« Thinking Aloud at the Prospector last night--in hi def! | Main | Live Review: Ludacris on 02/23 »
The Henry Clay People

The Prospector

February 23, 2008

Better Than: Staying home with your cat and hitting the peace pipe.
My apologies to The Year Zero, whose set I missed due The Paper Planes getting a late start at The Puka Bar. I heard your performance was drenched in sonic goodness and that The Henry Clays are jealous of your harmonizing capabilities.
I arrived just as Long Beach's Forcefield ON were taking the stage. With a loyal local following and band members with resumes that span a wide variety of musical spectrums, the tiny Prospector bar was quite stuffed for this six-piece's blend of spacey collegiate jam rock and Louisiana marching band horns. And because I rather not shit where I eat, I'm will refrain from going in detail what didn't work for me and rather just say that in my opinion the last rock n' roll band to successfully incorporate a horn section was Rocket From The Crypt. I just couldn't dig it. But that's just me; there was a whole room full of people that totally could.

Saturdays are for partying, and party The Henry Clay People did. Apparently too drunk to play their own songs, The Henry Clay People launched into a set of covers after first blasting out their two best songs from their new Working Part Time EP, the title track of said EP, and "Andy Sings" (though just barely, as Andy definitely was the most sauced of the group). Maybe it was the booze or maybe it was just that CCR's "Who'll Stop The Rain," The Replacements' "Can't Hardly Wait," and Pavement's "Summer Babe" were fresh in their heads from their previous all covers set the other night at The Echo - where they are doing a Monday night residency this month.

Some might have been disappointed with a set of mostly covers (there were one or two others in there that I can't remember right now), but really I found myself more than satisfied. They played my two favorite originals as well as a brand new song from their forthcoming full length album that will be out later this month. They came, they drank, they rocked, and I hope someone sober drove them home (probably one of the nice girls selling their merch).

Critic's Notebook
:
Personal Bias: I like The Thermals, The Hold Steady, and some Piebald. The Henry Clay People sound like a result of all three spending night together following a whiskey binge.
Random Detail: The sound guy had to spend half The Henry Clays' set sitting on the floor holding the monitor cables together so the monitor would stop shorting out.
By the way: The Henry Clays finish up their Monday night residency at The Echo this coming Monday. You should really try to make it out, maybe it will be a repeat performance, especially if the What Made Milwaukee guys bring what they're famous for.

