the Green Lady Killers - revisited

(This interview with Green Lady Killers originally appeared in Baby Jeepers issue 5)
The Green Lady Killers song "My 45" is about a badass chick with a big gun who’s having a real bad day. "If I see you walk by / You better run and hide" sings guitarist Lady Van Buren about this most un-lady-like behavior. Together with bass player Annie Venom and drummer Cherry Bomb, the Green Lady Killers sound brings to mind the bad girl pre-Punk of the Runaways and the British Punk Metal of Girls School but filtered through a hard edged style that is all their own. The Green Lady Killers were interviewed on a rainy February night in Arizona outside of a Mesa dive called Hollywood Alley. BOB: The line up was different the first time I’d heard your band. How did this line up come to be?
LADY VAN BUREN: We started out as an all girl band, three piece. And then we went to the line up with the two guys. That was cool, it was a bigger sound. But then we went back to being an all girl three piece. Annie moved here from Chicago a few years ago and we found her on line.
CHERRY BOMB: She had ads up and stuff.
LADY BAN BRUEN: I think this is the best line up that we’ve had. It’s been a little over a year and a half.
BOB: So Lady Van Buren and Cherry Bomb started the band?
LADY VAN BUREN: Yeah, we grew up together.
CHERRY BOMB: Across the street.
BOB: How did you get hooked up with playing the Warped Tour?
LADY VAN BUREN: There’s a band out of New York City called Shiragirl, it’s like crazy rock and pop weirdness. They had a stage at Warped Tour. They wend and demonstrated how there were no women at Warped Tour and crashed it one year. So the guy that puts it on said I want you to be in it now and have a stage.
CHERRY BOMB: They played in the parking lot before that for a couple of years.
LADY VAN BUREN: We entered and out of I don’t know how many bands, but we got selected and we played a couple of dates. Also, our song "Psycho Ellen" was put on their compilation. It was the older, rougher version. It was cool.
CHERRY BOMB: It was fun.
BOB: Where were the dates?
CHERRY BOMB: We did Las Cruces, New Mexico and Phoenix, Arizona.
LADY VAN BUREN: It was so super hot...
CHERRY BOMB: And we partied the night before.
BOB: What time did you go on?
LADY VAN BUREN: 2 pm.
CHERRY BOMB: When it was hot and muggy.
LADY VAN BUREN: Still, it was good exposure.
BOB: What brought you here from Chicago?
ANNIE VENOM: My family, originally. I stayed because at this point, that’s all I got. I’m trying to make it work in Arizona.
BOB: How long have you been playing bass?
ANNIE VENOM: For about sixteen years now.
BOB: Then you’ve been in bands before?
ANNIE VENOM: Oh, yeah. I was in a lot of bands back home.
BOB: Did you always play Rock ‘n Roll?
ANNIE VENOM: Sometimes. Sometimes Emo and Indie rock. I loved Indie rock.
LADY VAN BUREN: She’s a great singer too.
ANNIE VENOM: This is the only band I’ve been in here in Phoenix.
BOB: They found you right away?
ANNIE VENOM: Cherry Bomb located me on MySpace.
BOB: I read that you opened for Missing Persons, did you get to meet Dale Bozzio?
CHERRY BOMB: Dale was there.
LADY VAN BUREN: They were very "all business."
CHERRY BOMB: We saw them backstage.
LADY VAN BUREN: She talked about her cat situation on stage. I thought that was kind of weird.
CHERRY BOMB: Yeah, she’s in a "cat situation."
ANNIE VENOM: She’s got about thirty cats or something and there was an article on Google that she got arrested or something. She went off on that trying to clarify that, I guess.
CHERRY BOMB: As a drummer I was looking forward to seeing Terry Bozzio there with his huge drum kit but he wasn’t there, it was a different drummer. It was still good, though.
BOB: How did you end up with that gig?
LADY VAN BUREN: The promoter just contacted us.
CHERRY BOMB: It was at Club Red.
LADY VAN BUREN: That’s in Tempe, we’ve played there a few times.
BOB: Have you played everywhere there is to play in Phoenix?
LADY VAN BUREN: Pretty much.
CHERRY BOMB: I wish there were more venues downtown.
LADY VAN BUREN: It’s hard...
CHERRY BOMB: A lot of Phoenix venues have shut down.
ANNIE VENOM: I miss the Ruby Room. That was awesome.
BOB: You have an EP out and that’s actually your first recording?
LADY VAN BUREN: Yeah.
BOB: Was it recorded with this line up?
LADY VAN BUREN: No. The EP was recorded with the line up that was four people, two guys and two girls.
CHERRY BOMB: There’s six songs on there, including "Psycho Ellen" which is on the Warped Tour compilation.
BOB: And it’s still available?
LADY VAN BUREN: Yeah, it’s on i tunes.
BOB: And you have a new full length?
LADY VAN BUREN: Yep. We just released that in late September and we did a West Coast tour to promote it.
BOB: What’s the song "Psycho Ellen" about?
LADY VAN BUREN: That was about someone I knew who had a psycho ex-girlfriend. It’s a true story, the lyrics are true. It was about a relationship gone bad. Not my relationship, though.
BOB: What will the band be up to next?
LADY VAN BUREN: We’re in the process of writing a lot of new songs. We’ve had a couple of months off from gigging to concentrate on writing new material and recovering from our tour.
CHERRY BOMB: And then we’re going to play some more tour dates in the summer.

