OTHERNESS TAKE THE ROAD FROM NOWHERE

From Patagonia to Buenos Aires and Now to the USA. Otherness Are Going Places. OTHERNESS is a quirky alt/rock band that made their way from the furthest reaches of Argentina's Patagonia to Buenos Aires four years ago. Since then they have worked constantly, recording, playing. and touring. Now the hard work has begun to pay off with notice in their adopted city and as far away as London Seattle and New York . Their first South American CD titled Lite 2007 released in sold out almost immediately. A video of one of the CD's songs Once Begop went into rotation on MuchMusic Latin America. Now the band have set their sites on bringing their special brand of techno-punk to the US and Europe. It's a goal brothers Gonzalo and Martin Cativa have had since their days growing up in the cold desolate landscape of Comodoro Rivadavia Argentina. While growing up Martin and Gonzalo Cativa and Adrian Bersais took comfort in the fact that some of their musical heroes- Leadbelly, Arthur Alexander, Kurt Cobain-were able to escape the gloomy confines of dull grey backgrounds that offered very little future. Comodoro Rivadavia was a boom town gone bust in the 1990's. There was little time or opportunity to put into dreams of becoming rock musicians. But their drive led them to uncover the music of Nirvana, John Lennon, Elvis Costello and the Argentine grand master of tango, Astor Piazzolla. Paying careful attention to the craft of artists like these has helped Martin and Gonzalo Cativa to become the authors of hundreds of catchy, exciting songs that are entirely the product of their own talents.
Along the way the three created their own sort of manifesto. It has become an outline of the way they view life in the 21st Century. The basics of this include observations such as;
• The pilgrim needs to travel, if he stops he can die at the hands of what he considers the final learning-or perhaps adoration.
• Everyone is addicted to something.
• What is achieved with drugs can be obtained by other means.
• Explore alternative knowledge.
• Human beings are simply sexual.
• Marriage is an obsolete institution that died in the 20th century.

And just for good measure; • "El sexo y el dolor firman la identidad de la carne" - W. Burroughs

If this makes the band sound like earnest young idealists, the fact is they are also full of fun and a sense of wonder. There's a sense of hope and positivity in their music and lyrics that make them seem ...well....happy. The addition of drummer Pablito Gaggioni in 2008 has rounded out the band and given the extra drive they had been looking for. They have made a commitment to write and perform their songs in English which goes against the current trend in Argentine rock. These days Argentine pop seems a bit doctrinaire in it's insistence to be sung in Spanish when in fact most of it is nothing more than a re-hash of older British and English sounds. The sound Otherness has created doesn't even fit easily into today's pop music pigeon-holes. It's a quirky, upbeat sound that pays serious attention to the tradition of intelligent pop music. It also honors sounds like the traditional choros of Northern Argentina and Brazil, as well as the tango...a tradition that rose out of the Buenos Aires slums to become one of the most recognizable musical genres in the world. The members of Otherness show great deference to the master of Tango, Astor Piazzolla, but never overuse the style . Thus avoiding the pitfall of sounding like twee "world music". They are the furthest thing one imagines from musical archeologists. In fact, the August 2009 issue of London's Rock Pulse says:

"A fresh new rock group from Argentina are hitting the American and British music scene with their quirky and fun sound. Their name; Otherness. They have recently released their new single digitally. Containing the tracks Adorable and Pill-grim. They are an interesting four piece, sounding unlike anything I've heard before. Mellow and fiesty songs with a hint of electro. I love the vocals and rhythm that seems to come so easily to them, without trying too hard to impress. Otherness have passion and dedication and truly sound brilliant! Their first US tour is sure to be a success..."

