SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-The Palladium, Toronto ON (April 23, 1994).
This recording would be awesome–one of their best–if it were a little clearer and the audience was less talkative. The band is absolutely on fire, having a lot of fun and really rocking out. There are some sloppy moments, but everyone is really on fire–including the chatty audience, who often as not sing along loudly.
It begins with an incredibly excited introduction: Right now we’re going to explore some pop culture–Life is about whats taking what’s in your heart and doing it and these guys right here right now want to do it for you. The Rheostatics!
This show was recorded following primary recording of the Introducing Happiness album in the Bahamas. And also during the Western Conference Quarter-Finals between the Leafs and the Black Hawks. And so after “Michael Jackson” fans start chanting “Go Leafs Go” over and over. The band plays the synthy “Crescent Moon” and the chanting resumes after the song. You hear someone shout “anyone know the score?” 5-4. For Toronto? No.
They send thanks to Guelph’s masters King Cobb Steelie who opened.
They play a great “Introducing Happiness” and then a rollicking “Rain Rain Rain.’ The crowd is insanely singing along to it. So much so that Dave has to say “This is the quiet verse” so that Martin whispers his lines.
Dave says that “If you’re at your video store rent a film called Millennium with Daniel J. Trevanti and Cheryl Ladd. He says that the band are in it as alien junk sweepers. I don’t know if the whole band are in it but Dave Bidini is in it for “18 seconds” which you can see here. Clark chimes in that while we’re on the subject, “I’d like to outlaw toilet paper dispensers in public washrooms that don’t dispense toilet paper when you need them.”
Martin jumps in with “A new song by Dave called “Me and Stupid.” And then the crowd noise becomes really awful. There’s a terribly annoying group of people talking through “Northern Wish.” Honestly.
Dave asks Clark for a “Quick travelogue of our experiences in the Bahamas” and Clark does what he does best, rambling for 3 or so minutes.”
Then they ask for suggestions for their new album: Hammerhead, Tackle Box, Undertow or Introducing Happiness. Tackle Box wins easily.
When they learn that the Leafs lost, Bidini says the “Leafs didn’t win because Wendell Clark is in the audience tonight.” Some shouts to play Wendell! But instead they play “Take Me in Your Hand.” And then they play “Wendell” but Clark says they’ll “Do part 2 first and part 1 second.” But they never do play Part one.
There’s rocking version of Soul Glue and for that last line, Tim sings, “No… going see the Pink Floyd concert coming soon to this town save your money, don’t do it.” This leads to some lines like “classic rock no good.” Tim jokes that he thought the guys in King Cobb Steelie were wearing lip gloss because he can taste something on the microphone. Then he realized that Alive, a Kiss tribute band was there last night and there’s fake blood on the monitors and the floor and that must be what he’s tasting.
Clark sings: “I’m the king of the nighttime world and you’re my sexist song.”
Then Clark jumps in and says they’re at the “Midpoint in the show” so they should do “one more breezy number and then well pick it up.” Bidini says it’s time for the ritual trading of the hats. Martin keeps interrupting “Hey Joey” (although they don’t play Record Body Count) and then says, “Back in high school they used to call me rubberneck.” This is all a strange introduction to “Claire” which is kind of sloppy although Martin plays an awesome effects-laden solo at the end.
Someone shouts something and Dave things they said Pentangle. So Clark says they’ll do a Pentangle cover. But Bidini just asks if they want a psychedelic beginning to the next song. They do. So he says “Promise that none of you will get so high you have to go to the trip tent—and everyone agrees that Trip tent should be the name of the new album.
The psychedelic intro to “Dope Fiends” begins with Clark singing…something… “and they crawled from the tombs of despair.” And then this improvised song:
In the maze of my mind
Where I took a little something sublime
I’m waiting for it
I’m wanting more of it
I gotta get me some tea for my party (Tea Party!)
LSD, MDA, Magic Mushrooms, they’re okay
But when I want that trip sublime (tripping freaky in my mind)
the only thing I’m wanting for
Is orange pekoe in my jar
This leads to “One More Colour,” after which you can hear some fans talking (loudly): “Wasn’t that amazing?” “Any fuckin band that has a cover….” Sadly it is cut off, I wish I could have heard the end of that!
A gentle “Digital Beach,” segues into a delicate “California Dreamline” which segues seamlessly into “Horses.” During the end someone sings, “we don’t need no education.” (After the song fans sing to the “holy mackinaw, joe” melody: “Lets fuck up Patrick Roi” “Holy Patrick Roi.” This leads to a chant of “Go Habs Go” and calls to stone him!
“Bread Meat Peas and Rice” is done folkie–it’s cut off and quiet. When the song is over someone yells: “we’re not worthy, we’re not worthy [I guess Wayne’s World just came out]—we’re worthy of peas and rice bit otherwise we’re not worthy.
“Legal Age Life” begins a capella then guitar comes in after two verses.
And then a plea from the band to get their video for “Shaved Head” on the air:
Write to Much Music tell them you want to see the video. It’s black and white and live (both audio and video are live).
This song ends the show. It’s a really intense version–would be great to have a clear recording of it. After it’s all done martin does an interesting feedback session for a couple of minutes and then they’re gone.
It’s really great hearing how much the crowd loves this band.
[READ: January 15, 2017] “Sound and Fury”
This story is an excerpt from Handke’s novel The Moravian Night (translated by Krishna Winston).
It opens with a symposium on noise. The symposium was held in a conference center located on the Spanish steppe–no settlements in the vicinity, only a few farmsteads, long since abandoned.
The auditor imagined the symposium would be full of dignitaries, experts and role-players. But those who came were victims, above all. They were all permanently damaged by noise and racket.
The participants spoke one after another and all at once about their adventures.
All of the men had become noise-sick. Practically homicidal. Like the man who had attacked his “noisy neighbor” with an iron pipe. Another was a monk who left the Monastery because he could no longer bear the silence. It was false stillness. He began to prefer the clattering of machines to pretentious silence.
They all knew that they themselves were not to blame. They all agreed that even the most quiet sound could set them off, could be seen as hostile. One heard buzzing all day even in dreams. In fact, the auditor noted that the group suffered sounds that had been associated with peacefulness and reassurance. The trickling of water, the wind and rain, even crickets.
The excerpt ends rather unsatisfactorily, but I assume that more will come of these charters. I was fairly intrigued by this set up but probably not enough to want to pursue it any further.
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