bear with--it's a short list

MRR #112: Is there a town that you feel is producing the best music in the country right now?

Steve Albini: There's a lot of real smart people coming out of Louisville, Kentucky for reasons I can't really figure out. Bastro is from there, and they're great. Slint is from there and that's a great band. King Kong is great too. Historically, Louisville has had some good music. There was this band called Your Food in the early '80s and they were great. There was this band called Babylon Dance Band, and they were a great band. Malignant Growth who changed their name to Fading Out. Big fat guys, they're great.

--Big Black Interviews, "Maximum Rock 'n Roll" interview, ca. 1992

[On an ironic little note, Albini could only have known Your Food from their album; at the time of the album's release, MMR refused to even review it.]

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As said, almost all bands played sets that were a tad longer than necessary, but I didn't notice it as much in the case of L'ville's Your Food, 'cause I love their kinda stuff. The lst time I saw this band (then called Orange Orange--glad they changed their name), they seemed like a hybrid of Young Marble Giants & early Joy Division. Now the shyness that suggested YMG has given way to a more aggressive approach. The drummer doesn't grin anymore, & the (I assume) recently acquired lead singer snarls & shouts quite well. The drumming was, to be honest, variations on a single theme, but it served its purpose admirably, providing solid, hypnotic backing to the boss drones, thuds & squeals of the guitar & bass. Some audience members didn't take to L'ville's proponents of doombeat. Said one, "They played thirty minutes of Public Image, Ltd." But I like PiL, & I like Your Food a lot, too.

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. . . followed by a comparatively sedate set by Your Food, in which some members of the Dickbrains realigned themselves into a tighter format. John Bailey on guitar, Wolf Grinning Dork Knapp on bass. Doug Dickbrain Maxson on vocals and the petite Tari Barr on drums played an energetic set, in which undertones of a new musical direction were also evident. It's worth mentioning that Doug was by far the most musical vocalist of the evening; he combines the typical punk growls and barks with snatches of real melody sung on the pitch, truly a startling development in local new wave music.

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Your Food from Louisville, KY simultaneously reminds me of the Velvet Underground and the Fall. There's a repetitive guitar and a semi-sarcastic lead singer. The vocals on "Baby Jesus" sound vaguely like Dylan's early talking blues. In many ways, Your Food embodies the gritty side of the Velvets while maintaining and developing a unique sound of their own.

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The most impressive of these bands is Your Food, from Louisville, KY. A Louisville fanzine describes their music as "arty hardcore". Putting Your Food in a category does not do them justice. They simply are one of the most arresting band I've heard in a long time. Many musical allusions run through this tape [album mix]: the Velvets, the Fall, Joy Division, Flipper. But these are merely reference points. Your Food make highly original music, some of the most original chords since 100 Flowers self-destructed. They capture pensive moments as well as abrasive ones. Their most impressive song is "Order", a long, tortuous piece with seemingly endless screams, a throbbing bass and martial drum beats. Your Food will have a 12" LP out soon.

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Languid & Flaccid/Your Food:

Your Food was on next. Great foursome that reminded me of Killing Joke but they definitely have their own distinctive sound. Very intense stuff. The vocalist sounds a bit like Nick Cave or Lux Interior. Good dancing/slamming.

Your Food/Get Smart!

Your Food opened and played a strong energetic set. This being the second time I've seen them, I don't know what the name of the songs they played were. These guys are really good and hopefully will continue the good work. If you haven't seen them yet, make it a point to.

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After our last show at the Lawrence Opera House, Get Smart! did a week-long tour up to Chicago, also stopping by Louisville, Indianapolis, and Bloomington. In Louisville we played with Your Food. They were fantastic. Reminiscent of the Mekons. Fantastic (there's that word again) vocals and bass.

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THE RIGHT STUFF

well, the first one, anyways

I'm ranking Your Food's "Poke It With A Stick" LP right up there with my seventh or eighth-most favorites of the year to date, fully aware of the various charges and countercharges which will undoubtedly be lodged against me for doing so. It's no secret that their accomplished bass player, Wolf Knapp, subscribes to this Newsletter and has done so shamelessly for many months now. But to those hundreds of bands that have been neglected or maligned in these pages who are now shouting "gross favoritism" and "uncouth, unfair, and unconstitutional", I say "poop". Nowhere on the back of the sleeve am I personally thanked, unless you count along the bottom where it says "more thanks to Tim . . . ", meant another Tim, so quit crying about it, all you dying lounge combos, and let's get on with the work at hand. Side 1 is as interesting as and can quite easily be compared to both Wire's initial "Pink Flag" LP and that bounteous 100 Flowers album released earlier this year. There's all kind of songs at all kinds of speeds except real real slow, which is made all the more amazing when you consider the fact that none of them even have their Masters yet. I've gotten so paranoid after seeing The Mortal Micronotz that my biggest fear for Your Food is that they'll go to hardcore hell in an effort to please 90% of all the fanzines in this country. See, I'm convinced that a lot of bands figure that's the only way they can get any press in today's 'core-dominated zine world. You say I'm crazy and have just been listening to Reagan too much? I don't think so. Another fear is that they'll each split for universities in Bangor, Tampa, Seattle, and San Diego, so c'mon, Your Food, at least get to Columbus for me before that happens! Call Curt and Mark at Schoolkid's at 614/294-7766 and tell them to line you up somewhere!! I've seen The Fleshtones, I've seen The Embarrassment, I've seen True West (cough), now I want to see you! How about playing at the Fourth (or is it the Fifth?) Annual Offense Music Awards show? I'm thinking of renting RKO Palace for the mess this year. Oh yeah, Side 2 is "Order", a one-song extract from their performance at the Kentucky Derby last year, real, um, I think the word is angst-ridden, I'm listening to Wolfie now, oh, what perfect bass lines, how sublime! The Wire comparison is no joke, nor is the Velvet Underground one that I didn't make, so go ahead, poke "Poke It With A Stick" with a stick and see what it does for you. There's a pile a 1069 Bardstown Rd., Louisville, Kentucky 40204, and like the letter sez, send just $5.50.

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Your Food came all the way from Kentucky! I was anxious to hear this band 'cause I love their Poke It With A Stick.

Unaffected Midwest/Nowhere glimpses of life . . . chores, growing up and trying to suss it all out . . . in a town of funny shaped burger stands and tree lined streets, driving, driving constantly, just cruising, warm beer and the radio ON.

And that's what they're like live. Just four guys, no rock stars here. Charles on drums, trying to make you fall over for following him. John, playing guitar left handed, yay, wrestling with Wolf's darting bass lines and Douglas' singing to create a mental patty melt that was enjoyed by all.

This was the Tuesday night it snowed, which was a shame 'cause it might have kept some people home. Your Food deserves more than becoming just another 1 shot cutout-bin band. Original, intelligent, honest new American music. Yeah, you're right, they probably have a chance.

[We didn't have much of a chance: the 9:30 gig turned out to be our final show. This review ran in the same issue of "Truly Needy" that featured Barbara Rice's full-page obituary: What's Eating Your Food?]

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I don't have a copy or even reference to my favorite review. I forget the guy, I forget the zine. The gist was pretty 'core boasting, we were just another pussy new wave band and he was just about going to tear it off the turntable and throw it in the garbage where it belonged when he happened to listen to Side 2--"Order"--which he then declared was one of the greatest recording of all time--fair enough assessment!