Their first US album is being released on the eve of a tour that will take them across North America for the first time. It will fulfill a dream of following the spiritual journey of great American travellers like John Stienbeck and Jack Kerouac and fellow Argentinean Che' Guevara. The CD is being released by Seattle independent label dadastic! Sounds and includes eight new songs as well as Once Begop the hit from their debut album The CD is scheduled for release October 13th 2009. It will be available directly though the dadastic! sounds website at www.dadastic.com. As well as amazon.com, CD Baby, i-tunes and many other download sites worldwide. You can get a preview of the band playing Once Begop on you tube at:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H8lD0tSTPVY

LISTEN TO 'FIX AND FUSS' BY OTHERNESS HERE

THE FAGS: LAYING SKID MARKS SINCE 1981. The Fags might be the most fun Seattle band to play ‘six degrees of separation’ with…except we’d only have to play with one or two degrees. Direct ties lead to everywhere from 70’s Omni sexual performers Ze Whiz Kidz to neo-hippies SKY CRIES MARY. From THE LEWD to showgirl JULIE MILLER and The Casino de Monte Carlo. From John Holbrook, the man who mastered classic albums like “Tommy” and “Axis: Bold as Love” to Solger’s grimey recording of ’Raping Dead Nuns. And those connections barely scratch the surface.
The band rose out of a loose-knit community of musicians and punks that come and left Seattle’s infamous Fag House during the 1980’s. Key members of the band included Upchuck Gerra who died in 1990; drummer Ben Ireland,, legendary guitarist Paul Solger; filmmaker Barb Ireland and poet/painter Danny Reed. This free-for-all led to some of the most outrageous stage performances ever seen in Seattle….and later in downtown New York where the band re-located in the mid 1980’s. Studio recordings of the band are rare. One of the most astounding is ‘Lock You Up’ which was recently released on a career-spanning CD by Upchuck Gerra. After considerable success in Seattle the band headed to NYC. They found a niche in the downtown music and arts scene, and recorded with producer Yoram Vazan, but called it quits in 1986 to pursue other individual interests. Lead singer Charles "Upchuck" Gerra remained in NYC where he formed and recorded with his band 'Such' until his death from AIDS in 1990.
The members of The Fags continue to work in pop music. BEN IRELAND now drums with the neo-hippie world music band SKY CRIES MARY. PAUL SOLGER having fronted bands like Solger and Ten Minute Warning disappeared from the Seattle scene, but over the years has worked with everyone from JAYNE COUNTY to MARK LANEGAN. DAHNY RAPHAEL has gone on to become a noted poet, songwriter and painter. BARB IRELAND currently collaborates and tours with PEARL JAM'S STONE GOSSARD.
In 2008, with the release of a career-spanning CD by Upchuck" Gerra gave The Fags an opportunity to come together in a tribute concert dedicated to their friend and former lead singer. They were joined onstage by Stone Gossard, who, in a tip of the hat to Gerra, performed in drag. This reunion was so well received that the band decided to reform The Fags as a working outfit. Rather than go the route of reviving their 80’s music the band has chosen to write and record new music. An album is due later this year. Until then, here’s a couple of tracks to remember the classic Fags line-up and the late Upchuck Gerra.
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STUDENT NURSE SAYS: STAND UP STRAIGHT! By 1981 Student Nurse were a mainstay on the alterative Seattle scene. Their angular, slightly dissonant and dancey sound set them aside from the darker, the punkier, or the heavier bands they shared bills with. The best of their contemporaries honed-in on their sound. Student Nurse expanded outward, sending the band on a trajectory headed somewhere between subversion and art-damage. The jittery guitars of Helena Rogers, Tom Boettcher and Eric Muhs stood just a little out front of Johnny Rubato’s jazz-influenced understated drumming. Helena’s Roger’s singing was disjointed, pointillist and determined.
The band put out the mutantly delightful “Disco Dog” as well as “As Seen on TV”, a one-sided EP with cover art hand-screened by Rogers. This is the kind of stuff collectors drool over nowadays, but Student Nurse wasn’t interested in the pre-manufactured collectible market that would later be a trademark of other Seattle artists and labels. For them the art was part of the ethic.
In early ‘81 Student Nurse entered Triangle Studios to record two sides for Pravda Records. The choice of songs seems odd…both had a real pop element to them. But both were still subversive. The A side ‘Recht Op Staan’ was sung in a foreign language and the B side “Electronic Pop Smash’ was devoid of the synth sound that was becoming so popular at the time. Just as odd was the choice of producer, David Javelosa of NYC/LA techno jokers Los Microwaves. But dig a little closer and it’s apparent this was definitely an inside job. Two and a half decades later, it’s a lot easier to see just how the band sought to subvert even the most accessible music they could muster up.
Although the band was fairly democratic, onstage Student Nurse belonged to Helena Rogers. Skinny but not a bit frail looking with piercing silver eyes with Phranc-ish hair. All shouts and smiles. Totally Lesbo-chic before Lesbo-chic was chic. She provided the caffeinated energy that led to them onto many of the best local bills of the era. They didn’t seem to mind that local promoters were unlikely to choose them as openers for touring acts. The were too oddball. Too difficult to pigeonhole. And let’s face it; promoters were scared by Helena Rogers butch dynamic.
Student Nurse didn’t spend time calculating what would have been best for their career. Otherwise they never would have released this single. The title ‘Recht Op Staan’ is Dutch for ‘stand up straight’. The song’s lyrics extol the benefits of good posture. Not a likely way to get attention from the American indie audience at the time, but ‘Recht Op Staan’ is a bit of a collectors item these days. In fact all of Student Nurse’s vinyl releases go for a fair amount of cash. A recent Seattle citing of ‘Recht Op Staan’ had an asking price of $28. If you’re after a copy of their EP or of Disco Dog be prepared to spend more. Likewise, many of the silk-screens that came out of Rogers silkscreen/design studio during the 1980’s are in demand. Posters for shows by Audio Leter, The Fags, Red Dress as well as their own are easier to appreciate these days. Like Student Nurse’s music, they are shiny examples of being the unknowing architects of the future.

