An evening of rock at South First Billiards
9 p.m. Saturday, July 17
420 S. First Street, San Jose, 408/294-7800
No cover!
With a working opera critic behind the drums, it doesn't seem enough to say, "Hey dude, come out and see my band - we rock!" So I thought I would wander from my usual genre and give you a description of the three bands playing on the 17th. Wish me luck!
Sway is a trio out of Monterey that plays "trancedelic" rock - a term that describes the band's psychedelic '60s roots but also the general effect of its music. It all begins with Daune Willahan, a long-time singer/songwriter whose acoustic originals are influenced by folk, blues and her Celtic roots. The band's principal weapon is Willahan's voice, a fearless, edgy soprano (think Grace Slick meets Judy Collins) that offers the kind of dynamic range more often heard in opera. Sway began when Willahan traded her acoustic guitar for electric and brought in husband Kelly Oliver, whose lead work is marked by simple, songlike solos and a rich, multilayered sound that dips into surprising effects like choral voices and whalesong (!). All three players are longtime members of the Monkey Tribe drum circle (recently chronicled in a novel of the same name), creating a rhythmic tightness that allows the drummer (that's me) to venture into unexpected territories, including mallet cymbal rolls, flamenco snarework, 6/8 waltz beats and galloping toms.
The result of this unique chemistry is to create songs that are epic journeys of sound, marked by an organic feel that leaves its audiences uncontrollably swaying (thus, the name). Willahan's lyrics are strongly poetic. "Mystery" is a theatrical recommendation of the enigmatic ("...the real villains move more silently"). "July 13" tells of a raucous band of guy-rockers, their cliche-riddled sound parodied in the solos. "Labyrinth" is a spell-binding journey through addiction recovery, backgrounded by mythic sonic landscapes and a glorious, uplifting finale. The band also plays surprisingly novel covers of "Dreams" and "House of the Rising Sun," and uses Leonard Cohen's "Suzanne" as a haunting encore. http://www.houseofsway.com/
At first listen, Exit Wonderland sounds exactly like a dance-band. Their funk-rock groove makes it awfully hard to stand still. But after a while, you might start to notice the lyrics. That boppy blues, "Burden," is actually about credit-card debt. That disco-jam, "Fear and Pride," addresses jingoism in Bush-era America. The surf-punk "Point of View" takes on religious hypocrisy. The songs originate with singer Pamela Quattrochi, who clearly has a lot on her mind, and seems to be at her best when she's a little bit pissed off. Her vocal style is straight-ahead rocker, a fast-paced sense for word-rhythms, a little bit of snarl, and enough soul behind her alto tone to carry off the band's bluesier dips. The rest comes down to the driving bass/lead combo of Smeeed Spain and Billy Doyle, the crisp (I hope) drumming of yours truly, and a couple of sonic bonuses: Anne Gelhaus's keyboard work and her background harmonies with Mr. Vaughn (the two of them were choirmates at San Jose State), perhaps best illustrated in the three-part a capella finale of the worker's lament, "The Man." The group has also begun an interesting sideline in obscure covers, beginning with the infectious basslines of The Doors' "Peace Frog" and the Bellrays' soul rapture, "Tell the Lie."
Perhaps the greatest strength of EW is the complete lack of a virtuoso. These five play as a team, they play well-developed, thought-out songs, and they like things to be good and tight. As polished as it gets, however, the sound retains an rawness as hard to resist as its beats. www.facebook.com/pages/Exit-Wonderland/106022266611
There was little dispute over which band would be the third in our slate. EW played San Francisco's El Rio last month and were treated to the phantasmagorical delights of the Baby Seal Club, a band that is horribly hard to describe. My own shorthand is "the B-52s on acid," but that doesn't even scratch the surface. The biggest point of separation is their vocal approach, which sends the lead line from player to player, like they're doing some kind of rock musical. They paint the background with wild supporting meanders and harmonies that recently inspired former Go-Go Jane Wiedlin to jump from the crowd and voice her approval. The Club also ventures from the standard rock setups into moody, jazzy side-trips that resemble sonic film noir. It's a wild ride, augmented by the costumery of Choklit's 19th-century steampunk-wear and El Fudo's permanent Rod Stewart wig. It's a real treat to have them playing with us again, and believe me, either the acclaim has yet to go to their heads (2009 North Bay Indie Band of the Year) or they're doing a damn good job of faking it. www.babysealclub.com
Michael J. Vaughn is the West Coast stringer for the New Zealand website theoperacritic.com and author of several musically based novels.
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