====================================================[February 20, 1995]= __ | __ _ _ ___ | || ___ | __ __ (__ | | | \/ | ____) |___ || |___) |__ (__) | | ___) |___| | | | |___| |___) || |____ Editor: Bob Gajarsky Internet: gajarsky@pilot.njin.net Sr. Contributors: Jeremy Ashcroft, Martin Bate, Al Crawford, Dan Enright, Tim Kennedy, Reto Koradi, David Landgren, Tim Mohr, Joe Silva, John Walker Other Contributors: Kelley Crowley, Tim Hulsizer, Melissa Pellegrin, P. Nina Ramos, Michelle Richmond, Linda Scott Ali Sinclair, Jon Steltenpohl, Jorge Velez Scott Williams Technical Staff: Chris Candreva, Dave Pirmann, Damir Tiljak, Jason Williams Address all comments, subscriptions, etc. to gajarsky@pilot.njin.net ================================================================== All articles in Consumable remain (C) copyright their author(s). Permission for re-publication in any form other than within this document must be obtained from the editor. ================================================================== .------------. | Contents |-. `------------' | `------------' REVIEW: Morrissey, _World of Morrissey_ by Bob Gajarsky REVIEW: Ned's Atomic Dustbin, 0.522 (Import) by Martin Bate INTERVIEW: Velvet Crush by Tim Mohr REVIEW: Massive Attack, _Protection_ by David Landgren REVIEW: Low Pop Suicide, _The Death of Excellence_ by Jon Steltonpohl CONCERT REVIEW: Quintana Roo by Ali Sinclair TOUR DATES: Bad Religion, Phil Coulter, Laszlo Gardony, Hootie and the Blowfish, Toad the Wet Sprocket, Manic Street Preachers, Sponge NEWS: American Music Club, Beavis & Butthead, Black Crowes, Lollapalooza '95, Ned's Atomic Dustbin / Board AID ERRATA THE READERS WRITE BACK! Back Issues of Consumable --- REVIEW: Morrissey, _World of Morrissey_ (Sire/Reprise) - Bob Gajarsky The oft-quoted, idolized or despised former lead singer of the Smiths, Morrissey, has returned with another bits and pieces compilation titled _World of Morrissey_. _World_ features fourteen singles, B-sides and previously unavailable (in the United States) live tracks. A disjoint collection of songs with no real common denominator, except the man on vocals, _World_ does display the many sides of Morrissey. "Have-A-Go Merchant" is a biting answer to the former lead singer of 10,000 Maniacs, Natalie Merchant, who would cover Morrissey's "Everyday Is Like Sunday". Morrissey was reportedly upset at their version of the song and responds in kind on this rocking track. Was that "rock" word used? Yes, Steven has come back on track with the music most suited to his unique voice. Two of the three "new" songs - the aforementioned Natalie Merchant single and "Whatever Happens I Love You" - are definite returns to form for Morrissey. The A-side for those two tracks, "Boxers" (the current single), is very similar musically to his commercial American breakthrough, "The More You Ignore Me, The Closer I Get". The three live tracks selected for inclusion here are from the album _Beethoven Was Deaf_, which was only available in the States via import. "Sister I'm A Poet", arguably Morrissey's best B-side, is probably the best of these live tracks. "Moon River", the B-side to _Vauxhall and I_'s "Hold On To Your Friends", is a slow 9 minute tour through the Mancini classic. Surprisingly, Morrissey pulls this one off quite well, in a manner similar to 1994's (U.K. import) duet with Siouxie Sioux, "Interlude". A duet which *does* appear on here is "My Love Life" - Morrissey's plea to be one of the two people in a relationship comes off strong, countered by the Pretenders' Chrissie Hynde on backup vocals. And, "The Loop" highlights Morrissey and his former rockabilly backup band at one of their peak performances. Criticisms of the collection? The inclusion of five songs which have already appeared elsewhere on the serves no purpose other than as filler; this could have been better used by including B-sides which have yet to appear on an album. Devotees of Morrissey have probably already purchased the other material on this album elsewhere, and won't need to get this release. However, this collection is a must-get for those fans who joined on the Morrissey bandwagon either on the strength of the _Vauxhall and I_ or _Your Arsenal_ albums. By helping partially fill the gap of "missing" Morrissey material, _World of Morrissey_ can expose these listeners to truly quality music not previously available in the United States. TRACK LISTING: Whatever Happens I Love You; Billy Budd; Jack The Ripper (Live); Have A Go Merchant; The