The Red Dons, The Clorox Girls, The Aversions-- Bar L'Escogriffe, April 22 2007

There have been times that I've seen bands I've been truly excited about only to discover that onstage they lack the energy to inspire a reaction in the crowd. Some just lack energy in general, but others seem to have it without knowing how to impart it. However, there are also those bands who succeed in shaking me from the first chords and the initial drum rumble, those groups I find myself dancing to before the songs have even fully started. Those are, always, the best musical surprises.

(Photo by Nate from Toronto show)

Two years ago I saw Portland OR's The Observers and experienced that rare, instantaneous rush, so when I heard that they had split up and that frontman Doug Burns and bassist Hajji were passing through town as the Red Dons, I was eager to see them again. I have the Observers LP and it's a fine record, but over time I'd forgotten what to expect from its principal members live. It took them about ten seconds to remind me: even before the lyrics came in, I was swept up by the swift current of the rhythm. The response in my feet and hips was unconscious and instant. By the time Burns dropped his guitar, grabbed the microphone, and hopped off L'Esco's miniscule stage into the crowd a few seconds later I was already awash with elation. Ten or so songs (including three Observers numbers) after that, it was over far too soon.

I've always been a sucker for a particular sound-- frantic and melodic surf-influenced rock and roll in the tradition of late '70s West coast punk rock-- and it's in the Red Dons favour that they play pretty much that. But what's important about the Red Dons is that despite playing a style that's arguably of one time and one place, they make the music immediate. You don't stand in the crowd and watch them play-- you feel what they're playing, and Burns goads spectators into response with intense eye contact, constant motion, and a long microphone cord that allows him to wander far from the stage and engage people in the back (or, in some cases, wrap around and tie them up in groups). 30 years past punk rock's year zero, none of this behaviour is novel, and I've seen bands turn the same thing into uninspired schtick, yet coming from Doug Burns, against the able backing of his band-- particularly the fierce rhythm section-- it's electrifying. The Red Dons, like the Observers before them, actually encourage a feeling of breakdown between the audience and "the show," leaving everyone in the crowd feeling like a participant. That feeling is the aspiration of many second-rate punk bands, but the rarity of its achievement in spite of so many lame attempts makes the Red Dons genuinely special.

(photo from the Aversions' myspace page)

I'd had a similar feeling about Quebec City's The Aversions the first time I saw them three years back-- from the beginning of their set of high-test Ripoff Records-style rock and roll, there seemed the promise that things would get broken and people would get hurt. I was enthused. The band played their songs about as fast as they could manage and in the process lead singer managed to damage instruments, mike stands, and himself, occasionally bowling into the crowd and knocking people over as well, and between their confrontational posture and catchy, frenetic numbers, it was hard to remain unmoved. What was already a good, tight band was made that much more engaging by the feeling that I was risking a bloody nose by remaining pressed to the front. However that's a hard feeling for a band to maintain, and the second time I saw the Aversions I was already less excited than I'd been at their previous show. Even as they threatened the club's equipment (the soundguy coming up mid-set to confiscate mic stands and disconnect unused mics), the atmosphere was less of inspired hostility and more of a band on stage working through a controversial stage show.

The problem then became that the Aversions write solid songs and play them well, but every show I've seen them play since has found me comparing them to what I expected after that first time, even as they've become more and more accomplished, practiced, and inevitably rehearsed as well. Their set at l'Esco was tight and exciting and though at first I wasn't expecting to be exciting, I found myself dancing in spite of myself by the end, enjoying their new numbers and still relishing the old tracks they've been playing for the last three years. A part of me, however, felt disappointed nonetheless. Their show is a performance, like most other bands, and their songs are great, but I keep expecting more and I know I'll never get it. Yet I'd never ask that of most other bands-- so am I holding them to an unfair standard, or is it one against which they set themselves up to be measured?

(Photo by Nate from the Toronto Show)

Two thirds of the Clorox Girls are also in the Red Dons-- they are, essentially, the same band with a different drummer minus Doug Burns. Unlike the Red Dons, there's no particular sense of yearning or desperation about their songs. Instead, they play quick pop-drenched punk rock along the lines of the Ramones or the Urinals. Lyrical subject matter includes, inevitably, sitting alone in one's room thinking about a girl/girls. When I saw them two years ago they covered the Urinals (twice?) and the Germs, and that got them points in my book, but overall they don't inspire me more than well-played classic-style punk rock usually does. It's a bad sign when the most exciting thing about a group is that they cover songs by bands you like more than them. The Clorox Girls are full of energy--at l'Esco they remained so despite having just played a full set as the Red Dons-- and a lot of fun and I respect that, but their songs don't connect with me in a way that feels like it matters. I watched about five or six songs (in under 10 minutes, naturally), bobbed my head, felt alright, and went home early. Still, I'll go back to see them the next time they come through town.