Still Not Dead Blog!

Okay November is moving right along and Snug is still standing after Ramonesfest. Now that the dust has settled from that, let’s move on to look at more upcoming local shows on this episode of “Next Week”!

The Milestone Club- Mike Hale (Gun Moll) Chris Wollard (Hot Water Music) and the Ship Thieves, KP Soloman 5000 11/11/09- Okay this is an interesting concept and I don’t know if they set it up like this or not, but this show features a lot of people who are famous for being in other bands. This is like “Solo project Night” at the Milestone. KP Soloman is of course, known for plucking the bass in 25 Minutes to Go, what you may not know is that he also has an acoustic side underneath all that. Course, you probably do know that because the Soloman has been burning up the bar circuit lately with his personal, intimate style of songwriting. Mike Hale is the singer/guitar player for Gunmoll but his solo stuff is exactly the opposite of the loud rock band. Intricate acoustic picking and introspective lyrics, sung with a husky voice makes for a mellow mood. Chris Wollard of Hot Water Music fame has banded together a bunch of his Gainesville buddies and are touring as Chris Wollard & The Ship Thieves. If you are coming expecting a roaring, loud rock show ala Hot Water Music you’re in for a surprise. This project is surprisingly folky, intimate and almost indie sound. This should be a fun night to watch guys who are normally loud and proud get all acoustic and emotional. Admission is $7 and doors are at 8pm.

Double Negative play the Milestone Club 11/13/09!

The Milestone Club- Double Negative, Grids, Moenda, Brain Flannel 11/13/09- Whatever I said about the previous show, this show is just the opposite. Not that these guys don’t have emotion to there singing it’s just angrier emotions. Double Negative last played with Fucked Up I believe and that show was damn near a riot. Expect no less this time. Raleigh’s Double Negative play a high tempo, full speed ahead music that will blow your mind. To put it mildly, Double Negative kick a lot of ass. High speed riffs with screaming, distorted vocals played with a wide open abandon that few bands achieve. It’s face melting to say the least. Grids are a Charlotte rock/ indie/ hardcore band that communicate via heavy riffs and clever (when you can make them out) lyrics. Slower paced than Double Negative ( that’s most bands btw) they still manage to have a heavy, reverbed almost ominous sound. Moenda is a Charlotte band featuring Davey Blackburn of Calabi Yai. Their sound is more like avant garde jazz noise meets relentless distortion. Not really my thing but at one time I would have loved it. It’s really gonna depend on how into John Zorn you are… Also playing is Brain Flannel, which features members of Logic Problem, Yardwork and Grids. Tickets are $6 for over 21 and $8 for under and doors are at 8pm.

The Milestone Club actually has two more shows that I wanted to squeeze in the column this week. Saturday 11/14 the Milestone welcomes the Lights Fluorescent, one of Charlotte’s premier indie rock acts featuring the amazing Erika Blatnik. Also on the bill are Hallelujah the Hills, Yep Roc records Drink Up Buttercup and The Lesser Pauls, whose PJ Harvey meets Sonic Youth meets Jefferson Airplane sound have me paying attention. On Sunday 11/15 the ‘Stone welcomes a night of heavier than hell music featuring the infamous Black Cobra, Black Tusk, Charlotte’s own heavier than your four piece duo, MACHETE! and psychedelic rock outfit Chylde. Should be a heavy way to start the week. Talk about a Monday morning hangover!

Btw, I wanted to mention that Rodi in Gastonia is 13 years old this month. Hard to believe that Rodi has been open for 13 years but it’s true and we wanted to pass along our congratulations to them! For the uninitiated Rodi offers up great food and free live shows for the acoustic minded. It’s an eating experience that is unique in the area and never fails to make a great, memorable night. For more info go to www.rodiworld.com!

I also wanted to give a brief mention to two shows coming up this week at Amos Southend. First off, it’s all tight pants and eyeliners on Tuesday the 10th as Amos welcomes Boys Like Girls w/ Cobra Starship, The Maine,  A Rocket to the Moon and Versa Emerge. This show is all ages (if it wasn’t there might not be anyone there!) and it’s $25 in advance and $28 day of show. Doors open at 6pm. It’s just the opposite on Saturday the 13th when Amos welcome Hatebreed w/ Unearth, Canibal Corpse, Hate Eternal and Born of Osiris. Jesus, I’ve seen Hatebreed and Canibal Corpse before and this show will be the heavy death metal jam from hell. If you don’t love violence stay away from the pit at this show because it will be fast and violent for sure. This show is 16 & over tickets are $20 in advance and $23 at the door and doors open at 7pm.

Snug Harbor- Dynamite Brothers, Babyshaker, Satan’s Youth Ministers 11/14/09- Somebody at  Snug Harbor are secret soul fans and I love it.  First Chain & The Gang and now the Dynamite Brothers. This guy have an organ to grind and harmonies to spare. This Chapel

Dynamite Brothers and Babyshaker 11/14/09

Hill party band get it all right with soulful vocals, singing about their love of women with a back breaking beat and great bass lines that will get your booty shaking. I don’t know where all these soul bands are coming from but you’ll get no complaints from me. These guys remind me of Three Dog Night and that’s a compliment! Babyshaker may not have as much soul but they definitely bring down the house with the swagger of lead singer Scott Weaver. Glam, rock, punk songs about whatever ails them is what to expect from these guys. And anyone who can last past the infamous 10 year mark definitely gets my respect! Satan’s Youth Ministers get my award for “name of the week”! This Alabama band specializes in psychedelic, garage rock with a nod of r&b. That’s all good as well. Noisy and fun these guys are a great way to start the party. It’ll be a fun night at Snug Harbor for sure.