　

Agent Orange drops in on the Echoplex

Agent Orange played a rare set at the Echoplex in Echo Park on April 22 as part of a rather strange bill that included TRMRS and Black Apples. Formed in 1979, Agent Orange are one of the earliest surf punk bands to emerge from Orange County. With founding member Mike Palm as the only mainstay member of the band, which has featured a number of distinguished players such as Steve Soto from the Adolescents who played bass on the classic "Blood Stains" single, Agent Orange are one of the most seminal bands in the So Cal punk scene. (Local L.A. punk band A Pretty Mess frequently covers "Blood Stains" which has also been covered by L7) Joined by current drummer Dave Klein from the Ghastly Ones and bass player Perry Giordano, Agent Orange played a number of songs from the first album Living in Darkness including "Everything Turns Grey", "The Last Goodbye" and the title-track "Living in Darkness" as well as their cover of the Bel-Airs Mr. Moto which pretty much set the standard for surf punk. Palm was in particularly good form in front of the small but enthusiastic crowd. Remarking on how females seemed to be dominating the slam pit in front of the stage, Palm dedicated a cover of the Jefferson Airplane hit "Somebody to Love" to the girls in the pit. They finished off the evening with an edge-y but faithful cover of "Shakin’ All Over", a song originally written and performed by U.K. band Johnny Kidd & the Pirates in 1960 and made famous in the states by Chad Allen & the Expressions who later changed their name to the Guess Who.

Stuck in Time

We got lost today. Which is to say that we took a significant detour home following our daily walk in the park. "We" being a six year old Boston Terrier named Yoda who has been a part of my life for a little over two years now, and myself. We had done our usual lap around the track and as we headed toward the exit gate, as he does from time to time, Yoda gave a tiny tug on the leash indicating that he wanted to head in the opposite direction of our home. Perhaps to make up for past walks that were cut short because I had other things to do or maybe because I needed his company a little more than usual this day, I obliged and we journeyed down an unfamiliar street of Yoda’s choosing. We made our way down the street slowly, Yoda stopping occasionally to sniff the sidewalk, blades of grass, flowers and lamp posts along the path. Technically, I suppose we weren’t really lost since, having lived here for nearly fifteen years, I am well aware that in Silver Lake all roads lead to home eventually. But even if that weren’t true I couldn’t imagine a better companion to be lost with than Yoda.
I suppose that it’s his bulldog lineage that compels him to sniff the ground like some forensic detective canine in search of clues. Yoda will sniff one patch of ground and then another and back again, before lifting his head and panting happily as if coming to a satisfying conclusion, and then moving on. Or perhaps he’s conducting a scientific survey of all the different scents in the world, categorizing them and cataloging them for future dog-hood. Or perhaps he’s like me, searching for the small stories within the tiny details, absorbing all the data and assembling all that had occurred, as if it were a vast novel in his Boston Terrier brain.
In between bouts of sniffing he trotted happily beside me as we traveled on. For being six years old - middle age for a dog - Yoda still harbored a lot of puppy-like traits. He still enjoys pulling the covers off the bed and the pillows out of the pillow cases. (Of course, I shouldn’t allow him to do it but it amuses me to see him behave this way.) He enjoys playing ball more than any dog I’ve ever known, as well. And not being content to simply be the recipient of a game of "catch", Yoda’s favorite game is to bounce his soft, yellow rubber ball off of his snout to hurl it back towards me and then I catch it and toss it again to him. We’ve played many hours worth of Boston Terrier Volley Ball in this manner. Frequently he pads up to the door of my room, ball clutched in his mouth and he’ll poke his head into the doorway as I bang away at the computer. Then he’ll linger there as if to say "All work and no play Bob..." Before trotting up to me, dropping the ball at my feet and smiling. Yes, he smiles. I know they say that dogs don’t smile, at least not for the reasons we do, but I know Yoda smiles to express emotion. I’ve seen it many times. When he leaps up on to my lap to lick my hand or my cheek and to give me a look that seems to say "Thanks for the food and the treats..." or "Sorry I was bad before..." or even "Thank you for being here with me today..."
But then they also say dogs have no memory, that they live forever in the moment and have no concept of passing hours and days and are, in a sense, stuck in time. Which may be for the best since sometimes it strikes me, as it did earlier this day that we, as human beings in nature, always seem to outlive things that are smaller than us. That thought occurred to me as I watched Yoda snoring at the foot of my bed. He was stretched out on his back, his perfectly symmetrical black and white markings making him look like a snoozing gentlemen bulldog. Reflexively and without thinking I laid my hand across his warm chest to feel his heart beating. His eyes opened and I watched an irritated grimace change to an eager-to-please grin after I said "Go for a walk?"
At the end of the day, despite my numerous flaws and imperfections, I can feel that I provided a happy and healthy life to a deserving creature, at least for a time.

