December 20, 2008

Club Nokia

Los Angeles, CA

Concert Review by Junkman

OK, I can hear you wondering aloud, “Junkman, what’s with the review of three bands that have nothing to do with metal?” It’s an honest question, one that I ask myself. But, being a fan of all three bands, and wanting to see the brand new venue in which they were appearing, I HAD to see this show, knowing full well the INFLUENCE all these bands have had on so many “heavier” bands that have followed them through the years. It is something I am excited to point out. Hopefully I will get through to you, the beloved reader.

I entered the terrific new downtown LA venue Club Nokia, with high expectations and was not disappointed. It’s an AMAZING venue. Located in the heart of downtown Los Angeles, in the new LA Live complex, it’s a spotless, multi-level theater for live music. Upon entering, I was given not one, but 4 wristbands, guaranteeing entry to virtually any area of the club. My wrist has never been that decorated before, not even in the 80’s when accessorizing was essential.

I decided to check out the massive V.I.P. lounge on the fourth floor first. Very upscale and trendy dim lighting as you would expect, complete with cabanas, waitresses, and bathroom attendants. Lots of curvy cookie-cutter couches as well, I kept waiting to hear some DJ spinning hip-hop, but, luckily for me, it didn’t happen. Beers were an LA standard 8 bucks. Oh well, I got comped, so that was “the rub,” I told myself. Each floor also featured a balcony, with an outstanding view of downtown LA, perfect for smokers and those that desire some privacy.

Next up, I visited the balcony. They did a great job on this part of the venue. Rows of comfy seats with a very steep bank that, I found out later, gave the visitor an unobstructed view of the stage. This is key, as there are many places locally, (i.e., House Of Blues Anaheim) that have completely screwed up the sight lines from upstairs. I tested it out and sat behind someone about 6’4 and could see the stage perfectly. There are also very thin cables as a railing, which reminded me of LA’s Key Club, and this too is viewer-friendly. Also of notice was a huge area to the left for handicapped visitors. Add to the mix a very high ceiling, a huge bar and ushers, this is a wonderful concert experience for balcony dwellers.

It was nearly show time so I headed down to the floor level. Very impressive! Very wide and spread out, reminiscent of the Hollywood Palladium. It was also tiered, allowing, once again, for unobstructed viewing. This lead to a large “pit” area, of which the staff explained was monitored for overcrowding. A plus, I figured, during shows such as this where a mosh was sure to break out.

After downing yet another $8 beer, I claimed my spot in the pit, and, at 8:30, the house lights went down. Cracker singer David Lowerey was heard to say “I forgot something” and the pause in the action gave me the chance to look around and see the place filling up quickly. Opening with the up tempo number “Movie Star”, Cracker kept the toes tapping with their brand of “geeky rock”, following with probably their biggest radio hit “Teen Angst”, with its early nineties genre-defining satirical line, “what the world needs now, is another rock singer, like I need a hole in my head!”

The San Bernardino California quartet blasted through a 45-minute set, giving props to their home by exclaiming “We’re from the Inland Empire, NOT Orange County, but we WILL kick your ass”! Quite a bold statement from such an unimposing group of guys. Especially, since we were in downtown Los Angeles, land of gang territory. As I mentioned before, this band has had quite an influence on others such as Weezer, and Foo Fighters, who look like dorks but can really rock. A sense of humor is also in the mix, as evident by the performance of “Eurotrash Girl” and the classic “Take the Skinheads Bowling,” a song leftover from Lowery’s previous band, Camper Van Beethoven.

The New York Dolls are legends. Like many legends, most of them are dead. In 2006, remaining New York Dolls members, singer David Johansen, and guitarist Sylvain Sylvain regrouped, along with new members, and released a terrific recording, “One Day It Will Please Us To Remember Even This.” They hit the road and have been doing it since to rave reviews. Here’s another one.

Hitting the brand new stage at 9:30 sharp, the NEW New York Dolls started the show with a bang, blasting off with “Babylon” for their second release “Too Much Too Soon”. Singer David Johansen, in a loose fitting red shirt, looked like a spitting image of a latter-day Mick Jagger, without the dance moves. He was clearly having a good time, as he and guitarist Sylvain, along with guitarist Steve Conte, drummer Brian “Fancy Pants” Delaney, and former Hanoi Rocks bassist Sam Yaffa wowed the crowd through an hour’s worth of glam-meets girl group sound, meets punk rock. A great version of the old Janis Joplin hit “Piece Of My Heart” inspired an audience sing-along, as Johansen mugged and played cheerleader.

