happy new year! - EU Jacksonville

a year in music
punk is not dead, it’s just inconsistent By Jon Bosworth
At the beginning of 2006, everything looked bleak, musically. Bush’s war in Iraq was spurring all of
these protest albums that were musically half-hearted. Instead of the traditional Green Day, we had the
American Idiot Green Day which resorted to name-calling and flat attempts at depth. Instead of the funky
fresh Beastie Boys, we had three old DJs slapping together a poorly concocted rap album, To the Five
Burroughs full of political protest songs. These 2005 releases set the musical tone for 2006. We wanted
to be the 60s. Iraq was becoming our Vietnam.
The final blow that determined that fact to be that case was the release of At War with the Mystics
by The Flaming Lips. I was getting geared up for the first Flaming Lips live appearance in Florida in
almost fifteen years down at a festival in the Everglades this spring when I finally purchased their new
record. It was self-righteous and loaded with social and political messages. I don’t mind my favorite
artists sharing their beliefs with me as an avid listener and fan, it brings me closer to them in a sense.
But when the music isn’t up to par with the artist’s usual creativity and spends a great deal of time
preaching to me, I grow disappointed. Normally I would listen to a new Flaming Lips album over and
over, but the more I listened to At War with the Mystics, the more annoyed I grew. I finally gave the
record away and decided not to buy tickets to the Florida show for fear that it would tarnish my memory
of their last show.
I quickly decided that my search for good music was going to take me away from my traditional
mainstays. So the hunt began. My friend Bob Maynard told me about an experimental, instrumental rock
band that had John Stanier, the drummer for Helmet, Ian Williams, the guitarist for Don Cabelleros, and
Tyondai Braxton, an experimental electronic musician and the son of jazz legend Anthony Braxton. I went
to Inertia Records, the new record store in Five Points, and they had never heard of BATTLES. I looked
around online and could only find their ambiguous website. I had no way of hearing them. So I did the
unthinkable. I downloaded everything of theirs that I could find. That was still not very much music. So I
went to Moon Colony Razorblade.
Moon Colony Razorblade opened a great record store downtown loaded with indie rock gems.
This store affected much of my music experience in 2006. Many of my favorite albums of 2006 were
purchased there. Because the store opened and closed this same year, Moon Colony is one of those
experiences that is exclusive to 2006.
records I Purchased at Moon Colony razorblade in 2006:
Johnny Cash – American V; A Hundred Highways
Flaming Lips – At War with the Mystics
Kind of Like Spitting – Bridges Worth Burning
BATTLES – EP/CB EP
Death From Above 1979 – You’re a Woman I’m a Machine
Emperor X – Central Hug/Friendarmy/Fractal Dunes
Built to Spill – You in Reverse
I had a lot of hope for the local music scene in 2006. In addition to Brass Castle being my handsdown
favorite band of 2006, the Cadets were getting back together and working on a new album, and
Shangrala had begun recording their first full-length. I also saw some great bands get together and split
up. From Crash the Satellites kicking out Heath Valdez, one of Jacksonville’s best musicians, to Chinese
Horses, this amazing and promising new instrumental band that never seemed to play when I would
show up to their show, many lineups changed, but at least those bands stuck it out and are still making
the music we love. The real disappointment is the bands that couldn’t even last a single year, in spite of
their showmanship live.
Bands that Formed & split in 2006; May they rest in Pieces:
the yusge – This two-piece was just a drummer and a bassist, but they rocked. Not only did they have
an uncanny ability to keep you interested with a perpetually changing series of hooks and bass lines, but
they were high energy and mastered that clinging to the silence that makes a band sound tight even if
they aren’t.
AnIMAl FIght – The toast of the Conmoto Trench Festival, this highly anticipated band featured the
recently wounded Jason Jewell, who had been in a near-death car accident less than three weeks before
this performance, but still managed to rock solid, along with some of the Jacksonville punk scene’s
staple performers such as Dylan Louvier, Mike Arnold, and Josh Dunn on keyboard and vocals.
