Black Taxi at Tommy Doyle’s, 96 Winthrop Street, Cambridge (Harvard Square)
TONIGHT (Friday, January 20)
21+ / 8pm / $5 or FREE before 9:30pm

Late notice on this one, but infectiously poppy and danceable Black Taxi, hailing from Brooklyn, New York, are at Tommy Doyle’s tonight. They just released their second album, We Don’t Know Any Better. Check out their video below.

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On their debut EP Noisemaker (released Dec 13 of last year), Boston band The Dirty Hit give a very nice sampling of their eclectic and far-reaching sound. There’s the noisy garage fun of “Romero” and “Back To You” (though both have melodic elements), the folky social commentary of “All Seeing Eye,” and some really nice psychedelic ambiance of “Days End” and “Bring Light,” which have little experimental touches including a a slight aroma of reggae rhythm. “Renovator,” which closes the EP, is just a nice, tight pop song. There’s something about the writing (I’m a lyrics girl, remember), the tasteful guitar licks and the delightful harmonies that makes these guys stand out. It’ll be cool to see what they do next – there’s plans for a full-length this year.

For now, you can check them out in the flesh at the Church of Boston Friday, February 3. They’ll be playing along with The Dukes of Funk, Sidecar Radio, Among Criminals and Last Call.

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In these fledgling days of the newly spawned year, I can’t help but be philosophical (in my typically snarky way), and wonder what 2012 will bring. My god… 2012. New age refugees have been talking about the significance of this particular year, with its mysterious Mayan back story, since the 1980s. Now that we’re actually here, I have to admit, it’s a weird feeling. Will the end of the Mayan calendar cycle bring unspeakable catastrophe, as some have predicted, will we enter into an Aquarian Age with complete connection and world peace (yeah, right), or will it all be ‘business as usual’?

Let’s play devil’s advocate just for a moment. What if the world really does end on December 21, 2012? Would this change our behavior, if we know with all certainty that we only had another year (a little less than that, in fact) to make our final stand on this planet, in this lifetime?

Do I think December 21 is the last day of our existence? No. Mind you, this is not out of any deep understanding of the universe, nor awakening satori or devout faith. I say this based on experience. The year 1984 had ominous overtones due to that disturbing little book by Mr. Orwell, which instilled enough doom and gloom to give one the feeling of a finite existence. Yet 1984 came and went without incident. Then there was Y2K, when some computers had funny dates on them due to what I’ll say was the ultimate lack of faith in the future (and poor planning), but with IT people putting in a few extra hours, we managed to avoid catastrophe. Entering into the 21st century wasn’t such a big deal either, as it so happened. And Harold Camping’s May 21st rapture and subsequent end of the world last year proved to be a complete bust.

In 1981, I had my own personal experience with a harbinger of doom. My karate teacher in St. Petersburg, Florida was so absolutely convinced that the end of the world was coming, he gathered all his students together one evening to warn us. When the dreaded date came and went, he shrunk into embarrassed obscurity. It was soon after that I realized I had quite enough of nutty Florida.

It was at this point that I was going to espouse some new form of positive thinking, or at least the iChing’s ever-popular “inner-independence” and detachment, but who am I kidding? I’ve always been cynical, but at least I’ve been honest. Far worse to pretend to be a cheerful optimist. No, what makes far more sense to me is this little nugget that I was recently reminded of, from long ago when I read the mind-expanding books of Carlos Castaneda. He was told by his teacher, Don Juan, to “live life as a warrior, as if every day was your last.” [thanks to Boston ensemble Club d'Elf for sending this out in their latest email blast, and for passing along what the Mayans themselves are saying.]

That’s what I have to offer at the start of this ominous but exciting new year. Welcome to 2012. If you’re looking for predictions or advice, sorry, I can’t help you. Everything that I knew with unwavering certainty when I was 15 I’m not at all sure of now. What I will say is I’m about to take a first step: I’m going to get out of the fricking house and do stuff I haven’t done before. Hedging my bets, if it all does end on December 21st (or something equally bizarre happens), I want to at least be able to say I had one ridiculously crazy but damn fine year. But that’s just me.

Three of the four amazing bands to be gracing the 'stage' (such as it is) at the Lizard Lounge tonight - Black Fortress of Opium, Marc Pinansky, and The Fatal Flaw.

Black Fortress of Opium with St. Helena, The Fatal Flaw,
and Marc Pinansky (of Township) at the Lizard Lounge
Saturday, January 14, 2012
$8 | 18+ | doors at 8pm | facebook event

Here’s an absolutely ridiculous line-up of bands at the cozy little Lizard Lounge tomorrow night (or rather *tonight*, but the time I get this posted..). And speaking of my tardiness, apologies for this ‘quick and dirty’ preview, but this is seriously worthy of a mention, despite its hastiness. This may well sell out, so get there early. See you there.

