Dentist Released Ceilings at The Saint w/ Yawn Mower, Darkwing, and GayGuy/StraightGuy, 6/24/16

Dentist released Ceilings at The Saint.

Release Party

There really isn't much more for me to say about Dentist. In the run-up to the release of Ceilings, they've been the focus of several posts here: single releases, tour announcements. I've told you time and again that Ceilings, their second LP and first for Little Dickman Records, is a fantastic album. I've raved about many of their shows. What else can I say? Well, I can say that they sure know how to throw a party.

Last night, Dentist invited their friends Yawn Mower, Darkwing, and GayGuy/StraightGuy to The Saint to help them celebrate the release of their album. Fans and friends of all the bands packed out the venue, and each band was on their game. CoolMom came out, sporting a Dentist button on her collar. (Aside: CoolMom likes to travel light and often doesn't bring a wallet or purse. She looks just as beautiful and young as she did in high school, so The Saint wouldn't let her in without ID. After an arduous trip home and back and a frustrating search for parking, she eventually got inside and had a great time. Thanks to Justin for the use of his car.)

Yawn Mower are always a lot of fun and were a great choice to kick off the evening. The two-piece were joined by Jenn Fantaccione on cello for set-closer "Convenience Store." Darkwing came decked out for the beach, singer / guitarist Rich Gold wearing a wetsuit for most of the set. They definitely won over some new fans on their second (?) trip to Asbury Park with their "surf grunge." GayGuy/StraightGuy absolutely brought it once again, playing songs from their recently-released Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake (egregious typo fixed) and throwing in a Radiohead cover.

Dentist played Ceilings in its entirety. Then they did that thing where they went out the stage door and stood on the sidewalk outside The Saint for a minute or two before coming back for an encore. Big time. Seriously, though, they played a joyful set; and the songs, especially the ones they almost never play live, sounded great.

Congratulations to Dentist and Little Dickman Records on the release of Ceilings, and good luck. You can order the record from Little Dickman or pick it up at a show like the one Dentist are playing tonight at NYC's Berlin with Best Behavior, Dead Stars, and Lightning Bug.

Pictures from all of the sets will be in the Flickr galleries and on the Facebook page.

GayGuy / StraightGuy Released Their LP at House of Independents with The Battery Electric, Dentist, The Black Clouds, and Yawn Mower, 5/5/16

GayGuy / StraightGuy, Yawn Mower, and Dentist's Emily Bornemann

Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake

In what almost felt more like a house party among friends than a concert, Asbury Park's GayGuy / StraightGuy celebrated the release of their debut LP, Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake, at Asbury Park's House of Independents on Thursday night. They stocked the bill with besties who also happened to be some of the area's best bands.

Fellow guitar (baritone) / drum duo, Yawn Mower, started things off just as the clock struck 8pm sounding as good as I've heard them. Their humor and overall positivity set the tone for an evening that bounced around between fun and lots of fun. The Black Clouds rattled the room with their 90s-inspired hard rock for the second early slot. Dentist's performance has just gotten better since playing night after night on tour, and the crowd really responded. The Battery Electric did their thing and got everyone crazy in advance of GayGuy / StraightGuy.

GayGuy / StraightGuy came out for their set and spent the first half pummeling the space with songs from Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake. I think they even threw in something brand new. For the second half of their set, the band brought friends -- members of The Battery Electric, Yawn Mower, Black Clouds' Dan Matthews, Dentist's Emily Bornemann -- onstage for a set of Nirvana and Weezer covers. That was when the sing along dance along party kicked into high gear.

Calling the evening a "release party" instead of a "release show" was entirely accurate. At the end of the night, GayGuy / StraightGuy drummer Bob Paulos said to me, "I love doing that -- just playing music with friends." The celebratory atmosphere and good vibes extended from the stage to the audience throughout the night, and there were moments when the room felt like it was full of a couple hundred friends.

I spent the evening shooting everything, lots of it on my brand new, extremely heavy f1.8 (FIXED!) 50-100mm zoom lens. It was pretty comical since my little mirrorless camera bodies are dwarfed by the massiveness of that glass, but I think I found a winner. You can check out all the photos from the evening either in the Flickr galleries (full rez) or on the Facebook page (Facebook rez).

GayGuy / StraightGuy, Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake, 2016

Album Review

This one feels like its been a long time coming. And, I guess, it has. The debut full-length from Asbury Park's GayGuy / StraightGuy, Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake, consists of 8 tracks spanning about four years. About half of the record consists of what singer / guitarist Nick Cucci calls his "interpretation of how the US government would talk to us if it were a human being." Think of George W. Bush saying to the nation in 2006, "I encourage you all to go shopping more." The rest of the songs on Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake are less political, more inward looking, even positive. Everything is loud.

