March 31, 2011

#51. This eye catching tribute to the Velvet Underground’s debut album comes from The Jigsaw Seen. Although their first album came out in 1991, I didn’t hear them until some great contributions they made for tribute albums to the Bee Gees and The Hollies among others. Their last album Zenith came in one of the greatest packages I have ever seen, with the CD actually interacting with the art work in the form of a old television. It was even nominated for a Grammy, which is a big deal for such an indie band. The intricate, yet never fussy pop music on the album made it one of my favorites of 2000.

I sort of assumed they broke up, since I hadn’t heard from them in years. And then Bananas Foster came out last year in such a spectacular package that I fell in love with them all over again, even before giving the album a spin. 10 years was worth the wait, but please don’t make me wait another 10 years for a new album.

The shirt continues the theme from the artwork from Bananas Foster, which even has a peel off sticker on the cover (and no, I have not peeled it). In case you can't make it out, the shirt says “flambé quickly and see”. Trust me, their music is as cool as their art work.

March 30, 2011

#50. Another KISS shirt, and on tie-dye! Hard to miss me today.

March 29, 2011

#49. As seen on the wall in the Korova milk bar in A Clockwork Orange, Moloko Vellocet is a milk drink laced with drugs (possibly LSD or speed). This might explain some of the horrorshow in the Anthony Burgess novel, memorably brought to screen by Stanley Kubrick.

March 28, 2011

#48. I really love this Sonic Youth shirt, one of the oldest in my collection.   The picture is Tracy Lords, although someone asked me today if it was Michelle Williams.

I’ve seen this band quite a few times in concert, but this shirt is from the Goo Era.  They took a  lot of flak for signing to Geffen, but I think they remained interesting and was able to reach a larger audience, so boo on the haters who screamed sell out back then.

This is also the shirt I specifically chose to wear to the Lady Gaga show tonight.

#48.5. Nice set list recreation that indicates the guitar used for each song.  I have a set list from 2000, when Jim O'Rourke was playing with them, and there are 4 columns indicating which guitar/bass each member plays

March 27, 2011

#47. Another silly shirt with a connection to junk food.  I have a few of these.

March 26, 2011

 #46. I can write so many things about Coachella. Good thing too, because I have 7 shirts (one for each year I've been).

This is from last year's festival which is easily my least favorite year. Too many people and the gatecrashers didn't help an already sold out affair. Plus the wristband distribution was poorly conceived and executed, adding 2 hours just to make it to the entry gate.

However, I won't let last year taint this year. After experiencing 6 wonderful years, I will allow one year for growth issues. But Coachella, you've been warned. I'm going to be extra aware of how things are handled this year before I decide to attend Coachella 2012.

#46.5. It's hard to make out most of the bands listed on the back. Of the recent bands, Muse were my favorite. But the most enjoyable for me were the older bands, PiL, The Specials and Faith No More. Gary Numan couldn't make it because of the volcano that prevented flights from leaving UK.

But the most memorable was also the most shambolic. Yes, I'm talking about Sly and the Family Stone. I didn't expect much. Heck, I didn't even expect him to show up. After missing his original set time, he was rescheduled to the end of the day against Gorillaz. When he finally showed up, he stumbled on stage and starting ranting about being kidnapped and ripped off and wouldn't let the band play. People left in droves, but we stayed until the end. One of the worst performances I have ever seen, yet one I'll never forget.

March 25, 2011

#45. The Beat Seekers are from Omaha, Nebraska. I saw them at IPO a couple of years ago while manning the merch table. I had never heard of them before, but their set was total energetic fun. After they played, I decided I had to buy their shirt. They had a big box of shirts and I dug and dug and didn't find a large until I got near the bottom of the box. I bought their CD too.

March 24, 2011

#44. This was a gift from my nephews. The funny thing is I'm pretty sure they have only seen me eat deep fried Twinkies. But they know how much I love them so they figured it would be a perfect shirt for me. They know me well.

March 23, 2011

 #43. This White Zombie shirt is the eye catching, psychotic/delic cover art for their breakthrough album La Sexorcisto-Devil Music Vol. 1. Its best know song is Thunder Kiss '65, which I can't hear without remembering how powerful it used to sound when played weekly at Club Cherry, the only dance club I ever really got into.

