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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 21, 2010)
music Blue Scholar Suspension PHOTO BY TODD COOPER Even when Seattle’s Blue Scholars are in between releases (they’ve been in and out of the studio lately working on new material), the duo’s sharp, sometimes-acerbic rhymes about the state of the union still make waves. Last month, a teacher in Spokane was suspended for playing “Commencement Day,” a song from the band’s 2005 EP The Long March, for his students. The administration claimed the decision was made not because of the song’s content, which contains the typical challenges to conventional authority we’ve come to know and expect from Geo and Sabzi (including a particularly appropriate censure of school censorship), but because of the use of the words “fuck” and “shit.” If anything positive came out of the whole fracas other than a very timely and relevant discussion of what is “appropriate” to use in the classroom, it’s the knowledge that the Blue Scholars will not be selling out their values even as they play ever- larger venues. Over the past six years, both Geo and Sabzi have honed their skills to a razor-sharp precision that comes off like a gourmet meal served in lieu of the mass-marketed McDonald’s nonsense you’re likely to hear if you fl ip on any Top 40, Clear Channel-operated hip-hop radio station in the country. Why most people still go for the McDonald’s is anyone’s guess, but if incidents like the one in Spokane keep occurring, perhaps folks will consider putting down the junk food and tasting the real stuff. Blue Scholars, Grieves and Budo and Undermind and K.I. play at 8 pm Thursday, Oct. 21, and Friday, Oct. 22, at WOW Hall. $15. — Sara Brickner An Anniversary Knocks Twenty years ago, the Trashcan Sinatras released their debut album, Cake. The album has gone down in history as an underrated classic of the era. To celebrate the anniversary, as well as the release of their fi fth studio album, In the Music, the band has been touring all summer long. After an invitation to open for fellow Scots Belle & Sebastian in Seattle, the band decided to extend the tour into the fall, adding an acoustic west coast leg that stops in Eugene at Sam Bond’s Garage on Oct. 21. Cake scored the Trashcan Sinatras some Smiths- inspired hits with songs such as “Obscurity Knocks,” “Circling the Circumference” and “Only Tongue Can Tell.” The band has since stayed busy recording, touring and fostering a devoted fanbase. To kick off the 2010 summer tour, they played in a Portland living room to 50 fans that had traveled from all over the West Coast. In the Music contains 10 new studio recordings and eight previously unavailable live acoustic tracks. The BBC describes it as “tender, affecting music that impresses with increasing listens.” The band plans to release more acoustic material in November on a live release called Brel, as well as reissuing their back catalog in 2011 with more touring to follow. The Trashcan Sinatras, Alpha Tango Alpha and Glass Elevator play at 9 pm Thursday, Oct. 21, at Sam Bond’s Garage. 21+. $10. — William Kennedy OREGON’S LARGEST INDOOR/OUTDOOR GARDEN CENTER KNOWLEDGEABLE STAFF / LOWEST PRICES LOCALLY OWNED FOR OVER 20 YEARS ORGANIC SOILS & AMENDMENTS HYDROPONIC NUTRIENTS PLANT LIGHTING GREEN HOUSE SUPPLIES PEST CONTROL ENVIRONMENTAL CONTROL IMPORTED CERAMIC POTTERY POND SUPPLIES & PLANTS TROPICAL FISH 2836 W 11TH AVE 877 368 0782 AQUASERENE.COM WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM • BLOGS.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM MONDAY S AT 7PM 4 PM - 2:30 AM DAILY 115 W. BROADWAY jamesons-bar.com EUGENE WEEKLY OCTOBER 21, 2010 33
