Jon Spencer

Jon Spencer is one of the few people worthy of carrying Lux’s sweat-soaked, pungent, leather thong. True, he’s not as insanely incandescent as he was in his youth - but who is? The man has a deep black book of twisted friends including Sam Coomes of Quasi on synth, and M. Sord of Boss Hog on drums. Finally, there is Bob Bert, Spencer's former Pussy Galore bandmate, beating primitive percussion using hammers on dismembered car parts. The show was moved from downstairs to up. Gets my vote. I’ll take a packed small room over a half-full big room any night. (To my regret, I missed Muck and Minibeast.)

Bob Bert

The HITmakers stick mainly with their recent release, Spencer Gets It Lit. They skip over the fractured blues and no-wave and lean into a garage groove ("Junk Man") and dirty-ass LCD Soundsystem funk gunk ("Primary Baby"). Coomes lays down alien carnival space keys ("Death Ray") and gut-roiling, low-end synth bombs. Sord and Bert line up for some elemental, tribal pounding and separate for double hammer and stick syncopation.

Spencer mentions a little cold but he didn’t call in sick. He snaps up and down. He chews on the mic. He gets his Beefheart on. He extolls and prods the audience to come into his all-denominational narthex and get healed (Get It Right Now). Spencer and the HITmakers got it lit.

Jon Spencer and Sam Coomes

M. Sord

Bob Bert

Jon Spencer

Bob Bert

Bob Bert

Sam Coomes

Set List

Jon Spencer

Jon Spencer

Jon Spencer