CD Review: Dot Allison - We Are Science

Press photo from the Unofficial Dot Allison website.

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer in 2002.

Dot Allison is a space age one-woman band, creating layers of music via keyboards, guitars, and glockenspiel. Her dreamy vocals are significant since the bubbly synthesizer grooves on her latest release, We Are Science, have been around since Depeche Mode and Soft Cell in the 1980s. While she may not be an innovator, Dot Allison is certainly an intriguing performer.

“We’re Only Science,” a predominantly instrumental dance track, finds her chanting the title over a primitive beat and closing with the ominous line, “Look into my eyes for the last time.” The percolating synthesizers and drums of “Substance” conjure a futuristic universe, while Allison’s breathless vocals on “You Can Be Replaced” are couched in a more straightforward ballad format.

The hard-hitting “Strung Out (David Fridmann single mix)” and the sparse, acoustic track “Wishing Stone” are daring experiments that keep We Are Science from becoming repetitive. The irresistible melody and slightly sinister lyrics of “Make It Happen” prove Dot Allison’s talents extend beyond the dance floor.

CD Review: Various Artists - Just What This World Needs (A Tribute To Material Issue)

Note: This review originally appeared in the June 2000 issue of the Illinois Entertainer. The CD title was printed as Just What The World Needs, and that's the title this CD is listed under on Amazon. Still, the CD jacket clearly shows Just What This World Needs. I'm not sure if the CD title was changed at some point, but anyway, here's the review.

Just What This World Needs offers the perspectives of 13 local bands on the power pop trio that brought Chicago national attention in the late 1980s and early ‘90s. Dragon Girls are the most adventurous; kicking off “Funny Feeling” with a cappella vocals before slipping into a breezy swing arrangement. Ness offers a twist on “She’s Goin’ Thru My Head” by slowing down the tempo and emphasizing drums and piano. Marvel Kind’s lead vocalist sounds a lot like Material Issue's vocalist, the late Jim Ellison, on a glam rock rendition of “Trouble.”

The other tracks on Just What This World Needs are for the most part faithful to the original versions, and they all underscore Ellison’s superb songwriting ability.

CD Review: The Pieces - Self-Titled

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer in 2003.

The Pieces comprise singer-guitarist Vess Ruhtenberg (formerly with Antenna), drummer Devon Ashley, and singer-bassist Heidi Gluck, who previously worked with Juliana Hatfield and Freda Love in Some Girls. Their self-titled debut, a quirky collection of indie pop tunes, demonstrates how quickly three distinctive musicians can find common ground. Ruhtenberg and Gluck take turns on lead vocals and often blend their voices for some impressive harmonies.

Ruhtenberg takes aim at slackers on “That’s Why It Is,” an energetic song that packs a similar satiric punch to The Dandy Warhols’ “Bohemian Like You,” but then switches gears for the romantic power pop of “The Wait.” Gluck takes center stage for her hipster tale of “Lauren,” which also features her slinky bass. Her earnest plea for love and support on “Fireworks (With Report)” is couched in keyboards and strings, while Ruhtenberg portrays a down-and-out character on the minimalist Country & Western tune, “Soda Machine.” The Pieces return to energetic power pop for “What You Want,” with Ruhtenberg and Gluck engaging in some high-speed vocal interplay.

Funny How This Looks So Entertaining

“This band better be good.”

At the risk of someone breaking a wine bottle over my head, I must confess that pretty much the only thing I know about GoodFellas is the “funny how?” scene made famous by actor Joe Pesci. The musicians from Androgynous Mustache are much better acquainted with the film, and the songs director Martin Scorsese used throughout it. They’ll be presenting Covering The Goodfellas Soundtrack tomorrow night (Tuesday, March 13th) at Quenchers Saloon.

Androgynous Mustache is a Chicago-based group with a rotating and expanding group of musicians. As the slogan, “Covering the music others dare not,” suggests, this isn’t a typical nostalgia or modern hits type of copy band. Androgynous Mustache brings Soundtrack Serenade to Quenchers on the second Tuesday of each month. Past shows have included The Best Of John Hughes, Anchorman, Pulp Fiction, and Dazed And Confused. They've also covered artists like Warren Zevon and Roky Erickson’s 13th Floor Elevators. Tomorrow night’s line-up for the GoodFellas soundtrack includes core members guitarist-vocalist Neal Alger, keyboards player-vocalist Mark Winkler, bassist vocalist Charlie Short, and drummer Chris Anderson.

