Rumble-ings

No trends, just good rock and roll

by Brett Milano

In case you're getting the Phoenix one day late, here's what happened last night (Thursday) at the finals of WBCN's annual Rock 'n' Roll Rumble: Ramona Silver played first, doing a lot of familiar numbers from her first album. It took her a few songs to rev up, but she hit high gear around the time her band kicked into "Tailpipe"; by then she'd found the subtle intensity she projects on a good night. In contrast, the Amazing Royal Crowns came on at full speed and stayed there for 45 minutes, punking up their rockabilly to near-exhausting levels. There were a few grumbles from the judges about the apples-and-oranges choice they were faced with. But when it was all over, Ramona Silver won . . . Or at least, that's how we saw it as we went to press, before the actual event.

It never hurts to combine accessibility with substance -- especially not in the Rumble, where you have to get past two kinds of judging panels to get to the finals (the prelims are judged largely by critics and college-radio folks, but there's a larger commercial-radio/record-label presence in place by the time of the semis). In a year when nobody's sure what commercial alternative rock sounds like, Silver's hard-but-melodic style seems like a good bet. Besides, Tracy Bonham's success is still on people's minds, and it probably won't hurt that Silver has roughly the same style, gender, height, and weight as the last major act to break out of Boston. But it's not her fault if she happened to come along at the right time; and she puts on so few airs on stage that she seems to be making a point to stay out of the songs' way. Her avoidance of showmanship makes her that much more magnetic when she gets swept into the tangled feelings of her lyrics, as she often did during the semis. I'd bet money on a national breakthrough if everything she wrote were as catchy as "Tailpipe." But give her time; she's only on the first album.

The Amazing Royal Crowns didn't have as much to offer in terms of songwriting -- but they did have live go-go dancers and a lead singer who swung from the pipes above the Middle East stage, so that's a fair trade. They come from the old school of showmanship that says the party has to start on stage; and their sound is an unholy cross of the Fleshtones, the Cramps, and a thousand alcohol-fueled maniacs. (Don't think of Jon Spencer, though, because the Crowns sound warmer and less dirty -- for starters, they've got a bass.) Their tunes do tend to blur into one another (a few well-chosen covers might help), which means I'd be more likely to see them live again than to play the CD at home.

Silver's victory (if she indeed wins, but our guess is as good as anyone's at this point) caps a Rumble that ranks as the most entertaining in years, if not the most musically focused. That's the kind of year it's been for local rock, however. When people ask what the musical trends are in Boston right now, my usual answer is, "Damned if I know." And after attending all but two nights of the Rumble so far, I still feel that way. In contrast, consider the 1995 Rumble, whose winners, Doc Hopper, were a perfectly decent punk band riding the Green Day punk-revival trend but now appear to be a dead issue -- as do Green Day, for that matter.

Think of the major local trends of the past few years and you'll find that a lot of representative bands fell by the wayside this time out. Loud/hard rock? If that were still happening, then 3 1/2 Girls would have gotten into the semis and Scissorfight would have won. Garage? Only Eight Ball Shifter were there to wave that flag. Pop? Only three bands (the Pills, Boy Wonder, and Sterlings) landed strictly in that category, and none made it out of the prelims. Goth? Splashdown were pleasant enough, if too reminiscent of Portishead, and likewise didn't get past the first round. Hippie rock? That trend seems to have peaked as well (Mudhens also crapped out early), though there's probably enough around to keep the Paradise busy for a few more years. Rockabilly? Still an underground thing, but the Royal Crowns' success may turn it into next year's ska.

