MP3: Earwig – Trees

Every year around the holidays people in Columbus have rallied around Andyman Davis to raise money for CD101 for the Kids, and that hasn’t changed now that Andyman is gone. In fact, Andyman’s buddies from bands of Columbus past (and present) are stepping up to reunite for one night at the LC Pavilion just to raise money for CD101 for the Kids and the Andy Davis Memorial Fund. A quick rundown of who’s playing:

Howlin’ Maggie, fronted by former RC Mobster and Twilight Singer Happy Chichester. Not sure when the last Howlin Maggie reunion was, but it’s been over a year, I think. That’s the band’s 1996 video for “Alchohol” up there. Ex-major label.

Watershed has never officially “broke up,” but with co-writer/singer Joe Oestreich living out of state, gigs have been few and far between. Oestreich and Colin Gawel know their way around a hook, and it made them one of the most well-known and well-liked bands in the city. Like Cheap Trick meats Replacements. I don’t know of many Columbus bands Andyman loved more than Watershed. Also ex-major label.

Earwig is still alive and kicking, releasing its latest, Gibson Under Mountain, in May. Lizard McGee’s songwriting is remarkably consistent. Check out Chip’s Gibson breakdown if you missed it. And make sure you download the leadoff track, “Trees,” at the top of the post. Andyman always gave Earwig tons of support on CD101.

The Toll is reuniting after 18 years since the band’s last gig. I know the Toll was on Geffen and I know bassist Greg Bartram does photography. Feel free to educate me more about the Toll.

X-Rated Cowboys features Quinn Fallon, one of Andyman’s best buds who ran the Treehouse back when it was Andyman’s Treehouse. Fallon mostly does acoustic stuff these days, so this should be a fun roots-rock reunion.

Willie Phoenix has been around forever. He had a self-titled record on A&M in 1982. He wears funny hats and plays guitar like Jimi Hendrix. It’s hard not to have fun watching Willie Phoenix.

Tickets are $20. Doors at 6pm.

Thanks bustown, last nite was all the way live. Word to the wise: if your chest is hella will farrell, jumping on stage w no shirt=bad look.

rj twitter again:

@wesflexner @donewaiting thanks for setting last nite up PROPERRRRR.

Keep reading for more photos.

photos by dkline

Soul Position Reunion with Blueprint

@printmatic- good to see you fam! Let’s make the soul position 3peat happen this year. Cause this year, suckers are goin…..

….commisioner crotchbuttons #pause

…sometimes a phone call can make your day….

“i love the scene that created me..copywrite..blueprint..envelope…thought set…i love columbus”

DJ Detox spun in between groups and kept the mood perfect and warm played everything Jay Electronica and Blakroc early, as well as local Hip Hop classics like the RJD2 produced Mhz song “Rocket Science” and hip hop staples like Black Sheep and Tribe leading up to RJ’s epic headling performance.
NP of Thought Set was showcased during their opening set.(He is the third guy on “A Son’s Cycle” off the Colossus. And was joined onstage by Envelope for “Turn It Up”. Enphanate dropped a 5 minute long, jaw-dropping accapella that had patterns and punchlines.

Happy Chichester started his set beatboxing through a pedal that looped it, which he sang and played over.

I didn’t catch much of Kenan Bell’s set because I had to run around.

This all took place during a blizzard.

Let’s not forget that Columbus’ Happy Chichester is one of the openers for Friday’s RJD2/Donewaiting.com 7-year Anniversary show. If you’re not hip to Happy (for shame!), he was in Columbus rock/funk act Royal Crescent Mob in the ’80s and early ’90s, fronted Howlin’ Maggie til around 2002, was an original member of The Twilight Singers and also played often with Greg Dulli in The Afghan Whigs. So the dude has a pedigree.

Happy does the solo thing now. His last release was 2007′s Lovers Come Back, but he’s kept busy doing solo gigs and playing as part of RJ’s touring band, which also includes multi-instrumentalist Derek DiCenzo and Sam Brown (You’re So Bossy, The Sun, Gaunt, New Bomb Turks.) In Friday’s incarnation, you’ll usually find Chichester on keys, DiCenzo on percussion & knob-twiddling and Brown on drums.

Just a bit of history and a Happy reminder.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Regardless, you can catch RJ @:

Donewaiting.com’s 7 Year Anniversary Line-up in Columbus on Friday, February 5:

RJD2
HAPPY CHICHESTER
DJ DETOX
THOUGHT COLLECTIVE
KENAN BELL

$15

Tickets available in Columbus at

Magnolia Thunderpussy
1155 N. High Street
Columbus,Ohio
43201
614-421-1512

Or you can buy them online.

