"Hey, Fred!" Nights Out 08/04-08/10/14

This title disclaimer will run until I’m sick of it.

This is a look at things coming through town (mostly music, but look for more theater and visual art as fall gets underway) I’m excited about this week. Title is inspired by A making a joke to a great friend of ours: “Rick’s going to start a blog letting you know what’s coming to town called ‘Hey, Fred! Guess what?’” Appearance here does not constitute an endorsement by the real Fred. Big inspirations are Steve Smith’s Agenda posts in Night After Night and amigo Andrew Patton’s weekly column for Mark Subel’s JazzColumbus.

This is not intended to be comprehensive. For that, Joel Treadway’s Cringe does a great job and has for 20+ years. If someone knows an equally good guide to theater and visual art, let me know and I’ll link that too.

I don’t intend for this to cover every local band I like every time they play. If I wrote up every time two of my friends played a show together, the things I want to highlight would get lost and it would be more hassle and stress than it’s worth to me. I want to note something that strikes my interest as special: a record release, a rare reunion, something new I worry will get lost in the shuffle, but obviously that’s going to be capricious and not follow a strict guideline.

Theatre

Cymbeline by William Shakespeare, presented by Available Light Theatre; Madlab, 227 N. Third St.  Between this and Red Herring's Thicker than Water (see below), August is surprisingly stacked with compelling theater options. Available Light doesn't often deal with classical theatre, and Cymbeline is an overstuffed, trying-to-do-everything-at-once play that's never really gotten a fair shake. So this promises to be an interesting take on a rarely performed Shakespeare (possibly the only Shakespeare I've never seen done), directed by longtime collaborator/fight director Brian Evans with a cast of seven headed up by Acacia Duncan. I didn't get to see this opening weekend but I have my ticket for this week and if you love theater, you should too.  8pm Thurs-Sat, through August 9. Tickets available at http://avltheatre.com/shows/cymbeline/

Thicker than Water by John Dranshack, Michael Garrett Herring, and Nick Lingnofski, presented by Red Herring Theater; Riffe Center, Studio Two Theater.  Speaking of things you should see if you care about theater, don't miss this. Red Herring was the first theater company I ever subscribed to, right out of high school, and since their resurrection a couple years ago they've been on a hot streak, including last year's mind-blowing take on Assassins. This month they're doing an original work, a two-hander (Herring and Lingnofski) playing a father and a son who served in different wars dealing with how each shapes the other. This is developed using the great Mike Leigh's process, with both performers and the director, John Dranshack, collaborating on the script.  8pm Thurs-Sat, through August 16. $20 tickets available by calling 614-723-9116 or Pay-What-You-Want at the door.

Music

August 5, 2014

The Iguanas; Natalie’s Coal-Fired Pizza, 5601 N. High St.  Alec Wightman’s Zeppelin Productions has often been the principal supplier of a certain stripe of singer-songwriter in town, and over the last 20 years he’s brought artists I can almost guarantee Columbus wouldn’t have seen headlining if we were lucky enough to get them at all – from Guy Clark to Joe Ely to Suzy Bogguss to Matraca Berg to Dan Penn to Tom Russell many times over. We certainly wouldn’t have had this kind of artist as often and in so intimate an environment. With his partnership with Natalie’s, he’s been branching out into some more rock band focused strains of Americana, like Chuck Prophet and the Mission Express (one of my shows of the year last year), Sarah Borges with Girls Guns and Glory, and now legendary New Orleans  roots-rock outfit The Iguanas. The Iguanas are often compared to a big easy Los Lobos and that’s pretty spot on; a fusion of Texas Latin rhythms like conjunto and norteño with dashes of mambo filtered through the stop and start swing made famous by Allen Toussaint and Wardell Querzegue’s productions and arrangements, and a heavy overlay of Earl Palmer stomp and LA-based chicano rock. In the 25 years they’ve been doing this there have been some ups and downs and some personnel changes, but they keep making great records – that run on Yep Roc a few years ago might be their finest hour so far – and writing great songs, including a co-write with Dave Alvin, “Plastic Silver Nine Volt Heart,” that might be the finest song anyone’s ever written about the power of the radio in somebody’s life.  Starts at 8:00pm, $25 tickets available here.

