TERRELL'S TUNE-UP: WHAT I DID ON MY SUMMER VACATION

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
August 6, 2010

Here’s what I did last week on my summer vacation.

I spent several days last week in New York City. The major chunk of my time was spent at musical events (and riding the subways to get to them).

It was a near-impromptu trip, an impulse vacation. What sparked it was something I saw on the internet about The Detroit Breakdown, a free outdoor show at Lincoln Center sponsored by The Ponderosa Stomp Foundation. On the bill were two bands that rocked my reality as a junior high kid: Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels and ? & The Mysterians.

Even more interesting were slightly more recent Detroit groups including garage/punk heroes The Gories and Death, a resurrected proto-punk group.

Here’s the magical part. Only moments after I made my plane and hotel reservations, I got an email invitation from the promoters of another free show: Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds — led by a guy who’s been a member of The Cramps, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, and The Gun Club — who were playing at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn.

To me, this was a cosmic confirmation from the universe. Then later I learned that Gogol Bordello would be playing with Primus the night before the Detroit Stomp. Glory hallelujah!

Here’s a rundown of the music I saw last week:

* Sweatin’ to the oldies: ? & The Mysterians and Mitch Ryder offered a sharp contrast in their different approaches. And I have to say that ? and his band kicked major rump. From the moment he bounced onto the stage wearing a cowboy hat and a pink-and-purple jacket with Buffalo Bill fringes, ? was a psychedelic sprite belting out his rock ’n’ soul.

The Mysterians included all their original members — five Chicanos who grew up hanging out and playing music with one another. They’re tight and yet have an easy way together. They’ve done all these songs a jillion times, but they still look like they’re having the time of their lives playing them.

Ryder, on the other hand, had a bunch of new players who looked young enough to be his grandkids. These Wheels weren’t even hub when Ryder was tearing up the charts with “Devil in a Blue Dress” and “Jenny Takes a Ride.” All were proficient musicians, but they lacked that warriors’ bond that comes from years on the road.

But the main difference between the two is that ? and crew have retained their garage-band spirit, while Ryder’s band had a classic-rock edge. Ryder’s band even had a big production number that started out with tinkly-winkly piano versions of Rolling Stones songs like “Ruby Tuesday” and “You Can’t Always Get What You Want,” leading with epic guitar crescendos to an overwrought version of “Gimme Shelter.” (I left during the drum solo. I just couldn’t take it.)

On the other hand, The Mysterians did a version of The Stones’ “Satisfaction.” But there was nothing grandiose about it. They played the song as I imagine they did in 1965.

The Mysterians got a little outside help. Soul singer Louise Murray of the Jaynetts dueted with ? on “Sally Go Round the Roses.” Murray sang on the original recording of this cool tune. But more impressive, the one and only Ronnie Spector joined the group on their big hit “96 Tears.” It was an unbelievable moment. She basically vamped on the “you’re gonna cry, cry, cry, cry” outro, teasingly adding an occasional “be my baby” to the proceedings.

* The Gories: This was Mick Collins’ group before The Dirtbombs. Collins along with fellow guitarist Dan Kroha and drummer Peggy O’Neill started out in Detroit in 1986 and lasted until the early ’90s. They got back together last year for a reunion tour with The Oblivions. And The Gories still sound fresh, crazy, and aggressively primitive. Beginning with their unofficial theme song, “Hey Hey, We’re the Gories,” they bashed their way through a high-energy set that included Gories favorites like “Thunderbird E.S.Q.” and “Nitroglycerine,” as well as covers of John Lee Hooker’s “Boogie Chillun” and Eddie Holland’s “Leaving Here.” They even went No Wave for a minute and did a cover of a Suicide song.

* Death: Talk about a band that was ahead of its time. Death was a trio of black kids from Detroit, back in the early 1970s, combined the soul and R & B they’d grown up with the Detroit rock of the day.

