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Bloody
Hollies, Yellowstone Driver
Valentine’s,
Thursday
The
Bloody Hollies want to clear one thing up: They’re not going
to stand for any more of that “crybaby nonsense passing itself
off as rock & roll.” To them, rock & roll is a sacred,
brain- melting combination of rockabilly, surf and punk. Anything
else is worthless and weak. Buffalo can be a hard town, and
the long, cold winters seem to have taken their toll on these
ex-art-school students. As frontman Wesley Doyle explains
on the band’s Web site, the Bloody Hollies “basically formed
as a retaliation against everything we hate.” As for their
name, it does relate to the dead ’50s icon—though one can’t
help but entertain an image of Graham Nash and Allan Clarke
in full Carnaby Street gear, beaten to a pulp and lying in
a gutter. Yellowstone Driver will open. (June 12, 9 PM,
$5, 432-6572)
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PRINCESS
MABEL
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Princess
Mabel, Grand Habit
Changing
Spaces, Friday
You’ve
probably seen Martha Kronholm and Frank Moscowitz around town
performing their acoustic indie-folk-rock tunes before; they’ve
been doing so for a while now. But until lately, they’ve been
known as simply Mabel. The pair have recently discovered that
there happens to be a band in Wisconsin by the same name,
so our Mabel decided to be the bigger, more polite
band and change their name to Princess Mabel. As such they
will continue their collective musical career, beginning with
their self-titled debut album, recorded in full-band splendor,
which is to be released Friday night at Changing Spaces. You
can expect to see the twosome perform a set, and then the
full band will take the stage. Grand Habit will open the show.
(June 13, 8:30 PM, $5 433-1537)
Hazard
County Girls
Club
Helsinki, Friday
The
Hazard County Girls made quite an impression on their first
visit to the area a few months back, and Club Helsinki wasted
no time in luring the young, ass-kicking Southern trio back
to the Berkshires. If the word hasn’t reached you yet, the
Hazards are a little bit Ozzy and a little bit Sonic Youth.
(Their album, Never No More, was produced by Ramones/Misfits/White
Zombie cohort Daniel Rey.) Like many bands today, their origins
are already steeped in an entertaining, self-created mythology
that really ought to be taken at face value. Bassist Jennifer
K. was the terror of the county in her red-hot Camaro; singer-guitarist
Christie Kane was a 19th- century farm lass who hit a time
warp, which hurtled her (and her team of horses) into the
21st century; and drummer Sharon Heather was tending bar at
the local dirt track. They shared a jug of Ruby Mae’s moonshine,
and the rest is history. (June 13, 10:30 PM, $8, 413-528-6308)
The
Saw Doctors
Revolution
Hall, Friday
One
of Ireland’s most successful acts, touted by the Boston
Globe to “assume their place next to U2, the Pogues and
Thin Lizzy as one of Emerald Isle’s great rock bands,” the
Saw Doctors, will play Troy’s Revolution Hall on Saturday.
The band from County Galway came bucking out of the gates,
catching the eye of Waterboys frontman Mike Scott early on—and
the newcomers opened for the Waterboys when they toured England
and Ireland in 1988. Their song “I Useta Love Her,” from their
’91 debut, became the biggest-selling single in Irish history
and stayed at No. 1 for nine weeks. Take that Bono.
Though the Saw Doctors saw this record-industry popularity,
they’ve never in their 12-year recording career—out of which
came five albums (not counting their upcoming comp Play
It Again Sham!)—been on a major label. But the fans have
found them anyhow. Play It Again Sham!, due out in
late July, is a 20-song collection of singles and B-sides,
17 of which have not appeared on studio albums—though many,
such as “I’d Love to Kiss the Bangles,” have become live-concert
favorites. (June 13, 8:45 PM, $22, $20 advance, 273-BEER)
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Powerman
5000, Shinedown, Reach 454
Northern
Lights, Saturday
Powerman
5000 are hoping to throw you for a loop with their latest
release, Transform. As the title indicates, these guys
are, they claim, great advocates of the positive effects of
change—even to the point of chaos and confusion. So, it makes
sense that when the L.A-based band roll through Northern Lights
on Saturday, they’ll be sporting a new lineup, and an altered
look and sound. Known for their hard techno-influenced rock,
the band now do things in a slightly more traditional and
organic way: “This time, we just got in a room, plugged in
and played,” lead vocalist Spider One has said. “We did what
we did in the old days, and it made this a better record.”
Doesn’t seem so confusing, after all, does it? Shinedown and
Reach 454 will open. (June 14, 7:30 PM, $14, 371-0012)
James
Talley
The
Larkin Restaurant & Lounge, Sunday
Called
the Godfather of Americana by some, James Talley has won critical
acclaim for decades. Talley released his first CD, Got
No Bread, No Milk, No Money, But We Sure Got a Lot of Love,
in 1975 and released his 11th, Touchstones, in 2002.
Got No Bread . . . was on Rolling Stone’s 1990
list of essential albums from of ’70s. Talley is likened to
Bob Dylan and his hero Woody Guthrie, and his Oklahoma roots
are prevalent in his folk-country-blues music. Talley even
caught the ear of President Jimmy Carter, who invited him
to perform at the White House at his inaugural party. With
the critics and fans behind him, the question is, Why isn’t
James Talley a household name? The answer lies somewhere between
bad management and his music not quite fitting into the Nashville
mold. The singer-songwriter will perform on Sunday at the
Larkin Restaurant & Lounge. (June 15, 7 PM, $10, 463-5225)
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RX
BANDITS
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Beloved
area blues guitarist Ernie Williams will
play a show at Hudson’s Time & Space Limited
tomorrow (Friday)—a special event at the arts
venue to celebrate its growing membership (9:30
PM, $7.50, $5 members, 822-8448). . . . This week’s
cover band, Skinless [see Listen Here,
page 26] will play their CD-release show at Saratoga
Winners on Friday (8 PM, $14, $12 advance, 783-1010).
. . . Prodigious Celtic fiddler Victor Gagnon
will celebrate his 18th birthday with a couple
of CD-release shows on Saturday at Eamonn’s Irish
Pub & Restaurant in Loudonville; joining him
for some “red-hot, foot-stomping Celtic music”
will be area favorite Frank Jaklitsch (6:30
and 9:30 PM, $5, 463-7440). . . . Orange County,
Calif., ska-punk band RX Bandits will play
Valentine’s on Saturday as part of their “Sell
You Beautiful” tour—which is a song off their
upcoming Drive-Thru Records release, The Resignation,
due out later this summer. Sharing the bill are
No Motiv, Fairweather, Steel Train and
our own F-Timmi (8 PM, $12, $10 advance,
432-6572). . . . Area guitarslinger Mike Campese
will share his shred abilities on Saturday
at the Glenville Spot, as well as celebrate the
release of his new CD, Vibe; progressive-metal
keyboard virtuoso Derek Sherinian (formerly
of NYC ’80s band Dream Theater) also will perform
(doors 7:30 PM, $15, $12 advance, 382-0004). .
. . It’s boating season, and with that comes music
cruises on the Hudson aboard the Capt. J.P. Cruise
Line (out of Troy); on Monday, the Burners
U.K. and Devilish Minds will play a
floating show (board at 6:30 PM, boat sails 7
to 10 PM; $19.44; 270-1901).
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Columns
& Opinions
