You would expect a band to be flat playing the same set twice in a day, but when Veloka appeared at the Howlin’ Wolf at Jimmy Ford’s Pool Party, you couldn’t tell they had played the WTUL marathon only hours before.
That night they made tight, textured pop music reminiscent of ’80s new wave, and singer Christina Noh was a dramatic presence, with intense vocals and the look of a woman torn between the reserve she knows she should have and the passion her singing implies. Though they have more songs, their set didn’t change because right now they’re focused on the songs that will appear on their upcoming self-titled CD.
The band, whose name is a combination of the names of the drinks sold in the Clockwork Orange milkbar, has been laying down parts since last October, first recording the drum and bass at the Jimmy Ford Clinic. The rest of the disc has been recorded in the one-bedroom Uptown apartment of keyboard player Chad Buckheister, whose apartment became the studio because of his computer set-up. “We could have been done in two weeks if we could have got off our day jobs,” he pointed out, but since they couldn’t, they have had to record “as quietly as possible in the civil hours, until about 9:30.” While the recording process has forced them to play more quietly and at non-rock ‘n’ roll hours, it has had its advantages: “I tracked half-naked,” Noh said.
The recording process, however, has been a valuable learning experience for Veloka. According to guitarist Robert Vicknair, hearing the songs built track by track “made me wonder if I was playing some songs wrong for the last few months.” Drummer Elzy Lindsey said, “For the first time, I cut down what I played to make room for percussion parts,” and they all found it made them think more about arranging. As of this writing, they were talking about getting the string players from Amerigo to contribute parts, but whether those parts materialize or not, they will be having a CD release party at the Howlin’ Wolf May 26 with the Violet Era.
South By Southwest Round-Up
Rather than talk about how New Orleans rock bands fared in Austin this year, I thought I’d let them tell their stories:
Durel Yates of Suplecs reports:
We played 12 a.m. Friday night at one of Austin’s coolest clubs, Emo’s. Since we have a record out on Man’s Ruin Records, we were asked to play their showcase along with some other bands on the label. It was pretty cool considering Emo’s wouldn’t even return our calls a few years ago. That night we got to see some killer bands and got to party with some good friends we know from the road. We had the pleasure of playing after the Bulemics, which meant the stage was full of blood, spit and beer. After the soundman retired the Bulemics’ mikes, we finally made it on stage, turned the amps up as loud as they can go and played our ass off. Probably the highlight of SXSW was the next day. We were invited to the High Times private party and had a blast. Tons of beer, food and a nice, sweet aroma in the air. We got to see Hank Williams III and our hero, Mike Watt, in the same day. Look for us in the May issue of High Times, and our second album on Man’s Ruin comes out in June 2001. Support your local Southern doom rock bands.
Dana Ysaguire of Ovary Action, who played Grrl By Grrlfest, an alternative festival, reports:
Playing Grrl By Grrlfest was a wonderful experience. There was such a strong sense of community among the women there. The scene in Austin is young, vibrant, active and supportive. There’s an “I’ve got your back” mentality there that’s quite welcoming. When I came home, I realized just how much New Orleans longs for that kind of unity and development. It was an interesting realization because New Orleans has such a rich musical history. But that’s just it, it’s history. Not many people seem to realize that our music scene became stagnant a long time ago. And I’m not talking about the zydeco for tourists. The youth and especially the women of New Orleans need to stand up, take action and support each other’s art. Make time for little events that look interesting, go see a band that you’ve never heard of before. I saw Texas pride in Austin, and I couldn’t help but think, “This is how it could be in New Orleans.”
Jake Springfield from Jai Alai reports:
Friday we registered and went to check out the venue we would be playing, the Ruta Maya, which by day was a coffee house. We talked briefly to the Flaming Lips who were having coffee inside. Friday night we saw a great show, Bobby Conn. I recommend him to any secret fan of ’70s rock. Then we wandered around hearing funk and rap metal from outside doorways.
Saturday was our show. We ate vegetarian food and rested and then watched drunk people in green as we loaded in our equipment. It was St. Patrick’s Day, and it was almost like we didn’t leave New Orleans. The show was filled to capacity and we played with some good Austin bands. We met some nice people and were offered a free week at a recording studio in Boston.
Benji Lee of Supagroup reports:
The Supagroup rolled into Austin about 5 p.m. and went straight to our show and went on after Dixie Witch, a heavy Southern rock act, to a large and receptive crowd. Afterwards a guy from VH-1 told us he filmed the show and wanted to get an interview for the T.V. show, “Bands On The Run.” Of course we are totally sweaty and hammered on whiskey so we tell him, “Listen you fugger, we’ll do you’re fuggin intervieeewww, but you got to buy us shome drinks. . . fugger.” So we do and act like idiots the second the camera’s rolling. The only quote I remember saying is when he asked us what we wanted out of being in a band and someone says, “Fuck mass chicks!” The rest of us then join in as a chant while jumping up and down like assholes, “Fuck mass chicks, fuck mass chicks.” Mom will be so proud. We met Nikki Sixx at the Black Crowes show and he thought we were retarded drunks; I think he actually said, “Get away from me,” but we did manage to give him our disc. While at the Black Crowes show, Chris started yelling, in a jokingly manner mind you, “You guys are fuckin’ old!” at the stage. Seconds later he was notified by the owner of the club that he was standing next to Kate Hudson, Chris Robinson’s wife. Oy Veh! To round it all out someone convinced us you could snort Tequila, so we did, and it turns out you can snort Tequila while at the same time get a large crowd to gather around you and egg you on. The next day we went to do a formal sit down interview with VH-1 and they were trying to pigeonhole us into these character personalities to see if we would be viable on television. Chris was the mastermind, Mark was the fireplug, I was the music guy, i.e. Nigel Tufnel, and Leif was the outsider looking in, because he’s the most quiet of all of us. After that we sobered up with some beer and hit the town for a night of debauchery.
A few thoughts of my own: There are new Dylans changing mufflers all across America; it would be a shame if such a fate befell Tim Easton. His Saturday afternoon show had the easy, firm push of a guy who liked to rock and the melodies of a guy who liked to sing. His guitar player brought more than the usual noise (in a roots-rock context) which makes me think he doesn’t treat his words like sacred script. In short, he’s one of the few new Dylans who seem to understand popular music enough to be popular himself. . . . New Orleanian Theryl “Houseman” De’clouet got people to put down their plates of free food and their glasses of free drink at the Rounder Records party and actually dance. You might have to have been around industry people to realize what a triumph this was. . . . If Quint Davis brings Jon Dee Graham to town for Jazz Fest, it’d be the show people talked about into the night. He rocks hard enough to move a crowd, his words have personality and brains, and his Waits-ish voice has soul. With any luck, his upcoming album produced by Neil Young’s producer David Briggs will capture that combination. . . . While on the subject of Jazz Fest, if Beatle Bob’s performance at the Waco Brothers show is any indication, he has a new dance move that looks like he’s scratching nits out of his hair. Watch for it at a stage near you.
