#but you know i get out to the clubs/venues to see local and unknown bands and there's like 50/100 people here max

[sibelin]

maybe i am a gatekeeper at heart <3

[raiseyourvoicetotherain]

What comes next? - A JATP fic

So this is my new jatp fic, and my first that’s not just a one-shot. It’s basically me writing what I think happens next with the band. By the time season two comes around, it’ll be irrelevant, but right now, it’s a bit of fun. We’ll see how it goes. Thanks for reading x

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Even if I’m the last standing, I’mma stand tall, stand tall.

Luke savoured that last drawn out note like he always did. This was his favourite moment of every show, listening to Julie drag out the final note of his favourite song they’d written.

The crowd cheered and the boys stood next to Julie, waving at the audience with her. Luke thought that was one of the best things about their new abilities, being able to stick around on stage as long as they wanted. It was almost his favourite part—almost.

He held Julie’s hand as the four of them took a bow together. They knew it would cause more questions about how her holograms worked, but Luke didn’t care. He loved being able to hold her hand at the end of the night.

The boys disappeared back stage and waited for Julie to join them in the green room.

As soon as the door opened, they were waiting to surprise her, like always.

“Julie!” they all yelled in unison.

She didn’t even jump anymore. They all embraced in a hug and cheered excitedly.

“That was definitely one of our best,” Luke said excitedly, breaking the hug and dropping onto the couch with a satisfactory sigh. “We’ve gotta be getting calls from managers soon.”

“Any day now,” Julie said, smiling at him.

In the month since the Orpheum show, they’d gotten a few calls to open for a number of local shows. With Julie still needing to go to school, they’d had to turn down a few, so this was only their third gig.

There was a knock on the green room door and Julie answered.

“Just me, mija,” her dad stuck his head through the door. “You were so amazing out there."

"Thanks dad." His unwavering support was one of the things that continued to inspire her most.

Ray hated that he had to disappoint her, but he also had to be a good parent. "I know you wanna stick around for the other bands, but you have school tomorrow.”

A disappointed, but understanding look settled on Julie’s face. “Yeah, I know. I just need five minutes to change. I’ll meet you out the front.”

That was the deal. Julie could play the occasional show on a school night, but she wasn’t allowed to be out for the whole night.

The boys looked at her after her dad left. “You really can’t stick around?” Reggie asked.

“No, I promised,” Julie reminded him. “After the last time, I’m surprised I was able to get him to agree to any school night shows. But you guys should definitely stay and watch the other bands,” she told them.

Reggie looked at Luke and Alex.

“No, it’s all good, we’ll meet you at home,” Luke said, sitting up.

Julie shook her head. “No, really. You should get to know some of the music you’ve been missing out on. You need to get caught up if we’re going to start playing with some of these bands.”

Luke was torn. He wanted to go back to Julie’s and hang out in the studio with her and the boys, but he loved watching live music almost as much as he loved playing it.

“Well,” Julie said, while the boys thought about what to do. “Whatever you decide, right now you need to leave the room so I can change.”

The boys complied and went out to watch the second band that was playing after them. Just before the band finished, Alex spotted Julie walking out, so the boys poofed outside to wish her goodnight.

When they got there, Julie wasn’t alone—she was talking to Nick.

What’s he doing here? Luke thought, feeling the envy rising in him.

They walked through the crowd to Julie as Nick was giving her a hug goodbye.

“Thanks so much for coming, Nick,” Julie said politely.

He smiled at her. “Anytime, Julie. I’ll see you at school tomorrow.”

Luke had noticed that Nick had started calling her Julie, rather than Molina like he usually did, and it irked him. He also hadn't missed one of their shows. That kid was relentless when it came to pursuing her, but Luke was sure there was some other, real, reason he didn’t trust Nick.

Nick left and Julie turned around to see the boys. She realised they were keeping themselves unseen so she pulled out her phone and put it to her ear. “What are you guys doing? I told you to stay.”

“We’re going to, we just wanted to say goodnight,” Alex said.

Luke added, “And just say again what an awesome job you did tonight.”

She smiled at him, tucking her hair behind her other ear. “Thanks, you guys rocked, too.” Looking over Reggie’s shoulder, Julie saw her dad coming. “Okay, gotta go. Have a good night and I’ll see you guys in the morning.”

“Ready to go, Julie?” her dad asked, walking right through Reggie as she put her phone away.

Julie gave one more smile to the boys. “Yeah, let’s go,” she said to her dad.

Ray took her bag and flung it over his shoulder as they walked to the car. “Bye, Ray,” Reggie said with a smile and a wave. He wanted so badly to make himself visible and end the one-sidedness of his friendship with Ray, but he knew it wasn’t time yet.

Luke shook his head at Reggie and said, “Alright guys, let’s check out this band, then we’ll hit the clubs and find some more music.”

On the way back in, Luke brushed through a girl and got a weird feeling. When he looked back at her, he realised she must have felt it, too.

The girl was as tall as Luke, but older—definitely in her early twenties. Luke got a feeling he’d seen her before, but he couldn’t remember where.

After shaking off the weird feeling she'd had, the girl walked away, her blonde curls bouncing as she walked with purpose out of the venue.

“Luke, you coming?” Alex asked.

Luke turned back to the boys. “Yeah, wait up.”

Julie was almost at the car when her phone started ringing. “Hello?” she answered the unknown number.

“Hi, is this Julie?” a polite, female voice said. Julie confirmed it was. “My name’s Cameron, I must have missed you at your show just now, but I work for the Ghosted Group. A contact at The Orpheum gave me your details.”

“Oh, yeah, I couldn’t stay,” Julie explained, trying to keep calm at the fact someone from the freaking Ghosted Group had called her. “School tomorrow.”

“Of course, that’s fair,” Cameron said. “Well, would it be okay to meet with you and your band mates tomorrow? After school of course.”

Julie did a little dance. “Yes, of course. If you come by our studio, I can set up the hologram to connect with the guys. I’ll text you the address.”

“Sounds perfect, let me know what time, and I will see you then.”

“Thank you, so much,” Julie said and hung up. She suddenly wished the boys hadn’t stayed at the venue, but she didn’t have any way to tell them about the phone call until she saw them in the morning.

This was the call they’d been waiting for. Just one step closer to greatness.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

So, I don’t even really know what else to say, except I hope you’ll keep reading. I won’t be posting full chapters on tumblr after this, so make sure to bookmark the story on ao3 here. Thanks again for reading, you’re all wonderful x

[manjuhitorie]

Hitori-Escape Tour 2019 concerts 10-13

The previous 1-9 concerts of the tour: https://manjuhitorie.tumblr.com/post/188358977881/ Shinoda on vocals and guitar, Yumao on drums, and ygarshy on bass. performing Hitorie’s songs as the trio.

The standard setlist was: 

01 Senseless Wonder 02 Shutter Doll 03 Nichijou to Chikyuu no Gakubuchi

MC, usually consisting of Shinoda sharing greetings with the crowd, and breaking the ice a little bit.

04 Namid[A]me 05 Garandou Mae Zero Banchi 06 Inperfection

MC

07 SLEEPWALK 08 Loveless

MC

09 (W)HERE 10 Gekijougai 11 Talkie Dance 12 Unknown Mother Goose

MC

13 Karanowaremono 14 Little Cry Baby 15 Ao 16 Polaris

Encore intermission + MC

17 Odoru Mannequin, Utau Aho 18 Rolling Girl

10 Hitorie’s Hitori-Escape Tour, 10/17/2019 at CLUB RIVERST in Niigata prefecture! Report!

SND “Everybody, everybody everybody. It’s all about love. Do you have enough love? Do you have enough love in you, do you?”

