| After a nice long nap and dinner with friends at the Moonlight Pizza Company, we slipped into Kings around 9:15, which left enough time for a game of Time Pilot (didn't roll it over, darn) and socializing before the first band. What can I say that hasn't already been said? We'll see.
( Sanctuary! ) | comments: 7 comments or Leave a comment   |
| | My guilt was not to be denied, so I stuck it out at work. I came home, took a two hour nap, and headed out. I should mention now that Lisa will ( hate me ) | | comments: 6 comments or Leave a comment |
| | In case you're wondering, the tag on this entry is now valid back to 2001. Revel in the history! | | comments: Leave a comment |
| So, those of you who read this journal know that I go to the Great Cover Up. Every. Single. Year. I see every. single. band. Every. Single. Night.
So: good cause, fun time, blah blah blah. I'll be back this year, and I'll expect each and every one of you out there for at least part of one night. It starts Thursday and goes through Saturday. Three nights. Doors Open at 9pm. Bands usually start on time. More information here.
Go.
Tell me you're going, so I know to look for you. | | comments: 15 comments or Leave a comment |
| No dinner plans tonight, I just hung with ![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif) sylvia_wrath (who was staying in to conserve energy for the big game. I traipsed in at 21:30 or so with margarita_5 and babbleon1 (who'd come on my recommendation the night before and not been disappointed). Other bloggers showed up left and right, and when the curtain opened...
It was Def Leppard. From the ripped bleached jeans to the Union Jack muscle shirt to the exploding cigar wig, the band looked ready to open a Wal-Mart. The drummer had both his arms, and as a result they did all pre-accident songs. "Saturday" and that song where they go "fuh fuh fuh foolin'" were two I recognized, and well met, gentlemen.
Some camera geekery with base10 and it was time for The Zombies (whom I've been known to mix up with The Turtles, for some reason). I can forgive a few sour notes. Actually, I can forgive a lot of sour notes. Fortunately, we weren't subjected to total tone deafness. We were subjected to "She's not there", "Tell Her No", "I Love You", "Time of the Season", and maybe one or two more. The outfits were the highlight, as was the female "Rod", and the smooth banter in between songs.
Then, the home team came out for The Damned. Sporting kilts, tight pants, mascara, and inexplicable (to me) flecks of shaving cream, the guys (and one chick) chugged through a brace of tunes from this prototypical Brit Punk band. Fast, tight, and loud. Alas, no shirts were harmed here.
I joked with aklikins that Jesus and Mary Chain should be called "Jesus and signal chain", since they had some problems with guitar pedals. This was the type of joke that was painful for all included. What was not painful was JAMC. All black clothes. Sunglasses. The rhythm guitarist looked like he should have been the Sisters of Mercy guy (a problem I have, mixing up the two bands). They rocked through a wicked Smashing Pumpkins cover, and ended with "Reverence".
Ok, the Smashing Pumpkins comment was really meant to send certain people into apoplexy. We wound up at the end with The B52's. I spent my time between trying to repel moshers (what the fuck?), and gawking at their Kate Pierson (whom I know and adore) rocking out with extreme gusto. The only hiccup was when they tried to do "Roam", and I think the constant problem with the monitor levels was really at fault there. Some more stage time would have fixed their problems, I'm sure. Yes, of course they ended with "Rock Lobster". Wouldn't you?
See you next year. | | comments: 6 comments or Leave a comment |
| Today I got there a little later, having had a great dinner at Piccola Italia. This was ok, as the music was a ways from starting. The DJ was tight, as the kids say, and kept things rocking until the first band, or really just a person from...
Queen. Freddy Mercury, to be exact (I mean, would anyone do Brian May?). He played the piano, and could have used a metronome, and upper range, a piano tuner, and maybe a few more weeks of practice. He did have white jeans, a gold lamè jacket, a moustache, and serious balls (although I didn't actually see those). The crowd loved him much better than the previous night's Ramones. He finished with "We are the Champeons", and the next band quickly took the stage.
Elvis Costello and the Attractions was done by the same band that did Cracker last year. These guys are so fucking on the ball, that if they don't do the Replacements next year I'm going to stop believing in Santa. Holy crap, it's uncanny how good these guys are, and how comfortable they are playing together. J. suggested Dire Straits as an alternative to the Replacements, and I have to admit I'd be happy with that, too. "Watching the Detectives" was sublime. I'd love to know who those guys are.