Loop; Sister I'm A Poet (Live); You're The One For Me, Fatty (Live); Boxers; Moon River; My Love Life; Certain People I Know; The Last of the Famous International Playboys; We'll Let You Know; Spring-Heeled Jim --- REVIEW: Ned's Atomic Dustbin, _0.522_ (Sony, European Import) - Martin Bate Ned's Atomic Dustbin are now at a crossroads in their career. Of their contemporaries, The Wonder Stuff have called it a day, Pop Will Eat Itself have re-invented themselves to critical acclaim and Carter the Unstoppable Sex Machine have continued to plow the same old furrow to a dwindling fanbase. So where do the Neds go next ? The new album _Brainbloodvolume_ is due out in the near future so that should answer the question, but in the meantime there's this cut-price compilation of all their non-album tracks (with the unfortunate exclusion of the classic single "Trust"). This a full and very mixed bag - everything from the EP tracks that inhabited the early live sets to later dance remixes and one-off compilation cover-versions. There's even a couple of new songs in the shape of "Wirey" and "Perfectly Rounded". If these are anything to go by then the next album will see Ned's giving us pretty much more of the same. If that's the case, then mixed with the lack of press support, it looks as if there'll be little to tear 'the kids' away from their Oasis and Blur records. Ned's don't fit in as part of the shiny Brit-Pop explosion - they lack glamour - and the fickle UK press seem to have forgotten that Ned's once released a debut album that buzzed with hit-singles and live favourites just as _Definitely Maybe_ did. Admittedly they spoilt things a little by going all grown up on us and coming back with a glossy, restrained second album but in retrospect that was still a great collection of guitar-pop songs. The best stuff here is the early stuff where Ned's were taking elements of dour indie bands like The Cure and Joy Division and marrying them to a punk-pop buzz, topped off with Jonn's happy-sad comments on relationships. The fact that they looked and acted like 5 members of the audience was part of the attraction. Now you need a 2-piece suit and/or an arrogant demeanour to get praise. What makes this collection patchy is the later material - the non- chronological order masks the point where the songs stopped being integral parts of EPs and live sets and start becoming B-Side filler. The cover versions, the lackluster "Saturday Night" and the dreadful techno attempt at "I've Never Been to Me", are best skipped and a good 25% of the rest is simply Neds-by-numbers. The techno remixes of "Intact" and "Not Sleeping Around" are OK though, even brave, given that they came at a time when your average guitar-pop fan saw anything with a dance beat as the enemy. And the orchestral re-working of "Cut Up" makes me smile every time. In the end, if Sony releases this CD at the ultra-low price it enjoyed in the UK when released a few months ago, you can't go far wrong. Otherwise, it has to be said that it hangs together dreadfully as an album, and is really only essential if you're a fan trying to fill the gaps in your collection. --- INTERVIEW: Velvet Crush (Creation/Sony) - Tim Mohr Velvet Crush emerged from Providence, Rhode Island to much critical acclaim in 1991. Consisting of singer and bassist Paul Chastain, drummer Ric Menck, and guitarist Jeffrey Burchardt, Velvet Crush created a bubbling low- fi guitar pop that made the English music press drool. The sound recalled Big Star or a jangly, post-Byrds band in overdrive. Their full-length debut, _In the Presence of Greatness_, was hailed by Britain's influential NME magazine as one of the top 50 albums of 1991, and the band was courted by Creation records. _In the Presence of Greatness_ was produced by Matthew Sweet using an 8-track home studio. For their next project, Creation released an e.p. of a BBC session, including a redone, slowed-down, softer version of one of the standout album tracks, "Drive Me Down." Then there was a long silence from the Velvet Crush camp. In late summer 1994, Velvet Crush re-emerged with the album _Teenage Symphonies To God_ and the lead single "Hold Me Up." Mitch Easter, known for his early work with REM, produced the album in North Carolina. The Athens, GA connection is solidified by mixing from Scott Litt, REM's long-time producer. _Teenage Symphonies_ sounds much more clearly American - with shades of country and southern rock, and a nod to the mid-80s Minneapolis sound of Soul Asylum and the