August 6, 2014

Obnox; Ace of Cups, 2619 N. High St.  Former Columbusite Lamont “Bim” Thomas has never been in a bad band I’ve heard, but over the last handful of years his current Cleveland project, Obnox, has grown into his best band yet and his most defined statement. Garage rock grime, hip-hop bounce, and jaggedly catchy chord progressions that almost remind me of Joy Division, pieced together like a Rauschenberg combine so the juxtapositions and context give each piece heavier weight and give the greater whole more dramatic impact. As good a sweaty rock show as you’re likely to see. Doors at 9:00pm, $5 cover.

Alimañas; Café Bourbon Street, 2216 Summit St.  Columbus often reaps some of the rewards of festivals in other towns, and my pick for the sleeper show of the week is Houston’s Alimañas stopping at Bobo on their way to NYC’s annual Latino Punk Fest. An anarchopunk throwback with shadings of hardcore, I love the tracks I’ve heard so far. In the tiny confines of Bourbon Street, this should be a barn burner. Locals Day Creeper, who also trade in shadings of classic punk but with a rootsier edge, open.  Doors at 10:00pm, $5 cover.

August 7, 2014

Population; Cafe Bourbon Street, 2216 Summit St.  Chicago's Population on HoZac Records are mining a vein of heavy rhythms and slashing guitars threaded with a smoke-throttled rasp. Very much in the vein of early 4AD, done with intensity and vigor and great songs that will get stuck in your head for days, music about life and about grappling with the world, not just a regurgitation of your record collection. Jeff Kleinman's damaged synthscape project Gamma World and newer local band Melted Men open.  Doors at 10:00pm, $5 cover.

August 8, 2014

Night of the Noosenecks with The Gallows, Hot Wet Trash, and The Suicide Ghouls; Bernie's Distillery, 1896 N. High St.  I mentioned in the column a couple weeks ago that Joey Moore died too soon and, in one of the greatest Columbus traditions, many of his friends are setting up tribute shows through fall and they're all special. This one is special in part because it's at Bernie's, where both his earlier band, Joey Blackheart and the Gallows, and his most recent band, The Girls!, did many of their first and most unhinged shows. For this night, there's a reunion of his earlier band The Gallows, and Big Nick (from both bands)'s punk cover outfit, Hot Wet Trash, augmented by the horror punk stylings of The Suicide Ghouls.  Doors at 9:00pm. Donations at the door, all proceeds go to Joey's parents.

Blizzard Babies with Raw Pony and Pretty Pretty; Café Bourbon Street, 2216 Summit St.  Ukulele infused surf garage punk band from Chicago, the Blizzard Babies seem born for a Friday night show, and this is a top to bottom you-can’t-go-wrong bill, with two of Columbus’s finest raw rock bands propping up the triangle. Raw Pony had my favorite set of this year’s Comfest, the only band I saw I just couldn’t wait to see again; Pretty Pretty I haven’t seen in a while but from all accounts they’re on a hot streak. Come out and see the two locals warm up for the following week’s mammoth Ace of Cups party, Helter Swelter, and get some furious dancing in before summer slips out of your grasp.  Doors at 10:00pm, $5 cover.

August 9, 2014

Festival Latino; Bicentennial Park.  One of my favorite local festivals, the food’s second to none and there’s always some music that knocks me for a loop in genres I might know the classics of but don’t do a good job keeping up with. And looking at the schedule (and poking around YouTube), this year is no exception. On Saturday:

• 2:00pm – Herman Olivera.  One of the most legendary salsa soneros working today who’s done time in Eddie Palmieri’s band and Manny Quendo’s, Olivera balances Hector Lavoe’s sinewy, shadowy smoothness with the improvisational fire of Andy Bey. Riding a new record that got a rave review from the New York Times this week, this is a show not to be missed.
• 6:30pm – Joe Veras.  One of the reigning kings of bachata. I know less about Veras, but the songs I’ve heard knock me out and I don’t think it’s an exaggeration to say this is one of those shows that will have the crowd going crazy.

