maybe it's just me

Ears are ringing.

(please forgive the following for it's possible misspellings, grammatical errors, meanderings & gross factual errors. I have had something to drink.)

We just went to see Deerhoof at the Empty Butthole. It was almost my favorite kind of show. The one where you think there's a possibility that it could be awful or it could be amazing & then it's amazing. Deerhoof is one of those bands that when you hear for the first time, you're annoyed but the next time (or maybe the 3rd time) you hear it, you like it, you can't get it out of your head. They reminded me of US Maple who seemed to play live every other week for a time in the middle 90s. They were all at once surgically precise & threatening to fall apart or explode. Twin guitars playing what? the same thing, sort of. Someone kicks the drums down stairs & then yoyos them back up onto the landing. Everyone stops on a dime for a moment before everything dissolves into feedback & secret cymbals. This is sort of what Deerhoof is like but breaking up all that macho, music-major posturing (in a good way) is this tiny Japanese lady, Satomi Matsuzaki, who sings sing-songy, not unlike the Slits Ari Up, with the sort of enthusiasm that have you grinning instantly unless you're dead inside. And then she backs away from the microphone, focusing on her bass again, giving the chaos a backbone. Sheesh, it was good.

Also with them were the always enthusiastic Head of Femur & a Japanese band called 54-71 who's drummer had a rap-metal snare & who sounded like they could soundtrack the parts of 8 Mile where Eminem was riding the bus looking all serious but in a good way, a really good way. I'm sure they inspire much ironic fist pumping but they're really good.