Don't Be A Dummy

Fun little novelty track from my main man John DuCann, best known as the guitarist for Death Walks Behind You-era Atomic Rooster, and the brain behind the lesser-known but equally awesome Hard Stuff, among others. The tale of how he came to sing this is a strange one.

Originally it was the jingle for a zombie punk commercial selling Lee Cooper jeans, sung by none other than Gary Webb (aka Numan), then front man for Tubeway Army. Once he struck the big time, the record execs wanted him to re-record it as a single, but he wanted nothing to do with it. So in steps John DuCann, now working on a solo album described as "Status Quo meets the Sex Pistols," who turns it into a smash hit on the UK singles chart. Here they are back to back.

Beatniks

Still can't believe I saw the Clean in SF the other night. After the whole one-NYC-show-ever-so-rarely situation of the last few years, I had essentially given up any expectation of seeing my favorite roadtrip/driving band. Next thing you know I'm watching these three goofy Kiwis blurting out Don't Point That Thing At Me and a rack of other hits. Hell, they even finished with Tally Ho, something that seemed entirely too obvious to even consider including in the setlist. So yeah, I'm a lucky duck, although now that I want to revisit the damn Beatniks video, its nowhere to be found.

While searching for it, I came across this cool documentary focusing on the Enemy and the scene they jumpstarted in Dunedin, New Zealand. Truly fascinating stuff from a place almost entirely isolated from the rest of the world. Here's part one and part two.

Twilight Zone

This is a good one. Thanks Kirk.

Killed In Jail

The almighty Latin Dogs at the Graystone, Detroit. Their classic, "Killed in Jail," is #2, but don't miss the rest, the entire clip SMOKES

Eddy Current Weekend, Round Three

Serra Bowl, Daly City. Pardon the crappy photos, as you can see this was a total shitshow. And I blame the Oh Sees

Eddy Current Weekend, Round Two

Sugar Mountain aka Donnie's Warehouse. Easily the best of the weekend

Young Offenders:

Eddy Current Weekend, Round One

Eddy Current weekend extravaganza. Round 1 at the SF Eagle.

Cleanse the Bacteria

OK, so I "like" Pushead on Facebook. Doesn't get me a free lunch or anything, but it's cool to see a photo of the guy at his current age since there's only like one, maybe two, photos of him in his youth. Man, the internet is a crazy place.

It's On (again) / Death Trip

OK so it's not not like anyone was waiting around for this thing to get started again, but... it's back. And it's no longer just music. From here on out it's just cool stuff as I discover it.

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So I planned to drink coffee the other morning, but then someone shared this little number and boy has it got my heart racing. Bizarro punk from an old Chicago loner named JT IV that's just oozing with deranged charm. Drag City re-released an LP a couple years ago compiling his three 7" singles and some "simulated live tracks" whatever the hell that means. More info here. Oh and supposedly he directed the longest film ever made, clocking in at a modest 85 hours. Somehow that seems fitting.

Freaks ... Out!

Hubble Bubble was an awesome 70’s punk band from Brussels, Belgium who still retain a cult status, in large part I think, because information on them is scarce and their records haven’t gotten the reissue treatment of many of their contemporaries like The Kids. Luckily, Japan’s Nat Records recently re-issued their two excellent records, with extensive liner notes by producer, Alfie Falckenbach. The first, self-titled record from 1978 is simple and catchy with goofy instrumentation, gruff vocals and a completely psycho, over the top wierdo vibe. My buddy Tony at Celebrated Summer Records (who deserves the credit for bringing these CDs back from his recent trip to Japan) describes the drums on the first track as sounding like a gorilla banging on trashcans. Take a look at the LP cover above and its hard to imagine that being far from the truth.

Here’s where the Hubble Bubble story gets weird. In the midst of widespread success throughout Belgium, bassist Dee Massart suddenly died in car accident, leaving the remaining two members wondering where to go next. Around that same time, drummer Roger "Junior" Jouret scored a huge international hit, "Ca Plane Pour Moi" (you'll recognize the song once you hear it) as Plastic Bertrand. See video below for that one - its intense. (Interestingly, this tune is essentially a rip-off of a song called "Jet Boys/Jet Girls" by Elton Motello, whose rhythm section played on Plastic Bertrand's version). This left only guitarist Alain Von Bur who decided to continue the band with his new songwriting partner, Danny Joan, and take the band in a newer, more glam direction. The new incarnation spawned HB’s second LP, "Faking," which is probably best described as a cross between the weirdo punk of the first LP and theatrical glam rock of Ziggy Stardust-era David Bowie. While its definitely not for punk purists, it totally works and there's still some ragers that could easily have been at home on the first LP.