Mister Nervous returns from hiatus to launch Memorial Day weekend at the Old Town Pub in Pasadena

Yeah, it is a bit hard to believe that our last Mister Nervous show was back in January.
We’re back this month and it is time to party like mad: We’re playing the Old Town Pub in Pasadena Friday May 27th.
We’re closing out the show preceded by The Sundowners and Jinsai... and I’m headin’ to the weddin’ of the head-banging bassist for both those bands Michael Harpel to his gal Tanya the very next day. Yep: Michael is doing double duty on stage the night before he’s to be hitched (so you gotta know this’ll be a raging party).

The show opens at 9pm with Amanda Jones & The Sugartits 3
then it’s
JINSAI @ 10:00!
The Sundowners @ 11:00!
Mister Nervous @ 12:00!

Amanda Jones & The Sugartits 3

JINSAI

The Diamond Light have the blues with the Devil on their trail

THE DIAMOND LIGHT: If you don’t know you better check it out.

On their second blazing cd SEEDS IN THE STREET the band seem to have blasted far past their first record’s ruminations on a relationship with the Divine and fallen feet first into a roiling caldron of Devils Brew.

Blazing out of the gate with OH YEAH some digital percussion and bracing guitar lurch into a melodic blues groove of wailing vocals with a 70s reminiscent quality: but in a conversational cadence sung flat out… while the band rocks like a motherfucker through some raging playing punctuated by smashing stops and starts. COLD MOON opens with a half-tone descending blues riff stomp and morphs into a riff-rocking monster with some stinging slide guitar stabs. THUNDERHORSE has some acoustic strumming and a confessional vocal before segueing into a pounding soundscape that feels like a sun-baked desert nightmare.

The band is a full-out rocking monster, the ensemble playing reeks of sweat and commitment, but just try to keep your eyes off of Griffin Young as he stabs at his guitar, long locks flailing, roaring like the top of his head’s gonna blow off. And dig some of the awesome wordplay coming out of his full-throated vox in JUNGLE:
“I bought a hammer just to see where it would go”, he hollers while talking about paying off the Devil and states,
“They drew a rope, I spoke in tongues for them,
still they said: you must play dead”

The six song album closes with DUSTY WALLS where vocals and gutbucket slide start the ride… by the time the full band blows in you just know you’re standing at the legendary crossroads.

OK: these guys are playing TONIGHT at O’Briens Pub in Venice with THE DOWNTOWN TRAIN and PAN AMERICA…
You’re goin’… RIGHT???
3/12 @ 10 pm

Griffin Young rocks like the top of his head's gonna blow off!

O’Brien’s Pub
2941 Main St
Santa Monica, CA 90405

Also it’s a celebration of a birthday among The Monthlies: the lovely and talented lead guitarist Jana.

Mister Nervous is up first at 6pm, yup REALLY SERIOUSLY 6pm. The Ross Sea Party is up at 7 and The Monthlies. at 8. It’s all over by 9pm allowing you to continue the party elsewhere nourished by good songs and great people. The new Mister Nervous song CRYSTAL GIRL has been a hit with audiences every time we play it – we’ll be recording this one soon. Naturally we’ll have copies of the DRAMA cd available… we’re gonna give some stuff away too.

MONTHLIES. lead singer and songwriter Wes O’Lee has also embarked on a very ambitious project: writing, recording and posting a new song every day in 2011. It’s almost disturbing how prolific he can be – writing so many good songs. It’s enuff to make Mister Nervous full of jealous envy…(well, Wes D anyway).

…and so in the venerable (haha) misternervous.com tradition of supporting stuff that is totally awesome (even if WE didn’t MAKE it ourselves) we present here the first two posts in the WES O’LEE – A SONG A DAY 2011 project:

OK: this first one here is also a family affair: Kelly plays drums and sings back-up along with his gorgeous gal Jana… and Monthlies. bassist Chris Hall notes:”I need to tag my bass from 8th grade in this sucka!”.

and heeeere’s song #2
(‘scuse me for a minnit… I think I got sumpin’ in my eye…)

MISTER NERVOUS – THE ROSS SEA PARTY – THE MONTHLIES.
SATURDAY JANUARY 8th @ 6pm
SILVERLAKE LOUNGE
2906 West Sunset Boulevard
Los Angeles, CA 90026
(323) 663-9636

Maybe you missed her shows in San Diego, Anaheim, NoHo and Santa Ana (I caught an intimate performance in Hollywood at Room 5 last Friday) but you still have one last chance to see her on the Sunset Strip at The Cat Club  TONIGHT!

