Kingtone

I’ve been on a real Neil Young kick of late. The more you delve into Neil Young, the more layers you find. Depth. Musically, Neil still puts out the sometimes great, sometimes horrible and sometimes challenging record. The thing is, he keeps going. And the back catalog? Holy smokes, talk about prolific.

What about the non-music stuff? Check out his website. New and ongoing projects like the Bridge School Benefit concerts, the Living With War newspaper, etc.

And then there is Linc Volt. Linc Volt is a ‘59 Lincoln Continental that is being retrofit with a diesel/electric hybrid engine in that will get 100mpg. Then they are gonna film a trip across the US making only two pit stops for fuel. Amazing.

Here’s a quote that really resonates from his bio, Shakey:

I love nature. To me nature is a church.

It was this exact sentiment that gave birth to one of my music alter egos, The Reverend Screaming Fingers at dawn in the Black Rock Desert, Nevada, 1996.

Yesterday I was listening to Low’s new cd Drums & Guns, trying to decide whether I liked it or not (the jury is still out), when I received a call from none other than my friend, former bandmate and stellar drummer Pat Spurgeon of Rogue Wave.

Pat was standing in front of the Acme Bar in NYC, loading in for a special show they were doing. He called to ask if this was the very same place we played on the Reverend Phantom and Junkie Tour in 2001 (tour stop in AZ pictured left). It is indeed, I replied.

We joked how ridiculous it was that a) we had dragged all of our gear down into that basement venue and b) they only gave us a percentage of people who paid before and during our set. Since we were on at 8pm and we had three or four people there, we got…squat! More absurd, the other band’s fans were lined up in the hallway outside the entrance door, waiting to pay (so their friends would get their money), yet they were listening and watching our wild music/film set. I think one of them even got on our mailing list…one fan at a time baby.

Anyway, hurray for Pat and Rogue Wave. Today their fine new album, Asleep at Heaven’s Gate comes out and tomorrow night (Sept. 19) they appear on the Conan O’Brian Show. I feel vicariously triumphant.

An ancient maxim and consequence in nature - In Death there is Rebirth.

Spring 2003. I was reading The King Must Die by Mary Renault. Set in the time when the Island of Crete ran the world and wehn select societies practiced a ritual wherein a new King was selected and then sacrificed on a yealy basis by a perpetual Queen, in order to give thanks for and ensure the continued fertility of the harvest. On Crete however, the Kings got wise to this deal and instead imported captives for sacrifice. Ultimately, the choicest of these subjects were beheaded using a Sacred Cretan Double Axe.

September 2003. I was doing a Reverend Screaming Fingers gig at the Rite Spot in San Francisco. It was not the best venue for the sometimes bizarre soundscapes but at least the fabulous Ralph Carney was in the crowd and told me he dug it. Compliments aside, Rev. gigs are quite an effort as I bring alot of gear - guitars that I keep in wierd tunings (including two very cool, cheap Japanese ones named Led and Zep), several amps, lots of effects, my laptop, and pretty much every other piece of gear I value.

After the set, several friends helped me load out and into the secure gear loft in the back of my ‘89 Dodge van. We left things there and continued the evening up the street at Dylan’s Pub. Hours later we returned to the corner of Folsom and 17th, a poorly lit and seedy intersection frequented by crack addicts and lower echelon whores and piled into the van. As I got into the driver seat, my friend Thad said, “Uh, the back door of the van is open.” *SHIT* I got out and walked to the rear of the van. With my heart beating furiously, I opened the van door. Then with my heart in my mouth, I opened the loft door (also ajar).

And all my gear…

was still there.

The van door was ajar, just the way I left it, in this neighborhood. For hours. After Midnight.

Seeing an opportunity to thank the universe for this judgement and put together a performance piece at the same time, I create a ritual along the lines of a Cretan sacrifice - but with overtones of Jimi at Monterrey. Performed at The Catfish Ranch warehouse space in Oakland on Halloween 2003, it was a celebration of Creative Death and Creative Rebirth.

Reverend Screaming Fingers (Lucio Menegon)
& Phantom Drummer (Pat Spurgeon)

Composed and improvised instrumental music to juxtaposed found slide images and 16mm film prepared by San Francisco filmmaker Thad Povey.

The music - based around the electric guitar and drums and incorporating keyboards, loops and other devices - consisted of composed and structured improvisational pieces cued by film projections.

For our 15 date US tour in 2001, we setup facing each other with the projection screen between and slightly behind us. This enabled interaction with each other, the projections and the audience.

The overall effect was stunning - with no two shows the same. Musically, we were able to stretch out and explore our compositions and really try some cool stuff with the improv parts. The effect and importance of Thad’s visuals can’t be overemphasized - wild splashes of color from prepared film, flames, disasters, racecars, absurdities of the human psyche - they all came together to create some incredible synergistic moments from show to show.