Chains changed

Olneyville Sound System;
noise at the Met

by Michael Caito

Protest -- for the environment / Take a stand against the government / Of wasters and evil bureaucrats / Makers of the laws that hold us back / Racists who claim they love the black / A system that only stands for war / A country that helps exploit the poor / Rapers of man and land alike / Protest--and make the first strike

--"Protest" by Dropdead

The biggest news this weekend involves the Faithless . . . 3 Days of Noise fest at the Met. While the rest of the country is immersed in sweaty euphoria, a plenitude of booze-fueled stunts and fizzy things that go POW!, leave it to the young rock and rollers to hang one on the parade.

"Take a look at yourself," demanded the Warwick-based band Dropdead on last year's seminal, 47-song self-titled LP on Tokyo's H.G. Fact label. "Understand that no one else is to blame for your fate if you choose a life in chains."

Those two sentences, indicative of the band's fierceness and brevity, act as a clarion call -- an indelicate shove against a force which may be the single most dangerous problem facing America today.

That would be passivity. Quiescence, apathy, inactivity . . . call it what you will. It's ironic . . . the other day I was flippin' through my vinyl and came across ye olde Meat Is Murder by the Smiths. Talk about elevating complaining to an art form. It eventually became a parody of itself (see also Sex Pistols tour, 1996). Theirs eventually turned into an "I'm bleaker than you" contest, seemingly embraced by another generation once Nevermind hit. But was Morrissey actually onto something?

By Nirvana's time -- the early '90s -- Baby Boomers had risen to the upper echelons of advertising departments (and at record labels). "Niche marketing" grew in vogue-itude and it was easy pickin's for these yuppie assistant-vice-president types to cater to the latest craze -- by then, grunge -- as territorial pissings of a whiny "slacker" generation.

Huge generalizations here, but bear with me. Along the way another odd thing happened: metal refused to die. Meld that with the continuing appeal of punk's twin ethical towers -- mistrust of authority and do it yourself, mate, or suffer the consequences -- and you have a sturdy foundation for a whole new generation of noisemakers. Of course, there are many other elements which came into play. For one, increasing accessibility of affordable synths and effects paired with a rising boredom with electric guitar wanking paved the way for a fresh blast of science fiction, sampler-style. Led Zep's "depths of Mordor" frighteningly evolved into a cartoonish Devo space cowboy, then retrenched. Six Finger Satellite's "Send In the Clones" arrived, burying New Wave real good. Frodo Baggins morphed into the Tick. Video weaseled its way in, threatening to screw up everything, but we were saved by prescient saboteur satirists like Emergency Broadcast Network. The onslaught raged with the occasional influx of staccato rap deliveries. (Beck arrived and was ignored because he's essentially a candy-ass who happens to rhyme well. Got a devil's haircut in my mind?See ya.)

Metal met punk met grunge and what followed seethed. And as will always happen when a wall o' noise gets unwieldy, minimalists arrived to strip everything back down to nuts and bolts, reminding all that less can be more. Whole new hybrids of American trance/dance music grew, with a big help from jazz and hip-hop. And without Ecstasy. The unruly noise of the faithless came from everywhere and belonged to nowhere specifically, but as they say: what matters most isn't where you're from as much as where you're at. So that "noise" we'll hear is the unsettling row of the now -- both uncompromising and necessary.

In the end what's more frightening -- young artists loudly enumerating the many complications of the world and offering solutions, or TV-schooled suburbanites more preoccupied with global issues like the hipness of the angle of the baseball cap on their heads? Some will harrrrrumph and snort, citing the naivete of these caterwauling, "faithless" artists. In the end, who's being naive?

"Faithless . . . 3 Days of Noise" happens Fri/Sat/Sun at the Met.

Lightning Bolt/Force Field: split 7" and Olneyville Sound System:16-song CD (Load Records)

The Lightning Bolt duo of Brians Chippendale and Gibson (drums and bass) upend the bottom end with a tornado touchdown that's ultimately more satisfying than their Repopulation compilation track. Fast, faster and fuzzier, though a third member -- playing any instrument -- would probably be too much. Force Field keyboarders provide creepy opening track that sounds just like a syncopated dentist's drill before diving headfirst into an electronic swamp populated by genetically altered Budweiser frogs and a razor-legged praying mantis. A soundtrack to that highly-anticipated R2D2 porn flick. The last track is looped so that it'll keep spinning forever if you let Meerk Puffy, Patootie Lobe and Gorgon Radeo (?) have their way.

OLNEYVILLE SOUND SYSTEM

Olneyville Sound System is reportedly a one-time recording experience featuring Adam Autry (d), John Ryan (v), Roma Karas (harmonica) and bassist Dan St. Jacques. St. Jacques helped record the Lightning Bolt 7"; John Ryan, brother of Six Finger Satellite vocalist/keyboardist Jay, has an upcoming LP(Organs vs. Furniture) on Load as well. Of the three bands on these two releases, Olneyville Sound System have the most song-oriented approach. John (Von) Ryan is an irascible vocal banshee like his brother. Theirs is such a muscular bass/drum style that Karas' less-than-fluid harp doesn't have to pick up any melodic slack at all. The same feel St. Jacques formerly brought to the low end in Von Ryan's Express (who later became Thee Hydrogen Terrors) is again apparent. He's a great bassist, Autry can burn, and the record is a grimy, raw workout. Music to bust up plasterboard and remove asbestos by. Again, too bad it's a one-off project. This quartet can smoke.

STARS & BARS. Sunday at the Living Room finds Dan St. Jacques again, this time with Land, who also include two members of Computers. Also on the bill is Bossman, with ex-Laurels members. Bossman features Jeff Toste, Eric Park and Dare Matheson. They have a two-song demo, distributed at live shows. According to Toste, they're planning a self-recorded EP for release on Heparin Records by fall. Heparin also released the debut full length by Arab On Radar. That band will be touring twice this summer to support their just-out Queen Hygiene. Toste said a Laurels farewell show is possible in the future. Meanwhile you may want to try one of their last and tastiest releases L (co-released domestically on Heparin and in Europe on Thick Records). Word is Jeff and Arab On Radar vocalist Eric Paul will continue to book Sundays at the Room.

James Dean said it best:"The life you save may be mine." Yeah, I know, look where it got him, but on this long weekend, please do not drive when lit.