At Last, The Stone Pony (Against! Me, 1.10.14)

Wall Art, The Stone Pony

Bruce snapshot

As Iconic an Image as there is (for NJ that is)

There are a few noticeable gaps in my New Jersey upbringing.  I tend to hate all the New York teams.  Yankees, Giants, Mets and Jets be damned.  I have spent more time on North Carolina and South Carolina beaches than those just a quick drive south on the Parkway.  Bruce Springsteen is someone who has my respect and admiration.  But I am far from a devotee and have never seen him live.  At this point in my life I figure why bother.  3 hours?  $200 a seat?  I can watch a DVD or pump up "Born to Run" and be perfectly fine.  That is not to discount all his followers.  I get it.  He rocks your World and you will stop at nothing to touch his hand.  For me, that ship has sailed.  His continued work on Jimmy Fallon makes me think he is in on the joke too.  Oh, and some of the early reviews of his new record have been lukewarm at best.

We could start a whole discussion on the other NJ band powerhouse, Bon Jovi, but why bother.  It boggles the mind how they sell out stadiums and are nearly as beloved as Bruce.  Not here.   In 2014 I vow to be more positive.  Instead of saying I just don't get it, I will simply say "agree to disagree."

And I am also making an attempt to get more Jersey Boy.  No, that does not mean a Yankee hat will end up on my head.  No wife beaters and gold chains either folks!  

Rather, last week I finally made it to Asbury Park's legendary Stone Pony.  This year the place that launched Bruce, and several others, is celebrating its 40th year.  Florida rockers Against! Me headlined the all ages Friday show and it was the perfect introduction.

The place is a dive, let's be honest.  And I mean that as a high compliment.  The pit is long, but not necessarily deep.  There is a back bar covered with a temporary tent.  Adjacent that smokers have a spot to light up.  The real treat is the Pony Cafe located in the rear of the building.  There are some tables, benches, a rather large bar, tvs (which last Friday had Rangers hockey playing) and a greasy kitchen.  Burgers, pretzels and old fashioned bar food much like find at your local public pool.  the bartenders were short and aggressive.  The prices were fair.  The bar was more than adequately stocked.  Us old folk like Guinness and Stoli O.  Check and Check!

Pity the young hipsters who crave PBR.  They ran out of cans about half way through the show.  Seriously, do they really like the taste or is it the price?  The whole phenomenon confounds me.

The show was secondary last Friday.  We bought tickets months ago and just wanted to soak it all in.  Karma was on our side too.  We brought a friend and she had no ticket.  It was not sold out when we started our trip.  When we arrived it was.  She was a trooper and said she would have dinner at one of the many restaurants on the boardwalk.  It should be noted that the boardwalk and Asbury Park itself have gone under a major resurgence.  If you have the chance take a day trip when the weather is nice.  

Needless to say we felt bad and wanted to get her in the show.  I asked a young man inside the club "if he had a ticket source either inside or outside the club?"  Seriously, the first person I asked!  Sure enough he pulled a ticket from his pocket and said "here."  A quick text to our friend and she joined us.  She didn't even finish her glass of wine.

All ages shows are tough, especially with a band who mixes it up a bit.  My better half made her way to the stage.  My old ass was content watching from afar.  Singer Laura Jane Grace, and her story, is well chronicled.  Long story short, when I saw Against! Me open for Silversun Pickups a few years back Laura was Tom Gabel.  Their new record, Transgender Dysphoria Blues, speaks in large part to Gabel's transition to Laura.  Her voice is the catalyst for the record, and more often than not, the bands live act.  Unfortunately Laura was nursing some sore pipes and could not belt out many of the high notes and power lines that she is accustomed.

Her supporting mates (James Bowman, Inge Johansson and Atom Willard) were more than game.  The new material sounded fresh and the kids ate it all up.  

I was just as interested in taking the whole scene in.  I found myself drifting to walls and examining the history of the building.  I people watched and saw mothers shield their sons from flying humans.  It was a rock event and plenty of folks seemed fully engaged and entertained.  

That, for my money, is a terrific Friday night.

I missed my chance to see Yo La Tengo at Maxwell's.  Other venues await.  Starland?  Count Basie Theatre?  This NJ kid needs some learning.  

See you out there.

Against! Me, The Stone Pony 1.10.14

After the show

The Bar is well stocked (with booze too)

Food is served!

