hate epidemic
reach out (i'll be there)
traded my heart for your parts
occasional delusion of grandeur
life like
puttin' up the groceries
i wish i had a cigarette
linger longer lucy
all fall long
wet nap
how great thou art

above 5 pics by -max-

New York Times Fri December 6, 2002 Pop and Jazz Listings   (Page 3 of 5) INTERNATIONAL POP OVERTHROW FESTIVAL, Southpaw, 125 Fifth Avenue, between Sterling Place and St. John's Place, Park Slope, Brooklyn, (718) 230-0236; Maxwell's, 1039 Washington Street, Hoboken, N.J., (201) 798-0406; Arlene Grocery, 95 Stanton Street, at Ludlow Street, (212) 358-1633. Love songs driven by electric guitars were synonymous with Top 40 pop in the days of the Beatles and still hung on more self- consciously in the 1970's with groups like the Raspberries. But gradually, power pop became the province of collectors, revivalists and songwriters who couldn't wait to have their hearts broken so they could come up with another song. The International Pop Overthrow Festival in Los Angeles has rallied power-pop bands regularly for years and returns this year to Brooklyn, Hoboken and Manhattan, with bills of 8 to 10 bands a show through Dec. 14. The full schedule is at internationalpopoverthrow.com. At Southpaw tonight at 7:30; admission is $9. Tomorrow at Maxwell's, an afternoon show at 1 includes R. Stevie Moore, a hugely prolific producer of homemade pop; admission is $5. The evening show, at 7:30, includes the peppy boy-girl harmonies of the Cucumbers; admission is $9. Sunday at Arlene Grocery, with shows beginning at 1 and 7:30 p.m.; free (Jon Pareles).

Audities power-pop discussion list:

From: Henry Laura
Date: Thu, 12 Dec 2002
Subject: IPO NY - Day Five

This was actually round one of IPO NJ.

Schlepped out to Maxwell's in Jersey for the afternoon show. Ira Rosen has already given you an overall impression of the evening performances.

Saturday Afternoon, December 7
Maxwell's

1:30 R. Stevie Moore
He is described as a legend of DIY and as an eccentric. He once described himself on WFMU as "the topless grandmother of home taping." His acoustic set was indeed eccentric. The darned room was so cold that he had to play wearing his hat and coat (with a hood) and a scarf. It was an odd site. I don't know his songs but the melodies are quirky and the lyrics are . . . strange. There is a stream of consciousness approach to his on-stage patter. He did a cover of The Four Tops Reach Out and it was . . . challenging. I swear I hear Stephen Sondheim in his music.

R. Stevie played an electric with The Breetles during their set and he provided the answer to the question What Becomes A Legend Most? Hint: it isn't Blackgamma.

2:00 Static Radio
This band is from Seattle and played a terrific set. The vocals of Emilio Banda were great and at times they brought to my mind later Roy Orbison. This was particularly true on the song It's Okay. A good rock 'n' roll band that helped warm up the room. They were cool enough to give everyone a four song CDR.

2:30 The Breetles
The answer to What Becomes A Legend Most? is . . . a white bathrobe that appeared to come from . . . a hospital ward. R. Stevie did play a great electric guitar for this set wearing this fashionable item. If you couldn't guess, The Breetles played a quirky set of wonderful pop tunes. A musician standing next to me said that the "integrity of those melodies was taken to the brink and twisted back into a lovely tune." Couldn't stop laughing when I bought their 2000 release Writerscramp for $5. and Chris Breetveld told me that it wasn't their best one. It kinda' went like that and it was fun.

-Henry