music
Jon Wayne Brings
Redemption Reggae
collar rock, working-class Americana with a sound comparable
to Bruce Springsteen, Tom Petty or John “Cougar” Mellencamp.
The songs are full of girls, booze, bars and cars — no horses, no
cowboy boots and no outlaws.
Including bassist Sasha Shybut, drummer Nick Kostenborder,
guitarist Brian Bergstrom and Wik, who supplies the scratchy
yet soulful vocals, this band is proof that rock ‘n’ roll isn’t quite
mummified yet. Or if it is, these guys are some serious tomb
raiders.
Rock fans will have flashbacks listening to Bradley Wik and
the Charlatans, alt-country buffs will also dig it. Country fans
might not, but you get the feeling that these boys from
Portland aren’t trying to please that demographic — or any
If you’ve ever wondered what would’ve happened to Sublime
had lead singer Bradley Nowell survived his deadly dance with
heroin, I have the answer. It’s in Minneapolis-based reggae rock/
ska/dub trio Jon Wayne and the Pain.
Recovering addict Jon Wayne leads the group, and the back
story of this Midwesterner’s struggle with addiction reveals
commonality with Nowell as well as a peek inside the band’s
moniker. Hint: It has less to do with clown-faced serial killers or
grizzled cowboys and more to do with a former drug addict and
the pain experienced while trying to claw his way to redemption.
Luckily, redemption has shone its light on Wayne,
drummer Tito Miller and bassist Chuck Torgerson. Their
BRADLEY WIK
message is a positive one, breaking free of the drug-
AND THE
focused stereotypes often associated with reggae music.
CHARLATANS
Formed by Wayne and former drummer Chris Hicks in
2005, the group recorded and released its eponymous
debut album in 2008, after the addition of Torgerson. For
them, the responsibility of spreading positive vibes through
music is paramount, and the trio often squeezes in 20
shows per month in Minnesota and beyond.
Last year saw the release of the band’s second full-
length, Follow Through, a 12-track effort that includes guest
spots from reggae/ska peers Slightly Stoopid, Christofer “C
Money” Welter, Daniel “DELA” Cruz, Oguer “OG” Ocon and
Yoni.
The album opens with “Vibe,” a tune set amidst the sound
of gentle waves; I braced myself for the voice of Jack
Johnson, but was instead pleasantly serenaded by the
earnest voice of Wayne telling me he would “rather bleed
and die than be superficialized.”
As a whole, Jon Wayne and the Pain aren’t just a trip in the
way-back machine. Ska-influenced horns mix with a few
moments of electronic dub-style beats and offbeat tempos
slammed next to quirky bass lines. This sound is made for
anyone looking to find redemption, or maybe just a good time.
John Wayne and the Pain play 9 pm Sunday, June 17, at
WOW Hall; $7. — Jackie Varriano
Noteworthy Charlatans
When you toss Bradley Wik and the Charlatans’ debut
album Burn What you Can, Bury the Rest into a computer,
the machine will categorize it as pop music. Machines lie,
and they can’t be trusted. This is not pop music. It is blue-
ENJOY
SWAP
PLAY
demographic for that matter. This band takes the aesthetics of
Uncle Tupelo, early Wilco and Ryan Adams and expands.
When you stumble into Wik and company, you find a band
that is almost too young to possess the sound it commands,
seasoned beyond its years and ready to take off.
Bradley Wik and the Charlatans play 8:30 pm Thursday,
June 14, at Axe and Fiddle; $5. — Dante Zuñiga-West
Mouth of the Desert
Phoenix, Ariz., is the sere severity of the suburban Southwest,
the immediate instigator of Stephen Steinbrink’s songs.
Steinbrink, a prolific young recording artist in the composite vein
of Elliott Smith, Nick Drake’s dark side and the eclectic anti-
troubadorismo of Beirut, plays and sings with the sparse
desert minimalism he knows. And the desert has begun to
bloom after a flash flood of recent recordings.
I Drew a Picture, Steinbrink’s early June release, is a
beautiful example of home-studio efficiency and quality.
Recorded in Steinbrink’s vaulted living room on a digital
8-track with a guitar, drum-machine and an array of
vintage keyboards, I Drew a Picture sketches the inner-
images of intelligent criticism. With recent influences
ranging from paintings by Mark Rothko, essays on “the
intense meditations of creative life” by John Cage and the
guitar styles of Sierra-Leonese musician S.E. Rogie,
Steinbrink’s songs wax poetic at every opportunity.
Steinbrink also searches for inspiration among piles of
social refuse, junk mail, strip malls, and the accidental
artifacts of the internet. “These new songs are about
trying to reconcile the weird alternate reality we have in
this world of technology,” he says.
Tracks like “Salt River Bed,” a desert elegy, and “The
End of the World,” a romance to the final frying residents
of a dried, dying city, are fragments of a sci-fi concept
album imagining institutionally racist, uninhibited urban
Phoenix sprawling unsustainably until the water runs dry.
“The Punks” recognizes the inevitable road warriors who
survive at the end.
On a 20-town tour, playing sets with Glochies (another
Phoenix musician who plays both synthesizer and Gamelan
gongs alongside), Steinbrink’s style of digital folk-pop
stretches past the dried-out pavement and cracks.
Stephen Steinbrink plays with Shay Roselip 8 pm
Thursday, June 21, at Wandering Goat; $5 suggested
donation. — Patrick Newson.
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Tennis Swap & Play Faire
EUGENE FAMILY YMCA
Join us for the Y’s Tennis Swap & Play Faire!
Saturday June 16th, from 10-2.
This isn’t your ordinary gear swap. This, ladies and gentlemen, is an extravaganza!
x Tennis and sports gear sale... Great stuff and great prices.
x Improve your game… Drop in Clinics will be held from 12-2.
Registration information and clinic descriptions on our website on June 1st .
x See the creative side in our Tennis Members and Staff… We’ll have artisan
booths and live performances as just one more great reason to join us!
x Raffle for prizes… Camps, youth racquets, jewelry and more!
Have gear you’d like to get rid of?
x
Donate gear or have us sell it for you. (If we sell it, you’ll get 50%!)
Time to clean out the closets and garages!
Drop off times: Thursday and Friday, June 14th and 15th 8:30am - 8:00pm
Interested? Questions? Just ask Susan at susan@eugeneymca.org
EUGENE FAMILY YMCA
2055 Patterson Street Eugene, Oregon 97405
P 541 686 9622 W eugeneymca.org
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EUGENE WEEKLY
JUNE 14, 2012 19