Snug Harbor- The Dirt Daubers, Appalucia 11/15/09- The Dirt Daubers are Colonel JD Wilkes of the Legendary Shack Shakers with his wife Jessica and “Slow” Layne Hendrickson. They hail from Western Kentucky and play an ecclectic mix of Appalachian, ragtime and hot jazz standards and original music. That pretty much makes them a match made in heaven for Charlotte’s own Appalucia. This Corey Ziggler/ Andy the Doorbum project are also disciples of the Appalachian sound and this show will go great with a mega dose of moonshine!

Well that’s it for this edition of “Next Week” ! If you guys hear about a show and want to pass it along to us, send me an email! Bands keep the flyers coming! We’ll see you next time! Thanks!

Ryan Dead

Nekromantix at Tremont Music Hall 12/6/09!

Just to give you guys some advance notice, Rise Against will be playing the Fillmore in Charlotte on December 5th and tickets are already on sale for $20 bucks! Also just announced, the Nekromantix will be playing Tremont Music Hall December 6th with special guest Blitzkid. Tickets went on sale 10/31/09 and are $12 in advance and $14 at the door + the usual $3 surcharge for under 21! You can bet we’ll be at both shows! What a weekend!

In the meantime on to the shows!  There is a lot of post Halloween goings on to check out so let’s check it out!

The Havenots, Planet Piss, DTS, Dr. DP & The Trainrunners 11/4/09 @ Tremont

Tremont Music Hall- The Have Nots, Planet Piss, Darken the Sky and Dr DP & The Trainrunners 11/4/09- This is a serious amount of rock for a Wednesday night! The Have Nots are from Boston and play some serious punk with a ska undertones. I’ve caught these guys several times and they appear to be forming a following in the Charlotte area so hopefully they turn out for this show! Planet Piss are a Charlotte area punk/ rock band that takes great delight in shocking the audience, whether it’s lyrically or with visuals (speedos anyone?), they never fail to deliver a full force rocking show! Darken the Sky are from Rock Hill, SC and are of a slightly crusty variety. Which is to say that they tend to lean toward a slightly metallic side of punk with the growly, hardcore style vocals. On the exact opposite side of the spectrum is Dr. DP and the Trainrunners. This band features Zaire, formerly of 20 Past 4 and Andy from Andy & The Jivers. Both are outstanding performers as was evident at a Stillnotdead show earlier this month when Zaire took the stage with the Jivers and rocked the house. Here’s hoping for a repeat performance with the Trainrunners as they bring their “feel good” Jamaican vibe to the Tremont. The show starts at 8pm and even though the flyer says $10, the actual price according to Tremont is $8 plus the usual surcharge for under 21. Also it’s all ages.

Tremont Music Hall- The Smokers, The Mangles, Necro Hippies and One Big Vice 11/5/09- This will be Tremont’s second  night in a row for outstanding rock shows with this show leaning a little more toward the garage rock side of punk rock. The Smokers have been regulars on the Milestone scene and have formed a great garage rock, early punk sound. I don’t know what’s in the water lately with all these great Rock Hill bands forming but we definitely need to investigate with bands like DTS, The Smokers, One Big Vice and Bracing for Impact all hailing from this area and all invading the Charlotte scene. Also on the show is the Mangles, one of my new favorites. The Mangles take a slightly hooky sound and match it up with a glorious garage rock fuzz. Combine that with Ramones like vocals and you’ve got a recipe for a rocking new band. The Necro Hippies from New Orleans have a great raw, fast pace punk sound and deserve a look. Catch these guys, who are on tour because there is no telling when we’ll get to see them again. One Big Vice are yet another Rock Hill that are favorites among many on the Charlotte scene. They’ve got a loose, noisy sound that reminds me of early Clash. This show will be a rocking good time and at $6 bucks it’s a bargain! Usual surcharges apply and it’s all ages. Doors at 8pm.

The Milestone Club- A Wilhelm Scream, Living with Lions, The Riot Before and We Shout Goodnight 11/2/09- I gave an in depth preview of this show last week but thought I would revisit this show. Wilhelm Scream from Nitro records make for a high energy, rock show and with Living with Lions and The Riot Before appearing with them this will a rocking night at the Milestone Club. Also appearing is Charlotte band We Shout Goodnight, an uptempo “new punk” band that should get the night started proper! Doors are 8pm and tickets are $10 for over 21 and $12 for under 21.

The Milestone Club- Captured by Robots, Siren 11/5/09- If you’ve never seen this insane, over the top show you really owe it to yourself. It’s basically a one man show, if you don’t count the myriad Robots who inhabit the stage. The lone man of this show is basically held captive by Robots who force him to perform for you. It’s part one man show and part performance art and it has to be seen to be believed. Also on the show is Siren who are noisy to say the least and should provide a strange nightmarish start to a really odd show. Doors are at 8pm and admission is $10 for over 21 and $12 for under.

Hip Hop at the Milestone Club!

The Milestone Club- The Thought Criminals, Ty Bru, Quantum Foundry 11/7/09-  Okay for a while I was really into hip hop. No really, not like trying to be a rapper but I appreciated the art form. Lately I’ve been noticing quite a few hip hop artist in our Queen City as well. This show features Kannapolis native The Thought Criminals, who’s claim to fame is being a nine person hip hop live band. The Wu-tang comparisons are obvious and the music leans that way as well. Not bad stuff though. I would definitely check it out. Ty Bru from Asheboro isn’t really my cup of tea but that’s merely a case of personal taste. He’s a little more smooth and seems to have a bit more of a radio friendly vibe. Quantum Foundry are from Charlotte and round out this hip hop bill. They seem to have a really chill easy vibe and smooth flow that tends to remind me of Tribe Called Quest and trust me that’s a compliment. Sorry if the descriptions aren’t exactly the most in depth. I have a hard time describing hip hop but take my word for it. This show will be worth checking out for any fan of rap or hip hop. Ghetto Fortress indeed! Show is at 8pm and admission is $7 for over 21 and $9 for under 21.

