Soundbites

FIREHOUSE ROCK: Over two dozen bands and at least 14 venues will join forces on Tuesday, October 23 for a community-wide fundraiser for the families of firefighters lost in the events of September 11. Tirelessly organized by Jeannie Miller, Musicians Rock for America will be donating all money generated by the event--contributions from the door as well as a portion of the proceeds from each venue--directly to the families themselves. A lot of people are donating their time and energy to this event, and we strongly urge you to support it.

More acts and venues may have been added by the time you read this, but at press time the schedule was as follows: Tickle at 11 p.m. and Nod Squad at 9 p.m. at Backstage, 6350 E. Tanque Verde Road; Mikey & The Maniacs at 11 p.m. and ATM Band at 9 p.m. at Berky's, 5769 E. Speedway Blvd.; Warsaw at 11 p.m. and The Love Joint at 9 p.m. at Che's Lounge, 350 N. Fourth Ave.; Bad News Blues Band at 11 p.m. and Zydeco Travelers at 9 p.m. at The French Quarter, 3146 E. Grant Road; House Cats at 11 p.m. and the Robert Moreno Band at 9 p.m. at Frog & Firkin, 874 E. University Blvd.; Greyhound Soul at 11:30 p.m. and Big Galoot at 9:30 p.m. at Guido's, 424 N. Fourth Ave.; The Cruisers at 11 p.m. and The Slick Tones at 9 p.m. at Joe & Vicky's Place, 3700 N. Oracle Road; Retread at 10:30 p.m. and the Mike Smith Band at 9 p.m. at The Mint, 3540 E. Grant Road; Tongue Dried Sun at 11 p.m. and 7 Days of May at 9 p.m. at O'Malley's, 247 N. Fourth Ave.; a band to be announced at 11 p.m. and Government Cheese at 9 p.m. at Nimbus, 3850 E. 44th St.; Black Leather Zydeco at 8:30 p.m. at Old Pueblo Grille, 60 N. Alvernon Way; Truck at 11 p.m. and Funky Bonz at 9 p.m. at Plush, 340 E. Sixth St.; LiveWire at 11 p.m. and Topless Opry at 9 p.m. at River's Edge, 4635 N. Flowing Wells Road; and two bands to be announced at Sports Page, 915 W. Prince Road. See you out.


PIED POPER: I don't claim to be a jazz expert, but I know what I like. A couple years ago I received a package from Knitting Factory records with a CD by the Odean Pope Trio called Ebioto. I dug the brown, tan and yellow art deco cover design, which reminded me of some of the great jazz albums of yore, and threw the disc in the player. It didn't leave for weeks.

I'm a Coltrane guy, and Pope, also a tenor sax player (bassist Tyrone Brown and drummer Craig McIver round out the trio), reminded me of Trane in the way his melodies swoop around in a thick whoosh, somehow dense and sparse--this is, after all, a trio--simultaneously. The sonic interplay between Pope and Brown, specifically, was nothing short of astounding.

I couldn't believe that this guy wasn't huge (by modern-day jazz standards, anyway), so I did a little investigating as to his pedigree. It seems he's best known from his association with the astounding drummer Max Roach, with whom he's played on and off since 1967, though he's also played with Dizzy Gillespie, Chet Baker and Art Blakey's Jazz Messengers, to name a few. Ironically, it was Coltrane himself who gave Pope his first break when he asked him to sub for him in the Jimmy Smith Trio.

For this week's performance, the trio will be expanded to a quartet with the addition of bass clarinetist David Murray, a jazz chameleon as well known for the sheer volume of his recorded output as he is his championing of the music of the Grateful Dead.

The Odean Pope Trio with David Murray, which opens Zeitgeist's fifth season in the Jazz at the Institute series, performs at 8 p.m. on Friday, October 19 at the Mat Bevel Institute, 530 N. Stone Ave. Advance tickets are available for $14 at CD Depot and Antigone Books; they'll be $16 at the door.


