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Thanks to the Independents for letting us play three shows with them this past week. Out next show is with the Groovie Ghoulies in Portland on the 28th. If you were looking for a copy of The Kelvis we now offer the “no frills edition”. See the merch page for details.
Show Journal 2005-04-17
Tonight was the last of our three shows with the Independents and just like the others ended up being pretty damn fun. Lots of friends came out which is rare, especially for a bar show on a Sunday, so thanks to all of you. The Gallows were first and included a guitar player, stand up bass, washboard player, standing drummer (think Stray Cats) and harmonica player. Definitely a welcome change to the usual bands we play with. The Railers were up next and we went on right after them. Our set seemed good, not too many mistakes, no broken equipment, and no long pauses. It’s nice to be playing sets without distractions again. The Independents were up last and did a great job once again. They are a totally unique band and we’ve been stoked to get to play with them. Thanks to Sabala’s!
Show Journal 2005-04-15
At long last … our 400th show. How far have we come since the first show? Not very. We arrived 30 minutes late, watched The Independents sound check and then set up on stage. After that we sat around for two very long hours waiting to play. When we played there were about 3 people in front of the stage, maybe 7 if you include those loitering between the bar and stage. There were a few more people towards the back but after being dubbed “Portland’s Motorhead” I realize we might have been too loud for an opening band. After we finished we wandered off in search of food, eventually locating a hot dog cart around the corner. I remember remarking, “that looks good but I bet it’ll make me sick”. I’ve never spoken words more true. About the time The Anxieties started I was left frantically hunting for a clean restroom. The club one was not an option because you could literally smell it from 40 feet away. Every other place was a packed college bar. Eventually I wandered long enough to locate a hotel with clean facilities. Walking in the mirror I noticed a layer of crust on my right eye. Good thing I had been talking to Alex, Glenn and the guys from The Independents with a layer of pink eye induced sludge hanging from my right eyelid. I wandered back towards the club, and after getting about 3 blocks I realized I hadn’t actually paid any attention to where the club was so I wandered the streets for about 10 minutes. There aren’t any real landmarks in downtown Eugene, but it didn’t matter too much because I realized the wrath of the hot dog cart was returning. Back to the hotel. Afterwards I ventured back downtown in the opposite direction and found the club ok. Due to my detour I missed The Anxieties and most of Satin Fury. The Independents were last and sounded great. They have got to be one of the nicest bands we’ve ever gotten to hang out with. Thanks to John Henry’s. No thanks to the hot dog cart.
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Ok, so The Independents totally rock. So does Dustin. Come check them out, him out and us out tonight in Eugene or Sunday in Portland.
Show Journal 2005-04-14
I can’t believe seven months had passed since we played in Longview. Of course last time we had a “regular” drummer was just about seven months ago so I shouldn’t be surprised. Then again is any drummer really “regular”? Amazingly we were only 15 minutes late to the show and considering Justin’s flat tire that is music to our ears. We wandered over the local casino for a quick bite to eat. During that time we missed all of BXF’s set which included a genuine 100% unplanned guitar smashing by Joel. I only get to see that stuff on TV, never in real life so I’m bummed I missed it. Arrrgh. Arrows For Eros (formerly the Ted Dancin’ Machine) was next and sounded tight and professional as usual. The Independents ended up going 3rd despite being the headliner of the show and on a 2 month US tour. I always hate going after the huge bands, but they requested it so who are we to complain? What a tough act to follow too. Dave has been a fan of theirs for years. I had heard their albums in the van and thought they were ok, but they totally kicked ass live. The Elvis cover, the Danzig cover, the Necrophiliac song … all so good. I think the people at Reid’s were impressed. This was our first show with Dustin and despite wearing brown, he did a pretty good job. The new songs went over well and I’m glad everyone stayed out on a Thursday. Thanks to the other bands, Sam and Chris Reid, the normal Longview posse, the girls gone wild, and those who traveled from PDX. Apologies to anyone who contracted pink eye from my pus ridden eyes.
