Tucson Weekly: Soundbites (June 24

Sound Bites MAG SLAG: I've got my share of vices, but you want to know what the most costly, time-consuming one is? I'm a complete magazine junkie. I'll read just about anything I can get my grimy little paws on, but I spend the majority of my (considerably sized) nose embedded in the pages of music rags. Just as my record-buying habit surpassed its "collector" status to fall into the realm of "blathering, obsessive, broke idiot collector" status, my magazine consumption has gotten completely out of hand.
In addition to subscribing to several, I buy an average of five magazines a week. And the truth is, a lot of times I'm not even sure why I bother. Most of 'em just flat-out suck. I used to subscribe to Rolling Stone, 'til they started putting flavor-of-the-day movie stars on the cover even more often than the lame-ass, middle-of-the-road pop stars they favored years into the we-know-we-suck-so-we-might-as-well-really-start-suckin' period of the mag. (Jennifer Aniston on the cover twice in one year? Are you kidding me? Even People wouldn't pull that shit, and they come out every week--twice as many opportunities to suck!) Spin, once the perfect antidote to RS' staleness when it hit the stands in the mid-'80s with coverage of the then-new "college rock" scene, lost its way once the genre was mass-marketed as "alternative." These days they're but a younger, smugger version of Rolling Stone, the likes of which I'm sure they were aiming to destruct when they originally set out.
Cleveland's Alternative Press had a decent run there for a couple of years as an up-to-the-minute chronicle for the indier-than-thou set; now they seem to have settled into a groove catering to teenage boys who don't realize that Orgy didn't actually write "Blue Monday." CMJ (College Music Journal) New Music Monthly brought a lot to the table initially: an ingenious (lack of) ratings system for its reviews; instead of the standard four or five star or 1 to 10 scale, they simply print an R.I.Y.L. (recommended if you like) list of bands, a tactic since co-opted by AP as well as several online retailers ("Click here for other bands in this genre"). They highlight what they consider to be the month's six best releases in a section functionally titled "Best New Music." And best of all, the mag comes with an audio companion: a CD that has highlight tracks from the artists featured in that issue.
The downside is that CMJ also appears to be on somewhat of a downslide. While it used to take pride in featuring artists both in the magazine and on the CD that had previously gone unheard, lately the roster of artists covered in its pages has become more and more familiar to the casual music consumer (likely a bottom line decision to increase its readership). It's also never been one to really delve into long and meaty articles on anyone, preferring instead to explore the vast possibilities of brevity in its coverage. That said, it's still one of the better bargains out there, at only $5.99 an issue.
Which brings us to the fact that, yes, there actually are a few decent music magazines left out there. The best one is Mojo, a UK import that is pricey at about $8, but worth it. Rather than offering a quickie "What have you been doing since your last album?" interview, Mojo exhaustively covers virtually every subject it tackles, a rarity in the American rags. In addition, Mojo scores big points by covering both new and (often somewhat obscure) classic rock. To underscore both points, witness the 15-page spread on the Grateful Dead, or the five pages spent on both the new Pavement record and the Captain Beefheart box set.
The late, lamented Option was a bi-monthly that was remarkable in both its scope of coverage (avant-garde jazz placed next to electronica placed next to indie rock) and the sheer volume of album reviews contained in each issue. Its obvious successor is Magnet, a bi-monthly remarkable in both its scope of coverage...you know the rest. Whereas Magnet isn't quite as eclectic in its coverage (especially the reviews section, which sticks mostly to indie rock & pop), it offers nice little bonuses like a musician-illustrated cover page in its reviews section. And though many of its articles are brief, they are almost always meticulously researched and well-written. (In the spirit of full disclosure, the Weekly's own Fred Mills is associate editor of Magnet). My only complaint is that the two months between issues can seem like a lifetime.