CLEVERLY HILLBILLY: Here's a nifty new night for ya: Local country boy Troy Olsen is hosting a regular slot at Plush every Wednesday night. Presumably, each week's installment of Troy Olsen's Hillbilly Hayride will have some sort of theme, and this week's is a dandy. A tribute to the amazing Hank Williams, the night will see a bunch of local bands--acts confirmed at press time include Creosote, Spacefish, Truck, Greyhound Soul, Ouinur, Trailer Park Mark and, of course, Olsen himself--each performing three tunes written by Hank the First. This and future editions of the Hayride will be recorded for later broadcast on Twanging Tuesdays on 91.3 KXCI-FM. It all kicks off at 9 p.m. on Wednesday, October 24 at Plush, 340 E. Sixth St. For further details push the buttons that say 798-1298.


FIRST JAPANCAKES, NOW THIS: Houston's Japanic combines art-addled no-wave funkiness with a too-cool swagger and an edge, sort of like what the Talking Heads might sound like if it was noisy and actually dangerous, not just writing songs about dangerous people. The band subscribes to the notion that an audience is there to be entertained, dammit--the word, I believe, is showmanship--and entertain it will when it graces the stage of Club Congress, 311 E. Congress St., on Wednesday, October 24. Locals Okmoniks and Single File Noise begin the proceedings at 9 p.m. For more information call 622-8848.


AUSTIN'S POWER: South By Southwest, the biggest music industry schmoozefest on the planet, featuring over a thousand performers, loads of informative panels and 35,000 fans and industry pros, from label staffers to radio programmers, critics to management companies, is set for March 13-17 in Austin, Texas. It's a great opportunity for bands to network, and the deadline for applications for a showcase slot at the festival is fast approaching. Bands interested in applying need to send a package including a completed showcase application--available at www.sxsw.com, e-mail at sxsw@sxsw.com, or by calling (512) 467-7979--plus a CD or cassette of at least three songs of original material, a photo, band bio, press kit and a $20 processing fee, to SXSW Music Festival, P.O. Box 4999, Austin, TX 78765. All submitted materials become the property of SXSW, Inc. and cannot be returned. The application deadline is November 9, and acts will be notified no later than February 8. Good luck to all local applicants; we're rooting for you.


RAP SHEET: Quality hip-hop drops in Tucson in a big way this week as the Cali Comm 2001 tour takes up residence for a night at The Rock. The tour pairs two of the more intelligent rap acts of the last decade, Pharcyde and Souls of Mischief, both of which employ clever wordplay, kickin' beats and serious flow, not to mention a healthy sense of humor, along with über-rap-LP guest stars Planet Asia & Rasco (aka Cali Agents), DJ Kustmasta Kurt (who was behind Kool Keith's Masters of Illusion project) with Motion Man, and Pep Love, who, like Souls of Mischief, hails from the Hieroglyphics crew. Cali Comm 2001 hits The Rock, 136 N. Park Ave., at 8 p.m. on Thursday, October 18. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster at 321-1000. For more info call the club at 629-9211.


PUNK BLARNEY: Boston's Dropkick Murphys is likely the finest whiskey-soaked Irish punk band that loves The Clash and yells "Oi! Oi! Oi!" a lot. Its latest CD, Sing Loud, Sing Proud, released on Hellcat earlier this year, digs at the band's Irish roots more reverentially than usual, and even features a guest appearance by the amazingly still-alive Shane MacGowan.

Meanwhile, the venerable, if humorless, hardcore veterans of Sick of It All are still touring in support of Yours Truly, released nearly a year ago on Fat Wreck Chords, as well as The Story So Far, a video compilation that documents the band's 15 years of duty in the underground, released in April of this year.

Dropkick Murphys, Sick of It All and Tiger Army appear at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, October 24 at the Rialto Theatre, 318 E. Congress St. Advance tickets cost $15 at all Zia locations. For more details call 798-3333.