I woke up this afternoon to this link in my email: an intelligent story written by my friend Jarret Keene about Curl Up And Die and their most excellent album from like 10 years ago We Are All Robots that reflects a bit on the bands legacy and the whole awesomeness of that seminal release. It's on the Punks In Vegas website, which is a whole contradiction in terms that I don't even wanna get into, but it's definitely worth a read and you can click here to check that shizzle out. It's really good. Oh, I remembered what I wanted to bring up here - the Madness stuff! :-) As you can see, the Pictures are already posted, and you can click here to see those, and I finished the Show Review for the gig too, and you can click here to read that if you're so inclined. I'm no Jarret Keene but I do alright with the words. LOL I'm not a Writer, nor am I a Photographer. I'm just a music fan who wants to let people know about all the cool things that go on here in Vegas, and to give you an opinion on things I know about and observe, that's all. Take it or leave it, I don't give a fuck. Anyways, yeah, the Madness show review is the 1st one of the year that I've made public. I write lots of them, but I don't publish them because they're just gonna cause Drama with whatever band I'm critiquing, and really I just can't be bothered. I got better shit to do. Too many people take what I write seriously. It's pretty funny. Everything is updated. New stuff added, old stuff taken off. I fixed the Videos page and linked everything up to my YouTube channel, which you can find by clicking here. I made Public some videos that I had no info on or didn't hear back from the band about, like the Pigasus @ the Cheyenne video, the Dirty Panties @ Vamp'd video, The People's Whiskey @ Motor City Cafe and a few others I can't remember about right now. Anyways, they are all linked up and available on the newly updated Videos page, and you can click right here to check all of those out. It's a nice way to spend an afternoon at work, or so I'm told... heh heh. I gotta get ready for band practice. Go to that Deer Tick gig @ the Aruba tonight to support Zach Ryan & The Renegades, a bunch of cool guys that now feature Danny, the Prince of Drummers, on keyboards. He may have to relinquish that title pretty soon if this keyboards thing keeps up... heh heh heh
heh heh heh Detroit Rock City - funny movie. :-) And it's 4:20 in the morning... suhhh-weeeet! I did fuck all this weekend and it felt pretty good. I mean, I was doing 2 a day band practices - each practice with a different band, which will definitely keep you on your toes, that's for sure. I broke my drum kick pedal during the process, and by that I mean the steel bar that makes the pedals move just broke, like, snapped in two... weird. Bringing the Thunder each and every time. Yup! Thankfully Sunday's practice with Pigasus was called off, because Jesse & Roxie bid on some trip to Disneyland at some 80's themed auction the night before and they won, so for her Birthday they drove out to Anaheim, and they're even getting the star treatment because of Jesse's association with that Pawn Stars show. That is sooooo funny it's cool! LOL Couldn't happen to 2 nicer people. I'm sure they're gonna have the greatest time there. Not as good a time as when the Loud Pipes went there, but still... heh heh Congrats to Demon Lung on their CD release party. Kudos for whoever kicked the creepy drunk guy in the face at that same gig. I didn't wake up on Saturday morning to read anything about any naked, drunken escapades leading to any arrests in Hendertucky, so I can only assume that The People's Whiskey 420 party went well and stayed within Legal boundaries. Bob tried to tell me about The Dirty Panties gig @ the Double Clown, but he wasn't making any sense, so I'm guessing it was a fun time had by all. That's how it's supposed to be. Everyone Happy and having Fun. :-) Thanks to everyone for your concerns about me, but I'm fine. Seriously. Everything is updated. New photos of Vihan Rytmi were posted last week (click here to see them) but I forgot to tell anyone about them, and I just posted the photos I took of Deadhand @ the Double Clown a little while ago, and you can click here to see them. I'm gonna go back to listening to Stern before I get some sleep. I gotta wake up early to get a kick drum pedal at Guitar Center before band practice. Pigasus is playing @ the Bar & Bistro this Sat. night for Bobby Franks Birthday Party, and then on Cinco de Mayo @ the Arts Factory with the Mapes - get HYPED!! <3
