Summer Listens
"They tried to give me advice /Down at the record shop/I said sit down boys
This may come as a shock/but all I listen to/It's all freedom rock
How can you free me / When I'm free?
I am free"
- Frank Black, Freedom Rock
This may come as a shock/but all I listen to/It's all freedom rock
How can you free me / When I'm free?
I am free"
- Frank Black, Freedom Rock
Stomach Pump, circa early 90s.
Duffy's hair, circa mid 70s.
Redd Kross 2025
Tour, Album, Movie, Book - what next? Limited miniseries?
We went to see Redd Kross last Thursday at the White Eagle Hall in Jersey City. We arrived a little early and had the place to ourselves for quite some time. We ended up standing right next to the stage, right in front of the guitar player, Jason Shapiro. When he tripped over the monitor about 5 songs into the show and went headfirst into the crowd, we had a literal front row seat to someone else's near death experience. It reminded me ALOT of when Steven Tyler got yanked into the crowd by his 13 foot long scarf during Aerosmith's comback tour back in 1984. "I"m baaaaack, I'm baaaaack in SEATTLE again ... glurp, gag, where'd Steven Tyler go ... oh he's in the crowd ... "
I gotta say Jason was much more graceful getting back on stage and the McDonald brother's didn't miss a beat. They just kept rockin and when the song was over, thanked the crowd for saving Jason's life.
So we were up front and my wife was literally the Lady in the Front Row.
The set list was a generous sprinkling of their near-hits over the span of their 44 year career. When you start out opening for Black Flag when you're 11 and 13 you get to have an epic 44 year career. I'd have to say that they played all my favorites so that at least we were on the same page with the set list. Here's the list from their Pappy & Harriet's show.
1. Switchblade Sister 2. Stay Away From Downtown 3. Stunt Queen 4. Uglier 5. Huge Wonder 6. Annie's Gone 7. Pretty Please Me 8. I'll Take Your Word For It 9. Mess Around 10. Candy Coloured Catastrophe 11. Jimmy's Fantasy 12. Lady In The Front Row 13. Neurotica 14. Born Innocent 15. Linda Blair 16. Deuce
Plus they added "Cover Band" and "Peach Kelly Pop" & "Neurotica" from the 1987 album Neurotica.
Plus there was another song or two but look, I wasn't taking notes and it's not like I'm a professional reviewer or something. I value inspiration over professionalism; honesty over minutiae. Screwing around over work.
Like I said, White Eagle Hall was a cool place to see a band but I was right by the guitar player's monitor, so unfortunately all I could hear was guitar and I couldn't really hear the McDonald Bros fabulous harmonies - which they really have dialed in, since "Researching the Blues" - a lot of Sha-la-las, a lot of Beatle-esque harmonizing and repeating of lines.
I actually had tickets for Brooklyn as well. I was thinking I would got to the other show, too, being the Redd Kross absolute loyalist, but my ears were so blown out in the high ranges that I really needed to be quiet. Honestly, it was like those moments when I bomb goes off in the movies. When my wife and I were walking back to the car, at first she sounded like a staticky high pitched robot. I was thinking, maannn, I'm fucked. I've never had hearing loss - my ears have always been the opposite of what you'd expect - rather than hearing loss, my ears have been extra-sensitive especially in the high registers.
At any rate, it took about three days, but the whoosh-ringing in my ears finally subsided. My wife, however, is still acting like I'm hard of hearing, which is hilarious. So it's hot and we have the AC on, and we're watching the Olympics, and I'm reading a book and she says something and then she repeats what she said, really loudly and slowly like I'm 80 years old. It's a complete forecast of what we'll be like in 20 years.
Once again, Redd Kross provides a vision of the future of Sound.
I gotta say Jason was much more graceful getting back on stage and the McDonald brother's didn't miss a beat. They just kept rockin and when the song was over, thanked the crowd for saving Jason's life.
So we were up front and my wife was literally the Lady in the Front Row.
