Days of Lore

I hate hating I find it a little disheartening to know there are people in the world who take opinions personally instead of simply taking them at face value—this results in grudges, which results in said people creating a false reality. Black Crow manager Tim Carrier, for instance, thought we here at the CN&R, me in particular, hated the bar and grill.

It all started last summer when I wrote a review on margaritas for our summer guide and went to a few local establishments, including The Black Crow. I found the Crow’s drink to be a bit salty for my taste and a bit spendy for my wallet compared to those at other places (except for the margarita at Tres Hombres, but that thing is a bucket). There was nothing at all damning about the review—simply two observations I made.

The Crow good-naturedly created “The Mark Lore Margarita Special” for one week—“less salty, less spendy.” The way they handled it was perfect, and, although not a savvy business move to put my name on a drink special, it was funny.

Tthe kicker was a few months ago when I wrote that The Black Crow was cutting its weekly jazz night in favor of cover bands featuring “shaggy old dudes in Hawaiian shirts playing that good time rock ’n’ roll at low volumes.”

It was all in good fun, but Carrier took issue with the remark. (I also received an anonymous phone call from someone lambasting me for my Hawaiian-shirt reference and my frivolous use of Slayer lyrics in that particular column.)

Anyway, I met with Carrier last week to get his take on the whole situation. He pointed out that the “cover band” comment was based on misinformation and that I should have contacted him to confirm any changes. He also said these two isolated incidents of “bad press” convinced him that the CN&R hated The Black Crow.

I admitted that I may have generalized a bit when I wrote that all of the bands play cover songs when, in fact, they are of the ilk that features middle-aged men with moustaches sporting Tommy Bahama shirts and Tevas playing new-agey World Beat music. It’s not my cup of tea, but it works perfectly in a dining situation and for their demographic and, hence, is a savvy business move. Glad we straightened that out!

And no, I don’t hate The Black Crow. It’s a lovely place in a great location, and the fried calamari is delicious. Just to show that there are no hard feelings, I’m going to borrow a Hawaiian shirt and strut my stuff to the sounds of the Chuck Epperson Jr. Band Aug. 19, for his birthday bash … that is if I’m not in Portland watching Camper Van Beethoven.

Live undead The almighty Chico rock gods have been plotting this show for months, but it looks like it’s finally going to reach fruition Labor Day weekend. The “Back From The Dead” show will bring back some old Chico favorites like the ’60s garage pop of the Electric Pie Band (featuring Marty Parker and K.C. Ellis of The Yule Logs), ’80s dance punk rockers Squirrel vs. Bear (I can never figure out if these guys are together or not), dark experimentalists Fenix Down (Adam Scarborough from La Fin du Monde) and the straight rock of Azalea Drive (which included La Dolce Vita’s Daniel Paggi and Byron Dunning from Doki Doki Panic). Should be a fun night: Fri., Sept. 2, at Off Limits, with all the PBR you can throw down.

We also received a copy of the new Squirrel vs. Bear EP this week, sexily titled Thrill Her, complete with an intro sample from MJ’s “Thriller.” It sounds great. Standout tracks are “Company Milk” and “Hottness,” with plenty of squirrelly synth and falsetto from vocalists Kurt Lind and Ryan Maker. My only gripe is that the band has gone more synth-heavy and is relying more on the MPC (Music Production Center; used by Dr. Dre to create beats and samples) and less on heavy-hitting drummer Morgan Fleischmann. A good disc nonetheless—available at the September show.

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