"Eat Your Cake" starts with a shuffling riff before drummer Bob Paulos thrusts us headlong into the chorus, Cucci's guitar now fierce and aggressive as he sings, "Serves us right. We're the walking blind." "Sinking Ship" and "Everything Is Perfect" are thematically linked with "Eat Your Cake," the latter a continuation of the idea of being able to turn a blind eye to the problems of the world as long as you're comfortable. Like a lot of 1990s rock, each song blends hard rock with some more classic elements like blues.

"Nashville" appeared on GayGay / StraightGuy's 2012 3 Songs EP, and the re-recorded version here is absolutely huge. The song's heavy, bluesy delivery is a contrast with its overall positivity as it calls people to experience a live show, "get some life," "come alive."

"Movement," written on a scenic drive from Phoenix to San Diego, is airy, almost ambient. After that little interlude, though, it's right back into the fray with the stomping "Side to Side," the metal-influenced "Reduce and Rebuild," and relentless closer, "Surf Puck."

Pat Noon recorded Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake at EightSixteen Studios. Paul Ritchie mixed everything at Insidious Sound, and Alan Douches of West West Side handled the mastering.

As a guitar / drum duo, GayGuy / StraightGuy will hear comparisons to acts like The Black Keys or White Stripes; and there's definitely a strain of bluesiness that runs through some of the songs. It would be a mistake to pigeonhole the sound of Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake, though. The songs took shape as GayGuy / StraightGuy evolved; and the collection reflects a multitude of genres and influences from blues, to metal, to classic rock, to grunge, to whatever. Cucci and Paulos play off of each other extremely well and really explore the sonic limits of what just two people can do.

Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake is available for download at GayGuy / StraightGuy's Bandcamp page. In The Clouds Records is also offering a special lathe-cut vinyl version of the album with a die-cut cover.

You can catch GayGuy / StraightGuy live and pick up a record this Thursday at House of Independents when they celebrate the release of Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake. The show takes place on 5/5, marks the 5th anniversary of In The Clouds Records, consists of 5 bands, and costs $5. That's five 5s. Or 5x5 for Buffy fans... .



..but I digress...

The show. The other bands on the bill. In addition to GayGuy / StraightGuy, Thursday's bill is packed to the gills and includes The Battery Electric, The Black Clouds, Dentist, and Yawn Mower. Doors are at 7:30pm, and I hear the evening will be full of surprises. You can RSVP at this link.

Content Blast: Pics of The Battery Electric, Smalltalk, Dentist, YJY, NGHTCRWLRS, The Cold Seas, Accidental Seabirds, Radiator Hospital, GayGuy / StraightGuy, more

Asbury Lanes, Wonder Bar

For various reasons, I fell a bit behind on picture editing this weekend. I did make it to shows on Thursday, Friday, and Sunday nights, however. On Thursday, Accidental Seabirds kicked off their tour at Asbury Lanes; and I got all teary as Andy Bova played his last set with Dentist. On Friday, The Wonder Bar hosted a fantastic bill that, among several other moments, saw Alex and Brent of The Battery Electric covering "Territorial Pissings" with GayGuy / StraightGuy. Sunday night brought our friends YJY back to Asbury for a show with their labelmates, NGHTCRWLRS, Illinois band Campdogzz, and The Cold Seas.

My apologies to gods, who played last on Friday night at Wonder Bar. CoolMom and I had to leave so that we could wake up early on Saturday. Please do yourself a favor and check out gods' Endless Stunner, a really good collection of psychedelic garage rock; and keep your eyes peeled for the next time they play a show around here.

Asbury Lanes, 7/30/15 -- Drummer Andy Bova's Last Show with Dentist

Bone & Marrow

Dentist

Accidental Seabirds

Radiator Hospital

Saintseneca

Wonder Bar, 7/31/15

GayGuy / StraightGuy

Smalltalk

The Battery Electric

Asbury Lanes, 8/2/15

NGHTCRWLRS

Campdogzz

YJY

The Cold Seas

Watch GayGuy / StraightGuy at Last Night's Happy Mondays

"Eat Your Cake"

So you've had your coffee, and you're into your morning. Maybe you're dragging a bit. It's not Monday or anything; but, on Tuesday, the weekend still seems pretty far away. Well, here's something that should give you a nice kick in the ass.

GayGuy / StraightGuy played last night's Happy Mondays along with Dentist and The Cold Seas. Here's video of the duo of Bob Paulos (drums) and Nick Cucci (guitar) performing "Eat Your Cake," the first track from their upcoming LP, Shut Your Mouth and Eat Your Cake. I've tried to convey to you in the past just how loud and intense these two can get live. I figured I'd provide you with some visual proof.

