BOC/BRAIN/OFF: Roooooooot-er

[Bolts of Ungodly Vision]

Almost an hour of quirkiness on VHS tape which has the quality of a boot,
the intimiacy of a boot but without the laces (BAAD joke, sorry)

The tape is essentially divided up into two sorts o' features, Roter's dead
on wacky monologues and the band consisting of Joe on them "88s," Peter
"Peter Bouchard" B of the surgeons, Jack "Jack Bouchard" Rigg on guitar and
bass(?), Ross the Boss, Scott Kempner, 2 backing vocalists whose names I
couldnt make out, and an unnamed keyboardist.  Obviously rom here on out,
Il have to indicate who is playing where.

Part the first: Mr. Roter explains the meanings behind "My Mother, My
Brother and My (beep boop courtesy of the ETL Censoring Commission)"  which
leads into saysing that "Joan Crawford" is about his mother(maybe...) and
it was one of the only songs that he made money on courtesy the 2 boys from
BOC.
The song starts out with.....Joe ripping up the boards on the oh so cool
piano intro we all know and pretend to play(made possible by $100,000 worth
of piano lessons according to David).  His vocals are differnt than Eric's
considerably... I thnk him singing HIS words gives the song more edge.  A
cool Rigg guitar solo w/ Albert laying down a good peat clears us through
the middle (instead of the sound effect collage) and then.... and thennn...
it sends a chill up the spine wit a radically reconstructed "Christina ,
Mothers Home"
The intensity of the artist hits home, but the song does not return to the
end as on FoUO. It wild in a twisted way:)

Roter's style is very much teh storysong kind o venue, very differnt from
BOC and Brain Surgeon lyric in general, and it works well. I think of him
as a demented Lou Reed, without all the heroin and walking on the wild side.
Anyhow, from Joan Crawford, we meet David's "other brother" through a short
monologue and a story about Joe and Albert hating each other. The song
itself "My Other Brother" is very Roter-ish : a combination of honesty and
sarcasm with realyl well done guitar backing.
"My Man  Wont Stand" is the first rock anthem to impotence. 'Nuff said! :)

The video editing has, shall we say, unorthodox points of departure , such
as during ht organ solo of an otherwise well done Coney Island Girl.
The set gains strength as it proceeds, highlights being "Time Bomb" w/ Ross
the Boss laying  down a good Chuck Berry strafing on top of the "Louie
Louie" structure of the song. Roters vocals are more penetrating and
"wild"... it cooks.
And of course, 'I think I slept with Jackie Kennedy' is very nicely done,
though the auience isnt particulary forthcoming in join in on the "jackie
o" chorus at the end.
Like ive alluded to in other postings, the Best song of the "night" was
"New York New York," which David prefaces with a scolding of Bruce
Springsteen, Van Morrison and Bobby Dylan. Albert starts out layin down a
PHAT (really!)
drumming tempo, full of fills only Albert can do. What comes on top is a
gritty rap on all the "highlights" of what make the Big Apple loveably rotten.
The band can groove on top of the Bouchardian riffing quite well. At the
end, the band start a wailing on one of the motifs and Joe throws in a
tasty lil' faux organ solo on a Kurzweil keyboard. Good show.

Overall, the band(s) are much like theBrain Surgeons in attitude, relaxed
and pleased as punch to play.  If you like Bootlegs, this is one to get.

On flame with rock n' roll soul,
Jason
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"It is only beginning with me that the earth knows great politics."
        -F.Nietzsche, _Ecce Homo_
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