Rob Zombie is now a solo artist, and recently inducted the man who made it all possible for him, Alice Cooper, into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

March 22, 2011

#42. As alluded to in my Hand Banana story (shirt #5), ATHF isn't for everyone. You might find it mindlessly relentless, disgusting and crude. But those are some of the reasons I love the show so much. The movie sucked. But the show on Adult Swim is weird in all the right places.

March 21, 2011

#41. This was a Christmas gift from Mike's family. Or maybe it was my family. Whoever it was, I guess they know me well.

March 20, 2011

#40. I wasn't aware of the Flaming Lips before She Don't Use Jelly hit in 1993, but they had already been releasing albums for 7 years. It still took a few more years after that, and when they unleashed their masterpiece The Soft Bulletin in 1999, I finally went to see them in concert.

Although the show was really good, they were in a period of transition and were performing without a drummer. Over the next few Flaming Lips shows I saw, they finally worked together the perfect spectacle of a live show with one show leaving us almost ankle deep in confetti. One review I read called their show the direct descendant of KISS and Parliament/Funkadelic. That's about right.

March 19, 2011

#39. I would be rather silly for me to sit here and quote all my favorite Monty Python lines, since I would probably be here half the day and maybe not even hit upon any of your favorite lines.

But feel free to share any of your favorite Python moments.

March 18, 2011

#38. This SotD is another special request.  For the few of us familiar with The Shaggs, it's almost reassuring to know we aren't the only one in the world who knows about the Wiggin sisters. 

Frank Zappa once said The Shaggs were better than The Beatles, and who am I to argue with him?  But it's safe to say there isn't another band quite like them.  Charming, innocent and with a lack of self-consciousness, their debut album Philosophy of the World sounds like each of the three sisters recorded their parts in a separate room without being able to hear one another. 

When Terry Anderson from NRBQ came across this album, originally released in 1969 and doomed for eternal obscurity, he convinced Rounder Records to re-release it in 1980.  KROQ actually played My Pal Foot Foot, and either it didn't sound so odd in their anti-format of the day, or my taste in music had already become twisted and odd, but I thought it sounded like a classic and ran out and bought the album. 

The shirt design is a drawing of their lost cat Foot Foot from the back of the album cover.  I have a friend who had this tattooed on his arm.  I would have loved to have seen the look on his tattoo artist's face when he presented him with this rather odd image.   

The Shaggs are less obscure today than they were upon this album's release, but I suppose that's not saying much.   There was even a musical based on their story, and it was quite good.   And I instantly bond with people when I wear this shirt and they share that they too love The Shaggs.

March 17, 2011

#37. When I decided to start documenting my shirts, I really didn't think things through. I shared my favorite shirt story early on (#9, February 17), and I really didn't think I would be writing something about every shirt. Once I realized I was going to include a narrative with each shirt, I would look at my shirts and ask myself "what do I have to say about my 7UP shirt?"

And then, like a gift, my friend mentioned he was going to wear his 7UP shirt for St. Patrick's Day. Perfect. A story is born.

And I still have hope that, before this shirt series is over, I will find a new favorite shirt story and save it for the end.

March 16, 2011

#36. Picked up this Jack Skellington shirt at Disneyland around the time they first embraced The Nightmare Before Christmas.

It's a cool shirt, made even cooler to me by the fact that I used to like seeing LA band The Bonedaddys in the 80's. I don't think this shirt intends to be a reference to them, but it is to me.

March 15, 2011

#35. I can't remember where I got this shirt, but I know it was a freebie.  It's XL, so I rarely wear it.  Well, now that I've gained a few pounds it doesn’t look so bad. 

I prefer Rockaway for my CD shopping, but I love the stimulation overload at Amoeba.  They price their used CDs higher than other stores, but with the loss of Aron's and smaller shops, this is one of the only games left in town. 

The in store appearances are among the coolest free things in town.  I've seen PJ Harvey, Los Lobos, Franz Ferdinand, Solomon Burke and Ian Hunter to name a few.  And if you're extra patient, they usually hang around to sign CDs.

