Newspaper Page Text
HARVEY MILK
The Pleaser
Reproductive Records
Athens' Harvey Milk may be
remembered tor decades as the loudest,
meanest-sounding, most experimental
rock band ever to pummel this music
scene. In the early 1990s. guitarist
Crest on Spiers, bassist Stephen Tanner
and drummer Paul Trudeau played a
slow, de-tuned. distorted, very exact and
very, very loud style ol rock music that
combined ugliness and beauty and
could only be comprehended live
Alter replacing Trudeau with drum
mer Kyle Spence a tew years ago. the
band began to develop a ditlerent sound
with a faster pace and a decidedly ‘clas
sic rock* feel With The Pleaser. the
bands third lull-length album. Harvey
Milk not only show that they remain one
of Athens' most frighteningly massive
rock bands — they also show that
they re out to unabashedly swipe specil-
ic rills and lines from their tavonte clas
sic rock records and ‘rock out* at a time
when such a thing is almost considered
blasphemous in such a hip music town
*tns formula could have easily come oil
as schtick Though it does have its
’loments of humor, this i$ also an
extremely powerful record
Recorded by local engineer David
Barbe, The Pleaser erupts with ‘Down *
a rift-heavy song played in double-lime
Those unfamiliar with Spiers' vocal style
may be shaken by the singers guttural
howling, moaning and yelling It's tough
to doubt him when he sing:. ‘When I
hear that crying, when I see those tears
come falling dowrf I teel like crying *
As the album bounds forward, the
"classic rock* clues become more evi
dent The ghost ol Led Zeppelin rears up
on the intro to the last ‘Gel It Up And
Gel It On* (specifically, the percussive
rift ot ‘Walter's Walk’ oft ol Coda) —
which also features a great Deep Purple
guitar solo Zepplm also iigures in on
the verses of the next track. ‘Shame*
(‘Black Dog*) and the slow, bluesy ‘Lay
My Head Down' ("Since I've Been
Lovin' You’) After the quiet guitar intro
to *What l Want,* the band kicks into
what could be a composite of Who's
Next-era three-chord bombast The last
track, the hilarious and butt-kickin'
‘Rock And Roll Parly* is obviously a
tribute to Kiss
The tracks that stand out the most,
though, are the songs with the least debt
to the dinosaurs, like the triplet-test
‘Misery* and the roaring 'U S Force'
The sound quality ol the session tits
this material Spence's drum kit sounds
like a vintage Ludwig in a huge room
Tannerts bass and Spiers' guitars sound
less muddy and tuned-down (they used
to play in low C rather than E) While
using various distortion and guitar
effects, the bass and guitar maintain a
clarity not heard on previous record
ings
The Pleaser is evidence ot Harvey
Milks willingness to let go ot the con
ceptual arl-dirge of their ear / Self
Rising Records days and the symphonic
schizophrenia of their 19% qem My
Love is Higher Thar Your Assessment
ot What My Love Can 9e They ve obvi
ously said 'Fuck it. let's have fun' here
Although they Dorrow huge chunks ot
rock riffs and cliches from their heroes
they weld it together in the same spirit
of Zep, Kiss and The Who — who bor
rowed from their predecessors but
attempted to create something new out
ot something old Whether The Pleaser
was intended as something humorous
or as something serious it rocks harder
than any Athens band you ve ever heard
(Reproductive Records. PO Box
398073. Cambridge. MA02139)
Ballard Lesemann
UZJJIME DOMA
Fairytales from Need land
Skoda Records
Uz Jsme Doma (translates as 'Now
I Get It* or ‘Now We're A! Home*)
formed in 1985 behirvj the constraining
folds ol the Iron Curtain m
Czechoslovakia Their music exempli
fies the heady spasmodicism and psy-
cho-symbiotic complexity that only
comes Irom years of mutual musical
masturbation '* ,s also expietive-mduc-
mQly beautiful music
The band falls into the general cate
gory ot European folk-art-punk rock
which includes the complicated music
c* Hollands the Ex and the Dog Faced
Hermans Though less politically
aggressive and moody than the Ex. and
less angular than the Dog Faced
Hermans, Uz Jsme Doma is musically
akin to both All three bands share a
similar approach to melodic progres
sion. experimentation through fusion,
and brilliant use of staccato rhythms
Throughout Fairytales From
Needland. the guitars bass, pianc tenor