The son of singer/bassist Bobby Hackney, discovering one of his dad’s demo tapes in the attic, convinced his dad to reform the group. Death’s only studio recordings were released by the indie label Drag City as a CD called ... For the Whole World to See.

Death still roars. The band even did a song it wrote inspired by Richard Nixon, “Politicians in My Eyes.”

* Gogol Bordello: This international band of maniacs lived up to its reputation of playing intense and crazy live shows. It’s led by Ukraine-born Eugene Hutz, who immigrated to New York City in the early 1990s and recently moved to Brazil.

Gogol, whose members are from all over the world, play a high-charged rocking fusion of traditional Gypsy music — violin and accordion are important elements — other traditional European sounds, reggae, and more recently samba, creating a sound they modestly call “Gypsy punk.”

At their show on the Brooklyn waterfront, the musicians did some old favorites — “Not a Crime,” “Wonderlust King,” and “Start Wearing Purple” — plus a lot of their latest album, Trans-Continental Hustle.

* Primus: Following Gogol would be a heavy task for anyone. So, sadly, Primus was pretty much a major letdown. I’m a Primus fan and was excited about seeing the group. But after the group’s opening act, Les Claypool and the boys seemed plodding and spaced out.

* Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds: Kid Congo Powers is a hero in the garage-punk sub genre, which doesn’t place the highest value on instrumental virtuosity. Nevertheless, he’s an amazing guitarist who doesn’t need 15-minute solos to prove it. One of his encore tunes was an instrumental I didn’t recognize that sounded like a wild cross between Duane Eddy and “Psychotic Reaction.”

Opening his hourlong set with “I Found a Peanut,” a Thee Midnighters cover and the funniest song from his latest album, Dracula Boots, the Kid let rip with tunes spanning his career, including The Gun Club’s “Sex Beat” and two Cramps tunes, “I’m Cramped” and an extra-sinister “Goo Goo Muck.”

BLOG BONUS!

My snapshots of most these shows (and other things) can be found HERE.

Even better, here's some YouTube videos I found from some of the shows I saw. (The first two are from my GaragePunk Hidout pal allison levin's friend Corwin Wickersham.)

DEATH

THE GORIES

? & THE MYSTERIANS with RONNIE SPECTOR

MITCH RYDER & THE DETROIT WHEELS



GOGOL BORDELLO



KID CONGO POWERS & THE PINK MONKEYBIRDS

BATTLE OF THE DETROIT BANDS

If The Detroit Breakdown could be considered a battle of the bands between two groups that rocked my world back when I was in junior high – back in the mid '60s when there used to be actual battles of the bands – there was a clear winner Saturday night.

? & The Mysterians kicked major rump on Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels.

Of course it wasn't a “battle.” Music is the expression of the soul, which touches the spirit and lifts the soul in harmony with the world and shouldn't be perceived as a childish competition.

Screw that. ? & The Mysterians kicked ass! No disrespect to Mitch. Like I say, I've loved his music for nearly 45 years. In a year of flower-power excess, Mitch got back to the gritty rock 'n' roll basics .

The Detroit Breakdown is what sparked my impulse vacation to New York City. The event, sponsored by The Ponderosa Stomp Foundation, was held at The Lincoln Center. The evening portion of the show not only included these '60s acts, but more recent Detroit groups including the wonderful Gories and Death. (More on these two bands later.)

The Mysterians got a little outside help. Soul singer Louise Murray of the Jaynetts dueted with ? on “Sally Go Round the Roses. She sang on the original recording of this cool tune.

But more impressively, the one and only Ronnie Spector joined the group on their big hit “96 Tears.”

Allow me to repeat that: Ronnie Spector sang “96 Tears” with ? & The Mysterians!

But even without this added star power, The Mysterians would have ruled the night. From the moment he bounced onto the stage wearing a cowboy and a pink-and-purple jacket with Buffalo Bill fringes, ? was a psychedelic sprite belting out his rock 'n' soul.