During the intro of Loveless before the bass comes in, ygarshy had his instrument muted as he tuned it. Within that time frame, Shinoda, with his handheld microphone in one hand, went over to ygarshy and slapped his cheek twice (inducing laughter from the crowd). ygarshy’s face was hidden behind his hair, but what kind of expression did he make I wonder...

●SND was performing with a handheld mic, up until the guitar solo when the staff brought him a guitar to play.

●Which was, Leader’s own jaguar guitar. SND used it throughout (W)HERE and Gekijougai after. The emotional screaming numbers.

●For a while ygarshy had his head hung, performing with his back turned away from the crown or looking to his side, but during Talkie Dance his inner switch seemed to suddenly turn on, and from then onward he was aggressively approaching front stage. ●Then the encore intermission MC chat. SND stands in his usual position, but for this Yumao comes up front and uses ygarshy’s microphone so he can be closer to the crowd. ygarshy tucked away behind him.

●Yuma at SND “So, you were nervous about singing at the start of the tour, vyr are you feeling better now?” SND “I’m used to it. We’ve made it halfway through the tour and all.”

SND “But ahh, one day I dream of walking on top of the crowd’s heads and bridging all the way to the other side of the floor." Crowd “Get on us! Ride us!” SND “Naw, I don’t want to do something that’ll make the internet angry.” Yu “You're chill enough to want to walk on top of people. That’s a good sign.” SND “Yeah?” Yu “We’re halfway through the tour right, and you’ve already gotten halfway on top of the crowd. you were sitting on and climbing over on the stage railings earlier after all! You’re halfway there, next up is the other side-” SND “Uhm-”

●SND and Yumao jested about a role swap between them and the crowd, how crazy it would be, with hundreds of people on stage and three down in the crowd…. Crowd “Let’s do it!” SND “We’d get banned from the venue!”

SND continued to ask the crowd how they were feeling, as to which the majority responded “Hot.” While Rie were feeling comfy on stage, thanks to the air circulation system they set up. SND “For once! For once the tables have turned! We’ve always been hot up here and not vice versa. Is this a sign, is the crowd⇆stage role-swap going to become a reality next!?"

●Continuing, Yumao had a story to tell. At the commercial area near Niigata station, he and yga went out for food at a seemingly normal onigiri izakaya bar. (Here’s the store they probably went to: http://onigirisenka.com)

Yu “We walked in, we sat down, nothing out of the ordinary. But after a while we were like ‘? Why is the waitress still here at our table? What’s going on?’ We look around to see 5 girls who were blatantly hired based on looks alone, and one girl assigned to each table.” SND “You found your way into a god damn hostess club!”

Yuma “I'd be fine with it but this guy, ygarshy… Well, he's ygarshy. He can’t handle this kinda thing. We came to chat with each other but now there’s a girl barging into our conversations! And then she even asked us ‘Did you just come here on work~? You kinda look like you’re in a band~!’” SND “Hahaa you don’t wanna be caught up in that!”

Yumao loves to talk about this stuff, so on normal terms he would’ve just burst into conversation. But here he didn’t want to put yga in a traumatizing situation. So he bit his tongue and said “Band!? We can’t even play instruments!!”…. SND “Hahahaa.” Yu “Then she responded with ‘I love bands, I play the drums!’. Way to make it even more suffocating for me! She was talking to us so much that, ygarsh’s rice was gettin’ crusty.” ? “..Pot....”  yg, for the first time in ages, opened his mouth. He didn’t go up to the microphone or anything for this callout either, he just vocalized loud enough to be heard.

Yu “Pot!? Pot? I remember now... We had beautiful white rice inside of a pot, drying up!” The price was of your average izakaya, despite the hostess part too. SND “~~~” Yumao “.….Let’s go again”

●Yumao “Alrighty then let’s play...”

SND “Ah did you hear... It’s, an emergency it’s an emergency ygarshy! Apparently like 50 fire ants were found in Tokyo Harbor.”

yg *>>>BWOOOON<<<<* 　*It was in the news that yesterday. 50 poisonous specimens which could’ve easily been queens fertilized, + their offspring could’ve easily spread further into the country, was a fright. Especially for those with entomophobia-. SND’s tweet Niigata concert: complete, thank you. Take care not to catch any colds y’all,,, We’ll be back. Next up is the city where Leader was born and raised, Kagoshima. Hope to see you there.

11 Hitorie’s Hitori-Escape Tour, 10/22/2019 at SR Hall in Kagoshima prefecture

SND “Y’all are from Leader’s city, and this all you’ve got?!? Dance more! Yeah! I’d expect nothing less from the city that made him!”

During Loveless this time, SND tried to kick ygarshy. And while SND was floundering on stage, being crazy as he bounced to the music, he hit ygarshy again. And he bumped into ygarshy on the way onto the stage after the encore break. ●Yuma came out wearing the new Hitorie sweatshirt to promo it today. SND questioned his capability perform through the heat, Yuma responded with guts to continue!  SND “Well, you’re locked in now!” Crowd “You’re so cute~!!! Yumao~!! ” Yumao “Thanks~~” SND “How many times will we do this!? “So cute~~!!” “Thankies~~!” ���Awww~~!” “Thanks. “ ●SND moaned and groaned with good means to back it up: the heat in the venue was crazy again. SND still holds the near-death Takutaku as the ultimate trauma but- It seems that wherever Rie journey to, the temperature outside rises up into the high 20’s. SND “Everywhere I go it suddenly gets hot, so people have started to call me Matsuo Kashuuzou. Yet the other members and the staff all come along too, so why am I the only one being framed? He’s not in me!” 　*Matsuo Kashuuzou, dubbed the fire fairy, is a former pro tennis player who has an optimistic flaming soul, abd never stops shouting things like “light it up!!” He was such fire that once upon a time on the internet he was memed to be the origin of urban heat island and global warming etc. ●Crowd “Did you eat Shirokuma ice cream?” (*A treat which is sold nationwide, but originated in Kagoshima). SND “No, but our cameraman Nishimaki did.” 　‘Nishimaki doesn’t tag along for the whole tour, typically he’s only around for the first and last shows. So Leader’s hometown really was a special one... ●Yumao took SND’s water bottle, gazed at the label and got the crowd to cheer the name of it: “Zaihou!” with him. “It’s a local but, famous mineral water provider. Cool.” Yu “Whoop” *Proceeds to throw the water bottle back at SND* ((What’s up with Yumao showing his wild side these days)) ●SND conveyed a sweet spot for the sashimi there, but since it’s something of taboo to eat such raw food up mid-country in Tokyo... “Don’t post what I just said on Twitter okay, the twitter police are out there, don’t expose that I eat food raw.” ●Yumao went up to the mic in the front but fairly quickly shifted back to his in the back; apparently because he wanted to be in range of the electric fan set up there. ●SND resisted drinking yesterday to preserve sober sanity before the concert, while next to him Yuma and yg were whole hog on “Beer! highball! beer!” “I now understand what it’s like to be on the other side, to be the one surrounded by drunks instead of being the loggerhead.” Yumao then begins combs his hair back with his fingers* “Ahh~~ so gwood~ delish~” SND “Is.. Is that supposed to be me?” Yumao “I’m topped off~” “Ahh I drank like a dream~~ *still holding his hair up*.” SND “Oi! If you’re gonna mimic me then at least raise the production value!!”

