Joe Jack Talcum plays a Saturday matinee at Rainbow Records

The Dead Milkmen founder brings his solo songs to Newark's record store on November 21, with Death by Indie, for ten dollars at 3 p.m.

There is a particular pleasure in watching a songwriter you have known for decades play a few feet away from the new-arrivals bin. Newark gets that on a Saturday afternoon later this month.

Joe Jack Talcum plays Rainbow Records in Newark on Saturday, November 21, at 3 p.m., with Death by Indie also on the bill. Tickets are $10 through Eventbrite. The show was announced in mid-October, so you have a couple of weeks to clear the afternoon.

Joe Jack Talcum is the stage name of Joe Genaro, a founding member of the Dead Milkmen, and the name he has carried through the band's whole run. His solo sets are a different animal from the band: Flagpole, previewing one of his shows, described him as the Dead Milkmen founder bringing Joe Jack Talcum to town, a solo, mostly acoustic act built on his own songs.

He has never really stopped. Talking to Loud Fast Philly, Genaro put it simply: "I am still playing with the Dead Milkmen." Alongside the band he plays the occasional solo acoustic show under the Joe Jack Talcum name. WXPN, rounding up the Dead Milkmen's side projects, has followed his solo releases, including a tape of solo tunes put out on This & That Tapes, and fans who track his catalog describe him as more prolific on his own than with the band, much of it recorded himself.

"I am still playing with the Dead Milkmen."

That habit of recording at home and putting things out in small runs is part of why a record store is the right room for him. Rainbow Records knows how to do this. The shop spent years on Main Street before construction pushed it out; the Newark Post covered the store closing its old storefront and reopening in Pomeroy Station, and later followed it as it settled into the new space. The bigger room was the point: the Delaware Small Business Development Center noted at the time that the expanded location let Rainbow host benefit concerts on Saturdays. The owner has since opened a second shop, International Groove Records, at 280 E. Main St., so a Saturday on Main Street can easily turn into a crawl between the two.

What to expect: a short, intimate set in a store, not a punk show. Afternoon start, ten-dollar ticket, and the chance to hear Dead Milkmen-adjacent songs in a room where you can actually hear the words. Death by Indie fill out the bill.

A few practical notes. A 3 p.m. start means you will be done in time for dinner on Main Street. Tickets are general admission through Eventbrite, and a store holds far fewer people than a club, so if you are planning on it, buy ahead rather than counting on the door.

Bring cash for the bins. You will not leave empty-handed, and neither, probably, will he.

Sources: Joseph Genaro (Wikipedia) (en.wikipedia.org); Athens Popfest preview: Dead Milkmen founder brings Joe Jack Talcum to town (Flagpole) (old.flagpole.com); Joe Genaro (Loud Fast Philly) (loudfastphilly.com); Dead Milkmen side projects (WXPN) (xpn.org); Rainbow Records preparing for move to new location (Newark Post) (newarkpostonline.com); Rainbow Records settles in to new location (Newark Post) (newarkpostonline.com); Delaware SBDC on Rainbow Records (delawaresbdc.org); Rainbow Records owner opens International Groove Records (Newark Post) (newarkpostonline.com); Tickets (Eventbrite) (eventbrite.com); JamBase listing (jambase.com)