OK, I'm coming out of the coma that the Shake Down put me into, and looking back on the Pictures I took and listening to the Recordings I made and suffering through the bumps and the bruises and the black eyes I received, I can honestly say that it was all worth it. Shame a few of you out there missed it, or only bothered to show up on the last day, when everything was winding out, and people were more about Recovering than Rocking. If I hear one more person referring to the Shake Down as a Rockabilly event I may puke. Yeah, some ghey ass Rockabilly bands played, and that fact was definitely more advertised in the papers and the websites more than anything else, but still, Punk Bands ruled the land. Did you see the Humpers? Fucking life affirming. The Clorox Girls? Mind blowing. The Rip Offs? Historical. The Dragons? Rocking like fuck. The Zodiac Killers? Face melting. Add to that the Mau Maus and Flexx Bronco and the Bourbon Saints and you got an ass kicking infusion of Punk Rock and Roll of the highest accord. I mean, look, it's days later and I'm still raving about it. This shit was great! It couldn't of been more fun. A lot of Local faces were definitely missing though. Like Hank. Hank, I hate you. :-)
This weekend has Unfair Fight playing @ the LVCS, a gig that NJ Pete promises will be a sloppy, mistake filled fun time! LOL Sic Waiting and End Reverse are playing too, so come on out Saturday night and count Pete's mistakes. The Over-Under is 10. ;-) Dead Lazlo's Place are playing at the Double Down Sat., and of course, the Ataris @ the Cheyenne Saloon is gonna be pretty fun that night too. Holding On To Sound and Battle Born are @ the Bunkhouse Saturday night as well, so choose wisely. Why are all the gigs happening on Saturday night? Bad planning or what?
Everything is updated. The Squeeze / Beat / Skooners Show Review is up and running, and you can click here to read it if you're so inclined. The 1/2 Ast photos from the LVCS are up, as well as the Black Jetts @ the Brass Lounge pictures too. I saw that Roy found them already, as he shared them on the bands Facebook page, giving me and 'Shitty Bob' credit for them... hee hee hee I wish it would rain already. The humidity is reminding me of FLA., and I'm missing that 'I'm in Miami, BITCH' mentality. Pretty Lady, come and save me! :-)
'Hey! You look pretty good for a guy who was born in the 60's'... hahahahahaha This would of been the best compliment ever if it didn't come from the doorman @ the Beauty Bar after checking my ID. LOL Yeah, it was that kind of a weekend, a lucky weekend, where the dice kept hitting 7's every time I threw them and my cup of Alcohol never seemed to get empty. If you stayed at home, you missed out. I'm not even gonna get into some of the more outlandish bullshit excuses I heard from people on why they weren't attending. Your Loss. Friday night the Rip Offs DESTROYED the LVCS, with a set so full of Punk Rock goodness that the Promoter threatened to pull the plug on the gig like, at least 5 times, on account of the Hatred and Abuse being thrown at the band in various ways, shapes and forms, from alcohol being spit directly on the band from the people in front against the barriers, to people just spitting mouthfuls of snot on them from every direction imaginable, and there were people throwing handfuls of change at the stage just hoping to hit something or someone, anyone, and, of course, full glass beer bottles being thrown with sniper like accuracy. Same with tall boy PBR's and plastic water bottles. There were more than a few Justin Bieber moments during the set! hahaha Gawd damn if I tell you I haven't seen anything like that since the good ol' days of Punk Rock back in the 80's. It very well could of been the Germs up on the LVCS stage, that's how Epic this gig was, and the fact that some people stayed away and didn't attend due to, ahem, various bullshit reasons, well, that just makes me laugh. You missed out on a good one. Oh man did you ever. This video footage, taken by a man who is just as Smart as he is Handsome, Joe 1/2 Ast, gives you an idea of just how majestic this gig was. It was like being @ the Wet Stop again! hahahahaha
Yeah, it was that kind of night. The Zeros did an AMAZING job of following up on the mayhem and Chaos that the Rip Offs had created by counteracting it all with some fucking Glorious pop songs that put a lot of the stuff that the Ramones did to shame. Musical Bliss and Heaven, it was. I bought a record and lost it somewhere. You're welcome to whoever found it, ya bastards!
