RAW Kinder in the Studio (3/16/97): As in-the-can day approaches for
"Burner," the band has swarmed into a waiting East Side studio (Peter
Gabriel does some of his stuff there when he's in town). Last seen on a
drizzly recent night and sporting his furry Russian hat, guitarist Charlie
Carroll was barely able to contain his joy at the prospect of working on a
vintage '55 Fender Champ amp, and sound engineer Jeff Gattens did not,
happily, have to give up his left foot to get his hands on the custom
dream-board. They'll be mixing down the tapes from the March 8 New Music
Cafe live recording and working out their chosen "Burner" tracks, as well
as getting some new and other songs down on tape for future reference.
Renée also tells us (it had to be in there somewhere) that the owner
of the studio will be homebrewing a batch of beer in his kitchen while the
recording takes place...an East Village Kindl, perhaps?
Renée and Charlie were also there and bopping at the March 12 gig by "Burner" fellows Pawnshop, whose new line-up sounds absolutely great. There'll be more on Pawnshop soon on www.web-ho.com, but we have to mention that there were a good 50 people packed into the Internet Cafe on Third Street, and every single one of them was having a great time (yes, we asked 'em all). Look for Pawnshop and RAW Kinder playing together early this May at the "Burner" release party -- all that and bluecowboys too!
A Shameless Plug for the Upcoming Album: We have more news about "Burner" elsewhere on these pages,
and are looking forward to a late-April release for the album. It will be
on sale, of course, in the HO store about the
very minute that that big UPS truck pulls up at our Real Life pad. RAW
Kinder will anchor "Burner" with five or six tracks, marking their CD
premiere and commercial debut on HO.
Live RAW Kinder Recording: The March 8th RAW Kinder set at
the New Music Cafe was a delight all around. Several new HO folks (thanks
Peter, Beth, Jennifer & fella) showed up after our last mailing with no
idea what to expect but anticipating something new and different: and they
got it. From the moment Renée came to the stage, panted in black
leather and aglow with benevolent and effortless command, the crowd was
abuzz and enthralled. We heard comparisons to Siouxsie and the Banshees,
to Patti Smith, to Jim Morrison (must be the leather trousers).
They visited some old RAW Kinder favorites, getting a smoking version of
"Strange Bird" down on multi-track, and did a long stretch of new material
including "Jezebel," which you can sample in unmixed low-fi in our Tune
Room. All three were on and at high volume, and New Music Cafe's superb
sound system gave us all glimmers of shows in venues yet to come. We're
looking forward to many more. Don't miss the Kinder this March 24 at CB's
Gallery as part of the Gothic Night!
If you'd like an electronic reminder for this and other RAW Kinder gigs be sure to join the mailing list.
Not the Newest News (2/4/97): Renée checked in by phone yesterday to tell us that Charlie is back with batteries charged from his vacation in Costa Rica, and her own break in the lull season after New Year's leaves her feeling creative and ready to pin down that elusive musical Muse. At their last rehearsal they set down the basics for two new songs, and everyone is psyched about the flurry of interest and activity in their music.