As usual, the best way to approach the Rumble is not to take it too seriously. We all know by now that there's a lot of luck involved, and that the winning bands don't necessarily go on to major stardom. (After 19 years, 'Til Tuesday are still the group who came closest.) The good news this year is that some of the more eclectic and left-field bands made it to the semis. Verago-go's semifinal set went even farther than their one in the prelims, both for musical diversity (they opened with an a cappella vocal before the guitars revved up) and stage costumes (Victoria's Secret meets Sgt. Pepper). Cherry 2000 were likewise all over the map, and they'd apparently taken my advice in last week's column to work on their pacing. This time there were fewer lags and the segues made sense; they made their usual wide jumps from male/female harmony pop (sounding surprisingly close to fellow Orangutang spinoffs and last year's Rumble winners, Trona) to hardcore to edgy psychedelic drones. Cherry 2000 clearly know how good they are, but they wear their confidence well.

In contrast to the grunge-era nonchalance of recent years, the bands who made the semis treated it as a prestige gig. I'd seldom seen Laurie Geltman rock so hard but had always wanted to. Similarly, Bright get my vote for the best set of the semifinals. When I saw them in the prelims, I thought they sounded promising but a little green around the edges. They were out to blend hypnotic guitar drones with hints of pop melody but didn't go far enough in either direction. Getting into the semis as a wild-card band, they apparently decided to forgo the pop and hammer on the guitars, and it was the right choice -- in fact, they probably hold the record for the fewest songs ever played in a half-hour Rumble set (only five, and I found myself wishing they'd just gone all the way and extended one song for the duration). Their first and longest number began with a few minutes' worth of ascension on one chord, building tension to a peak before the vocals came in and resolved it -- just the sort of thing that Yo La Tengo do on a good night. Even the token softer number ("Transmission") wasn't bad, built on a skeletal bass line and echoed guitar that suggested the earlier, leaner days of the Cure.

The only band who actively bugged me in the semis were Count Zero, singer Peter Moore's latest project (Moore is formerly of Think Tree and a current Boston Rock Opera regular). There were some nice sonic moments in their mix of samples with a live rhythm section, but the songs aren't there yet and Moore's vocals kept making me think of Peter Murphy. And I hate thinking of Peter Murphy. I gave them the benefit of the doubt until they pulled a cover of Joni Mitchell's "Free Man in Paris," which Moore sang in a Count Chocula accent -- by which time he was reminding me of all those high-school drama students I knew who never got over themselves.

Maybe what this band really need is to be locked in a dark room with Scissorfight, the most delinquent act in this year's line-up. The majesty of Scissorfight can be summed up in three words: "Planet of Ass" -- a genuine anthem on a par with "Alcohol," the song that won Gang Green the Rumble way back when. Even if, like me, you're lukewarm on punk metal, this group are excessive enough to win you over, especially with the towering nutcase known as Ironlung up front. "It's not whether you win or lose," he opined at one point. "It's how loud you are." If there's a lesson to be learned from this year's Rumble, that may be it.

COMING UP

Jack Drag and Chevy Heston serve up two different blends of pop at Bill's Bar tonight (Thursday) while Taj Mahal plays the House of Blues and Jennifer Kimball continues her residency at the Kendall Café. And Gumshoe have a CD-release party at Mama Kin, with Jack Frosting guesting . . . The Dropkick Murphys and Big Bad Bollocks are at T.T. the Bear's Place tomorrow (Friday), the Friends of Dean Martinez lounge at the Middle East, the Hi-Hats are at the Linwood, and bluegrass's Southern Rail play Club Passim; check out local drummer Woody Geissman's artwork while you're there . . . Garage heaven at the Middle East Saturday with the Fleshtones, Lyres, and Prissteens. Meanwhile, Skavoovie & the Epitones do a disc-release party at the Paradise, bluesman Eddie Kirkland's at Johnny D's, and Cosmos Factor are at the Hard Rock . . . New Orleans enthusiasts take note: the Wild Magnolias, a funky troupe of Mardi Gras Indians, make a rare local visit to the House of Blues on Sunday. And 3 1/2 Girls and Scissorfight do the rock thing at the Rat . . . Peter Buck, Mark Eitzel, and a cast of thousands hold court at the Middle East Tuesday; former rock star Sammy Hagar plays a sold-out WAAF show at Mama Kin . . . Piano pounder Preacher Jack hits Johnny D's Wednesday.