LISTEN TO 'RECHT OP STAAN' BY STUDENT NURSE

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THE SPECTATORS: BUGGIN' OUT WITH THE DARK LORDS OF SURF/SPY/BAD ACID

They did less than 20 gigs. They only played about 15 songs live. But their reputation has grown so much over the past three decades that musicians who were just kids when the band played have heard of them. I saw their first gig December 8th 1980. The same day John Lennon was gunned down in New York City. It was just like most other night at Seattle’s legendary Gorilla Room on Second Ave. Just a handful of people showed up, and more free beer was drunk up by the bar staff and their buddies than was ever sold. Just like a lot of other nights at The Gorilla Room, one of the finest bands of the era played to a near empty house. Over the next few months the band would be regulars at the Gorilla Room. By Summer, Bob Mould, having heard them on with Husker Du‘s first national tour, called them “the best unsigned band in America“. A year later they were gone.
Byron Duff, Jeff Farrand and Stan Filarca made their dent on the Seattle music scene of the 1980’s as The Spectators. Their combination of surf, metal, jazz and punk predates bands with similar influences…like Primus… by a full decade. They were a power-trio, but one that dealt their deadly blows with intricate and subtle precision rather than blind swings. This was a band that had brains as well as brawn. By using a limited amount of effects, guitarist Byron Duff and bass player Stan Filarca created a sound so tightly woven that it was hard to tell who was playing lead, where the rhythm was coming from and how they could possibly sound so big. Add to the mix the powerful, inventive and perfect tempo of drummer Jeff Farrand. It’s hard to think of any finer trio in rock, signed or unsigned even today.
During their short life The Spectators managed to record more than most Seattle bands of the era. Notable was a live-in-studio session they did with producer/engineer Ed Shepard at his place The Funhole in Fremont. But only a few cassette tracks remain of those sessions, although two songs ended up on the 1982 compilation PRAVDA Volume I. The cassettes are incredibly rare, and those that remain are mostly worn-out. But the brilliance of The Spectators still shines through. Both tracks, FINE LINES and IDIOT CULTURE are typical of the band’s live performance. They show the deft ability to overlap bass, rhythm and lead guitar sections into their music so effectively that it can confound the listener into thinking there are far more guitars at work.
After The Spectators disbanded guitarist Byron Duff faded from the Seattle scene, much to its loss. Drummer Jeff left the NW for San Francisco. Bassist Stan Filarca managed to fill duties of another of Seattle’s best bands to emerge in the 1980s The Beat Pagodas. Filarca used the same creative arsenal as he did in The Spectators. A few very well placed effects and superb musicianship filled -in for any lack of a lead or rhythm guitar. It was Filarca’s ability to handle The Beat Pagoda’s instrumental needs that allowed them to revel in their “No Guitar” motto. Byron Duff emerged very briefly in the 1990’s, and dropped back into obscurity….to this day he’s still M.I.A. Duff’s brilliant guitar playing would come as a revelation today. He was no slacker in the lyrics department either.
That first night the band played The Gorilla Room an old beat-up big screen TV projected flickering images behind them. As someone behind the bar changed channels back and forth they stopped on an old sci-fi flick. Giant locusts were attacking a horrified city. At that moment, by coincidence, the band lit into one of their signature tunes, Idiot Culture. As the creatures wrecked havoc on the city and terrified the population Byron sang:
There is
Something
Of great size
Out of control in the head
Of an insect
Of an insect.

