popwreckoning updates

White Rabbits @ Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia

Posted: 10 Jun 2009 10:45 AM PDT

Continuing our extended coverage of the recent White Rabbits show last Friday (can you tell we like this band yet?) , here are some pictures from their set, as well as opener Busses.

Busses hails from Philly, and play an almost avant garde dancey sort of shoegazy mix. That’s a lot of adjectives but really their style is hard to pin down. But to sum it up, they kicked ass.

BUSSES

BUSSES

White Rabbits followed second opener the Subjects with a vivacious performance featuring their signature two percussionists accompanied by boisterous piano melodies and enough tambourine to inspire the dead to rise up and join the dance party, thanks to drummer Matt Clark. Primary vocalist Stephen Patterson wailed from behind the keys, occasionally stepping out to stand front and center at the mic while guitarist Alex Even played some of the most beautifully distorted chords I’ve ever heard.

White Rabbits

White Rabbits

White Rabbits

White Rabbits

White Rabbits are just over a week into their tour with The Subjects, so make sure to check for a date near you for a dancin’ good time.

White Rabbits: website | myspace | interview with
Busses: website | myspace

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June 6, 2009 — White Rabbits perform “Percussion Gun” (0)
June 7, 2009 — Interview with: White Rabbits (0)
May 27, 2009 — MP3 Minute: Hoots & Hellmouth CD Release show (0)
May 27, 2009 — Jenny Owen Youngs with Jukebox the Ghost @ Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia (0)
May 6, 2009 — Jenny Owen Youngs with Jukebox the Ghost stop by Johnny Brenda’s on national tour (0)
April 27, 2009 — Eulogies at Johnny Brenda’s, ticket giveaway prize pack! (2)
April 21, 2009 — Great Lake Swimmers @ Johnny Brendas, Philadelphia (1)
April 8, 2009 — MP3 Minute: White Rabbits “Percussion Gun” (0)
November 30, 2008 — Miles Benjamin Anthony Robinson @ Johnny Brendas, Philadelphia (0)
November 13, 2008 — O’Death @ Johnny Brenda’s, Philadelphia (0)

Skint & Demoralised @ Dot to Dot Festival, Glo Bar, Nottingham-Trent Uni, Nottingham, England

Posted: 10 Jun 2009 07:45 AM PDT

I’m a sucker for well-written, witty lyrics set against a Northern Soul-influenced soundtrack, as well as the artfulness of good rhyme. So it should come as no surprise that I am a fan of 20-year-old Wakefield, England native Matt Abbott and his pop outfit Skint & Demoralised. He is one-half the thinking man’s poet (check out his MySpace under the name Matt Skint, one-half budding pop star - a combination all too rare these days. Matt is also not shy to voice his political views to boot - he is a devoted supporter of Love Music Hate Racism, a rapidly growing coalition of UK musicians pledging to stamp out racism with music that “unites us and gives us strength, and offers a vibrant celebration of our multicultural and multiracial society. Racism seeks only to divide and weaken us.” Seems to be a guy with his head on his shoulders and his feet firmly on the ground.

But when I went to Nottingham-Trent Uni’s Glo Bar on the afternoon of May 24th, it was all about seeing Skint & Demoralised live. My eyes lit up as Matt strode on stage and began reciting “Welcome to Blackpool”, a love letter (I think?) to Northern England’s seaside town famous for its amusements. But for those of you who shudder or point in horror at poetry at a pop concert, “…Blackpool” led seamlessly into “Three More Days”, then into a humorous dig at everyone’s favorite social networking pest of the moment, Twitter, with “Twat on Twitter”.

Then came “The Thrill of Thirty Seconds”. Never before has such a verbose chorus of “it feels like time is slowing down /for our secret rendezvous in town / as anticipation beckons / I start counting down the seconds / my heart beats fast but the clock ticks slowly / you could be my one and only / as anticipation beckons / I feel the thrill of 30 seconds…” felt so good in one’s ears whilst singing along to the freewheeling melody. Oh, it brought me back happily to the first time my S&D virgin ears heard it on BBC Radio. Having stood at many a train platform in England, I can relate to waiting impatiently there for something exciting or important to happen by those tracks. I just haven’t waited for a potential mate there…yet. It’s a hopelessly romantic notion nevertheless. Another high point of the set - the closer, the delicious “Red Lipstick”, fueled with the optimism of the sweet refrain: “she likes red lipstick / fish and chips / orange juice / and trips to the seaside.” Who writes lyrics like this these days?

Here’s the 2007 demo version of “Red Lipstick” from YouTube:

Providing the musical backdrop to Matt’s poppy and funny lyrics were Paul Sayer (lead guitar), John Calvert (bass), and John Blease (drums). I don’t think I’ve ever laughed so much or nodded along with agreement with a front man and danced at a gig. Sure, this pop slash poetry gig was all too short and unconventional, but who the heck wants to be all cookie cutter these days? I am definitely going to get myself a copy of Skint & Demoralised’s debut album Love, and Other Catastrophes when it comes out this fall so I can dance to their brand of Northern Soul.

Set list
Welcome To Blackpool (poem)
Three More Days
It’s Only Been A Week
Twat on Twitter (poem)
The Thrill of Thirty Seconds
Let’s Get Lost
This One’s For Tim (poem)
Only Lust Ignores Violence Involving Ambulances
BNP: Nazis on the Doorstep (poem)
Red Lipstick

Skint & Demoralised: website | myspace
Matt Skint: myspace