Jayne Wayne's Press Release Round Up

Not final cover

FANTAGRAPHICS LIKES MIKE (AND WILFRED AND NOVELS)

Fantagraphics Got Game

Fantagraphic Books has announced the 2014 publication of Wilfred Santiago's graphic novel, Bull on Parade which portrays the life and times of living legend, Michael Jordan. In the 1990s Jordon led the Chicago Bulls to a "Nonconsecutive Six-peat" (try and trademark that one Pat Riley!) and is perhaps the greatest b. baller the world has yet to produce, and who's a better super hero subject than this real life superstar baller and hawker of fine cotton briefs? No one. Not Lebron what's-his-name or Kobe who-the-hell-cares-anyway, that's for sure.

Fantagraphics Drops the Graphic from Graphic Novel

Speaking of dropping, a little sooner to drop in July of 2103, is a full fledged novel also from Fantagraphic. In Case We Die is the debut novel by Seattle writer, musician and scene mainstay, Danny Bland (formerly of The Dwarves, Cat Butt, Best Kissers In the World, etc). Even though it's not a graphic novel (unusual for Fantagraphics), the presumably semi-autobiographical book promises to be plenty graphic as it follows the lives of two junkies in 1990's Seattle. The novel will also be accompanied by an audio book from Seattle's Local638Records that will feature a whole cat-butt-load of artists and musicians who lend their voices to bring chapters from the book to gritty life.

BIG JUICY BENEFIT COMP. FROM BURGER RECORDS

Hold the Onions (and the Meatmen)!

Burger Records, the philanthropic label known for its charitable benefit releases, has another charitable benefit jam out now. What Have We Wrought? is a cassette-only release of 1,000 numbered copies that will help Middle Class guitarist and founder Mike Atta battle his medical bills as a result of his battle with cancer. It's only eight freaking bucks and it is so super packed with punk rock royalty (Germs, Dicks, Black Flag, Adolescents, Mike Watt) that you may vomit with joy like it's 1981 all over again. Speaking of '81, this tape also features the unreleased Middle Class tune, "Body and Soul," recorded in 1981.

Check out the Burger Records website for a full track listing and to check the progress on their ambitious "Tape a Day" January release schedule.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Soundgarden

Grunge ages like a fine cheese, so it is said.

TUESDAY 1/29 & 1/30
Soundgarden @ Riviera, 4746 N. Racine Ave., Chicago, IL

A much younger Muggsy barely remembers seeing a much younger Soundgarden back in '92ish—so addled was the young Muggsy by the different substances coursing through his brain, yet still able to whip his beautiful long locks around in a grunge-induced frenzy to the extreme annoyance of everyone around him. Man, what an a-hole Muggsy must have been—what a magnificent a-hole! Sigh.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Voided Bowels

You're gonna need to bring one of these.

MONDAY 1/28
Voided Bowels, Bloody Urethra, Loose Stool @ Showboaty's Lounge and BBQ Grill Bar, 1532 N. Shermack Dr., Chicago, IL

As far as bodily fluids go, this is gonna be the best show in town, especially if you order one of Carl Showboaty's infamous Sliders! HA!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Chrissy Murderbot

Not what Muggsy was envisioning.

SUNDAY 1/27
ITAL, Chrissy Murderbot, Hieroglyphic Being @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

Muggsy had no idea what a Chrissy Murderbot was, but he was hoping it was a female sex robot. It isn't.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: The Darkness

Yes, we look stupid. This is the point.

SATURDAY 1/26
The Darkness, Hell or Highwater @ The Rave, 2401 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI

There's not much that scares Muggsy; skinheads, Old Milwaukee, Scientologists and cats. That's pretty much it. Oh, and the Darkness. Muggsy is afraid of The Darkness. Literally.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Dharma Dogs

Dharm it all, dog!

FRIDAY 1/25
Dharma Dogs, Western Meds, Living Blackouts, Arkoffs @ Mickey's, 1524 Williamson Street Madison, WI

Well Muggsy'll be dharmed if there ain't some stomping goin' down in Mickey's garage tonight.

