Terry Malts / Wax Idols - The Fun House Seattle - 2011-11-10

May as well start to empty the AMH coffers of recordings to share with you guys.  Both sets were recorded during last year's tour by my partner in crime up in Washington, "SR", with his Schoeps MK4 gear, and are great recordings.

Terry Malts
2011-11-10
The Fun House
Seattle WA

Gear:  Schoeps MK4 active setup > Nbox > Sony PCM-M10 (wav @ 48KHz 24 bit) > Adobe Audition 1.5 (tracksplits, downsampling to 44.1KHz 16 bit) > FLACs in zip file

Setlist

Nauseous
I Do
What Was It?
Waiting Room
Something About You
Not Far From It
I'm No Good For You
Mall Dreams
Tumble Down
I'm Neurotic
Can't Tell No One [Negative Approach]

Download [FLACs in zipfile]



Wax Idols

2011-11-10
The Fun House
Seattle WA

Gear:  Schoeps MK4 active setup > Nbox > Sony PCM-M10 (wav @ 48KHz 24 bit) > Adobe Audition 1.5 (tracksplits, downsampling to 44.1KHz 16 bit) > FLACs in zip file

Setlist

All Too Human

Hitman

William Says

Human Condition

Hotel Room

Gold Sneakers

Grey Area

Dead Like You

Romeo's Distress [Christian Death]

Download [FLACs in zipfile]

Read The Finest Kiss' gig report,

entitled "Full Time Punks"

Photo courtesy of the finest kiss.

Wax Idols - New Year's Eve 2012 at the Hemlock

Wax Idols

2011-12-31

Hemlcok Tavern

San Francisco CA

Recording done by thehappyone, done with Olympus LS-5 and its built-in mics, resting on the ledge stage right.

Setlist

[end of between-set DJ'ing by Mike Shulman...Sham 69's 'Borstal Breakout']

Dead Like You

Hitman

William Says

Human Condition

Hotel Room

Gold Sneakers

Grey Area

All Too Human

Romeo's Distress [Christian Death] 

  (w/Corey Cunningham of Terry Malts on guitar)

Teenage Kicks [The Undertones]

Download ZIP file of Wax Idols (FLAC format)

"Hello, we're Wax Idols.  Thanks for hanging out with us on this stupid unimportant night."  

No kidding.  Usually, I try to stay home and away from crowds of sheeplike revelers...my partner in crime didn't even want to go out.  So I was left to my own devices, but decided there was no way I'd be able to resist a double dose of Terry Malts and Wax Idols, so nothing was going to stop me.  I packed some literature to tide me over, a copy of Evan Eisenberg's The Recording Angel and am feeling generally anti-social and disengaged.  Perfect.

"Happy Fucking New Year"
sez Jen's shirt

After "Hotel Room", Hether addresses the audience.

"So, this record just came out, well, in October.  It's called No Future.  It's not a Sex Pistols reference!  It's actually how time doesn't exist, and there's no such thing as now.  So this whole thing everyone is celebrating right now is like not real.  Just sayin'"

The group then blazes through 'Gold Sneakers' and the remainder of the main set and realize they're still lots of time left, leaving them hung out to dry, as ANY OTHER band would string whatever to drag it out.  But that isn't what Wax Idols has in mind.

"How much time until midnight?  10?  Twenty?!  We're never going to make it!"  

A guy suggests an extended version of an Iron Maiden tune.  

"Somebody get me a drink, man.  About to do some spoken word or something.  We had this whole plan, we were going to stop right before midnight, and then countdown maybe one more song.  But we played for like 20 minutes...thank you...this is weird, this is why I hate doing shows like this, no offense.  We got like one song left, we're not going to make it!"  

People call out for Prince covers.

"The cover was supposed to be after the New Year, you know it was like a plan."

Play Prince covers, please!

"Prince covers?  Naw, dude, no no.  You can't just play Prince on the fly, he deserves more respect than that.  That's fucked up."

