ARCHERS OF LOAF
Coney Island High, New York, March 22, 1998

Alongside okra and butter beans, one of the greatest things credited to the south side of the Mason-Dixon line is punk-pop outfit Archers of Loaf. With the possible exception of Superchunk, these four guys are the most prized product of Chapel Hill, N.C.'s music scene. Their gritty hooks and metaphor-infested lyrics are unmistakable to adoring fans; on the other hand, the Archers have been unfairly tagged "the other Pavement" in indie circles -- probably because of their healthy Velvet Underground influence.

Glad to be in New York after spending months in the recording studio, singer/guitarist Eric Bachmann and crew put on a show that took their reputation as rockers to a whole new level. The greeting was standard for the Archers, with Bachmann barely speaking and then shocking the packed audience by ripping right into high-energy songs. New tunes for the upcoming album, tentatively titled White Trash Heroes (the group's fourth full-length, due in August on Alias), kicked off the set, with bassist Matt Gentling trying out his voice on "I.N.S."

Well known for his on-stage diatribes, poetry and stories, Gentling peppered the entire set with his commentary. A stellar version of Icky Mettle's famed "Plumb Line" inspired many a young lass to sing along on the inspirational lines: "She's an indie rocker/Nothing's gonna stop her," before being blindsided by Gentling's rendition: "She's an indie rocker/She likes to suck your cock-a." After flawlessly delivering The Speed of Cattle's "Revenge," the Archers offered up an atypical new one titled "Dead Red Eyes." Bachmann sat down behind a miniature keyboard and sang words anyone could relate to: "We tripped and talked around it." In general, the band's new material seems more brooding than angst-ridden, perhaps due to the fact that the Archers recorded at original Big Star drummer Jody Stephens' studio.

Sandwiched between new songs, "Audio Whore" and "Greatest of All Time," were back-to-back crowd pleasers, leading to a slew of competing requests from the audience. "Web in Front!" "Scenic Pastures!" "Assassination!" Bachmann joked with the audience, "One dollar for that one ... oh, five dollars for that one." The pensive new "Perfect Time," which captured Bachmann's lyrics at their best, rounded out the 15-song set. The encore was a three-song reminder of the Archers' deserved reputation as brain children of indie rock: "Scenic Pastures" distracted the audience enough to blunt the absence of college favorite "Web in Front" and was followed by the heavy-on-distortion "Form and File." The set closed with "Banging on a Dead Drum" and, keeping with the evening's experimental spirit, everyone switched instruments.

Don't be surprised if this new album finally sends the Archers catapulting to the top of their genre. Steve Malkmus, consider yourself forewarned.