First four years were fun/ Now he’s gonna fuck us again/ Soup line’s gettin’ longer/ Just like it was back then/ Reagonomix, just add the ingredients/ One old asshole/ Entire country —“Reaganomix,” by BeefeaterI intended to quote D.C. post-punk band Beefeater’s “Asshole,” but I couldn’t find the lyrics sheet. Even my ears couldn’t quite quote vocalist Tomas Squip’s brilliant anti-establishment rant with total accuracy—Is he saying “kinky” or “KKK,” for example? Squip was prolific in the arena of dissent though; his equally acerbic “Reaganomix” pretty much sums it up. America—with its low voter turnout and more than occasional attraction to the more fascist of political and cultural leaders—may be getting its just deserts. Whatever we may have thought, post-segregation and post-ERA America is still a bigoted culture at heart. Bands like Beefeater made life meaningful in the Reagan years when a senile, commie-hating B-movie actor had the nuclear football and televangelists held many a mind in thrall (cue the Repo Man living room scene). Come January, when America inaugurates Donald Trump as president, denizens of our fairly sleepy burg can rest assured that there will be no shortage of comfort in music. We’re not known for our politically-oriented music but, hey, that conceit got to be kind of annoying in the D.C. hardcore scene anyway. So, live a little. Pack up your troubles in an old kit bag and shuffle off to one of this week’s fun shows.
Show Up!: Thursday
Get Action
Courtesy of the artist via Facebook
Get thy too-lazy-to-vote ass over to Launchpad (618 Central SW) this Thursday, Nov. 17. That’s where some of New Mexico’s finest rock and roll musicians will be throwing a party in honor of presidential write-in candidate Rob Tyner, who narrowly clinched this year’s write-in contest by beating out Frank Zappa, Jello Biafra and long-time yippie candidate Pigasus. Thrill to the bare bones rock and roll of Get Action. The snaky guitar moves of Scott Brown and Ashley Floyd are upstaged only by their super flash drummer, Ben Levine. The Angel Babies, meanwhile, featuring Frankie Martinez and Calida Salazar, have a more new wave sound than Martinez’ previous work with the Kill Spectors, a two-person garage punk band that also featured local rock luminary Keith Herrera. That evolution seems to support the idea that when rock musicians get older they don’t always go country or folk … but they do sometimes sound a bit like The Buggles. An Angel Babies show is akin to a blue moon; the band rarely performs in these parts these days. So ask not what rock and roll can do for you, but what you can do for rock and roll by shaking up some action at this rare appearance. The Dying Beds open this 21+ onslaught of honest and wholesome cultural angst beginning at 9:30pm. Get in on it all for only $5.
Show Up!: Friday
Crime Lab
Courtesy of the artist via Facebook
A further anodyne for woeful citizens and rock and rollers of all stripes can be had on Friday, Nov. 18, when a good portion of Burque’s local pop-shoegaze-weirdo contingent will fill Launchpad (618 Central SW) for a concert filled with droney, minor-chord goodness. Krautrock-inspired psych group Sun Dog has just been added to the bill and has the steady beat and repeated riffs that go so well with various mind altering substances—perhaps because Sun Dog’s psychedelic music is a mind altering substance. Adult Beverage has been playing regularly for some time now, honing their trippy pop tuneage to the point where they no longer simply beg comparison to The Cure; these kids are coming into their own. Also witness fellow future rock stars Crime Lab, who’s latest album, Headlock Season, demonstrates an unpretentious passion for music. When a gang of musicians really enjoy their craft, it infects the listener and, even better, a live audience. The Peewees, Tear Pressure and lastly, some old dude called Yay Carl Petersen! open the evening’s events, which 21+ concert-goers can access for $5. Doors are at 8pm and the show begins at 9pm.
Show Up!: Monday
Night Beats
Courtesy of the artist via Facebook
This week’s local-heavy music roster is balanced out by an appearance at Sister (407 Central NW) by Seattle, Wash.’s Night Beats. The band will be appearing on Monday, Nov. 21. In the past the band has toured with garage greats like Black Lips and ’60s pop-psych progenitors The Zombies. Like those two groups, Night Beats churns out infectious tunes with paisley-underground style licks and thumping beats that even the cool kids can’t resist. Opening act C.G. Roxanne and the Nightmares is cut from the same garage rock cloth, leaning more on power chords and straight-up 4/4 time. This is high quality rock and roll that will take the edge off your Monday, which would be otherwise undoubtedly filled with heated arguments about the country’s future and leadership. Rock and roll will never lose an election, let you down or cause WWIII—so let current events roll off your back and cut loose with the unifying goodness of that good old rock and roll music for only $10. This 21+ gig goes off at 8pm after the doors open at 7pm.
