Let the After Times Begin

On the night of June 2nd, I ventured to a strange place. It was inside. It was sort of dark, but with colorful lights which lit up a strange platform. Upon this platform, human beings created sounds, using their voices, and various stringed and percussive devices.  I think this was what they used to call “live music.” 

Could June 2021 be the month that live music REALLY comes back to us? Wednesday at Ruby Deluxe, there was an actual, real, LIVE SHOW.  Not that there haven’t been any at all.  I’ve seen the odd outdoor gig, and much love to the Pour House for starting things with seated shows indoors a few weeks ago, as things were beginning to re-normalize.  But THIS is the first music I’ve seen that felt truly like the before times. 

It started quietly, as if to warm us up to the very idea again. One singer and an electric guitar, Al Riggs, standing alone on the great new stage at Ruby, playing songs from what has become a damned impressive and extensive catalog, including the recent full-lengths Bile & Bone and I Got A Big Electric Fan To Keep Me Cool While I Sleep.  The dark, sometimes sad songs entranced the audience... Riggs’ music sets an otherworldly tone, and they appreciated it, though were sometimes a bit talkative for a quiet act... but hey, they came to dance 😊 (see below). I saw Riggs play a couple of outdoor gigs during the pandemic, and when playing solo, their music lends itself to that. But this felt different. Maybe it was the indoor vibe, the reverb, the sound bouncing off the walls. Or maybe it was just because I was just so eager for venue show. Whatever, it was good.

Al Riggs...

Even when I like the act, I’ve never enjoyed amphitheater or arena shows, or even smaller outdoor shows, as much as the intimacy of a small club. You literally feel the music, the sweat and heat, the energy. It’s visceral. The proximity of the stage makes you part and parcel of the show. 

Speaking of which, much of the audience seemed to come for the second act, Charlie Paso, and to be sure that they themselves became a part of the show. Charlie Paso, apparently, travel with their own dance crew. And I can see why. Their songs are at once catchy and ragged. Hints of Pavement and Modest Mouse flutter through ‘50s pop and ‘70s psych before heading out to the ocean and riding a rolling surf back to now. I swear they were a 4-piece the only other time I saw them too long ago, but being as 2-piece now, they’re none the worse for wear. No lack of energy and fun here. Check out their newest couple of tunes on bandcamp, What a Beautiful Place and I'm Contagious, Yr a Mess. Thanks also to Ruby for adding a cage at stage right, of which several of the dancing crowd made use. 

Charlie Paso...

Two great acts to wet my whistle, and I want MORE. Also, not a bad crowd for a mid-week show, especially considering most people hardly remember what a “show” is. So if you’re vaxxed, get out there and SUPPORT LIVE MUSIC again! And if you’re not, then wtf are you waiting for?!?  

Puzzle Quest – Remnants of the Orb, HYAH! – Vol. 1

Despite the fact that I have less and less time to review albums these days, I seem to be getting more and more sent to me.  Much of what I hear is not bad, even good, but doesn’t inspire me to set aside time to write a review.   In some cases, it just might be a genre I don’t feel knowledgeable enough to weigh in on.  In others, I was just way to busy with real life (see missed opportunities to write about the excellent semi-recent releases from Lonnie Walker and Jenny Besetzt).  Okay, maybe I’ve had a little writer’s block lately, too. :)

But recently, I’ve gotten a couple of releases that are pretty close to my musical sweet spots.  And they both just happen to come from within my own family.  The first is Remnants from the Orb by PuzzleQuest, from Champaign-Urbana, IL.  Look, whether or not my nephew was their drummer, any band that comes from the same town as Poster Children would have made my ears perk up. 

Remnants opens with a Minutemen-esque spiel (The New Flesh), a Pavement-slacker lament (Rick’s Gone), and a mellow stoner groove (Sequential Friends).   It hits on these styles throughout.  Fun pop-punk ditties are interspersed with jazzy jams, and Dale is just a pure pop gem. 

I read another review that said Puzzle Quest couldn’t decide on what they wanted to sound like on Remnants.  There’s some truth to that in that there’s a diversity of styles.  But to me, that’s part of the appeal.  I like not knowing what to expect next.  Wowee Zowee and Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain jumped around so much – from wide-open twanginess to punk grinders to nightclub jitters – they gave you whiplash.  But those Pavement classics still worked as a cohesive units.  Likewise, Remnants of the Orb still “sounds” like Puzzle Quest throughout, and that sounds pretty good.

The second release is Vol. 1 from College Station, Texas band HYAH!  Another nephew (Eliot, keys), another college band.  Vol. 1 jumps around between funky grooves and indie-punk (their fb page appropriately describes their genre as “punkfunk”).  Annie is a little of both, with crunchy guitars merging with jazzy vocals and pop melodies.  Alaska is a really cool ‘60s party vibe (think more Peter Sellars The Party than Woodstock).  Dimples and Teeth’s fun punk reminds me of Wilmington’s late-great Free Clinic.  Angry Fish takes you on a 2-minute noise-weirdness-fest, before Vol. 1 closes with a couple of almost pure funk jams.  These guys might even be more schizophrenic than Puzzle Quest!  Did I already say that's a good thing?

Were it not for the family connections, I probably would never have heard of Puzzle Quest or HYAH!  But I gotta say, relatives or not, if they were locals, I’d definitely be hitting up their shows. 

Oh, did I say my niece is in a band, too?  Rally Owls.  Keep an ear out.  (I think musical talent must skip generations in my family)