my men smell as good as Boby.

NUCLEAR POWER?

Rita: Okay, let’s get serious. Lolita: I was being serious. Rita: No, I mean really serious. For our last question I want to know what you think we should do with nuclear power. Matt, why are you dressed like that? And what’s with the Vulcan “live long and prosper” hand gesture? MATT J (the Bynars): We use nuclear energy to power emergency lights on our Galaxy Class starship when we are stuck at impulse and the dilithium crystals have failed. We play tri-dimensional chess in the dim light. Nuclear power is like a kerosene lamp in the blackout for the 24th century. Rita: Well, so much for my serious question. *** TIM MUNGENAST (Tim Mungenast & His Preexisting Conditions): Anyone who still supports nuclear power just hasn’t been paying attention, or perhaps has some form of learning disability. I say this not as a hippie Luddite, but as an engineer’s son. There are many reasons to ban nuclear power, but since space here is limited, let’s mention just one: the waste. It is insanely poisonous and remains lethally radioactive for thousands of years. (Think about that for a second.) Nobody wants it stored anywhere near them, and if you build more plants, you will just make more waste. Where the hell will you put it? *** FRANK ROWE (Classic Ruins): Nuclear power seemed like such a good idea at the beginning—the peaceful uses like power plants and the N.S. Savannah, but we were all in such a hurry for dessert that we wolfed down dinner before it was cooked. Shouldn’t we have researched it further until we understood the dangers, and maybe developed safer forms? Since it’s never going to go away now, maybe we should back up and try to find a safer way to use atomic power than putting reactor cores on top of tectonic sutures. *** JON MACEY (Fox Pass/ Adam & Eve): The hardest question to answer this month. We need to get off oil and coal. If nuclear could be safe, it is an option. But then, Japan happens. Windmills anyone? *** NIKI LUPARELLI (Niki Luparelli & the Gold Diggers/ the Steamy Bohemians): We watch The Toxic Avenger and Class of Nuke ’Em High until we get comfortable with having monster babies swimming in toilets and marijuana grown with radioactive fertilizer. The marijuana thing might not be so bad, but definitely look before you sit on the loo. *** PHIL KAPLAN (the Exiles/ Men & Volts): Nuclear power has been and remains one of the real-life miracles of the modern era, a shining example of the genius of Man. As a source of cheap and (relatively) clean energy, it should remain an option, and prominently so, within the current mix of (realistic) energy alternatives. Let’s remember that Chernobyl and the Japan disasters were both preventable, and due to sloppy, sclerotic, log-rolling cultures, respectively. The real question is, how much trust/faith do we have in our technocratic managing elites? And if we do have that little faith in them, maybe we should fix our culture before we go off half- (or fully-) baked down the road of “alternative energy sources.” *** MAX BOWEN (Citywide Blackout): Shut it down and get cracking on that alternative energy, because this stuff is way more trouble then it’s worth. *** KAREN DeBIASSE (Girl on Top): Nuke it. *** BOBY BEAR (Boby Bear): We should cease use immediately, before it’s too late. No place on Earth is one hundred percent stable. The alternatives to this nuclear nonsense are all around us—literally. The wind: What’s uglier? A hillside full of windmills, or more meltdowns? The ocean: Crashing waves against resistor panels at select locations would generate a tremendous amount of energy. Nuclear power is way beyond anything we’re equipped to deal with, and it makes me sad that we actually buy into the lie that we “need” it. Mother Nature has more than provided for any power we have any business wanting. *** DAVE TREE (Tree/ Drugwar/ SuperPower): Nuclear power was recently repackaged by the Republicans as “Clean Energy.” Why don’t we ask the people of Japan if they think nuclear power is a clean energy source, then remind ourselves who in this country is willing to risk the lives and safety of all living things so that once again a small minority can walk away with all the profits from an unsafe energy source. If you demand the truth, you just might get it. *** PAUL HANSEN (the Grownup Noise): We should immediately, and safely, use whatever nuclear power is available to us and power the Flux Capacitor to travel back in time to halt the inception and subsequent use of nuclear power. And then, whoever it is that goes back in time can wait around until 1985 and prevent the making of Back to the Future 2 and 3! Lolita: Who would think our question about nuclear power would start and end with answers about films?

ALL GOIN’ OUT TOGETHER

Rita: So remember—money is nothing—give out as much of it as you can. Local musicians are great people to give money to because they can use it to buy quality instruments to make the sounds you want to hear. Fill your pockets with money and go listen to this live music—and remember to tip the musicians: DAN BLAKESLEE plays Gulu Gulu in Salem, MA, on Thursday, 7/7. *** UNIVERSAL FUNK ORDER play Johnny D's on Thursday, 7/9. *** Same night THE DECEMBER SOUND will cool you off at Great Scott. *** On Sunday, 7/10, at 2:00 PM, KEN FIELD has organized a memorial show for his long time partner KAREN AQUA at the Armory. *** CURIOUS RITUAL reunites on Friday, 7/15 at Church leading a benefit/memorial for Frederick F. Campu III, the late husband of Claudia deHaven Biddle-Ciampi. *** Same night FULL BODY ANCHOR headlines the show at O’Brien’s in Allston. *** On Saturday 7/16 you’ll find TOTALLY INAPPROPRIATE at the Sky Box in Tewksbury. *** Next month’s cover boy ALLEN ESTES entertains at the Rhumb Line in Gloucester on Sunday 7/17. *** RICK BERLIN is raising money for the JP Music Fest by putting together a tribute night to Bob Dylan at the Midway on Tuesday, 7/19. *** CADILLAC HEART takes you for a ride at the Rosebud on Thursday, 7/21. *** On Monday, 7/25, DENNIS BRENNAN takes the stage upstairs at the Cantab. *** WALTER SICKART & THE ARMY OF TOYS is part of a big show downstairs at the Middle East on Friday, 7/29. *** GIRLS GUNS & GLORY’s second night of CD releasatude is on Saturday, 7/30, at the Lizard Lounge. *** THE J. GEILS’ BAND is back performing at the Bank of America Pavilion on Saturday, 8/6. *** And finally, the Noise will have it’s final 30th anniversary party at the Annie in Gloucester that will feature T MAX’s favorite solo artist on Thursday, 9/8. Rita: We’ll see you in the clubs and all the exciting outdoor events.

R.I.P. GREGORY V. PETRONIO III (1969-2011) was a partner and co-owner of the Lucky Dog Music Hall in Worcester, MA.

R.I.P. KAREN AQUA died on May 30, 2011 after a decade-long battle with cancer. Karen was an animated film maker, a percussionist for Crown Electric Company, and wife of Ken Field (Revolutionary Snake Ensemble/ Chandler Travis Philharmonic/ Birdsongs of the Mesozoic).

Karen Aqua

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