Replacements. Tempos vary much more than on the debut, from the slow, jangly "Time Wraps Around You" and "Weird Summer," to the southern boogie of "Something's Gotta Give" with its honky-tonk piano. REM's early fascination with the Byrds is mirrored by Velvet Crush, with a cover on the album ("Why Not Your Baby" from a Byrds side-project) and another as a b-side on "Hold Me Up." Since the release of _Teenage Symphonies_ Velvet Crush has been touring, first in the States and now in Europe. The tour winds up in Britain in late February, at which time the band plans to take a break and then go back to the studio. Consumable talked with singer and bassist Paul Chastain in Berlin. Consumable: With _In the Presence of Greatness_ you were called the "new gods of guitar pop" by the English press. Still, there are very few American bands on Creation: did all the great press help get their attention, or how did this come about? Paul Chastain: Well, the first record was on Creation as well [in Britain], but it was just licensed to them. We recorded it ourselves and then licensed it to them. So then, after that happened, they decided they wanted to sign us. So we took a long time negotiating our contract - which explains the large gap between our two records. It took like a year and a half to negotiate. It was kind of hairy - but anyway it was good because it's a good label to be on as far as being an artist is concerned. As far as artists' managers it may not be such a good life...[chuckles] C: Were there many visible changes for you as a band when Sony stepped in and bought half of the shares of Creation? PC: All it did was facilitate us being able to get money out of them, which is a good thing. And Creation being solvent for more than a week at a time - because they really did run, you know, just kind of week to week and they didn't know if they'd be able to keep going...The Sony thing sort of helped stabilize them financially. Also they're becoming more business-like as a label. They're moving from being an indie to sort-of a major label - at least in the way they're run. It was just a really small label when it began and now they've got so many acts that they need to start running it a little differently - and Sony is kind of helping them do that. They have people that coordinate with them as far as Europe and America, for instance. It actually is good, I think. It helps us. C: Couldn't that mean, on the other hand, that they concentrate on the financially successful bands, like Ride and Primal Scream, and neglect the smaller bands? PC: That's sort of what they've done in the past because those are the bands that made the money for the label. But now, being more solvent, it probably enables them to look for other stuff, or stuff that's not taking off right out of the box. It's hard to say - I don't keep up with the English music press and I barely even know any of the bands on Creation. I know the big ones, but I don't know how other bands in our position are treated. Sometimes we have to fight pretty hard to get things going. I mean, we've been able to do what we wanted to do but once the record is out it's a different story. It's hard to get press going. And since we're not English and we're not over there to, like, call them... Because the way they usually run, or used to, is people from bands would be calling people at Creation saying, "Why isn't my thing in NME" and yelling at people. But we can't really do that because we're sitting across the ocean there. We can have our manager call but it's not quite the same. We're kind of out of touch with it in a bad way. They haven't given up on the record yet though. The American label *has* almost given up on the record [begrudging laughter]. C: Is Sony distributing it in the U.S. too? PC: Yeah, it's on 550/Epic, a small branch of Epic. But it's Sony. It's all Sony. Yep, we're a Sony band [sarcastically]. We have a Sony publishing deal and since Creation became part of Sony we're totally...it's like an in-house thing. Which is kind of good in a way because people know what's going on with you instead of being on two different labels. C: _In the Presence of Greatness_ was produced by Matthew Sweet - how did you get together? PC: Ric [Menck], our drummer, knew Matthew from years ago. Matthew used to live in the Midwest and that's where our band is from [Illinois] - although we didn't form there, we just grew up there. But Ric actually met Matthew when he used to live in Athens [Georgia] - when that was