●SND “Alright Let’s perform” Crowd “Yumao you’re so cute~” Yu “Alrighty!” SND “You’re getting a life’s worth of cutes. In response to being showered in cuteness, all you have to say is ‘alrighty’ now?!?” Yu “..Alrighty!!”  (Disclaimer: he was announcing that he was alright and ready to start). ●SND “ygarshy, you know what sandbags are, right? yga *Nods*  SND “Apparently those are stuffed with a bunch of cloth, not sand?” yg ..... >>*BWWOOON*<<

SND’s tweet “Kagoshima concert: complete, that was crazy! How did you fare? I was fucking hot, thank you all so much. We will be back.” Also SND’s drawing was on display at the merchandise booth: https://en.deli-a.jp/products/item_Info.php?itemID=846

Nishimaki, the photographer, tweeted "It's been 6 or 7 years since I was last in Kagoshima, time well spent. Next is Fukuoka!!"   Megane Hirai, Rie's trusty trusty sound engineer, went to the concert and posted this too:

“Many emotions were felt during the 2 days I spent Kagoshima As I watched each song, The way he strummed his guitar right adjacent to me The way I would jot critiques as he sung his lyrics from the other side of the glass The way I would hear him say “Then how about this!” as we practiced trial and error with each mix The sights from those days would come flooding back. There’s different feelings and means of acceptance For me, going forward, I’m going to keep supporting these four”. 

12 Hitorie’s Hitori-Escape Tour, 10/25/2019 at SR Hall in Kagoshima prefecture

The concert was a musical marvel, Rie never cease to amaze... But I'm hopping right into the intermission chat. Because, after they left Kagoshima they stayed at a vacation lodge in Aso Kumamoto....!! Antics ensue! Shinoda “The sheer amount of flying ants the size of peanuts out there left me squealing, I’m really bad with bugs, but they didn’t faze Yumao at all” Yu “In the end it's only ants? No matter the size, right? And then I was bored, and also the air in the room was suffocating so...” SND “This fucker started opening the windows!”  Yu: “Yeah I opened them all up.” SND: “One guy who hates bugs and another who hated the indoor air, the worst combo.“ Yu “Ultimately we BOTH started sneezing like crazy and closed them though.” Yu “I'm exhausted though. The goal was to go there for a vacation, but, cause I drank too much the day before or whatever, I played around so much..!  Do you know how attics in the log lodges are like? A bunch of pillars? Of wood? coming together? What are they called? *Makes hand gestures to try to shape it out*" Crowd “Beams!” Yu “Yeah, beams! I dangled and swung from the beams up in the lodge roof. When yga walked through the door, he was in for it! “What a surprise~”, he laughed after he got a spook!” SND “Yumao was like a monkey.”  Yu “It sounds like I was the only one playing around but, this guy! He doesn’t talk about it much in front of you, hey he doesn’t talk about it much in front of us either but. ygarshy was jumping all over the beds! From asocial to bouncy. He was playing around more than us!” SND “As soon as we came back to our 3 bed lounge after a drink with the crew, I see these two bouncing on them. yga looked like a fish the way he was twisting his body.“ Yu “He still had his usual emotionless expression, even when he was beautifully bending." SND “He played a lot eh? He had the damndest smile when he took fireworks in his hands…”  Yu “He’s so mean sometimes, he smirkingly creeped up behind Shinoda and stuck fireworks right against his ankles! It took SND a bit to notice, but when he did... Boy did he scream! And yg doubled up with laughter!” Yu “It had been raining outside then too, so we were doing them under the small awning outside. When SND realized what ygarshy was scheming, he had ran away shouting “It’s hot it’s hot!!”, but then found himself shouting ‘It’s cold!!!’ out in the rain.” SND “I was hit with hot and cold element attacks both at once.” Yu “Don’t do try this at home now!” SND “Ahh yg don’t look so gloomy! Seriously we have no idea how you’re feeling over there....”  Yu “He laughed the most back when he saw me dangling though~!!” SND “That’s why we're saying yg, stop looking down, put your chin up!” ●SND “So uhhh, ygarsh, please share with us a few words about the Fukuoka Soft Bank Hawks victory!”  yg *>>BWOOON<<* 　*The Hawks are the pro baseball team of the prefecture, and they just won the entire Japan Series that week. They’ve won for the past 5 years straight now too. ●Cameraman posted the “Early winter fireworks”.

●Rie’s manager too posted:  The Kagoshima live, Kumamoto Aso, the Fukuoka live. Fireworks to bring the summer to a close. So many things to make our venture to Kyuushuu a heart-wrenching one. Good night😴💤 ●SND’s tweet: Fukuoka concert: complete, thank you. Baritone felt great to do today. I think it's been a long time since I last played on a high stage,,, Or has it been? Has it? Nonetheless I performed with my feelings at full power. Thank you so much.

13 Hitorie’s Hitori-Escape Tour, 11/6/2019 at LIQUIDROOM in Tokyo prefecture. The first one.

From 7 years ago till now, our dreams are still relentlessly crying out their first words evermore!!

●Yuma’s mom, Yurika was spotted at the venue! The family of two does live in Chofu of Tokyo after all.. Tabuchi of Unison Square Garden too. They sat in VIP seats. ●There were flower bouquets on display inside the lobby, one from fans and another from the Hitori-Atelier staff. ●Among some of SND's snazzy mid-show quotes were him screaming “A banger? An epic masterpiece? That's what you're about to hear... Karanowaremono, a present from Leader.”

●“I think I might be getting too old for this.” *Proceeds to do heartfelt vibratos, physical tricks, and giggle tons during the encore break! They didn't talk about the DVD which had released two days prior, but they did delve into some Hitorie history.... yga had recruited SND, who within 0.5 seconds of being contacted said “I'm in!” He didn’t know wowa’s face back then so he was nervous, but when the crew got on a skype chat and wo shared the first mp3 files, SND thought “This is the start of a revolution”... He was excited then, and that excitement lives on. ●SND “It’s been like, so long since I’ve last performed in Tokyo. Yumao you’re out doin’ truckloads of stuff, ygarsh you're doing the Wasure-whatever stuff.. But all I do is draw manga! I’m either stuck at home or in another part of the country! The last show we did here in Liquidroom was the nexUs with Passpied, and our last solo one was, 5 years ago?" Yu “Yeah, the one with a video up on Youtube, back when I was still performing in T-shirts instead of dress shirts.” ●Yu "At our first tour date you were so nervous about singing weren't cha SND. You were like 'Don't put me on the same level as you guys, work harder...’  But now you're fine haha! ...I've started to tease SND.  SND "Though backstage I tease you." Yu "When? :O "  SND "....Thinking about it, I don't really, do I-." ●They talked a little more in detail about their "relaxing" retreat to the Aso resort, which they had first mentioned in the Kagoshima MC up there ↑ .  yg came out of the bathroom, to see the back of strange black-haired drunk swinging from the wooden beams of their remote cottage. He was so scared! Until he realized the perpetrator was a restless Yumao. ●The story of when the trio were lighting firework sparklers and yga stuck them against SND’s ankles. SND “I didn’t even notice the flames until brown hair came into my line of sight.” Yu “And yg even had his phone ready! He recorded the entirety of SND's panic: from him running away from the heat right into the rain, to him shouting out there in cold.” SND “Ain’t he a freak psycho killer....  What are you even thinking about as you listen to us right now.” …Awkward silence. yg remains.

