How the hell do you manage to sell out a free gig?
If it's your second ever?
In a top-secret squat-art gallery?
You might ask Joe Parker And The Power - but the truth is, they can't remember. Not the sex and the drugs (that's missing the point; they were skint that night - like always - we had to balance a lone bottle of White Lightning to get fucked-up on against the gas money to get them home); but the rock'n'roll. The whirl of dogs & dreads, sirens and ceilings rammed full with fans and scenesters, clinging to cargo nets strung between holes in the floor like rats in a stormy sea. Massed smashed eggs. Hiding in the basement with the gear, wondering if it would get confiscated or not. So it's all a bit hard to remember, really. But then, it's tough to pull one night a fortnight ago out of the memory when yesterday's a stretch in itself, right?
Joe Parker And The Power are Joe Parker, Cambell Austin (MoneyTree), Jimi Ray (New Funk Era) and brothers Dave and Bobby Wade-Brown (Leisure/Beaux Hardts.) Plus Nathan at some point in the future. They don't wash much and come from Southampton, U of K. Their van's called Puncher. One is a scientist. Another's a docker. In his own words: "I'm joe and I write most of it based on ripping off Fugazi, Billie Holliday, Pavement, The Clash and Michael Jackson, then the others make it sound great."
They're taking a break till after the spring, but we've got some monster dates in the pipeline for then. Last summer they managed to fit in tour and festival dates with people like SixNationState, Voodoo Glow Skulls, Mr. Fogg, Thomas Tantrum, SKULLS (FleeingNewYork), The Evenings, Simon Breed, Bucky and garage-rock legends Starfighter-X.
Fortunately they've just finished an awesome new EP which will come out in the summer, tentatively titled Do This! till then get hold of either the deluxe Bee Stings EP reissue which is "really pretty and done by hand and stuff" [Joe's words] or, if you're lucky, you might catch a very pared-down set from Lonely Joe Parker if he decides to squeeze in a couple of dates - watch this space...
By H-I-C-K-S at 2008-03-10 11:41:17 | Report spam | sign in to comment.