Category: Kim Cooper/ LITG

the original Lost in the Grooves blog

Costes tours the US with demonic S&M opera

Jean-Louis Costes is among the most uncompromising musical and performance artists to come out of the '90s DIY scene, as remarkable for his legendarily self-destructive tours with Suckdog as for his surprisingly poignant self-released music.
 
Costes was featured in the anthology "Lost in the Grooves: Scram's Capricious Guide to the Music You Missed," and his 1992 "End of the Trail" is available for download at lostinthegrooves.com, along with other great, neglected albums. Writer Bengala called EOTT: "an homage to his breakup with indie icon Lisa Suckdog Carver, and a more moving love letter has never been recorded. Splatters of filth and sonic mess hide the sentimentality, but the beauty shines through, triumphantly sad beneath layers of disgust and ugly noise. It is the document of modern humanity as representative of his era’s id as Gainsbourg was of his. Lauded by the likes of Thurston Moore, Costes remains virtually unknown, even in his own country, a special gem without genre."
 
Costes has just begun one of his rare US tours, with a new performance piece called "Les Petits Oiseaux Chient" ("Little Birds Shit"), co-starring Lisou Prout, with support on most dates by Mr Natural. It's among the most highly-anticipated noise tours of the year. Costes' 2003 presentation of "Holy Virgin Cult" thrilled his long-time fans and earned him a legion of new listeners. After surviving malaria, the Paris riots and the authoring of his first book, this legendary cult figure now plans to survive the USA.
 
Costes says: "'Little Birds Shit' is the story of an ordinary couple.  They meet… they flirt… they fuck… They make a baby.  Gradually they find themselves falling into the trappings of normal existence. Working to make money becomes their new focus. As they grow weary from the struggles of life, they find solace in bizarre acts of S&M sex. Yet cruel, earthly fates conspire to keep them down. The couple must finally come to the logical conclusion of this journey, finishing in Hell."
 
Radon presents:
COSTES USA Tour 2007: "Les Petits Oiseaux Chient" or "Little Birds Shit" starring: Jean Louis Costes and Lisou Prout with support act: Mr Natural  (on most dates)
 
FEBRUARY
Fri 9 : Johnson City, TN @ Heather's Hideaway
Sun 11 Hickory, NC    @ Chez Marque w/ Mr Natural
Mon l2 Chapel Hill, NC @ Nightlife w/ Mr Natural, Klang Quartet, Jason Crumner
Wed l4 Jacksonville, FL @ Yesterday's Pre-Party International Noise Conference
w/ Mr. Natural and 15+ artists from the INC line-up
Sat l7 Miami, FL @ Churchill's Hideaway (International Noise Conference)
Mon l9 Tallahasse, FL @ OAF w/ Realicide, Rotten Milk, Mr Natural
Tue 20 Atlanta, GA  @ Eyedrum
Fri 23 Houston, TX  @ Superhappy Funland w/ Mr Natural, Rotten Piece + Richard Ramirez, Concrete Violin
Sat 24 Austin, TX  @ Scoot's Red Inn
Wed 28 Los Angeles @ The Smell w/ Captain Ahab, Mr Natural
 
MARCH
Thu l Oakland, CA @ 21 Grand
Sat 3 Portland, OR @ Someday Lounge w/ Mr Natural
Sun 4 Seattle, WA @ Rebar w/ Mortii, Mr Natural
Wed 7: Rapids City. SD @ tba
Thu 8: Sioux Falls, SD @  Dischordia w/ Question, Thrash Wave
Fri 9: Winonna, MN @ tba
Saturday 10: Minneapolis  @ The Church w/ Cock ESP
Sunday 11: Chicago @ 3219 s morgan st w/ Cock ESP, Panicsville, Mr Natural
Tue 13: Columbus, OH @ Skylab w/ Mr Natural, Cock ESP
Wed l4 Pittsburg, PA @ Smiling Moose w/ Plastered Bastards, Cock ESP
Thu l5 Rochester, NY @ The AV Room w/ Cock ESP, Mr Natural
Fri l6 NYC  @  Paris London New York w/ Cock ESP, Rubbed Raw
Sat l7 Boston @ School of the Museum of Fine Arts w/ Cock ESP, Mr Natural
Sun l8 Providence, Ri @ InZane Gallery w/ Two Dead Sluts One Good Fuck, Mr Natural
Wed 21 New Brunswick, NJ @ Plum Street
Thu 22 Philladelphia, Pa @  Pageant Gallery w/ Rubbed Raw
Fri 23 Washington  DC  @ Velvet Lounge
Baltimore, MD tour finale party tba
 
More info available at
www.costes.org
www.radoncollective.org
www.glkweb.com

Attention, DJs and journalists: Costes is available for interview. Contact Scott at Radon Booking. 

Anton Barbeau – In The Village of the Apple Sun CD (Four-Way)

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I'm predisposed to laud Anton Barbeau for his yeoman's work luring Scott Miller back to the recording studio (see last year's swell Loud Family CD, of which we still have a few free copies for Scram subscribers), but his lush, Bowiesque art-pop stands on its own freaky merits. Kicking off with the glam starburst of "This Is Why They Call Me Guru 7," the disc seduces with effortlessly catchy tunes, hyperactive arrangements and a neatly meshed tapestry of electronic and real instruments. The ideas fly furiously, tape runs backwards, cohorts shriek deep in the mix.. and yes, you could say much the same about a Scott Miller record. It's no coincidence these two have formed a collaboration, and fans of the Loud Family and Game Theory will certainly want to explore Barbeau's deep catalog of smart, weird pop, with this a timely starting point.

