The Unblinking Ear Podcast 1/24/13

Here tis. The first Unblinking Ear podcast of 2013. And the first in over a month! I do apologize for the delay and the lack of a best of the year podcast (which was kind of a dumb move as they're usually my most listened-to podcast of the year). However, I do hope any of the three WFMU fill-ins I did in the intervening time (including a best of show) kept you satiated. If not, I don't know what to tell you. Maybe I'm just not the rock music guru/obsessive/nerd/creep for you.

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The Unblinking Ear Podcast: What To Do

I suspect most of you listen to this podcast giving your full undivided attention, likely staring at a blank wall in your unclean, under furnished apartment.

However, if you'd like to do something to occupy yourself while hearing the podcast, listener (NAME REDACTED) has some suggestions for you. All of these will be fine until your boyfriend comes home and he'll want to watch wrestling. You might be able to persuade to keep it on mute though, as whatever I happen to be playing on any given edition of this podcast is surely more tolerable than having to hear Michael Cole and Jerry Lawler.

Incidentally, there's no truth to the rumor that the Unblinking Ear Podcast syncs up perfectly to Golden Girls ala Darkside of the Moon and The Wizard of Oz.

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Or Subscribe via iTunes

Last Friday at Southpaw...

...Homestead's roster circa 1987.

To promote the release of their 3CD retrospective Supercluster, Big Dipper reunited for a handful of shows bring with them fellow Wailing Ultimate contributers Great Plains and Antietam.



In front of a crowd featuring many men who wore thick glasses out of necessity rather fashion and many women who bore a resemblance to Joyce Brabner, Great Plains opened the show. I've written about Great Plains' snarky but unpretentious punk rock before and they did not disappoint me. Singer/guitarist Ron House had easy, natural charisma but commanded the stage with the energy of someone half his age. The band was sloppy at times but lack of precision couldn't detract from from the overall experience. Hearing them knock out songs like "Dick Clark" and "Our Love to the Third Power" was a joy to say the least. Mr. House was sitting at the bar for most of the show following his performance and I had to resist the urge to go up to him and yell "You and Mike Watt are my punk rock heroes!"



Antietam's records never really moved me one way or another but seeing them live definitely raised my opinion of the band. That guitarist Tara Key is a skilled player is no secret but this night she played the guitar hero role to the hilt, dropping to her knees a couple of times to deliver some seering solos. The rest of the band bashed away without restraint in a way their studio recordings (at least the one's I've heard) never captured. I read somewhere that Antietam always had trouble holding on to a drummer but whomever was on the skins tonight was more than capable of driving a mighty rock machine.



I have to admit that by the time Big Dipper took the stage I was fairly spent which is pretty pathetic considering I was probably among the youngest members of the crowd. I know I'm feeling my age when I think to myself "Why can't rock shows ever start on time?" They were a lot of fun though, running through most of their "hits" and climaxing with the whole crowd singing along to "Ron Klaus Wrecked His House" before closing their set with "Mr Woods." For an encore they were joined by a couple of the Great Plains to sing "A Song to Be Beautiful." With its (tongue-in-cheek?) chorus of "The artist must be free!!" and singer/guitarist Bill Goffrier goofily holding up signs ala "Subterranean Homesick Blues," it capped off the night with an appropriately gleeful smirk.

Now when is Phantom Tollbooth getting back together?