●Yu “In the cottage we were watching Mito Kōmon, the historical drama, ‘cause it was coincidentally playing on TV. Komon is supposed to be this hero of justice yet, he was taking down enemies with real underhanded tactics, it got SND and I cackling so hard. We kept calling out 'Ahh so underhanded! So underhanded!’ yga had been silent so I we assumed he wasn’t watching... But when the end credits hit, he spoke up to tell us “That was entertaining”. SND “So he actually was watching! I thought.” Yu “He does tell us things like ‘Today’s MC chat was long’ after shows too.” SND “Then you do it nice and concise yourself, I say!” ygarsh then turns his face to look right at SND* SND “What are you looking at... Wait, don’t look at me with those sparkly eyes...! Don't, don't...!!” ●Yu “Ahh. We haven't changed a bit huh…. I’m always like ‘wooAHHH! *💪 poses*’ levels of excited, SND is like ‘OY VEY SHUT UP!!’, and yg silently watches over us." ●Before they went back into the show Yumao promoted the merch. He uses the pouch to store his drum supplies, he likes it a lot, and he modeled too. To show us how the logo gets covered by the hood on the sweatshirt, he pulled it over and off~ over and off~ his head.

●Then the usual...  SND “As soon as we get home and already, Masashi Tashiro got arrested again, did you hear?“  yg *>>BWOON<<* 　*SND is using the news for this one. The celeb has gotten arrested countless times now for drug possession. He'd gone to rehab, and recently he’d been publishing books/posting videos/doing lectures to teach people about the horrors of meth but.. He's truly proving how fearful it is.. SND tweet: Tokyo concert: complete, thank you so much. Being up on the Liquidroom stage after so long moved my heart. We’ll be at Liquidroom again next week, hope to see you there. Though Takamatsu comes first!!

[gibsonmusicart]

The real truth behind pay to play!

By Chris Standring

Few things get my goat. "Pay To Play" has always been one of them, as long as I can remember. Until recently. For those of you who are not familiar with this concept, I will briefly explain. I should preface this article by saying that there are indeed many other band-booking scenarios. This article is specific to one and one only. Also, the concept of pay to play is rife in big US cities such as Los Angeles and New York. It may not exist in certain countries. It's not a perfect world, just the one that we live in. Ok, with that little disclaimer aside, I will continue.... An unknown (and unproven) band will approach a club booker and try to get their act booked on a certain date. The booker listens to the band's CD and decides that they are worthy of public attention and agrees to give the band a date. There are two ways this will pan out. First, about 300 tickets will be printed up and sold to the band by the club. The band then sell these tickets to their fans and do their promotional job enticing people to come to see their show. It is in the band's interest to sell all the tickets otherwise they are out of pocket and end up "paying to play". The second way is where a contract is issued to the band explaining that they need to have a certain amount of people in the club for them to make a profit, let us say 100. If 100 people do not show up and pay 5 bucks to get in, the remaining amount is due to the club. So if a band only fill that club with 50 people, then 50 people (that haven't paid $5) is due to the club. The band end up paying the club $250.00 Ok so now we have that understood let's try to get a new perspective on this. Although I have always abhorred this behavior from club bookers I have a new attitude to it, something that changed once I started touring as a recording artist, promoting my own records. What all bands want is a nice guarantee to perform at venues and start making a profit. However, as a new unproven artist, one has absolutely no market share. This is an essential "ticket value". If a promoter wants to book The Eagles to play live then he knows that this band has an enormous fanbase and can guarantee an audience. He then does a deal with the bands' agent who later accepts. The promoter is initially out of pocket but with low risk as he has done the numbers and knows that he will turn a profit with this proven act. The new artist has no market price as this band is unknown. Therefore a club booker cannot offer a guarantee because he is at risk with this band. It is, therefore, the band's responsibility to take the risk. Usually, the band does take a hit because it cannot draw a crowd and ends up out of pocket. Now the band has an attitude about giving away free entertainment! But this is business. A product needs to be proven to work before other business people decide to get involved and give away money. Here is something that opened my eyes once I got in the record game. A manager friend of mine said to me as I signed my first record deal, "Welcome Chris, now you're off to the races let's see how much money you lose in the first year!" Now there's the encouragement I thought. Wise words however and I took heed... As my first radio single took off on the airwaves I started to get invitations to perform at radio station events and promotional functions. Most radio stations like to have annual events they call "listener parties" where they invite thousands of listeners to an event they put on and invite let us say 3 bands to perform. The first two artists will be proven stars, the third (little old me in this example) what they call a "new rising star". The first two bands may be offered a guarantee to perform, but quite possibly not. Usually, if money is offered for radio events it will be minimal as they expect record label tour support. Sponsors sometimes jump on board and offer free hotel and air so ostensibly the radio station ends upcoming just a little out of pocket to promote their event. So, I am invited to perform at one of these listener parties but the radio station only wants to pay $1500.00 assuming that my label will kick in the rest. I go back to my label and ask for a further $2000.00. The event is on the east coast and I have to fly 4 other guys as there is no air sponsor. Air tickets are costing $595 each as it's peak summertime. That's $2975.00 before I have even paid my sidemen! My label agrees to kick in $1500 and that's it! So now I have a guaranteed budget of $3000 and my airfares for the band have tapped that! I absolutely have to pay my band as they should not have to take a hit, it's my career after all! I decided to try and do the show without a sax player. That will save me airfare and show fees. Now my airfare is down to $2380.00. I'll pay my band $250.00 each to do this show. Now I am up to $3130.00 I am down $130.00 and I haven't paid myself a penny!!! Do I do the show? You're damn right I do, this listener party has 7000 people coming in checking me out, possibly buying my CD and becoming new fans. Now 3 years later and another hit record to my name I am being offered more healthy guarantees from promoters in the USA and Europe. Why? because I was smart in the beginning and made sure I got things to work when I needed them to. Now I even have musicians I call to do shows that live in New York, Los Angeles and London to make an even healthier profit. This is obviously not such a good idea if you are a 4 piece band but as a solo artist, you can do this very effectively. By hiring musicians in London for a UK show I can save myself around $2400.00 That's a big slice if you do this on a regular basis! To understand one thing. You have to start small and build your fan base. Once you have a legitimate fan base, you can do good deals with promoters. In order to do this, you need to localize. Build-in one area and expand. It's a "baby step" program. Watch for the con artists, they do exist as I'm sure you know. Be smart. I love contracts, you should grow to love them too. Prove yourself. Build your market share and understand that "pay to play" does exist but it's nothing more than smart business. Once you have market worth, trust me promoters will be calling you offering healthy guarantees!

Source: Music-Articles.com

[anothersievefistedfind]

9:30 Club, Washington, DC 1/26/89 - Photographer unknown

Fugazi, 9:30 Club, Washington, DC USA 1/26/89 (FLS #0094) (UNABRIDGED)

While not a single recording of their first 1989 concert in Frederick, Maryland surfaced so far, Fugazi’s second performance that year fortunately did get recorded, but is not yet made available through the Fugazi Live Series website. The 1989 tour itinerary would have the band play 84 times in total, equalling the number of gigs in the course of the previous year.

This January 26, 1989 concert played out at the famed 9:30 Club in D.C., and is one of the last Fugazi performances with just the single guitar arrangement. Guy’s added guitar would soon become officially established.

For some more information related to this particular venue and its relevance for the local hardcore scene at the time, as well as in relation to Fugazi’s stellar performance at the place some 6 months earlier, in June 1988, see my earlier notes here.

The recording I have at my disposal appears to offer a short pre-set, just three songs, which might have been performed as a soundcheck. Well that, or these songs might as well make up the tail end of another gig since it is not clear from the recording.

After these three songs, the sound cuts out, and resumes with the studio recording of a song by another band I don’t know but which definitely has a Dischord feel to it and which gradually mixes with a live rendering of Burning Too, which I think is part of the actual main set of the January 26, 1989 gig, which contains another 13 live songs, including the debut 7 Songs EP in its entirety (see set list below).

The audio of the recording is limited in range and rather rough throughout, the higher frequencies somewhat shrill, the sound wavering occasionally. However, it is still quite good and does permit cranking up the volume. 