Snug Harbor- Ramonesfest with Antiseen, Flat Tires, 25 Minutes to Go, Psycho Devilles and the Trouble Walkers 11/7/09- Batten down the hatches at Snug Harbor as Rockabilly Babe productions brings together a who’s who of local punk and psychobilly to celebrate the Ramones. Last year this was a serious and sold out show and this year should be no different. Come and behold as local monsters of rock such as Antiseen and 25 Minutes to Go share the bill with psychobilly acts Psycho Devilles and the Flat Tires as well as the Trouble Walkers as they all pay tribute to the Ramones. Be there early as this one will sell out quickly!

Here are a few shows that I wanted to add to the mix. Check them out cause they will be massive fun!

The Milestone Club 10/30/09 DBDD presents: South Side Punx, Brainworms, Jojo Taterhead Revival and Snacktruck- Dead Bodies Don’t Drown suffered a horrible loss earlier this year with the passing of Stuart Chamberlain, however they vowed to carry on the tradition of great shows and are getting down to business with this pre-Halloween bash. Advertised as “the party that won’t end until Halloween” , this bash will feature local punk rockers South Side Punx who will do their best to rock the house with their near riot inducing sing along anthems. Also appearing on the card is Jojo Taterhead Revival, a great ska/reggae band formed from the ashes of DSS. Also on this show are a couple of bands off of Rorschach Records. Brainworms are a Richmond , Va band that reminds me of the Meat Puppets early stuff. At times it’s quirky, other times it’s a noise fest, either way it’s straight up awesome! Snacktruck are also from Richmond, Va and the first song I clicked on was a strange instrumental that one minute sounded like the Ventures and the next minute rock forward like a really strange prog rock song. I get the feeling from listening to the first couple of songs on their myspace that these guys tend to be more than a little math rock. Cool stuff, will be interesting to see how this plays out live. It’s a riff-a-thon complete with off beat (on purpose) drums and no vocals that I can find on the first few songs anyway. It’ll be a very interesting night at the ‘Stone. Doors are at 8pm and admission is $5 for over and $7 for under. 18+ only.

The Milestone Club 11/2/09- A Wilhelm Scream w/ Living with Lions, The Riot Before and We Shout Goodnight- A Wilhelm Scream have toured with the likes of Rise Against, Strung Out and Lagwagon and in fact just got off tour with Hot Water Music. Now they are invading the Ghetto Fortress in a last minute booked show. This is a really good opportunity to check out a band that Alternative Press hailed as “the new heirs of the skate punk scene!” Personally I think these guys have a rocking sound. High energy tempo riffs with gruff vocals screaming out the lyrics over the top of the wall of guitars. Anybody that has a song called ” Bulletproof Tiger” has got to be cool in my book! Also on the bill is Living with Lions who have a little more melodic, mid tempo feel to them. However the song I listened to had a massive sing along “Woahohwoah” chorus so that should bring plenty of opportunities for sing alongs. The Riot Before are from Richmond, Va ( another band? What’s that 3 in one weekend?) And claim to be so not punk that it’s punk. Of course you can expect them to be punk with statements like that. Truthfully they rock pretty hard though. They lack the “really big wall of sound” that the headliners have but that’s a good thing. A little more stripped down but very melodic, these guys aren’t above doing a few acoustic sounding numbers. My favorite song is the very catchy, uptempo ” Youcantsexydancetopunkrock”. Fun stuff for sure. Charlotte band We Shout Goodnight opens the show and they claim they are “Charlotte Punk Rock” in big day glow letters. Truthfully this is more new punk than old punk but it’s still really uptempo melodic stuff. Seems more rock than punk but it’s good stuff and it kind of reminds me of another Charlotte band, The Junior Astronomers. This should be an epic night of rock at the Milestone Club. I highly encourage those of you who feel up to getting you ass rocked on a Monday to get out to the show and check out these awesome bands. The way things go in this town it will be a long time before most of these bands ever come through again. Doors are at 8pm and admission is $10 for over and $12 for under 21. 18+ only please.

Ryan Dead

Sorry, it’s been hectic around here and I’m running behind. But at least I’ve made it in before the holiday weekend! It’s my favorite time of the year so let’s jump right into it! It’s the Halloween edition of Next Week!!

Zombie attack!! Run!!

If you feel like making a road trip then Ground Zero is the place to begin your Halloween weekend in style. Well maybe not in style, you are at Ground Zero after all, but at least it’ll be interesting based on not only this lovely flyer you see to your left but also the band names. With names like “King Sized Killers and “Rapegoat”, these bands sound custom made for a Halloween show. Btw, Rapegoat features Angus Hung of the Dead Kings so show some love!

Say goodbye to Hickory....There ain't gonna be anything left!

Antiseen w/ 25 Minutes to Go and South Side Punx 10/31/09 @ Drips Coffee House in Hickory, NC-  Antiseen singer Jeff Clayton is a Halloween fanatic, hell he’s the only person I know that has as big of an obsession with Godzilla as I do, so it seems appropriate that he and his band mates are called on to rock Halloween into Hickory, NC with style. Break out the barbed wire and get ready for a blood letting as the 25+ year veterans of “destructo-rock” take aim on demolishing Drips Coffee House and the rest of Hickory as well. Not that there may be much left after the openers get done. 25 Minutes to Go are a hard rocking, sing along chorus creating, “Bladow!” screaming outfit of fury and they’re bound to be even more stoked on this night! South Side Punx open the show, if you can believe that! You know how they roll. I’ve never seen a band so capable of getting an audience to go from zero to insane riot levels in the course of one intro to a song. I have to say this is a triple headlining show for the ages and should be a great way to bring in the holiday.

