« Previous Post | Main | Next Post »

Simon Chardiet and Dexter Romweber

Filed under: Imported

Back in college I used to occasionally go see a band called Simon & the Bar Sinisters. Usually they played the Rodeo Bar. Simon Chardiet was the frontman. He was once in a legendary NYC group called The Worms (a.k.a. Joey Miserable & the Worms) with Jono Manson, but that was before my time.

Simon was a little guy with a shaved head and a maniacal smile. More importantly he played the guitar like an absolute sociopath: careening around the tiny Rodeo Bar stage and into the crowd, crushing peanut shells underfoot, bumping into tables, and producing mind-blowing surf punkabilly guitar riffs. The shows were chaotic, bizarre, and ridiculously fun.

Simon's schtick never translated well to disk. He put out two albums (one with the Bar Sinisters; one solo), but neither is particularly interesting. The one track that I still throw on every once in awhile is "Speed, Weed & Whiskey," Simon's hilarious rant about losing his own personal war with drugs. Apparently he still occasionally play the Rodeo Bar.

All this is a rather roundabout way of recommending the Dexter Romweber show tomorrow night at the Turf Club. Romweber's another guitar madman, choking out a kamikaze mix of punk, rockabilly, surf, and blues. Like Simon, his albums, whether solo or with the Flat Duo Jets, have never captured that spirit. Listening to them is kind of like smelling beer. You don't quite achieve the desired high.

As it turns out, Dexter and Simon once paired up for a 45 on Norton Records.

Posted by Paul Demko at March 30, 2004 5:51 PM

« Democracy in America | Main | MLS Opener »