Great size and out of control…a perfect way to describe The Spectators.

LISTEN TO 'FINE LINES' & 'IDIOT CULTURE HERE.
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THE REFUZORS FIND THEIR FAITH Remember The Refuzors back in their heyday? Back when they were A-list Seattle punk rockers. They were one of the best live bands around. Uncompromising, edgy and raw. They could have been lumped in with alot of hardcore bands from that era but for one thing. The songwriting, mostly by guitarist and vocalist Mike Refuzor set them far ahead of other great Seattle bands like The Fartz or The Blackouts.
These guys never made it out of the confines of the Vancouver/Seattle/Portland alt vortex. I'm sure they never made a penny, but The Refuzors were the real deal. Totally without guile or bullshit, their lives and music were undistinguishable. They were hombres, outside the lines with fiercely loyal fans. By the late 80's though, the band slowly unraveled from drugs, alcohol, a generational shift in music and limited recognition outside the Northwest. It's a typical story, but it's without a typical ending. Read on.
In 1993 Mike Refuzor got some of his band mates back together and recorded two sides for the now defunct Seattle label 'Bag of Hammers'. The results are spectacular. 'Think I Lost My Faith' and 'Jim Jones' might just be the missing link between the brilliant NW underground scene of the 1980's and the brilliant but over-hyped 'grunge' of the 90's. Unfortunately Bag of Hammers released only 800 copies of the single and without any promotion it went nowhere. That in itself has made this a long sought-after single. I'd bet my balls somewhere there's still a stack that were never sold....It's that rare. Meanwhile Mike ended up in a spiral that eventually left him on the street. In the early 2000's he suffered a mild stroke and without the support from his old friends and fans he became nearly unknown to the generation who cut their teeth on grunge.
Recently I came across a copy of the ‘Bag of Hammers’ single and was completely caught off guard. The Refuzors were always a great live act, but I only know of one other recorded song available anywhere. 'White Power' was included on the Seattle Syndrome compilation put out in 1981 by Engram Records. 'White Power' was a great track, and possibly could have gotten college radio airplay if it weren't for it's misleading title. The song was directed at one-time Seattle rock critic Regina Hackett and her assumption that Mike's black leather had something to do with fascism. Remember, this was 25 years ago. The chorus screams:
'I never said White Power to you...White Power, I'm sayin' it now. You put those words in my mouth"
Both 'Think I Lost My Faith' and 'Jim Jones' have big guitars and upfront drums & bass that defy the typical punk rhythm section. Mike's vocals are torn-ragged and raw, but not like every other cookie-cutter hardcore vocalist. This is real pain; not fake angst. There's a beautiful, passionate cruelty at work here. These songs are a brilliant mix of writing and delivery. This is classic stuff. Stuff that makes me want to howl and cry and bang my head at the same time. Stuff that proves my theory; The greatest bands in the world will probably never be heard. Most will never make it outside their garage door.
The atypical ending? The lives of some of The Refuzors have taken turns for the better. Mike's off the street, healthy and making a go at being clean and sober. Sixteen years after they were recorded both songs...along with an entire album's worth of material...Are about to be re-released. The Refuzors may never end up onstage again…who knows? But we'll have a permanent reminder of their contribution to the outrageous success far less talented Seattle bands had in the 90's. I don't know if The Refuzors were some of the 'Shoulders of Giants' grunge bands stood on, or if they were just garage-bound guys that got stepped on and tossed aside when the music biz smelled cash. It doesn't matter. Think I Lost My Faith' and 'Jim Jones' are fucking brilliant, fucking beautiful masterpieces even if they never get heard....But they will. Just you wait...You'll hear them.