The set list was a generous sprinkling of their near-hits over the span of their 44 year career. When you start out opening for Black Flag when you're 11 and 13 you get to have an epic 44 year career. I'd have to say that they played all my favorites so that at least we were on the same page with the set list. Here's the list from their Pappy & Harriet's show.
1. Switchblade Sister 2. Stay Away From Downtown 3. Stunt Queen 4. Uglier 5. Huge Wonder 6. Annie's Gone 7. Pretty Please Me 8. I'll Take Your Word For It 9. Mess Around 10. Candy Coloured Catastrophe 11. Jimmy's Fantasy 12. Lady In The Front Row 13. Neurotica 14. Born Innocent 15. Linda Blair 16. Deuce
Plus they added "Cover Band" and "Peach Kelly Pop" & "Neurotica" from the 1987 album Neurotica.
Plus there was another song or two but look, I wasn't taking notes and it's not like I'm a professional reviewer or something. I value inspiration over professionalism; honesty over minutiae. Screwing around over work.
Like I said, White Eagle Hall was a cool place to see a band but I was right by the guitar player's monitor, so unfortunately all I could hear was guitar and I couldn't really hear the McDonald Bros fabulous harmonies - which they really have dialed in, since "Researching the Blues" - a lot of Sha-la-las, a lot of Beatle-esque harmonizing and repeating of lines.
I actually had tickets for Brooklyn as well. I was thinking I would got to the other show, too, being the Redd Kross absolute loyalist, but my ears were so blown out in the high ranges that I really needed to be quiet. Honestly, it was like those moments when I bomb goes off in the movies. When my wife and I were walking back to the car, at first she sounded like a staticky high pitched robot. I was thinking, maannn, I'm fucked. I've never had hearing loss - my ears have always been the opposite of what you'd expect - rather than hearing loss, my ears have been extra-sensitive especially in the high registers.
At any rate, it took about three days, but the whoosh-ringing in my ears finally subsided. My wife, however, is still acting like I'm hard of hearing, which is hilarious. So it's hot and we have the AC on, and we're watching the Olympics, and I'm reading a book and she says something and then she repeats what she said, really loudly and slowly like I'm 80 years old. It's a complete forecast of what we'll be like in 20 years.
Once again, Redd Kross provides a vision of the future of Sound.
Now a little bit about Redd Kross' new album. First of all, it's big. I think maybe they were saving up over the pandemic. It has an hours worth of music, 18 tightly-crafted pop songs. The album is PACKED with inside jokes and observational humor about interpersonal relationships, the music business, reflections on aging, having too much stuff, and even what's important in life - all delivered with wit and a smile. Sometimes I get the joke immediately - Like the fact that the album is red, and simply called "Redd Kross" - an obvious reference and ode to the Beatles "White Album." Even the type is basically in the same place.
Yep. And that's just the beginning of the in-jokes. And that's always been Redd Kross' gift - pointing out what's funny, what's great - calling bs on what's happening currently and mining the past for gems that maybe we've forgotten - starting with their cover album Teen Babes from Monsanto, they they have not only always BEEN cool, but they've helped tell us what _is_ cool. Every interaction with Redd Kross is always a doorway to something more. Right now it seems they are obsessed with mid-60's garage psychadelica, and the songcraft that was perfected on the the Beatles Revolver and Rubber Soul albums. And that's basically what this album sounds like - it's refined power pop, and band at the very top of their craft, knowing themselves well and all of rock history, through the lens of 1966, The Wailers, The Seeds, The Electric Prunes, Fleur de Lys with Beatles harmonies and verse/chorus craft and lyrical punch.
I shazamed the music that was playing after Dale Crover's set and before Redd Kross came on and it's indicative of where their heads at. You can access Spotify list here.