March 14, 2011

#34. I'm actually a late comer to the Grateful Dead.  Although there are pictures of me sporting a concert jersey from a concert circa 1979, that was actually a gift from a Deadhead friend.  After he gave it to me, I went out and picked up Blues for Allah.  Definitely not the place to start.  Prior to that, in 1977, I had seen The Grateful Dead Movie because I won tickets.  I was just discovering punk at that time, so I was mostly just bored by the movie.

Fast forward to 2000.  Freaks & Geeks had already been canceled with the last few episodes shelved.  The Museum of Television & Radio (now the Paley Center for Media) arranged to screen these in their rather small screening room.  Tickets sold out before I could score one, so I got in line early and hoped to get in.  I didn't make it in the main room, but they did a satellite screening in their smaller room.   I planted myself in that room and proceeded to watch the last 5 unaired shows with other fans.  Judd Apatow was there, but was in the main room.  He did come in at one point to thank us for our dedication. 

Well, he was the one deserving of my thanks.  Besides helping to produce one of my all time favorite shows, the last episode of the series, Discos and Dragons, did something I never thought possible.  It made me a Grateful Dead fan.  Because the music in the series was so smartly woven in to the story lines, American Beauty was used to introduce the Lindsey character to the Grateful Dead.  It was so moving, and I ran out and bought American Beauty the next day.  I now own every Grateful Dead studio album and more live shows than some Dead fans may have ever seen.

I wonder how differently things would have been with me had I bought American Beauty instead of Blues for Allah in 1979.

March 13, 2011

#33. Yes, this is a concert shirt. But it's a concert I didn't go to. And of the bands who played, the only one I've ever seen before is Aimee Mann.

I'm pretty sure I won this in a raffle while volunteering at KCRW. I've been really lucky there. This year I won a Dark Night of the Soul CD autographed by David Lynch and Danger Mouse. One year I won $50 worth of sausage from Jodi Maroni's.

I have other KCRW shirts, but they are white and have become gym shirts. I think this will be the only KCRW Shirt of the Day.

March 12, 2011

#32. What better shirt to wear to tonight's Freaks & Geeks reunion, one of my favorite TV shows ever, than my Iron Giant shirt, one of my favorite movies ever.

I've probably seen this movie more than any other. I saw it 7 times in the theater when it ran, one time being the ONLY ONE in the theater. I could never figure out why this exciting, touching and beautifully animated movie never caught on. I think some of it had to do with promotion, or lack of it. Brad Bird finally got recognition for his work on The Incredibles, but I'm sure he will always have a special place in his heart for our shared Superman, The Iron Giant.

This shirt was a gift from my cousin during a Christmas visit in 1999. I was enthusing about this movie, as I did to anyone who would listen, and she noted that she had a shirt that came from the production staff of the movie. My eyes lit up when she went in the next room and presented me with this shirt. And it was my size too!

If you have never seen the movie, please rent it and let me know what you think. Plus, there is a handsome character in the movie named Dean, and I can't even name another character Dean in a movie.

March 11, 2011

#31. I’m wrapping up my week of Elephant 6 shirts with Neutral Milk Hotel, maybe the most revered band to come out of the E6 scene.  In 1998 they released one of my all time favorite albums, In the Aeroplane over the Sea, which is one of the few albums that changed my perception of what music can do.

Populated by surreal characters (the King of Carrot Flowers, the Two-Headed Boy, the Communist’s Daughter), weird anatomical imagery (the fork in daddy’s shoulder, the fingers in the mouth that make the muscles move, fingers later placed in the notches of your spine) and plain, sincere and un-ironic love (the wail “I love you Jesus Christ” initially seems like it must lead to another odd obsession, but ends up as one of the clearest statements on the entire album).   The album reaches its peak on Oh Comely with so many wild lyrics and such fervor, it initially comes across as indulgent but eventually became the centerpiece of the album for me.

I actually can’t remember where I bought this shirt.  It’s possible I bought it at their Spaceland performance when they toured Aeroplane, a show that also included The Gerbils and Elf Power.   I have such fond memories of that show, and even a few false memories.  When I recollect the show, the stage was so cluttered with instruments that the band didn’t enter the stage by walking on it.  They actually floated down from the ceiling. 

