Trouble in Mind

Kendall says he's pleased with Tuesdays, but he admits that he still has trouble getting used to the sound of his Lurch-like baritone. "Every time I hear my voice, I just kind of flinch. I was listening to some of the new stuff today, and all I could think was, 'He's flat, and that's that.'

"But I like getting up in front of people," he continues. "I like being a game-show-host kind of guy--more like an emcee. I think that's why I ended up being the singer in the first place."

Anyone who's seen the band play knows that Kendall belongs on stage. The singer works the crowd like a punk-rock Bob Barker on stilts (he's six foot five), passing out complimentary prizes, blowing requests on his out-of-tune sax and bantering with audience members. At one of the foursome's more memorable shows, Kendall laid out a dozen pillows and engaged in a pillow fight while the rest of the band blazed through a rousing rendition of the theme to TV's Batman. All in all, a Girl Trouble show falls somewhere between a pilsner-fueled sock hop and an episode of The Gong Show.

Unfortunately, Kendall hasn't gotten much of a chance to show off his skills lately; the act's current tour is its first since the appearance of Shame. In the interim, the group was seen in Hype!, filmmaker John Pray's exhaustive documentary about Seattle's grunge explosion. The movie exposed Girl Trouble to a wider cross-section of listeners, but Kendall would just as soon forget the entire experience. "Jesus, that was a whole fiasco for us, too. I'm just glad we finally made it in there."

The singer is more excited about the use of a Girl Trouble song in Highball, a forthcoming flick starring Eric Stoltz, Ally Sheedy and Peter Bogdonavich, and the prospect of returning to the studio in the near future. "Mark my words, because we're really going to start kicking some ass here pretty soon," he declares. "We've got about a half a record's worth of new material, and we're going to record it and haul ass and get another album out as fast as possible."

If there's nothing good on TV, that is.

Girl Trouble, with the Down-N-Outs. 9 p.m. Tuesday, October 13, 15th Street Tavern, 623 15th Street, $6, 303-572-0822.