Hot Rod Hula Hop; Sequoia Bowl, 5501 Sandalwood Blvd.  The premier tiki-themed event in Columbus every year, thrown by the Fraternal Order of the Maoi, is always a swinging combination car show/vintage sale/rock show hang, and this year has possibly the best lineup they've ever had. Featuring Dayton’s premier surf band The D-Rays at 6:00, Indy’s psychobilly ragers The Cryptokats at 8:00, and NYC’s instrumental surf destroyers The Coffin Daggers at 10:00, with burlesque troupe The Ooh-La-Las between all bands, this is a marathon not a sprint. But the icing on this cake is maybe the best party band working in rock and roll for the last 20+ years, the Supersuckers, at midnight. The Supersuckers are one of the most consistent live bands I’ve ever seen, never putting on a bad show, always doing their straightforward rock redolent of ZZ Top and Thin Lizzy but played fast and hard enough you remember they used to tour in the same circles as the New Bomb Turks – with occasional forays into country – with endless charm, humor, and the real joy of understanding how lucky you are to do exactly what you love year in and year out. I haven’t seen the new lineup with a replacement for Ron “Rontrose” Heathman yet, but I can’t imagine frontman Eddie Spaghetti and other guitarist Dan “Thunder” Bolton would let anyone in who can’t deliver.  Doors at noon, $35 tickets here.

Black Mountain Creeper with Sin Nombre and Swarm; Ace of Cups, 2619 N. High St.  One of my favorite local bands during their tenure, Black Mountain Creeper threw southern rock shadings into a swamp of stoner sludge. Fronted by electrifying frontman Fes Minck (Lordburger, Behemoth, Fes and the Black Panthers) with Chris Wood on drums (now known predominantly as the most adventurous metal booker in town), Doug Tinsley on bass, and a couple varying guitarists (I believe the lineup here is the version with David Jones), this reunion should be heavy enough to rattle your fillings with enough sinister groove for a Saturday night. The openers also deserve a little attention – Sin Nombre is my favorite band of Arturo De Leon’s, which given his history is saying something: in the vein of mid ‘80s metal conjuring early Anthrax and Metallica, but also with a heavy debt to the hooks of Judas Priest, killer grooves and great songs. Swarm are a newer band trying to find something new in the gap between Killers-era Iron Maiden and ‘90s rock like Soundgarden and Rage Against the Machine. It doesn’t all work, but when they hit it’s a sight to see.  Doors at 9:00pm, $5 cover.

August 10, 2014

Festival Latino; Bicentennial Park.  See Saturday, August 9.

•  4:30pm, Jose Alberto (“El Canario”) – A salsa superstar with a 30 year track record, it would be a crime to miss something like this at a free show.
•  6:30pm, Los Hermanos Rosario – A 14-piece merengue band founded by the Rosario brothers (hence the name) are a world-renowned touring band for a reason. Phenomenal, swinging, soulful music.

Buckles and Boots Farewell Hootenanny; Lost Weekend Records, 2960 N. High St.  One of my favorite record stores - easily my go-to for anything local - hosts periodic all day hootenannies in its cramped confines. They're always a great time and an interesting cross-section of music that sounds good stripped down enough for that little room. This iteration builds to the headliners, Buckles and Boots, a terrific classic country husband and wife duo (also half of my favorite traditional country band in town, The Songbirds), playing a last Columbus show before leaving town, at 8:00pm. Other highlights include an early set by The Reverbalines (the duo of David Banbury and Eva Owen, formerly of terrific band Nom Tchotchkes) at 1:00pm, Total Foxx (David Holm and Melanie Bleavins-Holm of Bigfoot with a rotating cast of other players) at 2:30pm, and Jessica Wabbit from The Girls! at 5:30pm.  Starts at 1:00pm, no cover.

