Titus Andronicus, Screaming Females,
Diarrhea Planet at the Stone Pony, March 4, 2012
I love Asbury Park.
The boardwalk area between Convention Hall and the Casino has changed a
bit in recent years, adding some new restaurants and stores, but Asbury still
retains that contrast between the run-down, almost ruined, old structures and
the beauty of the beach that gives it its charm. I’ve come to view my proximity to this place
as a real gift, and I try to take advantage of it whenever I can see music at the
Convention Hall, the Paramount, or the Stone Pony.
Last night, three other cooldads and I headed out to the
Stone Pony to see Titus Andronicus. This
was the opening night of what Titus Andronicus frontman, Patrick Stickles, has
called the Screaming on Planet Titus tour with Screaming Females and
Nashville’s Diarrhea Planet. It was an
all-ages show, so cooldads were the outliers demographically.
Since it was a Sunday, the show came at the end of a busy
day of swim meets, birthday parties, and typical weekend work for all of
us. We managed, though, to meet for a pre-show
meal and drinks. We all pretended to be joking when we started
yawning at around 7:15. Turning down an
after-dinner coffee may not have been the best idea. For my part, I was happy to let the fact that
Titus Andronicus are a band I’ve attempted, and failed, to see live over the
last two years carry me through the night.
We made the short walk over to the Stone Pony in time to catch the first
set from Diarrhea Planet.
On Sunday night, Diarrhea Planet were a five-piece band
featuring three guitarists. Ironically,
they were down one guitarist because their drummer had been overcome by
digestive problems and couldn’t make the gig.
Guitarist number four took over drumming duties and did a fine job. Even with just the three guitars, the band
created a wall of impressive, hooky noise.
Diarrhea Planet, with their brand of pop punk that focused mostly on drinking beer, provided an interesting contrast to the emo,
multi-movement songs of Titus Andronicus. Songs
were short. Most had to have clocked in
at under two minutes and, as one of my companions suggested, “got really good
and then ended.” Diarrhea Planet brought
a youthful energy to the not-really-that-crowded room and proved a good start
to the night.
New Brunswick’s Screaming Females were next and outperformed
my high expectations. Their brand of 90’s-inflected noise rock hit home for all of the cooldads. Guitarist, vocalist, and sole female, Marissa Paternoster, is a
tiny package containing a huge voice and some serious guitar chops. The rhythm section of the power trio, while
somewhat overshadowed by Paternoster’s fronting, were also exceptional. The band ripped through a set of tight,
well-crafted rock and roll complete with several examples of Paternoster’s
guitar heroics.
With the renewed interest in Carrie Brownstein through Portlandia and her new band, Wild Flag,
the timing of Screaming Females upcoming album, scheduled for release in April,
couldn’t be better. The Females also draw
heavily on the music of J Mascis, Doug Martsch, and even Billy Corgan in
getting to their sound; but they bring a personality and energy all their
own. Don’t be surprised if their new
album is a breakout for them.
Titus Andronicus took the stage at about 10 p.m. After dinner and two solid sets from the
openers, some of the cooldads clearly had Monday morning on their minds at this
point.
Now five members that, according to Stickles, had only been
together for the last six days, the Glen Rock, NJ band acknowledged their
return home to Jersey with a punkish cover of “The Boys Are Back In Town.” They followed that with a couple of songs
from their debut, The Airing of
Grievances, and then brought out the new material. Stickles alluded to the fact that one of
those new songs, standout “Upon Viewing Oregon’s Landscape With The Flood of
Detritus,” would soon be available via the Internet. We’ll see.
Halfway through the set, Stickles broke a guitar
string. He answered audience questions
and bantered while the rest of the band vamped behind him as he struggled with
the change. As he pointed out, it was a
“real” moment for a band with few if any roadies or “slaves” to do these types
of things for them. The episode briefly
drained some energy from the room, but the band got back on track and finished
strong, tearing through several highlights from 2010’s excellent, The Monitor, including that album’s 14
minute closer, “The Battle of Hampton Roads.”
Despite admitting to knowing only thirteen songs, this
incarnation of Titus Andronicus played a one and a half hour set (including
string change) and sounded better than I’ve heard them in live recordings. They also left everything on the stage. Stickles’ father was in the crowd. I’m not sure where the high school
principal’s musical tastes run, but he had to be pleased with his son’s work
ethic if nothing else.
A quick word about the venue: The Stone Pony is iconic, of course, in the
annals of Jersey rock. Even Patrick
Stickles couldn’t get through the night without mentioning The Boss on stage. Signed guitars and old show posters line the
walls. On Sunday, though, it struck me as a little staid. While, as a cooldad, I
appreciated the strictly enforced “no mosh” policy, watching security break up
the action time after time was kind of a downer.
Asbury Park and rock music:
the night was a great change-up to the usual Sunday routine. I missed the Mrs. She would have loved it, but someone had to
stay with the kids. Next time.
"Fortyfive"
Nicole Atkins and The Black Sea at The Stone Pony, Asbury Park, NJ, August 4th 2012
Nicole Atkins and her band, The Black Sea, took the stage right after 10 p.m. By this time, the crowd had grown. Atkins went right into "Maybe Tonight" from her excellent debut album, Neptune City. She followed that with "Brooklyn's On Fire!" a nice audience singalong number from the same record. Throughout the evening, Atkins acknowledged several familiar faces in the audience, and it was obvious that she was comfortable being back on her home turf. "Where's my family?" she asked at one point, followed by, "There's one. There's one..." She obviously had some loyal fans in the audience. Several people, ranging in age from tweens to folks much older than I am, danced and sang almost every lyric all night.
