it is not my policy to talk shit about songs. i prefer to just ignore crappy music….but, this is kind of like someone jumping in your car with dog shit on their shoe….eventually you have to say something smells like shit…..don’t bother checking your shoes folks…it is just the new Gwen Stefani leak.

Gwen Stefani - Yummy

the irony of the title….

apparently the entire cd has leaked onto the internets today but judging from this track and Wind it Up….I am not even gonna bother with a free download…..I do not think even a return to No Doubt could redeem the Fergie-wannabe.

Thoughts?

Patterson Hood says they are the future of rock and roll. Patterson Hood knows rock and roll. While I don’t feel I’m qualified to speak on the future of rock and roll, I do feel qualified to say I believe these fellas have a future in rock and roll. The Dexateens are a 5 piece rock band from Tuscaloosa, Alabama featuring, much like the truckers, a triple guitar attack. In all honesty, they are really easy to compare to the truckers….from Bama, 3 guitars, southern rock, singer sounds similar to Patterson, and the newest album produced by Mr. hood. Yes, the comparisons make themselves, but they aren’t just a DBT clone. I prefer to tell people they are the band that will fill the hole left by the split of Slobberbone. In all reality I don’t think the band cares who you compare them to, so long as it’s not Kings of Leon.

On the new release the boys seem to have traded in some of their grit and stomp for a polished swagger, while there is still plenty of Alabama dirt and torn edges for me. Fans of Slobberbone, DBT, Neil Young, and American rock music in general need to slide The Dexateens to the top of their shopping list. Hell, don’t take my word for it….take Patterson’s.

The Dexateens - What Money Means
The Dexateens - Red Dust Rising
The Dexateens - Fyffe

Dexateens: myspace, official site

Fear and Loathing on the Thanksgiving concert trail of ‘06…or Rock Report: Lucero/DBT….or How I Learned to Stop Raging and Love the Traffic…

So, some 2 hotels, 1400 miles in 2 days, and I am here to speak about the Lucero/DBT show at the Alabama Theater. Our original plan was to take off in the wee hours of the morning on the day of the show and return the following morning. As luck would have it all of the people slated to go with us had to back out due to the sexually transmitted disease known as parenthood and the airborne communicable disease known as the cold. So we decided to leave a day earlier and break the trip up across two days. “Breaking the trip up” was a night in Macon, Georgia…we stayed at the home of the most uncomfortable bed in the Southeast. Upon arriving we decided to go have some drinks in the hotel lounge before attempting to sleep on the concrete slab known as a bed — and here is where the fun begins.

Redneck karaoke, 11pm in Macon baby…supermullets, high waisted jeans, and angry drunk people in full effect. We got lucky and walked in just as the karaoke “DJ” was taking a break. We order some double talls and take a seat in the back of the bus….about 10 minutes into the evening supermullet man at the table beside us decides he wants to listen to some songs on the jukebox…now, before I continue this story I must tell you…supermullet man was fucking drunk….stupid drunk…like weeble might wobble dropping cigarettes on the floor fucking drunk, and he was with his woman…a fat…angry looking woman…i do not think she spoke the entire time we were in there, and she was spoken to enough that her lack of speech was odd…but back to the story…supermullet man wanted to listen to the music on the jukebox…one issue: listening to music on a jukebox requires putting money into it, and this was a trick that supermullet man had not perfected…after numerous attempts to get the dollar in he finally ended up on his knees staring into the dollar slot…cussing and pushing this dollar at the slot like a 15 year old with his homecoming date, but in a testament to perseverance, the jukebox like said homecoming date, finally gave up and accepted the dollar. It quickly become apparent to anyone whose sister is not their mother that supermullet man did not believe the rumor that the jukebox had multiple pages and promptly spent 10 minutes trying to figure out what songs he was gonna play…finally he picks his 3 songs….One of which included, i shit you not….70’s era Cher, and sits down to drink and cuss some more while his woman sat in her angry silence. Once Cher ended I begged a dollar out of the wife and beat supermullet man to the dollar slot…mind you, this made supermullet man *really* unhappy, and punched up 3 songs of my own, the first of which was a Merle Haggard song…”At least it’s country” he calls from his table….and then, I wowed him with my jukebox page flipping abilities…..thus ended the night…sorta….the night never ended because sleeping was not a real possibility in the p.o.s. bed so we got up and got going pretty fucking early in the morning….and as a parting shot, the hotel made sure there was no hot water for our showers….cold showers, shit coffee, and one forgotten pillow later we left Macon for Birmingham.