Our adventure came to an end as we happened upon more familiar streets and I felt a bit disappointed. It appeared that Yoda felt the same way as he slowed the pace of his trot to a hesitant crawl. Of course when we reached the edge of our block, we simultaneously broke into a sprint and dashed through the courtyard, up the stairs and into my apartment where Yoda knew there would be food and treats. And while our ninety minute journey maybe already, from Yoda’s point of view, a forgotten episode in his happy existence, it is and will be a treasured moment in my own, for however long that is.

Captured by Robots conquer the Redwood stage

Legend tells of a genius musician who created a band of robots to perform with him but the robots revolted and after ripping out his intestines and eyes they forced the musician, now known as JBOT, to travel the world with them as their slave. Sounds a bit like the plot of a James Wan movie, huh? This incredible stage act is actually the brainchild of Jay Vance, former member of the Ska punk bands Blue Meanies and Skankin’ Pickle. Based in San Francisco, Captured by Robots features GTRBOT 666 (pictured with JBOT) on guitar and bass, DRMBOT 0110 on drums, two animated stuffed apes on cymbals and tambourine and an automated three-piece horn section called the Headless Hornsmen as well as the lone human member JBOT. They conquered the Redwood Bar stage on Friday, April 8 and amazed the packed house that turned up for the show. The robots rocked out on pre-programmed 70's covers and interacted with the audience and each other with uncanny precision.

Supporting the show were Sean & Zander, better known as Sean Wheeler, singer for Throwrag and Zander Schloss, bass player for seminal punk bands the Weirdos and Circle Jerks. With those credentials one might expect a raucous stage show but it’s quite the opposite. The acoustic duo of Sean and Zander present a set of folk-flavored songs that are downright pretty. They have an album out now called Walk Thee Invisible available on itunes. Opening that night was Cuntsparrer, an all-girl Cocksparrer tribute band. Cocksparrer are an East End London punk band who have been performing and recording sporadically since 1972 and Cuntsparrer put a Cuddle Core spin on their Oi! classics like "Running Riot" by playing with acoustic guitar, organ and a minimal drum kit. Cuntsparrer went over well with the Redwood crowd and it was surprising how many audience members knew the lyrics to the songs.

Rock for Japan at the Redwood Bar

Normally when the print edition of Baby Jeepers hits the streets we celebrate with a big free party at an all ages location. Due to circumstances beyond my control we weren’t able to make this happen yet for issue #10. However, three of the four featured bands will be playing the Rock For Japan benefit on Wednesday, April 6 at the Redwood Bar including Roman Candle Wars, Sex Wolf, Brainspoon, Kamikaze (pictured from the back cover of Baby Jeepers #10) and Sassafras. The proceeds will be going to the Japanese Red Cross.

The Great Eastern Japan Earthquake was a 9.0 magnitude that triggered extremely destructive tsunami waves that struck Japan on Friday, March 11. Over 125,000 buildings were damaged and destroyed in the disaster. Thousands of people are dead and many more are still missing or injured. Almost half a million people are homeless. The Japanese Red Cross is helping evacuees cope with lack of electricity, cold weather, shortages of food and clothing as well as providing other badly needed supplies. You can help. If you can’t make it to the benefit or would like more information on how to donate directly, go to Redcross.org

Wed., April 6 at the Redwood Bar:
Roman Candle Wars -- 9:30 PM
Sex Wolf -- 10:00 PM
Brainspoon -- 10:30 PM
Kamikaze -- 11:30 PM
Sassafras -- 12:30 am

316 W. 2nd Street, downtown L.A.

Help at La Cita

While I recover from slaving away on the print edition of Baby Jeepers, here's a guest blog from KRK. Photo by JKX & KRK.
 