The specific audio qualities of the recording actually portray a sense of confinement, dropping the listener in a dense space, huddled together with the band and a couple of hundred other participants, between the sin and the sweat. 

As such, I can well imagine it pretty accurately ties in with the actual experience at the time, considering the physical layout of the 9:30 Club and that Fugazi played for a room full of harDCore scene affiliates and friends.

Never mind Ian’s guitar cuts out numerous times (“when you play 9:30 everything breaks”), since the rest of the band thrashes about unperturbed, the audience occasionally pitching in and helping out with the choruses. 

Particularly memorable are a fierce version of Burning (“skinheads go in they never go out”), Suggestion (w/ Amy Pickering from Fire Party on guest vocals, referencing the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling which has been the subject of recent controversy as well in relation to the Kavanaugh conformation process as a Trump-appointed Supreme Court Justice ; “something is moving to the right”) and Joe laying out thick bass lines going into Waiting Room.

Pre-set // soundcheck // part of another recording (?)

Furniture - Break-In - Joe #1

Set list:

Burning Too (incomplete) - Bulldog Front - Burning - And The Same (dedicated to Mark Andersen from Positive Force D.C.) - Bad Mouth - Margin Walker - Lockdown - “Ode to Bush” musical intermezzo - Suggestion - The Word (dedicated to sound man extraordinaire Joey P or Joey Picuri) - Waiting Room - Promises - Give Me The Cure - Glueman (introduced as the “Rodeo song”)

[taeguboi]

badboy!BTS Headcanons

Request:  ‘idk what this thought is but i think you might be able to do somethin with it and i thought of you when you reblogged some stuff tonight: what would bts be like if they weren't in bts and were bad boys? i was just thinking about what they might have done but then i also thought about how good jin would look in a leather jacket and fucking up people's heads like he's a bastard but he's handsomr so it's okay kekeke’

Notes at the end

Rap Monster: bad boy for justice

An afterschool bad boy

keeps to himself at school / work

but as soon as he leaves that building, it’s different:

fag in mouth, shirt loosened up for comfort

and he’s eyeing up any attractive girl that passes by

A gentleman to the ladies

Will drop kick the jerks that break their hearts

Has a surprisingly high set of morals

it just gets overlooked because of his bad boy aura and here’s why

Had his fair share of arrests

but to be fair to him, it’s mostly for a good cause

like he was the one that got provoked in a fight

or that thing he stole was actually something he was getting back for someone 

Basically won’t hate you if you’re cool with him though

“Hey, if anyone’s troubling you, don’t hesitate to call me, yeah?”

Brings back a lot of girls to his shared house

everyone thinks he’s a player

“ey up ‘Joon; who’s she this week?”

but it just genuinely doesn’t work out each time

they get put off by his tendency to fight 

Until he meets this one girl

she’s feisty and is just as verbal as he is passionate for justice / karma

They’re couple goals

and he proposes to her in a bar

but it’s their bar, it’s where they met and send like half their time together, so it’s romantic

She loves everything about him and rightly so

his passion, even if it may appear as unnecessary anger

his hard working demeanour despite his ‘common’ background

Yeah, he’s a bad boy, possibly only by appearance,

but he’s gonna build himself a good life

Jin: the classic rocker

Let’s begin with that leather jacket

It’s genuine vintage leather 

he lets girls wear it in the cold on a night out 

and it’s like so heavy but cosy?

Rocker

been to all the concerts

You invite him out to see some unknown local band for their first gig 

but somehow he’s already seen them and knows their full set

but he’s also seen the legends in arenas

Can’t forget the festivals

can’t forget the free love and ‘happiness’

Owns all the pubs and clubs by social status

enters the room and it goes silent for a moment

who will say ‘hi’ to him first?

It’s tricky because he’s so fucking magnificent and overpowering

So how did he get to this status?

He knows how to talk

no one makes a fool of him

will put up with 0% of anyone’s shit

gives no fucks when it comes to conversation

Will fuck with your head if you cross him

knows how to wrap people around his little finger

and then can drop them just like that

Sometimes he’ll be extremely witty

but nowadays he can say the pettiest thing and it has the same effect

Pretty much everyone is in his debt somehow

“You need [x thing] doing? Yeah, I know a guy that can sort you out”

So social

but doesn’t even own a phone

he just goes out every night

Has his local bar

his regular clubs

in which he pulls every night 

[in each club]

Very sensual

You’re one lucky girl if:

he takes you outside of the club to just talk to you

“You’ve been having a pretty good time in there, huh?”

“I bet you could have an even better time out here with me”

Will fuck anywhere, no matter who might see

and he’s never been arrested for it 

because he has his way with words

he can even bribe the police, and nothing

Becomes a bit of a biker

almost forms / joins a gang

but is way too independent to stick to it

Kind of a loner bad boy

Suga: underground rapper

Underground rapper with all the swagger

He does it all

Booze

Cigarettes

at least the occasional sesh

Will fuck many people, boys and girls

and he can do it every night because groupies

but is secretly a sucker for pretty boys

But he knows his bad boy nature can get him what he wants

Bar fights

Gets hecklers at his gigs but he puts them in their place

will jump off the stage to fight you

His regular venue only own 2 beer glasses now 

Could have the most supportive audience but will drive away into the night raising a middle finger

Can rock out any look

still looks hardcore that one time he performs in a dress

Barely dies his hair

Tries blonde once but does back to black 

because the roots come through in like 2 weeks

and then he refers to that fortnight as ‘that time I almost sold out’

Acts as if he’s the most tortured soul 

so you think you have some sort of connection

but fucks you and leaves you lmao

Has a ped

rides around randomly at night

drops off wherever he thinks he’ll get a good story from

write bad ass raps about his experiences

Gets wound up in quite some violent situations

it’s concerning how often he’s been at knifepoint

jumps on random cars

or hot wires then to dump in a lake

because why not

Agust D might never become a national household name

but it’s certainly a name known by everyone in town

J-Hope: wandering skater boy

Sporty bad boy

Footie with his lads

Skateboarding home

flying across busy roads

almost knocking over pedestrians

He’s been stopped by the police for it

but they escort him home and are shook

because his mum is a bad ass, probably worse

Doesn’t smoke 

but beer is life

Drunken antics every night

Will do whatever to win a girl over

*leaves her name in massive letters outside her bedroom window*

“Holy shit Hoseok, how did you...”

*police siren*

*gets arrested for pulling down letters of shop signs*

Goes to shops and purchases wrappers 

because he’s already eating the food before he’s payed

Graffiti artist

lives for that adrenaline rush

can outrun the cops every single time

because he can jump over everything, get through everything, etc

and can run for hours

Bit of a wanderer

by day, he’s out with his lads

by night, he roams free

He doesn’t need wingmen or clubs to pull

no; he has what it takes 

to just approach that lonely girl sat on a bench contemplating life

and no matter how many times his parents insist he bring no one home

there’s always a way to sneak into his room

Sometimes he just roams for days

doesn’t tell anyone

comes back in 3 days with some badass tattoo and some mystery souvenirs

[souvenirs that he smokes in a day lmao]

[low key stoner hahahaha] 

Jimin: ladies man aka the biggest flirt

His shirt is on/off like 50/50

Tastefully placed tattoos 

that don’t hide too much of his body

simple writing down either side of his abs

[think 2014 mama awards I think]

and a tattoo on his butt that was done for the lols

but it’s a story, like

“I have the illuminati on my butt”

Tongue piercings

which you get to see when he’s flirting

he’ll stick it out sometimes when begin suggestive

House parties always

Like does he even have parents around?

