I Ate Your Microphone

Does it really matter that there are three chords used in a song, or four, or six (including a surprising A minor?)

Not really. Other musicians might appreciate this. Some listeners might actually notice, though this often happens during a quiet listen at home rather than at a concert. Rock critics who are often “want to be” musicians can sometimes irritate other fans by denigrating the ability of a guitarist in a popular group. For instance, a couple of years ago, one radio commentator said something to the effect that Edge, of the rock giant U2, was still playing the same two chords he learned in elementary school.

Of course, this mouth of the airwaves takes home a check every two weeks that probably covers rent and groceries, but not much more. Edge, on the other hand…..

So the question is put to us again – does it really matter how many chords we use or how complex music is? Not really. The message is all important.

One way that current bands might be able to satisfy the traditionalists among listeners is to add a keyboard. Somehow these displays of black and white keys seem to add something rare and delightful to a band’s output. But keyboard players are few and far between in the rock/alternative world.

It may be best to do what so many have done – hammer at those three chords and scream out the lyrics until someone starts paying attention. It worked in the 1950s!

Tags: Perspective 3, indie music, indie, music, independent music

Brian Kapler and Joseph Guccione are keeping the candle burning for this interesting band. The “former members” list is getting longer, as the band has employed and lost Adam Aviles, Chris Leonard and Dan McCabe on guitar (though with different band names). Gone too are bassists Artie Fleischmann, Justin Morrell and Jon Bulzomi. Drummer Mike Fleischmann completes the list for now.

Yet, there is something here that Kapler and Guccione seem to insist on featuring.

“Allison” from After The Room Clears (2007 Stolen) stands strongly on melody, for one thing. The slight changes in guitar attack help immensely with this east coast band (Baltimore, New York).

“Stay The Night” is billed as a demo. Permanent ME is demonstrating a bit of darkness with this tune, pleading for something that young boys aren’t supposed to think about. Yeah, right!!

“Until You Leave” also from After The Room Clears (2007 Stolen) continues the level of young-boy-becoming-man sound. Chunky guitar playing is featured. “Christine” from the same CD seems to be an angry song, a pleading song and an experimental song in that the structure is just slightly different.

Permanent ME has a string of shows scheduled for Pianos in Brooklyn, New York from May 1 through May 22.

Tags: independent music, indie, indie music, music, Permanent ME

In some sense, it’s all just been a loud, long F…You! Trying to isolate eras or seminal events and bands might be somewhat productive. But in the long run, it will be a study in frustration.

Maybe the rock historians can do us a service by patching together a “people’s history of rock and roll” that doesn’t just focus on the most popular or recognized names in music. Perhaps this work will actually show how indie/alternative music came to be in the place it is in 2008. One place to start would be by looking at the media used to promote music. There are still print magazines, of course, though the effect of these is quite limited. More to the point, there are online magazines, Web sites and band sites that are the new public relations/marketing tools. It took this explosive change in the way music is presented for this one fan to understand what Marshall McLuhan was trying to tell us decades ago – the medium is the message. He is also the author and social critic who helped many understand how Gutenberg’s printing press changed the world’s population centuries ago.

How we get our music, and how it is sold to us, should be one of the most important topics included in any rock and roll/alternative music history. Without that, it would be, as Counting Crows sings, “the clang of electric guitars” and notmuch more.

[tags]Perspective 2[tags]

Tags: indie music, indie, music, independent music