Shane Williams mumbled something about La Cita in between plumes of blue smoke to me & that was all I needed to hear; I bounced from the Redwood.

Something about its dark atmosphere, freckled w/ cheap Vegas lighting that really endears this venue to me, that & the fact that I’ve never had to open my wallet @ the entrance.

I arrived just in time to witness the complete set of Help!, who to be dead honest w/ you, I had never heard of.

Almost immediately Slovenly & Mission of Burma came to mind. You know, real tight & angular songs. This band poses the kind of scenario where the singer/songwriter could explain his soul to you, w/ a calculator.

Maybe, 6 songs into their set I began to notice another point of interest. It appeared as though the vocalist wasn’t always singing lyrics, per say. It’s hard for me to state fact because my ears are wrecked but, it sounded like he was humming & making other noises into the mic.

Right around here it was announced that the band had a mere couple songs left in their set (nice! Keep ‘em hungry is my motto…).

Upon which another drummer & guitarist joined the band on stage. To me, personally, I thought this was a bit unnecessary. Bad-ass drumming was displayed – no doubt but, I felt it added too much aggression on an otherwise more song oriented band, rather than volume & impact.

In the end I couldn’t help but believe that, had this band existed in the mid-80’s, they woulda been on Homestead Records or maybe the more adventurous side of mid to late 80’s SST Records.

Fascinating band & I look forward to taking more of Shane’s advice.

KRK Dominguez *~* Boyle Heights *~* 3/30/11 *~* 11:03

Baby Jeepers # 10 is finally done!

Yes, it's true. Baby Jeepers # 10 is finished and I would very much like to thank all the kind folks who contributed content and photos like Mindee Jorgensen, Callie Biggerstaff (who took the Muffs cover photo), Ramblin' Eddie Lopez, KRK Dominguez, Jenn Kitner, Wolf Woodcock and Gitane Demone. I would also like to thank the featured bands the Muffs, Brainspoon, Kamikaze and Sassafras for giving us a little bit of their time for interviews.

I will be at the Redwood Bar Saturday, March 26 for Donovan's Fairies, Super Bees, the Neurotics and Pat Todd and Sunday March 27 for My Revenge, the Stitched Lips and Somos Mysteriosos. Come find me and pick up the latest issue of Baby Jeepers.

Vicky & the Vengents take St. Patty's Day on the Rox

(Baby Jeepers # 10 is almooost ready. Meanwhile, here is a guest blog review by Ramblin' Eddie Lopez. Photo by Ramblin' Eddie.)

It was 6 PM on a beautiful afternoon in Toluca Lake. I decided after four hours of abuse and three popped blisters later that my drummer Frank had had enough. I drove through downtown past two checkpoints(thank god for these bug eye glasses) picked up Jasmin and OFF! we went to see on of my favorite bands: Vicky and the Vengents. On our way to West Hollywood we made a pit stop at TOI on Sunset. Justin Myers from Gary 84 spun Nirvana, The Runaways, and introduced me to Chimay on this Saint Patrick’s Day... a match made in heaven. We get to the Roxy just in time to catch the Barb Wire Dolls, the crowd was not amused. Vicky takes the stage and blasts through " The Day He Went Away " the lead track off of their sensational debut album  A New Dawn . The crowd immediately hits the dance floor. Vicky and her male bookends - guitarist Matt Beld , bassist Vinn Malachi, & drummer Johnny Vile ripped through songs like " That’s Why I Cry " and " Nothing Left To Say " with abandon. While Vicky ordered the band to tune up I bump into the Woolly Bandits and Jasmin graces me with a Vicky & the Vengents button. Vicky orders me to hit the stage and I model my Vengents t-shirt for the crowd to see. Two songs that stood out are " Times It Takes " and " We Turned Into A Lie " which will hopefully be on the follow up to A New Dawn. Unfortunately just as Vicky was finishing the set I got a call from one of the many Electric Children who was in deep " trouble ". I popped in my Girls In the Garage CD and the rest is history......

Excerpt from issue # 10 interview with the Muffs

(Too busy working on issue #10 of the print version of Baby Jeepers to hit the streets much this week. So here is a sneak preview of the feature interview with cover band the Muffs.)
BOB: I didn’t realize that this was actually the twentieth anniversary of the Muffs.

