Nixon to have his Mojo working tonight

Apr. 13-16, 2006

Roots-rocker comes out of retirement to get kinky for Friedman

By Doug Freeman
Daily Texan Staff

Photo courtesy of Bullethead

Mojo Nixon, known for his outspoken social commentary, will perform tonight at the Continental Club.

When the irreverent Mojo Nixon retired after 2004’s SXSW performance, he did so with the simple statement “I have nothing more to say.” But it’s not surprising given the current political atmosphere that Nixon’s got his mojo running again.

Tonight, Nixon takes the stage at the Continental Club in support of Kinky Friedman’s campaign for governor. The show is one of only three that Nixon will be playing in Texas to help get Freidman on the ballot and in the Governor’s Mansion, but his return should be heralded more as a political and social statement in itself.

Mojo Nixon became an underground celebrity in the 1980’s. Fueled by college radio in its heyday, Nixon’s crass and politically incorrect songs became cult classics and made him an unlikely spokesperson against Reagan-era conservatism. His biting and reckless sarcasm playfully ridicules corporate America in songs like “Jesus at McDonalds” and “Burn Down the Malls,” while “I Ain’t Gonna Piss In No Jar” takes aim at the anti-drug “Just Say No” campaign.

He also famously butted heads with Pat Buchanan on CNN’s Crossfire over the issue of record censorship and holds the dubious distinction of actually having an article censored from “Hustler” magazine. Nixon currently hosts a show for the Outlaw Country Channel on Sirius Satellite radio, as well as a weekly political review called “Lying Cocksuckers.”

In his music, Nixon’s social satire is intertwined with his no-holds-barred redneck assault on rock. His songs infuse a rockabilly and blues style with the ethos of the 1980’s southern-California punk scene out of which he emerged. Nixon continues the tradition of roots-rock in the vein of Sun Records greats like Jerry Lee Lewis, Johnny Cash, and Elvis, in both his life and work. His biggest hit, “Elvis is Everywhere,” even pays hyperbolic homage to the ubiquitous influence of the King.

Like artists such as the Beat Farmers and Tav Falco, Nixon kept the influence of hardcore country circulating through the underground in the face of post-punk and new wave pop. And his own influence can be felt equally today in the reckless drunken abandon of blue-collar rockers like the Drive-By Truckers and Southern Culture on the Skids.

Although he stills lives in San Diego, Nixon has always had close ties to Austin. His former touring band, The Toadliquors, included local musicians and former Neptunes members Wid and Wetdawg. And it was here, after all, that former Eagles drummer Don Henley surprised Nixon onstage in 1992 to sing along to “Don Henley Must Die,” a song that had earned Nixon death threats from Henley fans.

Nixon’s return to South Austin in support of Kinky Friedman shows both his commitment to the city and reformist politics. He’s even re-recorded his hit single with the lyrics “Kinky Is Everywhere,” which he undoubtedly will be playing tonight. If Kinky can’t get on the ballot with that kind of support, then we may be worse off than even Mojo will admit.

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