LISTEN TO 'THINK I LOST MY FAITH' BY THE REFUZORS

NW PUNK ROCK : 30 PLUS YEARS OF PUNK ROCK For two years Dave Alexander searched attics, basements and various storage lockers to come up with live clips of some of the Northwest’s best punk rock. Along the way he interviewed people like Joey Shithead (D.O.A) and Mark Arm (Mudhoney) to help tell the story of 30 years of hardcore punk from Vancouver BC, through Bellingham, Seattle and Olympia WA and on to Portland and Eugene OR. Dave’s D.I.Y. production culminated in this 2 DVD documentary. It shows the passion and life-blood of NW hardcore punk through it’s infancy to it’s current incarnation. It’s a gritty, down-to-earth and totally chaotic celebration. It contains little-seen archival footage of some of the Northwest’s legendary bands shot at some of the Northwest’s most famous punk venues: The Metropolis and The Funhouse in Seattle; Satyricon in Portland, and more. An entire disc is devoted to live music and the other is documentary, with an incredible line-up of bands. The Dishrags, Subhumans, The Fartz, Maggot Brains, Hot rod Lunatics, Solger, The Rickets, The Meyce, Mr. Epp and the Calculations, Zipgun, D.O.A., The Slashers, Subvert, The Insurgence, The Rebel Spell, TBA, Leper, The Dreadful Children, Potbelly, Swads, The Furies, Flash, Fitz of Depression….and….let me catch my breath….more. The 2 disc DVD is available now through our mail order catalogue for only $9.98.…yeah, that’s right…less than 10 smackeroos. Just click on the handy link to your right >

THE LATEST PRAISE FOR SEATTLE LEGEND "UPCHUCK" is found in the Feb 27th 2008 issue of GOLDMINE MAGAZINE. The magazine gives it’s approval to a career-spanning collection entitled UPCHUCK:GONE BUT NOT FORGIVEN. The CD and digital album was recently released, and it’s getting high marks from critics . Bloggers from Seattle to Austin to Argentina have been taking note. THE ADVOCATE magazine went as far as dubbing UPCHUCK “The Gay Cobain”. Although the comparison is not musically accurate, Upchuck, who died from complications of AIDS in 1990 has long been cited as one of the leading inspirations of Seattle's alternative music scene. GOLDMINE calls the recently released album UPCHUCK: GONE BUT NOT FORGIVEN “a welcome release that gives people greater insight into the lesser-known aspects of Seattle’s music history“. This echoes Seattle author Charles R. Cross’s own evaluation. Cross, who’s Kurt Cobain bio ‘Heavier Than Heaven’ is being filmed as a major release says: "This long-awaited CD from the legendary Charles "Upchuck" Gerra finally sets right one of the lost chapters in Seattle's pre-grunge music era. Essential for anyone who loves punk rock, glam rock, or just groundbreaking music of any genre." The CD and digital download are available at amazon, i-tunes and all the other usual places, or go directly to www.dadastic.com