Same goes for Puncture, a bi-monthly out of Portland, Oregon, which picks up where the old Alternative Press left off. In other words, it's an indispensable document of all things indie. After a brief hiatus in its publishing schedule, the magazine now seems to be back on track and on schedule. A new issue should be hitting the stands any day now. And finally, yet another bi-monthly: No Depression, while limited in its scope, exhaustively covers the alternative country scene perhaps better than any magazine so specialized covers anything. And while often such narrowly focused magazines can seem to get by on shoddy journalism ("But, we're the only ones even bothering to cover this stuff..."), No Depression is both lovingly and eloquently written, a testament to its writers' devotion to the scene covered.
THOSE BASTARDS! What happens when a band member's ostensibly part-time side project grows large enough to overshadow his original band? We'll get the opportunity to find out this week when Those Bastard Souls hit town in anticipation of their July 13 release, Debt & Departure, on V2 Records. Dave Shouse, leader of Memphis' acclaimed Sub Pop recording artists, The Grifters, began his Souls side project as a virtual one-man band (with a little help from a few friends) in 1996, with the release of Twentieth Century Chemical on San Francisco indie label Darla Records.
That record, a relatively stripped-down affair, allowed Shouse to exorcise some of the influences left wallowing in his teenage-years closet--most noticeably David Bowie and Brian Eno. And he put together a band for touring purposes that same year, one that included Red Red Meat bassist Matt Fields and violinist Joan Wasser, formerly of the Dambuilders. The two also appear on Debt & Departure, along with drummer Kevin March, who's played with The Rentals, Shudder to Think and the Dambuilders, and guitarist Michael Tighe, from the late Jeff Buckley's band. And while the new album reprises four songs from Chemical and one from the last Grifters release, 1997's Full Blown Possession, in newly recorded versions, the album works well as a seamless whole, its entirety imbued with crooning Memphis soul and the passion and dramatics of the aforementioned Buckley. It may very well be the best collection of Shouse compositions to be found in one package yet.
The two acts slated to open the show are no slouches, either. Howe Gelb, who needs no introduction here, will support his V2 label-mates with a typically free-fall solo performance. Also appearing on the bill is San Diego's Black Heart Procession, who have just released their second album, mysteriously titled 2, on Chicago's Touch and Go imprint. The trio features ex-Three Mile Pilot members Pall Jenkins and Tobias Nathaniel, and Clikitat Ikatowi veteran Mario Rubalcaba playing heart-wrenchingly dark and melancholy compositions which, in addition to drums, guitar and keyboard, utilize bizarre instruments such as sheet metal, waterphone, toy piano and singing saw. Not exactly uplifting stuff, but if you're partial to the slo-core sounds of Smog, Spain or Palace, you shouldn't walk away disappointed.
This fabulous triple bill, which may very well prove to be one of the best shows to hit town all summer, touches down at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, June 29, at Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St. Cover charge is $5 at the door. Call 622-8848 for more info.
CALLING ALL MOUTHKEETERS: I'd love to play the high 'n' mighty role of snobby rock journalist here and dis Smash Mouth as a bunch of bowing-to-the-Man, alt-radio hacks, due to the fact that their previous album consisted of a bunch of flavor-of-the-day ska-punk tunes with a pop radio gem thrown haphazardly into the mix: the silly but catchy-as-hell retro-stylee "Walking on the Sun."
Now the boys are back, sticking to the pop formula that spawned their only hit. "All Star," from the band's new release, Astro Lounge (Interscope Records), features lyrics even more inane than its predecessor ("Hey now, you're an all-star/Get your game on/Go, play"), but goddamn it, I've been walking around with that tune stuck in my head for days now. Stupid and catchier that a fishing hook--exactly what summer radio pop tunes should be.
Catch the band when they hit town on Wednesday, June 30, at the Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress St. The all-ages show kicks off at 8 p.m. with openers Hotsauce Johnson. Tickets are available for $13 at all Dillard's locations, or by phone at 1-800-638-4253. Call 740-0126 for details.

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