Three days after the fact, here are my thoughts on Robot, Creep Closer at The Saddle Creek Bar Friday night: Obviously these guys grew up listening to The Pixies, and conversely to the band famous for ripping off The Pixies, Nirvana (though there weren't many noticeable Cobain-isms). That means there were a lot of chug-a-lug bass lines ripped to shreds by powerchords, lots of quiet/loud/quiet architecture, and the usual pop-rock touches. Missing was the weirdness that The Pixies brought to everything they did -- even listening to their albums, you never knew where they were going next. RCC, on the other hand, is purposely predictable, probably as a product of trying to be a crowd-pleasing punk band. You may win friends that way, but not idiot critics who have heard this sort of thing before. Glancing back, that sentence sounds a bit harsh, and might leave you thinking I didn't like these guys. I did, they were okay, I just wish they'd go out on the limb a little more, take a few more curious turns, take a few chances. They certainly have the instrumental chops to go wherever they want. They even had a keyboard player, even though you couldn't tell by listening -- she was completely buried in the jangly mix, which is a shame.

And speaking of the sound, the owner of the SCB tells me that he and his sound man continue to tweak the bar's sound system, doing various tests, making adjustments, etc., etc. I couldn't really tell, but these bands weren't exactly a good test, either. A better test will be this Saturday when The Danny Pound Band and 4th of July take the stage.

Tonight's big show is The Lemonheads with Vietnam and Hymns down at Sokol Underground. This show has yet to sell out, which is something of a surprise considering how big The Lemonheads were in the '90s. Tickets are $15, show starts at 9.

And finally, here's an updated pic of the Slowdown construction project (click on the thumbnail to see it big). I know I was supposed to update this weekly, but the weather has been gnarly over the past few weeks. Amazing how much they've gotten done. This "pano" shows that they've apparently started on the condos on the property's north side while they slowly begin closing in the theater on the south side. Can they get it buttoned up before the first snow?

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