Singer-guitarist and musical chameleon Phil Angotti, who has channeled Paul McCartney, The Bee Gees, Squeeze, and other acts in his own tribute shows, will be joining forces with Androgynous Mustache for the first time, along with additional guests, Aaron McEvers on saxophone and Ben Bell Bern on trumpet. Holly Senchak is the only female vocalist listed on the event’s Facebook page, so it looks like she’ll be covering Aretha Franklin’s “Baby I Love You,” along with “Remember (Walkin’ In The Sand)” by The Shangrilas. Senchak’s on-the-mark portrayal of Courtney Love impressed a lot of people at The Abbey Pub’s Halloween tribute weekend last year, so it will interesting to see how she handles The Queen Of Soul and one of the quintessential 60s girl groups.

The other GoodFellas soundtrack tunes likely to be covered are “Rags To Riches” by Tony Bennett, “Sincerely” by The Moonglows, “Speedo” by The Cadillacs, “Stardust” by Billy Ward & His Dominoes, “Look In My Eyes,” by The Chantels, “Life Is But A Dream” by The Harptones, “Beyond The Sea” by Bobby Darrin, “Sunshine Of Your Love” by Cream, “Mannish Boy” by Muddy Waters, and “Layla” by Derek And The Dominoes. In addition to those songs, Androgynous Mustache will perform material that was used in the movie but didn’t make it onto the soundtrack. Throughout the night, the movie GoodFellas will be shown on TV screens, and there will be prizes for answering trivia questions.

All this for just a $5 cover charge. The show starts at 9:30 PM. Quenchers is located at 2401 N. Western Avenue in Chicago.

Slumgullion #104

Hollies graphic from the band’s official website.

I Want You To Watch This. Cheap Trick fans in the Chicago area can catch the band performing on the PBS program, Austin City Limits. It airs tonight (Friday, March 9th) from 8:00 to 9:00 PM on WYCC Channel 20. Also, I've been informed by musician/journalist Dan Pavelich that the concert can be seen on the Austin City Limits website.

Theatre Nebula is in the midst of a three weekend run for its production of Jason Robert Brown’s contemporary musical, Songs For A New World, at Cutting Hall in Palatine. Showtime is 8:00 PM on Friday and Saturday, and 3:00 PM on Sunday. The same times hold true for next week’s performances on March 16th-18th.

Speaking of Cutting Hall, the newly-minted, Palatine-based Fremont Street Theater Company will be staging its first production, the musical, Anything Goes, at the venue in August. Auditions begin on May 29th. As noted by Brian Slupski on Palatine Patch, Fremont Street Theater Company is headed by businessman Elroy Sandquist.

Palatine resident Mordecai Smyth has a new video for “Georgina Jones” from his fun and very 1960s-influenced CD, Sticky Tape And Rust. The song is a tribute to Georgina Jones, a daring and sexy 1960s Brit TV heroine. Just kidding about Mr. Smyth being from Palatine. He’s a Londoner who recently teased me on Facebook about sharing my hometown events with rock fans in the UK. He’s still welcome to have tea at my house if he ever does visit Palatine.

I have a feeling Mordecai Smyth would really hit it off with drummer Brad Elvis. In addition to leading the Chicago indie rock band, The Handcuffs, Brad Elvis frequently entertains on Facebook with his quirky sense of humor and vast pop culture knowledge. Recently he’s been posting pics of himself modeling custom-made rock and roll shirts from Cellophane Flowers. They look really cool, especially the one inspired by The Monkees. The Westmont, Illinois company specializes in Beatles-related clothing items, but is up for trying “anything unique.” I couldn’t find a website, (there’s an English band by that name) but Cellophane Flowers does have a page on Facebook.

Congratulations to Chicago’s own synth rockers, Dot Dot Dot, who will mark the fifth anniversary of their very first performance tomorrow with a celebration at the Tilted Kilt in Elgin. And happy birthday to the band’s vocalist-guitarist, Adam.

Chicago-based alt rockers WhiteWolfSonicPrincess are having their CD Release Party for 10 + 1 on April 1st at Red Line Tap from 4:00 - 6:00 PM. Anyone who follows WWSP guitarist-vocalist James Moeller’s freewheeling JimmyDumpsSunnyJimmy blog knows how psyched he is about this new release. Looking forward to hearing the songs.

