Decades ago, when I was living in Southern California and writing The World of Ron & Nancy Magazine, the fanzine for my band Ron & Nancy, we interviewed mike watt and he was totally amazing about it, wholly generous with his time and taught us everything we ever wanted to know about professional wrestling. An enthusiasm of his. Mike solo materials and work with the bands he has played with endures, of course. A founding member of the Minutemen; Joe Baiza heard Watt's bass coming through the walls and made him think electric guitar could be a form of expression for him on a par with painting, which is where he was at, so he went out and formed Saccharine Trust... Later on watt formed firehose - which Baiza played in, played with the Stooges, and I love Watt's tour diary he kept while touring with Tav Falco. One time I went to see Watt's bass duo, Dos at a Long Beach bowling alley, but he'd had a bicycle accident and so instead has called his friend Flea to stand in... Flea brought his trumpet. Oh what a night. I am only scratching the surface of a lifetime of independent musical creativity.
For Watt's next massive move, he teamed with with iconoclastic guitarist, vocalist and bandleader, Mike Baggetta and drummer, Stephen Hodges—who has played with Tom Waits and Mavis Staples, to create mssv. They've already put out a bunch of 7" singles, split singles and two full length LPs and undertaken lengthy tours. Their 3rd LP, On and On will be available on March 7th, from BIG EGO records of Long Beach, Ca. The features artwork by John Herndon of Tortoise. While the digital versions feature eight separate, tracks; The vinyl features these pieces joined with connecting passages into two continuous side-long movements, making for a trippy and experimental listening experience.
To accompany the release of On and On, the band will undertake a mssv tour of the US, followed by a jaunt to over Ireland and the UK. The tour dates are below. Is that a June 9th gap in the schedule for Birmingham? I know they don't know what to do with a day off.
Meanwhile, if you're unfamiliar with the bands oeuvre, here's a snatch mssv performing 'Human Reaction' in December 2023. Bit punk, bit jazz, bit beat poetry up top, all great.
mssv HARU tour 2025
USA
mar 13 - thu - san pedro, ca - the sardine
mar 13 - thu - san pedro, ca - the sardine
mar 14 - fri - costa mesa, ca - the wayfarer
mar 15 - sat - joshua tree, ca - giant rock meeting room
mar 16 - sun - phoenix, az - cibo
mar 17 - mon - silver city , nm - whiskey creek zocalo
mar 18 - tue - albuquerque, nm - guild cinema
mar 19 - wed - albuquerque, nm - guild cinema
mar 20 - thu - lubbock, tx - co-opt
mar 21 - fri - oklahoma city, ok - resonant head
mar 22 - sat - dallas, tx - the wild detectives
mar 23 - sun - san antonio - the corn pound
mar 24 - mon - houston, tx - continental club
mar 25 - tue - baton rouge,la - mid-city ballroom
mar 26 - wed - jackson, ms - end of all music
mar 27 - thu - birmingham, al - saturn
mar 28 - fri - tallahassee, fl - the bark
mar 29 - sat - orlando, fl - will’s pub
mar 30 - sun - gainesville, fl - loosey’s
mar 31 - mon - savannah, ga - el rocko lounge
apr 1 - tue - charlotte, nc - snug harbor
apr 2 - wed - greensboro, nc - flatiron
apr 3 - thu - washington, dc - pearl street
apr 4 - fri - philadelphia, pa - solar myth
apr 5 - sat - Kingston, ny - tubbys
apr 6 - sun - new york, ny - mercury lounge
apr 7 - mon - east providence, ri - myrtle
apr 8 - tue - keene, nh - nova arts
apr 9 - wed - winooski, vt - the monkey house
apr 10 - thu - syracuse / ithaca, ny - TBD
apr 11 - fri - buffalo, ny - mohawk place
apr 12 - sat - pittsburgh, pa - mr smalls funhouse
apr 13 - sun - cleveland, oh - beachland tavern
apr 14 - mon - columbus, oh - ace of cups
apr 15 - tue - Indianapolis, in - state street pub
apr 16 - wed - chicago - hideout
apr 17 - thu - madison, wi - gamma ray
apr 18 - fri - st paul, mn - turf club
apr 19 - sat - iowa city, ia - gabes
apr 20 - sun - kansas city, mo - recordbar
apr 21 - mon - omaha, ne - reverb lounge
apr 22 - tue - wichita, ks - fisch haus
apr 23 - wed - eureka springs, ar - chelsea’s
apr 24 - thu - tulsa, ok - the shrine
apr 25 - fri - amarillo, tx - golden light
apr 26 - sat - Santa Fe, nm - cocoon
apr 27 - sun - flagstaff, az - orpheum theater
apr 28 - mon - las vegas, nv - the griffin
apr 29 - tue - bakersfield, ca - bakersfield sound co.
apr 30 - wed - sacramento, ca - torch club
may 1 - thurs - arcata, ca - miniplex
may 2 - fri - san francisco, ca - bottom of the hill
may 3 - sat - los angeles, ca - zebulon
Ireland and UK
may 29 - thu - brighton, uk - prince albert
may 30 - fri - ramsgate, uk - ramsgate music hall
may 31 - sat - southampton, uk - suburbia
jun 1 - sun - cardiff, uk - psych & noise fest
jun 2 - mon - liverpool, uk - acoustic room coffee
jun 3 - tue - manchester, uk - gulliver’s
jun 4 - wed - glasgow, uk - òran mór
jun 5 - thu - belfast, uk - voodoo
jun 6 - fri - waterford, ie - bank lane
jun 7 - sat - kilkenny, ie - cleeres
jun 8 - sun - dublin, ie - the grand social
jun 10 - tue - newcastle, uk - cluny 2
jun 11 - wed - hebden bridge, uk - trades club
jun 12 - thu - bristol, uk - exchange
jun 13 - fri - reading, uk - face bar
jun 14 - sat - london, uk - the lexington
Essential Information
mssv website is here