TRACEY TRANCE - "101" - Tape - 2013

Today's post is brought to you by Jacob Khepler 

 It's common for a band to make a "tour release"- a limited object you can only get direct from them at shows on tour. Oftentimes it is hastily put together, by bands that don't have a new-enough record to sell at the gigs. As a consequence the tour release is more prone to have goofy shit, live stuff, weird covers, noise parts, and collaborations that would never make the cut on the official release. And as a result of this, a tour release can have a behind-the-scenes feeling, that really makes you think of the band members as human beings. The full release is like a band's thesis. The tour tape shows you what the band is like at home- who they're jamming with and what they're riffing on.

   Anyway, this tape isn't a tour tape, it's like the reverse of a tour tape. It sounds recorded on the road, about being on the road, named after the road, with sounds of the actual road, for the benefit of the friends at home. "Our car broke down in the following 8 places, and each place had a nice new friend, a sunny ditch, a kooky animal, and a romantic feeling". It's very sweet!!!!

    This tape contains Tracey's high wavering falsetto singing a nice little ditty about experiences on the 101 highway (i think), and another song about friends, intercut with road sounds, alternate takes, the same songs fed through effects, and brief verses and bits of other songs that come and go in a nice natural way. It's basically an EP of filler material, but as I said before, that can be very nice. The songs have an easy fun melody and a simple rhyme scheme that really makes them seem like they were initally written while driving, maybe even freestyled, for the amusement of the passenger or passengers. Many parts feature a keyboard, Tracey's main instrument, played in a loping circular manner as fingers slip and slide across the plastic. The whole thing seems to be recorded on a handheld walkman recorder- in quieter moments the compression on the tiny built-in condenser mic swells and you hear the background rush in. Lots of nice highway sounds too- trucks, trains, bridges, bells. Very nice.

    If you are not already a Tracey Trance fan, this tape may be your "101" (qua "introductory class")- these sounds are all present to varying degrees and yes, the music is basically this high all the time (at least). If you like it definitely seek out other releases (especially "Pyber Kub"). If you don't like it, that's totally valid. Do not seek out other releases.

    I have no idea if this title is in reference to the Depeche Mode live album / documentary of the same name. It easily could be, and I don't think it's hurting anyone to pretend it is. I would love it if Tracey did a full-on Depeche Mode cover tape- Tracey if you're reading this, think about it.

 In conclusion, I like Tracey Trance, and I like this tape.

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BLOODWALL - "Guitar Tape" - 2011

   I had a pretty light-hearted, fun tape lined up for today, but then I thought "fuck it". Fuck your stupid holiday. You see, I haven't celebrated this weird holiday in earnest since I was a teenager and even then I was only in it purely for the gifts. I mean, I just don't understand it. I don't believe in God (or Satan even). Santa is a really weird person that was made up so that you can learn to lose faith in your parents and believe that they're just gonna lie to you about everything for the rest of your life. And how many people got trampled in a Wal-Mart this season? Whatever. Maybe I'm just in a bad mood because this time of year always puts me in a bad mood and my dad is 3000 miles away and currently hooked up to a ventilator as he slowly fades away from this mortal coil. So, I'm gonna be spending the holiday drinking iced coffee (because I live in a godless city that doesn't completely shut down) and hanging out with incredibly depressed senior citizens,because that's what I get paid to do. Hooray.
   I will also be listening to BLOODWALL, which is just my friend Graham playing layers of guitar on this hour long tape. The first side is all acoustic and reminds me a little bit of John Fahey at times if he lived in a cold house in south Minneapolis with a dirt yard. The second side is electric and is both plaintive and meditative. You'll like it or you won't. I truly don't care if you do, but I love it. Live, BLOODWALL sometimes plays behind a wall of amps to the accompaniment of noise, radios tuned between stations and other odds and ends. The results can be truly hypnotic.

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Graham also plays in VISITOR and can put any noise you want on a mono lathe-cut record over at 2208 Records.

If you truly enjoy the holidays or think that making your kid believe in Santa is worthwhile, don't let me ruin your parade. It takes all kinds to make this world interesting.

ROOT ROT - Demo - Tape - 2012

   When I was growing up in my two-stoplight town, I got a cheap drum set and set out to learn how to play it. I read articles in corporate magazines about how the RAMONES played laughably simple songs, so I set out to play along to their records. When I listened to them, they sounded so pro to me. Machine-like. Precise. Perfect. What they play is not actually simple. I'm pretty sure that whoever the idiot was that played drums for THE EAGLES could never play as fast and precise as Marky Ramone.
   I didn't realize it for another year or two, but I needed to be listening to bands like BEAT HAPPENING or the first BIKINI KILL 12"...music that was sometimes rudimentary and rough around the edges but still forceful and fucking punk in their own unique ways. I would've even settled for any peers who were into punk and had a cool band, but I wasn't even lucky enough for that. Instead, I would just play a fucked up, 13 year old kid version of a blast beat while one of my friends would just make noise on a guitar for eight minutes and we would call that a song. It sucked.
   I needed a band in my town like ROOT ROT, who are rudimentary and basic, yet they get their point across....and they know how to play chords most of the time. When I first heard the band, I was convinced it was three 8 year old girls. That's not a slight against them, but an honest observation. Now, I'm convinced that they're either teenagers or in their 30's, but really, their age is probably the least important thing about them. They rumble through their songs with a fucked up guitar tone and a refreshing don't-give-a-fuck attitude. One of my favorite songs on this tape is "Fuck Gender" but my favorite moment of all is at the end of "Cult" when the band is chanting "Outside of society! That's where I wanna be!" along to an accompaniment of a shambling SHAGGS-like drumbeat. It's totally perfect. Somehow, ROOT ROT takes different elements of OLD SKULL, early CRASS and other weird old UK punk and make it work for them in their own weird way. I really wish they had been around when I was a kid, but I'll take it now too.

