Doom & Gloom Dispatch #56: Transitional Zones
Kacey Johansing, John Fahey, Ilyas Ahmed, Neil Young, Sonic Youth
This past summer, I popped into Gold-Diggers in East Hollywood for Anna St. Louis’ In The Air record release show. St. Louis’ set was great, of course — but the evening was made even greater by the opener, Kacey Johansing, who was also playing tunes from a new album, the masterful Year Away. It’s a pretty much perfect collection of classic pop, ranging from grand Bacharach-ian moves to expertly rendered Tusk-era Fleetwood Mac grooves (I love the “Sara”-esque “Not The Same,” though it quotes Joni rather than Stevie). To call the sound that Johansing and her cohorts have cooked up “soft rock” still feels like less than a compliment, but trust, this is REALLY GOOD soft rock, with the songwriter’s aching vocals and (occasionally somewhat barbed) lyrics ensuring that the affair adds up to much more than melodic mush. The only thing missing from Year Away is the cover of John Cale’s “Andalucia,” which Johansing played at Gold-Diggers. Can we get a Lagniappe Session going for that one?
John Fahey - Fresh Air with Terry Gross, July 25, 1980
The Transfiguration of Blind Terry Gross?!! Yeah, something like that. Here, fingerstyle adventurer John Fahey drops in on the NPR grande dame in Philadelphia before a show at the Main Point club, playing a few tunes and chatting amiably with his host. Topics start out with the usual — canvasing the south for rare blues 78s, Takoma Records’ rise and fall, the acoustic guitar as a worthy solo instrument. John really perks up, however, when things start to get into philosophical and spiritual matters, as he gamely advises Gross on how to best get rid of religious zealots who approach you at the airport or on the street. Thus Fahey on the battlefield!
I think I initially came across Ilyas Ahmed via a typically breathless Aquarius Records writeup of a mid-00s double CD edition of Ilyas’ first two solo albums. The Aquarius folks, god bless ‘em, could sometimes slip into hyperbole in their reviews, but I took a chance and ordered it. This time, the hyperbole was more than justified — and I’ve been following the twists and turns of Ahmed’s career ever since.
Finally, a few weeks ago, we hopped on the phone to chat, and you can check out our conversation now over on Aquarium Drunkard. It’s a bit of a ramble … but it’s a good ramble, I hope! Not only is Ilyas a brilliant, imaginative musician, he’s also a very thoughtful and nice dude. And his new one, A Dream Of Another, is one of my favorite things he’s ever done. And did we mention the new Grails album that came out earlier this year? Holy smokes! Get them both — they’re MASTERPIECES. How’s that for hyperbole?!
And hey, since we’re talking about Ilyas and Aquarius Records, here he is with the one and only Grouper, playing an in-store at the late/lamented SF shop about a decade ago.
We checked in on Neil last week, getting the details on his 1973 encounter with Gram Parsons. By the mid-1980s, Gram was long gone — but Neil was still out on the interstate, bringing country rock to the masses. And as the photo above shows, it was going great!
Actually, 1985 is an interesting transitional zone for Shakey (though maybe every Shakey zone is interestingly transitional when it comes down to it) — he was touring with the very down-home International Harvesters, but was writing and recording synth-pop tunes that would end up on Landing On Water.
However! Neil seems to have still had a country-ish LP running through the backroads of his mind; his new material included the awesome “Grey Riders” (officially unreleased until A Treasure) and the even more awesome “Interstate” — the latter of which Jimmy McDonough called “one of the loneliest songs Young’s ever written.” Which is saying something!
Anyway, “Interstate” is a magnificent deep cut. The ghostly Ragged Glory rendition is now more readily available on the recent Official Release Series set, but the OG International Harvesters version remains generally under the radar. Neil and co. played it nine times in 1985; this Hampton, VA, performance is particularly windswept and forlorn — though I’ll have to admit I wish Neil was playing electric here. It could be contender for the “Cortez” throne with Old Black in the mix.
Will a 1985 “Interstate” be on Archives, vol. 3?! Time will tell. But in the meantime, Neil has been revealing some enticing specifics about that ginormous set, now due in the summer of ‘24 … read it and weep!
Sonic Youth - CBC Studio Q & Massey Hall, Toronto, Ontario, June 30, 2009
Holy schizophrenia, Batman — we’re in the homestretch of our #SonicSummer trip, which began way back in May of this year. Here we join Sonic Youth on tour promoting The Eternal, their final studio album (of “songs” anyway). It’s a strong LP with some fresh wrinkles — more group vocals, some hard-hitting grooves and that rarest of rare things, a Lee Ranaldo-centric single. But when I want to revisit these songs, I head for the live stuff — specifically the officially released Berlin show. It smokes!
This day in Toronto smokes, too, kicking off with a unique Lee/Thurston duo situation in CBC's Studio Q. (A little content warning — the host here is Jian Ghomeshi, who would later be exposed as a huge creep. The interview is good, though.) “Unplugged” maybe but far from folkie. After that, Sonic Youth hit the venerable Massey Hall for an Eternal-heavy set, the band sounding very energized by the new material. Highlights include a rip-roaring “Calming The Snake” and a beautifully extended “Massage The History,” a great showcase for Kim Gordon’s more-hushed vocal stylings.
Things close out with that aforementioned Lee-led “What We Know” — a totally sweet ride across the great divide that would’ve no doubt been a live standard if the band had lasted longer — and “Death Valley 69,” Sonic Youth spiraling into the heart of darkness one more time. Hit it!
From the Doom & Gloom Archives
Wilco - Toad’s Place, New Haven, Connecticut, September 16, 2000
This Wilco show was the one and only time I visited Toad’s Place, the venerable New Haven club. Dulcie, Evan and I made the drive from Poughkeepsie — and hey, Dulcie and I got married a few years later and we just saw Evan out in Los Angeles a few weeks back. #Blessed. Anyway, this is a killer SBD of Wilco in the pre-Yankee Hotel Foxtrot period. The Jay Bennett era in all its glory! The multi-talented Bennett really is at the wheel at this point, driving things along with lead guitar, a bank of keyboards, backing vocals, etc. Still a shame that he’s gone — it seems like he could’ve / should’ve had a solo resurgence at some point. Anyone seen the doc about him? I have not! The setlist here features barnstorming versions of the Mermaid Avenue material, Summerteeth reworks, Being There chestnuts — and a preview of YHF in the form of “I’m The Man Who Loves You.” In its embryonic form, it fits right in to the repertoire, a groovy rocker. A hit!
Currently Reading: This Must Be the Place: Music, Community and Vanished Spaces in New York City by Jesse Rifkin