New Basics Brass Band; Goodale Park.  Joel Treadway (namechecked as a patron saint for this column) helps (with Alexandra Kelley-Fox and a couple other people) arrange the bands for a yearly summer series in Goodale Park's gazebo and it's one of my favorite summertime traditions, even if things like brunch plans and out of town guests and unpredictable weather and hangovers mean I only make it down a couple times in the season. But this week's appearance by Columbus's carriers of the New Orleans tradition, New Basics Brass Band, should be the perfect synthesis of elements - a summer afternoon, a beautiful park and cascading horns. 12:30pm-2:00pm

Daddy (Will Kimbrough and Tommy Womack); Natalie’s Coal-Fired Pizza, 5601 N. High St.  On a slightly smaller scale than the earlier-discussed Alec Wightman, Bob Teague has been presenting some terrific singer-songwriters usually of a more blues-based persuasion, including bringing Will Kimbrough and Tommy Womack here solo more than once, but the band of them together should be pretty special. Tommy Womack’s one of the most energetic and vitriolic acoustic singer-songwriters I’ve ever seen, and on an uphill swing since his declaration of throwing in the towel, There I Said It, and Kimbrough doesn’t often put out records under his own name but his writing, guitar and harmonies have enlivened everyone from Amy Rigby to Josh Rouse to Hayes Carll to Mindy Smith to a long association with Rodney Crowell. Decades of experience between them and both consummate entertainers - if you’ve got any interest in the genre, you can’t go wrong here.  Starts at 8:00pm, $10 tickets available here.

The Humminbird with Mike Shiflet, Pete Fosco, and Meltin’ John; Double Happiness, 482 S. Front St.  Muyassar Kurdi’s gentle psychedelia with a serrated avant-garde edge blows in from Chicago for a Sunday night show that should be an optimal opportunity for clearing your head out for the next week. She plays with a large pool of players in Chicago and this year so far has toured with Matt Schneider on pedal steel and Michael Kendrick on drums; no word on who she’s bringing along on this run. One of the leading lights of Columbus abstract music, Mike Shiflet, opens, along with Cincinnati prepared guitar maestro Pete Fosco and newer Columbus electronics project Meltin’ John.  Starts at 10pm, $7 cover.

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"Hey, Fred!" Nights Out - 06/09-06/16/2014

I've been meaning to do this for a while.  A Sanford-eye view on stuff that's got my attention for the next week.  It's not comprehensive, it probably won't even include every show I go to (I always reserve the right to call an audible and that just piqued my interest).  The title is based off talking to a good friend of mine about a great show I'd seen that he missed and A joking, "Rick's going to start a new blog called, 'Hey, Fred, here's what's coming to town!'" and I thought this week, with at least one show I fully expect to see that friend at, was a good place to start.  Big inspirations are Steve Smith's Agenda posts at Night After Night and especially amigo Andrew Patton's weekly column on Mark Subel's Jazz Columbus. 

This runs Monday-Sunday of the following week; I intend to post it on Sunday or Monday.  This is not expected to be comprehensive, Joel Treadway's Cringe does a great job with that and has since I was sneaking into shows as a teenager.  These are things I feel pretty confident giving my stamp of approval to.  See my Best Of lists from past years for a barometer to my tastes.  Like with those best ofs, everything is in Columbus Ohio unless stated otherwise.  And away we go...

This is Origins week which is one of those times of the year that makes my heart sing.  The convention's meant a lot to me over the years. I worked it either volunteering, at a booth or one summer as a paid employee for the first seven or eight years it was in Columbus; I started an annual drinks off-site tradition with folks that's persisted to this day (even two years I couldn't go); and I met some of my best friends in the world at it and surrounding it.  Looking forward to laughing and raising a glass with some very dear people I don't see nearly often enough. I know in the years when I traveled to a lot of conventions, at least a couple days I wanted to get out and do something else - so maybe there's one or two of you who are like me - down for the con but want to see what else is going in Columbus and you stumble on this via Google.  There are more "standing exhibit" recommendations for lack of a better word with an eye toward that hypothetical gaming traveler.

Music

Tuesday June 10, 2014

Diarrhea Planet with Herzog and Comrade Question; Skully's Music Diner, 1151 North High St.  Nashville winking-rock 6 piece (featuring four guitars) comes through Skully's on their tour back from the Governor's Ball festival.  It took me a little while to warm to these guys but the jokes are more than held up by the giant riffs and intensity, I'd lay money on this being the rare show that makes you glad you're out rocking on a Tuesday night.  Openers are Cleveland hooky pummelers Herzog and one of my favorite new-ish Columbus bands, Comrade Question (if the Velvet Underground were reimagined as a surf band). Doors at 7:00pm, $10.

