Overlooked and Under-Appreciated: Southern Culture On The Skids

This is the kickoff to this series about bands that just don’t get enough credit - and who better to start with than a band that splits their time between making you laugh and wowing you with tasty guitar while pelting you with fried chicken? That’s right, you may want to wear a bib at the live shows, kids. Soooooo…

“Baby, would you eat that there snack cracker in your special outfit for me please? OOOWWEE!”
Who-What, now? Southern Culture On The Skids (referred to as SCOTS by fans) is a band that writes songs about… well, let’s just say that the band name evokes the proper image. Hailing from North Carolina, they lovingly skewer trailer park life – hitting all the hot-button white trash topics, ranging from tales of kinky sex to carving critters for dinner. And they do it with style.

SCOTS was founded by Rick Miller (guitar, vocals, king of fried chix and hot licks), and talk about the perfect blend of childhood influences – as a kid, his time was split between spending time with his father in North Carolina (who ran a mobile-home factory) and his mom in Southern California (where he discovered surf and rockabilly). After an earlier incarnation of SCOTS disbanded, they settled into their current three-piece lineup in 1987 when Miller reformed with Mary Huff (bass, vocals, bouffant beauty queen) and Dave Hartman (drums, prime minister of Soul City) – both of whom grew up in Roanoke, VA. This lineup has been together since, pumping out eight studio albums, a live disc and a handful of EPs, all on a mix of labels – but they’ve been going steady with Yep Roc Records since 2004’s Mojo Box.

So, what do these guys sound like? They’re not a bunch of inbred hicks, right? Like you should be talking – everyone knows what you did behind the barn with your cousin Tammy in the 6th Grade.

No, these guys are a class act – granted, it’s a class full of clowns but that’s the beauty of SCOTS. They’ve taken this simple parody and turned it into a lifestyle. The sound? Imagine taking everything from garage rock, rockabilly, surf rock, country and blues, squeezing out the delicious nectar and feeding it to a rabid possum that knows how to do the Swamp Stomp. Yeah, it’s a little like that. (Add a dollop of punk attitude or the occasional horns for extra zest). And they found their niche early on – sex and food, baby, the best and greasiest of both.

Okay, Southern rock-y goodness with a twist of lemon. But with so many albums, what should I check out first?! Don’t soil yourself, junior, I’ve got some start-up ideas for you.

First off, you may want to check out Dirt Track Date (1996). This was their first major label release (of their two on Geffen Records), and you may have heard their one big single “Walk Like A Camel”, which gave them a modicum of national attention. The rest of the album featured a few tracks from previous indie releases, like the finger-lickin’ goodness of “Eight Piece Box” – which had already been on two discs. While the repeats were somewhat of a disappointment to longtime fans, this album was a great jumping-on point for new listeners. And the new songs, such as the insanely upbeat “Soul City” (where “It don’t matter if your pants are shiny/If your dick is big or your dick is tiny”), and “Fried Chicken and Gasoline” (their newer ode to food on the road) were poised to be classics.

The next (and final) Geffen release, Plastic Seat Sweat (1997), had one of my personal faves – “Banana Pudding”. Their steaming take on dessert makes you want to grab a partner and swing (and makes you worry a bit about what they’d do in a locked room with a big ol’ bowl of the stuff). And on the opposite end of the spectrum, tracks like their take on “House of Bamboo” evoke a ‘60s cocktail lounge, while “Carve That Possum” conjures up a recipe that you never knew you’d want to cook.

Their most recent disc, Countrypolitan Favorites (2007), shows off their versatility. The album is a collection of covers ranging from T. Rex to the Kinks and back round the bend to countrified classics like “Oh Lonesome Me”. This CD is much more subdued than most of their works, but the patented SCOTS distortion tweaks these songs in just the right way. Horror maven Stephen King even gave the album his seal of approval, listing it as one of his “Top 7 of ‘07” in his column for Entertainment Weekly.

So why aren’t these guys superstars? And I think I’m ready to get beaned off the noggin with a chicken wing – are they touring? As to the superstardom status – let’s blame it on ignorance of how phenomenal these guys (and gal) are together. A lot of folks dismiss them as a novelty act, but Miller’s guitar chops alone will make your jaw drop. As an entire band, they might just blow your mind - so spread the word!