March 10, 2011

#30. Continuing the Elephant 6 theme, today’s shirt comes from Olivia Tremor Control.   They released two proper albums (Music from the Unrealized Film Script, Dusk at Cubist Castle and Black Foliage: Animation Music) with songs alternating between psych-pop, and psych-freak out, the latter songs being more Lumpy Gravy than Freak Out.  For me, their sound cohered better live. 

The first time I saw them was at the Troubadour with Music Tapes opening.   After that, they went on indefinite hiatus while founding members Bill Doss and Will Cullen Hart focused on The Sunshine Fix and Circulatory System respectively.  They did reform and play the one-off Arthurfest, and somewhere I was even filmed enthusing about this band for a documentary on Arthurfest that never materialized.  Bill and Will, and other members of OTC, are also part of the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour making its way across the country at this moment.  Speaking of which, I spotted someone wearing this shirt at that show and I’m glad I didn’t wear the same thing.  Technically, it would have been allowed.  But I decided that any E6 band shirt would be off limits for this show and added that as a clause to my “no shirt of the band I’m seeing” rule.

March 09, 2011

#29. Barely a month ago, on February 12, I was wearing an Elf Power shirt. At that time, I bemoaned the lack of Elf Power shows I’ve seen locally. And right under my nose, the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour was announced, and I almost missed out on this show because tickets sold out before I even knew about it.

The Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour is a rotating membership from bands like Olivia Tremor Control, Circulatory System, Neutral Milk Hotel, The Gerbils, The Music Tapes and of course Elf Power, all bands associated with Elephant 6. The generous set (a little over 3 ½ hours, with a little break in the middle) consisted of songs from most of these bands, and included a few from Elf Power. Although I still want to see a full Elf Power set again, this Surprise Tour was very satisfying and reminded me how unique these bands are. And it was quite the surprise.

March 08, 2011

#28. Out of all the Elephant 6 bands, Beulah is among the most poppy. Starting off in a lo-fi vein with Handsome Western States, I became a fan on their 2nd album When Your Heartstrings Break. Although seemingly sunny, their 3rd album The Coast is Never Clear is more of an end-of-summer album (and my favorite Beulah album). Their final album, Yoko, was another stunner. Sadly, they called it quits after that.

The design on this shirt is starting to fade a bit. And like all white shirts, it will meet its end sooner than I’d like. I’m going to wear it tonight for the PaleyFest tribute to Hot in Cleveland, and I expect someone there might think this is a reference to the old TV show that ran in the early 50’s.

March 07, 2011

#27. Like the bands that influenced many of these musicians, the artwork on this design is psychedelic and difficult to see clearly at first.

The Elephant 6 Recording Company is a collective of bands coming out of the music scene in the 90’s that shared members, instruments, recording spaces and tour buses.  In most cases, the bands were even cooler than their names (Apples in Stereo, Olivia Tremor Control, Neutral Milk Hotel, Elf Power to name a few).  Of the bands, Of Montreal are probably the most well known.

I saw the Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise Tour, a supergroup comprised of members of some of those bands, on Friday.  Today I wear the Elephant 6 logo shirt and smile when thinking about Friday night.

March 06, 2011

#26. I hadn't expected any special requests, but when I got one for this shirt I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to work a white t-shirt into the mix.

Until the mid-nineties I almost exclusively wore white shirts. But since the shirts would eventually get not-so-white, they didn't have the lifespan that the black shirts have. Now I typically save my white shirts for days that I am going to be out in the sun (Coachella, Sunset Junction, Disneyland on hot days). But since I have a lot of white shirts, I'm going to have to wear them more often for this project.

Today's shirt is a Tony Millionaire design for Stew and his audience pleasing nursery rhyme-like song Re-hab. I wish I had a recording of Stew's recent tour arrangement of this song. It's such a great song, that no matter how he plays it, it captivates the audience. I will discuss my love of Stew on a future shirt. This was taken on friend's birthday tour of Metro subway art.