Wednesday June 11, 2014

Stan Smith and friends; Dick's Den, 2417 N High St.  Venerable Columbus bar Dick's Den has been doing monthly Wednesday night residencies this year and they've all been full of delights. This is the second week of the residency for one of our finest guitarists, Stan Smith, in a relatively straight ahead mode with sax player Jay Miglia and the swinging rhythm section of bassist Dave DeWitt and drummer Jim Rupp. Starts at 9:00pm, $4 cover.

 Magik Markers with Psychedelic Horseshit; Ace of Cups, 2619 N High St. Elissa Ambrogio's noisy rock project with drummer Pete Nolan (currently augmented by John Shaw) coming back to town after an extended absence and to a venue with a real PA is a treat. Snaking songs to burn the cataracts off, embracing their classic psych rock forebears over the last three or four records in ways that were only hinted at obliquely in the classic days of I Trust My Guitar Etc and A Panegyric to Things I Don't Understand they grow more into themselves with every record.  Local tricksters Psychedelic Horseshit open and I can't wait to see what skin they're wearing this time.  Doors at 9:00, $10 tickets available here.

 Thursday June 12, 2014


King Khan and the Shrines with Red Mass and Bummers; Ace of Cups, 2619 N High St. King Khan is one of the greatest frontmen I've ever seen, a supple voice and endless charisma deployed in the service of righteous songs and while I first came to him in his duo with Mark Sultan, King Khan and BBQ, this bigger band is the perfect vehicle for his flights of wild fancy. Guaranteed dance party, let's just say I've already taken Friday off. Montreal punk collective Red Mass opens along with local radio-friendly rock Bummers.  Doors at 8:30, $10 tickets available here.

Friday June 13, 2014 

Wanda Jackson; Rumba Cafe, 2507 Summit St.  Rockabilly queen Wanda Jackson makes a special appearance at Rumba, I believe her first since she played Thirsty Ear with Rosie Flores' band.  That show blew my hair back and she's made some great records in her comeback since so I naturally bought tickets for this early.  No opener.  Doors at 7:00, $20 tickets available here.

 Sunday June 16, 2014



Mark Flugge Memorial Concert; Mees Hall at Capital University Conservatory of Music, 1 College Ave. Columbus lost a giant as a composer, piano player and teacher when Flugge passed away this year and it's not surprising there's been an outpouring of tribute events and of course the biggest is at Capital where he dedicated so many years.  Performers include the Dave Dewitt Trio (a frequent rhythm section for Mark), legendary big band leader and trombonist Vaughn Weister, pianists Erik Augis and Richard Lopez, singers Kelly Crum Delavaris and Jody Mancini, and more special guests yet to be announced.  A chance to come out, share some memories, and see the best cross-section of straightahead jazz in Columbus.   Begins at 2:00pm, donations accepted.

Theater


Leaving the Atocha Station by Matt Slaybaugh adapted from the novel by Ben Lerner.  Available Light Theatre is closing out their fantastic 2013-2014 season with a new work that hits many of the company's sweet spots including the difficulty of living in the world, the concurrent struggle and necessity of fulfilling your promise and living a creative life and just what identity is made of.  I had the pleasure of seeing a workshop reading earlier this year and if they execute it with the potential I saw there this might be the best play of the year.  Helped by a cracking cast including David Tull, Ian Short, Rudy Frias, Amy Rittberger, and Eleni Papaleonardos, expectations are high. Will Slaybaugh continue his streak as the pre-eminent adaptor of hard-to-adapt novels following triumphs like Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom and Skyscrapers of the Midwest?  You better believe I'll be in the audience on Saturday to find out. Opens on June 12th and runs Thursday-Saturday with one Sunday Matinee through June 28.  Tickets available at http://www.avltheatre.com/


Betrayal by Harold Pinter. Shepherd productions is presenting the play that got me into Pinter, a deceptively simple structure stripping the layers away from an affair and dealing with what betraying someone really means.  Great cast including Travis Horseman and Melissa Batt. June 12th and runs Thursday-Saturday through 21.  Tickets available at http://www.shepherd-productions.com/

