The Tris McCall Report

Calendar, April 23 - April 28

Wednesday, April 23

Sasha Alcott @ Blu Lounge, 8:30 PM

An acoustic perfomance, featuring offbeat interpretations of songs you might know from their more conventional Possibilities interpretations, appearances by one or both of Los Hermanos Negatonos, and at least one Billy Joel cover. Solo, Alcott allows her classic rock and country-singer roots to show, and is simultaneously more reserved and relaxed -- her studied command and stage presence give her songs a gravity sometimes lacking during full band performances. I don't know anything about the Blu Lounge; situated at the cusp of the northern warehouse district, it looks like a standard Williamsburg bar/eatery. Someday they'll all have music, and even on that day, demand will not outstrip supply.

 

Thursday, April 24

McLusky & Miracle Of '86 @ Maxwell's, 9 PM (with Koufax)

McLusky Do Dallas ripped a hole in 2002. On the year's most legitimately ferocious album, the Welsh trio spot-welded hilarious lyrics of typical rock vanity and injustice to rudimentary but inspired riffs. Plus, producer Steve Albini made sure the result was as butt-shaking as heavy indie rock can be. Sasha Alcott & The Possibilities opened a show for McLusky at Luxx last year, and it's my solemn duty as a teetotaler to assure you their bassist (while an absolute mensch) took the stage as crocked as anybody I've ever seen, and keep in mind I've seen your band. He proceeded to guzzle G&Ts straight through the set, and while he nearly tipped over, he never came close to losing the beat. If that sounds like your bag, enjoy. As for the Miracle of '86, I'm changing my tune on these guys. It's not like I ever failed to appreciate their virtues, but I own up to my faint praise of Kevin Devine in my most recent Friends And Neighbors column. Since then, he's grown on me tremendously. All the vocal moments I initially felt were overwrought now seem entirely earned, and if I ever felt he was whiny, subsequent listens to Every Famous Last Words leave me wondering what the hell I was thinking. It turns out that Devine is an outstanding stealth lyricist. Nothing he says jumps out at you, but the more you live with his sentiments, the more profoundly they resonate. Most emo-tinged music is as forgettable as it is intense, Devine makes sure the Miracle keeps happening even after the record is over.

Palomar @ Mercury Lounge, 10:30 PM (with The Oranges Band, The Hold Steady, & The Forms)

If you missed the Southpaw set (I did), here's your opportunity to welcome Palomar back to the city that defines them. Me, I'll have the best seat in the house -- roughly three feet to the right of Sara Brockett, playing synthesizer on five songs. The Nobel Prize committee could not honor me higher. If the latest songs were merely excellent compositions -- and not the uproarious and heartbreaking missives they are -- you'd still be best served dropping whatever the hell you're doing and making sure you spent your Thursday night front and center, singing along to every indelible chorus. The Oranges Band are frequent Palomar cohorts and solid songwriters in their own right; it's a record release for these guys, and they're sure to bring their A game. I've heard excellent things about the pop-smart Forms. The Hold Steady have a very Brooklyn name, and beyond that your guess is as good as mine.

Val Emmich @ Arlene Grocery, 7 PM

Artist Amplification continues its relationship with Arlene Grocery, placing ace face Emmich on the L.E.S. stage for an early industry showcase. The buzz is audible from Hub City to Houston Street, and, really, how could it not be? Emmich, his slacker-everyman perspective, impassioned delivery, and ingratiating straightforwardness in tow, has been charming the pants off Jersey audiences for several years now. There's been no shortage of product, either -- a split-EP with Hero Pattern, the full-length Slow Down Kid, and something brand new that I haven't even gotten my hands on yet. Unlike many Jersey acts who couldn't dream of pulling a NYC crowd on an early Thursday, I would expect a decent draw, so if you're hoping for an intimate audience with the singer-songwriter, you'll probably have to try elsewhere. But really, Emmich is reaching the level where stalking could be your only option.

 

Friday, April 25

Youngster, The Inevitable Breakups, & Robbers On High Street @ Luna Lounge, 8:30 PM

Pure sugar-candy from well-meaning popsters and a closing set from a band I haven't heard, but who come highly recommended. This is a reunion show for Youngster, and the long-time Luna favorites have wangled themselves an extra-long set. I was present at their '99 farewell, after which their bassist split for the sunnier pastures of Antigone Rising, and at least one of the principal songwriters enrolled in the dreaded medical school. No matter -- the crowd called them back for several encores, and extended rave-up versions of the confections "Moment Of Silence" and the wise-guy anthem "No Toy Surprise". The Inevitable Breakups are considerably less strident, but every bit as sugar-coated and sweet-tempered. If there's something undeniably tame about their version of rock mania, they justify their Weezer quotes (and maybe even their Rivers Cuomo glasses) with puckish humor and memorable melodies. Like many of the groups represented by Kerri Black Promotions, they're best understood as the rock derivative you'd get after you smoked the Luna Lounge. Robbers On High Street features Benjamin Cartel associate Ben Trokan on guitar, and that fact alone makes theirs a show worth seeing.

