reviews
Pete’s Cheap and Easy ★★★☆☆
Peter Wilde
Peter Wilde, the local crude en
vironmentalist who speaks his
mind through folk music, last
year released his latest CD, titled
“Pete’s Cheap and Easy.”
In concert be plays anything from
his repertoire, but “Pete’s Cheap and
Courtesy of Hollister Marxeting
Peter Wilde plays a little of everything on his newest CD.
to Flames” is about
an intense physi
cal attraction that
seems almost un
bearable to live
with. The hollow
background vocals
add depth to its
rock-like style.
“Chris’ Song,” a
close contender
with “Moths to
Flames” in excel
lence, invokes im
ages of middle- to
lower-class subur
bia and streets of
similar-looking
houses lined up in
perfect rows, with
their yellowing
front lawns.
The lyrics
“Truth is easy to
hide... sometimes
Easy” definitely marks a move away
from environmental issues and in
stead focuses mainly on love and
the disillusionment of relation
ships. His trademark coarse and un
refined style stills manages to shine
through, however.
Mostly known as a folk artist,
Wilde’s newest CD is evidence of
his influence from other musical
styles such as pop, rock and coun
try. His range in both approach
and content makes “Pete’s Cheap
and Easy” both unpredictable and
enjoyable.
Lyrically, he writes about what
ever is going on in his life. The
pop-style “Mexican Vacation,”
for example, complete with trum
pet .sounds, tells the apparent sto
ry of a personal trip to the coun
try. “Parasites” was probably
written on the same voyage.
During a recent show at The
Buzz, Wilde admitted to the audi
ence that this song is the dumbest
he has ever written. The tune
made the CD anyway and its
crude, dark humor should appeal
to many listneners.
In a live setting, its call and re
sponse style, with Wilde singing a
line and the audience repeating
the line back to the musician,
gives it a campfire-like quality.
Not all of Wilde’s songs are as
amiss as “Parasites,” however.
In fact, the su
perb song “Moths
L1U.L11
deep inside” conjure up a sense of
suppressed feelings of dissatisfac
tion felt by the neighborhood’s
citizens.
“Sourmouth Sprout,” the CD’s
eighth cut, is Wildes’ most rockin’
song of the bunch. The lyrics
aren’t brilliant as he makes fun of
a dense man, but the beat is more
fun than getting the worm at the
bottom of a tequila bottle. With a
slight country feeling to it, the
song is no doubt a sure hit at bars
like Sam Bond’s Garage, where
Wilde often plays.
With a similar rating, “Fuck You
Get a Job and Have a Nice Day”
sports undertones of anger mixed
with a peppy beat that gives an un
settling, strange feeling.
“Heroin Again” features silly,
odd and unrecognizable sounds
randomly strewn throughout.
Lending to the uniqueness of the
package, it makes a perfect finale.
Overall, Wilde’s “Pete’s Cheap
and Easy” is a mixture of high
brow lyrics, off-the-wall lines and
addictive beats.
Sara Jarrett
Seeing Red*-**-*^
Baseboard Heaters
Normally, CDs with more than
a six-month shelf life aren’t worth
a review, due to the lack of timeli
ness. “Seeing Red,” the Base
board Heaters’ debut recording re
leased last April, has two factors
going for it deserving of a rule
change, however.
First, the band is playing Feb.
26 at the Wild Duck in Eugene, so
there’s an appropriate story peg.
Second, this CD kicks ass and
shouldn’t be overlooked for any
reason.
Out of Portland, the Baseboard
Heaters have been together since
early 1998, although listening to
the eight tracks on “Seeing Red”
gives an impression of a more
long-term relationship. These
four rocking twangers — lead vo
calist/guitarist Rob Stroup, lead
guitarist/vocalist Matt Brown,
bassist/vocalist Matt Souther and
percussionist Jason Krzmarzick
— sound tight.
From the ballad “So Far To
You” to the guitar-strong “Roll
The Dice,” the Baseboard Heaters
torch the speakers. In fact, if you
remember when Jason and the
Scorchers were making the musi
cal rounds, your memories will be
sparked once again by this bunch.
Six of the songs on “Seeing
Red” are studio-recorded, while
the final two were recorded live
on KBOO’s Church of Northwest
Music show, in order to capture
what other reviewers have called
a “fiery, live performance.”
Damn, if they get any hotter in
person the Wild Duck may spon
taneously combust.
Vocally, Stroup nails the neces
sary notes to make songs about
drinking, smoking, passion,
alienation and women come
alive. Brown wrote “Roll the
Dice” and a crowd favorite, “Min
neapolis,” and his guitar work siz
zles. Souther contributes strong
bass work and Krzmarzick’s
drumming keeps songs moving
along at just the right pace.
The Baseboard Heaters are gain
ing publicity in the Northwest, not
just based on “Seeing Red,” but be
cause of the band’s stage presence.
Following a well-received slot at
the 1998 NXNW Music Festival,
Brown remarked to a reporter that
it was great to see “that we could
entertain people and make them
jump up and down.”
Jump up, get down to the record
store and buy “Seeing Red.”
Jack Clifford
2Gether^ttttKnir
2Gether
There’s an old saying about im
itation being the sincerest form of
flattery. What about when the
simulation is meant to spoof, not
honor?
Several years ago, director Rob
Reiner did just that with “This is
Spinal Tap,” a hilarious send-up
of heavy metal bands.
Remember Derek Smalls’ insis
tence that his band rocked harder
than any others because its amp
could be turned up to 11, not just
10 as on weaker bands’ equip
ment?
Well, now teenybopper bands—
N’Sync and Backstreet Boys, for ex
ample — get a workover with the
new CD “2Gether,” music from a
band by the same name. A video
from the track “U + Me = Us (Calcu
lus)” is currently receiving airplay
on MTV and a movie about the
whole goofy project premieres Feb.
21 on the music network.
The most basic problem with
this entire undertaking is its at
tempt to lampoon something that
is already laughable. If you’re not
12 years old and female, then boy
bands are pretty much a joke any
way, so who is the target audience
for 2Gether?
Then again, with songs such as
“Say It (Don’t Spray It),” maybe
getting the pre-pubescent crowd
to listen is the main objective.
Yes, a song or two on the CD
might make you crack a smile
with more crude lyrics than any
thing you’ll hear from 98’, et al.
On “Rub One Out,” for instance,
the guys sing “Rub one out / I’ll
grab my crotch / Rub one out / Do
you wanna watch?”
Wait, did Michael Jackson have
anything to do with the making of
this CD?
When it’s all said and done,
however, what we have here is an
act of redundancy. If you want
bad music from the good boy set,
grab a Hanson CD.
Jack Clifford
Courtesy TVT Records
Um, like, it’s just not funny to make fun of, like, boy bands, you know?
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