Wassup 805? Bill Locey here, neither in Studio 805 nor in Camarillo, but still gainfully employed by the Ventura County Star, at least for the next hour or two, kicking it at my house, multi-tasking, writing about rock 'n' roll, watching "The Rifleman" and the Dodgers lose again with the sound off (I can't stand those homer Dodger road announcers) and petting my cat, Nope, who is on my lap and as usual, in the way and doing his fair share as part of the worldwide feline anti-literacy campaign.

 

In the Shameless Plug Department: Rhett Miller will do a solo gig at Muddy Waters in Santa Barbara on 16 June - it's way smaller than Largo used to be and smaller than Zoey's is now. 

It would be even better if he played at the Johnny Cash thing at the Ventura County Fairgrounds the day before (June 15). His band - the Old '97s - was named for a Man in Black song. 

Also, the Warped Tour returns to the Commotion by the Ocean on 23 June and the Scheideck Music Festival - sort of an 805 Coachella - that one will be happening the last weekend in June - great music, excessive drinking and a campground to pass out in - clearly a cultural landslide up on Hwy. 33 in Maricopa.

"Wondrous Bughouse" is the latest from Youth Lagoon, out on Fat Possum Records out of Mississippi. 

It's a single digit youth, one Trevor Powers, out of Boise, and his friends - all of whom all machines - making atmospheric, metaphysical dream pop that could give Deadheads the whirlies. 

A lot of this is, as the Firesign Theatre once so astutely noted, "gas music from Jupiter," or carousel music meets wind chimes with Powers' oddball tinny voice. I'm guessing no slam pit for this one - more of a tree pit - as people stand and sort of sway when Youth Lagoon comes to SOhO in Santa Barbara on 18 April.

"Inheritance" is the new one from The Last Bison, just out on Universal Republic. It's tuneful baroque rock - the Novemberists maybe - as they alternate from Queen-level bombast as on "Tired Hands" or slyly symphonic as on "Autumn Snow." The voice of that singing bovine, Ben Hardesty, is the thing here, but so are the cello and violin players. In the last quarter of the 19th century, once the transcontinental railroad was completed - more proof that once the road comes through, it's over - white hunters slaughtered the great buffalo herd of the Great Plains that once had numbered 30 million. When the buffalo nickel was commissioned, designer James Earle Fraser had to go to a zoo to find a buffalo for a model. You can't take white people anywhere, but this band? They're great. Dream gig: The Last Bison, the White Buffalo and Buffalo Springfield.

Depeche Mode has a new one, their thirteenth, "Delta Machine," just out on Columbia Records. The most famous and popular electronic band in the world has been at this since 1980 and still boasts one of the most memorable voices in rock, Dave Gahan. 

Best one here is "Slow," a slo-mo bluesy rocker with a cool and snaky guitar riff that'll live in your head for daze. "Secret To The End," is yet another whine-o-gram as the would've/should've/could've ain't-love-grand, strike three scenario falls short again as in "...it should've been you if it hadn't been for me." The theme song for "Ally McBeal" 15 years too late, maybe? There's a couple of pretentious, boring slow ones but there's enough good stuff such as "Soft Touch/Raw Nerve" to make this one another Depeche Mode keeper. 

I still like "Everything Counts" (because it does) from long ago. The band will be at the SB County Bowl in September and these guys rock seriously live.

Bajofondo? Sounds like some sort of mean fish that Jeremy Wade is going to hook during the last five minutes of "River Monsters," or else some disease you don't want but, no - Bajofondo is a world famous band feel good party band (except up here) and they have a new one, "Presente," just out on Masterworks/Sony, which ain't nothing but Columbia misspelled. These guys also know what they're doing - and for a long time, too. They won a Grammy a decade ago and to quote the band dio, it's an "Argentine-Uruguayan alt-electrorock tango band." All instrumental with lots of instruments going off and perhaps I should be more open minded, but too much of this sounds like slightly upscale muzak.

"Chelsea Light Moving" is the self-titled latest project from Thurston Moore - once upon a time, the sonic part of Sonic Youth - this one just out on mighty, mighty Matador Records. The too long "Lip," is typical Moore exercise in excess as he attempts to totter on the verge of musician and machinist, blurring the line between music and annoying noise. To quote and old Warren Zevon song, "... it ain't that pretty at all..."

Fabulous folkie Joshua James has hit it out of the park with his new one, "From The Top Of Willamette Mountain" and it's on Intelligent Noise. Pretty much a guy and a guitar with that mildly gritty, world weary voice, James is Mr. Been There Done That and even though, life is perpetually not up to expectations, he keeps coming back for more, and fortunately, taking good notes. 

A man on a minimalist musical mission, James knows what a good song should sound like on these laid back cruisin' tunes or sad songs recounting the most recent bumfuzzle with Miss Take. And on "Wolves" he relays the wistful observation, "But darling, I don't know the reasons why drinking always lead to sex." I do - it's probably the drinking part - ask any bar owner. So why exactly did I miss James recently at Zoey's? Why did I not read my own listings? Doh!

