Ahh the good old days. Scientific literature on nostalgia couldn’t even fill a Pee Chee folder, but psycho-sages don’t need to tell us that positive memories act as a natural anti-depressant, and that music — surprise! — is a strong trigger of nostalgia. No wonder we get that warm vacuum tube glow when we hear the vintage sounds of the past.
It should be pretty apparent by now that classic soul and R&B has made a big comeback in the Bay Area thanks to a few DJs with awesome record collections, like Lucky, Primo, and the Hard French-ers — not to mention the still thriving record shops like Dick Vivian’s Rooky Ricardo’s Records. And let’s face it — soul music is fun as hell to get down and dirty to.
Luckily for us, music producer and songwriter Nick Waterhouse and his Pres Records label mates the Allah-las embody that hard, gritty, and raw spirit of the 1960s — whether it be a rough and tumble garage sound or the kind of soul music that makes you double over and hurt so good. The result is simply damn good music that is just as relevant today as ever, maybe because what was reflective of the turbulent and chaotic times of that decade ring true in the effed-up present. Looks like the grass is just as green — or brown? — over here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zwKbYN6ru1E
Nick Waterhouse and the Tarots featuring the Naturelles
With the Allah-las and DJ Lucky
10 p.m., $10
Elbo Room
647 Valencia, SF