[Sidebar] The Worcester Phoenix
April 5 - 11, 2001

[Features]


Dial 401 for action

BVC at Ralph's, Mickey O'Halloran remembered

By Brian Goslow

Woonsocket, Rhode Island, which sits just to the south of the Massachusetts border, is an old industrial town much like Worcester, that, along with its Blackstone Valley Heritage Corri

dor status, is best known as the home of jazz and R&B emporium Chan's. That may be about to change -- it's fast becoming known as the base of operations for the Blackstone Valley Crew. While some people are having trouble adjusting to the new area codes, the 401 gang is having no problem getting their message out to a growing number of fans.

"Well party people in the place yo here's the story/It's about some guys who are bound for glory/I'll get right down to the nitty-gritty/The BVC is going to rock this city!" -- "No on 15 (Revenge of the Nerds)" from Woonsocket

The BVC's spirit and energy recalls early Eastcide and 7th Rail Crew. The 24 tracks (which includes various hidden assaults, as well as their cover of House of Pain's "Jump Around") on Woonsocket, their initial calling card, are a refreshing mix of the best attributes of both the new and the old rap and rap metal genres. On "Huckleberry," vocalists X-Up, Gwrox, and D-Nite rap in the endless party style of the Sugarhill Gang; they're accompanied by bassist Legion's "Demon Bass Emptiness." There's nothing empty about the group's sound -- you'll find few late night party albums as good as Woonsocket. The lyrics to "Just Another Sunny Day" are accompanied by a recurring toy piano beat sound that swirls inside your head, while "Southside" is the band's tribute to Woonsocket strip club K2U. You can't help singing along to "Blackstone Valley Boo-Ya," while you'll find yourself looking to get busy to "Suburban Superstar," which is introduced by the sound bite, "There's nothing more whack then when white guys try to act down." You'd have to be dead to not crack a laugh at lyrics like "Born and bred middle class white trash/I wouldn't know a ghetto if it blew up my ass/The only thing I know about the streets are they're paved" and "I'm not here to preach or to teach you Ebonics/Your mother knows I'm down to shop at Newbury Comics." Boo-ya indeed!

The BVC recently shot a video for "Have a Nice Day" at an abandoned Pawtucket milk factory; it can be downloaded at www.blackstonevalleycrew.com. They've also been nominated as Best New Act in this year's Worcester Phoenix Best Music Poll as well as Best Rap Act in the Providence Phoenix Best Music Poll. This Friday, April 6, the Blackstone Valley Crew join Seven Hill Psychos (who'll be playing their first show with new guitarist Andy Holmes) and Wunderlick at Ralph's on Friday.

He Loved That Dirty Water

Longtime Bay State music aficionado Mickey O'Halloran passed away last week after a long battle with cancer. Worcester music fans may remember O'Halloran from his stint booking bands at Sir Morgan's Cove at the end of the 1980s, after a period in which the music room (now the Lucky Dog Music Hall) had been temporarily converted into a sports bar. Using the knowledge and connections he had gathered working in the Boston area, O'Halloran helped revive a music scene which had been given up for dead.

"He did a lot for Worcester," recalls Locobazooka promoter Dan "Danimal" Hartwell, who may have learned a trick or two from ol' Mickey. "He taught a lot of the musicians how to handle the business angles and hooked Worcester musicians up with a lot of Boston clubs and agents. He brought some connections into Worcester and brought in some bands. Worcester benefited from the trade-off."

O'Halloran was in the process of producing a compilation of Worcester bands when he was involved in a near-tragic car crash which kept him out of action for a few years. The disc was never released and Mickey spent the 1990s and the rest of his life in the Boston area.

"He was real fair to all the bands," says Danimal. "He gave them all a shot -- and if they needed it, he gave them a kick in the pants with the hope they'd make it."

Brian Goslow can be contacted at bgoslow[a]phx.com



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