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Side 2 is left on here as one long track. On the tape, it states "screwing around side." More accurately, it sounds like someone turned on a tape recorder during band practice while a toddler walked around them....and an answering machine message...and some other stuff....

NO SHIT SHERLOCK - 6 Song Demo - Tape - 2002

   A few years ago, I got into a...errr....heated discussion with an acquaintance of mine about touring. He was convinced that bands shouldn't go on tour until they've released records and have other merch to sell. He said that this proved that the band was more serious about what they were doing and would (somehow) not waste his time at a punk show. Citing a list of "serious" bands who have seriously wasted my time at punk shows over the years, I called bullshit on his idea. I told him that I think bands should go on tour with whatever they want...They could have 4 LP's or just a demo tape (or nothing at all). In my mind, touring can give you perspective on your band and also just take you to places you've never been. Plus, if a band is wasting your time, it's easy to just walk out and do something else. I've walked out on everyone from FORGETTERS to TRAGEDY to ROSA with no regrets. Plus, it's not really your business if a band chooses to go on tour with absolutely nothing to sell (or give away) and at the end of the day, you're going to sleep just the same, so who cares? Also, touring is just this huge privilege anyway...but that's a whooole other discussion....these are the kinds of tangents I get on when writing this at 5 in the morning.....
     This brings us to NO SHIT SHERLOCK, who I saw in a mid-blackout in New Orleans back in 2003. In my hazy memory, they were alternately falling apart and completely ruling at the same time. They were on tour with COUNTY Z and offered nothing more in the way of merch than their shoddily recorded live demo tape and possibly some spray-painted t-shirts. (Our friend, Rana was also on the tour selling haircuts at every show. I offered up three bucks and came out of the show with the sides of my head shaved into steps and a rattail.) The three women in the band played a manic blend of arty, no wave punk employing an accordion, a bass and a floor tom or two. Even though they were probably on stage for a total of 15 minutes and broke up not long after this tour, they've provided more (and better) memories for me than seeing many, many other bands in my life.

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Features members of DOGS and DEUCE BOLDLY. 

FLORAL BEEF - Demo - Tape - 2008

   FLORAL BEEF started out with Sean, Emmalee and Jen playing their songs at a new band show in Sean's backyard on a half pipe. Later, they asked Billy to "try out" by getting him to make distressed animal noises and dance around. When he succeeded, they put him on the 2nd drum set.
   Jon Paul recorded this demo on a reel to reel at the 3rd St practice space in San Francisco. The drummers used an old school bell (as a cymbal) that JP had swiped from a school that he squatted.
   Like many bands, FLORAL BEEF went on a tour that destroyed them and strained friendships. Their roadie (Matty B) almost got them in many fights for drugs, unrestrained wildness and matters of religious differences. He was also their "chef", which just meant he poured Tapatio and lime juice into Fritos bags and shook it up.
   Some band members continued to live next door to each other, but barely talked. Jen moved into my house once, but I don't ever think we slept there at the same time. I know I only saw her once. The band got back together a couple of years ago for a reunion show where they took their shirts off, spit beer in each other's mouths, slow danced in the kitchen and tried (and failed) to crush up & snort Horny Goat Weed pills from the corner store. Maybe they even played a tape loop of Ron "Tater Salad" White's comic routine where he talks about getting his dick super-glued to his stomach like they used to...I don't know....I wasn't there....All of this info came from their drummer, Emmalee, not me.

  I only had 2 chances to see FLORAL BEEF and I totally squandered the first one. I believe the band was playing a mere 3 houses away from me, but I was locked up in an attic room alone stressing out and getting depressed. I shared a room with my friend Matt and laid on his bed while he was playing a movie awards show in Hollywood, schmoozing with Deniro and fighting over free Ipods with Jason Bateman. I should've been jumping up and down to FLORAL BEEF, but I was probably reading about total bullshit. If I opened my window, I probably could have heard them. 

  The second time, I raced with a group of bicyclists across SF to the Tenderloin (that's a neighborhood, for out-of-town readers) to try and catch them at their reunion show. We reached the door of the house where they were playing and started blitzing the door guy with questions. "FLORAL BEEF?! HAVE THEY PLAYED YET?!!" The door guy was trying to take our money without answering. "Yeah man, all the bands are great. I'm sure they'll go on soon." Suddenly, Emmalee appeared and said "We already played. It's a shit show." We took out money back and opted to drink on the street instead. Minutes later, a guy from the house walked out and started yelling at us about how we were assholes by drinking out front. We were "blowing up the spot." I looked up at the open window of the house where music was blasting out into the streets. I looked at the guys next to me drinking openly and dealing crack.  I looked at the Friday night hordes also drinking and shouting about nothing. I looked at the whole city going completely ass wild and then glanced back at my friends serenely drinking tall cans on the street. A cop car drove by without a second glance. The guy threatened to call the cops. We laughed and left. 

I've still never seen FLORAL BEEF.

Emmalee wanted me to add this at the last minute: "The most important thing to remember in the telling of FLORAL BEEF is that Jen and I went to the same elementary school (Mark Twain Elementary. Isn;t it weird to name a school after someone's pen name?), but she was in class with my little brother and remembers him being a bad kid."

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Members of FLORAL BEEF also played in DISPLEASURE, DAVID COPPERFUCK, RAW/WAR, SCHLITZ CLAIBORNE and lots more, okay?

I know I didn't say anything about what they sound like and that's okay because you can just download it. It's sometimes simple yet deceptively, brilliantly catchy. Abrasive but tender. Songs like "Void in my Head" and "Tell Me" will be stuck in your head for days.