admin | The Che Underground

Noise 292: “Chanson Dada” live at Che Cafe

July 4, 2009June 11, 2008 by admin

Never mind the later, cleaner studio version: With this live version of “Chanson Dada,” Noise 292 lives up to its name.

Recorded Nov. 17, 1983, when we played the Che Cafe with Hair Theatre and 11 Sons, the band activates the metal machine; the middle eight (sixteen? thirty-two?) sounds like we’re torturing a large mechanical animal with a chainsaw. Not recommended for nursing mothers or people with mercury-amalgam fillings! Kristin Martin (rhythm guitar); David Rives (lead guitar); Wendell Kling (trash percussion); Joanne Norris (drums); Matthew Rothenberg (bass, vocals).

Listen to it now!

More shots of the Hearts

January 1, 2011June 10, 2008 by admin

Cyndie Jaynes’ TV eye catches the Tell-Tale Hearts looking smart in a variety of venues, including more outdoor performance footage from the Che Cafe.

Could the black-and-white shots on the patio of the Che date from Dave Fest 3? (I’ve uploaded those photos at maximum resolution; the cast of characters populating the background itself represents a San Diego greatest-hits compilation!)

The Answers: “Teenage Problems”

January 21, 2018June 9, 2008 by admin

The Answers come alive! Here’s a very hot number from the 1982 lineup of this protean band. Dave Fleminger sets the scene for this song, which perfectly captures the SD teen spirit we’re celebrating on Che Underground: The Blog.

“The Answers, opening the day’s festivities at ‘Mod Mania,’ hosted by Lumpy at the Adams Ave. Theater, Sept. 18, 1982. Dave Fleminger (guitar/voice); Tony Suarez (bass/voice); David Anderson (drums).

The Mayor of Sunset Strip

July 4, 2009June 7, 2008 by admin

(Manual Scan/Lemons Are Yellow veteran Paul Kaufman discusses how Rodney on the ROQ subverted San Diego ca. 1979.)

One of the most influential sources of music to me during those hyper-formative years (ages 15-16) was Rodney on the ROQ — Rodney Bingenheimer, that is — on what was then a small, upstart radio station: KROQ in Pasadena.
Every Sunday night, I’d have the radio extension cord wrapped around my hands, turning myself into the antenna to improve the spotty reception. There was no other public format to hear many of the bands that I learned about there, both from the UK (Buzzcocks, X-Ray Spex, Crass … ) and the LA scene (Weirdos, Screamers, Germs, Black Flag, Circle Jerks …)

Welcome to Che Underground: The Forum

December 17, 2017June 7, 2008 by admin

Roman forum Here’s another way of bringing together the folks who shaped San Diego’s underground music scene in the early ’80s as well as anyone who’s interested in that brilliant flash in the rock-‘n’-roll pan.

Che Underground: The Forum lets anyone read about the Che Underground scene and beyond. It also provides registered, approved users the chance to create threads; post content; and interact about their activities past, present and future.

Ray Brandes: “Welcome to the World”

January 1, 2011June 6, 2008 by admin

Ray Brandes hardly needs a where-are-we-now introduction, considering the critical and popular acclaim his music has garnered over the years. But in the spirit of bringing our creative efforts into the 21st century, Ray has generously agreed to let me post a catchy and touching track from 2007’s smashing greatest-hits album, “A Matter of Time.”
“‘Welcome to the World’ was written after the birth of our son, and recorded a year or so later, in 2005,” Ray writes. “I wanted to write a song like “Kooks” from “Hunky Dory” that he could listen to when he got older. I stole some of the lyrics from William Blake’s ‘Auguries of Innocence’ and ‘Infant Sorrow.’ “

Punk rock picture show

January 1, 2011June 4, 2008 by admin

Picking up the thread from our “Hyphenates” discussion, let’s talk about notable on-screen portrayals of punk, with special focus on its applicability to the Southern California experience.

My candidate for best of show is “Repo Man” — as Toby said, perhaps the only decent thing Emilio Estevez has ever done, but good enough to make up for a dozen “Mighty Ducks.” (Worst/funniest could be the punk-rock episode of “Quincy.” (Am I right that some actual LA punks were extras in that episode?)

Discuss!

Morlocks in motion

April 21, 2012June 4, 2008 by admin

The legendary Cyndie Jaynes Collection of historical photos of the San Diego underground doesn’t stop at Camp Pendleton. Here’s a set of performance photos of the Morlocks playing San Francisco’s Swedish American Hall sometime after the band’s move north as well as earlier shots of them playing an undisclosed location in San Diego.

The Morlocks were an incredible live band, and Cyndie’s lens captures them at the acme of their power. San Diego’s loss … San Francisco’s gain!

Bo Diddley, RIP

January 1, 2011June 2, 2008 by admin

“Bo Diddley, a singer and guitarist who invented his own name, his own guitars, his own beat and, with a handful of other musical pioneers, rock ’n’ roll itself, died Monday at his home in Archer, Fla . He was 79.”

We’ve talked a lot about the man’s influence on us San Diego youngsters — in fact, we may have mentioned him more than any other single musician. This is the right time to discuss what made him so damn cool to us. Thanks again, Mr. Diddley.

Hyphenates

December 16, 2017June 2, 2008 by admin

Ray Brandes’ incisive revelations about his Mexican-American identity and Kristi Maddocks’ remarks about feminism in the context of the early-’80s San Diego underground prompt another complex discussion: How many of us had another ethnic, sexual or cultural identity that colored our personal view of the San Diego underground?

Me first: I was certainly aware of the other Jewish kids in the scene, and I know many of us of the Hebrew persuasion read special irony into swastikas and other signifiers in some punk quarters. (SD underground veteran and friend-with-benefits of Che Underground D.A. Kolodenko has dealt intelligently with this Jewish-punk identity in his fiction.)