Numerology

27, Club Boho's 6th, and Bernhardt's 15th

Cellars by Starlight by Brett Milano

Former Dirt Merchant frontwoman Maria Christopher and former Spore guitarist Ayal Naor have given themselves a number and taken away their name: 27 is the moniker they've chosen for their new band, an appellation that may stir up some confusion (or at least, get them on a future dream bill with Nineteen, Seventeen, and the Nines). But the number 27 seemed to resonate with this outfit: it's three cubed, which means it radiates power if you're into numerology. It's the number outside Christopher's grandmother's apartment. And it's the address of a house in Boxfield that Christopher has long been fascinated with.

"I used to call it the acid house, because I assumed that the designer was on acid," she explains. "One side of it looks modern, but the other side looks like it came out of Alice in Wonderland." One is tempted to say something similar to that last comment about 27's new mini-album Songs from the Edge of the Wing (on Reproductive), which is half familiar and half exotic. It's also a striking debut that makes good on the more abstract side of Christopher's output with the Dirt Merchants. Their home base is a mix of Crazy Horse guitar with breathy and emotive vocals, a mix that brings Bettie Serveert's first album to mind. They also weave in samples and atmospheric room sound, but neither overwhelms their sense of songcraft. Christopher's vocals are among the subtlest she's done -- they probably had to be, since most of her parts were recorded in her apartment when the neighbors were around -- but the near-whispers here are as grabbing in their way as the screams on the first Dirt Merchants demos. And the closing version of Neil Young's "Danger Bird" is gorgeous, the sort of cover that succeeds because they sound immersed in the song rather than because they took any major liberties with the arrangement.

27 were launched almost as quietly as the Dirt Merchants were scuttled. The Merchants won the Rumble in '94, and for a time everything was going their way: they made an indie-label debut (Scarified, on Zero Hour) that was picked up by a major, Sony; then they hooked up with a pair of hot producers (Tom Rothrock and Rob Schnapf, of Beck/Elliot Smith fame) for the follow-up. The second album, The Speed at Which You Speak, was wrapped up and ready to go when the inevitable happened: their A&R guy (Michael Goldstone, now with DreamWorks) left the label. With Speed consigned to limbo, the Dirt Merchants recorded a very different album, the experimental Swiss Bank, and distributed it on their own. Finally the band scattered, with guitarist Mike Malone going to Chicago and bassist Alex Kisch to New York. Although Speed is still owned by Sony and is unlikely ever to see the light of day, Christopher is surprisingly calm about it. "At this point nothing surprises me; that's part of being on a label. What bothers me the most is not being able to play with those guys anymore."

Meanwhile Christopher had struck up a relationship with Naor, who'd "played in about 100 different bands" since Spore broke up; the two began demoing at home. "The main idea was that we didn't want to do another `rock band,' since we'd done that already," Naor points out. "It's easier to do experimental things when you're in your home or your space, instead of on the clock with a producer." On disc the line-up is completed by former La Gritona drummer Thos Niles; on stage there's a fourth member -- former Dirt Merchants drummer John Malone, who plays keyboards and samplers.

For the members, 27 appear to be something between a full-profile band and an "art for art's sake" project. It's refreshing to talk to a group who aren't preoccupied with labels or the biz. "We're not thinking about anything right now but playing music and getting it out there," says Christopher. Adds Naor, "We're trying to have a pure motive with the music. We're not trying to be popular or sell records, just to express what comes into our heads." Their next gig is set for a week from Monday (July 5), upstairs at the Middle East.

CLUB BOHO ANNIVERSARY

For the past six years, Mickey Bliss has had one of the lowest-profile gigs in town: he leads the organ combo that plays at low volume between sets at Club Bohemia, so he's probably used to having people talk over his music. Bliss has been on the scene for as long as have the Rat-era veterans who tend to hang out at the club, and he fronted a rock band in the early '80s. But as its resident organist, talent booker, and MC, he's become the club's Paul Shaffer figure.

This weekend marks a dual celebration. Bliss's first CD -- a five-track mini-album of jazz and cocktail covers -- hits the shops. And it's the sixth anniversary of Club Bohemia, the weekend alter ego of the Kirkland Café, whose survival seemed doubtful in recent months. The club was hit with a double whammy over the winter, after its extensive redesign, when a picture window placed behind the front stage resulted in noise complaints from the neighbors. Then morale dropped with the death of well-liked owner Joe Hernon, but his wife, Ellie, has since taken the reins.

