Reports from the scene

View from a Stool

It’s easy to overlook the usual live-performance pitfalls when you’re dealing with huge local talents like Pall Jenkins (Three Mile Pilot, Black Heart Procession) and his bride-to-be, hip-hop grrrl Addiquit. A blown speaker did nothing to dampen the mood as everyone and her mama showed up at Tin Can Ale House last Friday night for the first-ever performance of the duo’s new project, Myth. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a line that stretched down the block to get into the Bankers Hill bar, and this line included just about every musician in town.

About a third of the set was just one of them playing solo, whether it be Jenkins playing the part of guitar-toting troubadour or Addiquit rhyming over a beat courtesy of her iPod. When they did collaborate, results varied. The iPod was regrettably used to provide the beat for most of the songs, and since most of the tracks had pre-recorded Addiquit vocals on them, it often came across like she was trying to harmonize with herself while Jenkins played the guitar or, on some songs, a saw.

Two songs in, they resembled something like Tricky when he had Martina Topley-Bird backing him up or even a tripped-out version of Hazlewood and Sinatra. But it wasn’t until about six songs in that the duo started resembling something cohesive and creative. “Come play with me,” Addiquit cooed in a sexy little rave-up, which was followed by a simple, Cat Power-ish duet that sounded like the music they should have been playing the whole time.

Both artists are certainly busy with their own projects, but, as of right now, Myth is a seed that could blossom given a little water and some work (and a proper DJ, at the least). Whether it’s a rose bush or an onion patch remains to be seen.

—Seth Combs

Locals Only

Legendary ’80s hardcore band Diatribe, often considered one of the first political punk bands in the U.S., is being reformed by frontman Vinnie Fono and will play its first show in more than 20 years on Feb. 26 at The Radio Room. While not a proper reunion with the other three original members, Fono—who also played in The Shitgiveits for 13 years after Diatribe—has assembled a new band that includes punk heavyweights like Diana Death on guitar and Cherry Pits on bass.

“During that period of time with the Shitgiveits, I kept getting hit up by friends, punks at shows and sometimes people on the streets out of the blue, either saying, ‘Hey, you were the singer of Diatribe,’ or blurting out lyrics to Diatribe songs or asking or telling me I should get Diatribe back together again,” Fono says via e-mail. “So I guess all that really inspired me to finally play again. The new lineup is because I’m the only one still involved in the punk scene and the new members will make putting a new head on the Diatribe monster possible. We are working on new songs and will be doing all the classic songs.”

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One band that won’t be playing anymore is indie-pop group Gray Ghosts, who, just as they’re releasing their new album and were about to embark on a tour, will perform their last show on Wednesday, Jan. 27, at Soda Bar. While guitarist Frank Green tells CityBeat that the band is, indeed, “breaking up,” co-vocalist and keyboardist Kelly Duley says lead singer and songwriter Dustin Illingsworth decided that the band’s live show wasn’t what he envisioned and that he wants to focus on recording and retooling his live performances, possibly with the other members of Gray Ghosts.

“Gray Ghosts will not be performing live anymore,” Duley says. “I don’t feel like [Illingsworth] was ever really that happy with our live show, and neither was the general audience when you listen to the recordings. I think that once he figures out how to get the stuff he hears in his head that ends up on record to translate to a live show, then I think he’ll play live again.”

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All Leather will perform along with Caravels, Life Deposits, The Beat-Less and others at a benefit for musician Matt Kelly, who remains hospitalized after being hit by a truck in January. The show also marks the final performance of Kelly’s band Chaz, who’ll play without their lead guitarist. The show starts at 3 p.m. Friday, Jan. 29, at the Piano Shop House (4237 Kansas St.) in North Park.

Another band in an altruistic mood is The Nervous Wreckords, who are releasing a “pink” version of their Nailbiter EP via their record label, Hi-Speed Soul, with a portion of the proceeds going to the American Breast Cancer Foundation. They’ve also made limited-edition pink T-shirts to raise money. On its MySpace page, the Wreckords say they were inspired by a friend’s recent diagnosis with the disease.

In CD-release news, Mañanaland is giving out free copies of their new EP at their Monday-night residency at Bar Leucadian, which will run until Feb. 8. Blues-rockers Heavy Glow will celebrate the release of their new EP, The Filth & The Fury, on Sunday, Jan. 31, at The Casbah. Firethorn, Boyscout and Nautical Disaster round out the bill.

Finally, post-punks The Soft Pack were the only San Diego-affiliated band to make the three-day lineup for the Coachella Music and Arts Festival. The band will play an album-release show at the Tower Bar on Tuesday, Feb. 2, as their debut album drops (see our story in this week's issue).

—Seth Combs

The Enrique Experience

Everyone has his or her own definition of what “old” is. For some, it’s getting their first gray hair. For others, it’s becoming your parents. Hate to admit—but the recent downpour actually made my bones hurt. Yup, apparently my geezer barometer is on the fritz, skipped a generation and turned itself all the way up to Grandpa.

 Well, if there’s one thing we old folks love is a good deal, so, lured by a sign pimping $2.50 beers and mixed drinks, I stepped into Alotta’s Cocktails (419 Palm Ave.). Away from the hustle and bustle of Highland Avenue, this National City staple has remained mostly unchanged since its 1959 debut. Four random trophies proudly sit by the bar, and by the looks of the place, one could assume they’re for excellence in Vicks VapoRub smell, stalest Mike and Ike candy dispenser, setting the world’s record for most men wearing their pants too high in one space and most inventive use of glass blocks (in this case, to build makeshift shelves behind the bar).

But upon closer inspection, a unique charm reveals itself to those of us that like their libations served with a side of crazy. There’s a corkboard with pictures of geriatric regulars (and some prayer cards) by the back door and, next to it, an anti-Obama corner that boasts a countdown to the next presidential election and a depiction of the commander-in-chief dressed as the Pied Piper, leading rats with news organization names on their bellies, like CNN and CBS. 

“We are the definition of a hole-in-the-wall,” barkeep Cristen remarked as Whitesnake’s “Here I Go Again” blared from the juke, forcing patrons to adjust their hearing aids. Taciturn witness to this madness is a stuffed marlin that owner Bud Mohler’s deceased wife Patty caught in Acapulco some 30 years ago.

Five bucks into my stint, I was feeling as bouncy as the Gerber baby. Turns out I was sitting under a heating vent and the warmth had remedied my aching hip.

—Enrique Limón