happening down there, REM, B-52s and all that. C: Is that also where you got to know Mitch Easter, who produced the latest record? PC: Kind of. I think Ric did meet Mitch around the same time...Ric just went down there because it was supposed to be happening there in the early 80s. He just wanted to go down and see what was going on. And he had been corresponding with Matthew. So then Matthew moved to New Jersey after he got signed to Zoo. And that's where we recorded _In the Presence_: we just went to his house. It wasn't planned to be a record, we just went to do some demo tapes. We just drove down there on the weekends [from Providence] and bashed out some songs and had fun. Then eventually we had ten or 12 songs and we said, "oh...well, let's send it sround," and we sent it around to Creation and they said yes. C: Did you like having a bigger production budget this time around? Do you like the sound better on _Teenage Symphonies_ than on _In the Presence_? PC: I like both things for what they were. The first one had *no* budget - we just bought tape and there was one microphone on the drums and Matthew had a little studio. It was nice to have money to actually go somewhere you wanted to do it and have money to pay people to come and play on your record. That was nice. C: Speaking of having people play on your record, you have Stephen Duffy on _Teenage Symphonies_. Is this the same Stephen Duffy who was in the earliest Duran Duran and went on to form the Lilac Time (Phonogram, Creation) and do a solo project with Nigel Kennedy? PC: Right. He's a friend of one of our friend's at Creation. We met him and he's become a pal of ours. He was on a sort-of American sojourn during the time we recorded and we said "come on down to North Carolina and sing some things..." We were getting pretty tired at the time, bogged down. We were almost done, but we were like, "uuuuuugh." It was overwhelming, too many songs... C: So that's when you collaborated on "Faster Days," is it? PC: Yeah. That song we had parts of - we had it musically, the arrangement was done. We did the basics, recorded that, and then left it aside. We took a break and I went home and worked on the melody. But I didn't have all the words - I just had the chorus part. So I said, "hey, Stephen..." And he finished the words and it came out pretty cool. He just finished a record that we played on. Also with Mitch Easter, but at a different studio. It's really good. C: For a while the press was making a big thing about Alex Chilton as an influence, with the English press harping on the American sound of British bands like Teenage Fanclub and Eugenius. Do you find yourself lumped in with a percieved post-Big Star scene, particularly Teenage Fanclub? PC: We've always had this problem of being lumped in with whoever we're friends with. We known Teenage Fanclub for a few years; we originally met them when they were on tour in the States. They were touring in some old stationwagon that broke down and they ended up staying over at a friend of ours' house. They're great guys and we also have very similar musical tastes. And with Matthew Sweet in America we get the same thing. We play with him: Ric plays drums on his records, and we toured with him on the Girlfriend Tour as his band. The _Girlfriend_ record was bigger - kind of a big record - so now he's one of our "influences." The same thing in Britain - we're always like a baby Teenage Fanclub. But we've been playing longer than them - I'm slightly older than most of them. It's kind of frustrating. But I love their music, and I love Matthew's music. It's not bad to be lumped in with them because I like what they do. It's bad because some people think you formed because you heard this or that band or something. It's possible to have similar taste and coexist. I don't think we sound like them but I think we come from similar areas. But we have a problem, though, because Sony doesn't know what to do with us. We don't sound like [most commercially successful bands, particularly the long list of post-Seattle bands]. Sony likes us, they just don't know what to shoot it for. So they're apt to give up quickly because they don't know. They're like, "we'll try this." Then it doesn't work and they're like, "oh well, make another record." And we're like: "No! We're going to stay on the road." C: When you do get ready to record again, will you stick with Mitch Easter? Are you happy with the way _Teenage Symphonies_ came out? PC: Yeah, I think we're going to work with