FACIAL CHARACTER

Lolita: Yes, there are a lot of characters in the Boston music scene. Rita: Lolita, go ask people to tell you whose face in the local music scene has the most character? Lolita: Okay, in the words of a young AIMEE MANN—“give me your face.” GLENNWOOD (The Noise): I’ll go with the maestro, Rick Berlin. His face is full of kindness, wisdom, a wicked sense of humor—experience but not world-weariness. He looks a bit like the author Samuel Beckett (Waiting for Godot), who was also one cool dude. *** RODRIGO VAN STOLI (Noble Rot/Bang Camaro): I know he’s in one of my bands, but I have to say that would be Doz (Bang Camaro/TGN). He’s got that “hair all over the face/evil grin” thing going, and I’ve never seen one bad picture of the dude. I don’t think anyone has. The bizarre thing is that he looks like that all the time. *** CHANDLER TRAVIS (Chandler Travis Philharmonic): Mine; avarice. Lolita: Okay, I had to look up “avarice”—so if you’re like me and didn’t know, the word means “an excessive desire for wealth or gain.” Yeah, I guess that fits Chandler perfectly. When he wears his pajamas on stage it’s such a giveaway. *** KAREN BARNICLE (Barnicle): Rob McCaffrey, the drummer of Aberdeen City, has a dope set of sideburns and a sweet ’stache. It is unforgettable. *** CLAY N. FERNO (Wild Zero): Dick Tate’s (Middle East/ Prime Movers) visage has nobility, hope, and he is the pillar of consummate professionalism. The man has a “firing tie,” for cripes’ sake! *** LARISSA MAESTRO (Larissa Maestro): Without question, Dennis Brennan. One of the key elements to his character is his hair. It’s unbelievable. I’m not sure that I’ve ever seen anyone with cooler hair that close up before. I’m convinced that it’s the source of his power, and one day, I’ll steal it and make it mine—though it wouldn’t look nearly as good on me. Let him keep his hair, no one can hold a candle to him. Dennis Brennan is the man. *** PETE WEISS (Weisstronauts/ Verdant Studio): There can’t be just one... Stephen Fredette’s raised eyebrow... Rick Berlin’s devilish twinkle... Pete Sutton’s “gettin’ shit done” near-sneer... Ken Lafler’s general Duchovny-ness... *** TIM MUNGENAST (Tim Mungenast & His Preexisting Conditions): Geez, I’m not sure how to answer that one without making any enemies! Can I talk about the Power of Dung instead? Lolita: Tim you make it sound like facial character is something bad. *** WALTER SICKERT (Walter Sickert & The Army of Broken Toys): The face of performance artist/musician Mort has loads of character. His black gas mask always looks so shiny and pretty, and the fact that I have never seen his face without it, adds to my enjoyment. What’s underneath? Does he have a face? Is his skin made out of course twine or sweet jelly? *** FRANK ROWE (Classic Ruins) For me, hands down, it’s got to be my erstwhile roommate Howie Ferguson (Mickey Clean/ Real Kids/ Lyres/ Barrence Whitfield & Savages/ Mickey Bliss Combo) Combination deer-caught-in-the-headlights, Capt. Jack Sparrow, Hannibal Lechter, seen-it-all Ernest Hemingway, and Jerry Lewis. *** SHAUN WOLF WORTIS (Gato Malo/ Plastic Cheese Band): Al Janik! It’s his button nose. *** SCOTT MATALON (Monolith): T Max—you can tell by the look in his eye that he has seen it all. Lolita: That’s age rings from the early 1900s. *** MARTY WHITE (Mr. Curt Ensemble): Mr.Curt’s face, and who doesn’t love that face. I’m not brown-nosing the boss and I’m sure that anyone who knows Mr. Curt knows he is a man of integrity, honesty, and loyalty. If Mr. Curt has befriended you, you know that you have a good friend and you are a lucky person. *** KAREN ZANES (The Freeways): Athough he is no longer physically with us, I keeping thinking of Mark Sandman. Not only did he have a ruggedly handsome face, but there was a strong spiritual light behind his eyes. I can remember vividly the first time I encountered that face. I walked into the Plough one chilly night to catch Ray Corvair. Sandman, who was sitting off to the side, looked straight at me and flashed the warmest, most electric smile. Needless to say, I melted on the spot. Lolita: Mark Sandman (Morphine) was a cool gentleman with a lot of character. His presence can still be felt at Hi-n-Dry, the studio he worked out of. That’s where “End War Now” racked up 59 tracks to break a studio record for a single song.