I suspect you either “get” what Miss Izzy Cox is doin’ or ya don’t.

I think it’s pretty damn cool the way this gal from Austin TX manages to channel everything from hillbilly to jazz into a stripped down almost frighteningly naked performance.

You’ll have to make up your own mind but I strongly suggest you go see her in person and give yourself the chance to experience this woman’s toughness and vulnerability up close.

“Often referred to as the Murder Ballad Queen, Izzy Cox is definitely a songstress like no other. Her extensive repertoire of songs include such titles as “Bad Bad Woman,” “Electric Chair,” “Devil in Me,” “F*cking n’ Fighting,” “Hoodoo Voodoo Gal,” “Thorazine,” and “Devil, Devil,” among many others, implying that she has dedicated herself to doing wrong the right way. Even more than the sound she has developed, though, it’s her voice that is truly and utterly exceptional. It’s a voice that seems to flow forward through the times, beginning in post-war Jazz Age America and moving onward through the Depression-era Blues of the deep south, and then the ’50s Rockabilly set, all the way up to the here and now.”
- James Carlson / Philadelphia Indie Music Examiner

Miss Izzy Cox last Saturday at the Galaxy Theater... and you probably missed it!

I’m not gonna say any more. Go.

TONIGHT!

NOVEMBER 24

9:30 pm,
THE CAT CLUB
8911 W Sunset Blvd
Hollywood CA 90069

Hypnogogia, is a term coined by Alfred Maury for the transitional state between wakefulness and sleep (i.e. the onset of sleep). The equivalent transition to wakefulness is termed the hypnopompic state. Mental phenomena that occur during this “threshold consciousness” phase include lucid dreaming, hallucinations, out of body experiences and sleep paralysis.

(apparently I don’t know everything – AHHH-HA-hahahahahahaaaaaaaaa!!!)

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 16th
2419 N Broadway
Los Angeles, CA 90031

We’d sure like to see you there.

Adam channels Joey in the Gabba Gabba Heys

Merrifield Records has been sufficiently impressed and has signed Adam to their artist roster, he’ll be performing with label-mates The Safes (from Chicago) and Smash Fashion this Saturday 10/23 at The Roxy on the Sunset Strip.

Feel for Tomorrow

The Adam Bones ep FEEL FOR TOMORROW
packs five trax that neatly define the poppy songcraft and cranked Gibson crunch that Mr. Bones makes his stock-in-trade. Opening the set I Had You sets the bar with unapologetic lead guitar figures (there’s no buried in FX or sloppy wanking  in any of the guitar parts on this disc, just classically inspired hook filled riffing) and a melody, lyric and performance that contain no hair-tearing angst, just  mellow reminiscence  mixed with a balls out sense of confidence in the future (think of, say, Bad Religion without the social commentary). Shouldn’t Love mixes hints of country music songcraft with Ramones-like directness and nice tight 2 part harmony. This is the kinda tune Roy Orbison excelled at (tho Roy woulda added some operatic high notes that we mere mortals can never reach). Feel for Tomorrow has bits that might conjure up The Byrds or the Beatles, and like all the tracks keeps those punchy rhythms and tightly focused guitar and vocal lines comin’ atcha, breaking it down and then  up with a hard-chargin Who-ish rave-up. Closing out the set is the riff-rocking How Hard I Needed You.

As good a time as this crunchy set is on disc, it can’t hold a candle to the off-the-hook energy level this guy delivers onstage. You’ll want the disc even more as you exit the Roxy this weekend. You should probably go.

10/23   –    10pm    -    $5   -   21+

@ On The Rox

(upstairs lounge @ The Roxy)

9009 Sunset Blvd.

West Hollywood, CA