Early January

Garage goth that's worth some A&R bucks

by Brett Milano

I'd be the first to admit that a lot of the local music that's struck my fancy over the past few years hasn't had the most obvious commercial potential. Sometimes I'm grateful I don't have one of those major-label A&R jobs, or else I'd still be smarting from those million-dollar contracts I gave to Chevy Heston and the Bentmen, and from my attempts to service Scissorfight's "Planet of Ass" to AOR radio.

Sometimes, however, a band show up who are obviously good and obviously sellable. And if I had one of those big expense accounts, I'd fling some money in January's direction. Watching the band perform before a packed-in crowd at Inman Square's tiny Back Alley Theatre two Sundays ago, one could imagine their kind of high-volume intrigue translating to a larger setting. Lead singer/rhythm-guitarist Christine Zufferey, who moved here from Switzerland four years ago, cuts a theatrical figure on stage -- the woman's eyeliner bill must be enormous -- and sings in a very European, cabaret-ish style. But she's fronting a band who don't have an ethereal bone in their bodies. Guitarist Jeff Caglarcan grins away in the background while piling on the power chords. It's a mix nobody else has tried lately; I'd call it garage goth if such a subgenre existed. January next play this coming Thursday, December 5, at T.T. the Bear's Place, with St. Chimerae.

Off stage as on, Zufferey and Caglarcan -- who started collaborating on demos in 1994, before bringing in drummer Chris Newbern and bassist Marc Hunt, lately replaced by Erin Anderson -- are a study in opposites: the singer is quiet and mysterious, the guitarist a down-to-earth rock type. "I personally find it a kick to be in a band with Christine," Caglarcan notes over tea (his), cider (hers), and wine (mine) at the Middle East. "I can get away with kicking back and playing chords because she's the center of attention, whether she thinks of herself that way or not."

"I really don't think I am," Zufferey responds. "I'm more into trying to pass on a certain emotion and a certain energy; and if people can respond to that, it's what I'm looking for." Zufferey admires Diamanda Galás and PJ Harvey and likes to write when she's depressed; Caglarcan figures he'd be in a pop band if the two hadn't linked up. "I have a tendency to like the darker stuff, and he likes the lighter things, so we balance each other," she says. "Her roots are in metal and I used to play in a hardcore punk band, so we're natural antagonists anyway," Caglarcan adds.

January's album, See-Thru (on their own, unnamed label), was quietly released earlier this year, but it was reserviced to radio and retail this month, with a new vinyl single, "Fleece"/"My Limousine," released concurrently. Although it was done with the previous bassist and the production's a bit rough, the album is true enough to their live sound, even if the psychedelic tendencies are more pronounced. "Way" is the slowest and least catchy of their tunes, but it benefits from a slow build-up and a sitar-ish acoustic part. "Standstill" reminds me of Jefferson Airplane's trippier moments, with a bit of Bob Mould slash guitar thrown in for good measure. The least characteristic song on either release is the one they've become most famous for: "Oompa-Loompa-Doompadee-Doo" is the song from Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, and it's extremely goofy. Somebody had to cover it sooner or later -- you'd think Veruca Salt would have got there first, in view of their Wonka-inspired name -- but it's a surprise coming from this rather serious band. "I'll admit I was in favor of putting it on the album," Caglarcan says. "It's gotten us some attention we wouldn't have gotten otherwise."

The single shows what they can do with a few production improvements -- a bigger bass sound, a little cosmetic echo in the vocals. "Fleece" is the big three-minute pop tune that the album's best moments hint at; "Limousine" sports a jazzier touch and an intriguing song angle: "I'm naked in my dreams," goes the chorus. Implications? "A contrast between what you're supposed to be and what you could be," says Zufferey. "I was thinking of a dream state where you can tell everybody what you really think." Sounds like a good metaphor for being in a rock band.

SAFE AND SOUND

Let's face it, there are probably more than a few folks in town whose fondest rock dream is being served a free beer by Kay Hanley. They got their chance at the recent Safe and Sound acoustic benefit at T.T. the Bear's Place, where the Letters to Cleo singer and Jennifer Trynin acted as guest bartenders before the music started. Hanley earned herself a purple heart for the night, during which she tended bar, introduced most of the acts, sang with Jules Verdone, danced to most of the other acts, and closed the night with a mostly-covers set with Cleos partner Michael Eisenstein -- all one day after a sailing accident that got her a concussion and 16 stitches.

The all-acoustic show wasn't the official Safe and Sound launch party -- that's tentatively set for the Paradise next month -- but it had the community feeling appropriate for the occasion. Everyone who played did something different from the usual, be it an unrecorded song or a surprise cover. In the latter category, the Gigolo Aunts did the best (and maybe only) cover I've heard of the Kinks' "Waterloo Sunset," and Fuzzy's Chris Toppin dusted off Hank Williams's "Your Cheatin' Heart." A surprising country feel was also evident in the solo set by ex-Scarcer Joyce Raskin -- and less surprisingly so in Charlie Chesterman's case. Chesterman referred jokingly to a Phoenix interview from last January, where he admitted thinking that his "You Dirty Rat" -- covered by Letters to Cleo on the compilation -- was a crummy song. "I never said I didn't like what they did with it," he pointed out.

Kevin Salem and Cleos were also in good form, but the peak, to these ears, was the emotional one-two punch of Jennifer Trynin and Jules Verdone, who played back-to-back. Verdone's songs are getting catchier, Trynin's are getting less obviously pop, and lately they've both favored gorgeously dark emotional tones. It's enough to make you want to break into Q Division and liberate the as-yet-unreleased albums both have done there.

COMING UP

Tonight (Thursday) may be a good night for turkey but it sucks for music; the clubs are quiet save for the House of Blues, which has Chris McDermott and his Wild Combo; Harpers Ferry, where Memphis Train are playing; and the Linwood, with MZL . . . Things heat up again tomorrow (Friday) when the Devotions are at Club Bohemia, the Wedding Present play the Middle East, Underball are at the Rat, Twisted Root play for free at Mama Kin, Barrence Whitfield does the Tam, and Brad Delp pours the Beatle Juice at Johnny D's . . . Tanya Donelly's solo debut at the Paradise is the big event Saturday; meanwhile the Swinging Steaks are at Johnny D's and Six Finger Satellite play the Middle East . . . Jawbox play the Middle East Sunday, and the dark beauty of Red House Painters hits Mama Kin . . . Big Monster Fish Hook and Victory at Sea join up for a CD-release party at Charlie's Tap Monday . . . The WBCN Xmas Rave, starring a bunch of major-label bands lobbying for airplay, hits various clubs on Tuesday. The best bill looks like the Mama Kin show with Luscious Jackson, Superdrag, and those nutty Lemonheads . . . Even if you don't think you care about zydeco, don't miss Beau Jocque -- one of the funkiest humans on the planet, who's at Johnny D's Wednesday.