Skalloween 10/31/09 at the Visulite Theater!

Bums Lie & Stillnotdead present: Skalloween featuring Bums Lie, the Not Likelys, IED, Rekless Youth and Stamper 10/31/09 @ Visulite Theater- Bums Lie has been doing Skalloween for 4 years now and this year they invited Stillnotdead in to take part in the tradition! Every year Bums Lie pick a different cd to cover. Last year was “Blood Sugar Sex Magic” by the RHCP, this year it’s Green Day’s “Dookie”. The trick is they will be doing the entire album in a ska/ reggae style. It should be really interesting to see how they alter the songs to fit their style. In addition you get the see a plethora of Charlotte area punk bands. IED are the kings of socio political Ska-core, infusing political lyrics with reggae beats to make a revolution you can truly dance to! The Not Likelys have been described as what Rancid would sound like if they didn’t start sucking and if their pit at Punk Rock Picnic was any indication that’s not a bad description. I know they blast out anthems like few others in town. Rekless Youth are actually using this show as a cd release party for their new cd “Love Me Hate Me”. I haven’t heard it yet but Rekless Youth are known for their tight musicianship and catchy hooks so it should be a good treat to get on Halloween! So come on out, be sure to wear your costume and get ready to celebrate Halloween  Stillnotdead style! We’ll see you there! Show starts at 8pm and it’s $10. 18+ only.

That’s it for this edition. I did want to mention two great shows coming up on November 4th and 5th and I’ll give and in depth look at them in the next edition. The first is November 4th at Tremont Music Hall and features Boston’s The Have Nots with Planet Piss, Darken the Sky and Doctor DP & The Trainrunners which features Andy from Andy & The Jivers. The second show is on November 5th at Tremont and features the Mangles, the Smokers and the Necrohippies. Both of those shows are all ages and should be a lot of fun. I’ll talk more about them in the next edition!

I hope everyone has a happy and safe Halloween! Hopefully we’ll see you at Skalloween! Till next time, take care!

Ryan Dead

Here's to 40 years of the Milestone Club!!

I received work yesterday but was late getting it to you guys that you can now pick up advance passes to the Milestone 40th Anniversary party at the Milestone tonight for the big show tomorrow! These passes guarantee you entry into the FREE 40th Anniversary party Friday night, even if it sells out!

If you get a chance I highly encourage going by and picking up one of these passes. Otherwise, you may end up hanging out in the most famous parking lot in Charlotte instead of being inside with all the fun! Don’t say I didn’t warn you!

Ryan Dead

This looks like a fun show, unless the guy on the flyer shows up!

Just got this flyer for what looks like a fun show in Rockhill, SC. Check it out!

This coming week is gonna be a huge weekend if you are a fan of the Milestone Club! The Ghetto Fortress will be celebrating their 40th Anniversary with and entire weekend of insane shows! If that wasn’t enough a legendary band is coming to town as well. Let’s check it all out in another edition of “Next Week”!

Social Distortion at Amos Southend 10/21/09!!

Social Distortion 10/21/09 Amos Southend- I know there is no need to hype this show. It’ll be packed. Even though it’s basically Mike Ness and a backing band as a friend of mine said. It doesn’t matter, the attraction the female species feels toward Mike Ness is irresistible so expect a lot of girlfriends/ wives to drag their significant others to Amos to partake in this mass lusting. Course the guys will get to hear such hits as “Ball and Chain” and “Ring of Fire” and truthfully I never thought these guys would end up playing Charlotte so it’s always a good thing when a band of their stature comes through, even if they are a little past being relevant. Admission is $25 in advance and $30 at the door, I believe.

Happy 40th Ghetto Fortress!!

Day one featuring: Junior Astronomers, Harvard, The Lights Fluorescent and Grids 10/22/09- Let the festivities begin! The Milestone begins their weekend long 40th anniversary celebration and it starts with a bang. Grids features former members of Obstruction and play up the minimalist’s version of hardcore with style. The Lights Fluorescent are fresh off playing the Darfur benefit show last week and always impress with one of the best live shows in Charlotte. Harvard play a slick sounding version of indie rock and I’m surprised they aren’t playing much larger venues at this point with their sound. I’ve been impressed with Junior Astronomers ever since I saw them at the Charlotte Local Music Showcase. Awesome vocals and great songwriting make them a great indie rock band and if they stick to it there could be great things ahead for them. Doors are at 7pm and admission is $7 for over and $9 for under. 18+ only please.

