Ear Out of the Vacuum
Stuff I’m loving and hating and having complicated emotions about this month: Annuals, Corporate Sponsors and College Radio, 305 South and the always lovely Bowerbirds.
Stuff I’m loving and hating and having complicated emotions about this month: Annuals, Corporate Sponsors and College Radio, 305 South and the always lovely Bowerbirds.
I promise to finish my top ten* high school albums next month but some of this stuff was too timely to delay and I am too long winded to try to fit everything in one column.
So. I went to go see the Annuals play at Urban Outfitters to benefit WKNC, a good cause if at a weird venue and a stranger time (7:00? Really? I felt like I was at an all-ages show like the Cradle used to have, you know, the ones that were popular, oh, fifteen years ago. Jesus, fifteen years? Really? At seven o’ clock I should have been getting in bed, apparently. Because I’m old. Get it?) It was in relation to Free Yr Radio (http://www.freeyrradio.com/) a series of concerts across the country sponsored by Toyota and Urban Outfitters 
that hook up with college radio stations to provide exposure and give support. Let me get one thing clear, I’m all for supporting WKNC and everyone from the station was super nice and they did a good job, considering that the fucking rock show was at seven scratchin’ o’ clock and there was no fucking stage. Yes, you heard me. No stage. Now, I will admit that I was cranky about the interview I had with Annuals. It went not so well. Think rain, loading dock behind Urban Outfitters, twelve minutes to do a half hour interview and little response to some questions that were probably too complicated to try to ask under these circumstances (i.e. the benefits to freedom from ownership of intellectual property as promoted by Jonathan Lethem in Harpers. ("The Ecstasy of Influence, February) Okay even I hate myself for that one). The thing about this interview that upsets me is not that the band was unresponsive and slagging me off but that clearly these guys are kids. That’s not their fault, I know, actually, thank God they aren’t in their thirties otherwise I would be having a melt down over the seemingly irreconcilable differences between who these guys are and the music they make. It showed me that when you make art and put it out in the world it really doesn’t belong to you anymore; that people are going to make of it what they will and make of you what they will (which of course ties in nicely with the whole Lethem article but I digress). Listening to Annuals’ perfect song "Brother" or several of the other tracks from Be He Me, despite the fact I’m not really a fan of the album, I thought I could hear real intellectualism behind the composition of these songs. Don’t get me wrong, these guys aren’t dumb, and they certainly didn’t strike me as morons but there was a chasm behind who the artists were in my head (and the songs as well) and the band I was talking to. I’m sure I’m just going to piss of some die-hard, Raleigh-based Annuals fans, (serves me right, I suppose) but what this whole thing is about is that I failed the band by letting what I expected shadow my reaction to what I got. It was a rookie rock journalist mistake but I took comfort from a friend, a fellow rock critic, who turned me on to Chuck Klosterman’s 
essay about interviewing The Streets and undeniably fucking it up with expectations. I should also mention that I probably pissed some of the band member off by confronting them with my theory that they struggle to build a real and dedicated local audience b/c they blew up on the internet before they really got a chance to do so. I was quickly told that I was wrong, that "We paid our dues for eight years, it’s just that when we first started out, we were like, a high school band." I don’t think I’m the only one who believes that this does not count because, you see, they were a fucking high school band, but again, I digress. Right, no stage. On the "Free Yr Radio website I found this little blurb: "and Annuals put a new spin on the phrase, "Of the people," by asking to not have a stage or riser so they could play in the crowd. If this were an expletive-laden site, you'd see the following: _____-ing cool." Well, this is an expletive-laden magazine so I’m just going to say it: Not FUCK-ing cool, at all, in fact. You know what happens when a band plays on the floor in front of you? If you are more than two people back you can’t see them. I will say that Annuals are a fun and challenging live act, but when you can’t see them change instruments a million times or even see past the shoulder of the Amazonian lady in front of you, it’s not that fun. I was also just kind of bugged by the whole corporate sponsorship of independent radio thing, though my boyfriend says I’m being an asshole about this. I guess I’m being an asshole because I’m being oblivious to the inevitable and already residing relationships between corporations and independent radio, but it feels like just another thing they can turn into a commodity. Which may be the best reason for freedom from intellectual property I can make so, Jesus, read that article will you? One of the band members told me that the worst thing about music today is the term "indie". He said, in fact, "I mean you can’t be indie and be on Capital records." I don’t know how much I agree with that statement because indie is more than being independent music, it’s become a culture and it’s always been about an attitude. What I do know is that saying this whilst standing on the loading dock of the Urban Outfitters you are about to play in at a concert sponsored by Toyota seems kind of obtuse to me. One could argue that he hates the term indie because he’s tired of it being applied to the band and that is a fair argument. Annuals make music that is layered and indulgent and at times unbearably tension filled but apparently that does not necessarily translate into indie. It clearly doesn’t translate into a lot of things. I think these guys have talent, I also think they blew up on the internet before they even got their collective feet wet and that may mean they are on the defensive. I hope it doesn’t mean more events like this one. I mean Urban Outfitters might be good enough to buy cheap jewelry from but it’s not where I want to see my rock bands perform. Especially at seven o’clock, for fuck’s sake. Am I being ridiculous in thinking that the closing of King’s may beget even more of these awful things? If we had more viable rock venues in Raleigh then maybe Annuals could not only get their feet wet but dive all the way in. Make me look like an asshole. I hope they do.