Now go get moving.

Deal Casino, The Hsu-nami, GayGuy / StraightGuy, and The House of Thieves Played Wonder Bar, 1/10/15 (PHOTOS)

The Wonder Bar hosted the "Brent's Stolen Gear Fundraiser" on Saturday night.

Brent's Stolen Gear Benefit

Dark City Entertainment hosted a show on Saturday night to help Battery Electric / Hsu-nami guitarist, Brent Övar Bergholm, raise funds to replace the gear he had stolen from his car a couple of months back. The healthy turnout was evidence both of how much people are willing to help out and of the strength of Saturday night's bill.

It was a pretty eclectic selection of acts including the prog / post-hardcore of New Jersey's House of Thieves, the heavy rock of GayGuy / StraightGuy, the Chinese violin-fronted instrumental prog of The Hsu-Nami, and the pop rock of Deal Casino.

The House of Thieves did some deeply personal songs and provided an emotional -- and loud -- beginning to the evening. People were just filing in during their early set.

It had been a while since I'd seen GayGuy / StraightGuy, and they seem to have gotten even better over the last several months. To close their set, Alex Rosen (The Battery Electric / Hot Blood) and Brent joined them for a cover of Nirvana's "Territorial Pissings." It made me even sorrier for missing GG/SG's New Year's Eve full Nirvana cover set.

I'd never seen The Hsu-nami before. They blew me away. The sound of the Chinese violin (erhu, actually) combined with Bergholm's shredding was a unique experience. Brent said he chose to perform with Hsu-nami on Saturday because most of what had been stolen had traveled the world with him on tour with that band. Mike Petzinger, whose photos you've probably seen many times on social media, stood in on bass. He did a fine job pretending not to notice the cameras.

Deal Casino closed things out. Their relentless performing -- including a summer long residency at The Saint -- has built them a wildly enthusiastic local fanbase. I think they may even be starting a minor fashion trend, judging by the trouser choices of a few people in the audience. They did their usual highly professional, highly energetic, impressive set; and the crowd that gathered near the stage sang almost every word.

Here are photo highlights from each performance. I took even more pictures than usual, I think; so don't forget to check out the full sets at Flickr.

Show Preview: Dentist, Souvenir Stand, The Pretty Greens, GayGuy / StraightGuy, Saturday at Asbury Lanes

Dentist helped bring together a solid bill of locals and out-of-towners for Saturday night at Asbury Lanes.

A Show That Goes Surf, Pop, Rock

I'm getting ready to publish this weekend's listings tomorrow, and this is one of the biggest weekends of the summer so far. There are two big shows on the Stone Pony Summer Stage, but I did want to give you a deeper look at a couple of the other shows on tap. Let's go out of order and start with Saturday.

On Saturday night, Asbury Lanes will play host to a bill that includes local favorites Dentist and GayGuy / Straight Guy along with a couple of imports.

New York's Souvenir Stand is the project of New Jersey native Stephanie Cupo.  Her three-minute pop songs are reminiscent of an earlier time with sounds inspired by The Beach Boys and girl groups of the 60s.



Philadelphia's The Pretty Greens also play with some 60s-inspired sounds, but they come down more on the surf / garage side of things. Their most recent EP, Jealous Waves, is three tracks that remind me of a less fuzzed-out version of early Vivian Girls.



Two local acts that I spend a lot of time talking about here round out the bill. Dentist, whose excellent, self-titled LP has been getting play even overseas, bring their surf-inspired sound.



Duo GayGuy / StraightGuy, who are working on new material of their own, will shake Asbury Lanes with their straight-ahead and always loud rock and roll.



It's really an excellent line-up for a summer night by the beach: Surf, Pop, and Rock. Doors for the all-ages show open at 7 and there's an $8 cover.

The Everymen Started Their 7-Week US Tour at The Saint w/ GayGuy / StraightGuy, The Sound Is Fine, and Those Mockingbirds, 6/4/14

Save Travels

The Everymen will be bringing their pure New Jersey rock and roll -- a body-moving blend of Jersey greats like The Shirelles, Bruce Springsteen, and The Misfits -- to the rest of these United States over the next two months. Appropriately, they started things off with an all-New Jersey send off in Asbury Park.

Asbury locals GayGuy / StraightGuy once again shook The Saint, testing the limits of just how big a two-piece band can sound. Wayne's The Sound Is Fine kept things going with their pop-infused alt-rock; and Montclair's Those Mockingbirds turned in a tight, eight-song set comprised exclusively of songs from their upcoming debut full-length, Penny The Dreadful, due July 1st.

