To receive a copy of the latest OXBOW newsletter, send an e-mail to: ox_bow@hotmail.com

Newsletter No. 26: TRAGIC. BUT UNDERSTANDABLE. "RACIAL EPITHET SPURS ALLEGED KNIFE ATTACK" "An inebriated man who yelled a racial epithet at two men was stabbed repeatedly by the men, who also stole his wallet, police said yesterday. The victim, a 22-year-old Pacific Islander, and his white 21-year-old friend, were drinking in a parking lot standing next to their vehicle. 'Two subjects walked by, and our victim called them a derogatory name for Blacks,' said police agent Tim Boen. The two men he had just insulted then attacked him. 'They stabbed him seven times—two in the head and five in the body,' he said. The victim's friend who drove him to the Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, when asked to describe the two assailants, said they were, in fact, Hispanic." -- Richard Cole It was something else. Really. Something else. That is, not the thing you were expecting but the other thing, the thing you never were expecting that made the difference and is, in actual fact, the heart and soul of divine comedy. The things that were expected: 1) Misery untold 2) Sin beyond redemption 3) Your ass in the air 4) Fiery death on the road to glory 5) And disdain, disdain, disdain The things that were not expected: 1) that engine leak sealant really works 2) that the Best Western has a designated Oxbow room 3) that the Angel of Mercy drove 4 hours to see our show 4) that the TV director fella that asked Eugene "You're quite athletic aren't you?" actually got his feelings hurt when in career destroying maneuver # 3907 Eugene screamed at him during the on-air interview "What?!? You coming on to me?!?" 5) and finally that no one got choked, fucked, beaten, sodomized or sexually ridiculed. We're speaking of OXBOW's third and last SOUTH BY SOUTHWEST (SXSW) experience. What? What? Whoa whoa whoa. You thought we were talking about the war. Hold on a second.

OXBOW'S OFFICIAL POSITION ON THE GULF WAR SEQUEL: There are cheaper ways to kill bunches of people for no good reason. And as soon as we find that Ralph Nader fuck we'll be sure to ask him what they are since at one point him and his squadron of sandal-wearing warriors seemed to have almost all the answers that there were to have on that and just about every other issue. SXSW: WITH DEATH. OR WITH COCK While last year we actually attempted to pull a Garrison Keillor/Studs Terkel/Mark Twain and wander through the hinterlands playing shows to people in any towns we could on the way to SXSW, this year we decided to take our pain, straight up, no fucking chaser. Just like the first year. Which, yes, would make this the third year we've played. In very typical OXBOW fashion the news that we were invited TO play was greeted with a Greek chorus of yawns. "Do we have to do this again?" "Why are we doing this again?" "Is there a reason we need to do this again?" "I told you I never wanted to do this again." And from the wilderness a voice, call it Eugene's that said: we must do this again because I already filled out the paperwork. And still this failed to persuade. Until this: "Hi. Me and my incredibly hot bitch friends Nina and Marjan are planning on coming to see you all play at SXSW. We're going to cover it for The Face magazine. It'll be an article and a documentary and we're also bringing a shitload of people with us. You're sure you're going to play, right?" And so the Greek chorus scratched itself, yawned and finally responded: "Do we have to do this again?" "Why are we doing this again?" "Is there a reason we need to do this again?" "I told you I never wanted to do this again." And from the wilderness a voice, call it OXBOW's new and totally put upon "manager" Mark Weiss said: we must do this again because this is where I will make the contacts that will allow me to get you guys the "BIG" shows. And then another voice from the wilderness. Well not actually the wilderness but the OXBOW van where it sits in a yard strewn about with weeds and used syringes and currently housing the nearly naked, knee-padded and willing to offer you "wrestling" lessons for a small fee, Eugene, who right after changing his name to "Alky" said: The hot bitches have called me from beyond the dunes. And so I must go.

