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Just thought I'd post a quick review of a great, semi-last minute show put
on by one of the landmark institutions of the East Coast surf scene...the
Irrefutable Irreversible Slacks.
Originally thought to be on long-term hiatus with the recent relocation of
lead guitarist, Circus Slack, to Austin, TX, the venerable strat picker
made a return trip to NYC to attend a wedding, so a last minute gig at the
Luna Lounge was put together. I received official notice of the show via
one of these lists on Thursday - even though the rumor of such a show was
communicated to me by an anonymous Slack during Dusty's performance with The
Nebulas @ the Dick Dale aftershow party a few weeks ago.
After hemming & hawing about making another trip to NYC in what would surely
be another deluge of torrential rain - I pulled the trigger Sat afternoon
and booked a room in nearby Chinatown. I certainly didn't want to drive
into or out of the city in crappy weather - and nothing sucks more than
trying to catch the last train out & either missing it, or missing part of
the show. I view it as an investment in surf, which somehow manages to
outperform other genres of music - even in this bear market.
So after getting to the city around 9pm - walking halfway to Chinatown in
the rain (without my trusty umbrella, which was fatally damaged during a
recent golfing accident) before deciding to hail a cab. After eating a
hearty meal in Little Italy - which appeared to be having some sort of
festival as the streets were closed off while throngs of touristy types
milled about - I was ready to drink - Slacks-style.
In honor of what would probably be the last Slacks performance for at least
a while - although no one in the band was using the word "final," which is
always a good sign - I decided to drink the nectar of champions (and British
Imperialists) - GIN. The Luna Lounge was crowded, yet ample supplies of
Tanguray and/or Bombay were flowing into this observer's liver, as both a
preperatory stimulant for a great event, and as a vaccine against the
monotonous drone of the opening bands' Velocity-Girl-circa-1992-influenced
power pop (there weren't any girls in either of the two bands, but one guy
certainly sang like a eunuch).
At last, optimum crusiing altitude had been attained & the Slacks were about
to go on. As usual, the band had been in the hot, moist club for hours -
dressed in full Slacks attire - matching suits/shirts/ties (although one
member was missing his handkerchief). They approached the stage through the
crowd like zombies to what sounded like the theme song to The Omen (or maybe
it was The Omen II). Flashlights hung from the neck cast an eerie bottom
light on their faces, which made their entrance extra spooky (just the way
you like it).
Then the assault commenced with the assistance of reverb tanks brought in by
Mike "Staccato Rosdo" Rosado of 9th Wave, who was in attendance with 9W
Farfisa virtuoso Sandy Oceana. The tank really helped Idlewild Slack get
the monster tone out of his weathered '64 Jag & '73 Silverface Twin - nothin
beats a great surf band with a full-on rhythm guitar with reverb - except a
great surf band with all of the above AND a kick ass sax player in the form
of Havana Slack, a technically superior lead player backed by a thunderous
rhythm section. The played some of their best originals including Mt
Slackatoa, Walter PPK and Bulgarian Yogurt Volcano, not to mention their own
trademark versions of The Wedge, Journey to the Stars, Hawaii Five-O and a
bombastic encore of Squad Car.
In this case, I'm glad to have seen these guys many times over the last few
years and hope they can muster a reunion show as often as their busy
schedules allow.
-tfj-
_________________________________________________________________
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Wow! Great concert update, Jim! Are there any Slacks releases out there?
I've heard the stuff on their website and on the Delvar Surf channels, and
want more . . .
Did you, by chance, stay at the Chinatown Holiday Inn? I've had the
(mis)fortune of staying there in the past, but the real kicker was the
continental (lost continent?) breakfast buffet with its array of mysterious
(moving?) items - reminded me of something out of Blade Runner . . .
Sounds like it was a great show!
-Dick
----- Original Message -----
From: "james nichols" <>
To: <>; <>
Cc: <>
Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 12:33 PM
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Inimitable Irreversible Slacks
> Just thought I'd post a quick review of a great, semi-last minute show put
> on by one of the landmark institutions of the East Coast surf scene...the
> Irrefutable Irreversible Slacks.
