BLOG IN YOUR FACE

I don’t consider myself a hater, but if I had to name some of the most annoying people in the world it would be that one friend that everyone has: The guy or gal that seeks out the most obscure and no-name bands or performers and completely shuns mainstream music. The minute that a performer/band makes a MySpace page, makes the Top Forty Countdown or gets any sort of public attention whatsoever, that friend of ours seems to have nothing good to say about the particular band/performer. Am I making any sense here? I mean, you know that friend; they probably wear really tight jeans and black t-shirts with some punk band that broke up in the early eighties, glittery belts, Converse All-Stars, etc. Oh my GAWD, they are annoying. They are always so bitter toward anyone’s music tastes. There is no way I could talk about Fall Out Boy or Jack Johnson without this jerk-off friend butting in with his/her two cents about “Fall Out Boy has totally crossed over into the Pop-Punk realm and they suck…” or “Jack Johnson hasn’t put out one good album since signing with a major label…” and “I went to this show at the American Legion Hall the other day and there were like 6 people there standing around smoking cigarettes watching this local band and it was so amazing dude…”

I don’t really know where I am going with this. I guess it is a rant and rave of mine that I have wanted to get off my chest for a long time. I absolutely cannot stand it when people judge others’ music tastes. Anyway, I think that what I wanted to say is that most of my musical reviews will be of bands/performers that are at least somewhat mainstream or easily accessible having at least some sort of national publicity surrounding them. This particular blog is an exception. Last night I went to a music venue here in Omaha call The Waiting Room to see a band that has a lot of hype on the Sirius satellite radio waves. They are called Black Lips. Here is my review of Black Lips: Talented musicians; horrible in concert. That is all I have to say about them.

What I really wanted to write about is the 2^nd of the three acts that performed yesterday evening. It is a husband and wife duo known as Mr. Quintron and Ms. Pussycat. Where in Jesus’ beard to I begin???????

First, the band itself: They are made up of just two members; Mr. Quintron who plays the organ and Ms. Pussycat who plays the maracas. The percussion and bass are completely digital and pre-recorded. Quintron and Pussycat hail from the New Orleans area where they own a secret nightclub called Spellcaster Lodge (a tidbit of information that is somewhat irrelevant I guess). He plays a Hammond Organ and a synthesizer which he has set up in his own custom manner to resemble a car hood with headlights and even a Louisiana license plate that said Mr. Q (I think). He also has three (patented?) inventions that he uses in his live performance as well.

1)      Drum Buddy – I don’t even know how to explain this one…it looks like a rotating Light Bright and somehow it light-activates the drum machine and he can spin it faster or slow it down to mess with the drum machine tempo. I was glad I am not epileptic, however it was fascinating. Apparently he sells these things commercially and even has his own infomercial for it!

2)      Spit Machine – I really am at a loss of how to explain this one…OK, he spits on a wooden tongue depressor looking stick and connects two metal leads to either end and moves them closer together or further apart on the line of spit and it makes different sounds. Apparently he has tried countless liquids like Lemon Juice, soda and water but nothing compares to the conductiveness of human spit!!!

3)      Disco Light Machine – Pretty much the harder and louder the beats get the brighter and crazier the light gets. This one is the easiest one of the three to explain.

Their sound is absolutely unique, as you can imagine. However I feel compelled to try and connect and associate it with some other musicians. I would have to say that Mr. Quintron and Ms. Pussycat are a cross between the B-52s, The Postal Service, The Doors, The Killers, The Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Pink Floyd.

The most oddball part of the show was actually after their set. They put on a technocolor puppet show with squirrels and sheep. Apparently Ms. Pussycat is a professionally trained puppeteer who used to put on Christian puppet shows back in the day. The whole set and puppet show were a lot of fun. And the coolest part was that Ms. Pussycat took a picture with me after the show and chatted with me for a bit. Mr. Quintron does not socialize with people for some reason. I was reading about him in some article and apparently he is very enigmatic and when he does grant public interviews he is very eccentric.  

The limited recorded music that this duo has out there does their live show no justice. I would suggest you see if they are touring the country anywhere near you and go and check them out. The show I went to only cost twelve bucks and it was certainly worth it. Prepare yourself for one heck of a ride; these two are freeking…OUT…THERE…

Ms. Pussycat and I

Feel free to comment below. You may need to click on the article’s title (headline) in order to open up the comment field below. You may also e-mail me any thoughts you might have to ahubbard13@bloginyourface.com and if I like what you have to say I will post it alongside this blog. If I don’t like what you have to say I may also post it alongside this blog along with my personal comments on where you should shove it!