Bears and Bills

Last Saturday I headed over to the House of Targ - as I often do - to catch a couple acts I haven't seen in a while. Yes it's time for some bluesy and rockabilly type noise with Bearshark and Blood shot Bill. Last time I checked out Bearshark it was 2012, and even earlier for Bloodshot, who seemed to be coming through town on a regular basis back then. No one's slowed down in the interim, and the packed house definitely enjoyed themselves.

Bearshark has had a haircut since I saw them at the Dom opening for White Mystery.



The whole lot! (Incidentally, they'll be back at Targ on May 21.)



Percussive action!



Sliding action!



Gripping action!



Running about!



Singalong action!



Keturah Johnson of the Heavy Medicine Band also showed up to sing a bit.



On to Bloodshot Bill, who was last spotted opening for himself and pal King Khan under their Tandoori Knights banner at Zaphod's in late 2011. It was a fine display of one-man rockabilly babble - the last show of his latest tour, although I'm not sure he ever really stops .... he's headed off to the Nashville Boogie shortly.



Bloodshot sings!



And so on!



Barefoot action!



The shouty bit!



Well, you get the idea!



That was wild and gone.

What a knight

Bloodshot Bill and King Khan raised a ruckus at Zaphod's back in November, but before that Bloodshot played a short, all-request set for his crazed fans.

Bloodshot action!



Self-destructing pompadour action!



The other side of Bill.



The end!



Now, on to The Knights, who got all duded up for their subcontinental rock. Here, Bill goes electric!



Khan sings!



Josh Johnson, a.k.a. Pinche Gringo, mans the traps.



Nadeem Khan and his well-stickered bass.



Singalong action!



And so on!



Guitar action!



More guitar action!



Nadeem works the crowd!



The crowd goes wild!



Offstage action!



Bonus Josh!



Clapping action!



The lovely ladies get on stage!



Extra Bloodshot!



Nadeem surfs the wild crowd!



Some wild stuff, baby!

• Show reminder: Everyone over their post-Juno hangover? Meat Parade and Adam Saikaley perform at swanky new Gladstone eatery Pressed Cafe; Converge, Burning Love, Lomo Prieta and Git Some rock Ritual; Samantha Savage Smith and Keturah Johnson are at Raw Sugar Cafe; I would normally not mention karaoke here, but since Zaphod's version features a swell band (composed of some seasoned local rockers) I shall! Jared Attwood is on the Rainbow's stage; the Avant-Garde hosts Elos Arma, Stuck on Planet Earth and The Aesthetics.

The spice of life

You know whenever King Khan or Bloodshot Bill is in town you're in for a good show. Add local rockers The Polymorphines to the bill, and how can you miss? Well, a few people did miss out, but for a Tuesday show on a day with nonstop rain the turnout was pretty good.

The Polymorphines had a bumpy set due to some technical difficulties - that bass would just not stay plugged in - but you know everything doesn't have to go right for their scrappy brand of rock to work. And now, some singalong action!


The Polymorphines at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Tough-sounding as usual!


The Polymorphines at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Bloodshot Bill then went on stage for a short, all-request set.


Bloodshot Bill at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Finally the Tandoori Knights rocked the joint with their tremelo-abusing rockabilly garage, complete with some standup bass courtesy of Nadeem Khan, perhaps best known for his part in Orlando combo Big Jef Special and drums from Josh Johnson, ex-Spinns, and a one-man band himself under the Pinche Gringo name. King Khan and Bloodshot Bill are old pals and obviously work well together; folks may recall them horsing around at a wild Irene's show back in 2006.

Khan and Bloodshot!


Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

Nadeem works the crowd!


Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

They had some ladies from the audience up on stage to sing along for the encore, which finished with Nadeem Khan jumping into the audience.


Tandoori Knights at Zaphod Beeblebrox, Nov. 29, 2011

A killer show all round.

• Show reminder: Kathryn Calder and Himalayan Bear play the Raw Sugar Cafe; Pretty Little Death Machine, Hunter Walks and The Dead Zone rock The Rainbow.