Year End Lists - you know I love them! ;-) Seems like everybody and their Mothers were putting out lists, either about the best musical releases of 2011 or the best gigs they saw that year or the biggest shits they took or whatever, and after reading the Las Vegas Weekly's pathetic attempt at year end lists (which you can read by clicking here) I was inspired to attempt my own lists, so here they are! Top Ten Best Releases of 2011:1. Jesus Lizard - ClubOne of the most frightening live shows ever recorded. All killer no filler. The sound quality on this is phenomenal! Nothing released this year even comes close to how powerful and amazing this record is. Nothing. 2. Deadhand - DeadhandThe song writing, musicianship and emotions on display in this release still give me the chills. Scary good, and it still makes the hair on the back on my neck stand up every time a song off of this comes up on shuffle on my iPhone. 3. P.J. Harvey - Let England ShakeSimply astounding in it's musical brilliance. The best thing she's done since Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea. The woman is a genius. 4. Naked City Romeos - Naked City RomeosIf this CD came out in the classic Punk Rock era of yesteryear, it would be considered a legendary record alongside other releases by the Sex Pistols, 999, The Dictators and the Damned. Yeah, it's that fucking good. 5. Unfair Fight - A Constant StruggleAgain, if this CD came out in the classic Punk Rock eras of yesteryear, it would be considered an essential part of any Hardcore music collection alongside other releases by Agnostic Front, SSD, or the Cro-Mags. This release is incredible - enough said. 6. The Dwarves - The Dwarves Are Born AgainThe fact that the Dwarves are still around is to be commended. The fact that they put out this CD full of such kick ass music is just icing on the cake. A great release that gives you exactly what you'd expect and deserve from this seminal band. 7. Jane's Addiction - The Great Escape ArtistGoing back to their Nothing's Shocking drawing board, the band juggled bass players while coming together to create what is undoubtedly the best thing they've done in a long, long time. 8. The People's Whiskey - Eight Tracks And Dub SacksThis CD came straight out of Hendertucky to hit a home run with this raw, melodic presentation of some of the better songs the band has been playing around live for a while now. The impassioned vocals and musical stylings on here are just fantastic. 9. Faith - Subject To Change Plus First DemoThis often overlooked classic band finally gets the recognition they deserve by having all of their material remixed and remastered, and it sounds better than it ever did. For this material to come out this year is a godsend. 10. Napalm Raid - Trail Of The WorldOne of the heaviest, crustiest recordings to come out this year. This 4 song EP highlights the bands musical muscle in short, brutal blasts of fiery anger. Amazing stuff. And while I'm in the mood for it, here's another one: Top 10 Best Gigs of 2011:1. Melt Banana @ The BunkhouseIf you were there, then you know why this gig was the best one to go down this year. How amazing was the band? And the crowd?? Wowsers!! Definitely in my Top 10 list for the best gigs I've ever seen in my Life. Seriously. 2. Shellac @ The Beauty BarI don't know why they played, but I'm glad I was there! I stood directly in front of the band with my mouth agape in bewilderment as they just pummeled the crowd with one incredible song after another. This gig was soul cleansing. Fucking brilliant.3. Freddie McGregor @ Reggae In The DesertWowsers. I still can't believe I witnessed the King of Lover's Rock deliver a set of musical brilliance to an amorous and appreciative audience, who were hanging on every note the Man sung. 4. Deadhand @ Hypnotic LoungeThe band played a residency at this pool hall in September that highlighted their just released self titled EP, and to be able to see them perform live every weekend was a mind blowing treat. 5. Barrington Levy @ The Bunkhouse To watch this dance hall Legend up close and personal in this downtown dive bar, 2 days in a row no less, was akin to seeing Peter Tosh at the Double Down. Just. Fucking. Incredible. 6. Manic Hispanic @ Diablo'sTo see Jefe, fresh out of the hospital, lead El Hoakie Loco and their primos through a blistering set of old and new material was incredible. One of the best bands to play live you'll ever see.7. Zeke @ The LVCSThe high revving, nitrous burning Rock N Roll machine known as Zeke just fucking slayed everyone in the place when they played here, leaving no doubt that these guys are no one to fuck with when they play. Sheer genius. 