 Hamlet by William Shakespeare. Columbus's mostly-Shakespeare in the park company Actor's Theatre is a venerable institution I make it to at least once a season even if the people who are mostly there for wine in the park annoy me a little and the sound is spotty.  There are still some remarkable triumphs and the early word I've heard about this production directed by John Kuhn and Nick Baldasare is that it ranks up with their best.  Especially recommended for out of towners, Schiller Park and the German Village neighborhood are well worth spending a nice afternoon wandering around in topped off by a show.  Opened on May 22nd and runs Thursday-Sunday through June 28.  Donations encouraged.

Visual Art


Cuban Forever.  Pizzuti Collection, 634 N Park St, Friday and Saturday 11am-5pm; $10.  If you have a spare afternoon for some visual art do not miss this.  It closes on June 21st and I'm definitely making at least one more trip before then.  The other of the inaugural exhibitions is a very fine, well-selected survey of contemporary art, selections of a damn fine collection, but the Cuban exhibit is world class and eye opening and invigorating.  I know a number of writers and artists in town for Origins and I feel confident saying any of you would benefit from seeing this.


The Wave: Japonisme and the Evolution of Modernism in America (1870-1925).  Keny Galleries, 300 E Beck St, Monday-Friday 10am-6pm.  Keny Galleries is a hidden gem on the Columbus scene, secreted away on a quiet residential street next to a beautiful pocket park, that does museum quality shows and traffics in the creme de la creme of the newer work in town in more traditional (often landscape) modes and their historical shows are always breathtaking.  This is a look at the Japonisme movement and includes works by Childe Hassam, Mary Cassatt, Whistler all in a tiny space.  If you've got a weekday off and you're near to German Village, I promise this is rewarding.  I know a lot of folks coming to town who take a side trip to the Book Loft, Schmidt's, Katzingers... well, I'd encourage you to include this in your rotation.  Maybe do yourself a favor and have a shot and a beer at the Beck Tavern a couple doors down to discuss the art you've just seen or (on the other side of the spectrum) have a perfect martini at G. Michael's at the corner of Beck and S 3rd St.


Modern Cartoonist: Daniel Clowes.  Wexner Center for the Arts, 1871 N High St, Thursday-Friday 11a-8p, Saturday 12-7p; $8.  I know there are some comic book fans in town for the gaming fest of Origins and I'd encourage you not to miss the spellbinding Clowes show at the Wex and its satellite exhibits, Comic Future (about the use of comic imagery in modern art) and Eye of the Cartoonist (classic art from the Billy Ireland library selected by Clowes), as well as the Bill Watterson retrospective in the Ireland right across the courtyard.


All right, for a first try this could have been worse.  More next week.

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Flying Away; Todd May, Rickenbacker Girls

...They'll


never fence the silver range.


Stars are out and there is sea


enough beneath the glistening earth


to bear me toward the future


which is not so dark. I see.


-Frank O'Hara, "Digression on Number 1, 1948"

A. said once (after Steve Earle, in case anyone who googles it jumps my shit), "Todd May is the best songwriter in Columbus and I'd stand on Ron House's coffee table in my cowboy boots and say it." And, you know, while the soil here is rich with candidates - House and Jerry Decicca, Marcy Mays and Sue Harshe, Andy Robertson and Lara Yazvac, all five members of Moviola - I'm not sure I could name three songwriters who move me as consistently as May.

Morton Feldman once said of the poet Frank O'Hara that "Secreted in Frank O'Hara's thought is the possibility that we create only as dead men... Death seems the only metaphor distant enough to truly measure our existence... Only the artist who is close to his own life gives us an art that is like death." (found on www.cnvill.net/mfmorgan.htm because I couldn't find my copy of Give My Regards to Eighth St) Frank O'Hara often makes me think of Todd May, or maybe that's the other way around. I've been knocked out by May's songs since I first heard them at 18 - and been knocked out every time, through The Lilybandits and The Plaster Saits and Mooncussers and Fort Shame and a handful of bands he didn't front but were graced with the honor of his guitar playing like Erika Carey and Lydia Loveless - and I've had the honor of calling him a friend for over a decade. But he's hit a new plateau with Rickenbacker Girls, the first record he's put out under his own name.