Speaking of viable music spaces, there was a great show at
305 South in Durham, inside the Anti-Mall. If you haven’t been there yet get off your asses and do it. Burly Time Records had a showcase of bands including my local favorites, the Bowerbirds, in support of the new album, Hymns for a Dark Horse as well as local music maverick and Renaissance man Jenks Miller in his solo debut as Horseback and his new album Impale Golden Horn. Horse references aside, (I have been constantly confusing the titles and the name of Jenk’s band for the last two months) the new Burly Time records is putting out music that is thoughtful and important in that it touches the people who listen to it. This is music that rings true. The Bowerbirds are even better live than they are recorded, and the new album is a must for anyone who loved Danger at Sea, as well as anyone who believes that things like a softly pounded drum and the voice of an instrument can help make this world a better place. Horseback is that rarest of species, complex music that seems simplistic (as drone music often can) yet still resonant and deeply emotional. Not surprising, given that this projects, one of the 
seven that Jenks currently play a role in, is the one that funnels the rage and fear and sorrow that often accompany suffering OCD, as Jenks does. Someone I love has OCD, the kind that you need medication (some will tell you) for, the kind that makes him get up at four thirty in the morning just so he has enough time for his routine before he can go to work. It’s a hard thing to live with, because it’s like all your fears, the ones that keep you up at night but which, thankfully, only reside in your head, are suddenly manifested into real, tangible monsters. Toothpaste can become a monster, or blood.
So you guys have homework. Read that fucking Jonathan Lethem article. Go see Annuals and become a ridiculously addicted local fan; just don’t call them indie. Go to 305 South and get jealous of Durham, as it has the most vibrant and viable local venues for local bands. Then start a smartly run and magical rock club here in Raleigh. While doing all this visit http://www.burlytime.com/ and buy the new Bowerbirds and Horseback albums. Recycle you beer bottles. Dream of something dark and write it down. Okay, you can skip the last one, but that’s it. See you next month for the second half of my top ten* high school albums. But only if you’ve done your homework.
See the Bowerbirds at the local 506 on June 22nd for Charles Latham’s "going away forever" party or the next day, June 23rd at 3 at the "Rock and Shop" Market in Moore Square. If you are going to Bonaroo, check out Annuals, as they will be playing. On a stage, no doubt.
that hook up with college radio stations to provide exposure and give support. Let me get one thing clear, I’m all for supporting WKNC and everyone from the station was super nice and they did a good job, considering that the fucking rock show was at seven scratchin’ o’ clock and there was no fucking stage. Yes, you heard me. No stage. Now, I will admit that I was cranky about the interview I had with Annuals. It went not so well. Think rain, loading dock behind Urban Outfitters, twelve minutes to do a half hour interview and little response to some questions that were probably too complicated to try to ask under these circumstances (i.e. the benefits to freedom from ownership of intellectual property as promoted by Jonathan Lethem in Harpers. ("The Ecstasy of Influence, February) Okay even I hate myself for that one). The thing about this interview that upsets me is not that the band was unresponsive and slagging me off but that clearly these guys are kids. That’s not their fault, I know, actually, thank God they aren’t in their thirties otherwise I would be having a melt down over the seemingly irreconcilable differences between who these guys are and the music they make. It showed me that when you make art and put it out in the world it really doesn’t belong to you anymore; that people are going to make of it what they will and make of you what they will (which of course ties in nicely with the whole Lethem article but I digress). Listening to Annuals’ perfect song "Brother" or several of the other tracks from Be He Me, despite the fact I’m not really a fan of the album, I thought I could hear real intellectualism behind the composition of these songs. Don’t get me wrong, these guys aren’t dumb, and they certainly didn’t strike me as morons but there was a chasm behind who the artists were in my head (and the songs as well) and the band I was talking to. I’m sure I’m just going to piss of some die-hard, Raleigh-based Annuals fans, (serves me right, I suppose) but what this whole thing is about is that I failed the band by letting what I expected shadow my reaction to what I got. It was a rookie rock journalist mistake but I took comfort from a friend, a fellow rock critic, who turned me on to Chuck Klosterman’s essay about interviewing The Streets and undeniably fucking it up with expectations. I should also mention that I probably pissed some of the band member off by confronting them with my theory that they struggle to build a real and dedicated local audience b/c they blew up on the internet before they really got a chance to do so. I was quickly told that I was wrong, that "We paid our dues for eight years, it’s just that when we first started out, we were like, a high school band." I don’t think I’m the only one who believes that this does not count because, you see, they