Nerd Transformation
First it was Star Wars: Revenge of the
Sith. Now it’s Transformers. Nerd rapper
MC Chris sure does love watching
movies with Eugene’s nerd community.
We must have impressed him after the
Star Wars show; last time he came to town,
he told me that it was “the most successful
night ever, not in terms of numbers, but [in] how the
night went.” And even though that was several years ago, MC
Chris’ local popularity has firmly sealed Eugene’s reputation as a nerd
haven. We are the chosen few who get to see MC Chris, and then, sweaty and
exhausted, drive to the Gateway Cinemark to see Transformers. No one else
gets those bragging rights. I mean, talk about street cred. And this singlehandedly
disproves once and for all that a lack of physical coordination makes geeks unenergetic
concertgoers. I mean, just because we can’t dance doesn’t mean we can’t wave our hands in the air like pros.
Video games do work the hand muscles. Plus, nerds don’t get out much, so when we do finally make it off
the couch, we get all crazy. Take note, nerds: This pre-Transformers concert is your next opportunity to get
down wearing a cardboard box.
Even though cool people like MC Chris too, it’s only because — like other notable nerds before him
— he turned a schoolyard handicap into a successful enterprise. When MC Chris raps, it sounds like
he survives on helium instead of oxygen. This may be why his hip hop career began in cartoon
form, on late-night nerd television (Adult Swim), where MC Chris portrayed a demonic,
diaper-wearing spider on Aqua Teen Hunger Force and an obnoxious employee on
Sealab 2021.
With such a ready fan base, it’s no surprise that MC Chris’ hyperactive, self-
deprecating tunes draw a huge crowd in Eugene, where ’80s cartoon lovers,
D&D players and Star Wars geeks abound. Sure, MC Chris raps about bitches
— but bitches that wouldn’t give him the time of day in high school. And even
though he’s probably got his choice of lady friends these days, he’s still going
to see Transformers with us. What a guy.
MC Chris featuring Nursehella, Beefy, Stunt Junkies, Rappy McRapperson,
Funky 49 and Dr. Strangelove appears at 7 pm Tuesday, July 3, at the WOW
Hall. $15 show only, $30 with Transformers admission (movie screens at
midnight). — Sara Brickner
Hot Pants
Celtic Teens Go Live
At their Northwest Folklife gig in Seattle a
month ago, local band Tonn Nua was labeled
a “Feisty Teenage Celtic Band.” Whuh? Are
feisty teenagers usually into Celtic music?
(OK, yes, yes, I was, but that was half my life
ago, and somehow I thought teenagers had
changed. On the other hand, feisty isn’t exact-
ly “rebellious” or “punk rock,” so.) Never
mind: These five local musicians — Ansel Dow,
13, Allison Helzer, 15, and the triplets Zoe,
Daphne and David Garcia, 17 — love to play
tunes from the old countries (that is, Scotland
and Ireland), and their infectious playing
lights up the audience. You can hear a sample
of them live at the Folklife gig at NW’s stream-
ing site (click on the Saturday link at
tinyurl.com/2yenke), or you can buy their
2006 CD Eye of the Wind to hear the studio
versions of some pretty awesome tunes.
Allison’s parental unit Pete Helzer notes
that they were younger at the time, and
“Ansel was only 12 when the CD was record-
Pants Pants Pants
Sometimes you just got to see something
to believe it. The San Francisco-based elec-
tronic-pop trio Pants Pants Pants, in addi-
tion to having the most repetitive name ever,
is known for peculiar live shows. Get this:
“Their unending list of exploits include a
man-sized otter reciting spoken word, vocal
parts cell phoned in from a singer in the audi-
ence or the Virgin Islands.” And that’s not all.
The show also includes the band’s live per-
formance of the Crash Test Dummies’ video
“Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm” as well as
“Choreographed dancing by the band’s own
Pants Pants Pants Sparkle Motion Dance
Dance Dance Team.” Ah, visual satisfaction in
every sense of the word.
The band, which always tries to combine
music and art, just finished its latest album
OK, Fine. The 12-track album is a dance-geek’s
dream. The trio — Lauren Fleischer, Oliver
Wise, Steve Lank — creates poppy dance beats
much in the same way that Architecture in
Helsinki and United States of Electronica do,
but with a B-52s/Eurythmics flair. While it’s
not the best electronic music out there,
there’s something endearing about the band.
The band’s website and MySpace page are
worth checking out as they are filled with uni-
corns and other silly graphics. Also featured is
a link to their Full House music-video tribute,
which may disturb die-hard fans of the show.
Their webpage sums up their persona well:
we like to party.
thirteenth and oak | twenty one and up
visit indigodistrict.com for more details.
32 JUNE 28, 2007
“Electrocknic pioneers PPP safely straddles
the line between not-quite-marketable and
not-quite-abstract-enough-to-be-cool.”
The result is nerdiness to the extreme.
And that’s okay, because it’s awesome nerdi-
ness. The band members oversee all aspects
of their musical endeavor, which contributes
to their distinctive branding. In all aspects of
production — records, music videos and their
webpage — the band’s personality is present.
Where there are unicorns, dinosaurs fighting
or floating bacon, there will be Pants. Bring
on the noise, bring on the nerds.
Pants Pants Pants and Uni and Her Ukelele
play at 10 pm Thursday, July 5, at Luckey’s.
21+ show. $3-$5. — Amanda Burhop