8. Napalm Raid @ Yayo Taco These crusty Canadians played the most brutal set of D-Beat Noise Not Music that Vegas ever witnessed, and there wasn't more than 10 people in the room when they did it, and the intensity level was through the roof. Fuck yeah!!! 9. Descendents @ Punk Rock Bowling I only watched a little bit of it from the outside, because I wasn't stupid enough to pay to get in, but what I saw was pretty impressive. Not from the band, who have definitely lost a few steps along the way, but more from the crowd, who just showered the band with nothing but Love L-U-V while they played nearly every song that the people wanted to hear. Pretty great to see. 10. The People's Whiskey @ The Royal ResortI love these guys, and on this particular day they delivered a set of songs that was so fucking punk rocking, so memorable, that it was stuck in my mind for months afterwards. It was like seeing Nirvana when they played Al's Bar to like, nobody. This was one for the History books. Yeah, that's pretty good for off the top of my head. :-) While I'm reminiscing about the last month of the year, lemme publicly acknowledge one of the worst kept secrets in all of the Las Vegas Music Scene by Congratulating Ministry Of Love on their signing to Negative Progression Records. The band certainly deserves it, and I look forward to hearing their tales of no label support, no money, shitty touring situations and all the fun, fun times they're gonna have. :-) Their debut for the label, Party Animals, will be released in February. Again, Congratulations to Ministry Of Love for finally getting signed. Gives me hope that a record label out there might actually 'get it'. Yeah, First Friday tonight. I'm thinking about going down to see Pigasus and The Dirty Somethings tear shit up, but I dunno if that's gonna happen. Obligations, ya know? ;-) Tomorrow night it's all about The People's Whiskey / The Dirty Panties / The Quitters @ the Motor City Cafe, after I take care of some personal business in the morning. I don't have anything to do on Sundays now that football is over for me. :-( I was gonna go to a birthday party but it got cancelled, so, anyone wanna hang out and jam on Sunday? heh heh heh Everything is updated, I finished off all the Pictures for 2011, with the last sets being from The People's Whiskey, The Mapes and the Naked City Romeos. You can find them all to the side here. I also added all the photos to the Me And My Me And My Me And My Me And My Me And My Friends page as well as the Vegas - The City I Live In page too, which is weird, because those pages get a lot of views for some reason. I can't imagine why. ;-)
 _Yeah, the Vegascendents are a heading out to Grandpa Spooky's old haunt of Ventura, CA. this weekend to play the 2nd Annual Nardcore Bowling Tournament, with the highlight being the Dr. Know performance with original singer/guitarist Kyle leading the band, which, is going to be AWESOME!!! I haven't seen that line up of Dr. Know since they played with Battalion Of Saints at Perkins Palace... I think. Doesn't matter. It's been a long, long time since I've seen them and I for one am going to be jazzed to see the original lineup of Dr. Know play. If you're anywhere in the area, make the pilgrimage out to make the gig. Bike, Hike, Walk, Run, Parachute, Kayak, take the Bus whatever! Just get your ass up to Oxnard to partake in the festivities. Just be warned - Metrolink doesn't run up there on the weekends. Don't ask me how I know that. :-)
 _Well, if you're gonna stay in town this weekend, there is a shit load of stuff going on that I would be all over if I was staying in, like this AMAZING gig going on tomorrow night at some place called Pandora's Lounge with Surrounded By Thieves, The Happy Campers, Deadhand and The Dirty Panties. A better sampling of some of the best Bands gigging around in Vegas right now you will not find. It's Issac from The Happy Campers Birthday party, so bring him lots of Sex, Drugs and Rock And Roll Debauchery, because he secretly lives for that type of stuff. I mean, look - Dr. Rockso is on the flyer, which means the white stuff is going to be flying around the place, right? Right? ha ha ha ha Well, I guess if you hang out in the bathroom long enough you can find out for yourself who's holding and who isn't, and maybe in between all that sniffing and snorting you can check out some of the bands that are playing. Maybe. Cocaine is a Hell of a Drug.
