Quite a few excited Jim Rose fans were surely disappointed a few weeks ago when the freak show ringleader announced that he had suffered major injury and had to call off most of his September tour, including a date at the Music Farm. Fortunately, the club looked to the local opening act — veteran trio The Defilers — to pick up the ball and help organize a full evening of local rock ‘n’ roll and homegrown burlesque.
On Sat. Aug. 8, a healthy crowd turned out for The Defilers’ Hometown Throwdown. Punk/alternative band M-Tank and partially masked and mummified garage band Hypnosquad played very early in the evening. The lovely and exotic Bizarro Burlesque troupe delivered a series of individual performances during and between each band’s set. As a featured musician and burlesque performer, singer/guitarist Skye Paige (of The Original Recipe) must have gone through at least four saucy wardrobe changes during the gig.
It was good to see the Defilers on a nice big stage — and great to hear singer/guitarist Arleigh Hertzler’s hoarse singing voice and twangy, antique Gibson six-string through the Farm’s large PA system, but the highlights for some in the crowd was when the Sandinistas! took the stage. The tribute band delivered a solid set of Clash tunes, concentrating mostly on tunes from London Calling and The Clash, while frontman Kevin McCrary donned an old Fender Telecaster, wore a white T-shirt with “Know Your Rights” scribbled on it, stalked the stage, and channeled Joe Strummer’s wide-eyed style and raspy singing on almost everything — from “White Riot” and “Bankrobber” to the Clash’-styled cover of Eddie Cochran’s “I Fought the Law.”
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