Video: Ice Age, Ecstacy

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Blood Folke

TUESDAY 1/22
Blood Folke, Cantharone, Beauty of Decay, The Terrordactyls @ Honey, 205 E. Hennepin Ave. Minneapolis, MN

If you like screaming, heavy metal guitars AND violins, you're gonna love Blood Folke, folks. Muggsy guarantees it.*

*Not a guarantee

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Freakwater

MONDAY 1/21
Freakwater, Nora O'Connor @ The Hideout, 1354 W. Wabansia Ave., Chicago, IL

Not only does Janet Beveridge Bean have the greatest name ever, she's also been playin' in the country band, Freakwater, with Catherine Irwin (not the greatest name ever but that's ok) for the past, like 20 years, or something.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Underoath

Pictured L-R: Haircuts, T-shirts. (not pictured: Style)

SUNDAY 1/20
Underoath, Mewithoutyou, As Cities Burn, Letlive @ Metro, 3730 N. Clark St., Chicago, IL

Muggsy is Underoath to inform you about screamy Christian metal bands, so consider yourself informed. (Shouldn't be workin' on the Sabbath day anyway, fellas)

Muggsy's Rock Pick: The Hussy

Photo by Karen Deau

SATURDAY 1/19
The Hussy, Skintones, Dick the Bruiser @ Crystal Corner, 1301 Williamson St., Madison, WI

The Hussy might just shatter this Crystal Bar with their crystal-shattering garage rock clang and bang. It'd be a shame if they did, but a bigger shame if they didn't.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Marilyn Manson

FRIDAY 1/18
Marilyn Manson, Butcher Babies @ The Rave, 2401 West Wisconsin Avenue, Milwaukee, WI

It's been a few years since Marilyn Manson's pasty white ass graced this blessed nation. Muggsy for one is glad to welcome those cheeks back into America's hearts.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Magic Trick

THURSDAY 1/17
Magic Trick, The Cairo Gang, The Blast Beats @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

To further prove Muggsy's theory that "magic" is a very popular word to have in your band name right now, here is yet another example.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Elusive Parallelograms

Parallelograms in captivity

WEDNESDAY 1/16
Elusive Parallelograms, The Black Umbrella, Star Tropics, The Fever Dreams @ Beat Kitchen, 2100 W. Belmont, Chicago, IL

Muggsy has seen some pretty basic, non self-intersecting quadrilaterals with two pairs of parallel sides in his day, but none were what I would call particularly elusive. So what I'm saying is, I doubt the whole premise.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: :(

TUESDAY 1/15
:(, :—D, ;] @ Showboaty's Lounge and BBQ Grill Bar, 1532 N. Shermack Dr., Chicago, IL

Brooklyn newcomers and critic's darlings, :( , put on a live show that is guaranteed to turn your unmatched left parenthesis completely around. Emoticon Records labelmates, :—D are providing tour support and promoting their own mega-hyped new album, (:{. Unfortunately, the totally unoriginal LA band, ;) open what would otherwise be a killer show.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Child Bite

MONDAY 1/14
Alma Negra,  Child Bite,  Bear Claw @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

If you are bitten by a child, it is important that you clean and sterilize the wound immediately. If you are bitten by the Detroit band, Child Bite, apply a tourniquet to the neck, wind tightly and say a useless prayer. You are fucked.

Zine Review: Bill Daniel's Mostly True

BILL DANIEL’S MOSTLY TRUE
Bill Daniel (Microcosm)

"In a world of put-ons and art scene fakery, moniker writing has endured for generations; organic, unchanged and pure of intent.” So says Bill Daniel in the introduction to the second edition of his hobo graffiti zine, Mostly True. As Daniel also notes, rail graffiti is a pre-Internet form of social networking whereby hobos and tramps communicate with each other through crude chalk drawings, symbols and a few coded words. But who are these people who's only mark on the world is a transitory icon on the side of a boxcar? And is that any less important than the mark most of us leave on the world? These are exactly the questions Mostly True seeks to answer. 