Billionaire Boys Club @ Arlene Grocery, Midnight (with The Fad & Sift)

If you're a bubblegum junkie, you can follow up the powdered sugar of Youngster and The Inevitable Breakups with a chaser of pure glucose. Asbury's Billionaire Boys Club will be creating instant cavities fifty yards down the block, spinning out sharp and tuneful variations on the core power-pop formula. After trading one of the best handles in Jersey indie rock (Evelyn Forever, for those who don't hang out on the super-nasty New Brunswick Underground message board) for the absolute worst, the four-piece will be reaffirming their commitment to three-chord glee at Arlene Grocery. It's a tweener act for sure -- too indie-styled and Jersey klutzy to play on Z100, and too committed to crowd-pleasing hooks to gain much hipster traction. But hell, that doesn't mean you have to miss out on them. We watched them rip up Bessie's at the most recent Wilmington Exchange festival and set a staid crowd dancing. The set's on late, because most of the evening is devoted to the screening of some kind of documentary about Rockets Redglare. See, this is why I cannot take Arlene Grocery seriously.

 

Saturday, April 26

Pop Star Kids @ Luna Lounge, 10:30 PM (with The Voyres & Neon Thrills)

It's spring, it's Easter, we've all been eating our Peeps. How else can I account for the staggering sugar content of this week's calendar column? If Youngster is as tangy and faux-unpredictable as a handful of jellybeans, the Pop Star Kids are as meticulously molded and neatly presented as a chocolate bunny. But, be warned, it's your ear they're liable to bite off. Ideologue and guitarist Andee (I've been unable to ascertain a last name, and I've been searching for awhile) spikes his hair like Daniel Ash and can be as refined as Peter Murphy. But his wit is his defining characteristic, and the Pop Star Kids' eighties-inspired songs sizzle with their singer's clever and hyper-aware perspective. Because they're authentic in their appreciation of notoriously inauthentic sources, there's some reflexivity at work here that could make you dizzy. But ten minutes into their set, you won't be doubting their authenticity.

The Ankles @ Maxwell's, 9 PM

Hilary recently accepted a job at New Jersey City University, the former Jersey City State. Most of my recent trips to JC have been nighttime runs to Uncle Joe's, so I haven't had a nice stroll down Jersey Avenue and Grove Street for quite awhile. I'm glad we changed that. Local regulations still make it difficult for serious rockers to set up shop in Jersey City, but there's a new spirit in town -- and since there's finally a place to play, an indigenous and autonomous indie rock subculture is finally beginning to emerge. The downtown still needs an additional rock club (and perhaps an answer to Pete's Candy Store), but the presence of a handful of cafes and record stores should give relocating musicians a firm handhold. Dogwoods are in bloom around Van Vorst Park, real estate prices are way down, and Barrow Street brownstones beat the hell out of the aluminum-sided roach motels on Berry and Wythe. Okay, I'm being mean. But it's just my patriotism speaking, baby. I've been waving the Jersey-City-rock-renaissance flag for so long that my biceps have been reduced to puddles of lactic acid, and I've had little to show for it besides MetroCard reciepts from my trips to Williamsburg. Perhaps it's just the smell of spring in the air, but is the wind changing direction a bit? The Ankles didn't ask to be ambassadors from Jersey City to the great indie rock nation, but their sudden local prominence has ushered the popsters into the spotlight. Is this a movement surfacing in our pockets, or are we just happy to see us?

Fresh Kills @ Sin-e, 9 PM (with Fiery Furnaces, Lo-Hi & Big Lazy)

Fresh Kills must have a website somewhere. Hell, Sin-e must have a website, too. The Blood Group did a show at the new space just last week, and I can't imagine that The Blood Group would ever stoop to playing a club that didn't have a website. Where would they put all the fetching digital pictures of Jessica B.? Hmm... if you try www.freshkills.com, you're given a blank screen, and www.freshkills.net reveals a picture of two guys who look like the sort of mesomorphic goons who drove Zach Lipez to form a rock band in the first place. (That said, I can't really argue with their "hate" list). I didn't bother to try freshkills.org, since Lipez doesn't want your charity. But he will be howling again on a city stage this weekend, backed by a set of furious musicians who know their way through the darkest corridors of the new wave, and my guess is they'll make an impression on cyberspace before long.

 

Monday, April 28

Sarcoxie & Sealove, a play by Sander Hicks @ Playwrights Horizons, 3 PM

I don't usually mention anything other than pop and rock shows in this space, but since I'll be playing piano for this performance, I can't but help giving it a shout. For those of you who know only Sander through the Horns & Halos documentary (and the derogatory notices in the New York Press), here's an opportunity to enjoy his nuanced polemics free from anybody's framing mechanisms. Also, if I fall on my face and ruin Sander's reputation as a playwright, you'll get to tell your grandkids you were there when he choked me to death.

Just for the thrill of it, check out last week's listings.

 

If you take your time and you do this right, you won't have to do it twice.