Diatribes by Joah

Friday Jam: Pharcyde

2009-11-13T06:00:00-06:00

Another '90s classic...Drrrrrooop! So glad I got to see them at last weekend's Fun Fun Fun Fest...

Travis Barker is sick on the drums

2009-11-12T11:40:00-06:00

Joah Spearman

Jay-Z in Austin...it doesn't get much better

2009-11-11T15:29:02-06:00

Every year I make lists. The lists cover all sorts of things...things I'd like to accomplish (write a book), places I'd like to go (Brazil), and even concerts I'd like to see. I've seen hundreds of my favorite artists and bands over the years, but there are five that I've been dying to see for years. Radiohead, Rage Against the Machine, Daft Punk, A Tribe Called Quest and, you guessed it, Jay-Z.

I'm not sure why it took me so long, but I finally saw the Jiggaman himself last night at the Frank Erwin Center, the same arena where I helped with game-day operations for the Texas Longhorns basketball team for four years. It was a surreal experience, seeing the most influential black music artist of my lifetime standing on a stage not even 100 feet away. He stood there, like I've seen him on TV for years, looking swagtastic, triumphant, and completely in command of the 10,000 or so people in front of him.

The Austin American-Statesman's review of the show, believe it or not, is spot on when it wrote, "the show in total was a confirmation of Jay-Z as singular force of nature, the guy who can make an arena pretty much combust..."

After catching the end of N.E.R.D.'s opening set, Jay-Z, backed by a 10-piece band he calls "the Roc Boys" and Memphis Bleek, hit the stage and almost immediately arms were up, Rocafella diamonds were in the air and the swagger rating in the room went off the charts. Thousands of white, black, Latino, Asian Austinites laced up their freshest sneakers, hottest downtown dresses and pumps and the unifying factor was a former drug dealer from Brooklyn, New York City, as Jay repeated throughout the show.

Fourteen-plus years into the industry with 11...count 'em 11 number one albums (one more than Elvis Presley as he pointed out), and Jay-Z is far removed from his criminal past. Today, he stands matched only by his protege, of sorts, Kanye West, as the most sought-after, globally-acclaimed artist who calls the U.S. home.

Radiohead, Springsteen, U2, Madonna and The Rolling Stones may be bestsellers on the tour circuit as well, but they could never pull the kind of crowd I saw last night. And I'm not sure any of them have been as important to American life, fashion and pop culture as Jay-Z over the last decade.

For the first four or five songs, I was on cloud nine in profound astonishment of my very presence at this show...or maybe at Jay-Z's presence in my city. Either way, the Stateman is right, "on this night every word the man delivered was gospel to the thirsty faithful." A fan of Jay-Z since Reasonable Doubt, I rapped along to every lyric, danced up a good sweat, and had the best arena concert experience I've ever had, which is saying a lot for a show at the Erwin Center...

At one point, Jay-Z had everyone put up their lighters and cell phones with the stage lights dimmed and, as if the experience wasn't already mind-blowing, it made the scene even more remarkable. What I saw wasn't black faces or white faces, young people or old...what I saw was a man who has been at the top of his game for so long that, regardless of my iPhone battery life, could (and did) shine an ever brighter light on a city that calls itself "the Live Music Capital of the World."

Read of the Week: Bob Lefsetz' "Herbie's Story"

2009-11-07T13:44:12-06:00

Here are some excerpts, but I recommend you read the entire thing here.

***

"We're too old.

That's what Herbie Hancock said at Quincy Jones' Music Consortium.

He told a story. Of being in Japan and getting one of the original PlayStations.

Now Herbie considers himself to be technologically adept. When he got back to the States, he hooked the PlayStation up, even though the instructions were in Japanese. But he couldn't get past the first level of the one and only included video game, involving samurai warriors. After three or four hours, he gave up.

But a few weeks later, his buddy came over with his nine year old son, Ryan. When Herbie told Ryan he had a PlayStation, the kid started bouncing off the walls, he was doing cartwheels. Herbie led him to the living room, told him he'd had trouble figuring it out and to give it a go.

Half an hour later, after catching up with his bud, Herbie returned to the living room to find Ryan on level four of the samurai game. Ryan started explaining what was going on. This warrior was a force for good, this one a force for bad, this one could be both, depending on how you played.

Point being kids today are born into technology, they've got a natural facility. We oldsters, as adept as we may become, will always be a step behind. With children it's instinct. The children are literally the future."

