Random acts

Of note

Think Canoe on Hiatus: Members of the local jam-rock band The Think Canoe have decided to shelve the project for the forseeable future. The group was originally slated to perform at this year’s Bele Chere, but was removed from the schedule just weeks before the event. For more information on the band, visit www.webpages.charter.net/thethinkcanoe.

Back from the Brink: After taking a relatively short break from recording and playing, local rockers New Dark Science are back in the studio. According to front man John Cogburn, the group has begun to overhaul much of their unreleased album, Into the Electric, with a new lineup that includes former ChunkStyle member Dan Taylor. Fans of the group can expect the album to see release later this year. For more info, e-mail the group at newdarkscience@aol.com.

Front-row reviews

Who: Doom Ribbons

Where: Vincent’s Ear

When: Tues, Aug. 20

James Owen is an amazing drummer. This is a fact, not simply opinion. Love his music, hate his music, it matters not — he remains an incredibly talented player. As Doom Ribbons, James keeps it sparse. Drums, sampler and a drum trigger (which triggers the sampler while he plays the drums, hence the name) along with vocals are the whole enchilada.

He kept the set short, three songs, but you don’t need 45 minutes to realize this guy is good. His sound is incredibly diverse, blending elements of tribal, pop, rock, primitive, ambient, etc. He explores the gamut, from chant to heavy rock. It feels a bit Laurie Anderson, a touch Phillip Glass, and a whole lot of “How does he do that?”

Owen plays drums effortlessly, whether he’s using one hand or two. At certain points during the show, you might take for granted that there are numerous things happening at once. But when you remember there’s only one guy up there, it doesn’t seem possible he could pull it off with only two arms and two legs. Doom Ribbons is an experience, and one that I recommend.

Who: People of the Squares

Where: Vincent’s Ear

When: Thurs, Aug. 22

It’s a funny thing — if I truly dislike a band’s music, I tend to take copious notes on the experience. Knoxville, Tenn.-based People of the Squares inspired me to fill countless pages. The band was attempting to play prog-rock — the guitarist kept going Metallica while the drummer was working the jazz tip. The bass work was not noteworthy, and the keyboardist got off on continuously playing two or three notes while fooling around with his instrument’s many pretty buttons. In short, this was some of the most annoying and poorly executed music to fall on my ears in recent memory. However, I would imagine that the three other people still in the bar after their set might disagree.

[Bo Post is a free-lance photographer and lover of opinions. She will be sharing hers with Mountain Xpress readers during August and early September, giving Steve Shanafelt a much-deserved vacation. You can soon view some of Bo’s work at www.Onionmusic.com]