RONNIE: January 25. That was our first show at the Shamrock with Terror Train, the Hellbillies and another rockabilly band.
BOB: I was there. Standing on a chair next to Paula Pierce.
KIM: She was screaming "Yay for Ronnie!"
RONNIE: We had a hot crowd. Paula and Sheri Kaplan were there. Donita Sparks, Steve McDonald and Sophia Coppola were there.
KIM: Bunch of people we know from a long time ago.
ROY: That was quite a crowd.
RONNIE: And then the next gig... nobody!
(LAUGHTER)
KIM: That’s because we played on a Tuesday.
RONNIE: At the Gaslight.
BOB: Did you guys ever think you would have your band going this long?
KIM: No. I mean, why would we even think we’d be able to?
RONNIE: I never thought about it.
KIM: I didn’t think about it, I just wanted to write songs.
RONNIE: You don’t think about it then and then twenty years slips by. As you get older, it goes faster and faster. The people who know us and like us, tend to like us a lot. That helps. If we were playing to no one and no one cared...
KIM: It would be harder to play. Or harder to justify it.
BOB: I know you don’t like the first album very much but have your feelings changed about any of the songs?
KIM: I totally appreciate the song writing on it. Still don’t like the production. I don’t know, there’s kind of a cool vibe on it. I don’t know why, but it pisses me off. Why does everyone’s first album have to sound like shit? Even if it cost a ton of money, why is that?
BOB: Tradition.
KIM: Well, we follow that tradition.
BOB: But some Fruitopia money came out of that.
KIM: True. And that song, that was a shock. That was really cool.
RONNIE: That was when everything was still happening. We haven’t had proper management in ten years and we don’t go looking for stuff. We’re just lucky. Now that rock is a dead art form like reggae, you know. We can still work this.

Cosmeticators rock a "mostly girl's night" at the Redwood

Friday, March 11 saw the return to L.A. of Phoenix, AZ all-girl band the Cosmeticators (pictured above) who haven’t played down here since 2009. This night at the Redwood Bar was a "mostly girl’s night" that featured four bands with prominent female band members. The four young ladies in the Shrapnelles are on tour from Calgary, Canada and they opened the show with a solid set of songs that displayed their catchy garage rock/punk sensibilities. This tour will include a stop at South By Southwest and take them across the U.S. until they return to Canada on April 10. Phoenix, AZ trio the Cosmeticators rocked a fine set of Ramones-y punk rock as well. Still without a proper release, the girls brought along their self-pressed demo EP CD which is worth picking up. With a set that successfully blends surf rock, garage rock and psychedelia, Tucson, AZ band the Mission Creeps sort of remind me of a cross between the Cramps and San Diego’s Deadbolt. Mainstay members James Arrr, on vocals and guitar and Miss Frankie Stein on bass, along with Rikki Styxx on drums possess the stage with spooky imagery and a great hypnotic light show. Transplanting themselves from Greece to Los Angeles, the Barbwire Dolls have captured the fancy of KROQ DJ Rodney Bingenheimer. Fronted by singer Queen Isis, the band is something of an 80's throwback to the days when you could catch a Pat Benetar wanna be band at the FM Station in the Valley. They have many local shows lined up so escape is nearly impossible.

Girl band night at the Mezz

Located on the second floor of the Alexandria Hotel on the corner of Spring St. and Fifth (right above the Down and Out) is a decent sized venue called the Mezz which has been having periodic shows. Wednesday, March 9 girl band night which featured one all-girl band and two mainly girl-fronted bands. The Mezz is certainly an interesting space with a small stage and a full bar that looks a bit like a haunted grand ballroom. The sound was a bit echo-y, like a high school gymnasium, but not at all un-tolerable.

Openers the B-Noirs (pictured) were the only band with an entire female line up that consisted of Sheli B. on guitar and delivering some pleasing vocals with the powerful rhythm section of Susan Raygoza on bass and Maureen Curiel on drums. The three-piece group played a perky set of catchy punk/pop numbers that started the evening off right. Unfortunately I had to miss the Damselles & the TC4 in order to work the door at the Redwood for Exene Cervenka’s album release party but I was able to catch a few songs from C-Horse who feature some very nice harmonies and who I am told do a terrific Buzzcocks cover. Hopefully there will be more nights at the Mezz with a variety of themes coming up in the future.