The Second Disc online newsletter is reporting that The Hollies are set to release a new CD titled Radio Fun sometime in May. The 32-track compilation will feature the band performing live at the BBC throughout the 1960s and ‘70s. Drummer Bobby Elliott wrote the liner notes. Despite the presence of songs like “Bus Stop,” “I Can’t Let,” “I’m Alive,” and “He Aint Heavy, He’s My Brother,” Radio Fun isn’t a greatest hits package. It concentrates instead on album tracks and cover versions of other artists. Very fun, indeed.

Michael Quercio, the former lead singer-bassist for the 1980s neo-psychedelic band The Three O’Clock now does a podcast with co-host Lina Litonjua called The Michael Quercio Paisley Underground Consortium every Sunday from 4 to 6 PM. Not sure if that’s Pacific time, but it can be found online.

Speaking of cool podcasts, don’t forget Boris’s Secret Weapon, which can be heard on Woody Radio, on Tuesdays from 9:00 AM to 3:00 PM; Thursdays from 9:00AM to 5:00 PM; Fridays from 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM, and Saturdays from 10:00 AM to 4:00 PM.

Anyone who has ever seen an Elizabeth Swann from The Pirates Of The Caribbean action figure that looks more like Mike Ditka than Keira Knightley will appreciate the celebrity dolls created by artist Noel Cruz. As reported by Amanda Schneider in a recent edition of the online newsletter, Lost At E-Minor, Cruz paints over the faces of celebrity dolls to make them look a hell of a lot more like the actual performers. In fact, his renditions of Angelina Jolie, Anne Hathaway, Meryl Streep, Farrah Fawcett, and the kids from the Twilight movies are so lifelike, they’re almost scary. There’s no mention of prices, but it looks like Cruz puts his dolls up for auction on eBay.

CD Review: The Plimsouls - Beach Town Confidential

Beach Town Confidential is a real find for fans of The Plimsouls. Recorded back in 1983 at Huntington Beach’s renowned Golden Bear club, the 17 tracks showcase the legendary power pop band performing its most potent originals, as well as some intriguing covers. Six of the songs have never seen the light of day before.

The previously unreleased material includes the catchy “Who’s Gonna Break The Ice?” which was written by singer-guitarist Peter Case. The concert also saw The Plimsouls’ romping through The Creation’s UK single, “Making Time,” The Flamin’ Groovies’ “Jumpin’ In The Night,” and Moby Grape’s “Fall On You.” There’s also a rousing take on The Everly Brothers’ “Price Of Love,” and Willie Dixon’s “You Can’t Judge A Book” is given a revved-up British Invasion arrangement.

The Plimsouls engage in some audience participation in the middle of playing the vintage garage rock tune, “Jump Jive And Harmonize,” by Thee Midniters, but otherwise, they don’t embellish or launch into extensive jamming. Still, it’s great to hear gems like “Shaky City,” the surf instrumental, “Hobo,” “Magic Touch,” and of course, “A Million Miles Away,” in a live setting

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Note: Former Plimsouls frontman Peter Case and Paul Collins, formerly of The Beat, (both musicians were part of The Nerves) will be performing at The Empty Bottle in Chicago, on March 19th.

CD Review: Bitter, Bitter Weeks - Self-Titled

Note: This review originally appeared in the Illinois Entertainer in 2003.

Bitter, Bitter Weeks is essentially Briar McTear, a Philadelphia based singer-guitarist who also produces other artists at his own studio. This self-titled debut exudes a folk club ambience, although “The Best Days Of My Life” was the only track recorded before a live audience. Most of the material features him singing and strumming an acoustic guitar into a single microphone.

McTear’s intimate approach works particularly well, thanks to his engaging voice and the honesty of his lyrics. “TN” and “Taking Pills” deal with the pain of a failed relationship, while “You Paralyze My Heart” depicts a self-effacing guy reluctant to approach the woman he loves. “Like I know your big smile just means, ‘get away’,” he sings. “And I’m so embarrassed by the dumb shit I say.” The sheer joy of “Happiness” raises the questions as to whether McTear is being sarcastic. Whatever the case, he’s put this time away from his producing duties to good use.