27

FRIDAY

What the fuck was so great about Cheap Trick? Sorry to kill a sacred power-pop cow, but that band was mediocre at best when taken in context—with its peers and a lump of salt. Or maybe I missed something, and Cheap Trick “provided the necessary links between ’60s pop, heavy metal, and punk,” as AllMusic.com suggests. And maybe there are a whole bunch of people who missed the thrill that first time around, and upon “rescuing” a copy of Live at Budokan were so stoked by that sick sound that they just had to adopt it. And maybe there are a whole bunch of people nostalgic for the sweet sounds of crap. Retisonic falls somewhere in there. Or maybe those guys hate Cheap Trick. But it sure doesn’t sound like it. Retisonic plays with Jets to Brazil and the Love Scene at 9:30 p.m. on the Black Cat’s Mainstage, 1811 14th St. NW. $12. (202) 667-7960. (Mike Kanin)