Elvis Perkins

I love Jim Jarmusch movies, and when I first heard about Elvis Perkins, the one thing that came to mind was a recurring scene from the movie Mystery Train involving a pair of teenage Japanese tourists on a visit to Memphis who argue again and again (albeit in a very quiet, respectful Japanese way) over the real king of rock: Elvis Presley or Carl Perkins.

Much to my hopeful conjecture, Perkins' name is not a cross between the two, nor is there a lot of rockabilly or boogie rhythm in his music, but he does have an interesting back story. Elvis Perkins is the son of actor Anthony Perkins (famous for his role as Norman Bates in Hitchcock's Psycho) and Life Magazine photographer Berry Berenson, who died in the September 11 attacks.

Despite his background, Elvis Perkins has flown below my radar until just recently, when I heard some of the tracks from his debut album Ash Wednesday, and "Shampoo," the single from his forthcoming album Elvis Perkins in Dearland. Admittedly, my taste in music leans towards the singer-songwriter set, and I can't help but love the soulful, unhurried, honest quality of his singing. His new album comes out 3/10, and I mentioned earlier that I'm looking forward to seeing him at SXSW, but he'll be in Seattle at the Tractor Tavern about a week before the festival on March 9th. Going to try to make that show.

At any rate, here's the source of my tangential frame of reference: The Great Mystery Train Debate (That's John Lurie's original score you hear briefly in the background.) And here's some Elvis Perkins for you: Elvis Perkins' Homepage.