WEDNESDAY 7.3
Bellglide / Pyramid –Bellglide are ever improving, thanks to vocalist/keyboardist Slappy gaining her stage legs. John Cates, Taylor Short and Adam Roth aren’t exactly long in the tooth, but they provide a solid bed for their singer to lay her Brit-pop-style lullabies. Pyramid are semi-new to the scene, but already a can’t miss: a little western abstractia via Calexico, hints of any one of Will Oldham’s various guises, and maybe someone like Acetone. I’ve never seen the band live, but if the live show delivers the texture of a recent demo CD sent to me (cello, ambient electronics, hushed yet clean vocals), it’s a show you don’t want to miss. As someone once told me, you can either really rock or really suck with a name like that. The former, without a doubt. Double Door Inn (Davis)
Uncle Sam Jam–Not a bad little show here, especially if you like your music 80s-style with a bit of attitude. Worthy if only because she helped make Sleater-Kinney possible (we’ll forgive her Meredith Brooks), Joan Jett doesn’t give a damn about her bad reputation, and she does love the rock & roll. LL Cool J simply needs a beat (an 808, preferably). The L, not considered that much of a player anymore by the rap cognoscenti, nonetheless has rocked more house parties than Ja Rule and Trick Daddy combined. L was one of the first to bring the rugged/ruff vocal style to the fore, and Rule and folks like Method Man owe him his propers. Not to mention he’s had so many hit singles that the whole show ought to be tighter than the tops of one of the women in his videos. Course of Nature and Abandoned Pools also appear. Dixie’s Tavern (Davis) THURSDAY 7.4
Declaration of Independence Party –This ought to be a great gig, especially if you’re alt.country-inclined. It features the rather straight-no-chaser honk of Dave Rhames & The Westchesters, the more melodic Memphis Quick 50, the melancholic/ironic country of Phil Lee, Les Dirt Clods, The Goldenrods and, last but not least, Lou Ford — who started this whole damn thing a while back at Fat City under the name “Hard Times Family Picnic” — which, of course, is also being held today at Fat City. Who says things can’t be confusing in a town with only a handful of consistent live music venues? The Penguin (Davis)
Hard Times Family Picnic : This annual gathering of music and down home fun will feature only Charlotte bands this year and that’s a good thing, as our fair city can boast some of the hippest bands around. Turning up the heat for this year’s Independence Day celebration in NODA are Baleen (trippy hippy trance music), Babyshaker (doing the punk glam garage thing), Snagglepuss (colorful palate of party-rock), Avett Bros. (killer, real country music) and My So-Called Band (rocking punks). Also on the bill are Vulvacanoes, Rhombus, Black Lagoon, the Talk, The Interstellars and more. Fat City (Shukla) FRIDAY 7.5
Out of the Fire –Originally based in LA, Out of the Fire was led by Bruce Joyner and Tom Byars and began to take off right about the time CHiPs went off the air. They were later produced by Peter Buck of REM. After a stint leading the now-defunct local band Cyclone Mack, Byars and his original project are back together, now sporting new members Mandy Zee (accordion) and Artie Denman (drums). Later this year, the band will hit LA to record with producer Don Fleming. Expect colorful, eclectic rock that wouldn’t sound a bit out of place in Athens, GA, circa a dozen years ago. 23 Studio/Pat’s Tavern (Davis)
Runaway Cab –Maybe you’re just looking for melodic rock written with an eye for uplifting lyrics, or a good date band who leaves trendy posturing at the door or maybe you just want an evening of solid pop-rock after a long work week. Well, this Chapel Hill band can provide all of the above without any in-your-face ramblings or pretensions. The group’s philosophy is simple: rock hard with harmony and melody nailing the package. Opening for Suite 490. Amos’ Southend (Shukla) SATURDAY 7.6
Athenaeum –Back in ’99, I wrote that “Athenaeum has never made any kind of overtures to ‘keeping it real,’ but this is ridiculous. Once a somewhat earthy, endearingly naive group, they’ve evolved into a cover band of themselves, to borrow a phrase. There’s nothing wrong with a band gyrating on stage, copping a few rock star moves, and counting the cash. However, when songs, no matter how catchy, are buried in pop-by-numbers puppeteering, said stage manner can serve to magnify the songs’ already thinly apparent arguments to listen to them in the first place. To put it another way, cotton candy is tasty, but you can’t eat 12 servings in a row.” Yeah… what he said. (Note: It must be said that the addition of Mike Garrigan has added some well-needed muscle to the sound.) With Winston-Salem’s intriguing Evoka Project, one of the better acts to come from that city in a while, and Revelation Darling. Amos’ Southend (Davis)
Bessie Mae’s Dream –The J word is everywhere and mainstream newspapers are writing about Jam bands with a breathless sense of discovery. Let’s see, original jam bands, i.e. jazz outfits, go back, what, seven or eight decades? All good music is essentially jam music. NC’s Bessie Mae’s Dream are pretty unrepentant in their quest for a Deadhead renaissance. To their credit, they manage to create original spacey jams while giving tasty swirls to covers of the Dead and others, keeping dullness to a minimum and head swaying to a maximum. Puckett’s Farm Equipment (Shukla)
Evergreen Terrace –An above average hardcore band who can go from strumming acoustic guitars to guttural death screams in 1.2 seconds. The Jacksonville, FL, band does one of the hardest, and pretty darn good, versions of U2’s “Sunday Bloody Sunday” that makes ’em stand out from the crowd. Here’s your well thought out, all-ages Saturday night filled with a posse of bands abusing vocal chords and trouncing loud guitars, including The End of All, XonefifthX, I Speak & Strateia. Tremont Music Hall (Shukla) WEDNESDAY 7.10
Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers / O.A.R. –The Marley brood, led by the effervescent Ziggy, released a splendid reggae-ska-blues record a couple years ago titled The Spirit of Music. The record is pretty much a return to Jamaican roots after years of releasing polished pop-reggae records, though Melody Makers’ reggae is plenty authentic and can make a follower wistful to have such a seamless carryover of Bob Marley’s legacy in a wholly original package. / O.A.R. (Of A Revolution) have the horns pumping and flavored with happy jams as well as a potent blend of reggae, pop and folk music (as showcased in their recent double live disc set Any Time Now). Both bands are a part of a slew of bands on two stages for the Jeep Outside World Festival. Also playing are Tonic, Doyle Bramhall, Maroon5, Silvercrush and more. Oh yeah, a gal named Sheryl Crow headlines the whole thing. Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre (Shukla)
This article appears in Jul 3-9, 2002.