>
> Originally thought to be on long-term hiatus with the recent relocation of
> lead guitarist, Circus Slack, to Austin, TX, the venerable strat picker
> made a return trip to NYC to attend a wedding, so a last minute gig at the
> Luna Lounge was put together. I received official notice of the show via
> one of these lists on Thursday - even though the rumor of such a show was
> communicated to me by an anonymous Slack during Dusty's performance with
The
> Nebulas @ the Dick Dale aftershow party a few weeks ago.
>
> After hemming & hawing about making another trip to NYC in what would
surely
> be another deluge of torrential rain - I pulled the trigger Sat afternoon
> and booked a room in nearby Chinatown. I certainly didn't want to drive
> into or out of the city in crappy weather - and nothing sucks more than
> trying to catch the last train out & either missing it, or missing part of
> the show. I view it as an investment in surf, which somehow manages to
> outperform other genres of music - even in this bear market.
>
> So after getting to the city around 9pm - walking halfway to Chinatown in
> the rain (without my trusty umbrella, which was fatally damaged during a
> recent golfing accident) before deciding to hail a cab. After eating a
> hearty meal in Little Italy - which appeared to be having some sort of
> festival as the streets were closed off while throngs of touristy types
> milled about - I was ready to drink - Slacks-style.
>
> In honor of what would probably be the last Slacks performance for at
least
> a while - although no one in the band was using the word "final," which is
> always a good sign - I decided to drink the nectar of champions (and
British
> Imperialists) - GIN. The Luna Lounge was crowded, yet ample supplies of
> Tanguray and/or Bombay were flowing into this observer's liver, as both a
> preperatory stimulant for a great event, and as a vaccine against the
> monotonous drone of the opening bands'
Velocity-Girl-circa-1992-influenced
> power pop (there weren't any girls in either of the two bands, but one guy
> certainly sang like a eunuch).
>
> At last, optimum crusiing altitude had been attained & the Slacks were
about
> to go on. As usual, the band had been in the hot, moist club for hours -
> dressed in full Slacks attire - matching suits/shirts/ties (although one
> member was missing his handkerchief). They approached the stage through
the
> crowd like zombies to what sounded like the theme song to The Omen (or
maybe
> it was The Omen II). Flashlights hung from the neck cast an eerie bottom
> light on their faces, which made their entrance extra spooky (just the way
> you like it).
>
> Then the assault commenced with the assistance of reverb tanks brought in
by
> Mike "Staccato Rosdo" Rosado of 9th Wave, who was in attendance with 9W
> Farfisa virtuoso Sandy Oceana. The tank really helped Idlewild Slack get
> the monster tone out of his weathered '64 Jag & '73 Silverface Twin -
nothin
> beats a great surf band with a full-on rhythm guitar with reverb - except
a
> great surf band with all of the above AND a kick ass sax player in the
form
> of Havana Slack, a technically superior lead player backed by a thunderous
> rhythm section. The played some of their best originals including Mt
> Slackatoa, Walter PPK and Bulgarian Yogurt Volcano, not to mention their
own
> trademark versions of The Wedge, Journey to the Stars, Hawaii Five-O and a
> bombastic encore of Squad Car.
>
> In this case, I'm glad to have seen these guys many times over the last
few
> years and hope they can muster a reunion show as often as their busy
> schedules allow.
>
> -tfj-
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Add photos to your messages with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*.
>
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> .
> Visit for archived messages,
bookmarks, files, polls, etc.
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to
>
>
I don't think they ever officially released their CD, but they made "sneak
preview" copies available at shows - I'd love to see it get the wider exposure
that it deserves. Maybe it will be another Woodies-type situation where it will
surface on a label a few years after its completion.
And yes, I did stay at the Chinatown Holiday Inn - I've stayed their before,
although I've never been conscious inside the building long enough to sample
their fare. Its cheap and usually close to whatever I'm trying to see or do when
I'm staying there, although I still can't figure out how it took me over an hour
just to walk (or stumble) the 7/10 of a mile back from the club the otehr
night.
----- Original Message -----
From: Dick Messick
To:
Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 6:18 PM
Subject: Re: [SurfGuitar101] Inimitable Irreversible Slacks
Wow! Great concert update, Jim! Are there any Slacks releases out there?
I've heard the stuff on their website and on the Delvar Surf channels, and
want more . . .
