Mood swings

Riding the waves with Spogga

by Bob Gulla

Brash and courageous up-and-coming artist-songwriter Spogga takes over the Green Room on Wednesday nights in a prime local residency-style gig. It's a win-win situation: one that should serve to bring new people into the club, and supply Spogga with a new audience in return. "I was working regularly at Dimension, but I wasn't getting back what I was putting in," he says, adding he'd been doing his own publicity and set-up. "There was only so much I could do."

For those who have seen Spogga at one of his area gigs, you most likely know that the guy likes to mix things up. In fact, he demands it. In addition to doing his "techno thing" on acoustic guitar, he melds Latin, funk, alternative, and folk grooves into a mind-expanding set that often features "fire dancers," along with a drummer (Matthew Neibels) and a turntablist who goes by the name DJ Hoska. Yeah, it's safe to say that Spogga enjoys throwing curve balls to his audience, to keep them off-balance with different tones, shifting moods, and a performance that ranges in color from moody blue and bitter green to passionate red.

"I believe sets are like waves," he says. "They start out at a medium level, rise up a bit, slow down a bit, then get taken way up, before bringing the whole thing back down with something really mellow, something to calm them down at the end of the night. It's as if to say, `We got angry and broke some stuff, but everything's OK now.' Go home and tell someone you love them."

To avoid the inevitable repetition of a weekly gig, Spogga intends to change things up as frequently as he changes chords, and with 60 original songs and a variety of covers, that won't be too hard to do. When he occasionally plays solo -- a condition that requires he bring his own "percussion" -- he's pretty skillful on his guitar. Spogga beats on a Takoma model acoustic modified with reverberant inner sensors. He also uses lots of effects, including distortion, delay, and wah. The array of sounds gives his material added depth.

"I played this past weekend at Killington and people there -- it was a pretty mainstream audience -- couldn't believe it was one guitar they were hearing." To freak them out even further, Spogga throws in a few choice covers, like radical reinventions of songs like "Welcome to the Jungle" and "Master of Puppets." "People say I'm kind of jumpy; they don't know what I'm all about," he says. "But I just play music, really."

With two discs that still sell pretty well at shows under his belt, Spogga intends to record a third one imminently. "I have a lot of new songs that haven't been recorded yet and I feel like I'm gaining the confidence to lay them down. I've advanced so much in the past couple years it seems like I can't keep up with myself. I've been just trying to get money together to get something started."

Still, the Green Room is a terrific coup for the performer, a weekly place to commence building a crowd. "The consistency is great. I really feel honored. I feel like it's weird, too, like, `Why did they pick me? Why?' "

IN THE HUNT. The WBRU Rock Hunt is back for the first time since 1998 and so far the results have been excellent. On Friday night, March 2, the Call featured Trachtenberg, the Complaints, and Turning Blue. (Incidentally, early in the day, Marc Trachtenberg's drummer pulled out with back spasms, so Trachtenberg, normally a trio, soldiered on as a duo. The set was impressive despite the absence. As one band participant commented, "If he had a drummer with him, I'd walk out right now.") Hard rock melodicists the Complaints and post-punkers Turning Blue also offered excellent sets, with the edge ultimately going to Turning Blue.

On Saturday, the Met was packed for Illustrious Day, Bob's Day Off, and Comic Book Superheroes. Bob's Day Off, a former cover band from the Fall River area, best convinced the judges and came away winners, warming the audience with crafty originals and their gimmicky but great "Paper Bag" shtick.

In the second round of the semi-finals last weekend, the Jim James Band, Itchy Fish, and State of Corruption did battle at the Call, with the former emerging as the unlikely but solid winners. ("I don't mean to brag," they sing in one of their best songs, but they can do it just a little now.) Saturday pit Fat Buddah, the Mockingbirds, and M-80 at the Living Room. Three very different bands, indeed, all with the ability to land a knockout punch, all came through on their original promise. M-80, the state's best post-punk rockers, copped the prize.

Turning Blue, Bob's Day Off, the Jim James Band and M-80 will contend in the finals tonight (Thursday, March 15) at Lupo's. The grand prize includes more than $8000 in recording time from SoundStation7, $3000 in equipment from Guitar Center, and $4000 in cash -- enough for a down payment on a new van? The three runners-up will receive $1000 cash each. Tickets for the finals are $8.

WANDERING EYE. Well, it happened again. This time to Delta Clutch. Their van was broken into in Chelsea, Massachusetts. and many dollars worth of the band's gear is gone, gone, gone. Here's what they lost: an Ampeg SVT Classic bass amp head (almost brand new), an Ampeg SVT 4x10" bass speaker cab (almost brand new), a Mesa Boogie Tremoverb 2x12" guitar amp combo with some torn black tolex (no handle). There's also a teal Strat with a white pearl pick guard, a rosewood neck, and an "X" drawn on the head stock in Magic Marker. A tobacco sunburst Tele is also gone, one with no pick guard, three Strat-style pick-ups, and a maple neck. In case you see any of this stuff, tell someone who can do something about it. Whatever you do, don't buy it, unless you plan on giving it back.

Pocket Circus Mach 3 takes place on Saturday, March 17 at the only club with a stage big enough to hold it all: the Living Room. If you've been to one of the other two events you know it's bedlam, but fun. This installment features Screaming Under Stars, Orbus Rex, and the Problem (Kris Hansen's new crew). The bands will serve up five hours of music without set breaks. And to make it more interesting, it's all recorded live and posted on the Web for all to hear. Check out mp3s on Rattlehead Records' page (www.rattleheadrecords.com) or streaming on DownCitySignal (www.downcitysignal.com).

Best of luck to Eric Fontana, who decided to part ways with Mother Jefferson.