March 05, 2011

#25. I can't remember why I picked it up, but as soon as I hit track #3 (Mucha Muchacha) of Space Age Bachelor Pad Music , I knew I had to hear more Esquivel. Fortunately this compilation sparked interest in others too, more CDs followed and I bought those too. And at some point I bought this shirt. I wish I could say I bought it at an Esquivel concert, but I never saw him and he passed away in 2002.

Picture taken waiting for eye exam, and that is probably the last place I should have gone looking this bleary eyed from last night's marathon Elephant 6 Holiday Surprise show.

March 04, 2011

#24. If you don’t know El Vez. the Mexican Elvis, your best introduction is to see his wonderful Christmas show.  Those who know me know I’m not huge fan of Christmas.  But there are 3 things I love about the holiday: A Charlie Brown Christmas , Phil Spector’s A Christmas Gift for You and the El Vez Christmas Show.

To the uninitiated, El Vez might seem corny and unnecessary.  But that is probably because you would be thinking of the many Elvis impersonators  you may have come across (Dread Zeppelin’s Tortelvis, Thai Elvis, the guy buying donuts in Kalamazoo).  But El Vez has so much musical muscle, he transcends mere parody.  Elvis is just a springboard which he jumps off of before he dives into his love of Sweet, Iggy and all the killer pop riffs that stick in our brain.  Plus he twists in his Latino culture (not Hispanic.  He is quick to point out he is not from Hispain.

1.   

#24.5. This shirt is timely for me because of the Phil Ochs quote on the back.  I was reminded of this shirt when I saw the Phil Ochs documentary There But for Fortune the other night, and realized that was really the only thing I knew from Phil Ochs before seeing the movie.  I guess it comes from the liner notes of his Broadside Tapes album.  It works perfectly with this Che, It Loud mash-up of a shirt.

March 03, 2011

#23. As I mentioned in an earlier entry, I have this rule that I won’t wear a shirt of the artist I’m seeing the night of the show.  I know that’s silly.  But I figure everyone already knows I’m a fan because I’m there.  It can be more interesting to try and tie in a shirt to the event.

Tonight I’m seeing Mavis Staples.  And what better time to wear my Lost in the Trees shirt.  Why, you ask?  Well, Lost in the Trees share the same label as Mavis (Anti- Records).  I was turned on to Lost in the Trees by a co-worker whose daughter-in-law works for Anti- Records.  They were playing McCabe’s, and I love seeing shows there, so I decided to check them out based on her recommendation.  I’m glad I did.  I fell in love with them immediately, and was lucky they were playing three more LA shows that week (Spaceland, Amoeba and Hotel Café).  I went to all four shows.

They are coming back in April.  I was certain that they would be here for Coachella, but that didn’t happen.  They will be at the Echoplex on 4/19 and if I am fully recovered from Coachella, I’ll be there. 

But first, I’m gonna rock this shirt at Mavis tonight.

March 02, 2011

#22. Although some might see something different when they see IPO, when I’m branding these initials it stands for International Pop Overthrow, an annual festival of pop music.

Beginning in Los Angeles in 1998 by David Bash, and now a worldwide event, it’s quite a large undertaking when running in Los Angeles. With around 7-8 bands a night, running over 2 weeks, it’s nearly impossible to see it all (unless you’re David Bash). But I always catch a few shows, and for close to 10 years now I’ve been running the merchandise table for a couple of shows a year.

Unless I’m mistaking, this shirt from 2001, designed by Ken West, is the last shirt ever sold with an IPO logo.  And that’s a shame considering some of Steve Stanley’s great designs associated with later IPOs. Since it’s been 10 years since the last shirt, maybe they will produce some shirts for this year’s festival.

March 01, 2011

#21. A fairly uninteresting shirt given away as a promo for the more interesting “live” Stones album, Stripped.  This is the only Stones shirt I have that doesn’t have their logo on it.  Whenever I think of this album, I recall the time I wore this shirt and some guy came up to me and said, “I love that album Striped”.  So that’s what I now call the album.  However, today a co-worker told me she thought it said “Stripper”.  Now I have yet another more interesting thing to think about when I wear this rather dull Stones shirt.