 Saturday night, just forget about that Calabrese gig @ the Bunkhouse - that's just a stabbing waiting to happen. ;-) Instead, check out this super sick line up of noise bringers playing @ Yayo Taco instead: Batillus, Rituals, Demon Lung, Tyrants Of Torment and Arsenik. Man, if that's not a good assemblage of some Doom and Gloom Stoner Metal then I don't know what is! LOL Usually this stuff is pretty hit or miss with me, because a lot of the times I'm usually laughing my ass off at the absolute absurdity of playing songs so slow and heavy, but on the right day, with enough bong hits under my belt, I can definitely get into it. For a sample of what you're in for from Batillus, you can go to the bands website and get their Furnace release for whatever you wanna pay for it by clicking here, but don't be a jerk and pay nothing for it, because that's just a lame thing to do. This should be a good gig, especially with Demon Lung on the bill. Like I said, if I was here in town on Saturday, this is the place I would be at. I figure, if the bands suck, I can always eat some tacos, so it's not a total loss. ;-) And to whomever did that flyer for this gig - Kudos!
Saturday - if you're in the Nardcore area - don't forget about this:
The Vegascendents have been practicing hard for this one, which means we sit around and drink beer and BBQ dead things while watching Football, Hockey or Sons of Anarchy. Lots of people have been commenting us about being hyped on seeing us play, and I know we ain't gonna disappoint them. Not unless my arm falls off from bowling, or if someone gives me a bottle of tequila again... heh heh Sundays are made for Football, and with the Raiders playing the Vikings, I'm pretty sure that I'll be nursing a hangover on Sunday while watching my team destroy the Minnesota franchise. Yeah, it's gonna be a great weekend! Hope yours is going to be just as much fun as mine is! See ya when I get back! Wish me Luck! ;-)
Just a few things I wanted to bring to your attention. There's this thing going on this Saturday that Surrounded By Thieves are playing called The Humanitarian Festival. What that is for is to help raise much needed money for various Charities and Non-Profit agencies around the City. It starts @ 10 am and it's going down @ the Cheyenne Sports Complex @ the CSN Cheyenne campus, which is near Pecos / Cheyenne. It's Family friendly, there's gonna be food vendors, and a bunch of bands are playing that I've never even heard of, but I'm assuming they're all Local, so get out there and support a good cause and check out some bands. Surrounded By Thieves goes on at 6. ;-) Danny, the Prince of Drummers and Bartenders, has a gig going on Saturday @ the Bikini Bar that he seems pretty hyped about. It's featuring Big Sir, a band that has the bass player from The Mars Volta in it, and they're playing with The Uprising and a couple of dudes with acoustic guitars - Ugh! Anyways, click here to go to the Facebook page to find out more info on the gig and to see what the drink specials are. $20 all you can drink draft beer? NICE!! :-) This is where I'm going to be on Saturday. :-) Nobody move... Nobody get hurt... Yeah, Yellowman is going to be great! Haven't been to any gigs @ the Silverton yet, but I'm looking forward to getting my Reggae fix on with King Yellowman. Praise Jah! There's some sick gigs going down @ Yayo Taco this weekend, starting Friday with Hoax, Neo Cons, Doctorshopper and Nests. Don't ask me about any of those bands, because I have no idea. After the gig you got to choose between seeing the Quitters with Nopartyno and Horripilation @ Motor City Cafe, Xomby @ the Double Down, or the Dirty Panties @ the Arts Factory. Sweet way to spend a Friday night. :-)  Silver dollars for the dead man's eyes. The Tinglerz are playing @ the Double Down on Saturday, Unfair Fight and Sheep On A Cliff are playing with Destroyed In Seconds @ Yayo Taco, so if you're not going to Big Sir or Yellowman, then get your Punk on and have fun. Just get off your ass and have fun. Life is too short, ya know? See ya around!  To the Victor goes the Spoils!
