Kansas City Blog

Now 52, Cervenka still commands the stage like a champ, shimmying and shaking and singing like she's still got something to prove. Her current backing band features members of St. Louis's the Geargrinders, a seasoned garage-rock outfit that steamrolls through Cervenka's motley catalog of chopper anthems. The crowd was obviously stacked with X fans, many of whom sported the band's t-shirts and responded rowdily to Cervenka's throaty eruptions. For my tastes, Cervenka's particular brand of barnstorming dive-bar rock doesn't register too many memorable melodies. But the experience of seeing her in her element is something any blue-collar music fan can admire.

I spoke with Cervenka briefly after the show. She's currently residing outside of Jefferson City, Mo. and etching out plans for a new X record, which would probably be a pretty big deal considering the band hasn't put out an album of new material since 1993. It'll be interesting to see if it revisits the punk sounds of X or leans more towards the melodic roots-rock of recent John Doe efforts.

Having only experienced the legend of Ernie Locke secondhand, I hardly knew what to expect from Nervous Turkey. The Tampa trio showcases Locke's bluesy mouth-harp playing and his gruff voice with on-point backing from drummer Aaron Fowler and organist Mark Cunningham. Kicking the set off with some deep, funky New Orleans grooves, Locke made it clear that he's not rehashing his rock past with his new project. The group's blend of low-end funk and off-Broadway show tunes would sound perfectly at home on Bourbon Street, where revelers would likely be inspired by Locke's ceremonial unveiling of his Buddha belly (which, by most accounts, is considerably less sizable than when he lived down the block).

"My name is Ernie Locke and it's good to be home," Locke told the crowd, which responded in kind by dancing and toasting his every gesture. Shit took a turn for the corpulent when Locke went shirtless and introduced the adoring audience to his ass crack. Combined with his cross-eyed harmonica routine and loose-limbed Joe Cocker impersonation, it made for a deliriously drunken spectacle. After a bluesy rendition of "Sitting on Top of the World" and a marijuana-themed lounge tune titled "Viper," the group kicked it into high gear and channeled Ike Turner for the remainder of its crowd-pleasing set. Fowler and Cunningham were both playing out of their minds, but you get the impression that's what these guys do every night. As for Locke, his legend endures...

Nervous Turkey's raucous encore left most of the audience exhausted, leaving headliner Jon Dee Graham with the unenviable task of headlining. The Austin, TX, songwriter is an adopted Davey's son who has visited the club each of the past five years. He's made true believers of local fans like the Gaslights, who high-tailed it over from the Record Bar to catch his set and join him on stage. Graham played for a band called the True Believers (a collaboration with Alejandro Escovedo) in the '80s before lending his sideman talents to John Doe, The Gourds and Michelle Shocked. He's only revisited his songwriting muse in the past decade, purveying an endearingly grizzled brand of swampy slide-guitar alt-country a la Ry Cooder or Joe Henry.

Graham didn't exactly one-up Locke, but he did deliver a strong-armed set of journeyman roots-rock numbers. He scores points as an affable humorist on stage, and his easygoing manner befits the slice-of-life stories he tells through his music. Graham's latest LP Full composed the meat of the set, buoyed by his gruff voice and gracious stage presence. For more on Graham, check out the documentary Jon Dee Graham: Swept Away.

Critic's bias: I never listened to any of these bands before Saturday.

Random detail: This laptop is burning my leg. I can't get it to shut off. Help....

By the way: She sells sea shells by the sea shore.