Here's the main differences between them and Mitch Ryder. First of all, The Mysterians included all their original members. In other words, five Chicano guys who grew up hanging out and playing music with each other. They're tight and yet have an easy way with each other. They've done all these songs a jillion times, but they still look like they're having the time of their lives playing them.

Ryder on the other hand had a bunch of new players who looked young enough to be Mitch's grandkids. These Wheels weren't even hubcaps when Ryder was tearing up the charts with “Devil in a Blue Dress” and “Jenny Takes a Ride.” All proficient musicians, but lacking that warrior's bond.

But the main difference between the two is that ? and crew have retained their garage-band spirit while Ryder's band had a classic-rock edge. There was even a big production number that started out with tinkly-winkly piano versions of Rolling Stones songs like “Ruby Tuesday” and “You Can't Always Get What You Want” leading up with epic guitar crescendos to an overwrought version of “Gimme Shelter.” (Full disclosure: I left during the drum solo. I just couldn't take it.)

On the other hand, The Mysterians did a version of The Stones' “Satisfaction.” But there was nothing grandiose about it. They played the song as I imagine they did in 1965.

Besides ?, my favorite band of the day was The Gories. This was Mick Collins' group before The Dirtbombs. Collins along with fellow guitarist Dan Kroha and drummer Peggy O'Neill started out in Detroit in 1986 and lasted until the early '90s. They got back together last year for a reunion tour with The Oblivions.

True confession: I've dug The Dirtbombs for years, but I'm a relative newcomer to the pleasures of The Gories. Both are amazing bands.

And they still sound fresh and crazy. Starting out with their unofficial theme song, “Hey Hey, We're The Gories,” they bashed their way through a high-energy set that included Gories favorites like “Thunderbird E.S.Q.” and “Nitroglycerine,” as well as covers of John Lee Hooker's “Boggie Chillun,” Eddie Holland's “Leaving Here” and the R&B classic “Early in the Morning.” They even went No-Wave for a minute and did a cover of a Suicide song.

Also a lot of fun was Death, a Detroit hard-rock trio who back in the early '70s combined the soul and R&B they'd grown up with the Detroit rock of the day.

At one point Death singer/bassist Bobby Hackney gave shout-outs to some of their influences: Alice Cooper. Iggy & The Stooges. And Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels.

Check my snapshots of The Detroit Breakdown HERE

GOGOL CONQUERS BROOKLYN

Well actually Gogol Bordello started out in New York, so a lot of locals probably would say they conquered it a long time ago.

But they didn't fail to work the crowd into a frenzy and it didn't take 'em long.

They played some of old favorites -- "Not a Crime," "Wanderlust King" and, later in the set, "Start Wearing Purple." And they played a lot of their latest album Trans-Continental Hustle.

I realize that there are lots of people who are uninitiated into the pleasures of this band. So here's a quick primer:

Head Gogol Eugene Hutz, a native of the Ukraine, immigrated to New York City in the early '90s. There he fell in with like-minded musicians, many of them immigrants like himself from various parts of the world.

Together they crafted a high-charged rocking fusion of traditional gypsy music -- violin and accordion are important elements -- other traditional European sounds, reggae, South American sounds they modestly call "Gypsy punk." Recently Hutz moved to Brazil and traces of samba could be heard on the group's latest album

I wasn't immediately taken by the new Rick Rubin-produced Trans-Continental Hustle. But hearing it live Friday convinced me that the new songs stand proudly by the old.

My only disappointment was that they didn't play "American Wedding." But I didn't feel cheated.

I almost felt sorry for the headlining act of this show -- Primus. I'm a Primus fan. I love "My Name is Mud" and "Wynonna's Big Brown Beaver" and lots of their other songs. I was happy to hear that Les Claypool and the boys had reunited and I'd get to hear them.

But following Gogol Bordello would be a heavy task for anyone. (My buddy Chuck suggested that Shane McGowan in his prime might be able to pull that feat off. But not many others.)