In addition to documenting boxcar art in printed form, Daniel is also the creator of the underground documentary film, Who Is Bozo Texino? which has screened in countless cities across the U.S. The film seeks out the enigmatic "Bozo Texino" whose ubiquitous railroad tags have been seen on boxcars around the country for over half a century. Many people claim to know the man behind the Texino moniker and Mostly True contains an interview with "Bozo" aka "Grandpa" in which he tells his tale of a life working on the railroads all the live-long day. The zine also features interviews with other rail car artists, letters from rail fans (some of which are reprinted from long-gone publications), and photos of boxcar art. 

Endlessly fascinating and a great document of the folklore and lost world of the rail yard that is being kept alive by a few dedicated tramps, writers and artists. Bill Daniel answers many questions, yes, but the free spirit of the rails isn't so easily defined and if things are still a bit of foggy mystery for you after reading this zine, well, it's only mostly true anyway—Chris Auman

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Child Bite

SUNDAY 1/13
Child Bite, King's Horses @ Cactus Club, 2496 S. Wentworth Ave., Milwaukee. WI

If you are bitten by a child, it is important that you clean and sterilize the wound immediately. If you are bitten by the Detroit band, Child Bite, apply a tourniquet to the neck, wind tightly and say a useless prayer. You are fucked.

Video: Buke & Gase, "Misshaping Introduction"

Muggsy's Rock Pick: STNNNG

STNNNG Young Men

SATURDAY 1/12
STNNNG, Fake Limbs, Tyranny is Tyranny @ Dragonfly Lounge 401 E. Washington Ave. , Madison, WI 53703

Muggsy thinks STNNNG are far too modest. STNNNNNG is perhaps a more apt name for these Minneasotan lads.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Bare Mutants

Barely mutant looking.

FRIDAY 1/11
Bare Mutants, Fire in the Northern Firs, Claps @ Turf Club, 1601 University Ave. St. Paul MN

More like Barely Mutants. Muggsy didn't notice anything particularly mutated about these guys. Muggsy is not a geneticist, however.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Blasted Diplomats

The B. Dips get stuffed!

THURSDAY 1/10
Fake Limbs, Blasted Diplomats, We Repel Each Other @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

Nothing to do with Benghazi, Ben Gazi (Scooby-Doo, "The Tar Monster" Episode 30) or even Fugazi for that matter (actually, more to to with Fugazi) these Diplomats are blasted on rock and roll!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Magic Key

WEDNESDAY 1/9
Magic Key, Gel Set, Sarah Weis, Matchess @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

To prove Muggsy's theory that "magic" is a very popular word to have in your band name right now, here is an example.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: The Hecks

That is one dope-ass unicorn! Pic. R. Lowry

TUESDAY 1/8
Lazy, The Hecks, Slushy @ The Burlington, 3425 W Fullerton Ave., Chicago, IL

Muggsy heard that The Hecks used to be called The Hells until their Momma slapped them in the mouth with a wet dish cloth.

(Speaking of Pictures of Dope-Ass Unicorns!)

Zine Review: Railroad Semantics #2

RAILROAD SEMANTICS #2
by Aaron Dactyl (Microcosm)
Microcosm has re-released another issue of photographer and travel writer (and freight train jumper), Aaron Dactyl’s gripping rail-riding zine, Railroad Semantics. Originally published in 2009, this second issue recounts Aaron's travels along the West Coast from Southern Oregon to Northern California. The romantic notion of living a life "off the grid"—free from the responsibilities of jobs and family and the hassles of "The Man" (save for railroad bulls and local cops) has always had appeal for the huddled masses, especially in times of economic suckedness. Most of us can only dream of such a life; traveling at leisure or at the dictates of a locomotive with an unseen driver, from one town to the next. It's not for everyone, however. It has a dark side. It can be a grimy, grim business, and dangerous, but watching the scenic Pacific Northwest roll by after a few slugs of whiskey sounds pretty gol'dang good to me. Credit must be given to Dactyl for bringing it alive with a writing style that mixes enough railroad lingo with some pretty vivid passages of the scenery, the people and the towns he encounters along the way.