Everyone was wondering what The Wusses would do to top last year's Little River Band. I had bad information that said they might be doing Chicago. I've never been so happy to be misinformed. Three Dog Night was the order of the day. Dave Bjorkback's moustache was topped only by Dave Cantwell's afro. They started out with "One" and ended up with "Joy to the World". Once again a high point.
I thought nothing could top that, but someone had an ace under his shirt. Careening on stage was The Birthday Party. Some might say this is too obscure. I'll refer them to the Trouser Press bio and spank them like the punks they are. Cy Rawls makes a much better Nick Cave than a rapper, and although they didn't play "Zoo Music Girl", they seemed to make a lot of girls in the audience very happy. Some guys, too. This was crushingly good.
Finishing out the evening was Kyuss (precursor band to Queens of the Stone age). They didn't have enough songs, but the three or so they did have they lumbered through with that Desert Metal sound honed to a T. Good hair, too. Still, they needed more songs.
Or, maybe not, because the DJ spun fab 80's music for the next bit of time before the bar closed.
See you tomorrow. | | comments: 14 comments or Leave a comment |
| So, what did you miss tonight? The first night of the Great Cover-Up is usually a weaker night, this one was certainly quirky. There were only four bands, and we started off (at 10:30, grumble) with...
TV Man and his TV band Usually I get wound up when people stray from the formula, and just playing a bunch of TV theme songs seems like a good way to get me wound up. These people weren't the best musicians, but they were cute. they had a frankly bizarre selection of tunes, including "Reading Rainbow", "Muppet Babies", "Duck Tales", and "Law & Order" (bonus points for sampling the sound).
What if the Ramones were a crappy metal band, instead of a seminal punk powerhouse? I no longer have to imagine that. It's amazing how the rest of an otherwise great band can be brought down by the antics of a lead singer (ok, maybe not so amazing, since I've thought of about a billion other examples right off the top of my head). The voice was all wrong, he didn't even bother to wear a wig/dye his hair, he plugged the band (ie. his band, not the Ramones) relentlessly, and he blew fire. What. The. Fuck. He didn't even have a guitar.
Next up was the Smoking Popes. I know, you're saying "Who the fuck are they?" Rule number 8 of the Great Cover Up: Don't be so obscure that you could actually be the band you're covering any nobody would know the difference. Granted, they actually do exist, but if Trouser Press doesn't have anything nice to say about a band, they might not be the best candidate for this event. I should mention that they weren't bad, I just didn't recognize anything.
WXDU DJ Stingy Jones has been threatening Wu-Tang Clan for a while, so it wasn't too big a surprise to see him in Cypress Hill. I can't say that doing Cypress Hill right is technically challenging, but rapping isn't easy, and that goes double when you're trying on someone else's flow. Our Man Matt was in top form after half a 40oz drifted into his system, trading licks with the lead guy. The guy in the mask? Well, it's good that they didn't give him many lines. This was easily the best band of the night, and got the place "jumpin'" Well worth the wait. It made me happy.
One of these days, we've gotta chip in and buy Kings a fucking air exchanger system. I'll be the one with the mask on tomorrow. | | comments: 10 comments or Leave a comment |
| Ok, so I totally screwed up the first time I did this, so if you think this one is bad, the one I lost before is terribly witty and trenchant. Last night was a little more lightly attended than Friday, making it less smoky and crowded, which was just plain ok by me.
Pat Benatar
Another band we've seen before, but (and I haven't said this part) when it's been going on for six whole years, a little repetition is forgivable. I was a little concerned about the lack of a synthesizer, but I shouldn't have been, as they picked all the more rockin' songs and carried on just fine, thank you. Despite the warnings of the singer and the single week of practice they undertook, they rocked out on every song, and she carried the difficult acapella parts of "Heartbreaker" without problem. Note to self: figure out difference between blues-style and 80's-style guitar soloing. There's something ineffable here.
Cracker
I think these guys had played together maybe once or twice before (that's sarcasm there), because they were incredibly tight. I recognized a disturbing amount of songs, and was able to sing along with "Mr. Wrong". No theatrics or drama, just rock solid chops. Sorta what Cracker was about in the first place, really. Damn, but they were good.
