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8/30/1999

EAR PLUGS
Friday we headed down to the Star Bar to catch Drive By Truckers and
Country Teasers. It was the crowd who got teased when the opening act
didn't show until late, then proceded to do some robotic rock that
was very un-country. Country Teasers from Scotland do monotonous
mechanical droney stuff that woud stick in your head like old gum.
Loud, harmonic guitars that held together well until the end when
they all seemed to disagree where the end actually was and the song
would come to an awkward halt. About every fourth song the lead
singer would say "Good night." but then start right up again. It
would have been good in a small dose, about their second "Good night"
but by the fourth it was tiresome.
Drive By Truckers got up and did the country the crowd had been
craving, along with a heap of rock and even a couple of amazing
covers (like Cat Scratch Fever) and didn't stop until almost 3. One
of their best shows yet so hope this lineup sticks for a month or two. Saturday a storm blew into Atlanta - black clouds on the horizon, you
could hear the thunder from miles away - Degenerate Press' new
vehicle! A 1971 Chrysler Newark with a 383 V8 big block! However, it
may not be worth the extensive repairs it needs to get road worthy so
stay tuned.
Got the right chemical mix of caffiene, alchohol and testosterone at
Dottie's for Bowie and Bolan - the Battle of the Bands, David Bowe
vs. T. Rex. Lots of boys in eyeliner, as predicted, Dale Earnheart
fighting dirty on the TV (and winning), pretty girls walking around
ignoring every glace, Prince grunting from the CD player in the back
and a preview to the show pumping out of the juke box out front, all
Bowie - post-modernism can be fun if you can handle the sensory shock. T. Rex was first up, complete with a blue Christmas lit coat for a
few classic hits and a few b-sides. Not bad, but mixed horribly. A miserable version of Bowie followed, badly mixed and badly done but
"the only band in Atlanta brave enough to do Bowie" slowly improved
until they did a damn fine version of Young Americans, followed by
some good Ziggy Stardust tunes.
They weren't following the usual setup routine of everyone using the
same equipment for quick changes between acts and the joint was more
than half empty so I got too impatient to wait for the T. Rex follow
up so I hit the road. Later I found out Bowie had won the fight.
At the Star Bar Johnny Knox's fingers were flying and Dave Weil's
voice was bellowing out the most blistering rockabilly in town.
Everybody was twirling, tapping toes and bopping heads and the joint
kept hopping until the band could play no more. Nobody wanted to give
up and the door man tried, in vain, to get everyone to mosey on out.
Then tried again. And again until finally he irritated everyone into
ceasing all their fun and carousing and get out. I walked out with
some of the finest ladies in town, got several parting gropes and
drove home giddy.

BLASPHEMY
Just a short word on the evolution fact/theory muddle. Evolution is a fact. The evidence is so overwhelming that it is second only to gravity. The means by which evolution occurs, Natural Selection, is a theory. There were other competing theories as to how evolution occurs, such as Lamark's theory of acquired characteristics, which have fallen by the way side. This whole fact/theory argument is as specious and tenacious as the idea that man evolved from monkeys or apes (actually we are merely cousins. It would be like saying that your cousin is your father). Which further proves how poorly our educational system presents evolution, when it presents it at all. Anyone interested in the subject should read Stephen Jay Gould's excellent book, "Hen's Teeth and Horses Toes" in general, and the essay,
"Evolution: Fact and Theory" in particular.
degenerate TN

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