GO SPEED RACER, GO SPEED RACER, GO SPEED RACER GO SPEED SPEED SPEED SPEED SPEED So there we were 30 hours away, the iPod cranking on the newly installed van stereo, and everybody but Dan "Steak and Champagne Only" Adams who flew in, on board. Niko, Greg, Eugene, and Chris "Fozzy" Holden. Oh yeah and like a boxful of bindles of a whole assortment of special driving powders and potions. Melynda from Subarachnoid Space offered to drive us until we explained the terms and conditions of participation in a LONG, hard OXBOW van ride: constant and continual fucking root action. She demurred. In a side note: Fozzy did not. Make of this what you would. But we stopped in the same gas stations. The same guys in the same gas stations said the same things, in particular this one East Indian fellow once again wished us "Merry Christmas". We wandered through the same truck stops glassy and saucer eyed, smelling like van ass, and gritting our teeth against the refrain from the pseudo-anima cartoon Speed Racer, until we pulled into Austin, smoking van and all and repaired to the Best Western for a fitful night of non-sleep and keeping a watchful eye on the escorts that seemed to be having a busy night of trading sex for cash apparently right in front of our open hotel window. A window we kept open so we could gun down anyone who thought stealing our van seemed like a really good idea. The Angel of Mercy, another medical professional friend of ours whose identity we cloak here to prevent him from enduring any more punitive legal action on our behalf, showed up after having driven 4 hours and though he didn't show up with the a doctor's bag of medicines, as all good doctors should, his company was more than enough because we had decided that we had finally reached THE CHUCK DUKOWSKI PHASE in our lives. We remembered going to Black Flag shows and seeing Chuck Dukowski and before recognizing him for who he was, our friend and bass player for the band we had come to see, we'd always go through the same thought process: who the fuck is that degenerate loser? And so it goes with OXBOW and the Angel of Mercy. Though we're ALL musicians. Though we were here to PLAY music, in our wanderings, creepings and tweakings through town, gun in pocket (the same gun that James Bond carries by the by), we caught random glimpses of ourselves in the odd passing plate glass window and the darting eyes of passersby and we finally realized that we don't look like we belong here. Call it our collective understanding of the death of hope. Call it the bellicose stumble of men who god has mocked. Call it what you would but we look, smell and feel like one long, extended act of felony and it seems that everyone knows it. 30 hours of awake time. Jesus Christ. We are Jesus Christ. But enough from us, motivated as we are by THE LOVE OF THE PEOPLE here's what they had to say about whatever happened when it happened when we played SXSW.

SXSW w/CHAD! The minutes before Oxbow took Le P's stage at 11pm were bizarre indeed. Maybe it was the 463 grams of incense the stage hands were lighting...maybe it was the hushed tones from nearly everyone within earshot, anticipating this Oxbow like they were The Beatles, back from the dead, playing in the waiting room at your dentists' office. I was only there cause their description at SXSW.Com hooked me, but I soon saw what the fuss was about. Stalking the stage with a bloodthirsty stare, pentagram tattoos and a disappearing wardrobe, Oxbow's singer delivered some of the most dramatic and intense vocals I've ever seen or heard. His performance was certainly SXSW's most frightening. He continually beat his body with a clenched fist and microphone throughout the entire set, behaving like a man who was losing it right there onstage, in front of our eyes. In addition to getting down to his skivvies (and pulling them down frequently to play with the only band member who wasn't rock hard solid), the front man also had his ears duct-taped shut, drooled on himself and pretty much freaked the entire crowd out. It was a beautiful thing. Absolutely beautiful performance art slash brutal rock. Electrifying and relentless, Oxbow proved to be the hands-down highlight of SXSW Wednesday. Amen. http://www.crazewire.com/features/20030320185.php And a personal note from Mr. Chad, Hairdresser to the STARS! Awwwwww shit!!!!! I saw the Oxbow's SXSW showcase last Wednesday and nearly lost my mind! Thanks sooooo much for traveling here for that show. Y'all were one of the best things I saw at South By Southwest.... certainly you were the most intense.-chad beck SXSW PREVIEWS BAY AREA'S COMING ATTRACTIONS OXBOW: Picture an African-American version of Henry Rollins, who writes a column on street fighting when he's not spewing bloody rage, with a backing band good enough to play Led Zeppelin or jazz. - Brad Kava, San Jose Mercury News And since he brought it up, and it should be noted, for only the SECOND time in our band history has anyone been unimaginative to make this comparison point we figured we'd ask the burning question: HENRY ROLLINS versus EUGENE ROBINSON: IS THERE A DIFFERENCE? Answers will be accepted in essay form, as multiple-choice answers or a la Jeopardy. Winners will be published and will receive gifts guaranteed to total $200 in value.