Flaming Lips
Bubbles! Christmas Lights. Glitter. A white Tux. Did it matter that I didn't recognize a single song? Probably not, though I would have liked to hear "She don't use Jelly". Yes, it's their big hit. Yes, it's probably something the cover band wanted to stay away from. Still, the actual Flaming Lips love the song and play it in concert all the time. Give in guys. Apparently, they stuck to songs from The Soft Bulleting, diverting only at the end to some of the newer stuff. Still, awesome!
Stone Roses
As they say, "Manchester, so much to answer for". The Stone Roses were apparently a large part of the sexual awakening of many women in the audience, given all the squeals. Bonus points for playing "I want to be adored" first. Even had the clothes, the Pollack-esque backdrop, and the freaking bucket hat. Bonus points for hair.
Fugazi!
No five dollar t-shirts or eight dollar CDs, but good solid Fugazi covers. Fugazi was hardcore, and didn't shy away from "Waiting Room". Let that be a lesson to all. Cy Rawls, not content with simple nudity, climbed up on stage. ("You guys aren't punk like Rancid. Fuck this Reggae shit! I want my five dollars back."). Figazi did rock mightily, and were a final grand exit for this year's Great Cover Up. I'm supposed to say they suck to assuage the early exit a friend of mine made, but I just can't. It was too cool.
See you next year. | | comments: 2 comments or Leave a comment |
| Holy crap. I think Friday was a six year high-point. No, wait, scratch that. Friday tied with Cherry Valance and Joe Farmer doing Areosmith and Run DMC "Walk this Way". It was way too smoky at Kings, where the air handling system is more theoretical than actual. Hey, Kings, you need one of these, like all good clubs have. They even make them in your size.
Little River Band
A Chapel Hill/Durham supergroup that kicked off the night with a theatrical and technical disturbingly faithful recreation. When I was small and growing up in Greenville, NC, all I had was an AM radio until I went away to college. Hence, I knew every single song they played, without knowing the name of the band until the very end. It was like "Solid Gold" without the dancers or Dionne Warwick. What was even scarier was that I hated all those songs, but hearing Dave Bjorkback and crew enthusiastically cover them, straight up, was one of the most fun moments I'd had at the Great Cover-Up, ever. I have the heart of a Night Owl, and I have indeed Heard about the Lonesome Loser.
Monkees
Who knows what broke after Little River Band? The rest of the evening, there was something up with the bass cabinets, and unfortunately the Monkees had to go on right after it started. There was also a whistling sound in Anne Gomez's mike. Also, I cannot stand the Monkees. I think the pants made up for everything, though. That, and Anne Gomez also made up for everything.
Small Faces
I keep confusing 'Small Faces' with 'Faces' and so I was waiting for Rod Stewart the whole time, or I kept realizing it wasn't 'Faces' and then forgetting not to wait for Rod Stewart. They rocked out, but I don't know anything about them other than they're not 'Faces', so there's no Rod Stewart.
Blondie
Attention all timid singers! Drink that beer sooner. After she started in on the PBR, the lead singer loosened up and really started to cook. Yes, this is the second time someone has done Blondie, but really, the only song I remember from the first time was "Rapture", which (If I remember correctly) redeemed a host of problematic covers before it. These guys didn't do "Rapture" (despite my constant yelling), but after the beer, had nothing that needed redeeming. They seriously rocked through every song, and ended with a Muppet-worthy version of "Call Me." If you're not ending with "Rapture" you must end with "Call Me"
Alice Cooper
I prefer to remember Alice Cooper as an actual counter cultural symbol, as opposed to the golf-playing, Republican, office-supplies shill he turned into (although the little goth girl in the commercial is terribly cute). What stunned me about the real Alice is how old he's gotten, so a young one looks kinda shocking. The band had the songs down, and plastic babies were a nice touch. Ended with "School's Out", I think, and totally freaking rocked! Tied for second with the next band.
Talking Heads
The bass problems were still bugging me, and I kept thinking of the "more cowbell" guy, but Jesus, the David Byrne guy was awesome in this one. Started with a solid version of "Psycho Killer", and ended with "Burning Down the House". Now I know why I saw Xa in the crowd. A rarity.
