Tour paying tribute to late Detroit Cobras singer lands in Bay Area
SAN FRANCISCO -- A memorial tribute tour honoring the late Detroit Cobras singer Rachel Nagy comes to the Bay Area this weekend with former Zen Guerilla vocalist Marcus Durant fronting the band for shows in SF and Albany.
Along with primitive late '80s garage rockers the Gories, the Detroit Cobras sowed the raw rock and soul seeds that would flower into the Motor City garage renaissance of the early 2000s with the rise of the White Stripes. Founded in 1994 by former exotic dancer Nagy and guitarist Mary Ramirez (aka Maribel Restrepo, whose '80s band the Vertical Pillows was mentored by MC5 singer Rob Tyner), the group made its name with its fiery, fuzzed-out reinterpretations of lost R&B and early rock nuggets.
Teaming up with several talented players on the Detroit scene including guitarist Steve Shaw and Rocket 455 bassist Jeff Meier, the group began building a following with its feral, sometimes unhinged live shows and a series of bracing 7-inch singles. While the membership of the group besides Nagy and Ramirez would be fluid, the Cobras would eventually sign with Sympathy for the Record Industry on the strength of Nagy's sultry, bad-girl vocal delivery and the band's savvy selection of songs.
The group's full-length debut Mink, Rat or Rabbit firmly established the Detroit Cobras as a garage-rock powerhouse, earning rave reviews on both sides of the Atlantic (particularly in the retro soul obsessed UK). Additional accolades and more extensive touring would follow the release of the band's sophomore effort Live, Love and Leaving in 2001, though they received as much if not more exposure when Jack White included their take on the early Otis Redding cut "Shout Bama Lama" on his Sympathetic Sounds of Detroit compilation that also featured such scene stalwarts as the Dirtbombs, Bantam Rooster, the Paybacks and White's own band.
The Cobras continued to play to receptive audiences and release additional collections through the 2000s with new studio collaborator Greg Cartwright (guitarist in garage-rock notables Reigning Sound and the Oblivions), including their first stab at an original song with "Hot Dog (Watch Me Eat)" on their 2004 album Baby. Though the band would not release another full-length record after their fourth album Tied and True in 2007, the Detroit Cobras continued to be a popular live attraction with semi-regular performances near their Michigan home base and occasional touring.
An uptick in activity over the past few years with more extensive shows and the release of several singles since 2018 found Nagy and Martinez delivering soulful new cover tunes and the original tune "Stay Down" written by longtime drummer Kenny Tudrick. A planned U.S. tour in 2020, postponed due to the pandemic, was set to bring the band back to the West Coast last year. Sadly, Nagy passed away in her New Orleans home last January at age 48.
Ramirez and the band have insisted there is no way to replace the late co-founding lead singer, but a memorial concert celebrating Nagy's life and the music she created last August that featured former Zen Guerilla singer Marcus Durant -- who also fronted an all-star line-up for the explosive MC50 tour led by guitarist Wayne Kramer in 2018 -- led to the Detroit Cobras embarking on their current tribute tour. Ramirez and Durant will be joined by longtime Detroit Cobras members Steve Nawara (Rocket 455, Electric Six) on guitar, bassist Dale Wilson and Tudrick on drums.
For this Friday night show at the Bottom of the Hill, the Cobras will be joined by noted Berkeley garage-punk upstarts the Atom Age, Oakland synth-punk band Garras Suicas and DJ Sid Presley spinning records before and between bands. At the Ivy Room in Albany Saturday night, the band is joined by a pair of high-octane groups. Openers Hot Laundry are fronted by pint-sized spitfire singer Janette Lopez and mix the vocal harmonies and sass of legendary girl group the Shangri-las with the blistering proto-punk of Detroit heroes the MC5 on their recently released album Pawn Shop Gold. Support outfit Very Paranoia is an all-star proto-punk venture, featuring Hot Lunch drummer Rob Alper on guitar (he also played in SLA, the Fells and the Sermon) as well as members of late lamented punk/metal greats Annihilation Time (bassist Chris Grande and recent addition Jamie Sanitate on guitar), Assemble Head in Sunburst Sound (drummer Jefferson Marshall) and Dragon Rojo/Salem Lights (singer Cory Linstrum).
Detroit Cobras
Friday, February 17, 8:30 p.m. $17-$20
Bottom of the Hill
Saturday, February 18, 8 p.m. $17-$20
Ivy Room