So sadly, Primus was somewhat of a letdown after Gogol. Claypool does some interesting music, but after their opening act, it just didn't seem all that exciting.

Speaking of interesting -- the very first band to play Friday was a rocked-out jazz-fusiony/No Wavish trio called Dead Kenny Gs. They have a sax man (who doubles on keyboards) a bassist and a drummer who also plays vibes. They were lots of fun and left me wanting to hear more.

On the subway trip home when we transferred trains at the 14th Street station, Chuck noticed that Gogol's accordion player, Yuri Lemeshev was there, posing for pictures with fans. One of them was me.

Check my snapshots of Gogol Bordello HERE

But

CONGO ROCK

Brian Tristan, better known as Kid Congo Powers, has an impressive recording history having served time in The Cramps, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds and The Gun Club. And his solo work, like last year's Dracula Boots, are full of under-recognized gems.

But you really haven't heard Kid Congo until you've heard him live.

I did just that at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn. Congo played there with his band The Pink Monkey Birds as part of a free show sponsored by Vice Records. Congo has a new split single with Hunx & His Punx, who opened the show, coming out in the near future.

Mr. Powers is a hero in the garage-punk sub genre, which doesn't place the highest value on instrumental virtuosity. Nevertheless, he's an amazing guitarist who does't need 15-minute solos to prove it. One of his encore tunes was an instrumental I didn't recognize that sounded like a wild cross between Duane Eddy and "Psychotic Reaction."

Opening his hour-long set with "I Found a Peanut," a Thee Midnighters cover and the funniest song from Dracula Boots, Congo let rip with tunes spanning his lengthy career. There were several others from Dracula Boots, including "La Llorona," (which I know would be a favorite in Santa Fe if he ever comes here), "Black Santa" and "LSDC." There were several songs from an upcoming singles compilation on In the Red Records (I believe he said the name of that's going to be "10 Greasy Pieces") and older tunes like "La Historia de un Amour."

And, yes, he did a Gun Club song, a tough version of "Sex Beat," and two Cramps tunes -- "I'm Cramped" and an extra-sinister "Goo Goo Muck."

I got a chance to yak a little wit the Kid before the show. He said he's excited because he's been asked to sing "Found a Peanut" with Thee Midnighters at the Ponderosa Stomp in New Orleans in September. I wish I could be there for that.

(No, I didn't take that photo at the top of this post. My camera was in my suitcase, which hadn't arrived before I left for the show, thank you very much, American Airlines!) So I stole that picture from my pal and fellow GaragePunk podcaster Michael Kaiser, who saw Kid Congo in California last year. Thanks, Michael.)

NEW YORK HERE I COME!

As those of you who have heard me ramble in my recent radio shows and on the latest Big Enchilada podcast know, I'm headed to New York for a bunch of concerts and fun.

The biggest event to which I'm going is the Detroit Breakdown, a free outdoor show Saturday sponsored by The Lincoln Center and the Ponderosa Stomp. Among the acts performing there are a couple of groups I've loved since junior hight, Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels and ? & The Mysterians. Plus, the reunited Gories will be there as well as Death, a proto-punk band that also recently got back together. (Check this NPR report on them.)

Also I'll be going to see a Gogol Bordello/Primus show in Brooklyn Friday and, assuming my plane gets in on time, Kid Congo Powers at The Knitting Factory.

Watch this blog for reports, photos, etc.

