PurrView #17 - Coastwest Unrest

Coastwest Unrest at The Bunkhouse Saloon - Las Vegas

( http://www.myspace.com/395976019 )

Coastwest Unrest is a three-piece Las Vegas indie band whose innovative, yet classic sound is hard to pinpoint, but it has deservingly earned them a spot at this year's Vans Warped Tour Las Vegas stop.  Their music is the most familiar sound you've never heard, as it encompasses elements of folk music, bluegrass, punk, southern gospel, and rockabilly. And the trio even achieves all this without a bass player! Some fans and followers have fittingly dubbed their sound as "Whiskey Rock." 

Their first album Songs from the Desert (2009) is succeeded by their most current LP, Old Weird America (2010), and the band is currently working on a third album due out by the end of the year, under their own independent label, Reclaim Records. Each song-- typically characterized by precisely accented percussion and high-gear violin-infused progressions, suddenly halted by dramatic breakdowns that kick into neutral, only to swoop you back up with a swift, musical kick to the seat of your pants-- seems to be a number that's part of a larger production about pain, redemption and ghosts of times good and bad. Beyond the light, acoustic sound that one initially hears in Coastwest Unrest, lays a dark, spooky, intriguing context. The band consists of Alex Barnes on violin/backup vocals, Josh Dickie on drums and his brother, Noah Dickie on acoustic guitar/lead vocals/harmonica (and several other outfits such as mandolin and upright bass). Drummer, Josh, stated that he and his brother have been playing music together since he was 10-years-old, and that their parents have always been extremely supportive of their musical endeavors.

I caught up with Coastwest as they played The Bunkhouse Saloon on June 18th with The Devil Whale and Shiny Boots of Leather. I asked the basic question of how the band name came about. The "Coastwest" element was explained as it literally entails the west coast, L.A. and the Las Vegas area.  Frontman Noah explained, "There's just something about the West… It's where a lot of our inspiration comes from." He went on to explain that the "Unrest" element refers to "…the restlessness of this environment." Noah, a seasoned writer and lyricist responsible for all of the band's lyrics, also extolled classic literary heroes such as John Steinbeck and William Faulkner as sources of inspiration.

I first heard Coastwest Unrest's notable track, "The Lonesome Tale of Bacchus Lee (My Friend)" on 107.9's weekly locals spotlight with Local Show Joe. With murky lyrics like "If there's a God, won't you descend?" and hypnotizing violin, the mysterious and alluring song caught my attention. Since that moment, I was hooked on Coastwest. I began the parking lot interview by probing to find out what the song was about; who Bacchus Lee is. Noah responded by asking me what I thought "Lonesome Tale" was about. I replied that the tune makes me envision a dark character, that's done something wrong.  He's in trouble and hurrying to get away from something.  The band replied that, though I'd definitely embraced the intended idea, there is no clear, tangible answer to who Bacchus Lee is, what he's running from, and why he desperately questions the existence of a higher power. Originally only played live, the band decided to record the track after getting phenomenal feedback from fans at shows.   Noah continued by stating, "We leave it to interpretation. Like art, we want listeners to perceive it by the brush strokes we paint the song with."

In discussing their music and albums, lyricist Noah, mentioned the word "redemption" on more than one occasion, as the act of seeking it seems to be a powerful theme in their music. I pointed out to the band that I sense a spooky, ghostlike feel to their persona and their music. Violinist, Alex confirmed this and pointed out that several of their songs literally mention ghosts in the title, such as "I'm a Ghost Now" and "East Coast Ghost." In the song "Your Streets under My Feet" loom the lyrics, "She and the ghost of Henry take to the streets tonight for a blood-thirsty sacrifice…" And in yet another example, a line from the track "Fontana Bounce" says, "And you'll hear the ghost whisper so loud: Get out, get out, get out." Aside from spooky titles and lyrics, the instrumentals themselves are eerie and heart-rending, yet darkly satisfying, especially on tracks like "Mojave Dream #5" which is purely instrumental. There are frequent, long breaks during some of their songs, wherein, even without vocals, the music continues to tell the story. Future plans for Coastwest Unrest include continuing to play shows, and also completion and release of their third album, in which they intend to continue their dark story-telling, and as Alex added, they also hope to add more vocals and harmonizing.