Some raw video from the show below

Against! Me "Thrash Unreal"

Against! Me "I Was A Teenage Anarchist"

Deerhunter, Webster Hall 9.19.13

There are lots of folks who continue to write, blog and otherwise opine that "rock" is dead.  Listen to the pop stations these days and it is easy to get sucked into to that opinion.  Katy Perry's "Roar" plays more like a lamb, than lion.  Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke are remembered more for their "dancing" than the Marvin Gaye cover they "sang" at last months VMA's.

This space continues to seek out and (hooray!) find bands who are more concerned with crafting songs, playing guitars and leaving their rabid fan base wanting more.

Some, like Georgia based, but New York raised, Deerhunter, remain humbled and happy to simply play in front of an audience receptive and beyond willing to hear what they have to offer.  Singer/Guitarist/Frontman Bradford Cox said as much half way through their fast paced and electric show last Thursday night.  "We may be from Georgia, but in many ways we call New York City our home" he stated toward the middle of their hour and half set.  Or something very similar to that.  They recorded all but one of their 6 records here, including newest release Monomania.  The Webster Hall show last week served as one of the final gigs of the tour.  Call it a homecoming of sorts.

Truth be told Cox is a mystery.  What little I read of him prior to the show did not prepare me for his arrival on stage.  Note, this is the second show in the past few months where the leading "man" was dressed as a woman.  Laura Jane Grace played Bowery not that long ago.  It should be noted that Laura is transgender and Cox has described himself as both gay and asexual.  It's all good, which makes the NYC shows/audiences so freaking cool.  To the many kids in attendance his dress and wig were not a big deal.   What is more alarming is Cox's weight, which comes as a result of Marfan syndrome.

His affliction, which is a genetic defect causing long limbs, thin fingers and an overall narrow body type, is what kept him away from the schoolyard as a kid.  His introverted personality led him to a fondness for music and an outlet for all the harms and torments associated with growing up "different."

It is said he related to Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands...  but that could simply be Wikipedia inter-web fiction.

It was four or five songs in, most likely during the eerily wonderful  "Helicopter" from 2010's Halycon Digest, that Cox's health became less a concern.  He was at ease and relaxed.  His voice was crisp and emphatic.  On stage nothing else matters.  He had a packed house in front of him and a smile on his face.

Deerhunter plays rock and roll music.  3 guitars, a bass and drum kit is all you are getting.  Cox has a deft touch with mixing new and old.  "Revival" and their newest single "Back to the Middle" could be mistaken for 1970s roots rock.  "Desire Lines", the only song NOT sung by Cox that evening (handled most capably by Lockett Pundt), is a celebration of psych rock with an emphasis on guitar jamming.  Cox and Pundt traded riffs for 6 or 7 minutes and it could have gone on far longer with no arguments from anyone.  It is, simply put, a terrific rock song.

It was all high energy and plenty of happy vibes.   Do I need to see them again?  Probably not.  But for a moment, it was joy.

Judgemental homophobia... Syrian conflicts... terrorism in Kenyan malls...UN General Assemblies... Government shut downs...  to hell with all that.

This week has been very difficult and writing this review has been a challenge, albeit trivial.  My community is stinging from the loss of a young father (43) to the horror that is cancer.  He leaves a loving wife, 4 children and the many wonders of "what if?"

Plenty of people talk of "living each day like its your last."  How many of us really do it?

Find what you are passionate about and dive in head first.

One of these days and it won't be long...  it may all be over.

Much love C.A.C.  You will be missed.

Deerhunter, Webster Hall, 9.19.13.  Yeah, that is Bradford Cox in a lovely dress and wig.

Video clip of "Desire Lines"




Deerhunter at Webster Hall, Setlist 9.19.13
Octet
Neon Junkyard
Don't Cry
Revival
Like New
Desire Lines
Hazel St
T.H.M.
Rainwater Cassette Exchange
The Missing
Helicopter
Sleepwalking
Back to the Middle
Monomania
Twilight at Carbon Lake

Encore:
Cover Me (Slowly)
Agoraphobia
He Would Have Laughed

Laura Jane Grace, Bowery Ballroom 8.16.13

Singer/songwriter/guitarist Laura Jane Grace's story has been well documented.  Long story short, a few years back I was fortunate enough to see her band Against Me!.  Then, Ms Grace, was Tom Gabel, a tattooed, post-punk front man.  Last night, in front of an energetic, engaged and extremely supportive (and packed) Bowery Ballroom, she was Laura.  The tattoos were still evident.  The stage presence was still commanding.  And unlike her appearance, her voice has not changed a bit!  