The Rockin’ Vickers – The Complete: It’s Alright! CD (RPM)

Active from 1964-1967, this North English combo deserve more than its ” Lemmy Kilmeister’s first band” footnote. With their taut 40-minute sets and clerical airs, they were favorites of the Northern dance club scene, though the lack of original material limited their options. A late move to London to record for Shel Talmy didn’t change the world, though theirs’ surely turned more moddish and they found hipper writers to cover. The band’s appealing confidence shows in the title track, a startling rearrangement of the Who’s then-unreleased “The Kids Are Alright” replete with tinkling keys and falsetto call-and-response vocals, and on the irresistibly twitchy “Say Mama.” Stay tuned till the closer, “Little Rosy,” an unreleased Ray Davies tune performed with properly Kinksy abandon.

Steve Wynn and the Miracle 3 – …tick…tick…tick CD (Down There)

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Here’s some belated praise for yet another deeply satisfying suite of impassioned, unpretentious American rock and roll from one of our most understated master craftsmen. From the Dream Syndicate days through his current band, Steve & company can always be counted to forge these perfect organic structures built of manic guitar lines, instantly familiar riffs, surging rhythms and crescendos that demand you hit the repeat button almost before they fade to fuzz. “Came on like a force of nature,” Steve muses in the exquisitely minimalist “Freak Star,” and it could be a snatch of critical autobiography, because these songs feel as necessary and elemental as a sudden windstorm, or the rolling waves that threaten to absorb the narrator of “The Deep End.” We’re damn lucky to have them.

Chamber Strings Reunion Looms

It’s taken ’bout A Month of Sundays, but the soaring orchestral pop genius of the Chamber Strings is about to make its return to the Chicago stage. To celebrate, Glorious Noise has posted part one of a three-part short video documentary about the band, focusing on the early years after Kevin Junior came off the road with Epic Soundtracks.

Celebrate this magnificent return by scaring up tickets for their show at the Double Door on Saturday January 20, or you can sample or purchase both Chamber Strings albums or the earlier Rosehips disc through our partners at Maryatt Music.

Rosehips – Soul Veronique in Parchment

Chamber Strings – Gospel Morning

Chamber Strings – A Month of Sundays

A warm welcome back to one of our favorite underappreciated bands, who may not stay underappreciated for long.

The Trolleyvox present The Karaoke Meltdowns CD (Transit of Venus)

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This cheery and high energy combo is distinguished by the sweet, warm tones of vocalist Beth Filla and by its charming tunes. I especially fell for the sunny C86 sensibilities of “I Know That You’re High” and the jangly, anxious “Whisper Down The Lane,” which sounds like a lost Barbara Manning track filtered through the Throwing Muses.

Ruthann Friedman – Hurried Life: Lost Recordings 1965-1971 CD (Water)

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Though best known for writing the Association’s infectious smash “Windy,” on these home demos Friedman is revealed not as a pop songwriter, but as a jazzy, abstract seeker of answers, love and vision. With her sad, husky voice and often convoluted imagery of nature and the human zoo, these rediscovered tracks evoke a tough yet sensitive hippie lady struggling to define herself, survive and occasionally triumph. The original demo of “Windy” swings nicely, “To Treat A Friend” haunts and “Southern Comfortable” is an intriguing period piece exploring American racism on the coasts and elsewhere. Don’t tune out before the closing tune, the fully orchestrated Tandyn Almer composition “Little Girl Lost & Found,” a psychedelic swirl of children’s book characters gone marvelously mad. The glossy booklet includes Friedman’s memories of each song and some evocative vintage snapshots.

Karen Dalton – “In My Own Time” CD (Light in the Attic)

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I’ve heard and read Dalton’s name many times, typically described as an iconoclastic, influential and self-destructive folkie. I wasn’t prepared for the raw pain and power of her voice, something between an ancient black woman and the raunchy confidence of a street corner tough. On this 1971 album, midwived by bassist/producer Harvey Brooks at Bearsville, for the first and only time Dalton got the benefit of a sympathetic and suitably pushy collaborator who drew out her strengths as an interpreter and crafted big, sexy arrangements to cradle her big, sexy and terrible vulnerable voice. The stylistically diverse set veers from blues to folk to honky tonk country. It includes strong covers of two too-familiar songs (‘When A Man Loves A Woman,” “How Sweet It Is”), but if they weren’t already standards, Dalton’s gut-wrenching interpretations might have made them so. Kicking off with a beautiful take on Dino Valenti’s “Something On Your Mind,” with its late Velvet Underground arrangement and the hushed, cracked yearning of her voice, the album also soars on “Katie Cruel,” a traditional tale of an unwanted stranger utterly inhabited by the singer. Generous notes from Lenny Kaye, Nick Cave and Devendra Banhart further laud Dalton, and place her in context as a continual deep underground influence on several generations of interesting artists. Hers is a voice that won’t please everyone

Susan Jacks interview at Scram

Brian Greene has conducted a new interview with Susan Jacks, giving insight into her exquisite and eerie recordings as a member of the Poppy Family and as a solo artist, plus some of the challenges she faced as a female artist seeking personal and creative independence after she split with husband Terry Jacks.

This is a Scram online exclusive over at
https://www.scrammagazine.com/susanjacks