Jon Spencer “Spencer Sings the Hits” 2018. Shove Records, limited edition (300 copies) tour edition, signed by Jon Spencer last night in Madison, WI where Spencer played in support of the Melvins at High Noon Saloon. It was AMAZING! We were so close to Spencer that I got a bit of the sweat of the Blues Explosion on me.

Spencer and his backing band played a mix of tracks from his new record (the retail edition set to drop in September) and a few select songs from JSBX and Heavy Trash. I was able to snag the set list from one of the drummers (the guy on the standard drum kit, the other percussionist, Bob Bert, sat behind what appeared to be a refabbed car engine atop a bass drum and hooked onto a trash can; he hit his kit mainly with hammers).

Songs that appear on Spencer Sings the Hits that he played last night are (from Side 1): “Do the Trash Can,” a seriously funky ass-shaker with Spencer’s signature guitar sound, “Overload,” which is both funky and creep-slinky – a bit reminiscent of the vibe from Plastic Fang, “Time 2 Be Bad,” fuzzed-out with an addictive beat, “Ghost,” the most blues-smashing, sinister and experimental song of the night and “Beetle Boots,” which is wild and, on the recorded version, Boss Hoggy with the backing vocals. From Side 2, Spencer performed “Hornet,” another groovy funkster, “Wilderness,” which is super-heavy, “Love Handle,” a slower tempo’d beat-complicated burner, ‘I Got the Hits,” which I think really could be a hit it’s so goddamn good, and “Cape.”

Spencer also included a couple of JSBX songs in the set, including “Dang” and “Shirt Jac,” the video links from the High Noon show at the end of this post, plus Heavy Trash’s “The Loveless” and Pussy Galore’s “Pretty Fuck Look” and “New Breed.”

After the show, Spencer was at the merch table so we got our album signed, bought a t-shirt, got a couple of photos (Joe and Jon opted for some silly faces) and chatted a bit.

We did not pick up a poster because I’m friends with the artist, Fran Ramirez of Bureau of Print Research and Design, who made the Melvins/Spencer print for the High Noon show and I opted to get it directly from him. Here he is in his workshop with the print that will soon be hanging on our wall. (He has a few prints still available for sale)