RS #2 also includes photos, graphs, train maps and train-related newspaper clippings as well as a hand-written essay from fellow hobo and boxcar tagger, John Easley—Chris Auman 

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Texas is the Reason

SUNDAY 1/6
Texas is the Reason, Into Another, Sense Field, Popeye @ House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, IL

Texas is the reason Muggsy doesn't like Texas, but Texas is the Reason is one of the many, many reasons Muggsy doesn't like emo.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Turf Club Annual Blowout!

Birthday Suits

SATURDAY 1/5
Birthday Suits, The Blind Shake, Stnnng, Seawhores @ Turf Club, 1601 University Ave. St. Paul MN

Surf the Turf! It's the 7th Annual Blowout @ the Turf Club tonight!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Gorilla Biscuits

"No, you guys are more hardcore!"

FRIDAY 1/5
Gorilla Biscuits, Youth of Today, By a Thread, Down to Nothing,  @ House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn St., Chicago, IL

If memory serves Muggsy correctly, hardcore started getting boring around....oh, I'd say 1981, and remained boring from '82 up until forever.

These old hardcore dudes are funny though.

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Killer Moon

Totally killer moon, dude.

THURSDAY, 1/3
Conductive Alliance, BigColour, Killer Moon @ Schuba's, 3159 N. Southport Ave., Chicago, IL

Jupiter's got a killer moon too, dude. Totally killer.

Music Review: Angel Olsen

ANGEL OLSEN
Halfway Home (Bathetic)
Angel Olsen sounds like Patsy Cline after having fallen too pieces. Her songs sound so aching and so despairingly melancholy that you'll actually enjoy the bit of sadness it will bring to your day. This aspect of Angel's songwriting is underlined by her vocal delivery which soars and dives as her heart commands. Halfway Home contains songs whose subject matter us puny humans have been enduring since the beginning of our time on this shitty planet. It’s a real bummer, girlfriend.

“Safe in the Womb” is a sparse song with Angel on guitar singing about safety, comfort and the feeling of protection. “Free” harkens back to an old school swing and "The Waiting” is a classic, sad country tale of lost love. These, and the rest, represent what's best about folk and old country and the Appalachian and blues tradition of American music. It's what the awful CMT should be rewarding. It's soulful, haunting, love damaged and reminds us that things will get better, but not much and not for long—Jayne Wayne [Angel Olsen]

Read more reviews, and always...always read Reglar Wiglar!

Muggsy's Rock Pick: Vatican Shadow

I will harrow you!

Vatican Shadow, Heiroglyphic Being, Kevin Drumm @ Empty Bottle, 1035 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL

According to Vatican Shadow's All Music bio, Dominic Fernow, "draws upon and manipulates harrowing images of modern U.S. warfare to create shadowy, harsh electronic sounds which are relayered and distorted to a powerful and pummeling effect." 

Oooooh, how fun! I think I'll bring the old lady.

Music Review: 39th and the Nortons

39TH AND THE NORTONS

On Trial (Evil Hoodoo)

Twangy, countrified 60s style garage rock and roll from France via Great Britain. (I think.) If you like your Nuggets olden and golden and served with some sweet organ and harmonica and drenched in a delicious reverb sauce, then you’re gonna wanna head on down to 39th and the Nortons and get yourself a heaping helping of this eleven song plat du jour (I am certain I used that term incorrectly). You can download this meal from Evil Hoodoo or you can go one awesome step further and order the cassette which is served in a hand-stitched fabric sleeve, or bag of some sort. Limited edition of 100. I am now hungry for pancakes! Let's eat!—Joey LeGerm

Read more reviews, and always...always read Reglar Wiglar!