Johnny Thunder
The things you do for cred. This was the last one, and the fact that they did rock did not make the smoke or the need for sleep any less insistent. We recently got a reissue of these guys at the station and the cover was faithful and all (it being the local band Strange, who are technically superb and stuff), but it didn't resonate with me enough for me to stay for the whole thing.
See you there tonight. I'll be the one with the gas mask. | | comments: 6 comments or Leave a comment |
| We got there at 9:15 or so, believing that they'd start at 9:30. Didn't happen. They started more like 10:30.
Dinosaur Jr.
I think I went to a Dinosaur Jr. show at the Cat's Cradle (one space back) with corey3rd, who I seem to remember needing a ride for reasons I can't remember right now. The show itself was completly forgettable, and so I can't say much to the accuracy of the reproduction. The rest of the crowd seemed to think it was spot on, including the hair. Didn't recognize a single song, though; but the guys were definately good.
White Stripes
Didn't we do White Stripes last year? Never mind that. These guys were louder, rawer, clumsier, and funnier. The drummer also had a crooked set of fake boobies and a beard. Saved "Fell in Love with a Girl" for last, like the good boys they were. The drummer groped himself a whole lot, like I'd imagine Genesis P. Orridge does.
Badfinger
My God, does every indie rocker have a secret special place in his or her heart for classic rock? I know I sure do, because I recognized every single song these guys played. Note-perfect classic rock is a garunteed crowd pleaser at the Great Cover Up, so these guys tied with the next band for the best of the night. How can you not like "Baby Blue"? Now I have to wait until next year for prog rock, I'm sure.
The Jesus Lizard
I say "tied", because it's hard to beat Cy Rawls getting nekkid on stage. In fact, it's impossible. I saw The Jesus Lizard at Lollapalooza in 1994 with this Goth girl I was trying to date. When David Yow crawled out into the fifth row over me and her, sweat and hair going everywhere, she was not amused. I was transfixed. With Cantwell, Bob Wall, and that other guy whom I can never remember methodically nailing every song to the wall behind him; Cy did the best David Yow he could manage (short of gaining 60 pounds of fat and pasting on more body hair). It was incredible. I'm certian the microphone was in his pants at least half the time. I almost felt sorry for the next band.
Pentagram
Apparently an extremely influential metal band from Virginia (no, really). Not being metal, I'd never heard of them, but the style was so familiar I was instanly transported back to High School with such force that before I knew it I was getting a swirly in the bathroom from some dude in a muscle T-shirt and a mullet. Then they stuffed me in a locker that appeared from nowhere and I had to wait until spoobelle finished playing foosball before I could get out.
See you tonight. | | comments: 1 comment or Leave a comment |
| I've managed to get Gnome Meeting installed and perking on my machine, I think. Now I need someone to talk to. Anyone out there run GnomeMeeting or NetMeeting and is willing to help me test? I'm bored. I have a cam. I'm not ugly.
I've discovered that my sanding arm is also needed for other things, which is a bummer as I have a lot of sanding and other things to do.
Great Cover-Up Wrap-Up for Saturday coming soon... Oh, what the Hell, I'll give my sanding arm a break...
Saturday was going to be the day I got some serious shelf work done, but it was not to be. I woke up late after Friday and managed to get going around the time that Sean got back to me (he had some stuff from yaymatt that was getting donated to the station). I went over to Sean's and we goofed around and checked out the new Tiger Direct (Direct) store here in Raleigh. Wildly unimpressed, and there's nothing like a bullhorn to make me run quickly from your store. We booked to CompUSA, where they had exactly one microphone, which I bought.
I got home and managed to still get nothing done on the shelves before C. called to come over. She thought we were shelving, I thought we were dining. I won. We met Sean, H.&J. at the Rockford, and had a spiffy dinner. Then we dropped by a party for an hour and a half. I wish we could have stayed longer, but we got to Kings in time to see...
Echo & The Bunnymen 5
Red wine, scarves, the keyboardist reading a book when he wasn't needed, hair. Oh yeah, the music part was good, too. The lead had it right on during "Killing Time". I'm beginning to detect an optimal age range for GCU bands, because the next one was...