The latest from Big Bill Morganfield is "Blues With A Mood" and it's on Black Shuck Records. Maybe that last name sounds familiar? It should - Big Bill is Muddy Waters' kid and he's already won a W.C. Handy Award and better than all that, he's a gritty kick-ass blues guitar player and singer. He sounds like one of old classic dead black blues guys - but he's only in his '50s, so - good news - we're gonna be hearing plenty more from Big Bill. This one's as good as a John Lee Hooker album or even Muddy himself. If more blues were like this, there'd be way more blues fans.

After what seems like a long break, the Black Rebel Motorcycle Club is back with a new one on Vagrant, "Specter At The Feast," and it's not Phil Spector having brunch with Satan. 

This band does everything well - at once, hard-edged and soft with plenty of hooks, sort of like the latest step when it comes to stoner pop as already realized by bands such as the Jesus & Mary Chain, the Dandy Warhols, the Brian Jonestown Massacre and others that could provide the permanent soundtrack at the Vicodin Convention. 

The latest from the Mike Eldred Trio is a re-issue of the cryptically- titled "61 and 49" from 2011, but fresh and new to Rip Cat Records. Guitar player and frontman Eldred is ably abetted by John Bazz on bass and drummer Jerry Angel - they're the Blasters' rhythm section. 

As if that isn't enough help, Eldred also enlists the aid of Ike Turner on keyboards and a bunch of guitarists - Kid Ramos, Cesar Rosas and Scotty Moore, not to mention the criminally under-appreciated Jeff Turmes who plays sax. What does all this mean? 

It's a mostly kick-ass collection of L.A. blues by a bunch of pros but a few are of the generic cry-in-you-beer, by-the-numbers variety. I like the one named after my dearly departed  calico cat, "She's A Rocket."

Jake Bugg's self-titled debut, out since October 2012 on mighty, mighty Mercury Records is a knockout, and he just turned 19 so we have plenty more to hear from this dude. The first song, "Lightning Bolt" will make you a fan with this catchy slice of pure power pop rock from Bugg who claims Donovan as an influence - another Brit who knew what a good song should sound like. There seems to be a bit of similarity to Brett Dennen but mostly, Bugg reminds me of another Jake - Jake Brebes - the kid frontman for Threes and Nines - remember them? A lot of these are introspective relationship songs as evidently Bugg has spent many of teenage years chickenhawking (and taking good notes) on tunes such as "Broken." Buggs is an old 19, going on 35.

Rockin' on their own terms since the 1976, Wire has a new one, "Change Becomes Us" on PinkFlag. When these guys are playing - and I've listened to this one about half a dozen times but not too carefully - I didn't particularly like them. Then again, when I'm sitting down paying attention, these guys are really good - "atmospheric" is the operative word here as they resurrect some of their long lost tunes from 30 years ago. 

I have no idea what they're singing about but inevitably, there's some cool guitars going off in very foot friendly and convincing ways. "Time Lock Fog" is the perfect title of a perfect Wire song for them to do what they do. Wikipedia, which never lies and is always right, calls Wire post punk. Whatever - it's complex, baroque rock by a bunch of vets, convincing me to make it a point to see these guys at last year's Coachella. And then, I bought a shirt.

The debut from Gold Fields is "Black Sun" and it's on Astralwerks. 

These guys play hook-filled pop rock - maybe not so much unlike their successful Down Under predecessors, INXS as far as competency and hooks.

 These Gold guys are not going to change your life, blow your cool or your mind - it's just a pleasant enough diversion from a band that's going to be around for a while.

My new favorite band this week is the Beaumonts - their new one is "Where Do You Want It?" and it's on Saustex Records. There's no pretense - it's all about sex, booze, drugs and rock & roll in a politically incorrect, screamingly funny collection of country rock songs. 

The first two songs offer a clue, "I Like Drinkin"' and "I Like Women." Then there's "(If You Don't) Love the Lord," a honest question and an unpleasant answer, which I cannot repeat in a family newspaper, would be sufficient to make Pat Robertson's head explode (or as Bill Maher's calls him Evil Uncle Chuckles). 

And the tune, "Toby Keith," about the right wing redneck is such a jaw dropper and a head shaker - doubt if he'll ever cover that one, but it makes "Don Henley Must Die" by Mojo Nixon seem fairly benign.

 Dream triple bill: Pinkard & Bowden, the Reverend Billy C. Wirtz and the Beaumonts. This is twisted redneck rock at it's twisty-est. Twice.

The sophomore jinx is just a cliche when it comes to punk bluegrasss, whiz bang, rockers that are Old Man Markley. Their second album is a knockout - and that would be "Down Side Up" and it's on Fat Wreck Chords. 

Even though there is no equivalent to "For Better Or Worse," the best song on their debut and their usual live show ender, There are plenty of inspired and inspirational rockers. No Fox News fantasies, this one is more like an extended soundtrack for Noam Chomsky, the Occupy Movement and the 99% on tunes such as "America's Dreaming" with lines like:

``They think they got us trained, so we'll think we're living free/If we got time and money for junk food and TV/But it's plain honest people never stand a chance of winning elections/They just let us pick which liars take our rights away for our own protection...'' Hate when that happens and trust me, those lyrics sound better than they read. Frontman John Carey - not the new Secretary of State with a night job - has a pleasing voice and there's fiddles, acoustic guitars and banjos going off everywhere.