Scotch LaRock and SIMGE's Tara Tomaino made it to The Saint, following the sold-out Modern Baseball show at Asbury Lanes, just in time to get moving to The Everymen. Despite having an early on-air at WPRB the next morning on their way to Philly, The Everymen held back nothing as they rolled off songs from both of their LPs. Almost as soon as things were finished, The Everymen were loading up their van, Rosalita, for the next stop.

Below are some photo highlights of the show and the rest of The Everymen's dates. Head over to Flickr for full photo sets. And if you happen to find yourself in Boise, Idaho or Lawrence, Kansas or Florence, Alabama some night in the coming weeks, check your local listings. You may be able to find a little taste of home.



The Everymen on Tour
6/6/14 Washington, DC Velvet Lounge
6/7/14 Wilmington, NC Walker World Organic Artist Retreat
6/8/14 Raleigh, NC The Pour House (w/ The Battery Electric)
6/9/14 Charlotte, NC The Roux
6/10/14 Atlanta, GA 529
6/11/14 Jacksonville, FL Burro Bar
6/13/14 Miami, FL Gramp's
6/14/14 Orlando, FL Will's Pub
6/15/14 Pensacola, FL Handlebar
6/16/14 New Orleans, LA Checkpoint Charlie's
6/18/14 Dallas, TX Three Links Deep Ellum
6/19/14 Austin, TX Hotel Vegas
6/20/14 Lubbock, TX Bash Riprock's
6/21/14 Albuquerque, NM Burt's Tiki Lounge
6/22/14 Phoenix, AZ Trunk Space
6/23/14 San Diego, CA Soda Bar
6/25/14 Los Angeles, CA Cafe Nela
6/26/14 Oakland, CA Eli's Mile High Club
6/28/14 Seattle, WA TBD
6/29/14 Spokane, WA Baby Bar
6/30/14 Boise, ID Liquid
7/2/14 Salt Lake City, UT Burt's Tiki Lounge
7/3/14 Denver, CO 3 King's Tavern
7/5/14 Lawrence, KS Replay Lounge
7/6/14 Omaha, NE O'Leaver's
7/7/14 Des Moines, IA Vaudeville Mews
7/8/14 Minneapolis, MN TBD
7/9/14 Chicago, IL The Burlington
7/11/14 Madison, WI The Frequency
7/12/14 Milwaukee, WI TBD
7/13/14 St. Louis, MO Blank Space
7/14/14 Florence, AL 116
7/15/14 Nashville, TN TBD
7/17/14 Louisville, KY Zanzabar
7/18/14 Indianapolis, IN TBD
7/19/14 Youngstown, OH The Royal Oak
7/21/14 Boston, MA TBD
7/25/14 New York, NY Piano's

Show Preview: The Everymen, Tour Kickoff w/ Those Mockingbirds, The Sound Is Fine, Gay Guy / Straight Guy. Tonight, 6/4/14.

The Everymen's last appearance at The Saint was an absolute blast.

Givin' Up On Home Life

In his review of The Everymen's second full-length, Givin' Up On Free Jazz, our own Scotch LaRock said:

"I can see a night where my boardwalk stroll leads me into a night spot where the horn section is hot and Mike V and Catherine trade lead vocals. There's a crowd and everyone has their dancing shoes on. I sip a cold beer and make my way onto the dance floor. Yeah, I can see it."

That night is tonight.

The Everymen kick off their mega summer tour in support of the new record tonight with a return to The Saint. It's an all-New Jersey night of rock 'n roll on the Jersey Shore as Those Mockingbirds (whose first full-length, Penny The Dreadful, is due next month), The Sound Is Fine, and Asbury's Gay Guy / Straight Guy will be helping to send our good friends out on their trip from sea to shining sea.

So get your Wednesday night dancing shoes on and come out to sip a cold one with me and wish The Everymen Godspeed.

Pics of Gay Guy / Straight Guy at The Saint, 3/1/14

Couldn't Resist

CoolDaughter #1's swim meet went a little longer than expected yesterday. When we got home, I was beat, so I pretty much made up my mind to stay in for the night. I'd miss the show that Speak Into My Good Eye were hosting at The Saint. I even started making drinks in anticipation of not having to drive anywhere. Then, though, I got a text from a friend I hadn't seen in a while and decided to cut myself off and head out to meet him. I was just going to relax, have a few club sodas, catch up, not even take any pictures.

Best laid plans...

Asbury's Gay Guy / Straight Guy took the stage soon after I arrived at The Saint and pretty much brought down the house. Of course, I'd brought the camera just in case; and I just couldn't help myself. I'm going on record right here and now as an advocate for bands' bringing their drummers closer to the front of the stage.

Here are some shots of Gay Guy / Straight Guy. More pics from later in the night, well, later.