Long Beach, Anaheim, Santa Ana best places in America to find... BY MATT COKER
Skateboard legend and OC resident Christian Hosoi makes an... PHOTOS BY JOHN GILHOOLEY
Still at a loss for plans for the weekend? Our comprehensive... BY STAFF
Our 30 most memorable video game quotes OF. ALL. TIME. BY PETER MAI
?Andrew Breitbart wants you to know that the Tea Party is diverse, and...More >>
?What's better than an all girl band? A HOT all girl band! For the past...More >>
A while back, Papa John's claimed they used better ingredients in their...More >>
Rodney Alcala, Tour Guide?At his third murder trial, the accused serial rapist/killer offers a monotonous, multimedia opening statementThe... More >>
Shell GameSanta Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido voted several times to aid a controversial vending-truck business in which his father was involved... More >>
Sawdust-UpControversy over the famed Laguna Beach art festival’s management boils over in the form of a mass e-mail to Sawdust artistsFew... More >>
She Sees a DarknessThe Thermals’ Kathy Foster dishes on her band’s upcoming ‘dark album’Taking a break from the studio,... More >>
Jock RockCosta Mesa singer/strummer Dan Krikorian has been charming crowds—especially the ladies—with his mellow, melodic love songs... More >>
Vacuum Bell Doesn’t SuckThe small stage at the Gypsy Den in downtown Santa Ana rises mere inches above the wooden floor, but that was a... More >>
Al Amir RisingIsn’t it time already that Anaheim’s Little Arabia district was officially designated? The area around Brookhurst... More >>
A Special CasingValhalla Table’s sausage house concept largely comes from LA, but the most-inspired items hail from IndonesiaJust in case... More >>
Thinking Outside the Taco Bell-BashingWe interrupt this regularly scheduled review to wax a bit on the passing of Taco Bell founder Glen Bell.... More >>
Back From the Edge?Mel Gibson gets some kind of revenge with a semi-successful vigilante flick“Did you shoot my daughtah?” is the... More >>
A Measured SuccessDespite its made-for-TV feel, Extraordinary Measures works on its own termsJohn Crowley (Brendan Fraser) is, for the time... More >>
Measures of a ManHarrison Ford is nothing if not usefulExtraordinary Measures is a race-against-time thriller in which a desperate dad (Brendan... More >>
For the Younger CrewOkay, let’s weigh this out. I mean, sure, Orange County isn’t exactly the coolest place in the world to be. And,... More >>
The Art of Cut-And-Paste‘Video Dada’ at UCI is quirky and a bit unwieldy, but ultimately does convey the potential of video as a... More >>
A Great Team, They MakeIf you haven’t heard of this by now, consider yourself the worst fucking fanboy ever.We received our first sneak... More >>
We present several issues where we highlight our premier clients. Here's the top providers of goods and services in your area.
House of BluesAnaheim, CA |
Hotel CafeLos Angeles, CA |
House of Blues Sunset StripLos Angeles, CA |
Long Beach, Anaheim, Santa Ana best places in America to find... BY MATT COKER
Skateboard legend and OC resident Christian Hosoi makes an... PHOTOS BY JOHN GILHOOLEY
Still at a loss for plans for the weekend? Our comprehensive... BY STAFF
Our 30 most memorable video game quotes OF. ALL. TIME. BY PETER MAI
?Andrew Breitbart wants you to know that the Tea Party is diverse, and...More >>
?What's better than an all girl band? A HOT all girl band! For the past...More >>
A while back, Papa John's claimed they used better ingredients in their...More >>
Rodney Alcala, Tour Guide?At his third murder trial, the accused serial rapist/killer offers a monotonous, multimedia opening statementThe... More >>
Shell GameSanta Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido voted several times to aid a controversial vending-truck business in which his father was involved... More >>
Sawdust-UpControversy over the famed Laguna Beach art festival’s management boils over in the form of a mass e-mail to Sawdust artistsFew... More >>
She Sees a DarknessThe Thermals’ Kathy Foster dishes on her band’s upcoming ‘dark album’Taking a break from the studio,... More >>
Jock RockCosta Mesa singer/strummer Dan Krikorian has been charming crowds—especially the ladies—with his mellow, melodic love songs... More >>
Vacuum Bell Doesn’t SuckThe small stage at the Gypsy Den in downtown Santa Ana rises mere inches above the wooden floor, but that was a... More >>
Al Amir RisingIsn’t it time already that Anaheim’s Little Arabia district was officially designated? The area around Brookhurst... More >>
A Special CasingValhalla Table’s sausage house concept largely comes from LA, but the most-inspired items hail from IndonesiaJust in case... More >>
Thinking Outside the Taco Bell-BashingWe interrupt this regularly scheduled review to wax a bit on the passing of Taco Bell founder Glen Bell.... More >>
Back From the Edge?Mel Gibson gets some kind of revenge with a semi-successful vigilante flick“Did you shoot my daughtah?” is the... More >>
A Measured SuccessDespite its made-for-TV feel, Extraordinary Measures works on its own termsJohn Crowley (Brendan Fraser) is, for the time... More >>
Measures of a ManHarrison Ford is nothing if not usefulExtraordinary Measures is a race-against-time thriller in which a desperate dad (Brendan... More >>
For the Younger CrewOkay, let’s weigh this out. I mean, sure, Orange County isn’t exactly the coolest place in the world to be. And,... More >>
The Art of Cut-And-Paste‘Video Dada’ at UCI is quirky and a bit unwieldy, but ultimately does convey the potential of video as a... More >>
A Great Team, They MakeIf you haven’t heard of this by now, consider yourself the worst fucking fanboy ever.We received our first sneak... More >>
We present several issues where we highlight our premier clients. Here's the top providers of goods and services in your area.
House of BluesAnaheim, CA |
Hotel CafeLos Angeles, CA |
House of Blues Sunset StripLos Angeles, CA |
Long Beach, Anaheim, Santa Ana best places in America to find... BY MATT COKER
Skateboard legend and OC resident Christian Hosoi makes an... PHOTOS BY JOHN GILHOOLEY
Still at a loss for plans for the weekend? Our comprehensive... BY STAFF
Our 30 most memorable video game quotes OF. ALL. TIME. BY PETER MAI
?Andrew Breitbart wants you to know that the Tea Party is diverse, and...More >>
?What's better than an all girl band? A HOT all girl band! For the past...More >>
A while back, Papa John's claimed they used better ingredients in their...More >>
Rodney Alcala, Tour Guide?At his third murder trial, the accused serial rapist/killer offers a monotonous, multimedia opening statementThe... More >>
Shell GameSanta Ana Mayor Miguel Pulido voted several times to aid a controversial vending-truck business in which his father was involved... More >>
Sawdust-UpControversy over the famed Laguna Beach art festival’s management boils over in the form of a mass e-mail to Sawdust artistsFew... More >>
She Sees a DarknessThe Thermals’ Kathy Foster dishes on her band’s upcoming ‘dark album’Taking a break from the studio,... More >>
Jock RockCosta Mesa singer/strummer Dan Krikorian has been charming crowds—especially the ladies—with his mellow, melodic love songs... More >>
Vacuum Bell Doesn’t SuckThe small stage at the Gypsy Den in downtown Santa Ana rises mere inches above the wooden floor, but that was a... More >>
Al Amir RisingIsn’t it time already that Anaheim’s Little Arabia district was officially designated? The area around Brookhurst... More >>
A Special CasingValhalla Table’s sausage house concept largely comes from LA, but the most-inspired items hail from IndonesiaJust in case... More >>
Thinking Outside the Taco Bell-BashingWe interrupt this regularly scheduled review to wax a bit on the passing of Taco Bell founder Glen Bell.... More >>
Back From the Edge?Mel Gibson gets some kind of revenge with a semi-successful vigilante flick“Did you shoot my daughtah?” is the... More >>
A Measured SuccessDespite its made-for-TV feel, Extraordinary Measures works on its own termsJohn Crowley (Brendan Fraser) is, for the time... More >>
Measures of a ManHarrison Ford is nothing if not usefulExtraordinary Measures is a race-against-time thriller in which a desperate dad (Brendan... More >>
For the Younger CrewOkay, let’s weigh this out. I mean, sure, Orange County isn’t exactly the coolest place in the world to be. And,... More >>
The Art of Cut-And-Paste‘Video Dada’ at UCI is quirky and a bit unwieldy, but ultimately does convey the potential of video as a... More >>
A Great Team, They MakeIf you haven’t heard of this by now, consider yourself the worst fucking fanboy ever.We received our first sneak... More >>
We present several issues where we highlight our premier clients. Here's the top providers of goods and services in your area.
House of BluesAnaheim, CA |
Hotel CafeLos Angeles, CA |
House of Blues Sunset StripLos Angeles, CA |