August 2011
3 posts
April 2011
8 posts
Gonna try something new this time - link and full text all in one post!
This is for the 4/30/11 JSBX show at the 40 Watt Club in Athens, GA. Printed in the Flagpole weekly.
Jon Spencer Blues Explosion
Embrace Your Wild Side
For a good looking, dark-haired punk with the vocal prowess and lyrical ability of a wild animal in heat, Jon Spencer is about as friendly—and somewhat geeky—a conversationalist as it gets.
“With Rufus Thomas, when he came to record with [Jon Spencer Blues Explosion] in Memphis, that was so exciting,” he says in a tone of seemingly lingering disbelief. “I think we were all a little scared as well. There was a lot of ‘wow’ going on. We were in awe of him.”
Imagining Spencer or his bandmates, guitarist Judah Bauer and drummer Russell Simins, being afraid of anything is a tough one. For roughly two decades, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion has been perfecting a reputation as a loud, sweaty, sexually charged heat storm of rock and roll, on record and on stage. It’s not for the faint of heart.
Just listening to the band is an education in the underbelly of rock, with Spencer’s exaggerated bluesman growl covering brash, slutty guitars and rhythms coupled with an intense, flashy showmanship that alternately suggests a worship service and an anonymous dive bar hook-up.
This is not emo or radio punk. This is not classic rock. It has its roots in American rock and roll and blues, but this is ultimately music from another planet.
And that seems to be what Spencer wants. A self-described “music geek,” like most true geeks of any persuasion, he is very opinionated and dedicated when it comes to his view of what he’s passionate about.
“I think in this country if you look at a lot of mainstream media about rock and roll music, a lot of the artists they want to champion are Patti Smith, Springsteen. There’s nothing wrong with these artists. But I think it’s as if critics and American people are ashamed of people like Little Richard,” he says. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with Little Richard. I think there’s an incredible art to what he did. What Blues Explosion has been trying to do, or continue to do, is embrace that stuff and uphold it.
“It’s been confusing for some people because there’s this very crazy side to our music. Some people interpret it as just a big joke. But there’s a big difference between having a sense of play and something that’s a piss take,” he adds. “Our music is funny at times, definitely crazy, very strange. But we work very hard at this, with great deliberation. It’s very serious, but also pretty wild stuff.”
Even if there are a lot of people who disagree with Spencer’s idea of how things should be, there are enough out there who do get it. It’s probably safe to say that if you watch TV you’re already familiar with the band. They wrote and recorded the theme song to Anthony Bourdain’s “No Reservations” at the request of Bourdain himself. And Volkswagen asked them to re-record the blues standard “Black Betty” for a Beetle commercial that aired during this year’s Super Bowl.
It’s a decent amount of recognition for a band that’s largely been on hiatus since its last record of new material, 2004’s Damage. Compilations have been released since then, and they have played shows sporadically, but most of their time has been spent with side projects; Spencer plays with the rockabilly band Heavy Trash, Bauer tours with Cat Power’s Dirty Delta Blues Band and Simins has been working with Paul Simon’s son, Harper Simon. Jon Spencer Blues Explosion hasn’t mounted a serious U.S. tour in a long time, but after last year’s record reissuing frenzy (all but Plastic Fang and Damage were reissued), the time seemed right to get back out there.
“[After two decades] the spark or synergy or electricity that exists between the three of us that allows us to work as this band is still there. It doesn’t seem to have diminished,” he says. “We still try to play a crazy rock and roll show, and it’s still enjoyable.”
In the end, that’s what it’s really all about, no matter what anyone else thinks.
“I’m not a very religious person, but in a way this provides something like a religious experience for me. I’m sharing something, transporting everyone at the gig,” he says. “It’s a chance to lose yourself, but it’s not solitary. I’m doing this with other musicians—with the other people in the audience. It’s a communal and spiritual kind of experience.”
Seriously one of the nicest people I’ve ever talked to. And she loves Flat Duo Jets. How can she possibly be bad? Answer: she can’t.
According to the twitters, a new Dex Romweber Duo album is in the works. Apparently, whoever runs the Bloodshot Records Twitter account has two thumbs and is already privy to the tunes. And she (suspecting it’s a she, dudes don’t write all giddy like that) told me I’m just going to have to sit tight. She also promised it will be worth the wait. Boo and yay.
Really digging this record from Hymn For Her, Lucy & Wayne and the Amairican Stream. It’s like bluesgrass via garage rock. Some weirdness going on here. Listen to their cover of Morphine’s “Thursday.” I’m liking it.
I knew Jon Spencer Blues Explosion performed the theme song to Anthony Bourdain’s No Reservations. What I did not know (and now do) is that Bourdain specifically requested to have JSBX write and record the theme song. Seriously, the dude gets on my nerves. He lives on his high horse, soap box, whatever, etc. But clearly he’s got style.
Now, if only he would stop showing off his sunken bird chest on TV …
Today was the strangest day. Literally the strangest day. I had set up a phone interview with one of my musical heroes, the incomparable wolfman that is Jon Spencer. I’d met him once before at a Heavy Trash show, and by my own account and several others he is one hell of a nice man. But this time I had to interview him. We had to talk about him. What could I ask him that hadn’t already been asked? Could I turn it into more of a conversation resulting in loose, personable quotes? And how do I do it all while not flipping my lid? This is the man, after all, whose music helped guide me through some of my worst times growing up. His work has never failed to remind me that even in my darkest spots I’m still breathing, my blood is still pumping, and that the life-affirming power of rock and roll is epic. He’s like a fucking shaman, a witch doctor with a brew so potent and downright nasty that it must be good for you. And I was not confident that I would be able to talk to him without spilling my guts about my sentimentality regarding his fierce badassery. I was going to have to rein myself in, because it could easily turn into a weepy gush fest. His music has meant that much to me. And I spent all day agonizing over how it would go.
So, how did it go?
Fine. It went fine. We talked for half an hour about various things. He was disarmingly polite. I choked a couple times and blamed it on allergies. But he’s a wordy guy. I could tell early on that I wouldn’t have a problem with quoting him. He said some lovely things about music and art and what it means to him, which I would much rather have than a recounting of the recent reissuing process. But still I was so wrapped up in how not to make an ass of myself that sometimes I couldn’t pay much attention to what he was saying, ie. hard to ask follow ups. I suppose this is why I rarely ask to interview the people to whom I actually have an emotional attachment. (This is why I asked to interview Sara Romweber two years ago instead of her killer baby bro, Dex. Worked beautifully.) It’s just hard. It’s really hard. And I hope he didn’t come away from the experience feeling like he just wasted 30 minutes of his life, pissed that he can’t have it back.
You know what? He’s probably already forgotten it. But my star struck neuroses will always remember it.
And no, I did not mention that I am Jennifer Biscotti, or whatever it was they were calling me.
March 2011
1 post
I’m just floored by the cigar box guitar. Awesomeness.
January 2011
1 post
Not one of my better pieces, but it’s not total crap, either.
December 2010
1 post
June 2010
1 post
May 2010
1 post
April 2010
4 posts
It started as a 300-word calendar pick, and then became a last-minute feature. Hoping the info fleshed out enough. Comments?
This is not one of my best reviews, but I hope it at least conveys the record’s sense of silliness. Really, though, I do love Eddie Argos. Totally on the list of future husbands.
