LOVE IS IN THE AIR
Club Congress is playing host to two very different benefit shows this week, and both are worth your time and money.
There is, of course, the Concert for Civility, which takes place on Sunday, Jan. 19, and which you've no doubt already read about in this week's Currents section.
The other one, which takes place on Friday, Jan. 17, is called Speaking in Volume: A Benefit for the Legal Fund of Pamela Williams. Williams, whose son is Great American Tragedy vocalist Miguel Carter, is a 65-year-old social worker with no previous record who was charged and convicted—wrongly, many believe—following an incident involving police officers in Pinal County. This week's benefit, which will feature live performances by Anakim, Giant Destroyer, and Vanish Twin as well as Great American Tragedy, seeks to raise money for an appeal.
The show begins at 9 p.m. and admission is a suggested donation of $5. Club Congress is located at 311 E. Congress St. For further details head to hotelcongress.com/club or call 622-8848.
HEATWAVE
With Golden Boots co-frontman Dimitri Manos splitting his time between that band and the mostly Philly-based Dr. Dog (who, incidentally, released an acclaimed new album, B-Room, at the end of September), activity from the Boots camp has been sporadic over the last couple years. Lucky for us, that's about to change.
According to a conversation I had with Manos earlier this week, rather than do the months-long road warrior thing, for this album Dr. Dog will mostly be doing two- or three-week touring stints, plus flying out to perform at festivals. What that means for Manos is more time to spend at home instead of inside a van; what that means for us is more Golden Boots.
The band has already completed recording a new 10-song album, recorded in just a couple of sessions at their combo rehearsal space/recording studio, that they're currently sending out to labels to gauge interest. And, because this is Golden Boots we're talking about—the band that has released playable medical X-rays and a vinyl EP whose A-side has dual grooves (and therefore two sets of songs, depending on where the needle lands on the record) and whose B-side plays from the center outward—there's also a taste of the unexpected ... literally: For the last year, the band has been working with People in a Position to Know Records (aka, PIAPTK, which also released those unconventional records) and Tapanko Hot Sauce Company to develop Golden Boots Burning Brain Hot Sauce. No, that's not the name of the new album; it's an actual verde hot sauce you'll be able to find at the band's merch table.
While the name of the hot sauce comes from the album of the same name that the band released in 2007 on PIAPTK, Manos says the hot sauce, while tasty, isn't really all that hot. "I think it's really good," he says. "Not too spicy at all and (it) has a sweet kinda cooling aftertaste due to the brilliant addition of epazote by Carlos Valdez from Tapanko." (I've got a bottle in my possession, but due to recently moving into a new house, I couldn't find a knife sharp enough to penetrate the thick multicolored wax coating that seals the cap—think Maker's Mark times 10.) All bottles come with a downloadable copy of the Burning Brain album.
To celebrate the release, as it were, of the hot sauce, a special five-piece version of Golden Boots (Manos, co-frontman Ryen Eggleston, Nathan Sabatino, Ben Schneider, and Andrew Collberg) will be playing a brief, stripped-down set this weekend at Old Paint, the recently opened used record store owned by Lana Rebel and Kevin Mayfield, located inside Old Town Artisans (the home of La Cocina). The store buys and sells records, stereo equipment, and art, and is open 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday through Tuesday, and 11 a.m. to midnight Wednesday through Saturday.
The Golden Boots performance starts at 9 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 17, and admission is free. Get there early because the small space will be packed. Old Town Artisans is located at 201 N. Court Ave., and admission to the show is free. For more info look for the Facebook event page.
SAVIOR'S SKY
As I wrote in this column in November of last year: "Randy Mayer is an activist and the pastor at The Good Shepherd United Church of Christ in Sahuarita. For the past 15 years he's been involved with various humanitarian groups along the border. As he wrote in an email to Soundbites, "We decided a few years ago that we could amplify a border voice if we brought musicians like Tom Chapin, Holly Near, Guy Davis and many more ... to the border to educate them about immigration and the struggles of the border. Which basically means that each performer Mayer and his crew bring to town to perform also gets a tutorial in border issues, in the hope that once they witness the struggles for themselves, they will be more apt to become an activist in these issues."
This week, in conjunction with The 10th Annual Santa Cruz Valley Border Issues Fair and Concert (this year's theme is "Revitalize Not Militarize"), which will take place at the church on Friday, Jan. 17, and Saturday, Jan. 18, folksinger Peter Yarrow—the "Peter" in Peter, Paul and Mary—will be performing at 7 p.m. on Friday night at the Javarita Coffeehouse at The Good Shepherd United Church of Christ, 17750 S. La Canada, in Sahuarita.
In keeping with the church's mission, Yarrow will be spending a little extra time in the region to, according to Mayer, "learn more about the immigration issue and the struggles of the borderlands. He will be going across the border to Nogales, (Sonora), to spend time with migrants and will be doing some desert searches with the Green Valley/Sahuarita Samaritans."
Tickets for the concert are $20. For more information call 625-1375.
COUNTRY BAT HIGH
Veteran local music fans will likely remember Wendy Gadzuk from her past Tucson bands, The 440s and Whiskey Bitch. Gadzuk is currently living in Oakland, Calif., and has a new trio, Andalusia Rose, which released a six-song, self-titled EP last year and will make its Tucson debut this week. Like her former projects, Andalusia Rose kicks much ass, but there's a twangy-bluesy Southern rock vibe this time around—and, I'd argue, the songs are better, too. Heck, there are even some lovely ballads (check out "A Thousand Miles," on its Bandcamp page, for example). Catch Andalusia Rose along with Musk Hog at 10 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 17, at Surly Wench Pub, 424 N. Fourth Ave. Cover is $5, and you can call 882-0009 with questions.
GHOSTS
Pink Martini at the Fox Tucson Theatre on Sunday, Jan. 19; Styx at Desert Diamond Casino in Sahuarita on Friday, Jan. 17; Young Dubliners at the Rialto Theatre on Friday, Jan. 17; Chris Young at Desert Diamond Casino on Saturday, Jan. 18; Dishwalla, Oracle Jayne's Station, January Set Sail and more at The Rock on Wednesday, Jan. 22; Brian Lopez and Maria del Pilar at Plush on Saturday, Jan. 18; City in the Sea, Voidance, Look to the Sky and more at The Rock on Saturday, Jan.18; The Missing Parts, Le Chat Lunatique, and Aztral Folk at Plush on Friday, Jan. 17; Liquid Sound Disciples album release with The Zodiac, Double Up, Top Nax, and DJ Earthworm at Plush next Thursday, Jan. 23; Club Sanctuary Five Year Anniversary at Surly Wench Pub on Saturday, Jan. 18; Liila, Ocean Void, and Secret Meetings at The District Tavern on Sunday, Jan. 19; Headbang for the Highway Presents: The Battle for Summer Slaughter Tour with Scorned Embrace, A Fall to Break, Drowning Arizona, Harlette, Animus Divine and more at the Rialto Theatre next Thursday, Jan. 23; Steff and the Articles, Ex-Cowboy, and Captain Squeegee at Club Congress on Wednesday, Jan. 22; Brothers Gow and 8 Minutes to Burn at The Hut on Saturday, Jan. 18; The Fab Four Beatles tribute at the Rialto Theatre on Saturday, Jan. 18; Outlaw Country at the Fox Tucson Theatre next Thursday, Jan. 23; True 2 Crue Mötley Crüe tribute at Paradiso Lounge at Casino del Sol tonight, Thursday, Jan. 16; Whole Lotta Zep Led Zeppelin tribute at Boondocks Lounge on Saturday, Jan. 18.