***

"They get all this, we oldsters do not. Our role is not to put up barriers, but to enable kids. Give them tools, support and money so they can grow the future. Which is coming upon us ever faster. More rewarding for the individual as we go."

***

"There's a generation gap miles deep. You might think your kid is your best friend, that you're aware of everything he does, what he's thinking, but you're clueless. Even if you steal his phone, check his texts and IM's, you don't know what's going on in his mind, the way he processes information, the opportunities he sees. What's the cliche? Lead or get out of the way? Make no mistake, the kids are the leaders. Either help them, or step aside."

Friday Jam: Special Ed

2009-11-06T06:00:00-06:00

Amazing lyricist for his day...even if 99% of his rhymes were untrue.

Scorpion Child: "We all came to Austin to form a band."

2009-11-05T11:51:46-06:00

You’ve all heard the saying, “Sex, Drugs and Rock’n’Roll,” but have you heard Scorpion Child?

A week ago, I sat outside of their Tuesday evening practice session, listening to them power through songs with titles like “Million Lines” and “Nose Whiskey” in a room the size of a walk-in closet in South Austin. “Damn, these guys are fucking rock stars!” I found myself muttering.

When lead singer Aryn Schwartz opened the door, inviting me in to hear the last two songs inside with bassist Shaun Avants offering toilet paper for ear protection, it reminded me that I’d come a long way since hearing about this band several months back.

***

I moved back to Austin the Monday after Barack Obama was inaugurated. I had learned enough, at least for now, about life in D.C. and was ready for round two in Austin.

By the following Saturday after a night of drinking and dancing at Beauty Bar at the CD release party for Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears, I knew two things about Austin that still stand true:

1.    Beauty Bar had quickly replaced D.C.’s Saint Ex as my go-to bar.
2.    Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears were going to be the best buzz band out of Austin in 2009 with the release of their album.

Like Saint Ex, Beauty Bar is a place where the DJs measure their skill not by how good it sounds in the headphones, but by how many people are moving their feet. I like that.

And Black Joe Lewis, who is more James Brown than Jay-Z, isn’t just buzz worthy because the lead single, “Bitch, I Love You,” is an eyebrow-raiser…it’s more so because he and his band represent Austin at its best; a soulful singer with loads of conviction in his lyrics and a backing band with loads of talent; they even made room for a horn section!

Still, the most important thing that happened that night was that I met Aryn and he told me about Scorpion Child.

***

They’re from St. Louis, Corpus Christi, and Houston and, their newest member, Chris Hodges (rhythm guitar), is the lone Austin native in the band. They all call Austin home, especially since Scorpion Child was born in the summer of 2006.

“We all came to Austin to form a band,” Aryn stated, with Jeremy Cruz (drums) and Asa Savage (lead guitar) agreeing. None of them knew each other before they moved to Austin.

Over the last three years, they’ve played over a dozen different venues in Austin. They’ve played the Red River scene – Headhunters, Club Deville, Red7, Beerland, Beauty Bar – and they’ve played for the Sixth Street crowd, including a Rolling Stones/KnuckleRumbler show during SXSW at Peckerheads and a show last Friday at Maggie Mae’s. And they’ve played more legendary venues like Emo’s, Stubb’s (indoors) and Antone’s, one of their favorite stages.

“In Cleveland, there are three venues for local bands and in Pittsburgh there is like one,” said Aryn.

The diversity of venues in Austin is almost as good for the band as it is for the fans. They’ve played for frat guys and Westlake kids fresh off their boats in Lake Travis and they’ve played for out-of-towners during SXSW and locals who have nothing better to do on a weekday night.

Austin is attracting professionals, both young and old, from the East and West Coasts, and music fans are coming from all over. The goal for a band like Scorpion Child is to get enough of them to generate the kind of buzz that catches the attention of label reps and promoters.

Austin City Limits Festival, along with the TV show, have helped make Austin stand out as a live music hub and Scorpion Child is hoping to make the most of their residency in this city. Although they think ACL Festival doesn’t give enough chances for local bands, they’re thankful for the major attention Austin gets due to the festival.

“It draws attention to Austin, and as soon as one is over people are already talking about the next one,” said Jeremy.

The other one is SXSW, a festival that caters to small bands. The opportunities given to local bands is more to their liking, but it’s also a stressful time when guys are managing their jobs, at hip coffee shops and bars, with their shows. They played four gigs in one week at this year’s SXSW and just submitted their application for next year’s.

“It helps to keep you focused and the festivals give you goals without even having to leave this city,” Shaun opined.