The trip to Birmingham happened without incident. The afternoon leading up to the show was nice and casual with a nap, an FSU and USF game, and a nice lunch with some pretty awesome locals who called each other by Bob….there was Billy Bob, Gary Bob, Skip Bob, and a few other Bobs I can’t recall. They were fun and definitely worth drinking a beer with. Prior to the show we met some Internet pals for food and drinks and then it was off to the Alabama Theater. The trip was the kind of excitement only 8 people in a single car can provide.

Before I talk about the show let me take a moment to talk about the theater. It was built in the 20’s and is beautiful, but that’s all I can say about the venue that is positive…the beer “selection” included Miller Lite and….well…Miller Lite…the mixed drinks were electronically measured aaaaand expensive but this was just a minor annoyance…the security staff on the other hand was probably the most rude I have seen in a long long time…We saw people getting dressed down and harassed all over the place…but whatever…we drank Miller Lite…weak expensive whiskey drinks and avoided the butt-hole security staff and we liked it…..we liked it fine.

The show started, oddly enough, right on time and it was immediately evident that the bulk of Trucker fans are not aware of the awesomeness of Lucero. As I have said before, I drink way too much to remember sets but the show opened with “That Much Further West” and included The War, Kiss the Bottle, 1979 and (2) of my favorites: Slow Dancing and Hate and Jealousy…and while I have never felt so removed from the band at a Lucero show they were still great….sober, but great…The sound at the theater was probably the best I have ever heard at a live show…anywhere…ever…I hope some of the people sitting on their hands appreciated the band and look into their music….I will see Lucero again in a few weeks and while the sound will not be nearly as good it will be nice to be up close and surrounded by fans…Next up, DBT…the reason for the evenin…The last few times I have seen the truckers live it did not seem like they were too into it….it just seemed like they were just up there playing the songs…on this night, that was not the case…oh no, the three axe attack brought the rock show and they brought it with authority…their set was light on new material (tome that was an acknowledgement that the new CD failed to bring the rock) and heavy on rock…the set included 3 trips to the beer/whiskey line, Daddy’s Cup, Zip City, Sinkhole and closed the night out with a cover of Ain’t Talkin’ ‘Bout Love….in the lead-in to Let There Be Rock Patterson gave a small monologue discussing the past and future of rock and roll and called The Dexeteens out as the future of rock….I decided then and there that I needed to do a write-up on them boys…their last 2 albums have been phenomenal and you can expect an introduction in a few days. All in all it was an awesome night and the sound quality alone was worth the trip. We were supposed to meet some friends for more drinks after the show but our own intoxication took over on the way to the bar so we did what any responsible person does…..we decided to go to a bar closer to the room….the rest of this evening includes broken laws, broken hearts, body fluids, hungry cops and stories not to be told.

While, honestly, there was no fear on the trip the loathing came into play on the return home. Our 9.5 hour trip up turned into a 12 hour trip home…200 miles of traffic jam…anger, punching steering wheels, questioning god…it was terrible….my braking leg is sore today…but we finally made it home….just in time to watch Dexter no less. I think it is gonna take the rest of the week to recover from the trip but all in all I think it was definitely worth it….and all you Tampa/St. Pete people…December 13 @ The State, Lucero is playing….come…witness the awesomeness that is Lucero…drink beer and sway to sad songs. I do not think DBT will be down Florida way anytime soon.

I tried to take some pictures but they did not really come out due to assigned seating and shitty camera….The few that did turn out are here if you wanna see them.

We made it home….regular posting will resume tomorrow.

Woke up w/a slight headache from the Lucero/DBT show last night to read that I Can Lick Any Son of a Bitch in the house broke up. I did a feature on them a few weeks ago….hope I did not jinx them…

Here’s the official announcement from the band:

Hey everyone. Well, it’s time for the news that we hoped we would
never have to deliver. After 5 plus years of touring, recording, and
throwing our middle fingers at the powers that be, I Can Lick Any
Sonofabitch In The House is no more. Mike D has decided to focus on
his family and his solo work, and we of course won’t continue without
our brother. We can’t thank all of you who have supported us enough;
for taking care of us on the road, letting us sleep on your floors
and eat your food, sharing the stage with us, or just being the loyal
fans that you have been. It is our great hope that we were able to
bring to you even a fraction of the love and happiness that you
brought to our lives.

Mole, Jon, Dave, and Flap

Take care guys…

I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch In The House - Pauline
I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch In The House - Good Day To Be A Husband
I Can Lick Any Sonofabitch In The House - Fall Down

I am doing a different type of Flashback Friday this week since I am about to walk out the door for a 650 +/- mile road trip to see The Drive-by Truckers and Lucero. There is no shortage of people out there that will tell you how downloading is killing the industry…starving artists..etc. etc. Well, mp3’s put me on the current path I am on.