TERRELL'S SOUND WORLD PLAYLIST

Sunday, July 25, 2010
KSFR, Santa Fe, N.M.
10 p.m. to midnight Sundays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell
Webcasting!
101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Let it Out (Let it All Hang Out) by The Hombres
The Lowlife by Nick Curran & The Lowlifes
Sugar in My Hog by Fred Schneider with Shadowy Men on a Shadowy Planet
Bitch Slap Attack by Lovestuck
Toilet Duck by Scared of Chaka
Treat Her Right by Los Straitjackets with Mark Lindsay
Repo Man by Iggy Pop
Baby Who Mutilated Everybody's Heart by Thee Mighty Caesars
I'm In With the Out Crowd by Sam the Sham & The Pharoahs
Juimonos (Let's Went) by Little Richard Elizondo Combo
All These Things by Art Neville

Jenny Take a Ride by Mitch Ryder & The Detroit Wheels
Devil With the Blue Dress by Shorty Long
C.C. Rider by Bobby Powell
Smokes by ? & The Mysterians
Ghost Rider by The Gories
La Llorona by Kid Congo & The Pink Monkeybirds
Troubled Friends by Gogol Bordello

Rockin' My Boogie by Charlie Musselwhite
Annie Mae/Memphis by Alex Maryol
Friday Night Dance Party by Bunker Hill
Baby Doll by The Del Moroccos
Memphis Chiken by The Gibson Bros.
Dizzy Miss Lizzy by Larry Williams

Never Go West by Seasick Steve
Shortnin' Bread by The Cramps
Flying High by Country Joe & The Fish
Adeniji by The Budos Band
The World Ends by The Black Mirrors
A Mission in Life by Stan Ridgway
CLOSING THEME: Over the Rainbow by Jerry Lee Lewis

Subscribe to The Big Enchilada Podcast! CLICK HERE

ROD DOES BUCKLEY IN NYC

Hipsters, flipsters and finger-poppin' daddies ...

While stumbling around the Internet for information on the Detroit Breakdown, which I'm going to in New York City a week from today, I learned that Santa Fe's finest Lord Buckley channeler Rod Harrison is playing at the same venue the next day.

Unfortunately, I'll be flying back to New Mexico when Rod takes the stage.

He's playing at the Lincoln Center Out of Doors series. On the same bill is David Johansen, Sandra Bernhard and Steve Cuiffo, who does with Lenny Bruce what Rod does with Lord Buckley.

THE SANTA FE OPRY PLAYLIST

Friday, July 23, 2010
KSFR, Santa Fe, NM
Webcasting!
10 p.m. to midnight Fridays Mountain Time
Host: Steve Terrell

101.1 FM
email me during the show! terrell@ksfr.org

OPENING THEME: Buckaroo by Buck Owens & The Buckaroos
Dirty Dog by Jimmie Revard & His Oklahoma Playboys
Yearning Burning Heart by The Farmer Boys
Cherokee Boogie by Hank Williams
Mexican Bands by Merle Haggard
Escondido by Joe "King" Carrasco
Tornado by Dale Hawkins
Nervous Breakdown by Bobby Fuller
Your Atom Bomb Heart by Hank King & Bud Williams & His Smiling Buddies
I'm Fed Up Drinking Here by The Starline Rhythm Boys
I Want to be a Hobo by The McQueens

Heroes by Xoe Fitzgerald
Cash on the Barrelhead by The Louvin Brothers
You Finally Said Something Good (When You Said Goodbye) by Charlie Louvin
Bring then Noise by The Unholy Trio
Gin & Juice by The Gourds
Poor People's Store by Shinyribs
Lost John Boogie by Wayne Raney

Honky Tonk Girl by Eilen Jewell
Back Street Affair by Webb Pierce
Loreena the Slave by The Delmore Brothers
There Ain't No Saguro in Texas by The Rev. Horton Heat
Cheap Living by Eric Hisaw
Mother-in-Law Boogie by Earl Songer
Gone But Not Forgotten by Hank III
8 Weeks in a Barroom by Ramblin' Red Bailey

12 Gates to the City by Tao Seeger
The Lord is Coming by Rev. Beat-man
Freight Train by Taj Mahal
Play Dead by The Sixtyniners
The Blues My Naughty Baby Gave to Me by Dan Hicks & The Hot Licks
Hold That Critter Down by The Sons of the Pioneers
Down the Bar From Me by Kell Robertson
CLOSING THEME: Comin' Down by The Meat Puppets

Steve Terrell is proud to report to the monthly Freeform American Roots Radio list

HOT & PIPIN' BRAND NEW BIG ENCHILADA PODCAST

Welcome, my friends to the latest Big Enchilada podcast. If you've got a touch of the criminal insanity, this episode should be nice and soothing for you.