Motörhead 4
Three Lemmys, two wearing Motörhead t-shirts, and the drummer with the facial hair and the black shirt unbuttoned to his navel. Three Lemmys made the band, though I could have used more songs, and possibly a surpise Samantha Fox appearance. Solid drumming. Played "Ace of Spades" last.
The Shocking Blue 4
Remember, when you do the one-hit wonders, play the one hit first. This was the sixties band that did "Venus" before Bananarama made it actually popular. Good fake Nordic banter a la Abba, and good tunes, but no recognition, except from folks much cooler than me like Dave and Anne. Then, a totally huge break before...
Neil Young 4
How high were they? Pretty damn high. Also desperately needed more songs. Good harmonizing, but none of the songs come back to mind (desperately thinks). Man, there were only three... Oh well, that probably says more than anything else. Neil was probably erased from my mind because of...
Elvis Costello 5
I heard about this on Thursday, if you can believe that. The hype was lived up to. Played plenty of songs (he was the last one up), and BROKE A STRING! WOOOOOOOO! Started out with "Pump it up" and ended (I think) with "Radio Radio" and did a bunch of familiar stuff in between. Made up for the occasional flub with lots of energy and witty brit banter.
That's it. It's important to remember this moment, because when this rolls around next year you'll have forgotten that you missed a bunch of cool stuff by not going to every show, showing up on time, and staying 'till the end. By now the causes they supposrt are almost incidental. The Great Cover Up is it's own entity. Look Lively! | | comments: Leave a comment |
| After a bizzare conversation with my boss that day, I was ready for a drink or two. I took L.&C. out to dinner at Humble Pie as a thank you for taking care of the cats, then had to take L. home cause she wasn't feeling well, then back to King's for night 2 of the GCU.
Sean and spicyleesh were already there, and had caught part of the first band's soundcheck. J.&H. showed up pretty quickly, and the first band went on...
Kraftwerk 5 (or maybe even 6)
This provided my first "Holy Fuck that's cool!" moment of the GCU. Not to slight anyone that had gone before, but Holy Fuck it was cool. They were all in black with matching red ties, and standing very stoically in front of little keyboard stands. Pretty much spot on (even robotically swigging the beer from their bottles). The German banter in between songs lacked grammatical correctness (according to Native German H.), but it's not like I would have notice.
I'd like to apologize to everyone who showed up late that I gloated at. You guys don't really suck, but I DID WARN YOU TO SHOW UP EARLY. You guys had to start with ...
Runaways 4
They rocked, it's true, but the Runaways only had one hit ("Cherry Bomb"), which was carefully saved until the end. I'm not sure if that's the right way to do it or not. You run the risk of folks going "Who the Hell are these guys?" the whole time. Maybe better to start with the hit, and go to the lesser known stuff. Better to have two hits to work with, at least. Singing drummers are always cool, though, and the hair was "rockin'". I went to get a beer, and came back to...
The Band 5
I seem to remember the keyboardist from last time, but I couldn't tell you who it was. Of course they did "Cripple Creek", and "The Weight", but pulled the punch by not playing "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down". I'm not sure what to make of that. I'm sure there was a political correctness issue involved, but that slight bit of incorrectness would have been totally forgoten after the next band...
Lynyrd Skynyrd 3
Sounding more like Kid Rock than Ronnie Van Zant and drinking Jim Beam (or apple juice in a Jim Beam bottle) the lead singer had some problems that were totally eclipsed by the large Confederate Flag that they hung (upside down, in my opinion). Even the real band hasn't done that since the 80's. The crowd seemed to be strongly divided between those who were having none of it, and those who ate it up. This was all cleared out by...
Dead Kennedys 5
I should give this a four, because they should have done like more songs, instead of the three they did. Still, the between song ranting was totally spot on, and the songs they did ("California Über Alles", "Holiday in Cambodia", and some other one I didn't recognize) got the 30 year olds to mosh and squeal. I believe there will be sore backs and unexplained bruises this morning. After DK, it seemed like a massive amount of time passed before we got to see...
Mötley Crüe 3
The problem with being the last band is that you're the last band. The only time I've seen it work is with the Ramones. These guys had all the clothes, but they just didn't quite have the sound. The makeup was good, and there was a fog machine. I'm also not sure about doing the Crüe cover of "Smoking in the Boy's Room", but I can't really take off points for that.