Jet FIghter – This half serious half-kitsch band played anthemic songs that paid tribute to the eighties
and made you laugh out loud. Like many bands in the River City, they fought over girls, control of the
band, and egos. They finally split up sometime after the summer, although Alex Moore will sometimes
still play as Jet Fighter.
new BerlIn – This promising mix of Terry Case (once member of Trouble Is and Crash the Satellites),
Cash Carter (of Cadets fame), and Amy Moore played minor-chord songs of postmodern complexity.
Their music had a machine-like drone and Terry’s vocals gave it a texture that, while similar to Joe
Parker from Hand of the Host, had a unique quality that likened it to something more contemporary.
Unfortunately all of them had busy lives outside of the band that affected their ability to be inside of the
band.
great Bands I Discovered in 2006:
BATTLES
Death from Above 1979
My Toy Heart
20 december 28-january 3, 2006 | entertaining u newspaper
... continued on page 21 sidebar
january
∙ Campaign to save the haydon Burns library downtown. Peterbrooke Chocolatier showed interest in taking
over the old library and turning it into their main factory as well as a Willy Wonka sort of an entertainment
destination. Enough people were skeptical about the entertaining value of chocolate to put the kibosh on the
idea, but enough people were also determined not to let this architectural treasure be torn down. The compromise
came in the form of a multiple-tenant concept which will include adding residential space on top of
the library and converting the current space to accommodate a grocery store, a restaurant, a night club, and
perhaps even more.
∙ Sam Alito became a Supreme Court Justice.
february
∙ A JCCI study determined that Jacksonville’s murder
rate was far greater than expected, more than double
last year’s.
∙ U2 and Kanye West sweep the Grammys.
march
looking
back at
∙ The one billionth song was sold on iTunes.
∙ 2006 Winter Olympics took place in Torino.
∙ Dick Cheney shot his friend in the face while hunting.
∙ Immigration march took place in Los Angeles.
∙ Mark’s, a bar on Bay Street downtown, opened.
∙ Jon Stewart hosted the 78th Annual Academy Awards.
april
∙ Moon Colony razorblade opened. This promising new indie rock record store opened its doors downtown
and hosted great in-store shows. Founded by local rockers Cash Carter of the Cadets and Max Wood of Applied
Communication, they already had all the cool a record store needs to succeed. They brought in national
acts to perform in the store and featured the best selection of pop-culture and counter-culture music, literature,
and clothes for indie rockers. We all hoped it would live long and prosper.
∙ Pope John Paul II died and Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was named Pope Benedict XVI.
may
∙ Jacksonville Film Festival. Lonely Hearts, the feature film staring John Travolta and James Gandolfini,
which was filmed in Jacksonville, opened at the Jacksonville Film Festival. Other movies with local associations
that debuted at the Jacksonville Film Festival include Cocaine Angel and Jumping off Bridges.
∙ Bush’s approval ratings hit an all-time low.
june
∙ Club Paris opened in the Jacksonville landing. On the heels of enormous Superbowl buzz, the opening
gala was all tiara’s and boas as clubbers hoped to catch a glimpse of the actual Paris Hilton. She, however,
was actually in Paris that weekend and did not make an appearance. A celebrity that did, however, was Mayor
John Peyton. It was the first time in 2006 that many locals saw the mayor anywhere.
∙ National “Go Skate Day” takes over downtown Jacksonville.
∙ Aaron Spelling died.
july
∙ Previous Crush owners take over nosh at 9th & Main. 9th & Main’s owner, Craig Van Horn, once again
changes up his whole concept. First it was Henrietta’s, featuring a delightful southern and Caribbean fusion
cuisine. Craig shut that down and turned it into Nosh. Utilizing the great live room they had, they created a live
music venue with a great sound system, a nice stage, and outstanding acoustics. But then there was some
mix up that caused the whole place to get shut down. Finally Erika and Jeff, who had opened Crush in Riverside,
took over the restaurant operations and have since resurrected the constantly in flux establishment.