I'm releasing this episode a little early this time because I'm going to New York at the end of the month. In anticipation of that trip I'm including songs from the stars of the Detroit Breakdown -- The Gories, ? Mark & The Mysterians, and Death, plus a Mitch Ryder hit recorded before it met Mitch Ryder -- and a tune from Kid Congo Powers, who I'm hoping to see at The Knitting Factory in Brooklyn next week.

Also in this show are The Kill Spectors and Xoe Fitgerald (my favorite Time Traveling Transvestite) from right here in Santa Fe; The A-Bones, The Devil Dogs and The Malarians; and some bands I met on the GaragePunk Hideout like Weirdonia and Thee Ludds.

So crank up the volume and get in the mood.





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Here's The play list:
Background Music: Peter Fun by The Dive Tones
Live Like a Dog by The Kill Spectors
Good Time Kids by Xoe Fitzgerald
Good Times by The Malarians
Girl Like You by Urban Junior
I'm a Moron by Thee Ludds
1960s Antique Clock by Weirdonia
(Background Music: Hi Neighbor by Spike Jones & His City Slickers)

DETROIT BREAKDOWN SET
Freakin' Out by Death
Let Your Daddy Ride by The Gories
I Hear Sirens by The Dirtbombs
Look for the Question Mark by The Fuzztones
Are You For Real by ? & The Mysterians
Hitchhiking by Kid Congo & The Pink Monkey Birds
Devil With the Blue Dress by Shorty Long
(Background Music: I'm in the Mood for Love by Man-Chau-Po Orchestra)

House Rent Jump by Peter Case
Lust Lil Lucy by Nick Curran & The Lowlifes
Monkey Mess by Thee Vicars
A Little Love by The A-Bones
Laugh at Me by The Devil Dogs
(Outro Music: Travelin' Mood by Wee Willie Wayne)

Listen to this podcast 7 p.m. Mountain Time Tuesday July 27 on Real Punk Radio

TERRELL'S TUNE-UP: INTERGALACTIC TRANSVESTITE CONSPIRACY

A version of this was published in The Santa Fe New Mexican
July 23, 2010

Synchronicity is a funny thing.

Early this month, I received a review copy of Xoë Fitzgerald: Time-Traveling Transvestite, a new album from Frogville Records that starts off with a spoken introduction by Fitzgerald, whose voice spookily resembles that of songwriter Joe West:

In the summer of 1975, a bright light was seen falling into the hills south of Santa Fe, NM. Some claim it was a meteor. Others say that later they found a strange unearthly substance that appeared to be the remains of a flying vehicle. Shortly thereafter, a child was born to a young hippie girl who made her home in the old mining town.

Indeed the album — which is unleashed publicly Friday, July 23, at Tiny’s — is what some might call a “rock opera,” telling the story of a mysterious, time-traveling, cross-dressing union organizer.

Then, less than a week later, an editor forwarded me an email containing a link to a blog with this startling information about more time-travel activity in Santa Fe:

According to (Andrew) Basiago, the U.S. government already had a fully operational teleportation capability in 1967-1968, and by 1969-1970, was actively training a cadre of gifted and talented American schoolchildren, including himself, to become America’s first generation of “chrononauts” or time-space explorers.

He confirms that the United States has been teleporting individuals to Mars for decades and recounts the awe-inspiring and terrifying trips that he took to Mars in 1981. He describes how he and his father (an engineer working on time/space research projects for the U.S. defense department) would teleport from Woodridge, NJ, to Santa Fe, NM, and return via a teleportation device at Sandia National Labs in Albuquerque.

On my political blog I wrote a tongue-in-cheek post quoting that Information Farm blog article about “Project Pegasus.”

