the hum / By Bob Doran

Transcendental Elephants

We can’t have a week go by without some reggae. Friday at the Arcata Theatre Lounge Israel Vibration pays another visit to Humboldt, with Northtown Dub opening. Lascelle “Wiss” Bulgin and Cecil “Skelly” Spence met Albert “Apple Gabriel” Craig when they were youths in Jamaica. The three of them were afflicted with childhood polio and became friends while attending a special school. In the ’70s they formed a vocal trio singing about Rastafari and related matters. All these years later, Izzy Vibes carries on (although Apple Gabriel went solo), still singing “The Same Song.”   

Sunday’s Concert on the Plaza (Arcata, that is) has the fine young local reggae band Synrgy.

Then on Monday, Labor Day, the Red Fox welcomes Pato Banton, a former Brit who relocated to Cali years ago. He’s not a Rasta by any means, as evidenced by his latest audio book, The Words of Christ II, “a beautiful selection of soul touching lessons from Jesus Christ as revealed in the Fifth Epochal Revelation, The Urantia Book” read by the author himself. Musically, he continues what he describes as a lifelong “quest to bring Positivity to the masses around the world.”

Got a note from James Harkins from The Invasions. He’s doing his zombie surf thing at the Lil’ Red Lion Sunday night with a new Invasions line up: “Me and Laney [his girlfriend] and a drum machine, with her adding backup vocals on every song — very fun!” His is one of five bands, including S.F. indie rockers The Slow Trucks, The Monarchs, Hari Kari and Chung Antique. “Jeez, it’s a big bill,” says James. “We be opening (thanks god).”

Metal heads and hardcore punk fans have a couple of big shows this Labor Day weekend. First on Friday, starting in the afternoon, it’s the Thrash in the Woods Festival at The Peg House where, say the thrashers, “six of some of the most extreme metal and punk bands from Northern California gather.” That would be Locust Furnace, Verbal Abuse, Embryonic Devourment, From Hell, Chained Existence and Astknife. Then you have Saturday’s all-ages Screams from the Underground at Redwood Acres (starting in the morning) with the first three bands above, plus Sadistic Hallucinations, Transient Messiah, Siphon Soul, Reverse Order, Malevolent, Lenore, Decayed Existence and The Smashed Glass.The band nameslet you know what you’re in for. If you just want a little taste, The Smashed Glass also plays Irish-tinged punk Saturday night at the Alibi (two sets: one acoustic, one electric).

You say you couldn’t make it to Burning Man? The Epic Bass Party at Nocturnum might have to do. The dubstep-athon assembles four DJs — Hypha, ibeat, DevsteP and Snailbyte — and undoubtedly some bigass speakers. BYO dust storm.

Ran into local rhythm king Jesse Jonathan at the Ink People office the other day. If you’re a regular reader you know he’s bandleader for WoMama and SambAmore, among other things. He’s put together the Redwood Rhythm Review Sunday afternoon at Redwood Raks, a fundraiser for Samba da Alegria (the North Country Fair drum/dance ensemble). The review includes Poetic Motion Machine jugglers, HSU percussionists Seismic Activity, Humboldt Capoeira, Jonathan Kipp (HSU Percussion Dept. alum), Jesse’s young students Taj and Mira Obarr, Shoshanna and, of course, SambAmore.

“We have such a rhythmic community here in Humboldt,” says Jesse. “This is our stage. It’s a bit percussion ensemble show, a bit choreography showcase, a bit circus, a bit playful, a bit intense, and a whole show of inspiring presentations of the continual dance of energy that is music.”

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