Lucinda, Moz and the Hold Steady

[michrennie]

There's a lot to love about San Diego (weather, beaches, mountains, Mexican food, general slack work ethic, proximity to LA, Mexico and the desert), but perhaps what I love most is the constant parade of concerts and club shows.  K and I attend at least one national act’s show per month, and it’s not uncommon to see a band a week.  But even by

Comments

[alanpartlow]

I jealous. if I see one show every two or three months I consider myself lucky. Not like back in the Gainesville/Covered Dish or the earlier Tampa/Cuban Club days when I'd catch five or six shows (= at least fifteen bands) a week. When I do go out now I just see local indie bands and dive bars, which is actually more fun than most arena shows I've been to.

I don't really get The Hold Steady. Nothing I've heard has really grabbed me. I do have a weakness for Morrissey and The Smiths though. I agree with your assessment that The Smiths were influential, but I don't remember many people who'd even heard of them in 1985. The Smiths were mostly dismissed as depressing, but I always found Morrissey's lyrics to be sly and just funny. Who else could write a line like..."Spending warm Summer days indoors/
writing frightening verse to a buck-toothed girl in Luxembourg" You almost believe him.

[michrennie]

Kristy and I have often lamented that with so many national bands coming through we rarely make time to see local bands. Then again, since I play in two bands, I get to see the bands we play with.

I definitely feel that the Cult of Smithdom has only grown stronger with time. Much the way Weezer's "Pinkerton" album birthed a cult of rabid fans that flew completely under the radar until the release of their (horrible) Green album, I suspect the Smithfluence has grown quietly in the shade. I wouldn't be surprised if a Smiths reunion tour would net ticket prices on par with the Rolling Stones. Then again, I've overestimated the longevity of my favorite bands' appeal before: I thought the Camper Van Beethoven reunion in 2003 would make national news (okay, maybe not), but I definitely thought they'd sell out the 800 seat venue they played. It was half empty.

[alanpartlow]

Baltimore gets passed over by a lot of bands. The better shows are in DC, but unless it's someone I have to see, it's generally more trouble than it's worth.

[alanpartlow]

By the way, I've never heard Moz as a nickname for Morrissey. Is this your own invention or is it common vernacular.

[michrennie]

Quite common. Did you know that Morrissey has a HUGE following amongst Mexican roughnecks? There was an article about this in Spin several years back. When I shared it with my record store clerk friend, Alex, he said "jeezus, why are people just now noticing this? He's been huge with the chollos for years." Apparently, Morrissey is BIG into Mexico, and the otherwise homophobic subculture of Mexican tough guys just simply disbelieve that he is gay (or so says Alex who is local, Latino and as mentioned, a record store clerk of 10 years). At the concert, it was commonplace to see young Latinos dressed like '50s greasers with pompadours and Smiths Tshirts.