If it ain’t Schwinn, don’t bring it in

(July 17, Dante’s) When The Spokes roll into a joint, they don’t mess around. They bring all the menace and unadulterated machismo that you’d expect from a biker (bicycle) gang, complete with cissy (sissy?) bars and banana seats.

The band is comprised of members of the fearsome Belligerantes, a bicycle gang that first gained notoriety in the 1940s for their bloody clash with high school socialites which turned into a brutal dance-off that spilled into the streets of downtown Portland. I just made some of that up.

The fact is, these guys are winners on and off the stage: Their bike gang won the gold medal at a bike rodeo last year. They fuse together the sound, fury and fun of pop-rocks and surf guitar, with well-oiled gears that make the band pretty tight. They incorporate some of the best elements of spoken word poetry, and dazzle with chrome-plated and sleek guitar licks, and rumbling bass and drums that echo a Harley exhaust more than a Schwinn bell.

Judge for yourself. Hear the full set stream here for free or (with the purchase of a local CD from CD Baby) downloadable premium podcast [pay]here.[/pay]

- By Daniel D. Faux for The Stonewailer

p.s. my dinner date for the evening had this chicken strip, which unnervingly resembled Mr. Hanky, the poo from South Park.