THE WILDBUNCH - DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE ROBOT LIVE AT THE GOLD DOLLAR

Let me tell you something...  Finding and owning a copy of this CD is truly a dream come true.  For those of you not in the know, The Wildbunch was the original band name of Electric Six!  And if you know me, you know I'm into this group like they were a religion.

I ran across this disc on eBay and bought it straight away.  I won't tell you how much I paid because it's quite a bit for one used CD.  Especially this one.  Don't get me wrong, I love this album, but it's not up to the standard you're normally accustom to with E6.  

This is a live concert set performed by The Wildbunch back on November 26, 1997 at The Gold Dollar in Detroit according to the insert.  What makes this release so interesting is the fact I get to hear one of my favorite bands of all time when they were first starting out.  I get to hear the live progression of their sound.  I also get to hear a bunch of early songs they didn't use when they changed their name and started releasing as Electric Six.  Some of these songs survived but many of them didn't.

Dick Valentine delivers another inspired performance and you can hear him commit to the material just as strongly then as he does today.  This is a vocalist who does more than just sing.  He adopts a persona and performs not just as a singer, but as a character.  His ability to completely transform himself is one of the most amazing qualities an artist can have.  He leaves the pretentiousness and pomp of Dick Valentine on the stage when he's not performing and becomes one of the most genuine human beings you'll ever meet.  It's inspiring.

There are a few covers included in this set.  The first is 'The Model' by Kraftwerk.  A most unusual song to find on this record, but one I think is also pretty cool.  It's followed a couple tracks later by Alice Cooper's 'Clones (We're All)'.  Another great number performed here.  The Verve Pipe's 'The Freshman' is performed acoustically by Dick sort of as a joke.  Earlier in the set, he tells the crowd if they don't get $100 in merch sales, he's going to perform the song and because they fail to make the target, he does the tune.  First off, it's a great cover, Dick does an excellent job, I don't know why it would be so horrible to hear him perform it and seriously, I drop $100 bucks just by myself at the merch table when I see them perform.  It should also be mentioned, it's not listed on the tracklist even though it has a dedicated track on the disc.  Meaning, the tracklist on the album cover lists 22 songs but there are 23 on the disc.  I'm guessing it's because they didn't have the rights for the song.  But that's just a wild guess.

Discogs.com lists 'I'm A Demon' as a cover and I had to look it up because it seems like such a perfect E6 title to me.  However, it seems it is Roky Erickson's track, 'I'm A Demon' is from his 1986 album, "Gremlins Have Pictures".  I listened to his version on Youtube and it's definitely a cover.  Darn it.  Great tune.

There's a lot of Greatest Hits material here from Electric Six's first record, "Fire" including the international smash hit, 'Gay Bar'.  So much to consume and consider.  A lot of this material ended up on "Fire" or subsequent albums.  Some of the tracks ended up as single b-sides.  A few of them show up in demo form on "Sexy Trash" and some of them just sorta disappear into the ether.

This isn't a highly polished live outing.  It's a rough and hard explosion of a band cutting its teeth and paying its dues.  The songs are super short and there are a couple obvious cuts letting you know without a doubt, you aren't getting the full show.  I'm not sure how many songs they actually played that night, but this is amazing for a young band.  This is an epic moment in the development and history of one of America's greatest Independent bands.  And a true treasure!  My final words:  ONE OF MY PRIZED MUSICAL POSSESSIONS!  EXCELLENT GLIMPSE INTO EARLY ELECTRIC SIX!

THE WILDBUNCH - DON'T BE AFRAID OF THE ROBOT LIVE AT THE GOLD DOLLAR
01. Nuclear War (On The Dance Floor)
02. Speak English
03. Naked Pictures
04. The Model
05. Computer
06. The Ballade Of MC Sucka DJ
07. Clones
08. Immolate Me
09. Taxi To Nowhere
10. Don't Be Afraid Of The Robot
11. Breaking Up
12. I'm On Acid
13. R U Afraid Of The Devil?
14. Meat The Band
15. I Am The Knife
16. I Am Detroit
17. I Lost Control (Solo)
18. The Freshman
19. I'm A Demon
20. Tiny Little Men
21. Take Off Your Clothes
22. Gay Bar
23. I Know Karate

TROY GREGORY - SYBIL

So what do I know about Troy Gregory?  Absolutely nothing.  However, I've known about this CD for a few years now and I finally decided to bite the bullet and buy it.  My reason for buying this disc is because I keep finding it on Electric Six discographies.  Apparently, E6 collaborated with Gregory on a track called 'Dealin' In Death N' Stealin' In The Name Of The Lord'.  I was excited to hear the track.  I found it on eBay for a decent price and so I picked it up.

I was disappointed when I got the disc and found out none of the members of Electric Six actually receive a writing credit for the song.  They play all the instruments and Dick Valentine sings background.  So far that's all I can ascertain.  And just as a side note...  E6 did this while they were still The Wildbunch.

Oddly enough, this disc is 13 tracks of Gregory working with a bunch of different bands, most of which I've never heard of before.  I knew The Volebeats and I'd heard of Bantam Rooster, but everyone else on this record is completely unknown to me.  With strange names like Outrageous Cherry, The Sights, Slumber Party and They Come In Threes.

Now, to be fair, I haven't lived with this disc for very long so I'm giving you my initial reaction to it.  All of the songs range between two and four minutes with none of them actually breaking the four minute mark.  They're short and remind me heavily of the Paisley Underground movement back in the 80's.  Gregory's music blends the psychedelic rock of the 60's with punk and rock influences of the 80's.  It's a trippy album.

So far, my favorite track on the album is actually 'Leave The Ghost At Home.  There are other great songs on the record, but it's not surprising it didn't fare better.  The disc lacks the pop hooks and melodies of a record with mass appeal.  It lingers in psychedelic weirdness for much of its length.  Songs like 'Down 2 The Last Santa Claus' and 'Freezing Rain Freezin'' sound experimental and disjointed; while tracks like 'We Werk The Lines In Yer Hand' sound more like advertising for a national chain of palm readers.

This is a rather strange piece of music, but there are moments of absolute brilliance and charm.  I get a little frustrated with the broken record routine and Gregory falls victim to it on this album quite a bit.  When I say "Broken Record Routine" I refer to a song where lines are repeated over and over.  The Cranberries were notorious for it in the 90's.  It almost drove me insane.  Sometimes, I still can't listen to them for this reason.  Gregory certainly has a vivid imagination and should've been capable of coming up with additional lyrics rather than setting the song on repeat.  But he doesn't.  And although I don't like it, I'm sure some people do.

It's not what I was expecting or hoping for.  But it does have its appeal and charm.  I'll need to live with it for a bit longer before I decide if I actually love it or hate it, but for now, I'm somewhere in the middle and that's fine.  It hasn't convinced me to become a huge Gregory fan, so that's a strike.  But you never know.

My final words:  A STRANGE BIT OF MUSIC TO INVESTIGATE.

TROY GREGORY - SYBIL
01. Lice Cats N' Rabies Shots
02. Leave The Ghost At Home
03. Rat Squad
04. Regrets...I've Had A Few
05. Left My Mind Alone
06. Other Dimensions Will Reveal Themselves 2 B True 2 U
07. Dealin' In Death N' Stealin' In The Name Of The Lord
08. It Ain't Human
09. Down 2 The Last Santa Claus
10. Electric Fool
11. Born In A Haunted Barn
12. We Werk The Lines In Yer Hand
13. Freezing Rain Freezin'