Bobby Conn – The Golden Age

If there is indeed a general indictment one could make about musical “artists” these days, it would be that many of them take themselves far too seriously. Message to Bono: “So your heart aches for the world. Okay, okay, we get it already. Now knock it off and lighten up already.” And while you are at it, stop appearing like such a fucking hypocrite already.

It’s more than a bit ironic that these self-proclaimed voices of the anti-establishment are hopelessly tethered to the system they claim to want to smash. If you’re a rockstar with hundreds of millions of dollars in assets (a few of you are even billionaires), I am not interested in anything you have to say, let alone what you think others should be doing about poverty, suffering, and social injustice.

Perhaps its somehow suitable then that the artists we should be hearing more from are often the most obscure. Those of us in the know about these performers often wish they would make it big, so that their carefully woven craft and anti-establishment personas would break into the mainstream. But then, if that happened, wouldn’t they somehow be compromised? That’s the paradox, I suppose. Fame is a double-edged sword that even the best intentioned people end up falling on, impaling otherwise noble plans.

There are those artists who understand this reality well enough not to land in its well-laid traps. One of them is Bobby Conn (aka Jeffrey Stafford), a pop-cult hero from the Chicago underground. The Conn, it seems, was chosen deliberately because of his use of PR scams and hyperbole in almost everything he does in his public persona. Conn has claimed to be everything from an ex-con, to a financial guru. He has even claimed to be the Antichrist.

But despite his penchant for the absurd, Conn doesn’t appear to be just another media whore looking to raise eyebrows and create controversy – his public antics are intended to raise consciousness about our current state of affairs.

If it is true that pop will eat itself, Bobby Conn intends to be the head chef, cooking up variations of its entire history in genre-busting fusion recipes. His music mixes danceability with clever arrangements, social and political commentary with a vaudeville sense for the absurd, a la Beefheart, Zappa, Sun Ra, etc. A strong and sometimes operatic vocal delivery is the vino that completes the meal.

Conn said that The Golden Age “is really about this depressing realization that I managed to extend the teenage years into my mid-30s—that’s happened to a lot of people. American society is structured to deal with superficial identity questions to keep people from making trouble. If your main issue is how you dress and can you wear nose piercings to work, then you’re probably not going to protest war.”

Personnel:

Bobby Conn – vocals, guitar
Monica Bou Bou – violin, keyboards, vocals, recorder
Glenn Kotche – drums on tracks 1, 4, 5 & 9
Colby Stark – drums on tracks 2, 3 & 7
Pat Samson – drums on track 8
Josh Abrams – bass
Jonathon Joe – bass, guitar
Jeb Bishop – trombone
Thymme Jones – trumpet
Ernst Karel – trumpet
Fred Lonberg-Holm – cello
Nick Sula – piano

Track Listing:

1) A Taste of Luxury
2) Angels
3) You’ve Come a Long Way
4) The Best Years of Our Lives
5) Winners
6) The Golden Age
7) No Revolution
Pumper
9) Whores
Bonus Tracks:
10) Seiko Shinai
11) The Whistler