Nov. 28: Fever In the Funkhouse/Slam Bang Theater/Mike Graff (Club Dada)

  Date/time: November 28th @ 8 PM.  Neither Dada’s myspace nor the Observer site list a cover charge; I assume there will be cover, and I’d guess it’ll probably be around $10, but don’t quote me on that.  I think it’s 21+, although again, teh interwebs fail me in providing this information.  Now, on to why I’m excited about this show:

If you were around the Dallas hard rock scene in the early to mid 90s, you’ve probably heard of Course of Empire.  One of the most inventive bands to come out of the ’90s alt-industrial movement that spawned acts like Gravity Kills and Nine Inch Nails, Course of Empire stood out for both their catchy pop hooks and interesting approach to tribal-style drumming.  I enthusiastically file their magnum-opus swan song “Telepathic Last Words” under my favorite albums of all time.  My absolute adoration of this band makes it difficult for me to admit this, but CoE sounds kinda dated now; however, their music held up better than 90% of the industrial rock genre, which for the most part took itself too seriously to stand the test of time.  Oh well – does anyone really miss Thrill Kill Kult?  Not I.  I do continue my rabid infatuation with Course of Empire, though.

One of the things that made CoE interesting was the fact that they had two drummers and one guitar player.  The two-drummer structure and wall-of-sound format would make mincemeat of most guitarists, even if they had a second guitar player to back them up.  The fact that guitarist Mike Graff held his own, on his own, against such a formidable setup, speaks volumes about Graff’s abilities to both play guitar and think outside the box, especially in the realm of electronic effects.  Course of Empire have tons of mp3s available for download on their official website.

After Course of Empire split up in 1998, Graff formed a band with former CoE drummer, Michael Jerome, called the Halls of the Machine.  As far as I know, Halls of the Machine are still going, working around Los Angeles-based Jerome’s demanding schedule as a touring/session drummer (he’s currently on the road with legendary protopunk impresario John Cale).  In the meantime, Graff, who lives in Dallas, does intermittent solo stuff; his live shows, however, are relatively rare.  I’m way excited for this one.  I’ve never seen Graff play live, but the level to which I’m in awe of Course of Empire means that I will be at this show with bells on.

For the life of me, I can’t find any links to a band called Slam Bang Theater.  Denton’s Fever in the Funkhouse are a jangly, laid-back hippy-country-rock act; I’m listening to the tracks on their Myspace right now, and they sound promising, the kind of stuff that usually makes for fun live shows.  I think this show will be worth taking the night off from work and doing a concert review.

To whet your appetite for this show, here is a video for Course of Empire’s “Infested”.  I like this video for several reasons:

1. it’s a good song that’s very representative of CoE’s work.

2. Totally Rad Early ’90s Computer Graphics!  *chuckle snort* robotic insects! awesome! *chuckle snort*

3. Vaughn Stevenson Hawt Factor: 10.  Singer Stevenson is one of those people who is either really hot or super ugly – no in between – depending on what angle he’s photographed at.  I think he’s totally lickable in this video.

Rockula and I ran into CoE’s other drummer, Chad Lovell, at the grocery store yesterday, and Rock told him that I was writing about his former band.  He didn’t seem too impressed, but then, he always acts a little annoyed whenever I try and talk to him.  Which is understandable, considering that this usually involves me, very inebriated, running into him at various bars and yelling “Telepathic Last Words changed my life!” or something equally dorky.  oh well, such is life.