Day two/ Afterbirth Casserole Records Showcase featuring: 25 Minutes to Go, PPR, Andy The Doorbum and 2013 Wolves 10/23/09- Afterbirth Casserole is the record label ran by Phillip Shive and Neal “MF” Harper, the guys who also run the Milestone so what better way to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Ghetto Fortress than by also showcasing all the talent that has put out recordings on their label this year.  25 Minutes to Go’s “It’s Go Time” hasn’t received as much attention as it deserves and that’s a pity. It’s a kick ass cd (even though my reviewer never gave me my copy!!) But you know what to expect from the self proclaimed “biggest punk band in Charlotte ( weight wise that is!)” These guys bring soaring sing alongs and melody to a driving punk sound that has taken a slightly heavier (no pun intended) turn with this recording. If nothing else show up for the live show. These guys take it more seriously than most and strive to put on a show to remember every time they play! PPR are from Atlanta and from what I remember they are heavy as hell. Or at least loud as hell. I couldn’t find a link for them though so I can’t get more in depth than that. Andy The Doorbum is already the owner of the best local release of this year in my opinion. Pick up his cd “Art is Shit” to see what I mean. Live Andy is a whirling dervish of musical insanity. He approaches live acoustic shows with the intensity of a death metal band and would make a normal singer/ songwriter shit his pants. 2013 Wolves are the creation of Milestone owner Neal “MF” Harper and “Battlin” Bobby Childers and believe me these wolves have teeth! This duo sounds bigger than their numbers and have an excellent cd called “Sinners Get Ready”. Trust me, when they play you won’t be a sinner long. This two man riff machine will make believers out of everyone! As if this show wasn’t kick ass enough the bonus is IT”S FREE!! Doors are at 8pm and I expect everyone to come out and pack this place! See you there!! Oh yeah, the only drawback is this party is 18+ only!

Day three featuring Birds of Avalon, Maserati and Hectagons 10/24/09- If there is anything left of the club after day two we’ll proceed to the third day of celebration featuring Hectagons, an instrumental riff monster of a band featuring Wiley Buck Boswell, who you’ll know from Clavius, Andy the Doorbum, Appalucia, stapling flyers on telephone polls, you know that guy I’m sure! Also on this show are Birds of Avalon from Raleigh, NC. They fall on the rock side of things with a heavy dose of psychedelic. Interesting stuff for sure! Athens Ga’s Maserati finishes up the bill and I don’t know how to describe then other than saying they are a sonic adventure with songs that build gradually into epic masterpieces of noise and power. This should clear the cobwebs out of the ’stone if there are any left after Friday’s show. Doors at 8pm!

Day four featuring So Many Dynamos, Cinemechanica, One Another and the Heiz 10/25/09- Four days, really? Can the crew of the Milestone handle this fourth day of celebration? The last night isn’t going softly that’s for sure. In fact it’s a pure adrenaline rush!  So Many Dynamos are fast guitar oriented rock that tickles my ears with their melodic harmonizing licks. Cinemechanica from Athens Ga are a noisy experimental/ chinese firedrill of a band. They manage to be all over the place all at once and charge foward at full speed whether you’re ready or not! Charlotte’s One Another is the only local band on this bill and have a very energetic, wide open driving sound with some catchy hooks to boot! The final band on the lineup is a garage rock band from Japan! They are called the Heiz and don’t expect to understand much that comes from the stage. With lyrics that seem to flow back and forth between english and japanese these guys play surprisingly accurate Detroit style garage rock. It’s like Mitch Ryder and the Detroit Wheels on a heavy sake binge! Doors are at 8pm and admission is $7 for over 21 and $9 for under. 18+ only please!!

Meth Mountain's new 7" ep!

Lunchbox Records- Meth Mountain record release party 10/23/09- If the party at the Milestone is too much for you, swing by Lunchbox Records for the cd release party of Meth Mountain. This hardcore/ surf rock band features former members of Obstruction and are a great addition to the local scene. This show will feature the release of their new 7″, Monotony and at the show there will be special limited edition covers of the 7″ that will only be available at the show and all copies will come with a download card for anyone who is vinyl challenged. Also playing are Worn in Red, Bandname and Mon Frere. Show starts promptly at 8pm and cover is $3! Oh yeah, and it’s all ages!

Well that’s all for this week, tune in next week when we look at all the halloween happenings that will be taking place around town, including Skalloween at the Visulite! We’ll see you then!

Ryan Dead

Okay, sorry this is going to be a brief addition of Next Week but I’ve got a lot to do today, getting ready for our big show at Tremont tonight!! Hope I see everyone out there! Anyway, this weekend has a few great shows that would be a lot of fun for your listening pleasure so let’s get to it!

Through Porchlight at Tremont 10/15/09!

Tremont Music Hall- Through Porchlight, Hotspur, Lyra Shines, Bracing For Impact and The Oms 10/15/09- Through Porchlight describe their music as “Italian Pop”. I don’t know how that sounds but this Charlotte group is surprising and I’m surprised I haven’t heard of them before. Light, airy acoustic pop with vocals that sound familiar but I just can’t place them. Hotspur are a Maryland/DC power pop with a sound that says they aspire for radio greatness. That’s not a necessary bad thing, they are catchier than most of the stuff currently on the radio. Not my cup of tea necessarily. Lyra Shines is a young band (been together for about a year) who fly to “alternative rock” label. To me, they sound like sort of like Paramore or maybe a little like Tsunami Bombs. It’s heavy, crunchy pop with a good female vocalist over the top for good measure. It’s really good sounding stuff and they have amazing sound for such a young band. Bracing for Impact have been burning up the area lately, playing a ton of show between here and Rock Hill. The boys better be careful, playing shows non stop can help you build a following but it can also burn people out. From the sounds of their live demos on Myspace they’ve got a good rock-n-roll sound and should hopefully pick up a lot of new fans at this show at Tremont. The Oms got added to this show at the last minute and this Charlotte group should be an interesting opener. They’ve got an interesting, guitar driven indie feel to them. Soft vocals keep it feeling delicate as it builds toward the bigger climax. Should be a really interesting show at the Tremont! Doors are at 6pm for this show and it’s $6 bucks for over 21 and $9 for under.

