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The
Johnson Brothers @ Arlene Grocery
11.08.01
This review
is really about the Johnson brothers, but first we need to say a
few words about their manager, Jonathan Klear. Managers are the
unsung heroes (literally) who promote a band, doing all the stuff
that's not necessarily involved directly in making music, but which
gets you out there and heard and seen by people. To judge from the
quantity of e-mails we received urging us to go check out various
Johnson Brothers shows, the professionally-done press kit that arrived
in the mail, and, finally, the man with no neck named Bruno who
chloroformed us, shoved us in the trunk of an '86 Cadillac, and
threw us out in front of Arlene Grocery last Thursday, Jon's one
bulldog of a manager. So, if anyone out there is in an indie band
out there and needs some quality management, e-mail Highnoon
Entertainment. The thing is, you'd better have chops,
because both of the bands that Jon manages that we've seen have
been pretty fucking talented.
So,
who the heck are the Johnson Brothers? Hailing from Columbus, Ohio,
if not from actually the same womb, the Johnson Brothers are band
that you ought to go check out. Their neo-'70s bluesy vibe brought
to mind early Aerosmith, the Black Crowes, and Lenny Kravitz, as
well as fond memories of Greg Brady's Johnny Bravo days. As for
songwriting skills, they're very good indeed ("Quintessential
Honey" and "Music + Mind" being particular standouts),
and the Brothers also did a couple of mean Aerosmith and Hendrix
covers. In all justice, though, we have to say that their songs
don't come across as well on the CD as they do live.
Part
of that may be their stage presence. Curtis, the bass player, and
Aaron, on vocals, have the sort of looks that make corporate talent
scouts salivate over the thought of teenage dollars flying from
"Hello Kitty" pocketbooks. We will, however, have to give
the Johnson Brothers a 10-yard penalty for excessive ass-shaking.
They were clearly operating from the Mick Jagger playbook of stage
moves, though, it must be said, the chicks seemed to dig it. (Note
to selves: Get tambourine; learn sense of rhythm, dancing.)
The
only other complaint we could bring up is that the Arlene Grocery
sound table, which always adds it own little spice to the proceedings,
decided that the Brothers would sound better with no saxophone.
Oh, yeah: And more cowbell. They definitely need more cowbell. Ouch!
Damn! Bruno! Quit it with the brass knuckles, man!
For
more info, MP3s, pictures, schedules, and all that, click
here.
Motor
Betty
and
The Beauty School Dropouts
@ CBGBs
11.10.01
If
you ever wanted to say, "I knew them when. . .," then
follow Motor Betty around town. With their power-pop sort of punk
attitude, jovially mindless lyrics, and spiffy haircuts, we honestly
think that this trio might be the next Green Day. No, wait, we're
sorry: Blink 182 was the next Green Day. Motor Betty can be the
third Green Day, or maybe their fifth coming. We'll get back to
you on that.
Even
so, like a cross between a band headed by a guy named Lemmy and
a dessert with a crumbly topping popular in the 1950s, Motor Betty
is sweet, yet still kicks ass. "American Tramp" and "Kids"
were two songs that particularly stuck in our minds. Alas, according
to their Web site, Motor Betty has changed lineups five times in
the past three minutes, thus resulting in a different band than
the one that recorded their CDs. They used to be Matt, Darin, and
Chris; now they're Matt, Scott, and Tim. That's OK, though: Matt's
the bass player/singer, so we guess that, besides being the teen
heartthrob, he owns the rights to the songs. You can impress your
friends by buying their CDs, as well as cool art featuring half-naked
grease monkey girls, off their Web
site.
The Beauty
School Dropouts were, as usual, not pretty, but, damn,
they're enthusiastic. Adding to the experience is that the sound
quality at CBGB's is a deal better than it is at the previous Dropouts
show at Acme Underground, so we were finally able to hear them.
The Droupout's sound seem to have tightened up on the Warped tour,
and when Steve belts out lyrics like "I wanna dress up like
a girl," well, you just believe in the sheer honesty of the
music. And, boy, do they do a mean cover.
If
you’d like us to come check out your band, drop us an e-mail
at editor@corporatemofo.com.
Buy us beer, we'll love you long time.
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