Preen like a monkey

It was a maximum big bang for your buck Saturday night at Buffalo's Town Ballroom with The New York Dolls, The Supersuckers, The Chesterfield Kings, The Charms, and The New York Vaults.

The Vaults kicked off the rock loud and heavy with juke-joint swagger and arena muscle. It was the wake-up --- and reminder ---the audience needed.

The Charms played tight and energetic as well, with a garagy crunch and classic transitor pop. Besides, shiny black leather on a suicide blonde always sounds good.

And all hail the Chesterfield Kings. They exploded with Mose Allison's "I'm Not Talking" and simply did not let up. Greg Prevost's performance was a non-stop tantrum as he seethed and slithered about the stage swinging his mic stand and body recklessly. The Kings brought it, they rocked it, they strangled it. The night belonged to them.

The only ones not directly under the Dolls' umbrella, The Supersuckers played fast and furious, if not a little low key. Generally a Supersuckers show can get pretty out of control. But the band's trademark arrogance --- and the skill to back it up --- was still there. They dug out some early hits like "Good Luck" and a killer cover of Willie's "Bloody Mary Morning."

The New York Dolls were already rollin' into "Looking For A Kiss" when the curtain parted. David Johansen mugged and preened a lot like the monkeys he's prone to write about. Black-clad Sylvain Sylvainpinballed about the stage. The new guys in the band sounded better on the new material, frankly because it's theirs. When the band whipped out classics like "Jet Boy" or "Trash" they played them better and tighter than the original band ever did. And that's the standard a lot of us still hold the Dolls to; a standard that has left only two standing. Two rock 'n' roll legends standing, playing just inches from my face. And as long as cats like Johansen and Sylvain keep it rollin' I'll never find myself getting nostalgic. I'll never have to long for yesterday.