The Milestone Club- Dexter Romweber Duo, Buck Mountain Stranglers and Andy Wood 10/17/09- Dexter Romweber is the former frontman of psycho-surf a billy/ garage punk band the Flat Duo Jets who got their career off to a great start when they played their first national tour in 1990 with the Cramps! Fast foward to the present and Dex has the Dexter Romweber Duo which features his sibling Sara Romweber ( of Snatches of Pink), they’ve also been burning it up touring with the likes of the White Stripes, Legendary Shack Shakers and Reverend Horton Heat. His new cd features guest spots by Jack White, Cat Power and Rick Miller of Southern Culture on the Skids. It’s a hard to describe mix of sounds, part rockabilly, part garage rock. It also kinda reminds me of John Spencer Blues Explosion in some ways. Opening are the Buck Mountain Stranglers who list themselves as being from Buck Mountain, NC… Judging from their friends list I would say that’s somewhere in Charlotte. To boot the only “song” on their media player is an advertisement for Pabst Blue Ribbon. Course I guess by that I should be able to narrow them down a little farther. Based on the PBR reference I would guess they hail from somewhere near the Penguin/ Thomas St area. Opening up this whole show is Andy Wood, who list his home as Charlotte and plays honest clean acoustic music. Should be a refreshing start to the show. Doors are at 8pm and admission is $8.00 for over 21 and $10 for under. 18+ only please!

Snug Harbor- 2nd annual Breastival! 10/17/09- This unique charity was a big hit last time and it looks to score again as it raises money for Save The Ta Ta’s! This show will feature mostly female powered acts including the Lesser Pauls, who’s unique Grace Slick meets PJ Harvey sound has been garnering them a lot of recognition around Stillnotdead’s circles lately. They are joined by Black Lashes and Erika Blatnik. Also advertised are special performances by Venus Flytrap, Beth Amphetamine, Taloulah Blaquehead and Lilith Deville, along with DJ Scott Weaver. The whole sheebang will be emceed by none other than Hope Nicholls and there will be free massages courtesy of Eastern Massage School. Of course, as always all proceeds go to Save the Ta Ta’s! So come on out and support this great cause, you’d be a lot less happy if they weren’t around!  Show starts at 9pm and I don’t have a price yet. I’ll let you know if I get one!

Well that’s it for a short edition of Next Week, be back next time when we talk  about a cd release and the huge Milestone 40th anniversary weekend celebration!! Hopefully I’ll see you all tonight at Tremont!!

Ryan Dead

Hey what’s up? It’s been a crazy week but a chill is in the air and October is finally here! With Summer over don’t expect things to slow down, in fact I’m sure they will only get crazier as we head toward my favorite holiday, Halloween! But let’s not get ahead of ourselves it’s time for another edition of “Next Week”!

Oh the colors and Kirby and hey wait?? Is that Jesus?? In red slippers??

The Milestone Club- Emotron, Drink Up Buttercup, LA Tool & Die 10/9/09- Oh man, this whole show will probably come across like one big acid trip. Seriously you wouldn’t have this many synthesizers in room at a Duran Duran/ Flock of Seagulls reunion show! To start with headliner Emotron, who is quite beloved on the Milestone scene, list his Yamaha QY700 sequencer as a band member! Musically he blast out funny, strange songs like ” Michael Jackson’s” dead and “Me and My Black Metal Friends”. Musically he’s talented and from what I’ve heard he’s quite unhinged on stage, who needs a band! They had another band listed on myspace but according to Milestone Drink Up Buttercup of Yep Roc records is playing. These guys will fit right in with the quirkiness of the night only with a little more jangly guitar. These guys have been getting super reviews and thrive on audience interaction so come prepared. They actually got the Best of Philly award from Deli magazine last year. Also on the bill is Charlotte’s own LA Tool & Die. If we didn’t have a show that night across town I would come thank them for getting “Don’t Touch My Mustache” stuck in my freakin head for weeks on end! Basically this Charlotte Indie band is trying to bring new wave in the vein of Devo back and I have to admit, they may succeed! Layers of synth heaven over catchy beats and hilarious whimsical lyrics will start to describe their sound but I think it’s rather impossible to completely describe. You have to experience it. So get on your favorite day glow colored shirt or Michael Jackson jacket and get out to the Milestone Club! Doors are at 8pm and admission is $6 for over 21 and $8 for under. 18+ only please.

Murder Junkies at Milestone Club 10/10/09!

The Milestone Club- Murder Junkies, Planet Piss, Black Out the Sky and Rekless Youth 10/10/09- G.G.’s former backing band the notorious Murder Junkies come around yet again as they continue to try to take advantage of the legacy of their former front man. Obnoxious and disgusting in their stage antics ( last time the drummer stuck a drum stick where the sun don’t shine!), the play hard and nasty punk rock. If you are into it cool, but they ain’t really my cup of tea. In any case they are also playing with Planet Piss who bring a wild stage show of their own. Between Planet Piss and the Murder Junkies there will be way too much male nudity at this show. Also on the bill is Black Out the Sky (formerly Never Again), which is Moss from Dirty South Revolutionaries’ side band. They don’t have songs up on myspace but with Moss in the lead you know what to expect. Also Rekless Youth are on this bill. RY have dazzled critics and built their own fan following but I have to wonder how a band with such a “clean” image is gonna fit in on probably the dirtiest punk bill in town? Who knows they may come out and out dirty everyone! The only way you’ll know is to come check it out! Doors at 8pm Admission is $10 for over 21 ( really??) and $12 for under. 18+ definitely!

Stillnotdead presents: South Side Punx, IED and more!! October 9th at Tremont Music Hall!