Mitch again, but do it a bit differently. He's a great guy to work with - very intuitive musically and a great musician. We know him now - he actually toured with us in Japan. He knows us better than he wants to by now [laughs]. We'd like to make a couple of records with him because we find we work well with him. It's hard to find that. *Not* that it was a *huge* commercial success [laughs]. We were pleased with what happened and we want to do it a different way next time but use the same people. It's comfortable. After the interview the band runs through their soundcheck just a few minutes before the opening band comes on. The atmosphere is very relaxed. In concert Velvet Crush are joined by a second guitar player and run through a solid set, throwing in some of their slower songs alongside the rocky numbers. Paul Chastain's voice is slightly gravelly but not deep in pitch, reminiscent of Soul Asylum or Died Pretty. The most striking aspect of the show is how much the band now seems to continue the legacy of straight-ahead rock: southern-tinged Driving N Crying, country-hued REM, or the Replacements on _Tim_ and _Pleased To Meet Me_. The slower, meditative songs have the longing drawl of REM's "Rockville" or "Fall On Me," while louder tunes rock- out. Velvet Crush is definitely an oddity on Creation, as the only other band that comes close to this sort of thing is Primal Scream on it's Stones- inflected ballads. Even Teenage Fanclub never really sound like they come from the whisky-soaked part of the world that produced the Jayhawks and the Replacements. If you like the sound of wide-open places and aching, forlorn melodies, catch Velvet Crush in Britain or pick up _Teenage Symphonies To God_. --- REVIEW: Massive Attack, _Protection_ (Virgin) - David Landgren Massive Attack come from Bristol, England, a sea-side town just a stone's throw away from the Welsh border. There was not a whole lot to do there until The Wild Bunch started putting together sound systems and got the place jumping. The tsunami of energy that they unleashed is about all washed up, but the core members stayed together to form the group. _Protection_ is their second album, following on from _Blue Lines_ some three years later. Overall, the tone of this album is more coherent than the first. The hesitancy and unevenness are gone, replaced by a continuity from start to finish -- a blend of entrancing rhythms and melodies, and lyrics that speak of alienation, loneliness and despair. Gone are the generic soul vocals of Shara Nelson (which I think is/was the least best part of _Blue Lines_). This time Daddy G, 3D and Mushroom have called in two chanteuses, the sublime Tracy Thorn (one half of Everything But The Girl) to sing the opening track and _Better Things_; and Nicolette (a cross between Billy Holliday and Claire Grogan (ha! hands up all those who remember Altered Images)), to sing _Three_ and _Sly_. Horace Andy, rapper on the first album, is still around, and can be heard on _Spying Glass_. Daddy G, Tricky and 3D sing or rap on most of the rest. The music is the same sumptuous mix of laid-back soul, hip-hop, reggae, dub and rap, but with a new perspective that time and maturity gives. Although not designed to set the dance-floor ablaze, all of the tracks have sufficient pull to get all but the most recalcitrant legs, hips and shoulders asway. Like the first album, no lyric sheet is supplied, so it is only with repeated listening that the songs slowly unfold themselves. And therein lies much of the strength of the album. The songs talk of intimate, personal things, such as the loss of trust, doubts about relationships and so on, and that underneath it all, maybe, just maybe, there is a spark of hope. The high point of the album is the piece "Eurochild". A foreboding, restless, softly spoken rap by 3D and Daddy G. Add a dash of scratching, a pinch of samples, hook it all together with a rumbling bass and you have one hell of a song. Also of note is the instrumental "Heat Miser", a possible third "Poem Without Words" (c.f. Anne Clark's _Hopeless Cases_). And finally, it's about time someone kicked The Doors off their pedestal. Massive Attack massacre (live on stage!) "Light My Fire" to close the album. It may not be to everyone's liking, but I find that their screechy rendition pretty well sums up what I thought about the original version in the first place. In summary, for anyone who already owns _Blue Lines_, or any of the countless remixes of other peoples' material (e.g. try