Category: Arts

As I said before, I am literally dying to see local garage supergroup Th’ Losin’ Streaks. Literally. Excited then, to see th’ band headline at the Friday night show at Cesar Chavez, with the whole fam’. Excited, that is, until the end of Nevada Backwards’ set when I learned that th’ actual headliner was actually The Brodys. Whom I have avowed never to actually see or hear–just a thing I decided. Well we’ve all seen page 4 of The Ticket today, and somehow I am the only one who inferred from the GIANT picture of Th’ Losin’ Streaks that they were the headlining act. I mean, I’m no rock expert, but I’m not crazy either.

Oh well. Nevada Backwards seems pretty good. And everybody else in the world is creepy and gross and scary. Trust me: I’ve been to Cesar Chavez park with my young children. I may not make it out of the house again. Especially with these mini-marathons of Arrested Development on Friday nights.

The Fire Escape in Citrus Heights was graced with the presence of one Stacey Raskin ( http://www.4amp.net/naturalmystic/ , http://www.myspace.com/staceyandhersongs/ ), a 19 year old songwriter / musician. Stacey has been playing shows for 2 years, and her blend of soulful folk could be described as finger pickin’ good.

Stacey breathes life into her songs with significant depth to her chord progressions. Combined with exquisite tones vocally, her songs could be deemed rather favorable without lyrical content. But she also is capable of delivering insightful lines of prose to complete her craft. Few artists have such a grasp of the art so young to deliver such a competent product. Stacey is truly a local artist to watch.

At times in her songs she will bend her voice to deliver hums and gasps that will make you melt. Even the casual bar patrons at the club were struck by her grace on stage. Her soul is very apparent to the audience, and her ability to take a stage and transmit herself is impressive.

Stacey’s material is far from pop oriented, rooted more in folk and jazz. Her songs have similar intensity throughout, and that lack of diversity is the mark of a newer writer who hasn’t gotten bored with similar themes and tempos. But I believe strongly that she will evolve into as serious a force on the Sacramento scene as she wishes, although the market locally is flooded with peers of similar format. But few are as talented and confident…

Ratings:

Musicianship: 8
Songwriting Prowess : 7
Stage Presence : 6

Ms. Raskin is talented. I don’t believe anyone would argue otherwise. She enjoys performing and is very likeable. Should she continue to apply herself and write with passion as her compass, she will become a staple of the Sacramento music scene and possibly more.

The Fox and Goose was decently filled for a band called Radiocure (radiocure.com) this past Saturday. The stoic atmosphere of the club was complemented with upbeat pop rock from the local act.

Radiocure’s 14 song set included pop oriented country / alternative tunes. The five piece is composed of two singer / guitar players, bass, keys, and percussion (very talented, kudos).Two to three years in age, the band is very professional musically but a bit shy in audience interaction. The band could be compared in styling to Death Cab for Cutie, The Long Winters, or Matthew Sweet, but lacking similar writing ability. The act takes their name from a Wilco lyric, and makes strides to aspire to the likes.

The double guitar attack left the keyboard melodies indiscernible. Aside from a keyed intro at the start of one song, it was not present. The mix of the club was too heavy on vocals, an area the band is not as accomplished in, as say, their overall tightness musically. The material more country in nature was better executed and more complete artistically than the rest of the set.

With one catchy, radio friendly song, the act could reach a bit of success. They have the look, the presence, and they appear to enjoy performing. I recommend seeing them, I will again. They could be an acquired taste…end.

Ratings
Musicianship: 8
Songwriting Prowess: 3
Stage Presence: 5

Overall composition was satisfactorily done; the band clearly has put in the time for preparation. But generic themes littered with cliché notations and sub-par emotion left me unaffected.

The Sac Rag extends a hearty thumbs up to the Sacramento Heritage Festival for bring it all back home to Downtown last weekend. After puttering around the burbs, the SHF found itself perfectly at home at River Walk Park in West Sac in the shadow of the ziggurat. Pedestrians, cyclists and shuttle-goers left their cars and cares at home and boogied the weekend away. Congrats and let’s keep the same locale for years to come!

If you live here, you’ll know that the Sacto music scene is like the younger, scrappier cousin to the Bay Area scene–the kind of cousin that gets in a lot more fights and can’t keep a job. It’s been that way since before Daisy Spot and it’ll weather Team Sleep and ride Papa Roach all the way to their Behind the Music. (Do they have one yet?)

I loved me some concerts in my younger days. Nar, Jackpot, The Pretty Girls at Old I, The Troublemakers and Groovie Ghoulies at Cattle Club, Sex 66 at Cesar Chavez, and the best concert I ever attended, Payback at Duke’s. But I’m a daddy now and thus I’m not exactly a frequent concertgoer anymore. That’s where you come in.

We need a few writers to cover the local concert scene. No compensation but the satisfaction of being part of a new voice on all things Sacto. Email me, CoolDMZ-at-gmail.com and let me know if you’re interested.