Oh! I almost forgot - Dale's set! So for those, not in the know - Dale Crover is the drummer for the Melvins - an ancient-times Seattle band, funny and HEAVY as black hole, they have their own gravity in the music universe. Stephen is their touring bassplayer now and Buzz plays guitar and sings. But anyway, Dave has this new album coming out and he did a "DJ set" where he sat on the drum set with his phone or laptop plugged into the PA system, and played songs he likes from the Stones, Lou Reed, Blondie, etc etc. And then he played some songs from his new upcoming album. Just him and a droney open-tuned, and rhymthmic - very Seattle in a good way with smart heartfelt lyrics. So that was the warm up act, and then the survey of garage-psychadelica, circa '65-'67.
And then the Wonder Woman TV show theme played - what a great bassline! – and on came Redd Kross.
*****
At the show, they played four songs from the new album "Stunt Queen" "Candy Colored Catastrophe" "I'll take your word for it" and "Born Innocent."
Stunt Queen seems to be about someone who is addicted to social media and the attention it brings.
"I'll take your word for it," - Steven has had a few songs over the years that explore the unsaid weirdness of relationships, and how people can say everything is all right, and still be messing with your head. I think this they
"Candy-Colored Catastrophe" - Is this about someone in the media, or is it about themselves? Is it a line from a review of Redd Kross, once upon a time, and they've seized upon it to create a joyful psychedelic anthem? Love to know more.
"Born Innocent" - they introducing this song as the theme of their own TV show. And for a band famous for doing Partridge Family covers, that has layers of echoes and echoes of layers. It was of course the name of their first album and is the theme song for their new new movie and is biographical in nature - it recounts their early days with lines like - 'Hollywood is no place for a child." The chorus, though is the clincher. "We all are born innocent ... original innocence" - this echoes Eknath Easwaran's longstand theme that we all have a pure, divine core of goodness, rather than being "original sinners" - it's such a positive view of humanity and of people and life and another reason I love Redd Kross.
They're always fun and funny, no matter how uncool it may seem at the time. The early to mid 90's was a time when it was really uncool to be happy - and that's what I think the song "Way too Happy" is about.
I love this song, and I could hear them sort of tacking a little jab at Kurt Cobain and Nirvana with the musical parody on the line "why are they so happy?"
Subsequently I did a little digging around and found this interview with Steven from CBS/Bay area- I've rarely been so happy and unsurprised to find out how spot on I was.
"There's a song called "Way Too Happy" that I wrote after I saw my bandmate in the Melvins, Dale Crover, talking about Kurt Cobain's sort of post show review after seeing us in 1987 in Tacoma, Washington. I guess he said, "Those guys are too happy. Why are they so happy?"I just felt like, "Well, that's the show we put on. But you didn't know me." And how absurd is that? I mean, Kurt was the greatest, probably the most important songwriter of my generation. And he wasn't really s--t talking, but kind of was [laughs]. And it felt a little bit like, "Oh my God, a ghost just talked smack about me!" What a weird feeling. It's just another example of how I feel like the film kind of informed some of the topics of the of the record, which in some ways became somewhat autobiographical. I feel like the record feels very much like a defining of, in some ways, who we are."
Here's the full interview with CBS for your reference.
That 1987 show, with Green River opening, was the first time I saw Redd Kross as well - and I was blown away. They just cracked me up, I mean the judo mind flip that they did on the punk rock audience, to wear 70's style bell-bottoms, play bongoes while swinging your waist-length hair in a synchronized circle. It was the most happy of middle fingers to to the whole punk rock aesthetic, truly rebellion against the rebels, and therefore, more punk rock than punk rock.
Over the years, I saw Redd Kross many times.
Multiple times in Seattle, during the Third Eye,to Phaseshifter era. At this time, they had a woman piano player and a Eddie Kurdziel playing guitar. Huge shows, fun shows - they must have played Seattle three times a year. They would do these well orchestrated covers for encores - Abba's Dancing Queen, the Beatles It Won't be Long or I wanna hold your Hand that would bring the house down. It's ironic and self-aware that they played Cover Band on this recent show - and they've always been so masterful at reimagining other people's songs. The Carpenter's "Yesterday Once More" maybe being the most epic example of all time.