and hunt down the recent Massive Attack remix of "Face A La Mer" by Les Negresses Vertes), _Protection_ will be an outstanding addition to your library. Otherwise, bear in mind there is not a lot of point going back to buy _Blue Lines_ after _Protection_: you'll probably be disappointed. I rated this album my no. 1 album for 1994 in the Consumable Online Writers' Top Ten. I still like as much as ever, and I give it a 9.5 out of 10. --- REVIEW: Low Pop Suicide, _The Death of Excellence_ (World Domination) - Jon Steltenpohl Low Pop Suicide is back with their second full album. _The Death of Excellence_ sounds more like a blessed rebirth of gothic torture than the death of anything. With their latest line-up, Low Pop Suicide strips down to the atmospheric, bare bones sound that made bands such as Bauhaus and the like so appealing. The lyrics are about searching, failing, and self loathing. A quick look at the titles tells a story: "Almost Said", "Humbled", "More Than This". The struggle to satisfy an unfulfilled something keeps _The Death of Excellence_ on an edge. The three members of Low Pop Suicide have made an "in your face" album. While 1992's _On the Cross of Commerce_ was muddy enough to hide most of the lyrics, _The Death of Excellence_ is clear and plain. The drums, the bass and the vocals are spared of too many distracting effects boxes. In fact, "Zombie" appears to be a completely acoustic track. It's refreshing to hear a band make "live", non-sequenced studio music after it has been compared favorably to Nine Inch Nails and Ministry. Still, even though they differ musically, Low Pop Suicide and these bands share the same emotional force and intensity in the way they play and sing. On _The Death of Excellence_, Low Pop Suicide doesn't really hide their musical influences. They add a heaping dose of the Bauhaus (and splinters Peter Murphy and Love and Rockets), take a little spice from the driving beats of bands such as Ride and The Charlatans U.K. and simmer the whole mix like a slow Hendrix song. However, while the influences of the past are certainly evident, Low Pop Suicide never becomes derivative. Their sound is simple. Rick Boston doesn't bother with cutesy imagery; he just sings it like it is. The band doesn't need show-off guitar solos or strange samples; they just play the music. Low Pop Suicide are atmospheric without being in the clouds; moody without begging for sympathy. In a word, Low Pop Suicide's music is honest. If _The Death of Excellence_ has any faults, it is the lack of an obvious radio-ready single. This isn't a bad thing, but it might not give you a chance to hear this album. "Life & Death" could probably be a hit, and check out "No Genius", the minute long send up of beat poets. You might listen for "Suicide Ego" to pop up on your college radio stations. Although probably written about the suicide of Low Pop Suicide's drummer, Jeff Ward, don't be surprised if DJ's play "Suicide Ego" in remembrance of Kurt Cobain. With _The Death of Excellence_, Low Pop Suicide shows all of the desirable qualities of a band. They are honest both lyrically and musically. The picture Low Pop Suicide paints is black, futile, and sparse. It should appeal to old fans of the classic Goth-rock groups and new fans of this generation's growling doom and gloomers. These folks will find that _The Death of Excellence_ fits right into their CD collection. For more information on Low Pop Suicide or the World Domination label, contact World Domination Enterprises by e-mail at worlddom@netcom.com --- CONCERT REVIEW: Quintana Roo, Grenoble, France February 10th, 1995 - Ali Sinclair Quintana Roo returned to the Entre-Pot on Friday night to the scene of the recording of their first CD like homecoming heroes. They returned to a full house, with people waiting outside trying to get in; tables and chairs scraped off the floor to provide more standing-room; even several groupie-lookalikes with skin-tight silver-plated clothing and scalpel-red nails, who'd been waiting impatiently at the door for the club to open. The show was opened by Jean-Philippe, guitarist with another local band, who gently invoked the spirit of the evening with a touch of inspired solo flamenco. Then Quintana Roo arrived on stage, and the awoken spirit of Spain and Mexico was singing, dancing, stamping its feet and rock'n'rolling for the next two-and-a-half hours - and lingering in the ears and memories of the four-hundred people who were there to clap, to dance, to cheer and to whistle