Oh Jameson's - how I love thee! <3
Well, it's way more than 48 hours later, and for those of you who give a shit, I'm still a free man! ;-) hahahaha That thing with the Cheyenne? Forget about it. It's been squashed, and a gag order has been put into effect. The Godfather has spoken. That is all. :-) Un-rally the troops! Put those picket signs away! Stop the Boycott! Everything is cool. hahahahaha
Ya know, I just found out about those shows happening @ the Royal Resort this weekend for the Local Alternative radio station here in town. I'm told people still listen to the radio but I can't for the Life of my imagine why. Oh well. Fucking everybody and their Mom is playing the damn event - Guilty By Association, The Quitters, Ministry Of Love, The People's Whiskey (check these guys out! I'm so hyped on them right now), The Dirty Panties, Haleamano, The Happy Campers, and a bunch more, and I wish I would of known about it sooner, because I could of hyped it up a bit more, but I guess I just wasn't worth the effort of sending a Facebook invite to, or even a copy of the flyer. **Le sigh** Anyways, it's gonna be a pretty sweet shindig, with bands playing both poolside and in what they lovingly refer to as 'The Den', which is really just a blank floor space at the end of the check in desk / bar area. Nice. You should make an effort to be @ the Royal Resort sometime this weekend, if not just being there all weekend long! There's gonna be something for everyone there. Should be fun.
Besides that Royal Resort gig on Saturday, Guilty By Association are also playing Yayo Taco that same night. They're playing with Machine Gun Vendetta from Reno, and Surrounded By Thieves and Permanent Failure. It's Permanent Failure's last gig, as they're breaking up do to the usual "creative differences". I also think that these last few gigs of Guilty By Association are the last ones that they're doing with Bingo Billy on drums. I'm still not sure of the exact reason why he's quitting, and if what I heard is true really is, then that's even more of a bummer, but regardless, if you're in the mood for some Tacos, Beer and Punk Rock, then come out to Yayo Taco Saturday night and have some fun.
Everything's updated. The Mapes gig on Friday is gonna be great! See ya there!
What a fun weekend! I've been swept up in a wave of Christmas fun, but I'm doing my best to get things updated and added on here when I can, but like Bands and Bars here in town, everything is slowing down as things get closer to the Holiday. I'm not a particular fan of this month, because I lost so many People and Pets and Things in this precarious group of 31 days, but I'm trying to keep my shit together because, after all, Christmas is for the kids. Crass commercialism aside, it's all about the little ones and the look in their eyes when they see what you got them for Christmas. I see a few older people with that same look in their eyes when I tell them I bought them something for Christmas too! LOL It's kind of funny.
Ya know, the Dirty Panties are to be commended for the amazing work that they do at this time of year. As I was standing there at the bar at Boomer's Saturday night during their annual Holiday Toy Drive the band does each and every year to buy gifts for kids who might not get any for Christmas, I looked around the room and saw nothing but friendly faces, all caught up in the Spirit of the Holiday, all in different levels of inebriation. People seemed to dig the Vegascendents, and I think we did a pretty good job of playing. We won them over with Hurtin' Crue. Nobody covers Hurtin' Crue. Well, Snapcase used to, but they never played it any good. Quite embarrassing actually. Oh well. It was weird seeing the Happy Campers play with Chad from Battle Born on guitar. It's been years since I've seen them play - 2004 perhaps? They were just as I remember them. Sorry to the Dirty Panties and the Quitters for not sticking around, but I was dead dog tired and not feeling well at all. I couldn't even eat the carne asada burrito I bought for dinner! LOL And besides, I had to get up early the next day to watch the Raiders / Jaguars game. But to get back to my point, I really got to go out of my way to give some proper words of praise to the Dirty Panties for doing their little Holiday Toy Drive every year for those less fortunate than us. When it's right there in front of you, when you can see it right before your overtly jaded eyes, it's quite a moving sight. Dare I say it's even, inspiring? ;-)
Anyways, I'm gonna get back to wrapping my Christmas presents. Everything is updated. Stuff added when I get the time. Probably when I get back from California...
It's that time of year, where Bands and Musicians come together to do what they can in order to help those less fortunate than themselves, which, when you think about it, is saying a lot, because most people in Bands are pretty close to being in the poorhouse themselves! You got shows like this one happening tonight @ the LVCS to help poor children in Africa have well water.
And then tomorrow night's the Local 107.9 Holiday Toy Drive @ the Bunkhouse with the Mapes, Unfair Fight and the Remedies. Nothing With Numbers is no longer playing the gig, due to someone in the band being sick. 107.9 is a radio station, right? Who the Hell still listens to terrestrial radio anymore? Satellite radio rules the wasteland! LOL
And then on Saturday, it's a Holiday Benefit Show for buying some kids in need some much deserved toys for Christmas. The Dirty Panties, the Quitters, Betting On Tomorrow and the Vegascendents will be playing. Bring lots of cash to buy raffle tickets for a chance to win some of the cool swag being given away. Vegascendents play first.