sax. drums occasional bassoon, and
brushes ( ? ) are played with idiosyncratic
virtuosity The album is tilted with shift
ing rhythm schemes, sliding melodic
lines, and tempo layering, all woven
together and infused with the passion
ate. melancholic mama ot Slavic folk
melodies
The lyrics are ingenuous
riddles/lables about human behavior
The tales range from the absurd
(*Kudzelma/Ms Lazybones (a fairytale
about a full tram)") to the profound
("Hlma/Clay la fairytale about a great
Unrest)*) In *Vodmk/Pond Troll*, an
amphibious pond troll allegorizes life on
land 'The third story tells i(/1hat in the
world's a flower/such that if ever some
one smells it/ houses follow him and
meekly collapse/The world is haunt-
ed'/The world is haunted 1 * All of these
fairytales are told m graceful, gorgeous
Czech
This is the noisiest album Uz Jsme
Doma has recorded to date This is also
the closest they ve come to capturing
the experience of their mind-blowing
■<ve performances in the studio Ladislav
Vesely and Mirek Wanek (lyricist, gui-
’anst pianist, vocals) have somehow
managed to make every musical ele
ment nchly intelligible without sacnfic-
nq the holistic energy that is imperative
'o a Land ot sucn intensity and texture
Ever* song is beautifully engineered
'rom *he spare Maiokdo/Hardiv
Anybody (a fairytale about armor)* (only
saxophone and vocals) to the orchestral
'Ranoc/MorniQht (a fairytale about two
possibilities)"
Please buy this This hand is as
good as the Ruins — and nobody is as
good as Ihe Rums (Skoda Records. PO
Box 77611, Washington. DC 20013-
7611)
Funke Sangodeyi
SEVEN FOOT POLITIC
Welcome To DirtviHe
(Local Independent Release]
It's hard to say exactly wtiat lype ot
rock music this Athens quartet plays
They're rockabilly, swing, ska. ‘50s
garage and ragtime all at once The 11
songs on this album showcase the
bands ability to play fast, blues-based
rock and roll with enthusiasm and atti
tude The songs also reveal, however, an
identity crisis that olten threatens the
survival ol many 'retro'-oriented bands
The opening track 'Bluebeard'
starts out with guitarist Jonathan
Callicull's clean, strummy four-chord
intro, then takes ol with Seven Fool
Politic s trademark sound Griften
Campeils thumping upright tass lines,
David Parker's bouncing swrnq beats
and snare-snap accents and Jason
Sneaths peppered trumpet lines
By featuring a lead trumpet. Ihe
band straddles whats considered con
temporary rockabiliy. swing and ska it's
wend but it works 'Comeback Kid’
sounds like The Stray Cats covering
songs from Builds Over Broadway The
instrumental * c ritzel's* may as wet' be
!he bands theme song, with brief solo
sections lor each member ‘Black
Friday' resembles Van Morrison's iazzy
‘Moondance* more than something by
fhe Cramps
Five ot the tracks on Welcome To
Diriville were recorded live at their
’avorite local club the 40 Walt The
rnythm section stays good ana solid
but the trumpet lines crap out a little too
often perhaps adding dirt !o Dirtville in
‘act all ol Ihe ‘studio* tracks were
recorded at fhe 40 Watt on oft-days by
■ocal engineer Jett Capurso. and the
non-slick sound quality sounds dry and
honest, which suits the band
The dirtiest aspects ol Dirtville may
come trom Callicutt's vocal style, lyrics
and occasional cranked guitar distor
tion His gruff, smoky singing style
resembles that of The Flat Duo Jets
Dexter Romweber or Tom Waits more
than Brian Setzer or Elvis Presley On
songs like ‘Last Call* and ihe excellent
■Queen Of The Twist* (by Ihe Athens
band The Quadraiefs). Callicult turns it
up and gets mean He's a great rhythm
guitarist and if shows on Ihe more
rockin' tunes like these
Most of Callicutt's lyrics seem to be
about the drinking, gambling and pool-
hall dirty deeds portrayed in his artwork
on the album cover l ntortunalely. many
ot the songs sound too polite to back up
the attitude One wishes lor more burly
growling and dangerous guitar/drums/
bass m the instrumental tracks to tack
up the tough-guy themes These songs
also fend to sound Ihe same it would"ve
made for a better EP
Still, this is a notable local release
trom a band trying hard to tree itself
trom the limits retro-style imposes That
effort is jus? one ot the elements that
makes their live shows notable, and this
record pretty listenable (PO Box 208.