for more. Even the hardened drinkers who prop up the bar night after night, regardless of the music, were enthusiastically stomping and cheering and tapping their glasses like castanets. A mixture of new songs and old favorites. "Iznajar" and "Caminos Azules", always powerful and haunting, Pierre's vocals were strong and clear with the bass pounding out a Spanish rhythm. The new songs, such as "Onirismo" and "Tierra de Nadie" were well-received and well-performed as the songs that were recorded at the Entre-Pot fourteen months ago. Like a team of matadors in the bullring of the concert hall, each member of the band came forward, teased, tormented and left their mark on the crowd, then blended back into formation: Greg's soaring guitar solos, Jean's vocals on "Direccion Unica" and his "Anonimo" drum solo, Christophe's happy-dancing guitar and percussion and Pierre's flute were all part of a team, slaying the audience yet leaving them crying for more. Three encores were demanded and given. It was after one o'clock in the morning, and still the crowd called for more; Quintana Roo came back for one final, rousing encore that set the whole room dancing. Their CD, _Live at the Entre-Pot_, is available in France from the FNAC chain of record stores. Quintana Roo can be seen throughout France at the following sites: March 2-3 Cantina, Chamonix March 9-10 Simrock, Flens March 11 St. Geoire en Faucignl March 24 Bonneville April 1 Festival, Chambery April 14 La Marmite, Preuilly April 15 Le Vintilo, Bourges April 21 Le Perfecto, Bourges May 11 Summum, Grenoble May 12 L'Oddito, Rouen May 17 L'Oddito, Havre May 18 Jazz Rock Cafe, Havre May 20 Retro Bar, Caen --- TOUR DATES! Bad Religion Tour Dates Feb. 20 Austin, TX Liberty Lunch Feb. 21 Dallas, TX Deep Ellum Live Feb. 23 Albuquerque, NM UNM Ballroom Feb. 24 Mesa, AZ Mesa Amphitheater Feb. 25-26 Las Vegas, NV Huntridge Theater March 15 Lahaina, Maui, HI Hi Blue Tropics March 17 Honolulu, HI After Dark One of Ireland's foremost musical members, Phil Coulter, will be touring America in support of his new album, _American Tranquility_. Tour dates are as follows: Feb. 24 Lowell, MA Lowell Auditorium Feb. 26 Ft. Lauderdale, FL Broward Center Feb. 28 Jacksonville, FL Florida Theatre March 3 Denver, CO Paramount Theatre March 4 St. Paul, MN O'Shaughnessy Auditorium March 5 Dubuque, IL Five Flags March 9 Albany, NY The Egg March 10 Boston, MA Symphony Hall March 11 Chicago, IL Rialto Theatre March 12 Chicago, IL Center East (Two shows) March 15 Westbury, NY Westbury Music Fair March 16 Fairfield, CT Fairfield University March 17 New York City, NY Carnegie Hall March 18 Valley Forge, PA Valley Forge Music Fair March 19 Manchester, CT Manchester High School March 23 Red Bank, NJ Count Basie March 24 Worcester, MA Mechanics Hall March 26 Cleveland, OH Masonic Hall March 27 Grand Rapids, MI Grand Center Devos Hall Jazz pianist Laszlo Gardony will be performing with his quintet at New York City's Blue Note cafe on Monday February 27 at 9 pm, 11 pm and 1 am. They will be performing original compositions from Gardony's latest recording, _Breakout_. Atlantic recording artist Hootie & The Blowfish are out on tour. All tour dates in March and April will also feature Toad the Wet Sprocket. Dates are as follows: Feb. 21 New Orleans, LA Tipitina's Feb. 23 Baton Rouge, LA Varsity Theatre Feb. 24 Houston, TX Fitzgerald's Feb. 25 Austin, TX Liberty Lunch Feb. 26 Dallas, TX Deep Ellum Live March 2 Santa Barbara, CA Arlington Theater March 3 Hollywood, CA PAladium March 4 San Diego, CA Soma March 6 Berkeley, CA Berkeley Comm. Theatre March 7 San Jose, CA Event Center Arena March 9 Portland, OR Schnitzer Concert Hall March 10-11 Seattle, WA Moore Theater March 12 Vancouver, BC Vogue Theater March 14 Bozeman OR Billings Mt Wilson Theatre March 16 Omaha, NE Music Hall March 17 Davenport, IA Augustana College March 18 Milwaukee, WI Eagles Ballroom March 20 Madison, WI Civic Center March 21 Des Moines, IA Civic Center March 23 Minneapolis, MN Roy Wilkins Auditorium March 24 Chicago, IL Aragon Ballroom March 25 Charleston, IL Eastern Il. Univ. March 27 Grand Rapids, Mi Calvin College March 28 Detroit, MI State Theatre March 30 Indianapolis, IN Egyptian Room April 1 Cincinnati, OH Taft Theatre April 3 Cleveland, OH Music Hall April 4 State College, PA Penn State University April 7 Pittsburgh, PA Palumbo Center April 8 Williamsport, PA Lycoming College These are the first set of tour dates for the Manic Street Preachers. An interview and album