“Your pop caught you smoking, and he said, no way!/ That hypocrite smokes two packs a day/ Man, living at home is such a drag/Now your mom threw away your best porno mag (busted!)/ You gotta fight for your right to party/ You gotta fight/ Don’t step out of this house if that’s the clothes you’re gonna wear/ I’ll kick you out of my home if you don’t cut that hair! Your mom busted in and said, what’s that noise?/ Aw, mom you’re just jealous it’s the Beastie Boys!”—“Fight for Your Right” by Rick Rubin, Adam Horwitz and Adam Yauch.There’s no mention of partying in the Declaration of Independence, save for the bit about the “pursuit of happiness.” Further, the framers of the Constitution were not that concerned about individual agency as they wrangled over the content and consequences of one of the greatest human documents on Earth; they were way more interested in the perpetuation of the democratic state. Since they were into the ideals and culture of the Enlightenment, they probably listened to stuff written by dudes like Vivaldi and Bach.They’d probably freak the fuck out if they heard something by our above referenced pals from Brooklyn. Likewise, they’d be shocked, but maybe still fascinated—in the manner most men are fascinated by machines, even the kind that kill—if say, Ben Franklin got his hands on an AR-15.Draw your own conclusions from the above diatribe, readers and listeners. But while you’re pondering such weighty issues, consider the following shows—which you should attend in order to demonstrate that the right to party is an inalienable aspect of the thing called being alive; a concept that is tragically antithetical to the specific mission of machines like the AR-15.
Show Up!: Thursday
Cat Teeth
Courtesy of the artist
Having the agency to make decisions regarding one’s health and body is a fundamental right, yet many humans continue to suffer because of lack of access to education, birth control and health care options. This problem is especially true in parts of our nation where endemic post-colonial poverty has resulted in a multitude of consequential problems. Self-advocacy has done much to change this troubled landscape; organizations like Indigenous Women Rising have done much to advocate for progress and change; their abortion fund provides resources for those in need. On Thursday, March 1, Thursday Nite Girl Fight—a series of concerts that tunefully explores the rocktastic world of women musicians in Albuquerque—will donate the proceeds of their latest iteration at Launchpad (618 Central Ave. SW) to an organization whose expressed purpose involves taking direct, non-violent action to defend Mother Earth.It so happens that the bands playing this gig are some of the truest, most badass artists in the area. They include Ermine, the desert dada project of Tannex provocateur Marya Errin Jones, anti-folk transgender performance artist Bella Trout, Burque supergroup Cat Teeth and the enigmatic and expansive Lilith, a metallic yet translucent duo from outta the Western lands. 9pm • $5 • 21+
Show Up!: Friday
Lil Baby
Courtesy of the artist
PNB Rock makes music that contains itself within hip-hop conceits with tremulous consistency, yet seems to function, musically anyway, through intercourse with that wide pathway of what’s au currant: Heavy use of R&B arrangements and vocals, superfluous use of auto-tune, heavy dancehall bass beats and trap-like percussives combine for an effect that millions of American humans absolutely dig. That’s cool, I can listen to his work for about half an hour on Friday night before the tequila sinks in and I go searching for my vinyl copy of Yob’s second album. Anywho, PNB Rock is headlining at the Historic El Rey Theater (622 Central Ave. SW) on Friday, March 2, but I gotta admit that I consider the opener, Lil Baby, more to my tastes. Like a lot of hardcore entities out and about these days, this dude from Atlanta references the old school reverently but with innovation and experimentation of traditional forms at the heart of his musical enterprise. I did a video cruise of his work and settled on “My Dawg” as an example what the epitome of that new/old sound technique can achieve. 7pm • $24.50 • All-ages (13+)
Show Up!: Saturday
Dead Meadow
Courtesy of the artist
I mean come on. Really. Who wouldn’t love a band whose influences were dredged from the deep, dank, cave-hidden, bottomless pool of liquid darkness that contains the works of Lovecraft while hissing out sounds that resemble, after a bizarre fashion, the music of elder days, the utterances of lords such as Sabbath and Zeppelin as well as their descendants such as Kyuss. Those descriptives pretty much sum up Dead Meadow, a group of earnest if head-blown lads from our nation’s capital who are coming to the Duke City on Saturday March 3 at Sister (407 Central Ave. NW) to rock the fuck out with local commanders of the surf and savage guitars, Black Unicorn (a rippling, roaring power trio that features former skate board trickster Jeremy McCollum of SuperGiant up front). I’ll be brief. This one will be a rager. The future is in your hands, kids. 9pm • $10 to $13 • 21+
Show Up!: Sunday
Tinsley Ellis
Flournoy Holmes
It’s my wife’s birthday this week and we started celebrating early by listening to a whole bunch of ZZ Top tunes. This morning I ripped out “I heard it on the X” and we both danced around joyfully. That Texas-style rock guitar slays both of us and has kept us together for nigh on two decades. So yeah, we dig Billy Gibbons and that fellow that plays guitar for the Beaumonts—we’re even square with Mickey Melchiondo making like he’s a descendant of the yellow rose brigade on “Sweet Texas Fire.” But mostly we dig the Georgian dude that influenced all of that sort of playing. His name is Tinsley Ellis and he’ll be playing this Sunday March 4 at Cooperage (7220 Lomas NE) where all of this master’s shimmering, singing and slithery blues-rock playing will be on exhibit. I am certain of the killer nature of this particular bluesman and hereby designate you, faithful Alibi reader to go out to that fancy Heights steakhouse, order yourself a shot of good liquor, a slab of beef—or even a hunk of crab if you are daring—and sit back for some of the finest guitar playing adventures you can imagine. Serio. 7:30pm • $22 to $27 • 21+