Tremont Music Hall- Stillnotdead presents: South Side Punx, IED, Taj Motel Trio, The Nerve Scheme and Andy & The Jivers 10/9/09- Our last party at Tremont was Punk Rock Picnic 2 and it was a blast so we decided to throw another all ages  punk/ ska throwdown at Tremont. This time we got South Side Punx, who didn’t get to play PRP, to headline the whole thing. Anyone familiar with Charlotte punk knows SSP are the kings of street punk and will get the crowd rocking with anthemic sing along choruses and pure punk street anthems. IED rocked the house at PRP and are back to continue to push their ska/ hardcore agenda. It’s a revolution you can dance too and be on the lookout, I know for a fact they’ve recorded a new cd and it will be coming out soon! Taj Motel Trio haven’t been to town since our fan appreciation night ska party so it’s gonna be great to have this Athens, Ga ska band back in town! Expect extremely catchy ska from these guys. Last time the crowd was super hyped for these guys so I can’t wait for this time. The Nerve Scheme are a punk band from Virginia that have catchy hooks and a good sense of melody without seeming too poppy. Starting the whole thing off will be Still Not Dead and Charlotte faves, Andy & The Jivers. This Charlotte ska band has been a favorite for years and always get the crowd moving with their catchy hooks and horn lines that local fans have come to love. This should be one hell of a party so bring your dancing shoes and we’ll see you there! Doors are at 8pm and admission is $6 for over 21 and $9 for under. And for a change it’s All Ages!!!

The Dead walk the earth again October 11th. I wonder if Michael Jackson will be there?

3rd Annual Charlotte Zombie Walk- Phil’s New York Deli and Tavern Uptown Charlotte- Ah the chill of fall is in the air and once again the streets of Charlotte will be filled with creatures with only one thought on their mind, preying on the living. No I’m not talking about the bankers! It’s time for Charlotte Zombie Walk again! Badger’s gearing up for his 3rd annual Zombie Walk which will originate from Phil’s New York Deli and Tavern, located on the corner of 5th and Tryon in uptown Charlotte. As usual there will be a Red Cross blood drive going on during the Zombie Walk and a canned food drive to benefit second harvest food bank. What’s new this year is that they are also supporting Costumes for Kids, which raises money to provide Halloween costumes to disabled and less fortunate kids. It’s a lot of great causes and a great excuse to dress up like a Zombie and stalk the streets! There will be people on hand to help with makeup if you aren’t artistically inclined and the blood drive runs noon to 4:30 pm and the actual Zombie Walk is from 2pm til 4pm! Brains!!!

Well that’s it for this edition of Next Week! Look out for later this weekend when I’ll let the cat out of the bag about another big show coming to Charlotte in December. I’m also going to be unveiling the flyer for Skalloween that we are co-promoting with Bum’s Lie on October 31st at the Visulite Theater! Remember send me your flyers and hopefully I’ll see you this weekend at either the Sk Net show with Jojo Taterhead, The Not Likelys, Princess and the Criminals and The Disregardables or at the Dead Kings 10 year anniversary party!  See you next time!

Ryan Dead

Where has the time gone? Here we are at the end of September looking into October! There’s a lot of ground to cover this week, so let’s dive into the first fall edition of “Next Week”!

The Grids, Hectagons and more at Tremont Music Hall!!

Tremont Music Hall- Grids, Hectagons, The Art Department, The Lesser Pauls 10/02/09- I heard this was originally supposed to be a house show be ended up getting moved to Tremont. That’s cool, you’ll have to pay more but you won’t have to worry about the police showing up. In the meantime it’s gonna be a great night of indie/ punk/ noisy music. Grids are a really noisy hard hitting band of a sort of Shellac vein. Hectagons is another of Wyley Buck Boswell’s bands. He already plays/played in Hell or High Water, Appalucia and Andy the Doorbum. His partner in crime Richard Culp also plays/played in Zeus and Andy the Doorbum.  The duo was joined by Korey Dudley of Abe Reid & The Spikedrivers and Tropic Culture. Okay you get the point, everyone in this band has other bands. The important thing is they play really talented instrumental metal/ heavy rock music. We actually have quite an underground scene for instrumental metal/ rock here in Charlotte. You should do research into these bands, in the meantime check out Hectagons! The Art Department are from the DC/ Baltimore area and play some type of pop/ indie music that comes across as being a lot lighter then the previous two bands mentioned here. That’s not a bad thing, they are a very odd though. Think light, clean sound almost nervous sounding music with really high, fast vocals over the top. It gives the whole thing a very almost antsy feeling. I see on their schedule they are playing with the Meat Puppets in a few weeks, that makes perfect sense. The Lesser Pauls get better everytime I listen to them. Their song “Neon Jesus” always reminds me of Jefferson Airplane during the Grace Slick era. Another good comparison would probably be PJ Harvey. These guys have that slightly unpolished in a good way, garage vibe that reminds me of those bands. Check it out, it’ll be a fun show. Doors are at 8:00pm and admission is $6 for over 21 and $9 for under!

Tremont Music Hall- Zoe Vette and the Revolvers, Dirtbag Love Affair, Planet Piss and Famous Tragedy 10/4/09- Happy Birthday Zoe Vette! I got an email informing me that this is the official Zoe Vette birthday celebration so we wish a happy birthday to the leader of the Revolvers. They’ve been working hard over the past year or so to establish the Revolvers as a standout rock and roll unit. They put it all out there in a standout live show that will remind you musically of the Runaways but with more over the top theatrics to boot!  Dirtbag Love Affair have that grimy punk, sleazy rock and roll sound but seem very polished in what they do. Still they do have a few catchy songs on their myspace and it appears they tour their brains out so good for them. Planet Piss seem way more authentic and not just because I’ve seen the singer slice himself onstage. Probably the most over the top band on this bill Planet Piss have an insane stage show that features a mostly naked man. If you mind seeing a man bounce around in nothing but a really tiny speedo then this set may not be for you. Famous Tragedy open up this rock fest. Doors open at 7:30pm and admission is $7 for over 21 and $10 for under.

