Everyone gets the blues, they just come in different tones and intensities, and like every color and feeling, appear different in the summer. I am no different in this respect and have recently discovered the need to work on new habits and skills to change the wavelengths a bit. One such trick is writing myself little notes. In the interest of filling out this intro and having some fun, I’ll share some with you. The regular caveat applies: Keep scrolling/skimming if you aren’t interested.
“Listening to Tom Petty while depressed is like getting electroshock therapy from an ice cream cone wired to a car battery.” This one is neither a condemnation nor endorsement of the late songwriter’s impressive collection of tracks, but something that hit me while scrolling the radio last month. And while I don’t eat ice cream in general, I also try to avoid zapping myself with either direct or alternating current if I can help it.
“Nothing is older than something from three months ago, nothing is fresher than a memory from the prehistory of a different life.” That kind of speaks for itself, and I believe came from finding an old book from childhood.
“Life is a bright trek in the middle of oblivion. Love is an oasis throughout that journey, a mirage that convinces us we can experience eternity in our brief lives and carry something from that brief life with us into eternity.” And maybe we can. There’s an old Danish saying that “Your last suit doesn’t have any pockets,” which is likely true. But it’s still a suit, which is more than we had nude and screaming at the start of things. What are some of the things you tell yourself? I’m a big fan of the famous line from “The Second Coming” by Yeats: “The best lack all conviction, while the worst are full of passionate intensity.” It helps me get through the full body gag reflex I experience when I walk into a place with cable news blaring on the screens, or some of the quotes and press releases inflicted on us by some of our local cops, bureaucrats and politicians.
Have a hell of week!
Thursday
Tonight’s a good time to enjoy some local jazz at the Basement courtesy of RLAD. Whether performing as a quartet, supporting a visiting soloist or even playing on their own separate gigs, the lads in RLAD have got the juice. For a good time, roll through around 7:30 p.m. with at least $5 in your pockets.
Friday
Happy Accident is a mondo-trash-o experimental theatrical extravaganza created by visual artist and brilliant puppeteer Liz HOWLS and visual designer and musician Servant Baby. Expect the unexpected at this puppet show for the transmundane. Along for the ride is local sound creatures Complex Crown and a vibe-setting emcee job by Alex Hilsee of Mystical AV Club. The fun starts at 9 p.m.at the Miniplex, and tickets are only $15.
Saturday
Human slave Jason Vance lives a harrowing life on the road in the service of his two musical cybernetic overlords, GTRBOT666 and DRMBOT0110. All three make up the fantastic act Captured! by Robots,and performance portmanteau of the Terminator and Chuck E. Cheese’s Munch’s Make Believe Band. The music is loud and rad, and the show is a delight, which is why it sells out every time the group rolls through town, which they are doing tonight at Siren’s Song Tavern at 8 p.m. Fine local smasher group Radical A.P.E. is on the bill as well ($25, $20 advance).
Sunday
King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard is an annoying band name to say or write out, but the group has done something which I find impressive by wrestling the massive festival fanbase away from the sclerotic jam bands who have dominated the touring live music scene for basically my entire life. This Australian microtonal collective also makes a lot of records and songs, many of them quite new and good. If you’d like to have a gander for yourself without paying a ton of money or being trapped in the pungent purgatory of the festival experience, the Shanty is showing a free live stream of the band’s set from Field of Vision Fest tonight at 7 p.m.
Monday
“Shhh/Peaceful” is not only the opening to In a Silent Way by Miles Davis — one of my favorite records in the universe — but also a good invocation for the tenor of this summer’s night.
Tuesday
Back over to the Siren’s Song Tavern tonight — assuming that the evil metal creatures from Captured! by Robots didn’t destroy the joint — for another evening of loud music. Tonight’s fare includes Denver’s emo metal and insect-core quintet Pseudocrush along with local punks Cheshire High and a solo set by Maggie Alvord of Amateur Cadaver. All-ages, 8 p.m. ($5-$10, sliding scale).
Wednesday
Local musical gigsmith, hired gun and occasional bandleader Surya Sardonicus has been in the game as long as I’ve been back in town, and I have often admired his steady and varied contributions to the scene. You can catch him tonight at 5:30 p.m. at the Wave Lounge at Blue Lake Casino for a free set of blues and folk numbers.
Collin Yeo (he/him) has heard that every singer is drawn to the Sirens, but only the best ones tend to drown from singing back while chasing the sound.
This article appears in ‘The Next Wave’.