I'm sure I'm not the only one that has noticed this, but Santa Cruz can be pretty dead, dancing wise. So I have a question for you all. Would you like me to start putting up information for San Jose area as well? I thought that NCLS (Northern California Lindy Society) had information about San Jose. However, when I look closer, I notice that many events are not listed on the NCLS site.

Let me know what you think. E-mail me at jynx@7thsign.com. Thanks.

Yep, it's true. I was wrong (see my Cherry Poppin' Jerks article below). Phaedrus went and saw the Cherry Poppin' Daddies show on Thursday, and he said that it was about 60% swing, 40% ska & punk and a whole lotta fun. He also stuck around afterwards and talked to the manager and got the story about the newspaper article. My misunderstanding came from assuming flipped off meant torqued off, teed off, peeved off, ticked off, etc. However, this is the real story.

Apparently, both in San Diego and Los Angeles, during Cherry Poppin' Daddies' set, after they had played a couple of non-swing songs, a group of swing dancers collectively flipped off (as in, gave the finger to) the band. Suddenly, I can understand why CPD is a little less than pleased at the swing audience.

This brings me to another topic; etiquette and tact. If you are going to see a band, it seems to me that it's rather rude to flip off the lead singer for playing something you don't like. Doesn't that seem obvious?

If you missed Cherry Poppin' Daddies at the Catalyst, they're going to be playing with Lee Press On & The Nails (SWOON!) at the Bottom of the Hill Friday, November 14th. Phaedrus said that CPD put on a really fun show, and that the music from their new album sounds really great. Hope to see some of you there!

As many of you may know, tomorrow (Thursday, November 6th), Cherry Poppin' Daddies are playing at the Catalyst. I've listened to their Zoot Suit Riot album, and while I wasn't terribly excited by their music, it is still the first time a big named band has played in Santa Cruz since Indigo Swing. So, until about 3 hours ago, I was looking forward to going to see them.

If you haven't seen, the San Jose Mercury News has an article about the Cherry Poppin' Daddies on the back page of the Life section written by Candace Murphy. I'd like to quote some of the more memorable pieces of the article.

"We're not going to play all swing," warns Perry, speaking from the band's home base in Eugene, Ore. "But we do that, and we get flipped off by the swing audiences, which are the worst of all. . . . Really, all they want is for us to be karaoke for their new, swing dance steps and their new, cool garb. I'm much too much an egalitarian for that. People should just bug out if they like it. I don't care about some sort of trend. That doesn't even compute for me."

"It was our manager's idea," says Perry, crediting Howard Liebs, who is also the group's tour manager. "He'd be at the booth and people would go, 'Which one has the most swing on it?'" . . .
"I was kind of not into it," says Perry. "Then I thought about it. Now that there is a swing scene, our take on swing is different, so I thought, OK, I can rationalize it this way. At least the way that we play swing is more rockin' and sort of less nostalgia-oriented."

AMG REVIEW: Somewhat conspicuously following the novelty success of Squirrel Nut Zippers, the Cherry Poppin' Daddies decided to streamline their sound on their second album Zoot Suit Riot, cutting away their rock and ska influences so they can make a "straight" swing record. Unlike the Zippers, the Daddies don't seem to have much affection for the genre they're aping, so Zoot Suit Riot comes across as a smirking hipster joke, only without any humor and very little music. There are a few cuts that have a catchy hook and are reasonably infectious, yet the album suffers from its own condescending Gen-X attitude, as well as a lack of understanding about what made swing fun. -- Stephen Thomas Erlewine

Last weekend was a rare occasion; I had the weekend to myself. I had heard that Lee Press On & The Nails were playing over at The Usual in San Jose, so I talked Ansi into going with me. (Not that it took much talking, mind you.) God what an awesome show! The music was fast and frantic, they even played a polka at one point. I understand why their album will be entitled Jump Swing From Hell, that's for sure.

The thing that got me, though, was the style. Lee was looking quite good, dressed in an incredible black zoot suit, his black hair slicked back, and a chain dangling past his knee. Leslie was wearing a gorgeous maroon full length dress. The band was as fun to watch as they were to dance to. When they played Jump, the entire ensemble would leap from their chairs and vault themselves into the air. It was incredible to watch. The clarinetist played a solo from Star Wars. At one point, Lee started head banging. Irreverence at it's finest.

If you have a chance, go check these guys out. I was concerned that if there wasn't room to dance, I'd be bored, but I will never make that mistake again.