were a fucking high school band, but again, I digress. Right, no stage. On the "Free Yr Radio website I found this little blurb: "and Annuals put a new spin on the phrase, "Of the people," by asking to not have a stage or riser so they could play in the crowd. If this were an expletive-laden site, you'd see the following: _____-ing cool." Well, this is an expletive-laden magazine so I’m just going to say it: Not FUCK-ing cool, at all, in fact. You know what happens when a band plays on the floor in front of you? If you are more than two people back you can’t see them. I will say that Annuals are a fun and challenging live act, but when you can’t see them change instruments a million times or even see past the shoulder of the Amazonian lady in front of you, it’s not that fun. I was also just kind of bugged by the whole corporate sponsorship of independent radio thing, though my boyfriend says I’m being an asshole about this. I guess I’m being an asshole because I’m being oblivious to the inevitable and already residing relationships between corporations and independent radio, but it feels like just another thing they can turn into a commodity. Which may be the best reason for freedom from intellectual property I can make so, Jesus, read that article will you? One of the band members told me that the worst thing about music today is the term "indie". He said, in fact, "I mean you can’t be indie and be on Capital records." I don’t know how much I agree with that statement because indie is more than being independent music, it’s become a culture and it’s always been about an attitude. What I do know is that saying this whilst standing on the loading dock of the Urban Outfitters you are about to play in at a concert sponsored by Toyota seems kind of obtuse to me. One could argue that he hates the term indie because he’s tired of it being applied to the band and that is a fair argument. Annuals make music that is layered and indulgent and at times unbearably tension filled but apparently that does not necessarily translate into indie. It clearly doesn’t translate into a lot of things. I think these guys have talent, I also think they blew up on the internet before they even got their collective feet wet and that may mean they are on the defensive. I hope it doesn’t mean more events like this one. I mean Urban Outfitters might be good enough to buy cheap jewelry from but it’s not where I want to see my rock bands perform. Especially at seven o’clock, for fuck’s sake. Am I being ridiculous in thinking that the closing of King’s may beget even more of these awful things? If we had more viable rock venues in Raleigh then maybe Annuals could not only get their feet wet but dive all the way in. Make me look like an asshole. I hope they do.Speaking of viable music spaces, there was a great show at
305 South in Durham, inside the Anti-Mall. If you haven’t been there yet get off your asses and do it. Burly Time Records had a showcase of bands including my local favorites, the Bowerbirds, in support of the new album, Hymns for a Dark Horse as well as local music maverick and Renaissance man Jenks Miller in his solo debut as Horseback and his new album Impale Golden Horn. Horse references aside, (I have been constantly confusing the titles and the name of Jenk’s band for the last two months) the new Burly Time records is putting out music that is thoughtful and important in that it touches the people who listen to it. This is music that rings true. The Bowerbirds are even better live than they are recorded, and the new album is a must for anyone who loved Danger at Sea, as well as anyone who believes that things like a softly pounded drum and the voice of an instrument can help make this world a better place. Horseback is that rarest of species, complex music that seems simplistic (as drone music often can) yet still resonant and deeply emotional. Not surprising, given that this projects, one of the seven that Jenks currently play a role in, is the one that funnels the rage and fear and sorrow that often accompany suffering OCD, as Jenks does. Someone I love has OCD, the kind that you need medication (some will tell you) for, the kind that makes him get up at four thirty in the morning just so he has enough time for his routine before he can go to work. It’s a hard thing to live with, because it’s like all your fears, the ones that keep you up at night but which, thankfully, only reside in your head, are suddenly manifested into real, tangible monsters. Toothpaste can become a monster, or blood.So you guys have homework. Read that fucking Jonathan Lethem article. Go see Annuals and become a ridiculously addicted local fan; just don’t call them indie. Go to 305 South and get jealous of Durham, as it has the most vibrant and viable local venues for local bands. Then start a smartly run and magical rock club here in Raleigh. While doing all this visit http://www.burlytime.com/ and buy the new Bowerbirds and Horseback albums. Recycle you beer bottles. Dream of something dark and write it down. Okay, you can skip the last one, but that’s it. See you next month for the second half of my top ten* high school albums. But only if you’ve done your homework.
See the Bowerbirds at the local 506 on June 22nd for Charles Latham’s "going away forever" party or the next day, June 23rd at 3 at the "Rock and Shop" Market in Moore Square. If you are going to Bonaroo, check out Annuals, as they will be playing. On a stage, no doubt.
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