Saturday found me waking up, baking up, showering up, grubbing up and drinking up @ the Beauty Bar for Round 2 of the Shake Down. Friday night it was all about Guinness and Patron, Saturday night it was about Jameson's and pharmaceuticals by the handful. It seemed like a good idea at the time, and in the end I'm glad I did because although the Dragons were Godhead, the Humpers were Godslayers, and my body bore much of the brunt of the battle, as I was front and center on the front line of the War between Band and Audience. "Gilbert, it is time to destroy the Beauty Bar", Jesse Jerk told me, and I could think of no better band to destroy this place to than the Humpers. The Perfect Soundtrack For Chaos and Destruction. They fucking KILLED IT! They laid waste to the place, and strutted among the ruins afterwords, pitying the survivors, and Proud of their accomplishments, like the drunken Hooligans that they are. The Humpers played one of the best sets I've ever seen any band play in my whole miserable existence on this Earth. Ever. Wow. Just fucking Wow! I couldn't even watch the Mau Maus afterwords because I felt ashamed to be alive after what I had just witnessed. I believe it's called Survivor's Guilt. I had it bad, so I situated myself on the corner of the bar where Deana took care of me with King Kong sized cups of Jameson's on the rocks until I was shit faced enough to drive home. Lucky. All weekend long. I couldn't make it to Sunday nights events, on account of my legs not working, my back not moving, and my bruises very much hurting. I wouldn't of gone anywhere near the Beauty Bar, where some bands I wanted nothing to do with were playing, but I think I missed out on some Cake and Whiskey @ the LVCS for Kate's Birthday party happening there. Oh well. I came home Broke, Beaten and Hungover. I think that means I had fun! LOL It was worth everything I put into it. The Shake Down was a fantastic fun time. If you missed it kill yourself now. Show Reviews forthcoming.
A band called Forth Yeer are playing @ Yayo Taco tonight, and if you are encouraged to attend. Xtal says they're pretty good, and she's got great musical taste, although I am worried about her new band. ;-) There's a gig happening tomorrow with Life's Torment and Short Attention Span @ the Redstone House, and on the same day @ Stonewalls you got Caravels and Rooftops. I won't be at any of those gigs, but there's no reason why you shouldn't be. I don't think I'll be going to any gigs for awhile. I just saw the Humpers. Who else is even gonna move me enough to make the effort to see them play? What band is even gonna come close to doing what the Humpers did @ the Beauty Bar on Saturday night? Like I said, the Dragons were good, but the Humpers were better. Much better.
The Pictures of the Rip Offs are up. I put the rush on them, since it's so easy now to put photos up on the website, figuring that more than a few people would be interested. Click here to see them. I like my Pictures. They're funky and soulful. Sometimes it's not about the clarity of the picture, but more like what the picture conveys about an event or time or feeling. Sometimes. Anyways, I gotta get some sleep. I think I'm going to a BBQ party with the Lower Class Brats later on today, but I'm not sure. I just hope they don't ask me what I think of their band... hee hee hee
THIS IS IT!!!
 So much fun that even Satan gets dizzy thinking about it. It's finally here! The Las Vegas Shake Down 2010 has hit the streets of Sin City and it's like a M-80 has exploded in my pants! This shit is going down Hard & Nasty, like cheap liquor, or like an over-zealous prostitute. If you miss out on seeing the Zeros and the Rip Offs tonight, then you might as well just fuck off right now and go kill yourself immediately if not sooner. I was reminded by Jesse last night of the last time the Rip Offs played here in what, 1994? 1995? At that little Mexican restaurant with Cyanide Blues and Boba Fett Youth (I think)? Oh man was that gig Epic!! What? You weren't there? Of course you weren't, Fagz. You were probably still shitting your pants in kindergarten when that gig went down, or listening to Pearl Jam and thinking you were 'Extreme'. Redeem yourself and see this gig! The Rip Offs are only getting back together to play this gig. You will not be disappointed. Believe that. Stay away from the Beauty Bar at all costs tonight, because it's just a ghey ass Rockasilly happening, but Deadbolt is bad ass though. Saturday is all about the Humpers and the Dragons and the Mau Maus @ the Beauty Bar. Hope you got tickets for that one, because I heard it's SOLD OUT! Deana, I'll be looking at you that night! ;-) If I live through my Beauty Bar experience, I may be laughing at the Poseurs playing there on Sunday, but it's highly doubtful. Anyways, get your ass out to the gigs, get drunk, dance around, and just forget all your troubles and hang ups, even if just for a minute. Music is a Gift. Enjoy the fuck out of it.
The meteor shower was Amazing!! I drove out to Red Rock to take it all in. Beautiful. Just like Gibson's 2nd Birthday party was. 2 for 1 whiskey shots, cake, candy and Raiders football. I'm glad band practice got cancelled, to say the least! LOL The Raiders looked good. Defense was solid, and we actually had a passing threat. Scary. It's a good time of the year. Hope you feel the same.
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