Every bittersweet lyric delivered with Jeff's trademark smile.
And of course, there was the whole Tater Totz thing. The funniest thing I've ever heard is them doing the John & Yoko song "Don't Worry Kyoko" at a Beatles festival, with the Yoko-style animalistic trills barely heard above the boos of the crowd.
Later, after I moved to LA, I saw them at the Rainbow with the Posies - an epic lineup! and also during a sort of comeback run 2012 ish at the Echoplex where they played one song from every album, in order - which was great!
I saw them twice, I think at Pappy & Harriet's out in the desert - once, memorably with my 12 year old daughter who I swear to God everyone thought was Astrid or another related kid because she had this bushy hair half way down her back and when we walked in the crowd parted and they allowed her to stand on the side of the stage the entire time - this was I think Show world era ... definitely before Researching The Blues.
"Good Times Propoganda Band" is another example of their bullet-proof optimism. These are the guys that have awesome families and ride pogo sticks and unicycles and don't worry about travel ball sports. This is a lesson in how to write songs. These are lessons in how to live, even when maybe you don't get the #1 hit in the charts with the bullet that you deserve.
'm really going to enjoy getting to know this album better - something seems to open up with each new listen.
So many great albums over the years - all memorable in their own way and this one is right up there - the songs on it form a sort of encyclopedia of power-pop references and a manual of songwriting. It's not just a album but really, a song book - an happy exclamation point or maybe a "to be continued ..." ellipse on the history of rock and roll. Worth relistening and for younger bands to emulate and cover for years to come. A benchmark, that encapsulates the past and shows us a way to move forward - whatever stage of life we may be in, whatever our circumstances, with joy and creativity.
And finally, with "the Main Attraction" probably the most hilariously positive rock-n-roll prayer of all time, I'll let the brothers have the last word.
I shazamed the music that was playing after Dale Crover's set and before Redd Kross came on and it's indicative of where their heads at. You can access Spotify list here.
Oh! I almost forgot - Dale's set! So for those, not in the know - Dale Crover is the drummer for the Melvins - an ancient-times Seattle band, funny and HEAVY as black hole, they have their own gravity in the music universe. Stephen is their touring bassplayer now and Buzz plays guitar and sings. But anyway, Dave has this new album coming out and he did a "DJ set" where he sat on the drum set with his phone or laptop plugged into the PA system, and played songs he likes from the Stones, Lou Reed, Blondie, etc etc. And then he played some songs from his new upcoming album. Just him and a droney open-tuned, and rhymthmic - very Seattle in a good way with smart heartfelt lyrics. So that was the warm up act, and then the survey of garage-psychadelica, circa '65-'67.
And then the Wonder Woman TV show theme played - what a great bassline! – and on came Redd Kross.
*****
At the show, they played four songs from the new album "Stunt Queen" "Candy Colored Catastrophe" "I'll take your word for it" and "Born Innocent."
Stunt Queen seems to be about someone who is addicted to social media and the attention it brings.
"I'll take your word for it," - Steven has had a few songs over the years that explore the unsaid weirdness of relationships, and how people can say everything is all right, and still be messing with your head. I think this they
"Candy-Colored Catastrophe" - Is this about someone in the media, or is it about themselves? Is it a line from a review of Redd Kross, once upon a time, and they've seized upon it to create a joyful psychedelic anthem? Love to know more.
"Born Innocent" - they introducing this song as the theme of their own TV show. And for a band famous for doing Partridge Family covers, that has layers of echoes and echoes of layers. It was of course the name of their first album and is the theme song for their new new movie and is biographical in nature - it recounts their early days with lines like - 'Hollywood is no place for a child." The chorus, though is the clincher. "We all are born innocent ... original innocence" - this echoes Eknath Easwaran's longstand theme that we all have a pure, divine core of goodness, rather than being "original sinners" - it's such a positive view of humanity and of people and life and another reason I love Redd Kross.
