Gene Simmons of the massive franchise Kiss declared Rock N’ Roll dead not too long ago. With such a presumptuous statement, one can only feel daring enough to look for examples that can clearly debunk this statement. Let’s excuse any sort of band that may be exciting live. The rock n’ roll mentality Simmons so clearly desires has a lot to do with image, integrity and, in fashion of the great album by The Stooges, raw power. With today’s technology, there are many artists at your disposal to check out. Having said that, it took barely any form of effort to find an artist young enough to create an impression and real enough to prove Simmons dead wrong. That artist is Ty Segall, and his prolific churning of albums is active enough to continuously place him on the top of rock fans’ to-hear lists (not to mention that the majority of his work is worth noting).
I don’t think it is even worth asking whether or not the edge of his studio work will translate well live, because it feels almost painstakingly obvious. If anything, some of his work feels even more intense live (this year’s wonderful release Manipulator is a lot more polished than most of his other albums, yet the songs off this album live were sharp enough to stab you). Without focusing on sound alone, Segall and friends are so driven by the music that they can cause a riot as big as the newest outbreak. Segall pulled off some mind blowing guitar solos live, and he has furthermore cemented himself as one of the true rock musicians to really focus on. The combination of his Beatles-esque voice and his filthy guitar work paint a society where Helter Skelter became the kind of sound the fab four decided to recreate again and again. With a modern take on older styles, Segall, both on album and live, praises his predecessors while attacking the blandness of modern day’s music culture.
The most interesting start to any show I’ve seen this year was at this show. When Segall and his fellow band mates came out to test their own equipment, that warm up session alone felt like a part of their set. Segall kept pushing the head of his guitar towards his microphone to make feedback, yet his face was unfazed. He’s just someone completely submersed in anything that can be made into music, and nothing ever seems like a silly attempt to him. His fascination of feedback led to some Sonic Youth-like moments during the set, where noise rang following or during songs. While the band would freeze within these static moments of time, the crowd was ballistic the entire show, and most of that energy came from Segall’s encouragement of this behavior. Segall made a public declaration for the venue’s security to let the audience crowd surf and go wild. He even stopped a song mid way to crouch down and give the same instruction to the security guards’ faces, which prompted one of the guards to infuriatingly declare “I quit” (he didn’t quit).
With a large chunk of Segall’s set devoted to this year’s release Manipulator (a very solid rock album that I consider a very noteworthy release), the band donned the fake band name “The Manipulators”. With their stage make up (of which Segall is no stranger to), they could very well be making a statement on Arcade Fire, of whom assumed the band name The Reflektors last year for some promotional work leading up to the album the band was “named” after. They had an introduction by a cartoonish bible thumping cowboy, whose quick responses to audience jeers made this moment all the more hilarious. This introduction was the only thing that separated the warm up jam session and the actual set, and it made the trip into Segall’s distorted mind all the more amusing. After one of the most enjoyable, out of control, and organic sets of the year, I cannot find anything but disagreement to Simmons’ claim that rock n’ roll is dead. Perhaps he should focus more on the musicians that have started to reclaim the intensity of rock’s craziest years (like Ty Segall) and not focus on the moment that rock became a gimmicky money maker. Bitterness aside, it’s tough to dislike an authentic person like Ty Segall, of whom hosted his own after party following the show. He signed my copy of Twins with a half eaten plum in his mouth, as he placed his signature right on top of the profile on the album cover, thus defacing it. If that isn’t rock n’ roll, Gene Simmons, I have no idea how to convince you any more.