I was looking through my favorite mp3 newsgroup when I saw the band name “Drive-by Truckers”. It was an advance copy of the cd “Decoration Day” but it was the band name that caught my attention so I downloaded it. A few weeks later I got around to listening to it and fell in love. I am a lyrics guy and the stories told on that cd captivated me….what was “When the Pin Hit’s the Shell” about….was “Decoration Day” a true story…did his daddy really tell him not to call what he was wearing an outfit? The wife was just as enthusiastic about the band and I started doing some internet research which led me to the DBT yahoo group. I wanted more by the band and more music like this so I asked the mailing list for some more bands like this and Lucero was the common thread in all of the replies so I downloaded their self-titled release. While DBT tell stories of the south Lucero tell stories of bars, women, scars and broken hearts. A couple of weeks later I went to Vinyl Fever and picked up “Southern Rock Opera” and “Tennessee“. It has been a complete love affair ever since….all because a band name caught my attention in a newsgroup.

Y’all have a god weekend, I am about to hit the road.

Drive-by Truckers - When the Pin Hit’s the Shell
Drive-by Truckers - Women Without Whiskey
Drive-by Truckers - My Sweet Annette

Lucero - Slow Dancing
Lucero - No Roses No More
Lucero - Hate and Jealousy

Well, the ol’ Hank III cussin’ board has done it again. Thanks to the fine (usually) folks over there, I have been turned on to an unsigned Georgian — making country music the way it used to be. I will stop shy of saying it is country music the way it should be, since I do not feel I can speak as an authority, but I will say it is country music the way I like it.

Joey Allcorn is a 25 year old from Columbus, Georgia who writes and performs songs that could have been played on the fabled stage of the Grand Ol’ Opry in it’s heydays at The Ryman. Classic country songs with steel guitars, fiddles, lyrics of heartbreak, heaven, hell, and all matters of turmoil in between.

In the title track of his debut CD “50 Years Too Late” he sings about never getting to meet the country legends of ‘ol, and in the last verses he says “and I’ll never get to meet them cause they’re all dead and gone, but I feel that it’s my place to pick up and carry on with the kind of country music that they left behind and it might turn out that it was fate I was born 50 years too late.” It just might indeed.

For an unsigned artist putting out his debut album — Allcorn boasts an impressive roster of guest singers. Hank III, BR549, the guys from Those Poor Bastards, and the mad crazy steel talents of Andy Gibson are all on display throughout the disc….and while I may not be able to speak with authority on country music, those people damn sure can and anyone who gets their seal of approval is a-oh-fucking-kay.

Allcorn has the classic country nasal vocal delivery that hints at a less road/drugs/whiskey/pills/pot/15 shows in 17 nights hell raising weary Hank III but fear not Joey…you are young yet.

Every anti-Nashville artist must contain a “fuck trashville” cut on their CD and “50 Years Too Late” delivers accordingly with In Nashville, Tennessee. The track is intriguing because it features a more electric sonic structure, but as a whole I tend to ignore these songs. The artists are right, Nashville has killed the classic country sound but they may as well write fuck Clear Channel songs.

The prerequisite anti-Nashville track aside there is not a single track on this CD I do not like, and some such as Graveyard Bound, Alabama Chain Gang, This Ain’t Montgomery, and Son of a Ramblin’ Man have already found a place on my “Bad Muthafukas” playlist on the Ipod.

So, if you are a fan of the classic country sound you need to check out this kid from Georgia cause he’s got it going on….visit his site, check out the tracks on his myspace site, buy a CD…hell, buy two and mail one to your local community radio station (that’s what I’m doing) and show some support for someone doing it for love over money.

Joey Allcorn - 50 Years Too Late
Joey Allcorn - Graveyard Bound
Joey Allcorn - Son of a Ramblin’ Man

You can hear more songs over on Joey’s myspace site. Joey was kind enough to answer a few questions the other day as well. So, here is a little mini-interview to help y’all get acquainted:

9b.net: How did you manage to score such and impressive roster of guest artists on a debut cd?

Allcorn: Well, most of the people on the album come from the Hank III realm and it’s just a side effect of knowing him for so long… I’ve known III for about 6 years or so and of course it was through him I was turned onto Those Poor Bastards and met Andy Gibson. I’ve been a fan of Donnie Herron since I was 15 years old and listening to BR549 records. Johnny Hiland I actually met in Nashville at one of his shows when he was opening for Brent Mason and those guys, But I knew who he was from the tracks he did on Shelton’s Lovesick, Broke & Driftin’ back in 01.

