Notes on the Unseen and the Beat Circus
By JIM SULLIVAN | October 3, 2006
The Unseen |
Go to the Paradise Lounge this Wednesday, October 11, at 8 pm, drop $12, and you’ll hear local punk luminaries disguised as BASTARDS OF THE YOUNG play punk covers, watch DROPKICK MURPHYS drummer MATT KELLY spin discs, and listen to UNSEEN bassist/singer TRIPP UNDERWOOD read from his new book So This Is Readin? Life on the Road with the Unseen. What makes this rock diary different from any other? “It’s fairly common ground as far as rock-and-roll writing goes,” says Underwood, “and the band itself, though we have been marginally successful, we haven’t broken any big ground. Most of the rock-and-roll diaries end in tragic letdown or the band playing Shea Stadium. Our story isn’t that. It’s a band that started 12 years ago in a garage and made it two steps out. But none of us have real jobs; I haven’t had an alarm clock in five years. I can afford an apartment in Boston. It’s just a bunch of real guys who got lucky enough to do it for a living.”Underwood deals head on with two major misconceptions. “Because you’re in a punk-rock band, people think you’re nihilistic drug addicts. And in the underground punk world, because we’re on a ‘big’ label like Epitaph, we’re big rock stars and use our money to buy blow and snort it off girls’ tits.”
Following Thursday’s gig, the Unseen get back to writing an album they’ll record with JIM SIEGEL at Outpost. They hope to release it next spring, and they’ll begin a British tour with RANCID in March. Goal? “We’re staying relevant in a subculture that’s been overwrought with cookie-cutter rebellion. What do you do when the nature of the beast has been so dulled?”
The BEAT CIRCUS spent the end of summer finishing their second disc with producer MARTIN BISI, whose recent credits include the Dresden Dolls and who’s best known for his work with Foetus. Multi-instrumentalist BRIAN CARPENTER reports that the disc — due spring 2007 — is “a firestorm of dark cabaret, Gypsy music, and saloon songs.” Guest singers include Holly Brewer and M. McNiss (Humanwine), cellist Julia Kent (Antony & the Johnsons), trombonist Curtis Hasselbring (Golem), saxophonist Briggan Krauss (Sex Mob), and multi-instrumentalist Brian Dewan.
On the Web
The Unseen: http://www.unseenpunks.com/
Related:
Boston music news: March 14, 2008, Boston music news: September 15, 2006, Boston music news: March 16, 2007, More 
- Boston music news: March 14, 2008
The psychedelic goth trio Black Fortress of Opium are moving up in the world.
- Boston music news: September 15, 2006
Mission of Burma, who’ve sold about 20,000 copies of their latest Matador CD, The Obliterati , begin a seven-date West Coast swing this week. Mission of Burma, "Donna Sumeria" (mp3)
- Boston music news: March 16, 2007
Amanda Palmer may be the public face of Dresden Dolls, but drummer BRIAN VIGLIONE is no shrinking violet.
- Boston music news: January 11, 2008
BEAT CIRCUS release their new Dreamland on January 29.
- Boston music news: March 9, 2007
Everyone hates to see a sad, homeless goth kid. But that’s what it must have looked like in Central Square in July 2005 when Man Ray closed its doors.
- Boston music news: August 4, 2006
Fenway Recordings Sessions heads to the Beachcomber in Wellfleet on August 12.
- Boston music news: January 12, 2007
Rock and pharmaceuticals may have a long history, but what about rock and pharmacies?
- Boston music news: December 1, 2006
It’s no secret that, along with being a rock band, the Dresden Dolls are, well, theatrical.
- Boston music news: March 23, 2007
Stepanian describes the band’s sound as “early Bruce Spingsteen meets Counting Crows and Ryan Adams."
- Boston music news: March 30, 2007
Drummer Billy Beard saw a young band called the Everyday Visuals at the Lizard Lounge last year and was knocked out.
- Boston music news: August 11, 2006
Greg “Skeggy” Kendall is best known in town for his music, both playing it and promoting it. Bullseye, "Duck Taped Shut" (mp3) Aberdeen City, "God Is Going to Get Sick of Me" (mp3)
- Less
Topics:
New England Music News
, Entertainment, Music, Pop and Rock Music, More
, Entertainment, Music, Pop and Rock Music, Media, Punk Rock, Dresden Dolls, Books, Martin Bisi, Book Reviews, Antony and the Johnsons, Less