Works every day so he can pay for both bills and booze

He does up cars or something

You can show up and he’s not even at his own house yet 100 other people are

But when he is there to host his own house party, well...

all the bedrooms are occupied 

and it’s because he’s got a girl waiting for him in each room

what an exciting game, to see how many he can fuck 

before one of them finds out they aren’t the only one

holy shit Jimin there’s 5 bedrooms here how do you even--

*slap!*

that was the sound of a girl’s discovery

he’s used to it though

I think his face has built up a tolerance for the slaps because they happen that often

so he’ll basically grab whoever’s booty he wants

Those beautiful plump lips 

they weren’t just made for kissing and eating out though

they were designed for cigarettes

the way the smoke puffs out of his mouth is beautiful

low key erotic somehow?

Oh and the lip biting he does

paired with some smooth flirting

You’ll hear all the rumours about bad boy Jimin

and how you shouldn’t go near him

but you can’t help but give in to him and your curiosity

Honestly, it’s worth it; boy fucks damn well

Girls girls girls

He was that lad in school that the teachers hated 

for distracting the female students and making them swoon

Has always been shameless

Like in younger school years it was winking

and outrageous confidence

but then in later high school years

you find him touching you under the table

but was still a prat

always in the head master’s office

or isolation

or suspended

But he still managed to stay in the same school

even after hitting on a teacher

Turns up to prom in his usual leather jacket and jeans

actually, he just turns up anywhere however and whenever he pleases

You just have to let it happen

he never causes any real harm

V: the punk activist

Gorgeous long hair 

He’s had it in some bold colours

Fiery red becomes like his identity

the condition of his hair suggests a feminine nature but oh...

He’s anything but that!

His voice is extra gruff and deep

and he knows he can use it to his advantage

to get girls

and to threaten people

99% of the time gets what he wants

Spends a lot of money on piercings

he has all the ear piercings you can think of

snake bites lip piercings

an eyebrow piercing

he has other piercings that he don’t always make use of

and *ahem* some more intimate piercings

Has been known to turn you on 

just by telling you about his ‘down there’ piercing

“wanna see?”

fuck me yes I do

and money on tattoos

almost everywhere

tattoos across his torso,

bad ass tattoo sleeves,

his back and up to his neck: still tattoos

and some of girl’s names to win them over

He doesn’t care how she doesn’t mean that much to him

as long as she’ll make a good story

Gets arrested at least once a month

Has some cheesy and heart-felt lines though beneath all that anger

Fucks so many girls but then realizes

he’s hella gay

“Damn, that’s a pretty boy”

Joyriding

but somehow he makes it romantic with another person

like he just parks he car in the middle of nowhere so you can enjoy the moonlight with him

So yeah, he’s poetic it turns out, but

Quite angry

like a Punk Oscar Wilde almost?

Vegan?

Can get political, very opinionated

Passionate for whatever cause he’s taken up this week

Graffiti to make statements

Forms a punk band to make statements

Smashes windows to make statements

but although he can get violent

he knows what he’s talking about and has solid views

Starts movements

Gets called a faggot once with his kinda serious boyfriend

suddenly he’s a huge activist in the lgbt community

Will get full on sexual in the middle of a shop 

to prove a point to a stranger who scoffs at him kissing a dude

*grabs his partner’s dick and makes out with him*

it shuts them right up as he starts jacking off the other guy 

right there and then

they’re chuckling into each other’s mouths

and oh, he ain’t afraid to finish the job

even if the stranger has long gone

He likes to make headlines in the local paper

no matter how odd or cringy it can get

his purpose is to have a voice

Jungkook: restless muscle pig

Almost bipolar with his personality

New girl in town? There’s a Jungkook for that

Does extra jobs for extra cash

Some jobs are legit overtime work...

...some not so legit

But it gets him by so he can be a new person for each individual

Never fails to hit the gym daily

He’s never not in a vest since he reached his late teens

starts pointless fights

because of this pent up anger 

and need for attention on his efforts on his body

but then gets a serious caution from the cops 

that if it happens again, he could be looking at more than over night behind bars

so he takes up mma fighting or something

suddenly it’s a semi-professional career

girls love him 

but he doesn’t care

He’s still only down for nothing more than sex when it suits him

Loves his hard reputation

It gives him a personality to go by

No one really knows his past

but I think this lack of emotion is something to do with his childhood

as is the anger and need to work out

it was probably just something to do

Cocky

Eventually decides to take some exams and get the qualifications he didn’t bother with as a kid

acts like he owns the college

and actually, he kinda does because of the arrogant mindset

like because he thinks ‘I’m the best’, it is so

the guys don’t fuck with him

he winks at all the girls 

and kinda misbehaves with them

“Hey [girl], if I get this piece of paper in the bin in one shot all the way from over here, you can give me your number”

*actually gets the shot and is secretly shook but acts like it was nothing*

Turns out he’s hella intelligent 

and understands every little thing instantly

but that doesn’t stop him leaving college 

to return to his normal life each evening

or sitting in the back of classes with his feet on the table 

and food on his desk

So he’s still a little untamed and out of control

He still causes the odd street fight

almost loses his licence to fight in a ring

and he still trashes places

and he still has no definite personality

But then this one girl at his college

she puts him in his fucking place

He gets paired with her for a project and he’s like

“So, I talk, you type?”

and she is like 

“Hell no”

Oh look, he realizes he’s whipped for a girl 

because she ain’t afraid to backchat him

Muscle pig but with some weaknesses

Not sure if this has turned out too similar to my Fuckboi!BTS Headcanons but fuck it, there we go! I went by anon’s little thing about Jin as a basis for his hc and they’re not entirely based on what I think the boys would actually be like without BTS... Also for some reason, I feel different sexualities from them with these personalities so please don’t be offended... 

...and I’m not even sure they were all entirely bad boy things [esp the gifs they’re just all so soft hahaha] but it’s getting late and this took way longer to think about than expected [oml punk activist Tae with all the tatts and piercings is making my heart flutter so much even though it’s my own creation?]

[hookysblog]

Isreal, Australia and New Zealand.

BARBY CLUB, TEL AVIV, ISRAEl!

MERCH SITES...PLEASE SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL MUSICIAN

https://the-hacienda-uk.myshopify.com/

 https://peter-hook-uk.myshopify.com/

Our second trip to Israel!

Complete with me nursing a really bad sore throat and chest;(

Not too many death threats this time I believe, what a world eh! Quite a long flight, but flies by with the boys. Immigration is easy until our sound guy gets dragged off for questioning about his granddad (who he never knew?).

He is kept for a long time, which is a little worrying, but is eventually let in and never really found out what it was all about?

His Big Bad Grandad sounds interesting!

The road works (in the centre of Tel Aviv at midnight???)  hold up our arrival at the hotel for a couple of hours, with all the roads leading to it closed. What a mess! We end up walking, which with the equipment isn’t easy;(

A lovely day dawns and our wacky little hotel called Hotel Cinema, has film posters and projectors everywhere. I am in the actual projection room at the top of the old theatre, complete with hole for the lens to poke through, really weird. I grab a haircut by the Mighty Zohan and a lovely pizza. The area we are in is very vibrant, in other words …..Rocking! The gig looms and we being joined today by Hadar Goldman, an Israeli violinist from the punk band Ciam, whose other claim to fame is the purchase of Ian Curtis’s old house, 77, Barton Street, Macclesfield. Hadar wanted to open it up as a museum but has not been successful so far, sadly. Could be a job for me in my dotage as a curator, like Night at The Museum eh?;)

Anyway, he is very nervous but the lads are on top form and the gig goes great from start to finish. Hadar is great on Atmosphere and Autosuggestion, and the three hours fly by! The lads are off early the next day to OZ but I don’t follow until the night of the day after, so have a bit of time to kill.