At a recent show put on by local scene-setters, EIY (earnityourself.com), at the Royal House, Coastwest Unrest beat out several other local bands for a slot at this year's Vans Warped Tour, which is set for June 30th at the old site of The Plaza. I encourage all local music-lovers to go to Warped Tour this year and show support for the bands, but especially for this amazing, eclectic band at the Kevin Says Stage. You won't be able to keep yourself from bobbin' your head and stompin' your foot to the fresh, spooky sounds of Coastwest Unrest!

~Meow~

Pennies

PurrView #16 - The Airborne Toxic Event Secret Session

Airborne Toxic Event broke out in Las Vegas this weekend!

Relax, folks…. That’s the band name, not some catastrophic or apocalyptic occurrence. The five-piece indie rock group from L.A. broke out in songs from their most recent album “All at Once” at the House of Blues on June 12. But before the main show, a few lucky Airborne fans were able to come in early for a 107.9 Secret Session, accessible only to those who’d won tickets from the radio station. The first Secret Session was back in March with Panic at the Disco. And upon finding pictures of the former Secret Session online, I was delighted to see images of the boys from Panic performing in a personal, acoustic setting; with casual hipkids looking on, as they sat atop paisley rugs and comfy meditation-style pillows.

 When I received a confirmation call from the radio station after being a winning caller for the Airborne Toxic Event Secret Session, Shelby from 107.9 The Alternative graciously told me to bring a guest, a camera, and to anticipate rugs, pillows and a small, intimate, acoustic setting. She advised that the secret Airborne Toxic Event session would begin at 2pm and that we’d be able to meet, greet, chat and get autographs in a small-capacity setting. Subsequently, a couple more calls came in the days to follow, each pushing back the start time of the sesh.  When the day arrived, we’d last been told to be there at 4pm; and the Secret Session ended up starting after 5pm. (Finally!)

While waiting for the Secret Session to start, I asked 107.9 The Alternative’s newest On-Air personality, Slater, what the plans are for these Secret Sessions. “The first one was a couple months ago—Panic at the Disco,” he told me. “It’s put on by the station, Miller Lite and House of Blues… We hope to do more of these.”

The session took place, not in some private, small-capacity area, but inside the House of Blues, only now I was seeing the place with all the lights on; not that I would’ve ever wanted to. Pillows? Rugs? Acoustic guitars? No, no…. and no. Darn! Well at least the band’s about to come out, I thought. I named them off in my head as they each emerged from backstage: Noah, Steven, Anna, some random guy (?), Daren…. Hmmm.

 Lead singer, and main driving force behind The Airborne Toxic event was nowhere to be found. Random guy in his place, whom I later found out was named Brian, broke the news to us and stated, “Mikel [Jollett] is out with food poisoning,” right before he swallowed a bit of a man-giggle.

It wasn’t the scene I had anticipated, but it was intimate. The crowd consisted of about 30-40 of us and some random HOB staff setting up for the evening’s main show. What I’d originally thought would be an acoustic session, reminiscent of the first Secret Session, actually turned out to be: sound check.

I felt like I’d been had.  But, the four band members that’d made it to sound check still brought with them a great stage presence (after their hangovers subsided and they started to focus). Anna’s slight frown eventually turned upwards into her beautiful smile as she started playing violin, playing the keyboard, and started warming up her vocal chords. “How many of you guys actually live here in Vegas?” she queried us. Most of us raised our hands and smiled in response. “We don’t know how you do it,” she grinned.  

Noah [Harmon], bassist for The Airborne Toxic Event, who appeared to have recently ditched about six inches of hair, led on vocals and lead guitar as much as possible, but hardly any songs were played in their entirety. As the crew adjusted sound, microphones, lighting, settings, and the works; band members like Steven [Chen] and Noah frequently played around on other instruments and squatted down to converse with us .  

I’m sure this is not exactly what 107.9 The Alternative had in mind for their second Secret Session, featuring The Airborne Toxic Event, but the session turned out to be its own kind of success. The handful of us that had been winning callers on the radio were able to listen and watch in on The Airborne Toxic Event (sans Mikel Jollett), as they got ready for the night’s performance. We were able to talk to them, take pictures with them, hear them interact and goof off with each other, and even with us. Truly good vibes came from each of the individuals from the band that I met, who kindly obliged with all of us for pictures and autographs. The life of a rock star has got to be trying in ways that those of us who work in cubicles everyday couldn’t quite understand. So four out of five band members ain’t bad, when the stop on their tour happens to be Las Vegas, right?

