REVIEW: The Original Cyndi

The Original Cyndi
The POWER Without the PRICE
Makeshift/Migrant, 2009

Occasionally, albums take a long time to make. People used to churn them out on an annual basis in the early days of the long player, and I remember in the mid-Eighties when Def Leppard’s Hysteria finally came out – “oh my god, THREE YEARS in the making!” Well, former Johnny Romanian (and current member of Two Way Radio and J.D. Reager’s backing band, The Cold-Blooded Three) Justinedward took eight years for his debut as The Original Cyndi to make it to the shops. Take that, drummer with one arm. Mind you, Def Leppard were an established name, but you get my drift.

For the handful of you who might remember Johnny Romania, The Original Cyndi’s electronic-based numbers seem like the more immediate, denser offspring of that project – and such tech-savvy pieces as “(Tales of) Unnecessary Surgery” take a satirical tone towards not only man’s interaction with and through technology but also life itself. “Stinky Man” and “Tears Me Up Inside” paint a portrait of someone torn between resigned inaction and the brink of sanity.

Of course, for you others who have witnessed Cyndi live, many of the other songs indeed stay true to its current incarnation as a slightly demented glam/garage combo, and these songs bristle with sexual perversion and frustration. Justin’s vocal delivery is wild-eyed and depraved, concerned only with getting his message across from the opening anticlimax (his own observation) of “Get Along” to the incendiary final throes of “Where Ya Gonna Go?”

There are no clues for the casual listener as to whether any of it’s personal, or real, and that in itself makes The POWER Without the PRICE one of the most baffling, confrontational listening experiences a virgin pair of ears might find in Memphis’s music scene nowadays. For me, that also means it’s one of the best as well.

When Bloggers Get Busy…

Friday the 13th…an unlucky day for some, a big movie night for others…but for me, I had a blast. I hit not one, not two, but three gigs this night! It’s certainly a record for me.

I started my evening at Central Barbecue on Summer Ave. It used to be a Red Lobster, and is a big building. Apart from their excellent barbecue nachos, I went there to see the legendary Van Duren play. Van’s been a part of the musical landscape here in Memphis since the Seventies, when he ran around with the guys in Big Star and released his own seminal album, Are You Serious? (which, last year, was re-released here in the States). The man has a great voice for pop, and can handle the songs of geniuses like Nick Lowe and Neil Finn just as readily as he performs his own well-crafted compositions. He plays Central every Friday night, at least for now, and is working on a new record as we speak!

I got back into Midtown just in time to catch the outstanding Two Way Radio at Ardent Studios as part of a webcast series. The octet (how many times do you get to use THAT descriptive?) played music from their upcoming second album as well as a couple from Residential Llama – most notably the insanely funny and biting “Carrie Rodgers”.

Off I ran, after the Ardent session…on to Cooper-Young for a show at the Young Avenue Deli. My friends in Black Max were doing a radio show with the assistance of Freakengine, a local comedy troupe. Also performing were Star & Micey (signed to Ardent’s new label venture) and the Yazoo Shakes. Black Max, as always, put on a really fun and engaging show and know how to involve the audience – a spontaneous waltzing contest? If that’s not entertainment, I don’t know what is! I didn’t manage to stay for their entire set as, by this time, I was pooped!

It was a fantastic night, though.

True Story! You Had To Be There…

I’m warning you in advance, this may not be very funny and it may rely entirely on you having to be me IN the situation…

So I end up running the door for J.D. at Nocturnal last night, and at the beginning of the night he hands me this piece of paper – that time-honored institution of doormandom, the guest list. One of the guys from The Bulletproof Vests comes up and asks to put three more people on it. No problem.

Part of the way through the first band, a really pretty girl and her significant other (I assume?) comes in and I say “Good evening! Five dollars.” She hesitates for a second and says “Am I on the list?” and gives her name. I look down…it’s not there. I say “Ma’am, I’m sorry but it’s not here. I can show you the list if you want…” About this time, the Crowders – Kate and Corey, both members of the fine Two Way Radio – run up and say “Oh! Can we put them on the guest list? This is my sister.” I turn and look at her and yes, they do resemble each other so I say with a smile, “Hey, she’s the boss!” and let them in.

About an hour later, another girl comes in – slender and pretty, with a knit hat on, and she resembles Kate too – and again I attempt to take money from her. She waffles a little, so I say “You know what? Go on in…you’ve just won the Kate Crowder lookalike contest.” She looks puzzled but goes on in.

I have no clue if they’re related.

Tonight At Nocturnal

J.D. and the CB3 will rock thine own socks off. And for the record, if you’ve never heard Two Way Radio, you’re in for a treat.

REVIEW: J.D. Reager

J.D. Reager
The Repechage
Makeshift/Migrant, 2008

This is a record I’ve been looking forward to for a long time – given J.D.’s rich history in the Memphis music scene with a wide range of groups such as Pezz, Johnny Romania, The Great Depression and Two Way Radio, seeing something released in his name is a big moment for those of us who’ve been keeping up for a while. You find yourself being proud for him.

The Repechage lives up to the anticipation generated by the two tracks that have made their way out via Makeshift’s self-titled compilation series – that would be “For Now” and this record’s opener “Water”. And for those of us lucky enough to have caught J.D. and his backing band The Cold-Blooded Three out and about (yeah, I’m bragging – three times now!), a good chunk of this record is already familiar. “Wading In” is magnificent in its studio form, and “Panic” is the best song in ¾ time I’ve heard in recent memory (and I even wrote one recently, but everyone knows your own material doesn’t count in reviews of other people’s records).

And so you know, “No One Wants To Know” is nothing short of spectacular, as is the rocker “I Can’t Decide”. A Tim Regan-penned number, “Regime”, is another high mark on a record crammed with real ups. Also, it’s of little consequence but it’s only recently dawned on me how much J.D. sometimes sounds like Lou Barlow (Sebadoh fans take note)!

If you’ve not bought any local music – and shame on you if that’s the case – you owe it to yourself to grab this one, and get out to a show or two. Maybe you should just get out more anyway…