Strangeways here we come again. Smiths & Morrissey tribute groups abound from Moz Angeles to the UK

Moz Angeles.  Oh how Angelenos loved the Smiths!!!  Lots of Southland sunshine was balanced with a healthy dose British gloom and doom .  Those raised on KROQ have fond memories of internal clouds brought by the perpetually dark lyrics of the likes of the Smiths, Echo & the Bunnymen, the Cure, Siouxsie and the Banshees and many others.  The Smiths appeared to be truly unstoppable with a string of hits in the UK and chart activity in the US.

Sadly, Morrissey would rather eat his testicles than reunite the Smiths.  A fairly dramatic statement from the Moz is a knife in the heart of those who love the old recordings and to the ever-present 80s nostalgia movement.  The Moz possesses an odd gift for lilting Florentine chantlike melodies inflected with his trademark baritone smoothness, pure tone and outrageously high falsetto.  Johnny Marr's guitar work still stands out in the crowd.  Listening to the old hits on a compilation still affects people all these years later.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery; great imitation is even better.  Tribute groups abound with varying degrees of success at imitation.  England's Smiths experience is brought to life by The Smiths Indeed who are gearing up for their Meat Is Murder 25th Anniversary Tour.  They've had rave reviews and come closest to recreating the band musically and vocally.  The boys are well loved in the Liverpool/Manchester area they and the Smiths hail from.  They tour the UK extensively, but they won't be coming here.

Club London plays host for a plethura of 80s tribute groups.  In among the fray lurks Los Esmiths.  A glance through the names and their location, Calexico, reveals an interesting cultural phenomenon.  Latinos love the Smiths, (Los Esmiths, get it?)  The lead singer of Los Esmiths, Ruben, is the Mexican Moz with muscles; far too beefy for the Moz's androgeny, but that's a a treat.  Spanish is sexy.  They will play Club London at El Cid on March 25, 2010.

A look through the concert advertisements at Amoeba revealed a card for Strangeways.  The West Covina local boys seem to be a bit new at it.  The singer's voice is a bit rougher sounding that the Moz and the band is a bit punkier rather than an exact copy.  It turns out they're Mexican-American, too.  Another muscular Morrissey?  Yay!  Concert announcements are at their myspace page.  They will be playing soon.

Louder Than Bombs will also play for Club London on April 1, 2010.  They do not try to copy the band exactly either.  Very little information about them was available.

Sweet and Tender Hooligans are the closest to the real thing in California.  They've been at it since 1992, so they've had plenty of time to practice.  The original Mexican Morrissey, lead singer Jose Maldonado appeared as Morrissey in the film My Life with Morrissey and in a Morrissey video.  Who knew the rabbit hole was so deep? 

This Charming Band's lead singer looks nothing like Morrissey, but Elvis has a million imitators, too.  They are based in San Francisco.  The Headmaster Ritual from their Myspace player is well done.  They appeared on a Smiths compilation called Stop Me If You've Heard This One Before.

There are songs missing from the repertoire for some of the bands, perhaps due to the vocal challenges of falsetto singing, or wacky chords that Marr used.  Part of the beauty of a true artist is their uniqueness, or in the case of a band, the unique combination of talents at a particular time.

If you know of any other Smiths tribute bands in California, please leave a comment.