Golden Smog

By PHIL GALLO

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Golden Smog (Troubadour; 350 capacity; $ 12)
 
Band: Dan Murphy, Jeff Tweedy, Gary Louris, Mark Perlman, Noah Levy, Kraig Johnson.
 

TX:Presented inhouse. Reviewed June 28, 1996. Taking a conceptual relic, "the supergroup," that rarely lives up to the sum of its parts, Golden Smog runs the perilous risk of unfavorable comparison with the mainstays of the participants -- the freshly split Jayhawks, Soul Asylum, Wilco, Run Westy Run and, at the L.A. show, Geraldine Fibbers. But with a pleasant and easygoing album and EP under their belt, the members of Golden Smog played up the good-time, jam-session angle in their two-hour set -- imagine a pickup softball team with guitars. These Midwest all-stars wisely discern between casual and sloppy, keeping it fresh and, at times, seemingly improvised. Each song ended with a communal guitar swap that kept the textures, if not the tempos, varied.

Group vocals created a high-and-lonesome wail sans true harmony; guest vocalist Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum (an original Smog member) provided more fun than function. Lyrically, the bank of solid tunes from Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and Run Westy Run's Kraig Johnson concern jerks, friends and girls, and things you do with friends and girls, some of which are jerks.

As much as the sound owes an allegiance to the Flying Burrito Brothers, Byrds and a host of country-pop influences, Golden Smog exhibited a crisp rock 'n' roll side by wheeling out a barrel of fabulous covers -- Blondie's "Hangin' on the Telephone," Brian Wilson's "Love and Mercy" and Love's "Signed D.C."

"Down by the Old Mainstream," the faint yet forceful title track from their Rykodisc album, started the encores with a ripple of nostalgia as the unique vibe of the Jayhawks was ringing loud and clear. Luckily, Golden Smog is filling that void.