Buzzcocks covers.  Pretenders!

"All right, well maybe this will go on forever in your mind, because time isn't real, so twenty minutes is like two minutes, right?"

Wax Idols then play 'All Too Human', perhaps the best live version of heard of it to date...but the song is less than three minutes long.

"Fuck it.  Corey, where's Corey at from Terry Malts?  Where is he?  Get up here, dude!  We're going to do two covers, because we play too fast.  So we're just killing time up here, y'all.  We're just going to wing it because we didn't plan on doing this, so whatever."  

The crowd groans, and yells out some more suggestions.  Everybody seems to want to yell out their ideas on how to "help" Fortune and the band get through their "crisis".

"I wish I had some jokes to tell, but I'm really firmly anti- people talking onstage, this is breaking every rule I have for myself right now."  

The crowd cheers.  

"How stupid is that when people...what I'm doing right now is stupid."

2012, new paradigm, someone yells out.  

"How many minutes now?  We down to ten, at least?  Fifteen?!  What?"

Wax Idols then play Christian Death's "Romeo's Distress".

"All right we made it work.  Where are we at now, how many minutes is that, two?  I don't like when people play longer than thirty minutes.  I'm not Grateful Dead, alright?"

Phil yells out, "Hey Corey, play another one!"

"Now, quit what you're fucking doing, and then yell to have him come over here...[we have] another cover that's absolutely not like that one...totally stup...now."  

A blistering version of The Undertones "Teenage Kicks" follows that gets everyone up and dancing.  It's two minutes long.  At this point, it's 11:51PM, still nine agonizing minutes to go. Everybody's wondering what else's going to happen, and if the band was going to make it to midnight.

"Happy fucking New Year".

Wax Idols leave the stage.

I heard Shulman brought in the New Year by spinning Weekend's entirely apropos "End Times".  But I wasn't there to hear it, as at this point, I'm crossing Van Ness back to the car by the time 2011 rolls into 2012.  

While there was no reason to celebrate the New Year, there was certainly reason to celebrate the emergence of Hether Fortune and Wax Idols in 2011.  So there.

Click here for my Flickr photoset.

Wax Idols - 2011-12-03 - TFT004 Oakland CA

Wax Idols
2011-12-03
TFT004
Oakland CA

taper: thehappyone
equipment: Olympus LS-5 w/built-ins

Setlist

Dead Like You
Hitman
William Says
Human Condition
Hotel Room
Gold Sneakers
Grey Area
All Too Human
Romeo's Distress [Christian Death], with Corey Cunningham of Terry Malts on guitar

Lossless FLAC files (Bittorrent)

Romeo's Distress

(For some reason, this video got quite a few dislikes from the YouTube peanut gallery.  I just don't get it.  This is an outstanding cover of the Christian Death classic. ) 

The last of the four bands to play at the Time Keeping Time 004 event.  Man, I've been drawing that show out. 

Not much in my notes I made right after I saw Wax Idols in this godforsaken place seems to be suitable for public consumption.  I've been quite a follower of this particular group, but this was the first show of theirs I had seen since they toured the US last October, and it was readily apparent how much more tight the group had become as a result of playing places like Marfa, TX or Raleigh, NC.  So once again, I'll let the recording speak for itself and keep my blathering to a minimum, and point you all to Hether's Twitter feed, which is not for the faint of heart or easily offended, but is always guaranteed to engender some reaction if you're not undead, and maybe even still if you are.

If you have any spare dollars for the cause, please buy a copy of the album here.

Fresh and Onlys / Tamaryn / Wax Idols - 2011-10-07 - Great American Music Hall SF

The Fresh & Onlys
2011-10-07
Great America Music Hall
San Francisco CA

All recordings are dual-sourced audience blends.