It is Yom Kippur here and everyone seems really worried I will starve to death. So like a real student, I invest in two Pot Noodle’s and a load of chocolate and after raiding the breakfast buffet, I think I will survive;) I sleep again after brekkie and wake and walk down to the beach. Spending the whole afternoon just watching the world go by.

Yom Kippur lasts from dusk until dusk the next day and as the sun goes down the noise levels decrease, until the only sounds you can hear are the children playing in the deserted streets. Breakfast is provided on Sunday for us and my wonderful hosts have hired me a mountain bike for what is called ‘Childrens Day’ here.

I have not cycled for years so am a little apprehensive to say the least. I get the bike on the street and it is really strange…..There are no cars at all! The whole place is deserted with every shop closed. The only problem is my chest….I am like puffin’ Billy.

In the old days there would be no power or phones in the city I am told. The leaves soon settle in the road and it gives a post apocalyptic feel as I cycle along topless the leaves blowing round me. I go down through the deserted market to the beachfront, and there the place is completely alive, with thousands of kids on every size and kind of bike, motorised skateboards and tons of electric scooters everywhere. It is completely magical, it really is.

I AM SPELLBOUND;)

 I love the bike and watching the kids in huge groups cycling along the freeways and empty streets is heart warming, it really is and I only give up because I am worried about getting sunburnt, heading back to the hotel for a hat and a T-shirt and a Pot Noodle. I go back in the afternoon suitably attired and ride and ride, until I have to give up because my arse is so sore (no 50p jokes please!). As the sun sets the city gets back to normal all too soon with the noise level rising to it’s usual roar by 7p.m. On the way to the airport for my flight to Oz the busy, noisy streets seem so coarse compared to how they were a few hours before, what a shame. I sail through Immigration/Customs, my granddad must have been ok? (Didn’t know him either;(

I begin a to long trip to Australia, one of my favourite places on earth.

 METRO THEATRE, SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA

Throat and chest still bad but we persevere;)

I arrive the day of the gig so by the time gig time comes I am completely addled. It reminds me of being drunk, it really does. This Joy Division ‘2 album’ night was added at short notice after our Japanese gigs fell through, but is very well attended. Great to play Closer again, wonderful. Martin our new keyboard player is top from start to finish, a great response. I crawl off to bed exhausted. Not much time to relax because we are off the next day for a gig at….

 CORNER HOTEL, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

 Lovely to be back, a beautiful city, very Parisien. It was here that I wrote most of The Hacienda Book funnily enough, when I was Djing at Parklife in 2008, you got the week off in-between so I thought it was a great time to start. Australia looms large in my books lives, as you will see later;)

The on stage sound is tough at this place, which I remember all too well from last time, but the gig goes great and is Sold Out! Too. Great reception for both Unknown Pleasures and Closer, yet again! An almost humane leave sees us off to……

 THE STUDIO, AUCKLAND, NEW ZEALAND

 Another beautiful country and now we have a lot of English friends living here now. Hi Carol;) Back to Substance tonight, which is nice.

I have to give in here, I am finding it hard to sleep my chest is crackling that much, so a trip to the Doctor’s beckons. Strangely both me and Pottsy have the same problem???

The Doctor says I am ‘crackly’ and he is ‘wheezy’,

 ‘Where’s Grumpy?’ I ask?

 He doesn’t laugh;(

 $350 Dollars light and we are both Amoxcycillined up and off we go.

Gig goes great from start to finish. Still struggling with my throat which is really annoying Grrrrr! I am waiting for the Biotics still to kick in. But I take it easy by cycling all over the place puffing gently. It’s my new thang!

It’s wonderful how both countries are completely suited, and go out of their way to encourage cycling. I follow the river past the Zoo all the way down to the centre of the city. Then get embarrassed because I am the only one topless? So head back. Hard on the chest again but well worth it! Grab a Kebab before the gig and I am ready!

The place is packed and gig goes great. The lads are on fire.

Ecstatic reception to both records!

Catch up with a few old mates, lovely to see you again Platty;) Next stop…

  THE TIVOLI, BRISBANE, AUSTRALIA

 Back to Substance and another Sold Out gig. This getting boring….only joking, after all our hard work it is the best compliment ever, thank you all.

Nice venue and everything goes well, recovering nicely;) Off early tomorrow so after more smashed Avacado we are off to…

 THE GOV, ADELAIDE, AUSTRALIA

 Another beautiful place.

Nice, quiet and very suburban. Lovely old theatre venue that is packed and of course….Sold Out! Bit of an altercation with some fans at the front, but it is soon sorted and the bouncer tells me it’s the same guys he threw out last time we were here….go figure? Very cold here at night in spring, so wrap up if you are visting. Up earlish to hop over to …….

 CORNER HOTEL, Concert’s 1, 2, AND 3, MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIA

1.I feel marginally better today, thank god!

So have a lovely first day here, visit the Dior exhibition at the Museum along with The Great Wave exhibition by the Japanese Ukiyo-e artist Hokusa

.

  A very cultural day indeed! Enjoy a lovely stroll back to the Hotel and struggle through a short gym session, which does make me feel better.

It’s gig time before I know it and it’s back to The Metro for the struggle with the foldback.

Gig is a struggle and I cannot get the vibe, but it goes down well I must admit. Nice early night.

 2.Have a lovely Big Morning out for breakfast/Brunch with Viv (Big Day Out owner and very old friend) and one Zombie film later am ready for round two.

DING DING! Better gig tonight, great audience, sound still shit. The only place that sounds worse than this place is our very own Fac251 The Factory, where there is nothing you can do to combat it, believe me we have tried everything.

Lovely to see Viv Lees, with his son at the concert too. God we are getting old!

 3.Last night and we turn down a bit onstage and magically it sounds better for it. Play really well and great reaction gives us heart for our long trek to…….

 THE ASTOR THEATRE, PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA

 This is one of my favourite places on earth. It really has to be seen to be believed, and that’s despite nearly dying from food poisoning here once see Inside New Order for details;) I am so happy we are finishing here. Stay in a wonderful Casino Hotel that is HUGE! Great pools inside and out, huge gym and as I am feeling a lot better I get in there and have a great workout, so good to be back to normal. Finish off the day sunbathing with a Virgin Mary and with dinner at their very own NOBU, am ready for whatever the concert brings.

Tonight we are back at one of my favourite venues. It’s an old Cinema complex transformed into a great gig. The dressing room used to be one of the smaller theatre’s but they have normal dressing rooms now….Boo Hoo! Do the meet and greet like a Old Mancunian Santa Claus then it’s the show, Sold Out show did I say? Hee Hee!

The sound is great, the audience is great, band is great!

What a wonderful end. I thank everyone and we are done ready for home, but Oops…… I forget to thank Phil Murphy and Steve Jones and they will not let me forget it either, sorry boys;(

Nice to see Brian Jary (I used to sit next to him at Salford Grammar in 1967) and his wife, along with Ken and Georgina our old friends too;) Wake to a huge storm, which is beautiful to watch.

After a fantastic breakfast with the biggest Las Vegas style buffet I have ever seen, Dan our Tour Manager takes us to the airport for the first of our three planes home.

 Thank you for such a fantastic time…..EVERYONE!

 Cheers Hooky, ’17.

[weneverlearn]

GARAGE PUNK DOC IN THE WORKS! 

Wherein Italian trash rock lifers dust off their old VHS concert tapes and pick up a new camera to document the 1990s garage rock scene.

