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Twin Town High (vol. 8) |
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So Fox
Wednesday 02 July @ 13:03:22 |
 by P.J. Morel
St. Paul’s So Fox is about two things: nasty riffs and vocal chemistry. Lyrical profundity they ain’t got much, and their arrangements tend to be workmanlike; but with singers Arzu Gocken and Eric Odness trading sneers and the band slinging hooks, those potential shortcomings melt away in a blaze of sing along punk energy. So Fox is a punk rock multivitamin that packs a heavy dose of all the essentials.
If my two-part formula seems a bit heavy-handed (and it probably is) it’s because I happen to know how So Fox came together. Allow me to explain. Arzu Gocken will no doubt be familiar to most Twin Cities scenesters as the big-hair-wearing, telecaster slinging frontwoman of the late, great Selby Tigers. She’s also the face (and hair) behind the ever-popular Staraoke Karaoke outfit that puts in regular stops at the Turf Club, The Dinkytowner and other hipster hangouts.
Running the board for Staraoke for a few years, Arzu became something of a connoisseur of the three minute frontman. Eric Odness had been one of her “regulars” for a while, popping up at shows around the cities to lay into some choice Lionel Richie cuts. (“He does a ‘Hello’ that could melt your heart,” she says.) But after a few months of regular encounters she hadn’t seen him for a while.
The two met up again last summer when Arzu was running Staraoke at the Dinkytowner. “We were doing happy hours 4 to 8,” says Eric.
“There were like six of us,” adds Arzu.
“Yeah, nobody came in and we had like our own private karaoke party.”
In search of some new bandmates after the Tigers’ demise, she and Eric got together with some of his buddies from his hometown of Fargo. With Brian Eveslage on drums and Randy Dever on bass So Fox was born.
Frankly, Arzu made a lucky catch with Eric. He’s been cruised for his karaoke prowess more than once before, and he’s no stranger to spontaneous professions of love.
“I was at the Spring Street Bar and Grill once doing karaoke,” he says, “and this big black dude in a purple velvet suit came up to me and was like [dropping into a gravely voice], ‘Man, you can sing! You’ve got, like, one of those Backstreet Boys voices. Let me give you my business card!’ It had little musical notes on it, and below it said ‘Music Producer’—Just his name and ‘Music Producer’ and the phone number. He was like, ‘I got two songs written that would be great for you.’”
Eric trails off as he scratches his head in mid thought—this is clearly a story the rest of the band has heard more than once before, too. “What was the name of the song?...Now I can’t even think of it.”
“I know it,” says Arzu, grinning, wondering how long it’ll take to come to him.
“You do know it?”
She mimics Eric’s gravely voice, and with one eyebrow raised suggestively: “What is...Luuve?”
“Oh yeah!: ‘What is...Luuuve? You’re vocal styling would be great for that song!’ Needless to say, I didn’t call.”
“You could’ve been huge,” Arzu teases. “You could’ve been Justin, man.”
Of course, singing is important, and lord knows there are enough quasi-karaoke bands out there already: overeager singers rocking out with limp-wriste d backing bands. But So Fox really comes alive on the strength of their hooks. I’m talking monster hooks: guitar riffs that have been walking around with me for days. And I don’t mind that their there.
The stuttering single-note guitar line that drives the chorus of “This Place is My Life,” for instance, sounds like the scorned lover version of “My Sherona’s” amped-up party riff. As the band chugs along, Eric and Arzu take turns belting out a rhythmic chant of “Push push—you pushed away! You pushed away and I can’t stay.” The song comes to a head in the rumbling, minor-key bridge, as a wild eyed Arzu intones “There’s only so many lies you tell that I can really take: My back will only bend so far before it will break.”
“This Place is My Life” is positively dripping with authenticity and charisma, the personal tensions implied by the lyrics welling up from the band’s performance. Although So Fox’s playing can be a bit rough, the collective experience of its members shows in their ability to create a sense presence with their performances. I’ve had a chance to hear a recent demo by the band, and though I’d seen and enjoyed them several times in concert, I was quite impressed by how well they come off on record.
Other standouts from the band include “Teen Beat” and “Let’s Be Sensible”—the later a particularly satisfying piece of loud guitar pop. Although they haven’t been around for quite a year yet, So Fox has already built up an impressive oeuvre, and it’s helped earn them a presence on the local scene. In a town where punk bands are a dime a dozen, So Fox stands out for it’s personality: they’ve got a knack for songs that are heartfelt and emotional, but that still keep the mood up on a Friday night.
Now the only thing standing between So Fox and widespread acclaim, I suggested to the band, was a scandal to stir up some press.
“It’s never my real hair,” admitted Arzu.
Well I never.
So Fox plays Wed., July 2, with Clone Defects and the Red Satyrs at the Triple Rock Social Club. 8 p.m. $7. 21+. 639 Cedar Ave. South, Mpls. 612-333-7399.
BUT WAIT! As we were going to press, we got word that So Fox is playing another show next week, one worth checking out: The band will be playing a benefit show for a friend of theirs who’s incurred some hefty medical bills at the Dinkytowner on Fri., July 11. Also performing will be the Midnight Evils, Ancorhead, and Fairweather Friend. Quite a bill, that. 8 p.m. $5 minimum donation (suggested donation $10). 21+. 412 ½ 14th Ave SE, Mpls. 612-362-0427.
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