As I mentioned before, this band has had quite an influence on heavier bands that have followed. Fellow New Yorkers Twisted Sister, have said that when they were starting out that they wanted to be another version of the Dolls. It’s hard to imagine bands like Poison, LA Guns, the afore-mentioned Hanoi Rocks, and many others being the way they were without being influenced by the NY Dolls. The fact that they have come back in the way they have speaks volumes. “Dance Like a Monkey” from their 2006 comeback CD showed a lot of THEIR influences as well. It features a Motown beat, similar to a Supremes song, crossed with 1960s garage band style guitars. This is typical of their sound.

Sylvain Sylvain, looking like an Italian gondola driver in his hat and striped shirt, prowled the stage all night, cranking all kinds off riffs on his huge, hollow body electric guitar. The trashy sound of “Trash”, from the first album, brought the crowd to a zenith, and afterwards Johansen stood beaming at his audience, exclaiming “it began as confusion, and ended in utter chaos”, truly an accurate description of the New York Dolls career. Finishing up the set with their biggest known song, “Personality Crisis”, once again from their first self-titled release, the band left the stage to a huge applause for a job well done.

To many living in Los Angeles in the late 70s, the punk scene was the be-all end all to the laid back California sound of artists like the Eagles, and Linda Ronstadt, as well as the “corporate rock” of bands like Journey and Styx, that were the big sellers at the time. It HAS to happen every few years in music, it keeps things in perspective, as far as I am concerned. One of the leading bands of that era in Los Angeles punk was X. Consisting of the at the time married couple, of bassist John Doe and singer Exene Cervenka, along with rockabilly guitarist Billy Zoom and the bashing drummer DJ Bonebrake, X fused the punk rhythms with roots rock , and Cervenka and Doe’s vocal harmonies, to blend a style all their own. Doors keyboardist Ray Manzarek, an early fan, produced four of their releases. When I first heard them, after moving to LA in 1982, I was amazed at the energy of their performances and the crowd that went to their shows. I’ve seen them many times over the last 25 years or so, and they don’t disappoint. Tonight would be no exception.

Hitting the stage at 11 PM sharp, X launched into “In This House That I Call Home”, an obvious ode to the City of Angels. A mosh pit started during the first note, as is the case for every X show that I have attended. As a matter of fact, my first ‘pit” was not at any Slayer or Metallica show back in the day, but rather few years earlier at an X show. Hence, one of their many influence on bands that followed them.

The stage was decorated, with lots of Christmas lights, adorning the amps, drums, and microphone stands, this being a few days before the holiday, and the band played tribute throughout the show, performing up tempo versions of “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town” and “Run Run Rudolph” that fit right in with the X sound. Guitarist Billy Zoom cranked his Gretch Super Jet guitar through songs like “White Girl”, ‘Hungry Wolf” and “We’re Having Much More Fun”, all the while striking open-legged poses as he smiled through the entire show, delighting the crowd.

Singer Exene tugged on her country apron as she belted out the Jerry Lee Lewis cover “Breathless” and her duets with bassist Doe on ‘Johnny Hit and Run Pauline” “True Love” and the crowd pleasing “Los Angeles” were standouts. The energy never stopped, amazing for a band that has been around so long. DJ Bonebrake sets quite a pace on the drums and really is the driving force for this great quartet. Included in the set was a version of fellow LA band the Doors song “Soul Kitchen”, an obvious tip of the hat to their former producer Manzarek.

A truly “breathless” crowd welcomed the band back for three encores, including a song from 1983 that certainly describes the state of the nation today, the aptly titled “the New World”, with the great line “it was better before they voted for what’s his name”. Sweaty, moshers, lots of leather, huge cheers, and lots of beer, sound familiar metal heads? Make no mistake, the similarities to metal shows were everywhere. An amusing part of an X show is after the band is done. Guitarist Billy Zoom has a habit of taking pictures of the crowd using a disposable camera. He’s done this at just about every show I’ve attended, so he must have quite a collection.

As you can imagine it was quite an evening, and I look forward to visiting the Club Nokia in the future. Hopefully, the downtown Los Angeles renewal and the LA LIVE entertainment center will be a hit, and a welcome alternative to the many places there are to see live shows such as this. As far as the three bands that played this evening, they will be coming to a town near you.

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