Reno poster coming soon.

Oh man Comfest...or something like that. Basically there are a number of ways to go about Comfest. You can camp out somewhere in the park on a blanket, go check out bands with “clever” band names, wander around aimlessly running into people you know and drink booze and eat food and not pay attention to any bands, or you can hang out at the Offramp Stage all weekend like I pretty much did and watch bands that you know will be good.

How many times can you say the same things about the same bands? Find out after the jump!

I wandered down to the park in time to catch Fern at the Solar stage. Fern seemed a lil bit intoxicated. Fern is Hilarious…perfect way to start of the weekend I suppose. After that I caught some of Tin Armor and wasn’t totally stoked on ‘em, but will give them another chance in more a appropriate setting, after all, they played at five on Friday…maybe they should have been pregaming with Fern.

Friday had a pretty rad line up over at the Offramp-Grafton, Church of the Red Museum, Brainbow, Nick Tolford and Co…etc,etc…Managed to see a few Grafton songs, kicked ass for a 5:30 set. COTRM followed Grafton and killed. It had been a while since I had last seen them and maybe it was because I missed them sooooo much, but they sounded great. You know how you have to dress “nice” in a stuffy office and that’s suppose to make it feel more like work or make you behave better or something? Yeah, whatever…Church dudes jammed sans suits and they misbehaved the fuck out of that set .

Have you guys ever heard of Brainbow before? They sound like a deaf/mute eunuch Isis or something. They also covered Zepplin’s “Since I’ve Been Loving You” with the lovely Lara Yazvac of Ill Fits/Tough and Lovely fame on vocals.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Pictured: Nick Tolford and Co.

Tolford’s company featured some back up doowop from Cassie Rosehips and Leslie COTRM and some other chick I don’t know. Shit was mad souled out. Nick Tolford used to play drums for The Slide Machine. No he fronts a soul outfit. Basically what I’m saying is it turns out some drummers can actually sing and that Tolford is worth making it a point to check out live.

Pictured: Happy Chichester

Happy didn’t play “Alcohol”, but he did play “$3.99″ which was pretty sweet. Hey Happy-start a new rock band, thx.

I’m old and get tired and cranky when I start drinking at 2:00 p.m., but I managed to see a couple Sandwich songs…heavy, psych rock with an emphasis on the rock featuring the one and only Ron House on vocals. Fun fact(?), Sandwich were formed via the rock potluck …pretty sure that’s a first. As much as I wanted to hang for The Guinea Worms and/or Two Cow Garage, it was not to be, my feet hurt.

Pictured: Time and Temperature

I wasn’t in a big rush on Saturday…I gave myself until 7:00 to make sure I got there in time to see Time and Temperature play. This was the kind of performance that I have been practicing shutting the fuck up for…quiet, soft, gentle lullabys that culminated with a standing ovation-NO SHIT…so awesome and Val was totally stoked. You probably missed it because you were to busy doing something dumb. Don’t let it happen again is all I’m saying.

I spent a fair amount of time sitting on my ass on Saturday hanging with my peeps but I did check out You’re So Bossy and The Lindsay before not making it to see Envelope.

YSB are veteran Columbus musician who are on some next level shit not hanging on to anything…Can’t say enough good things about this band…hey dudes, heard of myspace? The Lindsay were prolly drunk like I was. They are so totally post grunge.

Pictured: The Lindsay

Sunday was chilllll as fuck, a totally killer way to end an otherwise mediocre and overcrowded Comfest. I worked at ye olde Donewaiting/Cringe merch tent on Sunday…there was a lot of cool shit for sale, hopefully you stopped by and spent a whole bunch of pesos. Went to see moons after the shift and OH MAN MOOOOOOOOOOONS. Dusty was dressed to the nines in his Sundays best and prolly ate like twelve sheets of acid or something because this shit was otherworldly…I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, HOLY FUCK MOONS ARE FUCKING EPIC AS FUCK.

Pictured: moons

moons were joined by indie rock drummer du jour Ahemed Gallab of Sinkane, current touring drummer for Yeasayer for a 20 minute drum off. Seriously, I feel really bad for you if you missed this, as this was the highlight of Comfest weekend for me. Ahmed also played with The Slide Machine following moons with two other drummers and killed it.

That’s a real drum circle hippies.

Pictured: Brian Simakis aka best sound dude in Columbus

This is what you look like after doing sound for 50 bands in 3 days. MAAAAAD props to Brian Simakis for making all of the Offramp bands sound super sweet all weekend.

Go to the CMC Parking Lot Blowout

Duffy where is my laptop I think I left it in the Hummer can I move to Brooklyn with you