Bob's first BAM piece

This is a photo that paved the way for my brief foray into the world of professional rock journalism. It first appeared in the July 30, 1993 issue of BAM magazine and it was taken back stage at the Butthhole Surfers/Stone Temple Pilots/fIREHOSE/Basehead show, which took place at Castaic Lake the month before.
I was on fIREHOSE’s press list ‘cause I was a Flipside writer and so I was allowed in the VIP area where there was a complimentary BBQ for the media and a tub full of alcoholic beverages. Needless to say, I took advantage of the situation and was in a very good mood that entire day.
In the late afternoon/early evening, following fIREHOSE’s set, I, along with other media gawkers, spotted Shannen Doherty walking into the Stone Temple Pilot’s dressing room trailer. She came out after about 20 minutes and because she was wearing an oddly cut, striped shirt (and because that’s how I am) I shouted "Oh my God! Her shirts on backwards!" Of course, it wasn’t but I got big laughs from the crowd around me.
Mind you, Beverly Hills 90210 was still a guilty pleasure at this point in pop culture history. Steve McDonald from Redd Kross, then KXLU DJ Adam Bomb and Jula Bell of Bulimia banquet/Bobsled fame and I actually wanted to meet Shannen. So I suggested that we go over and tell her that Jula was Jennifer Finch from L7, reasoning that Doherty would want a photo op with a genuine grunge starlet. And it worked. I got the shot. You can see Jula in the picture trying to form the L7 logo with her hands (she’s doing it backwards). And what’s more, Shannen told Jula that she loved seeing L7's set at Lollapalooza tour earlier that summer. We all stifled a laugh at this ‘cause L7 weren’t on the Lollapalooza tour that year, Babes In Toyland were. (L7 wouldn’t play Lollapalooza ‘till the following year.) Pleasant Gehman reported on this in her Tinsel Toons column in BAM #413 which included my photo and credit. Paul Westerberg was on the cover. The dough was the icing on the cake. I was happy to be identified as "Flipside’s Bob Cantu."

I got the biggest laugh however, a few days later, when I heard a KROQ DJ report on the Castaic show and said on the air that "Shannen Doherty was seen coming out of the Stone Temple Pilot’s trailer with her shirt on backwards..." Oh, the power of the media. Or, as Albert Brooks put it in Broadcast News, "I say it here, it comes out there."

I came home last night a bit legless...

Here is a guest rant from KRK Dominguez, former Flipside writer/photographer and friend. Photo by KRK and Jenn Kitner - Bob

I came home a bit waffled the other night

& inspired by seeing Peg Leg Love @ La Cita, I set forth & hammered out a stunning critique of the night on my un-trusty baby, my Toshiba.

I know you don’t believe a word I write but, I can be clever, witty & insightful - I insist. & those were the knives I wielded that night in my semi-conscious state as I methodically & accurately deciphered the intricate sounds of said band.

Seriously people, I was on. Bet you a day-pass it made ole Lester Bangs’ bones rattle w/ envy, tell you what. I spilled some insightful post punk references too, like the akward dryness of Magazine & the voodoo cool of the Cramps. Yeah, I was on fire!

I was already cashing the check.

Then, as my nemesis would have it, I awoke the next day to my baby & she had no recollection of such text! Either I didn’t save it or I erased it or…

maybe I didn’t even type it in the first place (GASP!), perhaps I merely dreamt of greatness (scary thought here people).

The thought of me excelling @ writing only in my dreams is frightening – FRIGHTNING! - I scream @ you!

Which brings to question, maybe I am not qualified to write about music if I can’t keep it together on such a fundamental level?

Wild thought.

Scratch that last remark; I can prolly pull it off. You’re just going to have to give it some time, be patient w/ me. Don’t expect Claude Bessy to reincarnate for chrissakes.

Remember, English is my 2^nd language, I have an excuse! Let me see you write something in German bitch? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

Besides, I have confidence that Bob wouldn’t let the reputation of his publication, Baby Jeepers, be tainted by the antics of a, drunk by noon, fool.

None-the-who:

check out Peg Leg Love next time you’re out w/ a drink in your clutches, they’re sexy.

KRK Dominguez ~ Boyle Heights, LA ~ 3/3/11 ~ 8:37 AM

　

the Mo-Odds rock the gloom off a rainy night

Sadly there was a low turn out for the Mo-Odds, Keepers of the Sun and Venus Rising show at the Redwood Bar on March 2. (What is it with Angelenos and a little bit of rain anyway?) The bands put on good show, particularly openers the Mo-Odds. With a definite 60's garage influence and powerfully soulful vocals, the Mo-Odds are a band certainly worth braving the elements for. The four members (Craig, Tony, Jonah and Christopher by name) gave 110% that night for the benefit of the dozen or so people watching. They will be playing Casey’s Irish Pub on March 17 and I recommend that fans of the "Maximum R&B" (a term coined in the sixties to describe bands like the Who) sound should check them out.

Cheetah's dancers ride the Lightnin'

One business group that has been hard hit by the current recession are the city’s exotic dancers, particularly the ones working in smaller clubs frequented by working class patrons. After all, in this economy what paid-by-the-hour guy can make it rain anymore? Some clubs like Crazy Girls in Hollywood have added live music into the mix, featuring rock bands on certain nights. Of course the legendary Jumbo’s Clown Room (where Courtney Love once stripped) has for quite some time featured an occasional rock band and now Cheetah’s, also in Hollywood, has begun booking rock nights on Mondays. And it’s quite fitting that Cheetah’s has joined in on the rock scene since some twenty years ago the beloved Shamrock - once a staple in the Hollywood rock club circuit of the 80's and 90's - once stood at the same location.