The title refers to an air base tucked into the south end of Columbus - more of a shell these days, transferred from Strategic Air Command to the National Guard in 1980, but once teeming with thousands of employees and their families - and this title, in conjunction with the airplane over the dark red image of Ohio on the cover speak to a gateway out and the longing of things missed. The songs bear this out - there's a duende soaking through everything here and there's an immense joy in living that doesn't happen without the other.

On "Why Don't You Come Around Lately", buoyed by some of the most subtle rhythm section swing from Steve and Pat McGann and the organ work of Greg Thurman, May addresses the what-ever-happened void in the pit of your stomach when people inevitably peel off from your field of vision, from your childhood, from your college town, singing "Saying that you died / Some Vegas suicide / Don't believe it's true / Nothing I expect from you" and going through "Miss a million, my dearest friend / I really want to see you again / Search the world from end to end" all tied together by the titular line as a hook, repeated and stuttered, lines drop off and the vocal swings back and forth from a croon to a snarl. That highlight's immediately followed by the parking lot dance of "Better Way to Build a Rocket" where the delivery is the kind of seduction that only comes out of truth and humility, a paean to growing up not knowing what the boundaries are wrapped around the image of building a model rocket and wondering what might happen if you never stopped - "Undertake / A glimmer in the radiation / Till the boosters go / Now I'm floating over / The old neighborhood" soars aloft on some of the best, purest guitar work on the record (I'm inclined to say Todd himself with Jamey Ball and Mark Spurgeon playhing those grimy soul chops underneath the solo).

These songs paint the picture of a hard-fought comfort, a joy in settling where you are but not ignoring the pleasure of the rest of the world. This comes clear with "Alphabet City" which rocks like early Steve Earle and the Dukes or the V-Roys or any classic of May's older band The Lilybands - "You're the kind of girl who rides on the hood / Of your cousin's black Camaro in the harvest parade / You're the queen of some vegetable / Bestowed / With a tiara and dress your Mama made" and winking "Nobody's gonna mistake you for Nico / Hell, no one is gonna mistake / Me for John Cale / You and I ain't built for that speed / Or that level of temptation / And that's just as well". And directly following "Alphabet City" is "Better Than You Ever Thought It'd Be" a whip-crack shuffle, sung with a deceptive ease, "Riding out by the station / Make a birthday with my friend / It's a long distance dedication / You're halfway through the end / You're getting old / You're getting old, my friend / Nothing up to now has ever turned out right / Still better than you ever thought it'd be", the specifics of the lyrics are as important but they're reinforced and undercut sometimes simultaneously, by repetition and stopping short, the song sounds like he's smiling all the way through it but with that look in his eyes that what he's saying is important whether you notice or not.

The title track of the record sums up the themes and is the best see-you-around song to come out of Columbus since Tim Easton's "All the Pretty Girls Leave Town" and Watershed's "Anniversary", with a catalogue of fading photographs held up to the older, shabby buildings of the air base - "She flew off to Califonia / Daddy was stationed at the AFB / Transfered out to some Spaniard's beach" or "Took the train out east to live with her Mom / And that sweet one / Was the same rule of thumb" all alternating with the chorus: "That night I did not go home / I drove down to the lock's / The tower splayed the light / Over an MP's watch / So clear, as the sea / Twilight shadow's mocking me".

I think I've given the impression that this is a lyrically focused record and while the lyrics are some of the best he's ever written, the production his voice, handled by Joe Viers who recorded the acclaimed Lydia Loveless record on Bloodshot, gets textures out of his voice that I heard in a million tiny bars here in Columbus but I'd never quite heard on a record before. And everything else, every instrumental voice and color, springs to three dimensional life and plays exactly the part it needs to. Not just the best singer-songwriter record I've heard all year, it's in the running for the soul record to beat. This is the kind of record that makes me pissed off I don't write more and makes me want to call a friend I hadn't seen in a while and say let's get some coffee, that makes me want to be more present in my life and reminds me to love the world more.

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