I hate that I missed this on Friday. Fucking HATE IT!! :-( Deadhand @ the Royal House playing that Nirvana tribute thing.
Yeah, I missed out on that awesomeness because I was at band practice. Another day, another band apparently. The count is now up to 5. Yeah, I think American Buckshot is back and ready to Bring The Thunder © like we used to do, which is awesome. Another set of songs to learn. I think my left hip is deteriorating at a much more rapid pace than it should be, because it has been in constant pain as of late but oh well. I'm having fun. LOL Saturday I had band practice before playing my debut gig with Pigasus @ the Bar & Bistro for Bobby Frank's Birthday get together (I never saw Mr. Franks all evening), and I think we did pretty good, based on what everyone was telling me after we were finished playing. I was nervous, broke a couple of sticks in half from bashing them too hard on the drums and I made a few mistakes and miscounts but I think I did OK overall. Besides the 'you sounded good' sentiment that was being shared by alot of the attendees, I think just as many people were tripping on me playing at a much slower pace than they're used to seeing me play! LOL Hey man - I'm versatile, I swear! There was too many fantastic people at the place for me to focus on anyone in particular (yeah right), and I Thank all of you who made the effort and came out, especially Dean, fresh from his trip somewhere overseas doing something he probably shouldn't of been doing somewhere he shouldn't of been. Good to have you back Brother. You have no idea of how good it is to see you. XOXO
Shit. While I'm thinking about it, I never shared this Madness video I shot with my trusty iPhone when they played here a few weeks ago. It's for one of my favorite songs off of their debut album, Bed And Breakfast Man.
I also forgot to bring up the fact that Sham 69 had cancelled out of their appearance at Punk Rock Bowling this year, due to Jimmy Pursey's father deteriorating health, so instead, the Cockney Rejects will be taking their place. Now I had heard that the Cockney Rejects were the 'Secret' band playing that Civilians / Youth Brigade gig, so does that mean that there will be a new secret band taking their place? Who knows? The last time I saw the Cockney Rejects was back in the 90's and they were just dog shit terrible. The time before that was sometime in the mid 80's after they went Metal and gawd, they were just fucking horrible then as well, but every time before that, they were fucking incredible, playing most of the songs from their brilliantly titled first album Greatest Hits, Vol. 1. The band is supposed to have a documentary film and a new album out this year called East End Babylon, but I don't know what's up with that. I'm sure they'll be playing few, if any, songs from that album though. I'm sure they've smartened up by now and realized that people only wanna hear the 'Hits' and they'll play just that and all the little tossers can run to the merch booth and buy the swag and post on Facebook how they just saw the Cockney Rejects and me being the old dude that I am will correct them by saying No, you did not see the real Cockney Rejects, much like seeing a Danzig / Doyle thing is not seeing the real Misfits. What you will get at Punk Rock Bowling is the Geggus' brothers latest musical project, and if it was anywhere else, like at a club, I probably would of checked it out, because I'm a HUGE Cockney Rejects fan, but it's not worth just standing around like cattle in a pen tolerating all the shitty bands just to see the ones you like, and therein lies the crux of why the whole Punk Rock Bowling thing sucks shit balls. Oh well. Everything is updated. I added a bunch of simply fucking AMAZING gigs to the Gig Calendar page, including the almighty Freddie McGregor's return to Las Vegas, as well as a return visit from Don Carlos himself. Oh, I am sooooooooo at both of those gigs. You have no idea. There's some other good one's coming up too, but I forget what they are. I'm just spazzing out on Freddie McGregor and Don Carlos. Wow. <3 I posted those Pictures of The Lost playing at the Double Clown Saloon up last week, so click here to check them out if you're so inclined. I'm gonna go play some Tiger Woods PGA Tour 10 and work on winning a Tournament. :-)
Yeah, look at what you missed out on... heh heh
I know! A new Mapes song! And it rules!! ha ha ha It's worth watching just to see Haywood J. putting his mouth around a beer can and guzzling it down with no hands involved! LOL Now that's Sexy times 12! ;-) Oh man, Friday night was sooooooooo much fun. Yeah, I know everyone and their Mom went to that Adolescents / Youth Brigade / Vermin gig @ LVCS (sheep), and I heard it was a pretty OK show (what was up with TheCore cancelling?) but the gig @ the Arts Factory had better bands and a record swap meet, with lots of crates and boxes full of colored vinyl goodness! I was in Heaven!! ha ha ha I easily blew hundreds of dollars stocking up my vinyl collection with stuff I used to have and stuff that I never had before. F-U-N. Phooey to the elitist record collecting scum dogs who wouldn't take my money for their records. I lost out on a few choice pieces of vinyl because of it, but that's OK because it was their loss. :-) All the Bands that played were cool. Vanish Twin from AZ. were easily the highlight of the night, playing some twisted Neurosis type ambient noise grind-core shit. Here's a video of them doing a song called Looking For Flames. I stopped recording at the end of the video because I thought they went into a different song. ;-) They continued playing for like 3 minutes after I stopped filming... heh.
