Freelance Music Journalism / Nes Rednaaj Stranger
**Please Note: Nes Rednaaj was a pseudonym for my freelance work at The Stranger. It’s JA Andersen backwards. Aren’t I clever?
PREVIEWS -
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=19554
THE GUNG-HOS, THE GLORYHOLES, THE ONE AND ONLY TRUE MESSIAH, THE BULLET CLUB, DJ DENIM DADDY
(Sunset) It's E-Rock's birthday and the plan is to amaze you with his drumming prowess as he pulls double duty for the ever-increasingly kick-ass garage rockers the Gloryholes, as well as for the spanking new One and Only True Messiah. A night full of Seattle's rock pioneers (it's true, history does repeat itself, and sometimes that's a brilliant thing). The One and Only True Messiah feature the curious resurfacing of mythical howler, Steve Van Liew, of the long-defunct visionaries Overlord. The Gloryholes feature punk-purist frontman Doug Slug of old-school cult faves Sinister 6. You may not want the history lesson, but the cast of characters at this big, fun, messy party will certainly reestablish that killer rock and roll is timeless. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=19614
MISFITS, ZEKE
(Fenix) Despite the moniker, the headliners are NOT THE MISFITS. This band comprises Jerry Only (Misfits founding member) on bass and lead vocals, alongside Marky Ramone (Ramones, duh) on drums, and Dez Candena (Black Flag) on guitar. Sure, a lineup of legends. But, NOT THE MISFITS. An evening of Misfits, Black Flag, and Ramones songs. It's a flippin' punk rock variety show, and, from some reports, "boring." Recommended viewing (even though it's NOT THE MISFITS)? Yes. Why? Because for better or worse, the actual Misfits ruled, Black Flag was hugely influential, and Marky is the last (basically) original Ramone standing (RIP Joey, Dee Dee, and Johnny). To diffuse the possible threat of boredom, there's the fiercely intense Zeke trio, always rip-shreddingly good. They'll be playing Zeke songs. Fancy that. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=19416
MINISTRY, MY LIFE WITH THE THRILL KILL KULT
(Fenix) Al Jourgensen, the man that is Ministry, the dark lord of industrial metal and indiscrete substance abuse, is still alive (if you'd been wondering). The malevolent man has chronically produced a full and fabulous disaster of recordings and side projects with a revolving cast of characters spanning 15-plus years--including (but not limited to) the zenith "Psalm 69" release in '92, through to "Houses of the Mole" in '04. He never fails to shock and awe the masses via an aggressive discontent within his inescapable rhythmic pummelings. An evening of grime, glam, and grandeur (or delusions thereof), My Life with the Thrill Kill Cult's along for the very bumpy ride. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=29407
BUCKCHERRY, THE JET CITY FIX, HOMEWRECKER
(El Corazón) Buckcherry: sheep in wolf's clothing; '99 regurgitation of the Sunset Strip scene, featuring tattooed howler, pretty boy Joshua Todd belting out simple, slick, underbaked classic-rockesque ditties. Predictable career trajectory: a couple of CDs, a gigantic fireball of hype, major-label drama, bicker, break up, reform. And, here we are. Fair question: Does anyone care? Hell yeah. Comfort-food rock songs fronted by spazzy, swaggering Southern-Cali-surfer-turned-bad-boy that's all about sex, drugs, and rock and roll? C'mon, admit it, you care, and you have read books for the cover. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=30841
THE GOLDEN GODS, GUESTS
(Sunset) The Golden Gods are good—and funny. They are also generally called things like "classic hard rock," which is not the case. The case is they sound like the Didjits. Maybe they're the "New Didjits," except from SF, not Chicago. But the Golden Gods possess the same ricochet-rabbit quality to them—with hard-rock trappings, for sure. Of course, the Didjits were such a punk-cult thing, and existed a long time ago, too, that the reference might be useless. Although, if you never did see the Didjits, then you could pick up where you lamed out and go see the Golden Gods. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Listings?oid=30925
GBH, GOLDBLADE, BRISTLE, THE HOLLOWPOINTS
(El Corazón) GBH, Punk, Old. Goldblade, I dunno. Bristle, Punk, fine. Now, local boys THE HOLLOWPOINTS... This is the real deal, newcomer old-school punk. The kind of punks that give up their apartments to live in the van they tour in for a year. The kind of punks that roll the van, and play the Vera Project the next day, bloody gashes and all. One, Two, Three, maybe too much Social D., but, honestly, if the punk flag is still proudly waving, it's because of punks like the Hollowpoints, doing the work and taking the blows. Punk Rock On. NES REDNAAJ
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=25844
I regret getting old. Mostly, I regret that so many, many of the rock 'n' roll tribe aren't doing it as gracefully as I am. Rock is a game for the young and the brilliant. You need to be at least one of those. Take Mötley Crüe. Regrettably, Mick's got both feet in the grave, and Vince is just mostly lame, Tommy's still an unabashed spaz, but NIKKI still OWNS it—perpetually pretty and pitch perfect posturing. I regret that a lot of the over-40 set aren't representing for the rock so well. Then there's Rocket from the Crypt. This year featured the last ever Rocket show. I regret that not everyone could be there to bear witness to the greatness and the glory that was the unparalleled and brilliant RFTC laying it down, and walking away, and leaving the legacy intact. I regret that John Reis is not the boss of rock bands. Or me. Or Nikki. Because if you're not playing well anymore, you need to get out of the game. I regret knowing all too well of what I speak. JULIANNE ANDERSEN/OLD DOG ROCK PIMP
FEATURES:
Early Man:
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=30821
Himsa:
http://www.thestranger.com/seattle/Content?oid=31120