They're always fun and funny, no matter how uncool it may seem at the time. The early to mid 90's was a time when it was really uncool to be happy - and that's what I think the song "Way too Happy" is about.
I love this song, and I could hear them sort of tacking a little jab at Kurt Cobain and Nirvana with the musical parody on the line "why are they so happy?"
Subsequently I did a little digging around and found this interview with Steven from CBS/Bay area- I've rarely been so happy and unsurprised to find out how spot on I was.
"There's a song called "Way Too Happy" that I wrote after I saw my bandmate in the Melvins, Dale Crover, talking about Kurt Cobain's sort of post show review after seeing us in 1987 in Tacoma, Washington. I guess he said, "Those guys are too happy. Why are they so happy?"I just felt like, "Well, that's the show we put on. But you didn't know me." And how absurd is that? I mean, Kurt was the greatest, probably the most important songwriter of my generation. And he wasn't really s--t talking, but kind of was [laughs]. And it felt a little bit like, "Oh my God, a ghost just talked smack about me!" What a weird feeling. It's just another example of how I feel like the film kind of informed some of the topics of the of the record, which in some ways became somewhat autobiographical. I feel like the record feels very much like a defining of, in some ways, who we are."
Here's the full interview with CBS for your reference.
That 1987 show, with Green River opening, was the first time I saw Redd Kross as well - and I was blown away. They just cracked me up, I mean the judo mind flip that they did on the punk rock audience, to wear 70's style bell-bottoms, play bongoes while swinging your waist-length hair in a synchronized circle. It was the most happy of middle fingers to to the whole punk rock aesthetic, truly rebellion against the rebels, and therefore, more punk rock than punk rock.
Over the years, I saw Redd Kross many times.
Multiple times in Seattle, during the Third Eye,to Phaseshifter era. At this time, they had a woman piano player and a Eddie Kurdziel playing guitar. Huge shows, fun shows - they must have played Seattle three times a year. They would do these well orchestrated covers for encores - Abba's Dancing Queen, the Beatles It Won't be Long or I wanna hold your Hand that would bring the house down. It's ironic and self-aware that they played Cover Band on this recent show - and they've always been so masterful at reimagining other people's songs. The Carpenter's "Yesterday Once More" maybe being the most epic example of all time.
Every bittersweet lyric delivered with Jeff's trademark smile.
And of course, there was the whole Tater Totz thing. The funniest thing I've ever heard is them doing the John & Yoko song "Don't Worry Kyoko" at a Beatles festival, with the Yoko-style animalistic trills barely heard above the boos of the crowd.
Later, after I moved to LA, I saw them at the Rainbow with the Posies - an epic lineup! and also during a sort of comeback run 2012 ish at the Echoplex where they played one song from every album, in order - which was great!
I saw them twice, I think at Pappy & Harriet's out in the desert - once, memorably with my 12 year old daughter who I swear to God everyone thought was Astrid or another related kid because she had this bushy hair half way down her back and when we walked in the crowd parted and they allowed her to stand on the side of the stage the entire time - this was I think Show world era ... definitely before Researching The Blues.
"Good Times Propoganda Band" is another example of their bullet-proof optimism. These are the guys that have awesome families and ride pogo sticks and unicycles and don't worry about travel ball sports. This is a lesson in how to write songs. These are lessons in how to live, even when maybe you don't get the #1 hit in the charts with the bullet that you deserve.
'm really going to enjoy getting to know this album better - something seems to open up with each new listen.
So many great albums over the years - all memorable in their own way and this one is right up there - the songs on it form a sort of encyclopedia of power-pop references and a manual of songwriting. It's not just a album but really, a song book - an happy exclamation point or maybe a "to be continued ..." ellipse on the history of rock and roll. Worth relistening and for younger bands to emulate and cover for years to come. A benchmark, that encapsulates the past and shows us a way to move forward - whatever stage of life we may be in, whatever our circumstances, with joy and creativity.
And finally, with "the Main Attraction" probably the most hilariously positive rock-n-roll prayer of all time, I'll let the brothers have the last word.