AND ASSORTED SXSW EMAIL FROM THE DISGRUNTLED E-POSTAL AUTHORITIES SOUL TO SOUL I was there - so grateful I was. I'd been waiting to see these guys since reviewing their last CD, and the gig could not have been any further from disappointing. I was scared,entertained, excited - Oxbow really know how to wake your soul, and then snatch it right out of your chest.--K.O. I SAW DADDY BEAT A MAN UNTIL THEY WERE BOTH CRYING Hey ,this is craig from the band todd. just wanted to say it was great doing a show with oxbow. i thought it was a pretty good night. wish i had more of a chance to meet you guys, got exhausted carrying amps up and downstairs. i was watching you play from the stairs behind the stage. it was hilarious because i could clearly see the eyes of all the people watching you , all the guys were transfixed by eugene's crotch. like 30 rock dudes in front eyes drifting downwards, looking up at the face and then drifting downwards again for the whole show. it was great. so funny. but of course the music and performance beautiful and fierce. poetry.anyway hopefully we'll play together in london in july. Look forward to it. - Craig from the mighty, mighty fucking band Todd AND MAIL FROM THE USUAL SUSPECTS ON THE USUAL SUSPECTS STABBING WAGON "Hey Eugene, THanks for following through with the lyrics. I'll pore (I think that's how you spell that) over them and come up with some good stuff. I had a really fun time meeting you guys last night. That was the weirdest interview I ever did - all twisted around and uncomfortable in a creepy van, perpetually "at a disadvantage." I think it lived up to billing. Boy did I feel nervous. I was laughing out loud about it all the way home. Ok, if you would like, i'll call you some time after you get back to bounce a few questions about your craft writing lyrics. Maybe after you get back. Please let me know. I'd like to buy more Oxbow records. Could you please recommend one to start with? cheers, Roberto Martinelli, Maelstrom Zine (www.maelstrom.nu) THUMB'S UP, THUMB'S DOWN, THUMB UP YOUR ASS On the OXBOW movie from the OXBOW movie director after yet another test screening: "Everyone really likes the movie and the band by the end of the flick but, since nobody knows who you are when the film starts, they are confused and bored at the beginning. A decent contextual set up at the beginning should resolve this and bring it all together." Quotes of the night: 1) "I thought I wasn't going to be able to sit through the concert sections at the beginning but by the end I completely got it and was looking forward to hearing the music." 2) "I can't stand Eugene." 3) "I love Eugene." Eugene later asked "Please tell me that the person responsible for comment #3 was like totally fucking hot. The director responds to Eugene's pathetic egoism: "Sure." an evil pete Hi oxbow people, I'd just thought i'd drop you a line and say a few thoughts about your (quite) new album. I had heard of you from a few friends who highly recommended you, and i had tried to get hold of an album but failed. I went to new york with my course at the start of the new year and was looking at record shop there, and i nearly gave up until i thought i should have one look in the used section. And there you were, the only album in the 'o' section. And to think i could have missed out on such a fucking amazing record. I don't want this just to be a drawn out foot-kissing extravaganza, but i can't quite describe just how much i love the record. I have been listening to it religiously every time i go to the gym, when i am drawing (i am an art student....) and when i am praying. Okay the last bit is a lie. Your website is cool too, you sort of get a bit more of an insight into the genuine insanity that is happening. I think that's why i dig the record so much, i get the urge to roll around on the floor and scream till i see spots in front of eyes and when i listen to the record i can tell you mean what you are doing. It's way heavier than, well, anything i've heard before. I have played it to a few friends, and mostly they pulled faces and before asking if i could turn it off. Nevermind eh? By the way the friends who recommended you were the people who's house you stayed at in leeds. You weren't very nice to them in the tour diary were you? I'll let you off though. The guys from leeds i mean were called kill yourself, i think you/your drummer had an argument with james, the drummer of kill yourself. I think you stayed at my friends giles' house??? Anyway the actual gig did sound fairly hellish so forget about it. i think that we should all just be friends. I know james can be a little tempremental, but i think we should all hold hands and go skipping through the woods together, perhaps whistling coldplay songs to each other? Just a thought. Your job sounds a little like mine, apart from i sit in front of pieces of paper in holy robes and draw over pictures of jesus, and one day i hope to be paid for it too! You never said how much i would have to pay for the dvd? Is this a) because i have to pay via unorthodox methods: kidney, soul, sordid sexual favours etc. OR b) because you don't actually know how much it is going to cost? I am going to a party tonight hopefully taking my estranged friend lsd with me. see you later alligator kenn

WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY YELLING? MORE WORD ON THE LARGE SAC'D AND EIGHTH WONDER OF THE FUCKING MODERN WORLD: OXBOW'S AN EVIL HEAT OXBOW - "An Evil Heat" (Neurot Recordings NR017) ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Quite possibly the most menacing album I've heard since Neighborhood Texture Jam's "Funeral Mountain" back in 1990, but then, I've been stoned for much of the last decade, and I've stayed pretty far away from Unsane, so who can tell..... This is a heavy fucking beast of an album, most dangerous in it's quietest moments, cuz even when you hear those amps emerging from the smoke, yr never quite sure when it's all gonna explode, and then half the time it never does, instead recoiling back into a tight ball of stillness and potential......and I'm on fucking edge, I'm pulled tight on a fuckin' wire every time, all nightmarish trucker speed memories and an insatiable need to fuck or pray. And there's no doubt that "An Evil Heat" is all about God and cock - it's right there in the opening number(s), "The Snake & The Stick", wherein Eugene Robinson barks and pimps his ho's to a sinning preacher , "...I got couch sluts of every stripe, sir, boys and girls and the in-between types to your taste, sir, and even Christ knew a bargain when he seen it, I mean, Magdalene! Jesus H!" And Eugene Robinson howls and begs for redemption in all these songs, it seems, like a fallen priest himself. It's either a remarkably astute commentary on all the recent scandals in the Catholic Church, or men of the cloth have simply always liked to fuck like, well....men, and Robinson has tapped into that idea/truth. Either way, the weight of the words on this album will seem blasphemous among the more God-fearing set, and perhaps might come off as shock for the sake of Shock, you know - simple word games, juxtapositions that cross the line between every last dialectic you care to imagine - God/Lucifer,Good/Evil, Desire/Temperance, etc/etc......Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie quickly comes to mind in this regard - cartoon heathen soundtrack music for teenage surfer goths in Ft. Lauderdale. In comparison to this livewire menace that Oxbow unleashes, their music is square and soulless, whether their souls be good or an easy marketing ploy. But Oxbow plays heavy fucking beast music, no doubt about it, with 50 times the power of the Manson crue, and 1000x the sincerity. You can hear it in every last fucking wail and rant that erupts from Eugene Robinson's throat - he's frustrated, he's pissed, he's sorry, and he wants to fuck even though every last fuck that's come before has fucked him over in some seriously heavy fucking way...and it all sounds like he's down in a basement.....in a small dark lowriding room.....hot like a box of snakes....poisonous, stale air....and he's looking for God even though he's almost sure God isn't there.....and that's perhaps the biggest difference between Eugene Robinson and and Marilyn Manson - I get the sense Eugene is looking for his God, and really wants to find "him", whereas Manson has simply pushed God aside in favor of some costume devilry....I get the sense Manson just doesn't care whether there is a God or not, the unbridled desire of Satanism is just too much fuckin' fun. It's not so important to me, all this theological musing, but it's obviously important to Robinson, and by the sound of the fury this band whips up, it seems to me they're all caught in that same hot box of hope and despair, fear and trembling ascension..... To bring this rant back around to the here and now, utilizing the second most favorite maneuver of the Rock Critic, the hybridization technique, I could mention Black Sabbath because the fuzztoneand the plodding tempos are there, and when Robinson is nasal, he's got hints of Ozzy in him. I'll mention the Pixies for the Black Francis (and even Kim Deal) tones he approximates at times, and I can mention Soundgarden, circa "Ultramega OK", again for the the plodding tempos (not to say that this album is all downtempo, cuz it rages righteously at times), and the more dissonant chordings of Niko Wenner. I'll mention Slint, and I'll mention Sonic Youth, for more of those dissonant textures, and the freejazzmetal abstractions, most notable in the epic, 32 minute closer, "Shine (Glimmer)", which lives up to it's title when it rides a golden wave of feedbackfuck all the way to epiphany....after all the bleak hope and angry despair that fills this album, this last songs set it all free - the escape from the snake-filled hot box of yr skull....my skull....Maynard Keenan's skull....Rob Zombie's skull.....Eugene Robinson's skull.... If you need to hear one heavy fucking album this year, "An Evil Heat" most certainly must be the one. I'm dripping in a cold, cold sweat, and I need to get out. 94 out of 100 Hank hank@thebutterscotchthreshold.com

SHOW ME YOURS OXBOW UNPLUGGED SHOWS: APRIL 08.2003 CH geneve usine APRIL 09. 2003 F lyon kafe myzik APRIL 10. 2003 I torino o.o.f /website www.officine.net/off APRIL 11.2003 I milano bloom APRIL 12. 2003 I roma init APRIL 13. 2003 I napoli slovenly APRIL 19, SHADY BRADY'S, ROSEVILLE/SACRAMENTO with Logicseed, Uberkunst, and Condition. APRIL 27, HEMLOCKwith SUBARACHNOID SPACE MAY 20, BOTTOM OF THE HILL, San Francisco with Porch and Caesura. MAY 29, The Eagle: Mission Creek Music Festival: San Francisco jucifer/oxbow dates JUNE 19, san jose/tba (tentative) JUNE 20, oakland/sf JUNE 21, oakland/sf JUNE 22, san jose/tba (tentative FESTIVALS fri 27. Jun F evreux rock dans tous ces etats C sat 28. Jun F evreux rock dans tous ces etats fri 04. Jul F belfort eurockeennes tbc sat 05. Jul F limoges C sun 06. Jul F belfort eurockeennes sun 13. Jul B dour dour festival C NEXT ISSUE: IF WE MAKE IT BACK FROM ITALY ALIVE, WE'LL EXAMINE OUR HIGHLY DETAILED PLANS TO FUCK YOU HARD. [ Newsletter ]