Yeah, I was just hanging out and walking around doing my thing and observing the happenings and goings ons and whatnot. Life's Torment kicked things off with a blistering set of Noise not Music that was just broooootal as fuck. Why don't these guys just pack the places they play in with fans going ape shit over their music is beyond me, but whatever. I'm all about catching small, intimate performances with little to no one there, as opposed to big HOB corrals full of automatons and sheeple. Lame. Watching Bob play drums is a trip, because he's a lefty, but his technique is destructive and he's got a good sense of timing and fills which is cool to watch. Larry looks like he's channeling demons when he plays his guitar and screams into the microphone, and Travis acts like he's being tortured and mutilated while he shreds the bass and screams along. Life's Torment are fucking Ace and they just get better and better every time I see them. They're pretty fucking sick and you should check them out each and every time you get the chance. If you like your Punk music chainsaw fast and just as delicate, then look no further than Life's Torment. They bring it each and every time. I posted the photos I took that night already, and they're over to the left of these words. ------------------------>
Speaking of checking things out, check out this thing that Fuzz, one time bartender extraordinaire at the Legendary Cooler Lounge (R.I.P.) has going on. It's a solo project called Fuzz So Low (get it?) with Fuzz playing guitar while accompanying himself on a kick drum and set of high hats. It was pretty cool stuff and it's always fun watching Fuzz kick out the jams. Kick out the jams... get it? Oh, the puns are flying fast and furious today! :-)
Fuzz So Low played inside, and everyone else played outside. Good Greens ( a total Sublime rip off band) played inside, and Spotted Dick And The Love Stew cancelled. Again. Do those guys just sign up to play gigs and then don't play them or something? LOL Sabertooth Snatch (from AZ.) played, and they were pretty good, in a Victim's Family kind of way. I don't think they went over too well with the majority of the crowd, either because they were a bit different then what Die Laughing and Life's Torment threw down, or because everyone was inside checking out the Record Swap Meet. Either or, not a lot of people were checking out Sabertooth Snatch, which was a shame because they were pretty good. Check them out for yourself and see.
_And last but not least is Die Laughing. They were pretty good but their set kind of just meshed into the Life's Torment set, because they played back to back from each other and they're basically the same band but with a different bass player. How Bob pulled that one off I'll never know. ;-) The music they play is kick ass though, so it makes it worth it. Their set was short but sweet, ending with a Black Flag cover that brought Travis from Life's Torment back on stage to handle lead vocals. Check out the video and see how well they did thrashing out Gimme Gimme Gimme. So yeah, there's my little video wrap up of everything that was going on at the Arts Factory last Friday night. It was a great time and if you weren't there, then you're lame. And if you were at that gig at the LVCS instead of this one, then you're stupid - real stupid. :-)
Yeah, I realize the irony in protesting censorship of the Internet by self-censoring myself ON the Internet, but still, pretty funny stuff. It's also funny how the news about the censorship of the Internet movement was spread via the Internet as well. Oh the delicious irony! The fact that some people out there optimistically believe that they have any say in what the Government is or isn't going to do is laughable to me, although this little censorship issue apparently caused 30 Senators and Congressmen to flip-flop on their position on this, so who knows? Maybe the People can have a say in what goes on in their Government? Or maybe this is feeding the masses just enough to keep them from starving. Giving the dog a bone. Whatever. I thought it was interesting. I participated. The End.
 Hey! I don't know if you saw the flyer on your way in here, but there is this pretty fun looking gig happening this Friday at the LVCS: Adolescents / Youth Brigade / The Vermin / TheCore It should be interesting, to say the least. I haven't seen either headlining band in a while, so hearing them running through their 'Greatest Hits set seems like a pretty good way to cap off a Friday night. My Friday night is going to start at the Hellpop Record Swap Meet, where I'm gonna have a grip of cash to buy records with, and if I'm not too busy drooling over some pretty colored vinyl, I might check out some of the bands that are playing, which includes Life's Torment, Die Laughing and, of course, The Mapes. <3 There's some new band playing that's composed of members of 1/2 Ast, but those guys don't like me anymore, so phooey to them. Check them out if you're there though.
Speaking of things you should check out if you're so inclined, tonight @ the Double Down Deadhand are playing some AVN kickoff party or some shit. They're playing with some shitty bands that aren't worth mentioning, bands that think that sexual gimmicks and sloppy blow jobs will allow them to 'make it', whatever that means. The sad part is that some of my Friends like them... Jeesh! hahaha Whatever, go check out Deadhand tonight - you will not be disappointed, unless they decide to play some of their shitty acoustic covers they've been doing as of late for that other 'Punk Rock' website here in town. Acoustic guitars are NOT Punk Rock. Neither are beards, for that matter. Get over it already. Seriously.
