All-star noise-rock band Cassette Prophet headlines birthday celebration at the Make-Out Room
Cassette Prophet, the new all-star noise-rock project led by Steel Pole Bath Tub guitarist Mike Morasky, headlines this early birthday party show at the Make-Out Room Saturday.
Steel Pole Bath Tub was founded in Bozeman, Montana, in 1986 when Morasky and bassist Dale Flattum began experimenting with an aggressive, overdriven style of punk noise. The pair relocated to Seattle, where they brought on drummer Darren Morey -- who had played in hardcore band Mr. Epp with future Green River and Mudhoney members Mark Arm and Steve Turner; Morey would later become Dorothy Kent -- and started to incorporate recordings from vintage television shows and films using cassette players operated with foot switches, adding to the chaos of their sound.
The band would move again, this time landing in San Francisco where they would establish themselves as part of the city's experimental punk scene through a series of 7" singles and albums for Boner Records, including their 1989 debut Butterfly Love. The band would build on its initial underground buzz with relentless touring -- playing with the likes of The Flaming Lips, Sonic Youth, Firehose, Meat Puppets and fellow Bay Area iconoclasts Neurosis and Melvins -- and its subsequent efforts Tulip in 1991 and The Miracle of Sound in Motion two years later that further refined Steel Pole Bath Tub's unique sound.
The group would be among the many underground acts signed by a major label in the post-Nirvana feeding frenzy, scoring a deal with Slash Records. As with many of the era's instances where noise rock and commerce collided, the partnership did not end well. While the band's 1995 effort Scars From Falling Down released through Slash and London Records was more accessible than much of their earlier, the label's issues with some of the samples used curtailed the aspects of SPBT's unorthodox approach. Despite excellent reviews, the album wasn't the hit Slash/London desired. Their planned follow-up -- a full album re-recording of the debut record by the Cars -- was summarily dismissed by label representatives and a demo of new songs (that still included three Cars covers) was deemed "unlistenable."
Stuck in major-label purgatory, the band's activity slowed as Morasky and Flattum focused on their already established electronic side project Milk Cult (band members had also worked with former Dead Kennedys singer and San Francisco punk legend Jello Biafra under the name Tumor Circus). When the rights to the music recorded for Slash/London eventually reverted to SPBT, they released it themselves in the collection entitled Unlistenable in 2002 and were one of the marquee acts for the Neurosis curated Beyond the Pale Festival in San Francisco that year before splitting up.
Outside of a single performance in 2008 for the MusicFestNW held in Portland, OR, Steel Pole Bath Tub remained inactive until earlier this year when the band reissued The Skull Tapes, an early demo that quickly sold out of a limited vinyl pressing. The band also reunited to play the "30ish" celebration for underground Houston club Emo's last month with former Neurosis keyboardist and Christ on Parade guitarist Noah Landis added to the line-up, contributing samples and soundscapes. Meanwhile Morasky has been focused on his latest project Cassette Prophet.
Originally started as a solo performance piece centered on a mythical "First Church of Radio Shack" concept, last year he started playing the music live in a full band with Landis on lead guitar, drummer David Triebwasser (Thrillhammer, Pond), bassist Dan Southwick (Altamont, Acid King), and keyboardists Rachel Smith (Lickets) and Jessica Anthony. More recently, the group added new drummer Wes Anderson (Idiot Flesh; Les Claypool) and bassist Donny Newenhouse (Terry Gross, Film School, Hot Fog, Buffalo Tooth) as well as expanding the number of auxiliary choir members who join the band on vocals.
While SPBT recently played its first San Francisco show in over two decades to an ecstatic packed house at the Great American Music Hall, Cassette Prophet remains Morasky's main current outlet. For this Pisces birthday party at the Make-Out Room Saturday, the band will be joined by piano-driven pop tunesmith Michael Shaw -- who performs under the moniker An Intimate Evening with Michael Shaw -- and Sacramento-based guitarist/songwriter Greg Brown. Best known for playing guitar and writing hit tunes like "The Distance" with Cake when the band had its '90s breakout, Brown went on to co-found the celebrated alt-rock band Deathray. Last year, he released a solo EP of new songs.
Cassette Prophet with An Intimate Evening with Michael Shaw and Greg Brown
Saturday, March 2, 6:30 p.m. $15
The Make-Out Room
