SHELLAC Appears on Animal Planet's DOGS 101

Idiosyncratic rock band SHELLAC, one of -FUPPETS- favorite riff-meisters, never fail to surprise. Whether it is one of their rare and random concert gigs, one of their super-limited release recordings made just for personal friends, or the release of a new immaculately designed and constructed vinyl L.P., the members of SHELLAC, Bob Weston, Todd Trainer, and Steve Albini, do things their way. For this -FUPPETS- respects the hell out of them.

Imagine -FUPPETS- surprise when, in the middle of an Animal Planet series titled Dogs 101, who should appear but Todd Trainer, and his band mates, in a segment discussing Todd's favorite breed, and cover model for their latest album, the Italian Greyhound. Here is a picture of Uffizi on the front and back of the LP just mentioned.

It is a rare thing indeed to find even the smallest mention of Shellac on mainstream media outlets, and so it was with great wonderment that -FUPPETS- enjoyed the following segment of Dogs 101.

Here is a fan video of one of Shellac's greatest songs.

SHELLAC - My Black Ass

-FUPPETS- VIDEOS OF THE DAY: Power Trios

-FUPPETS- dedicates today's installment of VIDEOS OF THE DAY to that venerable rock band format, the power trio. Normally consisting of a drummer, a bass player, and a guitarist, this can be the meanest and leanest, yet tightest and loudest, rock band format there is, and also it's most intimate. Vocal duties are usually covered by the guitarist or bassist, but every once in a while you find a funky act that kicks the lyrics over to the drummer. This usually means the drummer sucks and plays very standard beats, you know, shit he can play in his sleep. It is hard to play an instrument and sing at the same time, and doubly hard to play a drum set, using both feet and hands, and sing a song. There are many, many power trios out there, too many to post videos for all of them, but this is a tasty sampling.


The MINUTEMEN - Little Man With a Gun In His Hand
Our first power trio is the classic and under-appreciated group from San Pedro California. They were punks before punk was codified into a fashion subculture. They jammed Econo, doing it themselves and fighting the good fight for all the true disenfranchised punks out there.

The JIMI HENDRIX EXPERIENCE - The Wind Cries Mary
Oh Jimi, you were around for far too short a time. The Experience, two British cats and an American guitar god named Jimi Hendrix, played stomping blues rock, psychedelia, blues, and just blasted people's shit out their asses on a regular basis. They have all passed away now, so all we have are their albums and recordings such as this live performance in Stockholm.

PRIMUS - John The Fisherman
From the twisted mind of Les Claypool came Primus, a power trio consisting of some phenomenally gifted musicians, who also happened to share a love for the truly absurd. Their music began as aggressive, heavy freak-rock and over time moved on to noodley space-funk. This song is a nasal ode to a dedicated fisherman.

SHELLAC - Steady As She Goes
Maybe the greatest power-trio supergroup there ever was, Steve Albini, Bob Weston and Todd Trainer are Shellac. They tour when they want to. They record when they want to. They take no shit from anyone in the recording industry and they will melt your fucking face off with the best kind of guitar heaviness and skronk that money can buy.