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Aural Fixation Breaking Out: Broken Vision gives a forceful performance at the Cactus Club By Sarah Quelland THE CACTUS CLUB played host to a good lineup last Friday (Dec. 10) with Implant, Broken Vision, SECURITY and True to Form. Implant is based in San Luis Obispo and has a manic, weighty sound. The dark stage was illuminated by old TV sets tuned to static. After a heavy show, the band closed out its set with a fairly straightforward cover of the Temptations' "My Girl." Broken Vision put on another stellar show and was even more forceful than usual. It too, performed without the stage lights, letting its music speak for itself. Featuring Greg on vocals, Keven and Brian on guitars, Dave on bass and Josh on drums, the band performed "Downer," "Fuck," "Never Again" and "Bottle Rocket," closing with "The Dyad Moon." While it's been evident that Broken Vision has real musical ability, it's often difficult to judge the quality of the lyrics during live performances. On the isolating "The Dyad Moon," Greg sings, "Things I thought I saw become opaque/My time spent jaded and feeling sick/I thought I knew the depth, waters deceive/Facades of friends transform into thieves and fiends/I'm taking things too lightly, not feeling pain/Things that I've had to change, but I haven't changed," which fades into a repeating "alone" at the end. True to Form headlined the night and performed a long set of old and new material. Though guitarist Dave Fabris was expected to perform throughout the year, those plans changed and True to Form debuted its new guitarist at Friday's show. This local five-piece has been busy lately with stints up and down the California coast, most recently performing with Marky Ramone in Los Angeles. Upcoming shows include opening for Testament this Saturday (Dec. 18) at the Usual and kicking things off for Buckcherry Sunday (Dec. 19) at Maritime Hall in San Francisco. The 8Stops7 and Sloe show at the Usual was canceled last Tuesday (Dec. 7) to make room for a private party thrown by Live365.com. The company brought in Fishbone for the night, and the band put on its usual high-energy show with James Brown-style funk and jumpy ska. Visit the music site, where you can listen to hundreds of radio stations or broadcast your own, to find out what the buzz is about. Berlin (known best for the Top Gun hit "Take My Breath Away") was also brought in on Wednesday for a private party at the Usual. Slow Gherkin performs at the Catalyst this Saturday (Dec. 18) with RX Bandits and Caradura. This will be Gherkin's last show with keyboardist Peter Cowan, who's packing up and moving to New Orleans. It will also be the last show, at least for a while, with bassist Rick Godnick, who's moving to South America for a bit. The Youth Music Foundation is holding two all-ages benefit concerts for the Second Harvest Food Bank. On Friday (Dec. 17) Salmon, Broken Vision, Reaction 31, Your Mother, NME and Abby Normal perform at the Midpeninsula YWCA in Palo Alto. On Saturday (Dec. 18) Stunt Monkey, Little Tin Frog, HBA, 10 in the Swear Jar, Guilt Trip, Aggro, Check Mate and No Common Sense perform at the WORKS Gallery in San Jose. Admission is $6, knocked down to $5 with a can of food (or more). Bring a clean, new blanket and get in for free. Salmon also performs Dec. 18 at a suicide prevention benefit being held at the Gaslighter's Music Hall in Gilroy with NinePastNine and other local bands. Another all-ages show, this one featuring Boy Kicks Girl, the Ataris, No Motiv, HBA and Freakbomb, is set for Sunday (Dec. 19) at the Odd Fellows Hall in San Jose. The Emerging Artists & Talent in Music (EAT'M) conference, showcase and festival is accepting applications for next year's event held June 7-10 in Las Vegas. Applications must include a completed submission form, photo, bio and current press kit, CD or cassette of original material with at least three songs and $100 application fee, and must be postmarked no later than Feb. 15, 2000. For more information visit www.EAT-M.com or call the hotline at 702.837.3636. PLAN AHEAD: Neosoreskin and the Brownies, Dec. 17 at the Cactus; Crack and Not Hot, Dec. 18 at Cactus; Good Riddance, Lonely Kings and others, Dec. 19 at Palookaville; Puya, Dec. 19 at Slim's in San Francisco; Red Hot Chili Peppers and 311, Dec. 28 at the Cow Palace; Korn, Mar. 3, Oakland Arena. [ San Jose | Metroactive Central | Archives ]