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Beat Street

By Todd S. Inoue

The Sky's the Limit


Photo by Karen Moskowkitz

Look to the Skies: Sky Cries Mary lifted the roof at the Flint Center last week.

Flint hosts Sky Cries Mary,
Sweet 75 and Hovercraft

Instead of putting on more megashows at San Jose State University's Spartan Stadium, how about holding more medium-sized Warfield-type shows at the Flint Center in Cupertino? De Anza College took its chances with an eclectic bill last Tuesday featuring ethereal Seattle rockers Sky Cries Mary, Krist Novaselic's Sweet 75 and Hovercraft.

I just couldn't get into Hovercraft. The music was indulgently algebraic--exploratory guitar jams, ersatz jazz, chaotic drums--set to a short-attention-span video of seventh-grade science-class images. Pass. Sweet 75 had a little more to offer. Novaselic switched off on bass and guitar, adding some good grungy guff on tracks like "Poor Kitty," "Dolly Baby" and the set closer, "Oral Health." Two teenage fans couldn't contain their adulation, screaming, no, "screeching," at Novaselic during the breaks, eliciting a humorous response from the former Nirvana bassman: "I feel like the Elephant Man. I am not an animal; I am not David Bowie."

Sky Cries Mary incorporated plenty of multimedia trickery into the show, with three video screens, samples and dancing lights (the tour was sponsored by Microsoft, after all). The psychedelic sound, with a touch of Cocteau Twins-like spaciness, grooved and undulated like a colorful, quilted parachute. It was all illustrious, and the Flint Center's sculpted acoustics made the performance shine. The thought of seeing PJ Harvey or Björk flitting across the Flint Center stage crossed my mind more than once. With ample parking, professional staff, good freeway access, excellent acoustics and good coffee across the street, what's the holdup?

Fugazi Sells Out--Two Shows, That Is

If you got shut out of the two Fugazi shows at the Trocadero last week, I'll try not to belabor the importance of the band and what it all means. Opening the show were the Warmers, a confident trio, and Calvin Johnson's (ex-Beat Happening) latest obsession, Dub Narcotic Sound System. Dub Narcotic is like Booker T. and the MGs meets Andy Kaufman: head-bobbing beats, bass and guitar scratch groove, all led by the bizarre antics of lead vocalist Johnson, who was an ebullient, improvising machine, imploring the bewildered booty-less crowd to shake their rumps on tracks like "Ridin' Shotgun" and "Int Harvester."

Fugazi is like no other band in the world. It loads its own equipment, establishes price limits and allows video cameras and tape recorders into shows. Guitarist/vocalist Ian MacKaye has an amazing presence. He's like a punk-rock E.F. Hutton; when he talks, people shut the hell up and listen. He started the set by discouraging fans from patronizing a $15 Fugazi video vendor flyering the show, and reminding everyone to pogo, not slam, up and down, toward the back, so as not to crush the front-stage folks. He only had to remind the crowd once. Remarkable.

"Long Distance Runner" was the first number, and it was a beautiful sight. Fans starved for Fugazi's high-speed, distorted attack were going into states of utter euphoria, opening their hands to them, their faces pointed to the ceiling, mouthing all the words. Guitarist and vocalist Guy Picciotto surrendered to the music's power, spending much of the time on his knees, eliciting glorious clouds of feedback. When he freed himself of the guitar to sing a few songs, he resembled a gaunt poltergeist, consumed by the music's fervor. Each song was played like it was the last, from "Do You Like Me" and "Public Witness" to "Birthday Pony."

Don't Miss the Seam Boat

Seam is set for a Palo Alto show tonight (Thursday, Nov. 16) at a location the promoter preferred not to publicize. Apparently, it can only hold so many people. If you're a diehard fan, call me at 408/298-8000, ext. 228, and I'll give you the scoop.

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