 _Oh, Saturday night this band called Thousand Watt Stare is playing at the Bikini Bar. I'm told they're pretty good and that I might like them, but again, they're playing with some shitty band that's not worth supporting and because of that, I'll be staying at home. Man, I wish these people in these bands would just go away. You can't talk shit about people, run away without paying what you owed them, burning all your bridges in this town and then move away and then come back after a few years and just act like everything is OK and all is forgotten and forgiven. Just because you found new people to believe your bullshit doesn't mean that you're the 'Cool Guy' that those ignorant few think you are. Well, it's either that or maybe I'm just an asshole, I dunno... heh heh Bikini Bar is a cool place, and if you got nothing better to do on Saturday then stop by and check out Thousand Watt Stare and tell me how they were. :-)
Sunday! Sunday!! Sunday!!! Old School Metal comes to the House of Boooooo's when Anthrax, Testament and Death Angel tear shit up there. I've seen all 3 of those bands many, many times before and if I'm feeling all nostalgic I may just stop by and see how well they've aged. Anthrax's new album Worship Music is pretty good, so I may go just to hear how new songs like Fight 'Em Till You Can't and The Devil You Know sound live. And, to watch Charlie Benante play drums. <3
Everything is updated. See you around.
So as I'm just waking up Saturday night and sitting at my desk, trying to figure out what I'm gonna do about my car being broke, I hear a shitload of sirens pulling up to what sounds like it's right in front of my house. Since there's a really nice lady who lives right across the street from me, I hurriedly walk outside to encounter this: The house across the street from me was on fire.
Yeah, pretty crazy right. While I'm standing there snapping pictures, I see some Po-Po's pulling in, and that's never a good thing at the scene of a fire. That means they found something in there that they shouldn't of, something criminal, and when I saw the false wall in the garage I was thinking meth lab, but instead, it was just a weed growing room.
A grow house, right across the street from me! If that don't beat all! LOL It was on the Channel 3 11 o'clock news later on that night, where they reported it as an electrical fire, which led to the discovery of a grow room. They also said they had a good idea who lived there which was good, because I sure didn't! ;-)
After they took a shitload of pictures (and told me I couldn't take pictures, for some strange reason), the Police called in some crime scene clean up crew to take all the stuff out, ripping like 25 or so plants out of this house, took all the grow room equipment apart and broke it and piled it up on the sidewalk, weighed the weed in cardboard boxes, took all the broken grow room equipment away, boarded up the house and left. Another win on the War on Drugs I guess. The guy who owned the house came back at like 3 in the morning, looked at what happened and left. I can't imagine what was going through his head when he saw all this, but all I can say is, I hope he's got a good Lawyer! hahahaha And this is how I spent my Saturday evening, instead of going to Youth Brigade, instead of going to Raw Power, and instead of going to San-D and J-Sin of the Peccadilloes wedding. FML and curse my car for having a defective fuel pump. Again.
Hey! Through the magic of the Internet I just found out that the Apocalyptics are playing @ the Double Down tonight with the Shakes and Season Of The Nightmare. Go out and support a great band that deserves it, in a place that I wouldn't be caught dead in... heh heh
I just added a shitload of upcoming gigs to the Gig Calendar page, stuff like, oh, I dunno, Youth Brigade, Zeke, Dead Kennedys, Misfits, Voodoo Glow Skulls (now moved to the Beauty Bar... UGH!), Fu Manchu, the Adicks, CH3, the Pixies, Agent Orange, Angry Samoans, D.I., that American Carnage Tour with Slayer / Anthrax / Megadeth (siiiiiiiiiick) and lots and lots of Local gigs too. Check it out and plan accordingly. Interesting things are a brewing, that's for sure. ;-)
To say that last night was just fun would be doing it a grave injustice... last night was THE BEST!!! Our new singer Tony pulled through like a champ, and everyone was really impressed with him. To do what he did in the short time we had to work with him was simply amazing. Cheers to you bro, and to many more shows just like this one! Someone told Pitt that the show was filmed for the Nicole Sligar show Your Underground, and I'd love to see the footage... I wonder if you could even see us through all the fog that Schwab had going on around us while we played! You would of thought by the crowd's reaction and by the strobe lights and fog machine that we were the headliners! And I do think that we had a bigger / better pit than either the Swingin' Utters / Youth Brigade did, but it could have been the booze though. Uhmm... other than that... we got a new shirt design for the Halloween show with Curl Up And Die ... we might be doing an un-announced secret show somewhere in the city and now we're gonna focus on getting a proper demo done. Hopefully Tony isn't as hard to work with as Bryan was! heh heh heh
The Psychedelic Furs show was pretty fun... only because it was a band outing, not for the crappy music the band was playing. We've been working really hard on trying to get our shit together before the Youth Brigade / Swingin' Utters show... we've been practicing until like 4 in the morning every fucking day! Our new singer Tony is working out sooooo good it's not even funny. It's like he's one of us, ya know? Hanging out with the guy just assured it. We're going to be printing up some new merch this week, as well as trying to see how many more PA speakers we can cram into our practice space! Roxie was totally right about that damn Sonic The Hedgehog game stopping productivity... now that we've discovered the Dr. Mario-type game on it... we'll never get anything done! I also added the Curl Up And Die Pictures from Utah...
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