For years I believed standing on stage, with nothing more than a guitar, microphone and a voice was the most dangerous thing in entertainment.  Standup comedy too, but that's a different column.  Now, imagine that vulnerability coupled with transitioning from one gender to another?  Grace's show last night was the last in a "mini" tour in advance of Against Me!'s upcoming LP, their 6th, Transgender Dysphoria Blues.  More specifically it was a celebration of Grace's rebirth and re-introduction to the alt rock community.

She is woman.  Hear her roar.

You cannot examine last night's show without acknowledging and appreciating the elephant in the room.  Gabel, with Against Me! from 1997-2010, was a shirtless rock star dripping machismo and adrenaline.  His songs were/are as alpha as the alt radio stations would get.  Had Bon Iver, Mark Foster, or Ben Gibbard changed sexes it might have been easier to comprehend.   Those guys represent the prevalent theme that define contemporary "alt"- soft and breezy.  Not so with Against Me!  They rock a little bit.  And judging by the post punk resurgence (Palma Violets, Savages, Parquet Courts to name a few) they clearly served as influences for today's vibe.

The amazing thing about last night was not , however, the music.  Don't take that the wrong way.  Grace's set was full of high points and, for an acoustic show, was a rocking good time.  She played many tracks from the upcoming record.  As the albums title suggests, this record is an obvious celebration and cathartic exercise of her "process."  Songs like "Fu*k My Life 666"", "Paralytic States of Dependency" as well as the title track, let you know what's been on her mind lately.  More specifically, what has been going on her mind forever.   Now she is able, and more than willing to get it off her chest.

We all served as witness.  

Young men cheered "You're Beautiful!"  

They pumped their fists and sang along like you might see at a Dropkicks Murphy show.

Everyone noticed the change.  Better than that, everyone ignored it.  You know why?  It really doesn't matter.  

It bodes well for the future and the social issues that seem to divide our country.

Should we be worrying about gay marriage when a city like Detroit goes bankrupt?

How is that drug war going?  Is it not better to legalize, tax and dig ourselves out of some economic messes than overcrowd our jails with petty criminals and waste our police forces resources fighting an impossible fight?

Have you looked at what is going on in Egypt?  That is some serious shi*t.  

Judging by last night, the millenials seem determined to change our priorities.  Race, Gender, sexuality...  it is inconsequential to the bigger picture.

Hating, or not accepting someone based on those criteria will not add jobs.  It will certainly not stop wars.  And it will never make the Facebook stock price rise.

There was a lot of love in Bowery Ballroom last night.  Strangers were united in accepting someone for who she is.  They trusted one another and left any pre-conceived ideas back in the 60, or 80s, or 'Oughts.

An artist continued her ascent and while simultaneously being born again.  Each time out, in each new city and venue, she will evolve more.  So too will her audience.  

Art, the great elixir.  

Laura Jane Grace setlist 8.16.13 Bowery Ballroom

Quick Notes:

The first act was solo singer Allison Weiss.  She gained some notoriety not long ago for using Kickstarter to fund her first album.  She raised the money in 10 hours and was the focus of her own New York Times piece documenting the experience.   Nice stuff...  the songs and the story.

Mina Caputo was the middle act.  Caputo too has a huge backstory.  She was once Keith and led a heavy metal band called Life of Agony.  Now re-invented as a acoustic songstress her set was overlong and underwhelming.   Too much of the same slow, looping guitar riffs mixed with shrieking vocals.  She came to stage and warned her catalog was sad.  "I have a lot different set than Weiss" she said.  Too true!  It was about 45 minutes of melancholy.  Clearly the transition has been far more difficult for Caputo than Grace.  Toward the end of the set she lashed out at the crowd.  "It's always someone who just won't shut the fu*k up."  

It was true, the crowd was chatty during her set.  But there was never an effort to pick up the pace.  If your act is ALL slow and grief stricken what do you expect?  Weiss and Grace were bombastic and ebullient.  They celebrated the night, not mourn it.  Perhaps in a different context the set would have played better.  Seats would probably be a good idea.  And no booze.  

The crowd was up for anything.  Admonish if you will, but be prepared to deliver.

Laura Jane Grace vid 8.16.13

Allison Weiss vid 8.16.13