Also this issue: Spy Another Day It's endless adventure when you're hanging out with superspy Cate Archer. -Juliet Fletcher

October 17-23, 2002

music

icepack

by A.D. Amorosi

Lot of bad news turned good this week: Just as N.J.’s B-movie house of horrors, Exhumed Films, got notice that its run at Hoyt’s Cinema in Pennsauken was about to end (Hoyt’s owners gutted it without warning), Exhumed found a new home at Cinemark Theatre in Somerdale, N.J. That means along with their Halloween jamboree, B-cinema boys’ll get double-dosed Oct. 18 and 19 with The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, a Living Dead marathon and more.… R5 also got good news. Sean Agnew’s all-age indie bookings, tossed from First Unitarian Church due to L&I’s “no license” gripe, got a reprieve with “legal venue for live music/entertainment” status.… And Ted Gerike, the white-maned wonder unceremoniously let go after decades tickling the ivories at Society Hill Hotel, just got a gig doing likewise at Chris’ on Sansom, every Tue.-Fri., 5-8 p.m.… Hilliard, the band, ain’t just busy being the toast of The Strokes’ boom box (said Strokes manager to Hilliard’s Dustin Morgan after The Strokes’ David Dye/Indre session, but before The Strokes’ rumored RUBA club stop where Julian Casablancas, accompanied by groupie-gals, got a beer poured over him by surly Maxx Incognegro). Hilliard is also self-producing a CD at Indre (where Sonic Youth and Steve Earle got Dye-d too) and tearing up Wednesdays at Little Pete’s on 19th and Chestnut. Phew.… Rock School Dance student Henry Graham got a gig with the Broadway version of Elton John’s Aida.... With Fishtown getting $100,000 for homes, the garage across from Standard Tap has been leveled to build 30 new condos.… Philly expat/Sony bigwig Linda Metz tells me local cutbacks (including the closing of the company’s Mid-Atlantic branch) had nothing to do with Michael Jackson, as I mused in a previous column. “That’s the funniest line you’ve ever written,” says my pal. To spite me, Columbia/Epic brought in Pam Kaye, Sherri Warren, Ken Kravitz and Jason Hradil. I’ll take y’all on backstage at David Bowie (who happens to be recording his Oct. 21 Tower show -- David Live 2?) or at Bar Noir’s pre- /post-Bowie spin-athons with Bobby Startup (Oct. 20) and me, A.D. (Oct. 22).… WhoWhatWhere: Clapping to Bruce Springsteen’s “Born to Run” at First Union? Tim Robbins, Susan Sarandon and Ryan Adams. In other N.J. news, all of Bon Jovi was spied heading into WMMR studios for some secret radio chatter.… It sounds as if it’s TriMedia, a big London/Toronto-based multimedia financing conglom, who’s hooking up the new RuffNation.… Philly producer CHOPS -- who’s also busy doing stuff for Grand Agent, his band Mountain Bros.’ new Triple Crown for KOCH, as well as a solo CD -- got his tune “Grand Right Now” in Taye Diggs’ Brown Sugar.… It’s a Groove Disques jamboree when David Byron Ragsdale and Nixon’s Head hit N. 3rd Oct. 18. That’s the same night quiet man Matt Pond and his PA debut their new CD at le Troc.… Edan Cohen put Record Cellar folk-rockers Frog Holler into Soundgun Studio. “The classic Frog Holler sound is gonna get a bit of a makeover,” says Edan.… The lizard-like Akash kids released Private Sessions, a deep, dark compilation of their three CDs released 1998-2002, as well as ribald-electro rarities and sleek newbies like “Bukkake.” Joining singer/lyricists Kali Morgan, Elizabeth, Lorelai and programmer John Price are Elliott Levin, Ed Wilcox and Chuck Duquense. Find this now!… Blue Bell’s Raje Shwari has a funked-up demo that’s got Timbaland, Epic and BMG interested. Times Music from India has contacted Raje’s legal eagle Bernie Resnick about Shwari recording an Indian album.… Is that Bryan Exley bartending happy hour at 1616 Locust, 5-9 p.m.? Yup.… Along with re-duxing Static, Scotto just wrapped the Seth Green/Macaulay Culkin Party Monster in NYC, a lighting design/location scouting gig (clever: he used Angel Orensanz Foundation for the Arts, the former synagogue where Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick got married, to replicate Limelight).… As always, support WKDU 91.7 FM’s Electronic Music Marathon Oct. 17-20. It not only unveils Philly’s abstract-electro dogs, it raises cash for Philabundance.… Dig Lady Alma doing her new single “Lies” at Fluid’s Afrorykan Vybe.… Naughty rockers Joanie Loves Trotsky do Grape St. Oct. 23.… Stef Renee and Creator’s Child Productions Inc. are doing PR for Freedom Theatre to combat bullshit about the venerable venue closing.… The Arrakis crew bring Philly DJ legend Mr. Cisum to Silk City Oct. 19.… CDSound goes “Space Ibiza” at Transit Oct. 19.… It’s a double-wonderful-whammy for curator Aaron Levy’s newly opened Slought Network gallery. Not only will he unveil the multimedia facility at 4017 Walnut with work from Jasper Johns, Gerhard Richter, Philly’s Edward Fry and a storefront exhibition of poly-sci poets on Oct. 18, he’ll host the reed/electro fest of Ellery Eskelin with Andrea Parkins and Jim Black on Oct. 17.… Bros. Sparacino -- Tony the clothier, Frank the venue owner -- celebrate two years of Lucky Lounge at La Tazza Oct. 18.