The Pleased
The Pleased (formerly the Please) is five West Coasters who pay homage to British rock by writing ultra-catchy, psychedelic mod-pop songs. At times channeling the soulful vocals of Bono, Ian Curtis, Billy Idol, and Neil Diamond (but truly in the best possible way), singer Noah Georgeson croons confidently amidst thick soundscapes that alternate among upbeat, droney, and reverb-drenched. Unlike the current crop of retro rip-off artists, the Pleased claims its own unique corner of the rock world, with melodies and arrangements that are diverse and original enough to distinguish the band from the pack. Georgeson (on guitar as well) and guitarist Rich Good splatter distorto-riffs and coy picking onto a dense, interlocking canvas of rhythm and atmospherics. Bassist Luckey Remington is not afraid to push the beat with eighth notes or remain minimalist when the songs calls for it, and keyboardist Joanna Newsom, who plays a mean harp and writes amazingly tender songs in her own solo project, here knows how to lie back, occasionally tinkling synth textures that waft in and out. Meanwhile, drummer Genaro Vergoglini drives the songs with either tender, lilting minimalism or grand-but-tasteful rock beats. Having already played with the likes of Clinic, the Walkmen, French Kicks, the Music, Von Bondies, Hot Hot Heat, and the Vines, the Pleased, which is set to drop its first full-length later this year, is on the right track for winning over fans on both sides of the Atlantic.
Babatunde Lea.
Babatunde Lea.
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Punk
Bottles and Skulls
Originally a trio hailing from Florida, Bottles and Skulls formed in 1999 before moving to the Bay Area and adding an additional guitarist. The group plays mildly varied punk rock that incorporates bits of garage and pop but with an emphasis on energy, anger, and spastic rocking. While recording its latest full-length, Born in a Black Light, with legendary grunge producer Jack Endino (Nirvana, the Dwarves, Murder City Devils), the band tightened its songwriting and sound, producing a record that's 37 minutes of pure searing and flailing. Singer/guitarist Brent Travis Jones shouts distorted, adenoidal lyrics about bullet holes, the devil, television, girlfriends, and plastic bags (hey, it can't all be deep). Most compelling is when he touches upon universal themes: "I love death, death loves me/ I'm begging death please/ Please, please me/ I love myself, myself loves me/ I'm begging me please/ Please, please me," he sings on "Please, Please Me," a good indication of how the band's lyrics mimic its fearless instrumental sounds. Jones and guitarist Christian Erik rock the ominous axe tones, reminiscent of both Black Sabbath and Guns N' Roses, but far more vigorous. Meanwhile, bassist Johnny Hildo and drummer Scavuzzo make sure to provide solid beds of tight, aggressive rhythms. It's not easy to dispatch punk that's at once vicious, visceral, and intelligent. The fact that Bottles and Skulls does so almost effortlessly is why you see it listed here.
Fleshies
While the MTV-sponsored parade of crap bands sporting perfectly coiffed mohawks might lead some cynics to argue that punk rock has indeed bought the farm, the Oakland-based hooligans who make up Fleshies are doing their damndest to keep the anarchic spirit of the music alive. Formed in 1999 by lead screamer Johnny No Moniker, guitarist Mattowar, bassist Vonny Bon Bons, and drummer Hamiltron, the foursome established an early reputation for unhinged live performances. Dishing out a feral brand of noise akin to what the kids from The Lord of the Flies might have come up with had they been given guitars and sequestered in a dingy East Bay warehouse, Fleshies concealed their lack of actual songs with over-the-top onstage abandon.
Happily, the band soon started pounding out quality material that easily equaled the intensity of its delivery. The raging tunes found on Fleshies' Alternative Tentacles debut, Kill the Dreamer's Dream, matched the agitated lyrical bile of No Moniker's vocals with a careening assault of power-rock riffs that teetered brilliantly on the edge of total collapse. The band's 2003 follow-up, The Sicilian, took Fleshies into more unpredictable territory, sneaking moments of sweet melancholy in between pounding sociopolitical diatribes and ironic meathead anthems. Relentless touring has honed the group into an unstoppable juggernaut that deals out lawless mayhem wherever it goes -- onstage, No Moniker becomes the clothes-shedding, crowd-surfing heir apparent to the now-defunct Jesus Lizard's David Yow. Fleshies trump the mindless hardcore regurgitation of their so-called punk peers with an original brand of rock 'n' roll chaos.
FM Knives
Comprised of former members of punk bands such as Nar, Los Huevos, Lil' Bunnies, and Karate Party, FM Knives might very well be Northern California's reigning kings of Buzzcocks-style punk rock. What makes the quartet interesting though, is that, rather than simply spouting anti-establishment lyrics about "the man," like so many other punk bands, singer Jason Patrone shows instead of tells. "I wake up screaming/ At mortgaged ceilings/ Everyday at 5 to 8 I/ Tell the mirror one more day/ My Monday tie/ The porno lied/ Watch the snow on Channel 8 then/ Thirty minutes on the train," Patrone sings on "The Man From OSI" from 2002's Useless and Modern. Here, and throughout the group's three records, we get insight into our own lives, what it means to perceive the world as being bleak, bloated, and boring. But the effect of FM Knives is anything but depressing -- cathartic is more like it. Lyrics aside, the Knives are proficient at playing unabashed punk rock, complete with distorted bar chords, driving, melodic bass lines, and playful, but manly, drumbeats. There are even moments that suggest an early Ramones playing to a pierced, leather-clad CBGB's crowd. Of course, if you even slightly consider yourself a fan of local punk rock, you probably know all this already.
