Show Journal 2001-04-13
I’ll try to keep this brief but there was way too much to write about. First off the show was a benefit for a Richland skate park. Dusty’s, Atomic Records and the kids in town did an amazing job of promoting the show and it was huge! Well over 300 people were at the show which was totally cool compared to our usual Richland bar crowd of 40-50. The show was in the ballroom of the Red Lion hotel. It was a nice, big, swanky place with tables, chairs, chandeliers, etc. Not the typical setting for a punk rock show. The Creeps who I had never heard of before played first and absolutely rocked. They reminded us a lot of The Dwarves and the crowd went nuts for them. Yelling, dancing, circle pits and enough ozzy signs to last a lifetime. After that they raffled off some skate decks, cd’s, shirts, etc. Juba played second and got an ok reception. They were great musicians, but unless you are playing full speed it’s hard to follow an act like The Creeps. Anyway, a few more giveaways and then we finally got to play. I’ve got to say that on a scale of 1 to 10 this show was easily an 11. We had so much fun playing I couldn’t believe it. The crowd (which stuck around late) really seemed to dig it. People were mashed against the stage, dancing or standing on the stage, jumping off the stage and shouting along the whole time. Set highlights included Dave hitting Justin in the face with his bass, the guy with the prosthetic legs exclaiming “I almost broke my leg off” after a stage dive, and the random dudes taking their shirts off on stage and then dry humping each other in front of Justin. However the highlight of the evening (and perhaps my entire year) was when some kid climbed up on a chandelier in the middle of the floor and started to swing the whole thing back and forth. More impressive still this was smack dab in the center of the ballroom floor and hovering above a huge pit. It only lasted a few seconds before he got pulled down and kicked out but the memory will last a lifetime. The dude risked life and limb for punk rock. I was speechless. I thought our set felt great, we got to play extra songs and I think that was the most energetic we’ve ever been on stage. It’s hard not to be with such and enthusiastic crowd. About the skate park … the show pulled in $1400 for it! Thanks to everyone who came to the show, and especially everyone who passed out flyers and helped promote it. Also super big thanks to Dustin from Atomic Records for hooking us up on the place to stay and for just being the coolest guy around.
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