Tonight at Jake's, several members of the local music community- from Prizzy Prizzy Please to Kentucky Nightmare to Tammar- will be paying tribute to SST Records. Starts at 9 ish, $5, and 21+. Cheap booze, too.
Check out all the details here.
Here's the scoop on how it all started, and a pretty cool history lesson for those of you who may not be familiar with the label, courtesy of Evan Whikehart, one of the many performers tonight.
"The idea was first tossed around when Alex (Mann) and I were at a show at the Playwrights Project, I think it was back in May. We were talking about fun cover bands and I think I mentioned The Meat Puppets.
(MP Photo courtesy of http://www.wohlers.org/puppets/)
Somehow, we linked that train of thought to an entire SST records tribute night. At the same show was Dan Coleman (Spirit of '68 Promotions). He seemed into the idea and agreed to find a good home for it.
Over the next couple weeks Alex sent emails out to those who showed and interest, and everyone staked claims on the bands they wanted. Originally, we'd planned this for June, but due to the flooding in Southern Indiana, we pushed it back so Dan could host a Flood Benefit.
I think SST works because they had such a huge roster of influential, and important bands (Black Flag, Bad Brains, Husker Du, Dinosaur Jr, Meat Puppets, Sonic Youth, Minutemen, etc..). So many people have connections to music that label put out - Some of those records are unquestionably considered "classics."
I can't speak for anyone else involved in the show, but to me, bands like the Meat Puppets, Sonic Youth, and Dinosaur Jr. drew me in, exposing me to bands I otherwise wouldn't have sought out.
Last November I drove to Indianapolis with Alex (who's playing bass in both Minutemen and Meat Puppets bands) to see the Meat Puppets at Birdy's. I was completely blown away. After that, I started digging out the records again...it definitely rekindled my interest. I liked the idea of cover that band because while it's hard to point to a certain aesthetic and say "this is what an SST band sounds like," I always felt like the Meat Puppets stood out a little from the other bands on that label.
Again - not to speak for anyone else, but I imagine it's a similar thing for everyone else involved in the show. They get a chance to play songs by bands that are important to them, bands that influenced them personally, musically, or whatever the case may be.
One interesting thing about the show is that the bands are only performing songs from albums released by SST Records. A good number of bands went on to release records with other labels (some indie labels, some major labels). So, if someone is familiar with a couple of the bands being covered tonight, but not necessarily with records from that era, it might be interesting to hear these artists from a new angle.
Anyone interested, and not all that familiar with the label should definitely check out their roster.."