All the music love in Austin breeds a lot of competition, at least you’d think so, but they say that’s not really the case. Bands like Pack of Wolves, Tia Carerra, Black Angels, and Trail of Dead are sources of both friendship and admiration, more so than envy.

Aryn has lived in cities in the Midwest that are fiercely competitive and he credits a live music culture in Austin where “people make an effort to come out” for a more easy-going, supportive atmosphere.

“The competition helps you get better and do something different, find your own sound. There are more rock bands, playing blues and heavy, here (in Austin) and we’re friends with a lot of those bands,” Aryn added.

As for how they became friends, it was Shaun and Asa who first met, around six years ago. Then Aryn, then Jeremy followed by Chris, who joined the band earlier this year. Before Scorpion Child, Chris played in many of the other guys were fans of, and the camaraderie that comes with being a local musician isn’t too dissimilar from that of a fraternity. Only this college town emphasizes live music more than keg stands and toga parties.

***

I’m not sure exactly what he said that Saturday night at Beauty Bar, but I remember ordering a 7-and-7, my drink of choice, from the bartender who happened to be Aryn. He ended up telling me about his band’s upcoming gig at Club Deville.

I didn’t know Scorpion Child was anything special when Aryn first mentioned his band, but there was something in his voice that led me to believe they’d be special.

A lot of my friends aren’t the type to drop $10 to see a random local band, but I’m always on the lookout for talent…not because I’m a manager or anything. I’m just in it for the music. So a few weeks later, I rolled solo over to Deville to check out the band not fully knowing what to expect.

A couple of hours and a few drinks later, and I had found my religion, but it wasn’t until months later that I knew my calling. I was to become a disciple of Austin’s live music scene, with the daunting responsibility of writing its bible.

Scorpion Child, with Aryn’s psychedelic words matched by what I’d describe as OMG guitar riffs (Asa) and backed by heart-pumping bass lines (Shaun Avants) and head-nodding drum kicks (Jeremy Cruz) would make up one of many stories chronicled in its pages.

From that first show to last week’s sit-down interview, I’ve seen Scorpion Child nearly a dozen times, as a band. This doesn’t include the countless hours I’ve shot the shit with Aryn and the guys as friends. This is how I’ve learned more about their story as a band and as individuals than any tape recorder could tell me.

Over that span, I’ve seen firsthand why Austin is indisputably the Live Music Capital of the World.

“There’s HAAM (Health Alliance for Austin Musicians), which probably wouldn’t happen in another city. This city is appreciating of live music and it wants to keep musicians here,” said Jeremy. “They’re trying to do rail, affordable housing and health services for local musicians and people are moving here from Houston and Dallas, not the other way around.”

I’d add L.A., New York, and a slew of other cities to the list of cities they’re moving here from as well.

I imagine many of them will become Scorpion Child fans too.

What do tonight's Gov. election results tell us?

2009-11-03T22:03:53-06:00

Obviously the big story tonight is that two Republicans took over governorships formerly held by Democrats (New Jersey's Jon Corzine and Virginia's Tom Kaine) less than one year into President Obama's term.

I'm not going to pretend to be extremely knowledgeable on the newly-elected Republican governors of New Jersey and Virginia, Chris Christie and Bob McDonell, respectively. I'm not going to write a diatribe about how they represent a shift back to conservative (i.e. anti-abortion, pro-marriage [whatever that means]) policies.

In Jersey, Christie, who was outspent by more than $12 million by Corzine, trumped an incumbent with the current and former Democratic presidents at his side for many of his campaign stops.

In Virginia, McDonell proved that the growing national profile of Governor Kaine, who doubles as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, couldn't stop him from becoming Virginia's first Republican governor since 2002 in a state that doesn't allow consecutive terms for its chief executive.

But the only stories I'm really interested in are the ones that haven't been written yet.

1) Does this show a return to traditional voter breakdown with fewer African-American and young voters and what will this mean in next year's mid-term elections?

2) Will this be a trigger for the Republican Party to do a more complete search for a legitimate presidential candidate in 2012, sensing an opportunity, or will they rest on their '08 laurels and field the candidates we already know?

I'm going to keep my head down here in Austin, but I'll keep my ears tuned in.

Learn more about the Institute for Responsible Citizenship

2009-11-03T17:00:00-06:00

I had the pleasure of working with the founder and participants in I4RC while I was living in D.C. This is an organization I am very proud of and always see great things from, most recently one of their fellows was named a Rhodes Scholar. Another was a Truman Scholar. Both were first-gen college kids.