9b.net: Tell me about the choice to wear the suit on stage. Is it in reverence to country musics past or is it a rebellion to the current commercialization of the country-image….or have I just completely over thought the whole damned thing?

Allcorn: Well I wear the suits because I think it represents something that is missing from todays country music and that’s class. It is a shame that guys will go on the Opry with torn up jeans and tank tops etc. It is the Mother Church of Country music and should be treated with some respect. But overall, it’s just something not very many people are doing anymore and I believe should be a part of country music once again.

9b.net: Do you get much backlash from people thinking you’re just trying to ride a gimmick or imitate Hank Sr. If so, how do you deal with them?

Allcorn: Well, I am doing this because I listened to Hank Williams Sr., and as long as I can get out there and sing his songs and promote his memory I will. He has had more impact on my life than anybody else and I will always show respects to Sr. If anybody thinks I immitate him by wearing the suits or singing in that style or whatever, they need to go watch some old Opry footage from the 50’s, everybody dressed like that and alot of people had that same type of vocal style.

9b.net: It seems a lot of the people pushing to bring back country music originated from the punk rock scene. Why do you thinkg that is?

Allcorn: I honestly don’t know. I guess maybe because it is a real and honest form of music and there’s alot of people who can relate to it. That is why I’ve always been a fan of both, it’s just honest lyrics and basic music.

9b.net: Any plans of touring to support the cd?

Allcorn: We have been on tour since October supporting the new record and will continue into next year. Weve been all up in the northeast and next we are heading to TX, then a break and probably the midwest after that, Im not really sure… But I love being on the road and meeting all the people out there who are into old school country music.

9b.net: Who would win in a fight between Big & Rich and Toby Kieth?

Allcorn: They would never fight. Their lawyers would settle it in court before it ever got that far.

Allegedly an Entertainment lawyer runs a blog and allegedly a lady comes in and claims she has been the voice behind an ultramega star. So, obviously, the Ent. Lawyer writes a blog about it. Is it true? Who Cares….It’s a good excuse to listen to a freaking Milli Vanilli song.

Milli Vanilla - Girl You Know It’s True

If you are into the whole Page 6 Blind Items thing it is a good read….below is the very beginning.

Read the rest here if you want.

Let me preface this post, by saying that if this story ever comes out, it would blow the music world up and shake it to its core..This would put the Milli Vanilli scandal and Ashlee Simpson SNL situation so far down the ladder it would be crazy..

Towards the end of last year I had a woman come into my office and she began to explain what she had done and had been doing for several years and it was one of the very few times that I just could not believe what I was hearing..I know the music industry inside and out, and I had never heard of something so extensive and pervasive as this..

This woman (S) came into my office because the payments she had been receiving had stopped and she wanted to either get the money that was owed to her, or expose what she had been doing to the light of day..

So, we’ll give you today’s releases….today…Heavyweight’s Jay-Z, Snoop Dee Oh double Gee and Rock Star Supernova come at you this week….but I know y’all are all gonna be lined up to get that Chris Daughtry album.

Brand New - The Devil and God Are Raging Inside Me / Guy Clark - Workbench Songs / Chris Daughtry - Daughtry / Jay-Z - Kingdom Come / Patti LaBelle - The Gospel According to Patti LaBelle / Loreena McKennitt - An Ancient Muse / Rock Star Supernova - Supernova / Snoop Dogg - Tha Blue Carpet Treatment / Tom Waits - Orphans: Brawlers, Bawlers & Bastards

There you go…earlier today I mentioned that after reading a collection of descent reviews for the new Snoop I was gonna check it out…..I have noticed a law for rap albums….The quality of a rap album is inversely proportionate to the amount of guest rappers present on a disc…The new Snoop cd features guest rappers on 11 of the 19 tracks…fuck…Tupac even makes an appearance…I did not even make it to track 10 before I deleted the files…

People are saying the new Snoop is good… I’m doubtful, but I will now go into the smarmy world of p2p and check it out…

Was Snoop ever good after his spots on The Chronic? I can’t recall liking anything of his outside of that.

edit: So, what is the first thing I notice once the album is down? There is a track featuring 2-Pac….heh heh heh heh…fuck it…why not…

In other news I just found out that controller.controller split. It isn’t breaking news by any means but it is a bummer. I am not a wealth of knowledge about the band. I acquired their last CD X-Amounts earlier in the year and briefly fell in love with it….They were my “band of the moment” of the moment….Kind of reminded me of The Gossip, who I also love. I have managed to listen to the CD every couple of weeks ever since. My brother always says good music is fleeting and once again he was proven correct. I look forward to hearing whatever they do in the future.

Controller.Controller - PF
Controller.Controller - Rooms

Controller.Controller on myspace