The Courier-Journal from Louisville, Kentucky • 82

rim smm EHGCis 1 Uj A good Reputation if V. Elizabeth Elmore didn't expect much when she joined her first band, called Sarge, thinking that a little self-expression and a lot of traveling would be enough. But the Chicago band caught on with writers, and Sarge, despite a slight resume, became such a hot band that it was actually featured in Rolling Stone's infamous "Hot" issue in 1998. Elmore, then 20, was more freaked out than overjoyed. She was so freaked out, in fact, that fans speculated she broke up Sarge rather than deal with impending fame.

"I was very uncomfortable, but that had Also Showing Ocean Oasis Far showtimes and ticksts call 561-6100 Avgwct inai tn I I 1 ft V. 1 -J -r f- Elizabeth Elmore and her new band, The Reputation, perform tonight at Asian's How Art Gallery, 1906 Bardstown Road. A passionate and explosive drama i by a master i by i I I now thru oc IZsZ Education programs Philip Morris BROWN-FORMAN WINES nothing to do with the band breaking up," said Elmore, a frequent lightning rod for criticism, in part because Jeffrey Lee Puctett she so outspoken. "It was someone else's decision to break up the band, and I was a very unhappy girl when it happened. "But, I mean, Rolling Stone? That was pretty bizarre.

But I was only 19, 20 years old. Now, I'm happy about whatever attention we get." That's good because Elmore's new band, The Reputation, will get its share. The band's self -titled debut, on Louisville's Initial Records, is a sparkling pop album that manages to be instantly accessible yet hold up to repeated listens. It's honey mixed with gasoline. "I kind of have a girlie voice, and we're a relatively polished-sounding band, so I was afraid that people would dismiss us as just another pop band," Elmore said.

Elmore's lyrics prevent that. Confrontation is her strong point, and the emotions she deals with linger after the last guitar hook fades. In Chicago, people enjoy (or don't) searching for themselves in Elmore's songs. "I'm not real good at self-censorship," she said. "I like inside things.

I figure I'm writing for my friends, anyway, and I like to see if they can figure out who I'm writing about." The Reputation performs tonight at Asian's How Art Gallery, 1906 Bardstown Road (8 MAIN SE' us CUD lence and Joy." As always, tOhere is no smoking and no talking. Showtime is 7-9 p.m., and donations are suggested. Shorttakes The Filthy Rich are back for a weekend of jump blues at Barretones, 1012 Barret Ave. 00 p.m., $7, tonight and tomorrow). The Dick Sisto Trio picks up an alto sax player this weekend in Gray Mayfield, a buddy of the Marsalis family who is getting his master's in music at the University of Louisville.

Sisto plays for free from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. tonight and tomorrow in the Old Seelbach Bar, Fourth and Ali. Roman Candle is the latest guitar pop band to come out of North Carolina, a fertile part of the country for the genre. Headliner Adrian Below will likely counsel the boys on life in the music business.

The show is tonight at the Phoenix Hill Tavern, 644 Baxter Ave. (8:30 p.m., $15). Call Puckett. Jeffrey Lee Puckett's "Sound Effects" column appears each Friday in Weekend EXTRA. On Saturday, his "Tune In" column appears in SCENE.

You can call him at (502) 582-4160, send a fax to (502) 582-4665, or e-mail p.m., $6). Christiansen headlines, and Emanual Nice opens. It's Elmore's first performance in Louisville since signing with Initial. "I first met those guys in Detroit years ago, before they moved to Louisville," Elmore said. "They were into Sarge, so I called them when The Reputation came together.

They're all great guys." LRSFest Skate punks and rock 'n' roll collide (wear your helmets, now) Sunday at Waterfront Park for the Bud Light LRSFest. Default, Tonic, Flaw, Stone-sour, TrikTurner and Trust Co. will perform from noon until 10 p.m. A portion of the $15 admission will benefit the second phase of construction at the Louisville Extreme Park. Tickets are available at the gate, and music starts at 2 p.m.

Listening Rud Singersongwriter danny flanigan has always made sure that other singersongwriters have a quiet place to perform in Louisville, and his latest venue is The Rudyard Kipling, 422 W. Oak where his Us-tening Room is staged on the first Thursday of every month. Ryan Adcock, of Cincinnati, joins flanigan Thursday. His new album is called "From Si 504-1 205 a czizTzthzzirQ.cvQ Third 4 Main Encore at Actor Rmiourant 4 Bar Indoor Parking Vtffr Page 6 The Courier-Journal Weekend EXTRA TEM BER 27, 2002.