photo by Julie Schuchard
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A lot of life-changing events have happened lately with my industry friends: People are having babies, getting married, forming new bands, breaking up...the usual, I suppose.
Elise and Andrew Kenny |
Andrew Kenny (American Analog Set, from New York via Austin) got married Saturday, June 3rd to his longtime super-sweet girlfriend, Sheila. I think they're a great couple: he'd been telling me about her for about a year before we finally met, and I liked her right away. It makes me happy when people who seem to belong together get married.
Speaking of weddings, my friend Gabe (Pale Pacific, from Seattle) got married to his incredibly cute fiancée last week. (Myspace message him a congrats!) I met them both at the same time, when my friends Patrick and Lindsay from Scottsdale, AZ introduced me to their music. Patrick and Lindsay told me that the Pale Pacific gives the best hugs of any band they know. I have to say I agree: When the band played my happy hour show for the Noise Pop festival, we hugged at least 20 times before they hit the road.
The way bands support and network with other bands can be a truly wonderful thing. A great example is Film School (from San Francisco), whose van was stolen with all their gear a few months ago while they were on tour. The van was taken out of a locked, gated parking lot, with a club on the steering wheel — apparently the thief drove right through the closed gate! The van was recovered (not in great shape; I heard something about needing a screwdriver to start it), but their gear was not. So Bottom of the Hill, one of San Francisco's core venues, hosted two nights of benefit shows for Film School. Local favorites like the Lovemakers and Boyskout played for free to help raise funds to replace the uninsured gear. It's great how people come together to help like that.
The Talk
Mark E. Smith, photo courtesy of Narnack Records
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On the other hand, it's hard to avoid hearing about which artists are assholes. During the Fall's tour a few weeks ago, legendary problem performer Mark E. Smith managed to piss off his entire band and tour manager so badly that they all quit on the same night. North Carolina band the Talk was on tour with them, and they convinced the band and manager to continue for one more night. But then the Talk found out that their entire tour was about to be cancelled due to the Fall's lack of a band, which pissed off Justin Williams (lead singer of the Talk) so much that he threw a banana peel in Mr. Smith's face onstage. Of course, that was the end of the Talk touring with the Fall, even though the Fall's manager managed to find a new band for Mark E. Smith. The Talk is now on tour with some of the nicest guys in the business, San Francisco's Birdmonster (whose new record, No Midnight, completely rocks — check it out). I remember meeting Mark E. Smith some 15 years ago, after which I basically swore off the Fall because I thought he was such a prick. Despite everything, I've heard from several rock critic friends that the new Fall lineup sounds better than any previous lineup they'd heard. Apparently Mr. Smith also figured this out, and the new band reports that he's been nothing but nice to them, and even gave them a pay raise after less than a week. Maybe he's trying to butter them up, as he's supposed to be in the studio shortly and needs a band to record with.
Some bands gets liberal doses of bad luck, or so it would seem. Rogue Wave (from Oakland, CA) falls into this category. First Zach Rogue threw his back out last summer and they had to cancel a European tour. Then Pat found out that he had kidney failure, and they had to cut a tour short so he could start dialysis (he's currently on a list for transplants, and he told me that a lot of people have actually offered to donate — how awesome is that?) Then Gram's dad died the night before their show at the Noise Pop Festival (they dedicated the show to his dad). But all news can't be bad news: Zach and his wife Lisa told me recently that they're expecting a baby in November. That kid is going to be so cute. Pat's decided to try touring while on dialysis, so they'll be on tour late this summer through early fall. Hopefully this is only the beginning of more good news for them. In the meantime, be sure to go see them when they come to your town!
Voxtrot in Elise's kitchen
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My pals from Austin, Voxtrot, were here in San Francisco last week while on tour with the Silversun Pickups and Elefant. They played a secret show the following night at Bottom of the Hill with Boyskout, which was fantastic. They even played a few covers, including "Dancing in the Dark" — I've never seen San Franciscans dance so much at an indie rock show before! The next morning over breakfast, the band told me that they're getting ready to go into the studio in August to record their first full-length record, which will hopefully hit the shelves in late January 2007. They're signing with an indie label for this one (their two EPs were self-produced), but when I asked which one, I just got a sly smile.
If you're in SF in mid-June, you should come to my friend Parker's birthday party. Parker and his wife Amy run an artist management company, and they're two of the best people you could ever meet. Parker's birthday party, a.k.a. "Parkerpalooza," is at 12 Galaxies on Friday, June 16th. Kelley Stoltz, Oranger, Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows, Minus 5), and Ezee Tiger are all slated to play.
What juicy gossip have you heard lately?
Posted June 2006
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shelley commented, on June 24, 2006 at 1:11 p.m.:
I heard some juicy gossip that my cousin was a celebrity. Way to go Lisee. Website looks great. Love, Shell