Sound Menu November 11 2000 Thur

THURS/NOVEMBER 9
Noted acts
BLACK HEART PROCESSION, DON CABALLERO, FRED WEAVER — See Black Heart Procession article. See Don Caballero review. Weaver describes his music as “epic art-punk,” which means he’s probably pretty irritable. Cuts from his first two albums, Present Dusk and The Fiercest Angels Did Descend, reveal an unconventional pairing of both acoustic singer-songwriter and aggressive punk sensibilities, with vocals that take a more aggravated stab at the groggy/pained inflection of J. Mascis. What can you say? It’s art, baby. Eyedrum (Hutchinson)
CROOKED FINGERS, EMPIRE STATE — Crooked Fingers is ex-Archers of Loaf leader Eric Bachmann’s latest project, which comes off as a quieter, more bucolic version of some of the Archer’s slow songs. Athens, Ga.’s Empire State plays nifty pop/psychedelia á la Beach Boys (or Olivia Tremor Control for that matter) and has vastly improved in the past year. Overall, a good evening of subtle pop/rock sounds. The Earl (Arieh)
DARLING MACHINE, THE PHOBES — Glam-rock and grunge-rock get crunched together between the powerful whirling wheels of Darling Machine. Their CD was produced by KTO/Brand New Immortals guitarist Mac Carter, and it shows. Opening band the Phobes support the ModPunk movement, which I assume means they wear turtlenecks with their Converse Allstars. Their album The Beginning or the End is full of licks you already know, some eerily familiar. Fans of the Buzzcocks, Brit-pop and/or Big Star will not be disappointed. That’s a lot of B’s. Here’s one more: These guys get a B+ for effort. Pure Rickenbacker racket. Echo Lounge (Nicoll/Ware)
MEL’N — Local singer Melissa Ellen (shortened to the rather unflattering Mel’N) performs songs from her debut CD, the unflatteringly titled If I Had a Voice, at tonight’s release party. A voice coach at Jan Smith Studios, Mel’N not only shares her partner’s flawless technique and professional delivery, but also an unrepentant desire to coat her music with the most commercial gloss, which, given that her CD is self-released, tends to make her sound like a music-biz wannabe. Stripped free of her ultra-conformist approach, Mel’N no doubt has the chops to belt out some powerful vocals. Celebrity Rock Café (Sarig)
MORBID ANGEL — Morbid Angel’s latest disc Gateways to Annihilation is a comforting and reliable set, full of all the beefy muscle, perplexing (but not flashy) guitar solos, guttural vocals and double-kick you’d expect. They’re like the AC/DC of death metal — not necessarily a bad thing at all. Masquerade (Foy)
POLYPLUSH CATS, ULTRA BAIT — Polyplush Cats are like a less abrasive Nashville Pussy. They’ve even got a chick bassist/singer. Wonder how tall she is? Does she blows fire? L7 and a little Pristeens inhabit these songs, all under three minutes. Also on the bill are Ultra Bait, another female-led punk band. One, two, three, four, chords you’ve heard a 100 times before. Short-lived is an appropriate description for these songs. 9 Lives Saloon (Ware)
REBIRTH BRASS BAND — As its name implies, this eight-piece outfit from the Crescent City brings a youthful, contemporary edge to the New Orleans brass band tradition. Grab a shrimp po’ boy, hop on the streetcar, pull your shirt up over your head and pass out in a pile of soiled cardboard boxes; Rebirth brings the street parade spirit of Mardi Gras to every performance. Smith’s Olde Bar (Hutchinson)
RECKLESS KELLY, BLUE JAYS — Coming from the rock side of the Americana camp, Reckless Kelly (no relation) packs a punch on their new CD. Based in Austin, they bring some decent credentials to the stage, but the minimal twang content and the big drums/bass sound may seem a little incongruent with the hype. Opening act the Blue Jays play country music and western swing; with a suave coolness usually found only in rockabilly, they simultaneously evoke Hank Williams, Roy Orbison and Gene Vincent. Star Bar (Kelly/Nicoll)
MIKE WEST & MYSHKIN — An Australian raised in Britain who moved as an adult to the Louisiana delta to play folk, bluegrass and zydeco, Mike West draws from a wholly unique perspective. West’s down-home ditties move with such plank-stomping glee, you almost don’t realize their grave and caustic lyrical view. West has a love/hate relationship with Americana, one moment celebrating the lives of simple country folk, the next indicting the nation that could have spawned them. Tonight he’s joined by his frequent tour-mate, Myshkin. Eddie’s Attic (Hutchinson)
Also performing

9 LIVES SALOON: Bitch, Polyplush Cats, Ultra Bait, 210 Deluxe
40 WATT CLUB-ATHENS: VHS or Beta, I Am The World Trade Center, Fabel Factory
BILLY’S: Brian Jones
BLUE RACCOON: Open Mic hosted by Bill Sheffield
BLUE SKY TAVERN: Jam Nite featuring Kindle Williams, Sr. and Blue Soul
BRANDYHOUSE: Iratowns, The Strange
THE BRIGHT SPOT-LILBURN: Karaoke
CAJUN KITCHEN: Dan K Theory
CELEBRITY ROCK CAFÉ: Mel’N
THE CHAMBER: Club Fetish
DARK HORSE TAVERN: B.M.I. Showcase with Injected, Minus, Left Front Tire
DOTTIE’S: Shalaka, Vito
THE EARL: Crooked Fingers, Empire State
ECHO LOUNGE: Darling Machine, The Indicators, The Phobes
EDDIE’S ATTIC: Mike West & Myshkin, CommonbonD
EYEDRUM: Don Caballero, Black Heart Procession, Fred Weaver, Shannon Wright
FAT MATT’S RIB SHACK: Chickenshack
FRONT PAGE NEWS: Kevin Lewis
FUZZY’S: Groov Machine
MASQUERADE: Morbid Angel, Bible Belt By-Product
SMITH’S OLDE BAR: Rebirth Brass Band, Iris May Tango
SOMBER REPTILE: Ghost Train, Days Work Done
STAR BAR-L5P: Reckless Kelly, The Blue Jays
SWEET MELISSA’S-DECATUR: Open Mic Night
TASTY WORLD-ATHENS: Kepler, Phaser, JetStar7, the Villains
WHISKER’S TAVERN-DUNWOODY: Fat Bottom Blues
WILD WING CAFÉ: The Blues Barons
WOODEN NICKEL: Angry Monkey Project