Black Fortress of Opium
Gothic Americana featuring Ajda the Turkish Queen on vocals, mandolin, guitar and keyboard. Their new album Stratospherical will be out March 6. | web | facebook | bandcamp | YouTube

St. Helena
Lyrically wistful, lush and lovely, with male/female vocals and rich, full instrumentation. Their debut full-length album, Modern Tan, was released January of last year. | web | facebook | St. Helena | bandcamp | twitter

The Fatal Flaw
“For those of us who enjoy pretty pop music and a cynical, sarcastic world view.” (I’m quoting myself). I’ve been wanting to see these guys since catching the very end of their set on a chilly Boston Common, New Year’s 2011. Took me a friggin’ year. | web | facebook | bandcamp

Marc Pinansky (Township)
Lead vocalist and guitarist for the band Township, in a (somewhat) rare solo acoustic performance. | facebook | bandcamp | blog | twitter

Levon Helm, Crooked Fingers, Toyah Willcox with The Humans

Ok, so last year I had a ‘Top 10′ list. What can I say; 2011 was kind of a struggle. But I did discover a common theme for this year’s favorites: delivering a stellar performance in the face of adversity. Whether it was a legendary performer who had overcome personal struggles to come back, absolutely blazing (Toyah Wilcox, Levon Helm, and Eric Bachmann with his band Crooked Fingers); or just a rough night (lead singer Evan Way of The Parson Red Heads being really sick but soldiering on anyway, and The Drowning Men and their ‘road trip from hell’); my soaring admiration combined with musical prowess to create these special evenings.

Levon Helm at the Life Is Good. Festival – Sept. 25

As drummer and sometimes lead singer for legendary 60s group The Band, Levon Helm’s strong, distinctive vocals were a highlight of several of their classics – “The Weight”, “Up on Cripple Creek”, “Ophelia” and “The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down”. Yet in the late 1990s, he was diagnosed with throat cancer, no question the worst news a singer could receive. Rather than have a laryngectomy (as his doctor suggested), he instead went through radiation treatments which fortunately in time proved successful. While his voice of course isn’t what it once was, he took a turn at some lead vocals throughout the show, and his skill and fortitude sent that enthusiastic, supportive crowd over the edge. It was a very emotional experience, and my first time seeing him. Amazing. Read my review on Ryan’s Smashing Life (and check out Kira Doucette’s wonderful photos).

The Humans with Toyah Willcox at Church of Boston – Sept. 25

Catching up with Toyah’s career over the years (I had no idea she had been mostly an actress), I read about her early life, which included battling extreme physical disabilities from birth, including many operations and years of therapy, and the alienation that type of childhood experience will cause. In addition to overcoming all that (I’m guessing it’s what propelled her independent, ambitious spirit), she came back to the U.S. with her band, The Humans, after primarily an acting career in England. It was their first time here in the states, doing a small handful of club dates with no clue as to how they’d be received. Brave as hell. And they put on a brilliant show that had the vibe of a Broadway musical, in her performance and delivery. I was impressed with her back in the ’80s when I was a big fan, and I’m even more impressed now. She’s one special lady, and knowing more about her, my admiration of this powerful singer and performer has increased exponentially. I didn’t get any video or photos that evening, but you can read my advance of the show for a little background.

The Parson Red Heads at Great Scott – Sept. 26

It’s not just that The Parson Red Heads are based in Portland, Oregon, and that they’d been traveling cross country in a van on a national tour to promote their new album, Yearling. Or that being a small indie band, they all still have “day jobs,” and Evan continues to do his – as a web developer – from the road, while on tour. Or that some of these shows, in places where people don’t yet know them, have been for small handfuls of people. On top of it all, he had to get ridiculously sick. But being the troopers that they are, not only did the show go on, but it went on beautifully, with their warm and loving embrace of sunshine-filled West Coast folk-rock and those delicious harmonies. And when Evan’s voice gave out, they revamped their entire set ‘on the fly’, with Sam taking over vocal duties… stunningly. They sounded great, and it was obvious they won over an audience of new fans. Love these guys.

Also check out: Happy We Agree with Sam on lead vocals.

Crooked Fingers at T.T. the Bear’s Place – Nov. 6

Before this latest album with his band, Crooked Fingers, Eric Bachmann had a kind of “vision quest” in Taipei, where it seems he was trying to figure out just what he wanted to do with his life. He might have stayed and been an English teacher, but fortunately for us, he came back, released an album, and went on tour – with both Crooked Fingers and his “other band,” Archers of Loaf. One still gets the sense that there’s some lingering ambivalence, but that only adds to the power of his lyrical gravitas and emotionally stirring music. Here’s my review of the show.

The Drowning Men (and The Airborne Toxic Event) at The Orpheum Theatre – Nov. 19

For the full story on what made this particular show so special, see my article, The Airborne Toxic Event and The Drowning Men: A Road Story. Being in a touring rock band and traveling in a van cross country is stressful enough without being hit by a drunk driver on some godforsaken stretch of highway in the dead of night. Apart from the miracle that no one was hurt (thank god), the fact that The Drowning Men could perform at all that night – never mind as well as they did – is quite astonishing.

You can see their performance of their wonderful song “Rita” in the article above, with good friends Airborne adding to the merriment. Here’s some more of their lovely set, in the nearly sold out Orpheum Theatre.

Honorable mention to Airborne as well for a great show, despite having two radio promotions to deal with earlier in the day (which included a beautiful acoustic set at The Black Rose – thanks ‘FNX!), after what was probably no more than a few hours of sleep. I don’t need to remind any readers of this blog how much I love that band.

In the video below, Mikel defies the limits of human endurance (and I think of common sense as well) with his performance of “Something New” and “Does This Mean You’re Moving On?”:

Take Note! If you’re doing First Night, they’ll be bringing their “posse” once again to the Hynes Convention Center, 900 Boylston Street, starting at 7:30 and going until 11pm.