Ok, time to get to work today (work at home, that is). | | comments: 2 comments or Leave a comment |
| Doors open at 9. Doors open at 9. Doors open at 9.
I got there at 9:40, and the first band had already started rocking out. There were seven guys all in white and rocking out. They were...
Andrew WK 5 (out of 5)
No missed notes, that I could tell, and an excess of sheer exuberance (yaymatt was rocking out on bass). Stingy said the AWK guy was totally spot on. You could also tell the folks were having way too much fun. I got a beer and mingled with S. & Matt, to return to...
Big Black 5
The guitar strap around the waist gave it away immediately. Well, that and the blistering cover of "Jordan". Apart from a few drum machine glitches, they were right on. They ended with "Kerosene", I think, but I could be wrong. Time for another beer, and I saw many of the XDU crowd show up this time (plus the Torch) for...
The Smiths 4
The only reason for the four was some terrible sound (mabye the bass guitar was overdrivien), and I don't think Viva (yes, Viva, did you expect anyone else) could hear the monitors too well. Gladiolas flew out into the audience (no, really), and I hated it when my friends were successful. Did I go get another beer? Yes I did, and the sirens called me back for...
Discharge 4
I hate speed metal, hardcore punk, or what have you simply because every song sounds the same. Brian Walsby drumming, however, makes everything great. He has this totally offhanded, effortless way about it, even when ripping through speed metal riffs with disturbing precision. Maybe it's the glasses. I skipped the beer this time, and along came...
Creem 3.5
The vocals were way quiet. It took them a song or two to get their feet under them. This should be a 4, probably. I've got a soft spot for Classic Rock, and the GCU seems to be skewed towards rocking out. The last band came up, and I was way tired, but I stayed for...
Mudhoney 3
This was another one where the bass just took over everything and wouldn't let go (and this isn't a good thing). I'm hampered by my dislike for Mudhoney here, too. It sounds like they knew what they were doing, though, so the night ended on a spiffy note.
More GCU this evening. Don't forget to show up on time. | | comments: 3 comments or Leave a comment |
| King's started doing the 4th annual Great Cover Up last night. Two of the six bands that night dropped out of the lineup, but all the bands left rocked the house.
Gang of Four started it off, having the bassist from Archers of Loaf, and doing a note/accent perfect rendition of songs I hadn't heard in 15 years.
Roy Orbison was next, gamely attempting the high notes and getting two out of every four. His backing band was all in suits and ties and more than up to catchy country guitar solos.
The White Stripes were sort of an anamoly, being a little too recent for my tastes, not drag enough, and not doing their big hit.
Last up, Judas Fucking Preist! Holy shit, they tore up several classic tunes; not only doing "You got another thing coming", but finishing with "Breaking the Law". Much goat throwing, hair, and killer riffage. I'm still grinning from that. | | comments: Leave a comment |
| Tonight was Skip at the Museum of Natural Sciences, then some snax at the Rockford, and then more Great Cover Up at Kings.
Cover Up Highlights....
The band that did The Cars.
The band that did Blondie (I don't care what anyone sez, the girl could do some "Rapture").
The band that did The Ramones.
The all-time highlight was Cherry Valence, doing Aerosmith. It was looking bad, but at the last song, Joe Farmer and some other guy come out in leather jackets and pork-pie hats. Yes, they did "Walk this Way", Run-DMC style.
If you weren't there, well, you missed it. | | comments: Leave a comment |
| Went by King's Barcade last night for The Great Coverup. A bunch of local bands each pick a band/artist to cover, and then do 4-6 songs by that band. Thrusday was so grand, I'm going to have go back tonight, but I probably won't make Saturday.
Today was spent dorking around with sending a bit of test equipment back to the manufacturer to (get this) have its fan replaced. Reason? When the fan fails, a squealing alarm goes off.
This wouldn't be so bad if it was either possible to shut off the alarm, or replace the fan onsite. Neither of these are apparently possible, and they used a cheap enough fan such that it failed after 18 months.
No, they wouldn't send me a replacement machine and let me send the old one back. Every way they could make this easier has been denied. I'm not impressed. | | comments: Leave a comment |
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