Music Blog

'Twas damp and cool within the Bug Jar's walls Wednesday night as a damp and hot Clockmen banged on the beautiful crowd like a brass-knuckled Basilio with a body bag. I've seen these cats a number of times, and this show's particularly ragged onslaught was one of the best. Recently the phrase "food-truck rodeo" has popped up in our lackadaisical lexicon. And I got to thinking: The Clockmen are the soundtrack to a truck rodeo where larger-than-life dudes in big hats wrestle Mustangs and Broncos and Rams, and busty midget cowgirls on horseback fire confetti cannons and firehoses hooked up to tanks of Genesee Cream Ale, and monkeys with jetpacks fly a...

Ahem.

Anyway, the band's superiority is a result of its raw imperfections. At one point the bass and drums seemed to be playing at different time signatures. If this wasn't on purpose, it still sounded pretty cool. The set was loud and urgent, and slightly celebratory as it was announced that a little Clockman is due in November.

After that set the four members of Fox Force 5 took the stage for the band's highly anticipated world debut. All musicians know that you can only have one first time. You can have a pile of crappy shows, a pile of great shows, but that vertigo-inducing belly flop you get from popping your bandstand cherry only happens once. I was thrilled to see and feel this new punk outfit's utter glee as it raged through its raunchy set. The tightening up I was initially going to say the band needed actually happened while it was on stage. Give 'em a listen, they'll rock your pants. The hard part's over.