The Milestone Club- Lamb Handler, Mego and Grown Up Avenger Stuff 10/2/09- This is my 90’s throwback show of the week! Lamb Handler are all veterans of the 90’s Charlotte alt rock scene and play some killer rock and roll to boot. Silky vocals slide over slinky melodic leads over solid driving beats. This quartet retains the feel of some of their previous bands with a certain 90’s rock flair but still progressing to seem relevant nowadays. Mego are formerly known as Mego Dirge but changed their name for some reason. The guy from Creative Loafing says  they “combine a variety of styles- Taproot, Nirvana, Helmut- into something of their own” who am I to argue? Grown Up Avenger Stuff list their sound as a little bit of just about every genre that you can think of. However when I listen to them they sound like Mazzy Star. Not that it’s a bad thing, but they claim to sound like the Foo Fighters if they had a female vocalist. My opinion the only way they would sound like the Foo Fighters is if Dave Grohl took waaay to much valium. But they will be a really chill opener for this show and that’s okay too, even if they do think they sound like the Foo Fighters! Doors are at 8pm and admission is $6 for over 21 and $8 for under. 18+ only.

Happy 10th Anniversary Dead Kings!!

The Milestone Club- Dead Kings 10 year Anniversary show 10/3/09- Has it really been 10 years?? My own band My So-Called Band attempted to reach the 10 year plateau but fell short by about a year or so before imploding in on ourselves. But Jeff Williams has quietly ( and musically not so quietly!) been plugging away at it for 10 years now as the Dead Kings. Along the way they’ve developed a reputation for a wicked sense of humor and satire mixed with an ever escalating stage show. They actually built a stage set to look like Hell at one show! These guys will do whatever it takes to throw the most insanely over the top show and I’m sure this will be the spectacle to end all spectacles. Musically they are a solid rock and roll outfit somewhere in Motorhead-ish territory. Jeff has also developed quite a stage persona as Biggy Stardust, some of you will recognize him as the voice of conservative reason on the political section of our forum. Unabashedly politically incorrect and on purpose obnoxious Biggy and the Dead Kings deliver. And the flyer like one of their cd’s is dedicated to “Hot Black Chicks”! Come out and pay tribute to one of the hardest working groups of road warriors in Charlotte, kudos Biggy! You earned the hard way!! Opening are Dirtbag Love Affair (again??) and the King Sized Killers who are a punk band from Shelby NC. Doors are at 8pm and admission is $7 for over 21 and $9 for under. 18+ only please.

Neighborhood Theater- Colin Hay ( Men at Work) 10/2/09- I had to mention this show because I absolutely loved Colin’s vocals in 80’s group Men at Work. The thing you may not know is they had a few small hits here during the 80’s but they were huge in their native country of Australia and they still are. Still Colin’s been doing solo work and I love his acoustic take on Men at Works ” Overkill”. Find it and download it and you’ll see what I mean. He has an absolutely haunting voice and is a great pop songwriter. Come for the nostalgia, stay for the songwriting. It’ll be a fun night for sure! Show starts at 8pm and admission is $20 in advance, $25 at the door.

Puckett’s Farm Equipment- The Straight 8’s, The Tremors and Diamond Jem & The Ace 10/2/09- Shows like this remind everyone why Puckett’s is the high temple in Charlotte’s rockabilly scene! The Straight 8’s are rockabilly with a healthy dose of surf and they are bound to rock the doors off the place. The Tremors are one of my favorites from Greensboro with a psychobilly sound and the vocals of Jerry Lee Lewis on meth, these guys always keep your feet tapping. Diamond Jem & The Ace are the side project for Jem Crossland and it goes even further into traditional rockabilly territory than his other band, the Hypertonics. Stripping it down to just guitar and bass Jem mines the early Sun records catalog for inspiration and comes up with some of the most pure rockabilly you’re gonna find anywhere!

Snug Harbor- Joe Buck Yourself, Appalucia 9/30/09- Appalucia continue the never ending recruiting drive for their musical militia with an appearance at Snug Harbor. These traditionalist play their own blend of Carolina mountain music as filtered through the minds of Andy the Doorbum, Wiley Buck Boswell and Corey Ziggler.  Joe Buck meanwhile is a maniac. Flat out, I know no other way to say it. He’s the side man to Hank III and is developing a hell of a following for his solo act as well. Menacing and over the top, his one man band act is something to behold. This is a hell of a way to end the month of September, that’s for sure! 10pm starting time, price unknown.

The Not Likelys, Princess & The Criminals and Jojo Taterhead Revival at SK Net Cafe!

SK Net Cafe- The Not Likelys, Princess & The Criminals and Jojo Taterhead Revival 10/3/09- Anyone who was at Punk Rock Picnic 2 will agree that the side stage performance of the Not Likelys had some of the wildest pits of the whole show. And why wouldn’t it? The Not Likelys bring a mix of punk and ska blended with a working class work ethic. Basically they rock and it’s hard to stand still when they are belting out killer punk classics! Also anyone who was at that show will attest that Jojo Taterhead Revival had one of the best Charlotte debuts of all times! The crowd ate up this brand new ska/ reggae group comprised of former members of DSS. Add Princess and Criminals to this show and you have a great punk/ ska show that is only $5 bucks!! No surcharge? No shit! Show will start at 9pm so get out there early because from what I’ve heard Jojo Taterhead is opening so you don’t want to miss out!!

Come to the show or Michael Cain will put a cap in your ass!!