DIANOGAH 10/3, EMPTY BOTTLE Two basses and drums are the perfect instrumentation for those of us who came of age listening to a lot of screechy, trebly 80s metal and now worry about hearing loss in the higher registers. As Mike Watt and Kira already proved years ago with their groundbreaking bass duo Dos (and as Tortoise continue to prove), guitars are nice but just not…necessary. On their first full-length, As Seen From Above (Ohio Gold), Chicago’s Dianogah twist their threads into a range of sprawly and brawling songs that manage to echo both June of 44 and the Meat Puppets. This is their CD-release party.
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JONATHAN RICHMAN 10/3, DOUBLE DOOR Last year’s Surrender to Jonathan featured Richman’s largest backing band ever–including not only loud bass and drums but backing vocals and horns–and he actually toured with a full ensemble to give uncharacteristic muscle to his touching, sometimes squirm-inducing songs. But he must have gotten tired of telling them to turn it down, because he’s on his own again. Go if you like him, but don’t request any Modern Lovers songs and for God’s sake don’t talk loud.
WHITE HASSLE 10/4, LOUNGE AX Maybe the massive indie-rock defection to country music has something to do with a craving for a spiritual return to an age when families and friends gathered to entertain themselves with homemade music on front porches. Or maybe it’s just further justification for funny hats and public drunkenness. White Hassle, a side project of Marcellus Hall and Dave Varenka of Railroad Jerk, embody some of the best potential of either motive. On their National Chain (Matador) they use cheap guitar, trombone, pots and pans, and harmonica squeals and gasps to dissonant effect while covering all the usual suspects (Hank, George) and some unusual ones (the Everly Brothers, Ray Charles) in a way that’s both rambunctious and reverent.
