Sat 8/29 @ 9PM
The Happy Dog continues to reliably showcase some of Cleveland’s most interesting underground rock bands.
Tonight, for instance, you can check out New Planet Trampoline, who were a cornerstone of a loose federation of member-sharing bands called the Davenport Collective in the early 2000s. They released two much-admired albums before breaking up in 2006. Then the original group re-assembled in late 2013 when singer/guitarist Matt Cassidy returned to the music scene to join drummer Charlie Druesdow, organist Ben Gmetro, and bassist Dave Molnar who’d all been busy in other bands. Their engagingly desultory, psychedelic-influenced rock is a welcome re-addition to the scene.
Also on the bill is the quarter Hiram-Maxim, featuring Filmstrip guitarist Dave Taha, drummer John Panza of Blaka Watra, vocalist Fred Gunn and Lisa Miralia on vocals and electronics. The group released a four-song EP in New York’s Aqualamb Records this past spring that showcased spooky, disjointed psychedelic/noise music that meanders through unsettling sonic turf littered with abrupt chances of musical scenery.
Brooklyn’s Space Merchants, also on Aqualamb Records, are also on the bill and their so-called “psychedelic country” is undoubtedly very cool — but bands from Cleveland can be just as cool as those from Brooklyn, and the other two bands on this bill are among those that prove it.
Admission is $5.
facebook.com/NewPlanetTrampoline
Cleveland, OH 44102