Athens GA 30603'
Ballard Lesemann
Flagpole Magazine’s Music Directory provides effective, affordable advertising to studios, labels, bands, instructors and everything else musical!
20% OFF'
USED CDs
V/uxtry Cafe
Baxter Hill 548-9225
Wuxtr/ Cafe
Baxter Hill 548-9225
Best Smoothies in townl
ywe honor all smoothie couponsJ
un Ainu Cent ft!
(IN) CIS SMS
1037 KAXTkR ST. AT CAUt
U NEED SHIRTS
up lo 12 $6.00
Fno* fctcJudM
13-47
$7.00
48-71
$6.00
72*
$5.00
mt m wMn .
trinket
SOM HU MTS SuSLUm
Huromn Uu
u/he^se jrtrrjt
Transfer Cassettes
or DAT to Audio CD s
Low Quantities • Low Prices
CALL 546-7792
447-East Clayton St.
(706) 548-7233
NEW & USED CD’s
BUY-SELL TRADE
TOP $ PAID FOR CD’s
TAPES, VINYL, TURNTABLE
NEEDLES A MUCH MORE
Week
ST.
548-1233
36
Open 8 Dens a Wirt
51 E. CLAYTON
A 1 week ad will co*t $18 per column inch.
A 4 week ad will cost S15 per column inch, per week.
An 8 week ad will cost $13 per column inch, per week.
A 13 week ad will cost $11 per column inch, per week.
A 26 week ad will cost $9 per column inch, per week.
To reserve your ad space call Russ Haliauer at 706-5494)301
Deadline: F’riday&2:OOpm
ELIXIR t RECORDING
2" Analog Recording
Lowest Evening Rates!
Now AVAILABLE: ONE-OFF CDS!
Downtown Athens 706-546-0602
Hello kiddies, this is Jessica, current Flagpole music intern
slave. I'm taking off for the summer; hence,
we're looking for a new music intern.
Come broaden your knowledge and horizons by familiarizing
yourself with all of the bands, venues, and record labels that
make life so dam enjoyable. Connections made here as a
music intern could even help you out in the long run. The
position is unpaid, and requires attention to detail, a good
attitude, and a high threshold for clerical-type work.
Working here is a truly valuable experience. And, just to let
you know, they didn't pay me to say this. (Not own a dime...)
Leave a message for me at 549-9523 if you're interested.
The Finest Sclcctiqn
Q.f Used & new '
musical instruments
In The UNIVERSE
BUY -
(770) 879-838 1
S23k H jH.vjy 7f> SjjJ'tt* A
i 30087
SandBom
COmasferingSounddesign
(706) 543-3296
sandbox@negia net
Flag pole^*^
(’l««IKT.MAK 111 ■
ALHU'M
A compilation of
local Danas
Proceeds go to aid
Community Connects
ana Project Safe
QROC*9 VOUR COPV 0V
Pull I
MOON
Athens’ most affordable
2-Inch Analog 24 track
SPECIAL RATES AFTER 10PM
769-4 T OO
NOW
OFFERING
Pro Tools
Mastering
and
One-Off
CD's.
IS FLAGPOLE MAY 27, 1998