Did you, by chance, stay at the Chinatown Holiday Inn? I've had the
(mis)fortune of staying there in the past, but the real kicker was the
continental (lost continent?) breakfast buffet with its array of mysterious
(moving?) items - reminded me of something out of Blade Runner . . .
Sounds like it was a great show!
-Dick
----- Original Message -----
From: "james nichols" <>
To: <>; <>
Cc: <>
Sent: Monday, June 23, 2003 12:33 PM
Subject: [SurfGuitar101] Inimitable Irreversible Slacks
> Just thought I'd post a quick review of a great, semi-last minute show put
> on by one of the landmark institutions of the East Coast surf scene...the
> Irrefutable Irreversible Slacks.
>
> Originally thought to be on long-term hiatus with the recent relocation of
> lead guitarist, Circus Slack, to Austin, TX, the venerable strat picker
> made a return trip to NYC to attend a wedding, so a last minute gig at the
> Luna Lounge was put together. I received official notice of the show via
> one of these lists on Thursday - even though the rumor of such a show was
> communicated to me by an anonymous Slack during Dusty's performance with
The
> Nebulas @ the Dick Dale aftershow party a few weeks ago.
>
> After hemming & hawing about making another trip to NYC in what would
surely
> be another deluge of torrential rain - I pulled the trigger Sat afternoon
> and booked a room in nearby Chinatown. I certainly didn't want to drive
> into or out of the city in crappy weather - and nothing sucks more than
> trying to catch the last train out & either missing it, or missing part of
> the show. I view it as an investment in surf, which somehow manages to
> outperform other genres of music - even in this bear market.
>
> So after getting to the city around 9pm - walking halfway to Chinatown in
> the rain (without my trusty umbrella, which was fatally damaged during a
> recent golfing accident) before deciding to hail a cab. After eating a
> hearty meal in Little Italy - which appeared to be having some sort of
> festival as the streets were closed off while throngs of touristy types
> milled about - I was ready to drink - Slacks-style.
>
> In honor of what would probably be the last Slacks performance for at
least
> a while - although no one in the band was using the word "final," which is
> always a good sign - I decided to drink the nectar of champions (and
British
> Imperialists) - GIN. The Luna Lounge was crowded, yet ample supplies of
> Tanguray and/or Bombay were flowing into this observer's liver, as both a
> preperatory stimulant for a great event, and as a vaccine against the
> monotonous drone of the opening bands'
Velocity-Girl-circa-1992-influenced
> power pop (there weren't any girls in either of the two bands, but one guy
> certainly sang like a eunuch).
>
> At last, optimum crusiing altitude had been attained & the Slacks were
about
> to go on. As usual, the band had been in the hot, moist club for hours -
> dressed in full Slacks attire - matching suits/shirts/ties (although one
> member was missing his handkerchief). They approached the stage through
the
> crowd like zombies to what sounded like the theme song to The Omen (or
maybe
> it was The Omen II). Flashlights hung from the neck cast an eerie bottom
> light on their faces, which made their entrance extra spooky (just the way
> you like it).
>
> Then the assault commenced with the assistance of reverb tanks brought in
by
> Mike "Staccato Rosdo" Rosado of 9th Wave, who was in attendance with 9W
> Farfisa virtuoso Sandy Oceana. The tank really helped Idlewild Slack get
> the monster tone out of his weathered '64 Jag & '73 Silverface Twin -
nothin
> beats a great surf band with a full-on rhythm guitar with reverb - except
a
> great surf band with all of the above AND a kick ass sax player in the
form
> of Havana Slack, a technically superior lead player backed by a thunderous
> rhythm section. The played some of their best originals including Mt
> Slackatoa, Walter PPK and Bulgarian Yogurt Volcano, not to mention their
own
> trademark versions of The Wedge, Journey to the Stars, Hawaii Five-O and a
> bombastic encore of Squad Car.
>
> In this case, I'm glad to have seen these guys many times over the last
few
> years and hope they can muster a reunion show as often as their busy
> schedules allow.
>
> -tfj-
>
> _________________________________________________________________
> Add photos to your messages with MSN 8. Get 2 months FREE*.
>
>
>
>
> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to:
> .
> Visit for archived messages,
bookmarks, files, polls, etc.
>
>
>
> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to
>
>
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