"I was pretty sure my future at Club Bohemia was shaky," Bliss admits. "But we've solved the volume problem just by keeping it down -- I'm the Dutch uncle who talks to all the bands and tells them to stay quiet. And we've been steering away from the bands that it would be ridiculous to ask them to turn it down." His first Club Bohemia show six years ago was headlined by Gingerbutkis and MC'd by the bellowing scenester Bill Tupper, but this Friday's anniversary show will feature bands with a subtler melodic slant: Playing for Audrey, the Buckners, and Cannonade (featuring singer/bassist Izzy Maxwell, son of Noise publisher T. Max). And Noise writer Francis DiMenno, who did his cerebral stand-up comedy at the first show under the name Wrong Hero, will be back for an encore.

One of Hernon's last club achievements was persuading Bliss to leave his usual post at the rear of the club and play on the main stage; he's taken the weekly opening set ever since. The new EP shows off his keyboard work: the jazz tunes (Miles Davis's "All Blues," John Coltrane's "Mr. PC") are respectfully executed, and the loungy tunes are good inducement to reach for a cocktail -- at this point it's hard to hear "The Girl from Ipanema" without doing otherwise. And though Bliss makes his living practicing law, the keyboard remains closest to his heart. "I always switched back and forth from being a punk-rocker to aspiring to play jazz. When I got older, I looked into the future and realized it's hard to play punk rock in your 40s, but you can play jazz forever."

THE SPELLS

When you put the Spells' four-song EP (on K) into your player and it times out at just 8:08, three explanations come to mind: it's hardcore, the songs are ridiculously concise, or it needed more time in the oven. Since the Spells are Mary Timony from Helium and Carrie Brownstein from Sleater-Kinney, you can discount the first possibility. You'd hope for a meeting of the smart and heartfelt pop that both women do in their regular bands, but that comes only in glimpses. The best track on the disc is in fact its shortest: the 96-second "Octaves Apart," with two gently plucked guitars and a ghostly Timony vocal, sounds like a Young Marble Giants homage. The longest track is the least effective: a cover of the Who's "Can't Explain," which sounds semi-sarcastic, as classic-rock covers by indie bands tend to be (and they lose five points for misspelling Pete Townshend's name on the sleeve). The other two tunes sound promising but unfinished, with the romantic title track coming closest to a fusion of the two bands' styles -- and it mentions the Devil, as Timony's best songs often do. None of these songs got played when Timony opened for Sleater-Kinney at the Middle East last month; instead Timony did an eclectic set of new material that ranged from punk to prog, all destined for a solo album later this year.

BERNHARDT'S 15

Tomorrow (Friday) marks an anniversary for Jon Bernhardt, the WMBR (88.1 FM) jock and Lothars member who was voted "Best College DJ" in these pages a few months back. He's now hosted WMBR's Breakfast of Champions for 15 years, and he'll celebrate tomorrow morning, from 8 to 10 a.m., by finally playing all the requests that were logged in during his very first show. If our 1984 memories serve, this would mean that Suicidal Tendencies' "Institutionalized" and Flipper's "Sex Bomb" are inevitable.

COMING UP

Former Stray Cat Lee Rocker shares a bill with roots-rocker Rosie Flores at the House of Blues tonight (Thursday), the Fritters are at the Milky Way, Andrew Bird's Bowl of Fire are at the Middle East, and there's a fine alterna-country bill at the Paradise with Old 97's and Slobberbone . . . Dave Davies brings his Kinks klassics to Harpers Ferry on Friday. Jack Drag, the Ghost of Tony Gold, and Star Ghost Dog are all at T.T. the Bear's Place, Come and Firewater are at the Middle East, Laurie Geltman and Slide are at the Lizard Lounge, and Muddy Waters' son Big Bill Morganfield is at Johnny D's.

The Johnny Black Trio have a CD-release party at the Linwood Saturday with Band 19 and Silver Star. The Lyres and Caged Heat are at the Middle East, R&B legend Irma Thomas is at Johnny D's, the Verve Pipe are at the Paradise, and Stand Up Eight are at T.T.'s . . . Skavoovie & the Epitones celebrate a new CD at Bill's Bar Sunday afternoon; the notorious Anal Cunt play the Middle East that night . . . Kicked out of the Cure a few years back, Lol Tolhurst reappears with his new band Levinhurst at the Middle East Monday . . . Acclaimed songwriter Gillian Welch and guitarist David Rawlings are at the Paradise Wednesday.