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5/28/2001

EAR PLUGS
Usually I do at least two, if not all three, days of Bubbapalooza. By the final day it all starts to blur together, my feet and legs are tired and my liver is threatening to donate itself to a transplant bank. But this year after New Orleans and paying for the Thunderbird we couldn't afford more than one night of Bubba so we opted for Sunday's festivities.
Caroline and the Ramblers were on as we arrived about 8, the sun still shining hot outside but inside it's cold beers and cool music. Chad Proctor is on lead guitar, a continuous flow of rootsy rockabilly and swingin' country flowing in his third of four appearances at the Star Bar in three days. After his set with Caroline he changed shirts to join Tore Up for what may be their final appearance. Stuart, the lead singer, is moving to Nashville this summer. That's too bad for those of us that like old honky tonk music, but maybe he'll kick Hank Williams Jr.'s ass, as Deacon Lunchbox never got around to it before he was taken out of the Redneck Underground by a drunk driver. But that's another story.
The Ex Husbands followed, doing an incredible mix of rootsy country and arena rock, throwing in covers of everything from AC/DC to Judas Priest, to more southern rock anthems like ZZ Top, to twangy old school originals of their own. It was yet another amazing set, and yet another band that was rumored to be playing their last set together. At least they went out with a hell of a bang.
Last up were the Drive By Truckers, a personal fave and the reason we opted for Sunday. They announced completion of their newest CD, though I didn't hear mention of when it will be available, before kicking off a string of songs from the southern rock opera. I can't wait for the recording, I hope it's as energetic and dynamic as their live performance, but I can't help but have my doubts. Live is where Drive By Truckers shine. They took the rowdy energy leftover from the Ex Husband's raucous set, and hardly let up. The only less than stellar moment of the show was the group rendition of Gregory Dean Smalley's "She's Breakin' My Heart," performed by as many folks from the crowd as could fit on the stage. Everyone was either too drunk or having too much fun to stay in tune or in time, so it had the feeling of the "Louie Louie" scene from Animal House. But it was only one song and soon it was only DBT on stage charging on into the night, tossing empties into the ditch and throwing rocks at mailboxes, with the stereo cranked on some badass 70's arena rock. Hellyeahbygawd.
We were invited to countless holiday weekend backyard barbecue parties but between the poverty and the need to get cranking on the Degenerate Press Summertime Blast invites we just didn't get out of the house. (I think degenerate SW watched a record number of hours of television, even for her standards.) But the invites are nearly complete (yet again an artistic masterpiece) and those should available in person later this week. If you want yours early track us down, or send us your postal address with a note to the effect. Otherwise, send us your postal address and we'll get 'em in the mail around mid-June, early enough to remind you but not so early you forget, we hope... Oh yeah, don't forget to tell us how many you want - invite all your friends and neighbors. Online versions will exist soon too.

FILM FLAM
We counted our spare change and caught a matinee showing of Memento at the Plaza this weekend. It's a familiar film noir theme - guy wakes up and can't quite figure out who killed his wife, though he has a few clues. But there's plenty of interesting twists and unexpected developments as you follow his trail backwards, day by day. Each scene is the previous day on through the film as you backtrack to where things went astray for the lead character. It's a tad slow, but definitely worth seeing. I don't want to give too much away, but a wide sampling of folks at the office enjoyed so catch it while you can.

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