It's not a Holiday gig in any way, shape or form, but Lydia Vance is playing the Brass Lounge with The Thought Of and Asterionella. I Am The Thief was supposed to play but, in keeping with their recent ways of getting on the bill and then canceling weeks later, they're not gonna make it to the gig. Booooooooooooo.
And all of this adds up to a very busy weekend indeed, with those who need help this time of year getting a little something something to get them through the Holidays. Pretty cool, right? If you're in a band and wanna help out the next upcoming Holiday benefit gig, which is for Shade Tree Shelter, please contact Roddy Belford @ roddy_belford@yahoo.com to get involved with that. Tonight's the Sharks @ Buffalo game, with the festivities going down @ the Hotel Amoroso, which is slowly becoming the most happening place in town to see and be seen at. ;-) I'm glad the clientele is as exclusive as it is there. I can only imagine what would happen if anyone and everyone started showing up there. Come on by and watch as the King lauds proudly and loudly over the Prince while his beloved Sharks attack and destroy the Princes lowly Sabres on their home ice. This victory will be oh, so sweet!
You ever have one of those dreams where everything makes sense, all is good, and right about the time that you realize that all your problems could be solved if you just paid attention to what was going on, or to the circumstances around you or even to what was being said, then BLAMMO! You forget what the solution was, you forget what was being said, you forget the circumstances you found yourself in. Yeah, me too. Don't you hate it when that happens?
Happy Birthday to my Buddy and Secret Plaything Pitt. He's like a butt brother to me, and I'm sorry that I missed you when you were here compadre. I can't explain the overwhelming feeling of dread that washed over me while getting prepared to attend that Bronx gig. I hate the Double Down but it's cool when me and you go there late at night and drink and talk, as long as it's about ANYTHING but Guns N Roses... heh heh. Happy Birthday Homo. I love you.
Lots of Vegas bands doing stuff. Playing gigs, both locally and out of state, recording lots of new demos, taking pictures of themselves @ their drunken bar shows...I'm hyped on all of it. The problem is, none of the bands I'm in are doing any of that...heh heh. Someone tell me what's going on? Did I miss a Memo or something? I'm loving the Back Stabbath tunes, the Vulcans demo is amazing, The Mapes make me laugh every time one of their songs comes up in my rotation, Dirty Panties music is OK, and even the Swenson Street Hookers stuff is good in small doses. Summer is right around the corner and I have only 2 words to say ~ Desert Shows. Let's make this shit happen! Who's down?
I jumped the gun a bit about The Exploited thing. The show is on. British Invasion Tour 2007, here in Vegas. I was just sick of negotiating with "their people" and let Brian handle it after a bit. I just didn't give a fuck after a while. That's why he's the Brains of Doomsday Productions. He worked his ass off to make the show happen and bring it to Vegas, and all thanks go to him. Well, him and The Objex. Why The Objex, you ask? Well, that's because they were stupid (or desperate) enough to actually PAY to be on the bill. Yup. Pay To Pay is alive and well and living in Las Vegas, and bands like The Objex further perpetrate the fraud by their participation in the scam. Shame on them.
Music Reviews coming up, Calendar page is updated, San Jose is in a slump, and I'm lost in video game land. I like going to shows. Are there any good ones coming up? Besides the ones Infestshit are playing? :-) Just because a show is on my Gig Calendar doesn't mean that I would go to it. It's more of a courtesy to my friends and whatnot. Speaking of friends, see you all @ the D.I. show this Saturday. It's an early matinee show (remember when Matinee shows would happen @ The Huntridge Theatre? Neither do I.), so either stay up all night drinking and go to the show, or wake up early and start drinking before the show. Special Brew for breakfast... mmmmmmmmmmmm. And then there's the after party @ Sin's house. Moonpies and Strawberry Shortcakes for all. Holy Fuck. Somebody save me...
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