Monday, February 28, Cheetah’s offered up a fine bill with Electric Children, Noah Engh Kid Fantastic and Lightnin Woodcock & the Bad Muthafuckas. Although a fine performer, Noah Engh’s gritty, stripped down blues-rock was a bit too quirky for the dancers to groove to, but a couple of brave girls did try. Contrarily, the strip club’s atmosphere was a perfect fit with Lightnin Woodcock’s style of music which is Jimi Hendrix-inspired blues with filthy lyrics. (Song titles like "Smoochie Coochie Man", "Finger Bangin’" and "Like A Dog" need no further explanation.) Lightnin has played Cheetah’s before and the girls seem to really dig both his rocking presentation and his on stage banter. Electric Children unfortunately had their set cut short just as the room was getting into them (There’s a midnight curfew for the live music at Cheetah’s) but it seems like once they get bugs out, Mondays at Cheetah’s could be a good thing.

The return of Texas Terri

February 25^th at the Redwood Bar saw the return of Texas Terri Laird to Los Angeles. A fierce mixture of Mick Jagger, Iggy Pop and Wendy O Williams rock ‘n roll charisma, Texas Terri made quite a name for herself in the Hollywood scene with her bands the Killer Crows, Texas Terri & the Stiff Ones and Texas Terri Bomb before she moved to Berlin in 2006. With a number of European tours under her belt, Texas Terri had already achieved genuine rock star status in Germany, so the move wasn’t too unexpected. All of which made Friday night’s homecoming all the more compelling as Texas Terri played to a sold out Redwood crowd supported by local bands Million Kids and A Pretty Mess. The L.A. version of Texas Terri bomb is an all-star assembly of great local musicians including Kevin Tyler Preston and Aaron Minton from Prima Donna, Meghan from A Pretty Mess and Roy Morgan from the Neurotics. The band knocked out a great set that featured covers like the Stooges "I Wanna Be Your Dog", the Dead Boys "Sonic Reducer" and Texas Terri originals like "Oh Yeah". Seen rocking out in the audience were Swords of Fatima drummer Nick Scott, Electric Children front man Eddie Lopez (pictured above with Texas Terri), Niceness In the 90's author Jim Miller, former Hormones and Napalm Star front man Tim Napalm Stegall and Caron Maso from the 80's group the Little Girls (whatever happened to them?).
Texas Terri Bomb play again Saturday, Feb. 26 at the Dawg House in City of Industry and again at the Redwood Bar on March 4th with Vicky & the Vengents, Long Neck Goose and Crazy Squeeze.

Down and Out in downtown L.A.

Downstairs from the Alexandria Hotel on S. Spring St. there was a bar called Charlie O’s. I had been to Charlie O’s a couple of times and found the place to be dank, dark and more than a little bit scary. That was just the year before last but more recently the place has undergone a bit of a facelift as well as a name change. Charlie O’s is now the Down and Out and while they have other events on different nights, Thursday night is the rock night that is put together by LA’s most amiable curmudgeon sound guy Dirty Ed and Jimmy James from Barrio Tiger, called No Future Thursdays. Only on it’s second consecutive night, No Future Thursday presented on February 24, a night of fine rock ‘n roll featuring Downtown Union, Million Kids (who are just EVERYWHERE these days) and Brainspoon. I came in towards the end of Downtown Union’s set and spent a good portion of Million Kids set interviewing Kamikaze for the next print issue of Baby Jeepers. I was able to hear the Kids X cover "Los Angeles" from the smoking patio, which always gets a great response. The Kids closed out with a cover of the Circle Jerks "Wild In The Streets" that got the small crowd up on its feet. Brainspoon finished up the night with a set of their own catchy heavy rock tunes. Singer Daphne Vandervalk is a spirited front woman and guitarist Michelle Balderama simply shreds on guitar. Brainspoon’s set inspired some crazy dancing in the audience and left their fans wanting more. On the screen behind the stage, the camp classic Russ Myer flick Beyond the Valley of the Dolls was projected during Million Kids set and the 1970 gang exploitation movie Boulevard Nights was screened during Brainspoon. I give who ever pops in the DVDs props for having good taste in B movies. The Down and Out is just a hop, skip and a jump from the Redwood Bar and it’s certainly nice to have some more choices in the neighborhood.

