Young machines in the open air

How sad are reunion tours? I suppose the spectrum is broad — between the goulish spectacle of another Rolling Stones rollout and the mostly respectable showing by folks like the Pixies — but still it's just an unnecessary exercise. Unless you need the money, in which case, put that disclaimer on the name of the tour, so everyone knows it's about real need and not vanity. Which is why Os Mutantes's wanna-be arena rock showing at Prospect Park this last Friday was such a bummer. It's not like they were ever in it for the money. And really, the only thing you can do to legendary status is to tarnish it by putting your good name on uninspired mediocrity in your plump years. At least it was another beautiful park night, and happily, some kids in the opening band saved the day with their giddily backward-looking sugar pop. Nothing for the ages, but great for welcoming a summer Saturday night.

Javelin - Drummachines

Sha la la la + bbq sauce

Cross the Shirelles with the Raincoats and you get something like Dolly Mixture. The story is that they were some punk rockers' girlfriends who thought it'd fun to form a band. If that's true, they quickly evolved into fine tunesmiths in their own right. They even picked up some instrumental chops before they were done. I'd say they've got about a dozen tracks that coulda shoulda woulda been radio hits. Seriously, tambourine and glockenspiel together = pop magic. Here's my favorite. Quite likely to turn heads at whatever Memorial Day barbecue you find yourself attending.

Dolly Mixture - Remember This

(Songblague is taking a floating holiday on Monday. Hopefully, I'll be floating above the congested highways of New Jersey.)