Alt-Nation: Littlefoot, Season of the Witch and Ravi Shavi

Littlefoot – Night of The Living Dreams

On their new release, Night of The Living Dreams, Littlefoot offer up a stash of classic pop. Littlefoot sound like a dreamy ’60s girl group being performed by a ’90s indie band with ’80s Brit-Pop thrown in for a garnish. I always say to watch out for those bands drawing from three non-consecutive decades. Tunes like “Worry Doll” and “Fever Dream” have the feel of a Ronettes or The Crystals ballad feel. “Backwards Lullaby” is a more up-tempo toe-tapper that isn’t far from something more modern like She & Him. Singer/guitarist Erica Sutherland has this natural ethereal quality to her vocals that enable her to slay dreamy pop. “Heads in The Clouds” sounds like the Dum Dum Girls if Robert Smith from The Cure was playing guitar on it. Night of The Living Dreams lives up to its name with 10 tunes that rattle and creep through the night.

Season of The Witch –How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll

As far as rock ‘n’ roll books, if there is a cooler name than Season of The Witch: How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll, then I haven’t run across it. From the Donovan reference in the title to things like David Bowie and Jimmy Page on the cover, rock ‘n’ roll was introduced to the mainstream as this dark subculture. This dates back to the days of Robert Johnson with the tale of selling his soul to the devil at the crossroads through British ’60s rock with tons of tales about Jimmy Page, the Stones, and of course, Ozzy. Rock ‘n’ roll has been gentrified to shit, but one can still go to a local club or some random warehouse in Olneyville and catch the real deal as far as dirty rock ‘n’ roll. I still believe in it. This should be a great night, but get there early for Alec K Redfearn and the Eyesores, who take it back to no wave with accordion-fueled madness, and the ever-evolving Vudu Sister. I caught up with Keith McCurdy of Vudu Sister to find out more about the show and what’s going on with Vudu Sister.

Marc Clarkin: Tell me about the show. The title of the book is intriguing.

Keith McCurdy: The book is about the very present connection the Occult and various esoteric/theological themes have with rock ‘n’ roll and its culture from roots to present day. Peter Bebergal will do a talk with some reading and will be available for book signing.

MC: Does Vudu Sister have anything special planned for the evening?

KM: We have been working very diligently on a new record and will perform mostly new material.

MC: What is going on in the world of Vudu Sister now? You seem to shift back and forth from the Americana acoustic thing to grunge back to acoustic depending on who is the band.

KM: I am currently working with my longtime partner, Diane O’Connor (violin) and our bass player, Amato Zinno on a sound that is, to me, very gothic in nature and context. We are working on a third album. Thematically the music is inspired by Gothic literature, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and some fairy tales. We plan on releasing it sometime in the spring.

Season of The Witch (featuring a book reading with author Peter Bebergal), Alec K Redfearn and The Eyesores, and Vudu Sister hits the Columbus Theatre on Dec 19.

Ravi Shavi

It’s been a big year for Ravi Shavi who released two EPs with Courage and Independent that were recorded at various points over the past couple years. Ravi Shavi draws on new wave, garage-pop and ’50s soul. They are money for jangling dueling guitars and sharp hooks. I’m intrigued to check out The Kominas, who are a Muslim punk band. Ian O’Neil of Deer Tick will open the show with a solo set.

Ravi Shavi, The Kominas, and Ian O’Neil rock the Columbus Theatre on Dec 20.  

Merry Christmas and happy holidays to all!  RIP Ashley Signoriello, Jean Beliveau, and Bobby Keys

Email music news to mclarkin33@gmail.com