As to the touring, trying to make them stop would be like trying to polish the stank off of a skunk – it’s not likely to happen anytime soon. And the fact that they’re not huge just means that you’re still able to see them in small clubs, thankfully. In fact, they’ll be at the Iron Horse in Northampton, MA on Saturday, August 2nd (for more info/tix, go here). SCOTS will have you out of your seat and boogying, and they might even invite you on stage – last time I saw them, the drunk folks pulled from the audience couldn’t get the words right, so you might want to brush up on your “Camel Walk” lyrics!

For up-to-date info on SCOTS, go to their web site here. You can get more tour dates, fun merch and even a recipe for Chipmunk Fricassee – I kid you not.

Check Out Lynn Goldsmith’s Rock and Roll Photo Exhibit At The Hallmark Museum, Turners Falls, MA

It’s okay if you don’t recognize her name, but you’ll certainly recognize some of her photos if you’re a music buff - Goldsmith has been getting amazing shots of rock icons for over forty years now. Her works have been published in Rolling Stone, Newsweek, Time and a host of other publications. According to Tom Petty, "Lynn was always the best rock & roll photographer. You felt she was living in the same world you were, and that was worth a lot when you're young and suspicious of authority." And how cool is it that her exhibit is right in our backyard?

I’d never been to the Hallmark Museum of Contemporary Photography before this showing, but how could I turn down a free viewing of one of my favorite subjects. The exhibit was small, but showed a good cross-section of the variety of musical subjects she’s captured over the years – from James Taylor to The Sex Pistols to Van Halen (classic VH, of course), the prints were phenomenal. I found the vintage shot of Gene Simmons (of KISS) to be of particular interest – it’s a snap of him (in full makeup and costume) getting off a bus at night. The stark contrast of the bright blue bus against the darkness, coupled by the somewhat bewildered look on his face make it the perfect scene. And the photo mosaic section of her works alone would take forever to scour through, if you wanted to view every small picture that makes up the larger whole.

The exhibit will be up through September 21st. And if you’d like to see the woman herself – and maybe get a signed copy of her newest book, “Rock and Roll” – she’ll be around on September 13, at 7:30 p.m. in the auditorium at Hallmark Institute of Photography Educational Center, 27 Industrial Boulevard, Turners Falls, Massachusetts. She will be giving a slide lecture and talking about her exciting career.

For a better sampling of her works, check out LynnGoldsmith.com or her page on RockandRollPhotoGallery.com.

A Wonderful Week To Be A Geek: New Web Productions From Both Joss Whedon and Heroes

TWO new web series in one week? I may not be able to contain my geekthusiasm! It’s like Christmas morning, when you come downstairs to find the chocolate eggs hidden inside the Jack-O-Lantern. Too…much…goodness!

Is it True? The genius behind Buffy, Angel and Firefly is trying his hand at… musical comedy? Oh, come on – you know you’ve seen the Buffy episode “Once More With Feeling” a thousand times, and what would you call that? Joss Whedon’s latest project is “Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” (click the link – you know you want to), and it’s one good thing that came from the Writers Guild picket lines. Mr. Whedon and some other folks (including his brothers Zack and Jed) were talking about how to circumvent the whole studio system to produce something fairly cheap to distribute on their own terms. And here we are – there are three 10-minute Acts to this comedic musical oddity. Each will be released on a separate day during this week (Act One on July 15th, Act Two on July 17th and Act Three on July 19th), but *poof*, they all disappear at midnight on July 20th.

But why do they have to go away? And what the hell is this thing even ABOUT, anyway? Keep your pants on people – you’ll still be able to download the series for a fee, or you can wait to buy the DVD. Joss would actually like to be able to pay some of the crew after all… As for what it’s about – I’ll leave that to Joss: “It’s the story of a low-rent super-villain, the hero who keeps beating him up, and the cute girl from the laundromat he’s too shy to talk to.” says Whedon. “Doctor Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog” will star Neil Patrick Harris as Dr. Horrible, Nathan Fillion as Captain Hammer, Felicia Day as Penny and a cast of dozens.” (For Whedon’s whole manifesto about the project, click here.)

And NBC’s Heroes starts their first series of webisodes this week, too? It’s true - we may not have to leave the house all week! “Going Postal” is a trilogy as well, starting on Monday July 14th, with new chapters the following two Mondays. We are introduced to Echo De Mille, a mailman who seems to have a Black Canary-like sonic scream thing going on - and Mama Petrelli from the regular show seems to be along for the ride.


While you’re at the Heroes site, check out the web comics they have. There’s a new one posted every Monday, regardless of whether or not the show is airing new episodes. Do these people know how to treat us geeks or what?

Have fun everyone!