TZ0: Sonic Studios DSM-6s/L > Edirol R-09HR
TH1: Church Audio CA-11 > CA-9100 > Olympus LS-5

songs
 
Summer Of Love
Grey-Eyed Girl
Fascinated
What's His Shadow Still Doing Here?
Secret Walls
Waterfall
Strange Disposition
August In My Mind
You're Known To Wander
Dreaming Is Easy
Wash Over Us
Love & Kindness
Peacock & Wing
Diamond In The Dark

Dream Girls
Feelings In My Heart


Fresh...download (FLAC)



Tim Cohen and company put on a good show for a hometown crowd, even if I'm more than willing to admit I was primarily drawn to seeing Wax Idols and Tamaryn.  What struck me on playback is how tuneful F&Os are, along with Kelley Stoltz and Sonny and the Sunsets and the more laid-back Thee Oh Sees material, this is a signature San Francisco vibe (note: doesn't necessarily mean low-fi...)  

Speaking of which, spot anyone familiar?

JPD and Heidi Sandwitch

Opening acts after the jump...

Wax Idols (w/ Aerosols and Altars) - 2011-04-09 - somewhere in SF

Hether Fortune and Mat Hartman

Three very very good but different bands that night, a bit of an unusual location typically features singer/songwriter types and not full band ensembles.  Interestingly, Wax Idols, whom I reckon is the best known of the three bands was booked as the middle act.  Rather than the four-piece we've seen them play as, this time it was only Hether Fortune backed by none other than Mat Hartman (of Henry's Dress/Coachwhips/Sic Alps fame)...more on their set in a bit.

First up was the Aerosols, led by Joe Z Armin, pictured to the left in action.

I enjoyed their material, it had a bit of a Robyn Hitchcock feel with 60s-style Floyd organ played by Amy Fowler.  Overall, a good way to kick off the proceedings.


'untitled' is either called "Tropical Impact" or "The Harmony Band", though as of this writing it still has no official name.



Setlist, thanks to Joe Z for answering my request.

Cold Jewelry
You're On the Outside Looking In
China
untitled
Last Cup Of Tea
Zombie Crossing
Ain't It Hart [The Electric Prunes]
Fake Mirror
Satan's Sheet Music
If It Hurts, Take It Downtown

Link to recording unavailable.



Playing last was Altars, whom are fairly new to the scene.  Lead by singer Melanie B, their sound was primary keyboard driven, but with bongos (played standing up!) adding a distinct flavor.  These guys remind me a bit of The Hundred In The Hands, but a bit more downbeat, and provided a healthy contrast to the feedback drone of Wax Idols, which had cleared out the room.  For me, their last song "Icarus" is their most solid effort, I'm looking forward to seeing how they progress over the coming months.



Setlist 

Sculpture Falls
Sunlight
December
Slowly Falling
unknown #1
unknown #2
Icarus

Link to recording unavailable.

As you know, I'm a huge Wax Idols fan, go here to catch up on the other recordings I've done of them.    But I had no idea I was about to be thrown a curveball with delicious huge heapings of guitar drone starting in over the PA music, eventually leading to the chords of the brilliant Human Condition, quipping "I seem to have misplaced my band", followed a new composition called "Nothing At All", repeating the lyric "Time is no friend of mine", and then, after stating she only did this show to pay for her record, a heart-rending version of The Boys Next Door's "Shiver", which was arguably the highlight of the set.  After "All Too Human", Hether than pulls out a sheet of paper and proceeds to read from it in a piece titled "Yes, I Like Lydia Lunch"...reading out missives like "You should smile more, what's with your bad attitude?"..."I stab myself in the gut with a cigarette because I'm so punk rock"...after which Mat switches from guitar to drums for the last two numbers, a shambolic-as-the-original Buzzcocks cover and a great loose version of one of my favorite songs on the upcoming album, Gold Sneakers, which is introduced with "Here's an original, and I'm then I'm done torturing you", which Hether follows by mentioning that Mat had decided to play with her only yesterday because she didn't have a band in town, only to be "corrected" by someone in the crowd who mentions they've *at the show*.  