By the next day, Basiago himself responded, telling me that “Santa Fe was the Kitty Hawk of teleportation” and claiming that Gov. Bill Richardson was involved. “Mr. Richardson was a young staffer on Project Pegasus who took roll when we first began teleporting to the New Mexico state capitol in group training exercises held in Summer 1970. That’s right, Bill Richardson’s first job in government was as a staffer on a secret time travel project!”

(As a political reporter, during the past eight years I’ve frequently asked Richardson questions that made both of us uncomfortable. But I haven’t worked up the courage to ask him about this.)

So, soon after Basiago and his pint-size “chrononaut” pals were zapped from New Jersey to Santa Fe, there was that bright light seen falling south of Santa Fe and the birth of the “boy with paisley eyes.”

Synchronicity overload. And there’s more mystery. The liner notes of Xoë Fitzgerald: Time-Traveling Transvestite say that the album “was conceived by Joe West in the year 2007 at Club Alegria. ...”

But let’s travel back in time a bit to late 2005, when I interviewed West for an article in New Mexico Magazine. (CLICK HERE, scroll way down)

There he told me about “his contraption called The Intergalactic Honky Tonk Machine, which West says is a ‘time traveling music device,’ which includes a drum machine, electronic tape loops, and a smoke machine. And he’s talking about doing a concept album about an ‘androgynous time-traveler space character’ who claims to be the love child of a glam-rock star, conceived in New Mexico during the filming of The Man Who Fell to Earth.”

Indeed David Bowie made that film shortly after the Project Pegasus experiments. Part of it was shot in Madrid just down N.M. 14 from the Cerrillos Cultural Center amphitheater, where according to the Information Farm article, Project Pegasus members sat and listened to speakers such as Donald Rumsfeld.

It’s probably worth noting that the interview with West took place at the Cowgirl BBQ, which is just a half mile or so from the state Capitol, where Basiago and the other children of the Pegasus Project were teleported in the early ’70s.

And come to think of it, in April 2008, I saw West play with the Santa Fe All-Stars at an event at the Capitol Rotunda — an event attended by none other than Bill Richardson! I have no solid evidence, but you have to wonder whether the governor used this occasion to pass on information from Project Pegasus to West to use in Xoë Fitzgerald.

The “coincidences” keep piling up!

Is there a record review in here somewhere? Joe West has made some of the finest country-rock albums ever to come out of New Mexico. If you’re a country-rock purist, the music on Xoë will jar you. Fortunately, I doubt that West’s following includes too many rabid purists.

The record rocks with a refreshing sound. The band, which includes Josh Martin, Margaret Burke, Arne Bey, and John Courage (who has since teleported out of Santa Fe), Xoë leans heavily on the glam rock of the 1970s — Bowie, Mott the Hoople, Lou Reed’s Rock ’n’ Roll Animal period, a little T-Rex.

There’s a song called “I Wanna Party (Like It’s 1985),” but this party sounds a lot more like 1974. And “The Good-Time Kids” sounds more like 1965, with a Question Mark & The Mysterians sound. That and “Xoe’s Favorite Honky-Tonk” are currently my favorite West rockers on the album.

West has rarely, if ever, recorded a cover song (I’m still pushing for him to put Glen Campbell’s “Rhinestone Cowboy,” which he frequently performs live, on an album), but he and his band do quite an impressive version of Bowie’s anthem “Heroes.” I won’t give away the plot, but this song comes at a very appropriate emotional moment in the saga.

The album ends with a sweet acoustic coda, “Butterfly.” It’s a low-fi recording that sounds like Xoe’s transmitting from a far-away dimension.

CD release party: Xoe Fitzgerald and his honky-tonk glam co-conspirators play at 8:30 p.m. tonight Friday, July 23, at Tiny’s, 1005 St. Francis Drive, Suite 117. Admission costs nothing, and the first 50 who show up get a Xoe bumper sticker.