Overlooked and Under-Appreciated: A New Series On Juano’s Addiction

You know that feeling you get when you see a band at a club and you can’t believe they’re still playing that venue? I mean, clearly this band should be playing to thousands of screaming fans, with the fist-pumping and the bra-flinging. Oy!

Some of those bands obviously make it to that level, but what about the ones that don’t? What about the ones who are happy playing the club circuit, just as long as they get to keep making great music? And of course, there are those who got a taste of the big stage just to have a bunch of assholes in suits (read: “record company execs”) pull their contract to support some boy band.

That’s the focus of this new series, kids - great bands worthy of our attention. Some are local talent, others are smaller nationals, and a few played the majors far too briefly.

I’ve got a few bands in mind to get the ball rolling, but I’m looking for more ideas. Is there someone out there you think needs more attention? Or a band that dropped off the face of the earth and you’d like to know what happened to them? Give me some names and I’ll see what I can dig up – as much info about band members’ names or album titles would help immensely. Post them in the comments, folks!

And remember - I’m no detective, but I do play one on TV…

Your Independence Day Soundtrack

Here's some music to listen to while your grillmaster cooks up your hot dogs - songs about freedom and liberty and overpriced gas (okay, none on that last topic... yet)! So fire up the iPod/boombox/8-Track and try not to watch while your "special" cousin Timmy attempts to set off a bottle rocket while holding it with his butt cheeks. Enjoy!

1. "Independence Day" - Elliott Smith
2. "Firecracker" - Ryan Adams
3. "This Land Is Your Land" - Woody Guthrie (with an appropriately feisty live cover by Tom Morello, playing as The Nightwatchman)
4. "Fourth of July" - X
5. "Free" - The Soup Dragons
6. "U.S. Blues" - The Grateful Dead
7. "Star Spangled Banner" - Jimi Hendrix
8. "Freedom of Choice" - Devo
9. "American Girl" - Tom Petty
10. "Live Free" - Son Volt

So what did I forget? Post it in the comments, kids...

Strike Prep 101 - The Eve Of Destruction

First, I'd like to cover something that was left unsaid. In the comments for my previous post about the impending strike, Virtual Stranger reminded me of who the real villain is in this story - and it was someone I left unnamed. The Great and Mighty Oz in this equation is the AMPTP – the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers – and much like the magic man, once the curtain is drawn we see a frightened old man, afraid of losing his power over the people (now imagine him in a swanky suit and multiply him a few times – oh, and picture them all wringing their hands forebodingly. There we go:).

The point is, we tend to lose sight of that – these are the people who can really make or break these contracts. Not wanting to lose any of their precious money, they certainly don’t want to make concessions. And I’d nearly forgotten what a bunch of greedy ass clowns they could sound like when a strike rears its head. You see, pretty much every time a demand was on the table during the last round of bargaining (WGA/DGA contracts) the AMPTP mud-flinging damage control began – amounting to something just short of outright calling the writers and directors a bunch of crybabies. While that shifted our focus, let’s not forget that they’re the ones who fired all the show staffs, kids.

But during that time, I think more people were still siding with those on strike – public perception is powerful, and we tend to associate the adjective “starving” to the word “writer” fairly quickly. That makes it a lot easier for the common man to empathize with them. But when you hear “actor”, what’s used to describe that? Yes, “starving” should actually be one of them in many cases – I mean, how much can they really be paying “Mugger #5” in an episode of Law & Order? But, more often, we think of actors as “rich” or “pampered”. Despite the portrayal of SAG members as power players (an example being their caricature in that lousy puppet movie Team America), how much do they really make? Well, two-thirds of them make less than $1000 a year, and fewer than 20 percent earn more than $7500 a year. What’s the old joke – “What do you call a member of SAG? A waiter.”

But so soon after the previous work stoppage, we are still feeling the effects. TV viewing is down, and we may be dealing with few to no new episodes come fall. The general public feels let down, and they don’t know where to place the blame. Like I said, the working man isn’t feeling much sympathy toward actors right now – people are more worried about missing their entertainment fix.

Our problem as a society is that we spend a lot of time raising actors and musicians up on a pedestal just to knock them down. They’re great when they’re producing hits, but as soon as they piss you off you want to sick the rabid paparazzi on them. And that’s my point – whoever the true villain in the story may be, that damn public perception is a killer. This is just Day 1 without a contract – hopefully SAG and AFTRA can build on the precedents the writers and directors have set with their deals. Now they just need to stop fighting with each other and win the battle that matters.

Oh yeah, and if they could get Pushing Daisies back on the air on time, that’d be swell too. Just saying…