Originally posted by Random Citizen:
Just a head's up, the show starts at 7:15pm, not 7:30. Carlsonics are first up.
Thanks so much for posting that info. As an FYI, here's some press on the Carlsonics that I think is pretty helpful in learning what they might be like.
The Carlsonics at the 929 Café in Richmond, VA ?? 10/11/02
The Carlsonics are a garage rock band from Washington D.C. Now, to me, a statement like this is a bright red STOP sign: the words ??garage rock? have become cumbersome with the fevered sweat of a thousand marketing executives and a checklist of clichéd signifiers (vintage guitars, tight pants, and cheesy riffs?hey mom, irony??s on MTV again!), and living two hours south of our nation??s capital has left me with an abundance of prejudices (asshole fashion victim drug addicts? ok sorry). But the Carlsonics are a garage band that sound like they actually practice in a garage, not in a New York city loft or in Sweden. (Somehow I doubt that they have anything as inefficient as a garage in Sweden ?? I imagine the Hives and Sahara Hotnights practicing their flying jump kicks in an ice palace reminiscent of Superman??s Fortress of Solitude). And though they may come from Scenester Heaven, they stepped onstage at the 929 Café in their jeans and t-shirts, no scarves or tight slacks in sight, and they even managed to insult Ian Svenonius, which redeemed them in my eyes.
I had heard a three-song CD that the Carlsonics released, and it didn??t match up to the praise they had received for their live show. The new four-song CD that I purchased after this show confirmed that at the present, the Carlsonics are a live band. They are tight and focused, which doesn??t seem that impressive on a recording; hopefully, if a band takes the time and money to record an album, they??ll try and play the songs right. However, the live Carlsonics hit their cues dead-on while still dominating the stage like a rock band should. One of the guitarists was intent on his hands for the first half of the show; then Aaron, the Carlsonics?? singer, came over and wiped a forehead??s worth of sweat on the guitarist??s back, and soon he was leaping across the stage and balancing his guitar on its head with the rest of them. The band has a true frontman in Aaron, who primps and pantomimes his lyrics, suddenly grinning and flopping to the ground. He runs to the side of the stage during instrumental sections, letting the band get the credit they deserve, then staggers back to hang on Nikki, the toothpick-thin bass player, who props him up while bellowing the song into the mic that he has thrust in her face. The 929 audience was very Richmond, in that about 8 people stood near the stage to watch the band while 50 people sat at the bar, trying to look pretty while drinking PBR. But the Carlsonics didn??t give a shit about the apathetic losers at the bar; they were playing for the fat dude with long hair and a bushy beard who was headbanging at the front of the stage.
Alright, they are performers, so what about the songs? Well, as mentioned above, the Carlsonics are a garage rock band. The songs are a combination of Led Zeppelin and the Ramones, power chords and bluesy leads. They have one particular trick of taking a part that most bands would repeat for 4 or 8 bars and playing it over and over, somehow managing to keep the intensity rising, and just when it seems that they had better stop or heads will start spinning, they keep going and it just keeps getting louder and crazier, until finally they realize that, for the good of the country, they had better stop. Like I said, this doesn??t really come across on CD; there, the songs sound like (I hate to say it) the Hives, power chord riffs that are catchy and clever but fail to add up to much. On the plus side, Aaron??s nasal whine voice bears a distinct resemblance to that of Chris from the Pee Chees and the Pattern. But the current crop of much-hyped ??return of rock? bands either seem embarrassed by their rock background (the Vines), overstress their authenticity and sincerity (the White Stripes), appear more interested in fashion than music (the Strokes), or are in imminent danger of overdosing on irony (the aforementioned Hives). The Carlsonics are the middle point where all of these lines intersect. They have achieved a balance of humor and gravity, of image and content. They know that they are only a rock band, and that it??s important to have fun as a rock band; but they are serious about their fun, and they work hard at it. They know that they must project an image of cool as a rock band, but their cool seems natural and unforced; it comes as a reflection of the music, rather than vice-versa. If they ever manage to capture this balance and intensity on a recording, the band will have a million-seller. They are not the saviors of rock, and they are not the best new band of the century. The Carlsonics are simply a rock band that is very, very good at what it does.
-Nick Ammerman
Thursday, March 20, 2003
Washington Social Club, Carlsonics rock Blank Generation
By Kody Ford
If you weren't there, you missed out.
The Blank Generation, located at 1016 Oak St., hosted three of the best rock 'n' roll bands to ever come through Conway last Saturday night.
The Carlsonics and The Washington Social Club, two bands from Washington D.C., stopped by on their way home from showcases at the South-by-Southwest Music Festival in Austin, Tex. They were joined by Kentucky's Anne Hutchinson, a band that has gained a following in the area over the last few months.
Anne Hutchinson were the first to play. The former hardcore band has a sound which singer Josey Divine calls "laid back rock 'n' roll" that draws from influences ranging from The Velvet Underground to Iggy Pop to create a sound that merges punk, power pop and a little funk. The band played several songs from its upcoming full-length album that it will begin recording in the next few months.
The band was happy to return to Arkansas. Divine says that the band's transition from hardcore to rock caused some tension with fans but people in Conway were very supportive.
"We almost felt like giving up until we came to Conway," says guitarist Atticus Coleman.
Following Anne Hutchinson was The Washington Social Club. The band has a sound that features The Ramones energy and beats with a hint of pop bands like The Cars.
The Washington Social Club formed after singer/guitarist Marty Royale and bassist Olivia Mancini graduated from Vassar College in New York and moved to Washington, where they met drummer Randy Scopes. The band spent a year playing around the D.C. music scene and began touring about six months ago.
They played several songs off their EP and were joined by Carlsonics frontman Aaron Carlson during the last tune.
The highlight of the night was the Carlsonics. The band has more raw energy than a classroom of first-graders on a two-day Pixie stick binge. The Carlsonics music has a sound that combines power pop with the ambiance of Sonic Youth.
Carlson bounced around the stage like a kangaroo with A.D.D. The band performed many songs from its upcoming album available from Arena Rock Recording Co., an independent label in Brooklyn. The show was largely a group effort as Carlson passed around drums to Scopes and members of the audience as well as inviting a few audience members to sing as they covered songs like "Born to Be Wild."
Bassist Nikki West sang The Beatles classic "Daytripper" and Jefferson Airplane's "White Rabbit." During the latter, one could close one's eyes and envision Grace Slick standing just a few feet away. The band normally doesn't do many covers, but Carlson felt they were appropriate for the vibe of the evening.
"We did it for the kids," says Carlson.
The bands enjoyed playing in Conway and hope to return to central Arkansas soon. Mancini was impressed with the area.
"No venues like the Blank Generation exist in D.C. It's really cool. It seems like a good place for kids to go and hear music. There should be more places like this," says Mancini.
For more information, visit
www.carlsonics.com, www.washingtonsocialclub.com, or
www.blankgen.com.
