Rock 'n' roll will never die. The adage may only be three-fifths true for Detroit legends the MC5. Even though singer Rob Tyner and guitarist Fred Smith have passed on to Rock 'n' Roll Heaven (Cleveland), the group has recently reformed under the moniker DKT/MC5, and they continue to kick out the jams around the world.
The band is perhaps one of the most politically notorious bands of the 1960's, a decade known for its seemingly endless supply of idealistic political folk and rock. In an age when stoned-out ideas of peace and love reigned, band manager and guru John Sinclair urged "a total assault on the culture by any means necessary, including rock 'n' roll, dope and fucking in the streets."
Though to my knowledge nobody was actually conceived in the streets outside any MC5 performance, the band - and fellow Motor City crazies the Stooges - arguably sired the genre that kids are calling "punk rock." In the ensuing decades, the MC5 broke up amid indifference to releases subsequent to their classic debut LP Kick Out The Jams. Tyner and Smith both died of heart failure in the early 90's, apparently taking all hopes of a reunion with them.
"(The DKT/MC5 tour) came about because we were able to take a bad situation and make it into a good situation," said guitarist Wayne Kramer. "Rob Tyner's widow, Gary Grimshaw and Lenny Sinclair, the photographer, sold the MC5 out to Levi's when they didn't have the right to do that. They used our trademark. We were able to save it."
The remaining band members approached Levi's with a request to make good on its apparent commitment to the MC5 legacy by hosting a free concert in a small London club. Levi's was enthusiastic about the idea and former members of the MC5 took the stage with a slew of special guests under the name DKT/MC5. The show is documented in the DVD Sonic Revolution, due for release on July 6.
"With the DVD we thought maybe we would play a couple shows," said Kramer. "Maybe we could get a job in America. So when we got our agent to look for some work, the demand for an appearance was overwhelming. In 48 hours it went from one show to a world tour. It's very exciting and very humbling."
A change in name reflects a change in the way these would-be revolutionaries play. MC5, of course, stands for the Motor City Five, while DKT stands for the last initials of original members bassist Mike Davis, Kramer and drummer Dennis Thompson, who will be the only band members present for every show on the tour.
"This is a celebration of the music of the MC5," said Kramer. "We have a revolving cast. We've had different horn sections in a dozen different cities with charts by Dr. Charles Moore. And it's always changing. This ain't so much like a band as it is a traveling repertory company of performance artists and we use the music of the MC5 as a script."
Joining the company for their upcoming Tucson date are former Lemonheads singer and guitarist Evan Dando, Mudhoney singer Mark Arm, and singer/songwriter Marshall Crenshaw. For anybody familiar with the work of these disparate musicians, visualizing the band can evoke emotions ranging from curiosity to indignant rage, depending on your loyalty to any one of the artists.
"It really is in the true spirit of the MC5 to have such an eclectic mix of musicians," said Kramer, "because we never did anything based on what we should do. It's both a blessing and a curse. We did things true to the spirit of what we were about, to the principle. And these guys have such a connection to the music of the MC5 that they presented themselves."
Another connection seemingly implicit in the quasi-reunion is the government's role in national and global politics. The name MC5 carries with it visions of bloody Vietnam protests and rock 'n' roll wielded as a weapon against armored riot squads. For some, the parallels with our own time are hard to ignore.
"I kind of have this illusion that the politics doesn't really have anything to do with what we do," said Mike Davis, "but the reality is that it does and the crowds are very much expecting us to address the fervor that they feel about what's right and what's wrong. When we play it's like a political convention where everybody gets really excited and throws up their banners and screams for justice. And it's really a lot of fun because our justice is expressed in the music."
Whether over politics or musical hero-worship, an audience frothing at the mouth can inspire a band to push beyond their former limits.
"I had a lot less confidence 34 years ago," said Davis. "I was kind of like groping my way through it and discovering everything. Nowadays it's somewhat easier. It's just kind of a thing where you realize that your potential is unlimited and you put everything you have into it and achieve a unity onstage that involves a crowd. You just get the energy level so high that it blows (the crowd's) mind."
And whether they're blowing minds or fucking in the streets, DKT/MC5 is sure to kick out the jams like it was 1969.
DKT/MC5 featuring Mark Arm, Evan Dando, and Marshall Crenshaw performs with Suffrajett at Club Congress (310 E. Congress) on Sunday, June 27. Tickets are $15 in advance or $17 at the door.