The truth of the matter...is that it doesn't matter, Wax Idols would be Hether Fortune and whoever plays with her, whether it be Mat on drums (just for this show only, apparently) or as Mark E. Smith famously quipped, your granny (or maybe the guy in Altars) on bongos. 

Yes, she likes Lydia Lunch

Setlist

PA music > Human Condition
Nothing At All
Shivers [The Boys Next Door]
All Too Human
Tweets (Yes, I Like Lydia Lunch)
Ever Fallen In Love [Buzzcocks]
Gold Sneakers

Link to recording unavailable.

I also videoed the entire set with my friend's Panasonic DMC-ZS7, which you can view here.

Fedewa for president!
 

Wax Idols - Noisepop and Knockout shows

 

NEW: Order WAX IDOLS debut 7"!

Catch HETHER FORTUNE on TWITTER

(you know you want to!)

Wax Idols on Facebook

Wax Idols on Myspace

I'm going out on a limb here.

I just pledged thirty simoleans for the Wax Idols album on Kickstarter, and am hoping that somebody goes for the gold and pledges the $200 to snag the free show.  It's totally worth it!  I'd do it except that I'm out in the cultural wasteland known as the Peninsula and don't think it would be very cool to drag anybody out here against their will.

The money was well worth it considering the strength of their material...I had the good fortune (no pun intended) of catching Hether's other group, Blasted Canyons, whom I caught opening for Thee Oh Sees at the Eagle Tavern last November) and being blown away by her stage presence and the juggernaut of "Ice Cream Man".  It's not enough to have looks, you need the chops, and the force of will to preserve in the face of indifference and sometimes even outright hostility so mad props for making music that matters.

So we showed up early to catch their Noise Pop set, which I was looking forward to, since we couldn't get in to the sold-out Weekend show at the Hemlock Tavern (which Wax Idols opened), and were disappointed by the fact that everybody seems like to arrive late to these Noise Pop shows.  Well, their loss...the SF Weekly reviewer didn't even mention them, so I guess he was one of the ones who who missed out, I won't bother to link his write-up, as it's complete garbage. 

We caught them again a couple of weeks later at the Knockout in the Mission and were rewarded with a great set.  Was really cool to stand next to Tamaryn, though I was way too shy to actually say something to her (or Heather for that matter) that wouldn't have sounded stupid, besides "thanks".

Hether Fortune (and group) shine on...

Wax Idols

2011-02-25

Noise Pop

Cafe Du Nord

San Francisco CA

Recorded with dual Sonic Studios mics

and blended with an old version of Adobe

Audition.  Linked files feature video

shot with my Flip Ultra HD which was off

to one side, though I held it later on

as somebody almost knocked it over.

Setlist

Bad Pajamas

Gold Sneakers

Uneasy

Hotel Room

Sand In My Joins [Wire]

Hitman

All Too Human

Dead Like You

Human Condition

Dilno

Wax Idols

2011-03-12

The Knockout

San Francisco CA

Recorded with Sony PCM-M10 with built-in

mics and Sonic Studios mics plugged into

an Edirol R-09HR and blended together with

an old version of Adobe Audition.

My attempt at video is best described as

an abject failure.

Setlist

All Too Human

Gold Sneakers

Uneasy

Hotel Room

Sand In My Joints [Wire]

Hitman

Bad Pajamas

Dead Like You

Human Condition

Dilno  

NOTE:  If you download these, please be generous and donate to the group and help them make their album, because I want to hear it! 

We've listened to our live recordings quite a bit (my compatriot almost never does this after he tapes a show)...and now you can listen to this too...normally, I wouldn't put out pre-release material in this way (and expect that I will have to remove it very soon) but this is too good to keep under wraps, seriously!

We also recorded opening act Jealousy...the only song we could ID was the last one "Palm Tree".  Really liked the reel-to-reel that took them like forever to set up, though I'm not sure if it was merely a prop or actually was used for the background noises.   
Grand stuff.