review will follow in the next issue of Consumable. Sponge will be playing on all these dates. Feb. 22 Phoenix, AZ Nile Theatre Feb. 23 Tucson, AZ Performance Center Feb. 24 Las Vegas, NV The Huntridge Feb. 25 Santa Barbara, CA The Underground Feb. 27 Palo Alto, CA The Edge March 1 San Francisco, CA Bottom of the Hill March 2 Modesto, CA The Street March 4 Los Angeles, CA Dragonfly --- NEWS! AMERICAN MUSIC CLUB fans who want to find out more on the band can join the AMC discussion list. The contact, Paul Austin, can be reached at firefly-request@world.std.com ; a simple "subscribe" in the message should be enough to ensure that you are added to the mailing list. BEAVIS AND BUTTHEAD are some of the new titles released by Sony Music Video, in conjunction with MTV. The two titles featuring the pubescent teenagers, _There Goes The Neighborhood_ and _Work Sucks_, both feature eight complete and uninterrupted (by music videos or commercials) episodes. In addition, _The Year In Rock: 1994_ (a highlight of the past year's MTV events) and _The Best of Liquid Television_ have both been released for home consumption. The BLACK CROWES are looking back to Jerry Garcia and company with their new _Amorica or Bust_ tour. All tickets sold for concerts now say "Audio Recording Allowed". In addition, local advertising states that "The Black Crowes invite their fans to make audio recordings of any performance". Lead singer Chris Robinson said, "This tour is definitely more bootleg friendly. The sets are different every night." LOLLAPALOOZA '95 will be promoted heavily through the new favorite tool on the Internet, the World Wide Web. Artists, organizers and other participants will be coming on-line in the months preceding the concert. The tour's creator, Perry Farrell (of Porno for Pyros) will be launching the site in March. It will be found at http://american.recordings.com/wwwof-music NED'S ATOMIC DUSTBIN, in conjunction with LIFEbeat, the music industry-fights AIDS organization, has created a contest to send someone to Los Angeles to attend Board AID. Board AID, which also includes Porno for Pyros, Biohazard, Face to Face and the Goats, will take place on Wednesday March 15 at Snow Summit Ski Resort in Big Bear, CA. Proceeds from the daylong celebrity snowboarding/music event will be used to help fight the AIDS virus. The contest will send the winner (and a guest) for a 3 day trip to Los Angeles to attend Board Aid from March 14-16. Entry blanks are available from your local snowboard or alternative music shop. The kickoff concert for this event will take place on March 12 at Los Angeles' Palladium, with artists Anthrax, Mighty Mighty Bosstones and Korn. --- ERRATA: In last week's issue, Joyrider was mistakenly identified in one location as Joytown. We apologize for any confusion this may have caused. --- THE READERS WRITE BACK! The Portishead review (in 2/6 issue of Consumable) was nicely written. There are rumors that David Lynch has indeed "snatched" them up for one of his upcoming films (might be his CRUMB...he is producing that one). - Dean C. I am glad that another music reviewer has taken the time to enjoy this superb CD. The British music press (such as Melody Maker) did give the album a good review, but it failed to make a great impact. The album itself is one of pure rage which has been skillfully harnessed by an effective mixture of Eastern and Western sounds. Thus creating not only a new sound but what I consider to be the "Fear of a Black Planet" for the 1990s. It is an immense album both musically and politically and it is one that really does make you think. So kids, wake up and see whats going on - buy this album! - Dean B. Outkast is straight out of Atlanta, just thought you should know that you gave credit to the wrong city and the wrong coast since Georgia is on the East coast. - Amber E. --- To get back issues of Consumable, check out: FTP: eetsg22.bd.psu.edu in the directory /pub/Consumable ftp.etext.org in the directory /pub/Zines/Consumable Gopher: diana.zems.etf.hr Engleski Jezik/Music/Consumable or Hrvastki Jezik/Glazbena Rubrika/Consumable (URL) gopher://diana.zems.etf.hr:70/11/eng/Music/Consumable http://www.westnet.com/consumable/Consumable.html (WWW) http://www.westnet.com (Delphi) Music Fandom forum; GO ENT MUSIC Web access contributed by WestNet Internet Services (westnet.com), serving Westchester County, NY. Address any written correspondence to Bob Gajarsky, Consumable Online, 409 Washington St. #294, Hoboken, New Jersey 07030 ===