Spark Plug Night at the Crest

Friday, February 18 I finally made it out to Torrance’s premier venue the Crest to catch Spark Plug night. Spark Plug is the on line and print fanzine successor to last year’s re-boot of Flipside, Flipside 2010. The Spark Plug folks have been doing regular gigs here since late last summer and I’ve been very curious about the place. The line up that night consisted of Sassafras, Million Kids, Standard & Poor, Electric Children and a special farewell appearance by Gary 84, a band that features members of Million Kids and the Hi-Z’s.
Sassafras kicked things off with a loud and exhilarating set. Sassafras have recently stripped down to a two-man line up with Sailor Alexander on guitar and vocals and former Inazuma drummer Teppei. Sailor played all the instruments on the band’s debut self-titled CD and Sassafras has a brand new album on the way. Million Kids rocked the house next and Gary 84 squeezed in a couple of songs in between the Kids and Standard & Poor. Standard & Poor features long time White Flag drummer Trace Element playing a lot of old school punk including a little riff of the Sex Pistols "Pretty Vacant" and a full on cover of David Bowie’s "Suffragette City." Electric Children closed out the night with selections from their upcoming full length Fantasy Land. Electric Children’s front man, Eddie Lopez has been threatening to do a Leaving Trains cover set for quite some time now. We’ll all just have to stay tuned for that.
As for the place itself, while it is a bit of a drive from Los Angeles (20 miles and 30 minutes from my beloved Silver Lake), quite a few brave souls did venture out to Torrance on what was a considerably rainy night. For those who don’t know where Torrance is exactly, it’s out by Redondo Beach, Lawndale and Gardena in the South Bay. I had heard that the Crest had undergone a remodeling and I’m told it’s an improvement. I’m just unsure of why anyone would intentionally make their venue look like a Shakey’s Pizza, but to each his own. But I will say that the (literally) dozens of flat screen TV’s that line the inside walls of the place does tend to give the stage area a bit of a Best Buy vibe. On the plus side, it’s free and the beers are reasonably priced.

If you happen to have a designated driver, check out Spark Plug night at the Crest and by all means check out the latest issue of Spark Plug at sparkplugmagazine.com

Niceness In the '90s

I have photos published in this memoir written by Jim Miller. This book was reviewed by Eddie Lopez and the article will appear in issue #10 of the print version of Baby Jeepers. There will be a book release/signing party at La Luz De Jesus on March 23rd. Here's the official press release:

KURT COBAIN, COURTNEY LOVE, L7 AND LOS ANGELES GRUNGE SCENE OF THE 1990S COME TO LIFE IN JIM MILLER'S PERSONAL MEMOIRS

Book Release Event At La Luz De Jesus Gallery In Los Angeles March 19th

Niceness In The '90s: An Indie Music Memoir By Jim Miller Pre-orders Online Now

February 15, 2011 (Los Angeles, CA) – Niceness In The '90s: An Indie Music Memoir by Jim Miller will be released by Pleasant Peasant LLC publishing on March 23, 2011.  La Luz De Jesus will host a book release event March 19th from 6:00 pm to 9:00 pm (4633 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90027-5413, T. 323-666-7667).  Jim Miller will be available to sign books and answer questions.  Anyone mentioned in the book by name that comes to La Luz that night will receive a complimentary copy of the book.  Event is free and open to the public.

At its core, Niceness In The '90s, is a behind the scenes, club level look at the rise and fall of the music phenomenon known as grunge. This very personal memoir chronicles the life of a touring guitarist and songwriter during the late eighties and early nineties. Although the book spans the years 1985 to 1996, most of the action takes place during the years 1989 through 1992.

Fellow musicians and L.A. denizens come to life in chapters with largely self-explanatory titles like Jane's Heroin Addiction (detailing how Perry Farrell formed Jane's Addiction and who Jane is); L7 Hole Tad Nirvana (recounting how those bands were perceived at the time); Rock For Choice; Kurt and Courtney.  "Anyone interested in the early days of grunge music should find this book a quick read, chock full of grunge action," Miller explains. He adds "2011 marks the twentieth anniversary of the release of Nirvana's Nevermind. It's a good time for older hipsters to look back and for younger hipsters to discover what all the fuss was about."

Jim Miller was born in Chicago, IL on August 9th, 1960.  He was raised just six blocks from White Sox Park on the city's South Side. He was a touring guitarist and songwriter in the Los Angeles bands Black Angel’s Death Song and Trash Can School in the early to mid nineties. In the latter half of that decade he was a band manager and a promoter for the legendary downtown L.A. dive, Al’s Bar. Jim currently lives with his guitars (whom he still loves very much) in Atwater Village, CA.