Show Journal 2005-03-26
Near the beginning of our set, Dave announced that we were on the verge of our 400th show. Yes, it was show #398 but it might as well have been the 2nd or 3rd. This being said here are things you would expect to see from a band that has played this much: 1) You would expect Justin to have working stuff. When the first guitar stops working, the second guitar should work. When handed a third guitar you would expect that the tuner would work properly. That’s just not how we roll. 2) After this many shows, you would think we would know some better jokes and be able to handle down time a little more gracefully. Since every song tonight ended with three minutes of chatter and waiting for someone to get ready it should have been our chance to shine and display our comic genius. In Dave’s defense though, how many Newport vs. Lincoln City jokes are there to be made? 3) For this many shows you would also expect to see the same drummer on at least a monthly basis. By next month we will have yet another person sitting behind us. I’m thinking it’s time to give the drummer a mask and a cool stage name. Then we wouldn’t have to bother with explanations and introductions. Just get a warm body and no one would care. When I stop to think about it I suppose people don’t come to see us for our professionalism. Despite the awkwardness of our set, the show was actually pretty good. At first it seemed very sparsely attended because of the room size but started to fill in when Blue Turns White started. They got some heads moving, and some horns up and then everyone got nice and rowdy during Thirty3’s set, which picked up the energy level for the rest of the night. I ended up missing Idle Class and Reprisal’s (?) set because apparently I have a future in taxi driving. Thanks to the folks who set up the show, the local bands who I apologize for missing, The Casketeers for driving far enough to earn a plug for their band, and everyone who took a chance on some bands they might not have ever heard before.
Show Journal 2005-03-25
Why are Bend shows always so fun? Because of a strong local scene? A variety of bands? Because everyone there isn’t preoccupied with music categories? Or is it because there isn’t anything else to do in Bend. It really doesn’t matter because Bend shows are always great. Blue Turns White was first and sounded good. I was a little amused when they said they were “on the road”, but I’m certainly not one to frown upon guilt tripping people into buying merchandise. Kind of cool to see them play as a 4 piece and still have the music just as thick as ever. Thirty3 was next and rocked as always. When we first met them (down the hall from us at our practice space) I could appreciate their music but just couldn’t really get into it. I’d go see them because I considered them friends, but never really paid attention. Then they went off to record ‘Ether’ and came back as this super human, loud and heavy, rock and roll juggernaut. I’ve seen them around 30 times now and they really do keep getting better with each show. That’s my Thirty3 rant. Your results may vary. We played last and it felt pretty good. I’m not sure how the new songs went over but when the PA is blown does it really matter? Thanks to Kaylin, PJ, and all who stuck around and rocked out.
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We’re going to be playing two more shows with our friend Dan this weekend before he runs off for a new career on the open road. We’d like to thank him for helping us write some new songs and hope these shows are a decent reward for his efforts. We’ve got a few new shows confirmed in April including a low dough show at Dante’s with the Groovie Ghoulies. Wait a minute … if Dan’s leaving then who’s drumming? See if you can identify the correct response: (a) We’re going acoustic and getting serious about our music so we don’t need drummers anymore (b) We finally got the most reliable option … a drum machine (c) We’ve enlisted a troupe of monkeys to pound on pots and pans while we play (d) We’re going to try out a guy named Dustin at these shows and see if he’s a good fit for the band. Come to the shows are see if your guess was correct!
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This is a shot out and thank you to our friend Hopper who passed away last week. He was a familiar face at shows since back in the Animal Farm days and we’d definitely consider him a friend of ours. Rest in peace Hopper and thanks for the good memories.
Show Journal 2005-03-12
Damn it’s been a while. Five and a half months to be exact. Since we are still in the midst of the longest drummer hunt imaginable, we managed to temporarily secure the services of our friend and frequent savior Dan (aka – Boutros Boutros Boutros Boutros) for a few shows in March. This was the first one of the three and it was very nice to play again. Lebanon turned out to be pretty happening and had a very enthusiastic crowd in attendance. It’s very nice to see such a positive crowd in smaller towns. The show was a blast and we had a great time on the way down, hanging out at the show, playing and watching the other bands. Too many bizarre highlights to list … Dan getting kicked out of a gas station bathroom, the tambourine, playing 3 new songs, getting some punk dude’s finger poked into my eye, seeing Ugly Litter again, and meeting a bunch of new people. Thanks to all who traveled to see the show, Jeff and the Ugly Litter folks for setting up a very well run show and every one who stuck around late.
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