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Fast companyThe Quickies are caught playing favourites
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“I don’t like the word ‘tribute’ for a band that covers other bands’ songs,” announces Dave Cooper of the Planet Smashers, concerning his fast ’n’ furious side project the Quickies. “I feel that when you say ‘tribute,’ you should have songs that go, ‘Led Zeppelin, you are the best band and I like when you all had beards.’ “I prefer to call them ‘faves.’ We play favourites!” True enough. The trio—made up of Cooper on guitar and vocals, Bob Eaglesham of Shine Like Stars and countless other local projects on drums, and young gun Sean Miller on bass—dub what they do ‘econo-pop.’ “Short songs that make a point,” says Cooper. They get a perverse kick, however, out of covering covers, or better yet, covering covers of covers. How postmodern! How meta! But then, by the third degree of coverage, you’re probably safe to say that a tune has ascended to the hallowed realm of “beloved all-time popular favourite,” meaning it’s ready to be ripped through in record time by the Quickies. Ahead of the upcoming Barfly gig and subsequent command performance at the Old Brewery Mission on Dec. 19 (not a public event, mind you), Cooper and Miller went through the Quickies’ set list, selected a bunch of choice tunes and offered appropriately rapid-fire insights on each. “Teenage Kicks”: “One of the best punk songs. The Undertones were bad-assed teens in ’77 and took pride in calling the Sex Pistols ‘old farts.’” “Lie Detector”: “We love playing this Monomen track because nobody in the band really knows its origins, it kind of plays itself and then grabs you by the balls.” “Koka Kola”: “Klassic Klash tune from a classic Clash album. Really not your typical punk song.” “Getting Better”: “A cover of a cover for us, which is a theme of the band. A Beatles Sgt. Pepper tune, covered by the Wedding Present in a straightforward, anti-psychedelic fashion.” “Fox on the Run”: “Sweet, covered by Redd Kross. We mash together the two versions to get a cool Quickies hybrid. Who doesn’t love this song? I wish I could yell at people for being uncool, like Sweet does!” “Father Christmas”: “The snottiest, noisiest Christmas song ever, care of the Kinks. Suck it, Emerson, Lake & Palmer!” “Ain’t Talkin ’Bout Love”: “Van Halen done by the Minutemen, done à la Quickies. We love you, Mike Watt!” “Beat My Guest”: “This Adam and the Ants song is the best B-side you never heard.” “Ready Steady Go!”: “Generation X with Billy Idol—back when he was cool, singing about things that were cool, like underground radio, Cathy McGowan, being a punk and liking the Beatles (despite what the Sex Pistols were saying).” “Hot Shot”: “Toronto’s Leather Uppers are the kings of the quickies! Check out their CD, OK, Don’t Say Hi.” “New Rose”: “This Damned song was the first punk single, in 1977, pre-Pistols, and covered by Duff of Guns N’ Roses. Incidentally, I once showered with Captain Sensible.” “Chinese Rocks”: “A cover of a cover of a cover—Ramones, Johnny Thunders, Heartbreakers, Dee Dee, they all lay claim to having written it, and I believe we now own it.” “New Day Rising”: “By Hüsker Dü, the greatest, most timeless punk song ever! Really does sound like sunrise and sunset.” AT BARFLY TONIGHT, THURSDAY, |