 In a way, it was more intimate than-- and almost preferable to-- a completely organized, well-thought-out acoustic session…. It was the band members being themselves and sharing over an hour of their Vegas afternoon with us. The Airborne Toxic Event was ironically a healthy dose of fresh air.

~Meow~

Pennies  

 The 107.9 crew and Airborne Toxic Event members

PurrView #15 - Smashing Pumpkins: Taking It back to the Start

Smashing Pumpkins

   From the suburbs of Chicago in 1988 emerged a brainchild that, to this day, continues to evolve and change shape, yet retain its cathartic presence via modern day male muse, Billy Corgan.  Smashing Pumpkins-- which originally consisted of D’Arcy (bass),  James Iha (guitar and backing vocalist) and Jimmy Chamberlain (drummer), in addition to Corgan (lead guitar, lead vocals) -- emerged into the grunge era with a melodramatic-psychedelic- gritty-dreamrock sound and syncopation that set them apart from other notable bands of the early to mid-90s. Many fans argue that the Pumpkins’ signature sound was owed to Billy Corgan’s musical genius and distinct, bass-less voice; others swear that their uniqueness was primarily due to Jimmy Chamberlain’s drumming style. In my opinion it was both, and much more that deemed them a kick-ass staple band of the 90s. The band’s image was aesthetically pleasing from the start; each band member with distinct character and precise talent, each one an individual 90s brand within themself that suburban high schoolers and inner city scenesters alike, could identify with. Their success could also be attributed to their sheer musical talent or fine-tuned attention to detail, such as psychedelic layered sounds and distortion. Top of the line production (i.e. Butch Vig) has also earned the Pumpkins their clean, and often orchestral sound that has achieved platinum merit and consistent appreciation from fans and the industry throughout the years. Another attribute to SP’s success has been award winning music videos that will have any late-70s/early-80s baby reminiscing; such as 1993’s “Today”  and 1996’s silent movie knock-off, “Tonight, Tonight”  .

   Though they are my hands-down, all-time favorite band, I admit, I stopped keeping up on the Smashing Pumpkins in a religious manner shortly after 1995’s Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and 1997’s Adore. So, it really stirred up in me nostalgic memories of the good old days of my suburban Midwest teen life, when recently, the present-day Smashing Pumpkins/Billy Corgan made the announcement that, in addition to releasing the new album Oceania (which is actually a portion of songs from their 44 song epic-in-the-works project titled Teargarden by Kaleidyscope), they would be releasing all of their past albums; naturally starting with the earliest ones. The remastered re-releases will be chock full of additional goodies that remain unannounced, as of yet, however are rumored to include recently unearthed covers and live recordings. The re-release project will occur in waves. The first wave will consist of Gish (1991), Siamese Dream (1993), and the b-sides and rarities album (a Pumpkins fan essential) Pisces Iscariot (1994).  This re-release project has sparked in me an urge to get back on the wagon and really find out what The Smashing Pumpkins (who currently consist of Billy Corgan, Jeff Schroeder, Nicole Florentino and Mike Byrne) have been all about in recent years.  It has had a bit of a reverse effect on me…. Now that they are re-releasing the classics, I want to know more about the new stuff! The recent news also compelled me to do an inventory of which Smashing Pumpkins albums I still have in my possession. I’m rather pleased to say that, after rummaging through my collection of dusty compact discs, I have in my Pumpkins  arsenal (original copies of):

Gish (1991),

Siamese Dream (1993),

Pisces Iscariot (1994),

Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995),

The Aeroplane Flies High (5-disc box set, 1996),

Adore (1997), and

Greatest hits album Rotten Apples.

So sad though--  No longer do I have all of my old tour memorabilia, a couple Smashing Pumpkins VHS tapes, posters and a European import or two that I know I once had. Insert sad face.

   With its 23 year history, brave explorations into different genres and realms of sound, a revolving door of band members, and plenty of press (both good and scandalous), the machine that is called, Smashing Pumpkins, will always be one of the most beloved musical acts of GenX-ers, my generation and beyond.  Kudos to the Smashing Pumpkins for beginning an apropos recap of your amazing place in American Music History!

~Meow~

Pennies