About the last week of November, a trailer of sorts (above) was making the trash rock rounds. It’s cool clips and odd editing of some of the best garage bands of the 1990s piqued lots of interest and fevered sharings, garnering excited queries of “What?” “When?” “Who?” Gaaaaaggghh!!”

Well it turns out I had a clue, as this in-the-works documentary of the end-of-the-century garage rock scene (ala the one covered in my book) is being scrummed up by Italian uber-fans, Massimo Scocca and Gisella Albertini. They not only started booking great bands from all over the wold in their town of Torino and beyond northern Italy back in the early ‘90s, but they had their own great trash trio, Two Bo’s Maniacs. And yes, @newbombturks have been pals with them since they first booked us in 1993, and are one of many interview subjects planned for the film.

Since the chances of 20th Century Fox coming along to bankroll a doc on the 1990s garage punk scene is probably out of the realm of possibility, here’s hoping Massimo and Gisella get all the help and funding they need to finish the project.

We Never Learn checked in with Gisella for some more details on the project.

So, what is the name of the documentary, and why is it named that?

We needed a working title that could pretty much summarize what it is about, and not just cool sounding: Live The Life You Sing About - Tales of Low Budget and Desperate Rock’n’Roll.  

We started wondering how bands that sound so different from one another are often perceived as part of the same category or “genre.” When someone asks us to define it, we end up with a long series of terms: garage, punk, rock’n’roll; sometimes with an extra “sixties” or “lo-fi” or “low-budget” in all possible combinations because they’re not not necessarily all true at the same time. Maybe the one thing they have in common is attitude. Something like: play, sing, do what you think is right, no matter what other people think or say. This often comes along with struggle, frustration, and the feeling of being on a different planet, so we threw in an extra “desperate.” It also happens to be the title of an old song that a band brought back to the present, which is another common theme here. However, it might still change, if we come up with a better idea.

Who started the idea to do the documentary, and why?

We came across a box of Video 8 and cassette tapes, forgotten in a closet for years, and something clicked: “We should do something with this!”

From time to time we happen to meet kids who were just babies or very young children in the 90’s, but are very much into this kind of music. Usually when they hear the names of the bands we saw play live, they look at us with amazement and envy. That reminds us of when we talked to people who had seen maybe like Bo Diddley and the Rolling Stones in the ‘60s in just one night. Ok, it means that we’re getting older, but at the same time, we feel lucky and grateful that someone worked hard to allow all that to happen. Now, it’s our chance to save someone “from the misery of being a Taylor Swift fan and do something good for the world” ( - Tim Warren). Ha ha ha!!!

Gisella (far right); Massimo (middle) - Photographer unknown

Is there a kind of timeframe to the bands in the movie?

I guess you know exactly what it means having to choose what to include and what to cut. So many stories that should be told, so little pages...or minutes. It’s just an impossible task. So, we somehow arbitrarily put some boundaries. We decided to focus on whatever happened between 1990 and 1999. Last decade of the millennium. Pretty epic, you know. The era of transition towards new technologies that deeply changed the way of doing many things, but at the same time, at least in this kind of music, strongly rooted in the previous decades of the century.

Oh sure, it’s not that a flying saucer with all these bands landed on Earth on January 1, 1990 and left on December, 1999. We will have flashbacks and references to the present as well. But since the documentary is mostly based on our own archive, it’s also necessarily influenced by the fact that we met some people and not others, and we saw, filmed, and photographed some bands more than others.

Tell me about what your backgrounds are -- in music or life in general.

Oh well, the main people [working on the doc] currently is the two of us -- with the precious help of a few people who could not devote themselves to the project until it’s completed, but worked with us and supported us in many ways.

When we came up with the idea, we had two main options: putting together a professional-looking proposal, sending it around and just wait, hoping some producer would notice its great potential and decide to invest thousands of dollars on it. Or, just jump in and start somehow and figure everything else out in the process. We chose the latter -- it’s more punk! There’s no fame and fortune guaranteed with this project. You do it just because you want to and no matter what.

I mean, we expected a bunch of dedicated fans and collectors would love to see a documentary like this. But being realistic, that’s a relatively small niche. We tried to figure what people know about this. in Italy, the closest they can usually get to this kind of music is what here is called the  “Po-po-po-po-po-po-poo World Cup chant.” Real title: “Seven Nation Army” by the White Stripes. Not even something we plan to mention. 

Next, a bunch of bands of the late 90’s-early 2000s, still quite a bit out of our range. Then numbers get lower and lower, down to the most obscure ones that only few geeks have ever heard of.

Anyway, if all goes well, we’ve finally found a stable technical crew. Also, we’re working on a few ways of funding the project, besides our own bank account, and including crowdfunding later. Plus a few other ideas, but nothing defined yet so I prefer not to say more, until we’re settled.

1995 7″

Torino newspaper clipping, 10/93. - “Shitty local bands get the main title, while they (A-Bones) only appear to deserve a "tough (?) garage rockers from NY.” - Gisella

How far along are you in finishing it, and when do you think it will be done?

We already did a lot of work on the archive and the structure that will help speed up the editing process. However, we still have quite a few interviews to make, presumably in the summer, and post-production that will involve quite a lot of work on sound especially. Sorry guys, sit down and relax, at least until late 2018. But we’ll keep everybody updated on our page.

Who have you talked to so far, and who do you hope to talk to when you come to the States?

We did long interviews with Tim Warren and Ben Wallers at their homes. Then we have eleven more, collected at gigs of the bands that happened to be touring Europe: opportunities that we couldn’t waste. Many interviews were between sound check and dinner, or even after the gig, and we might decide -- with the interviewees -- to use only part of them, or not at all, then do more while we’re in the U.S.A. Oh, I almost forgot to mention 30 audio-only interviews we had made for our zine in the ‘90’s that will be partially edited in as well. Who do we hope to talk to in the States? Hey, we’re Italian and superstitious, we don’t reveal names in advance!

Torino newspaper clipping, 1994.

Tell us about when you first started seeing these kind of garage punk bands. And what was an early show you saw that really made you get into this music?

Gisella: Sixties music has been my favorite since I was 4 or 5, when I found my mom’s Beatles records -- two 45’s -- in a cupboard. From there, you know, Kinks, Them, Animals, Pretty Things, and then Pebbles, Back From the Grave, and the bands more or less inspired by that. So when my friends and I heard that the guy from the Prisoners would play in town with his new band the Prime Movers, we all went, of course. There, we discovered the opening band would be the Wylde Mammoths. Great night, and a first glimpse of things to come. But it was really the Gories and Thee Headcoats records I came across at a local record store that blew my mind and had me say “Oh THIS is what I really want to hear!.” Everything else followed.

Massimo: Well I’m older than Gisella you know, and I saw some awesome bands during the ‘80s like Suicide, Gun Club, etc. I used to collect a lot of garage compilations, early blues records, r&b, soul, and all the good stuff. But the event that attracted me strongly into this music happened in 1990. I was in NYC, checking the Village Voice and saw that the Gories and the Raunch Hands would play that night. So I went there, and man, that gig was unbelievable! Totally different from anything you could hear at that time, and so shocking that it definitely changed my life forever.

I guess there will be a lot of old film footage in the movie. Can you tell us about one or two old videos you have that you are particularly excited about putting in the movie?

The first one we ever shot. it’s 1995, Micha [Warren, Crypt Records] tells us the Oblivians will be touring Europe. The 10” on Sympathy was awesome and the Country Teasers will be playing too, so we decide to follow them around for a week. Right before leaving, I remember a friend of mine had a Video 8 camera from the late 80s, ask him if we can borrow it, and he says yes. Great, off we go in our ‘70s orange, rusty Ford Transit that we can also sleep in. We get to Stuttgart, Germany. The venue is a sort of long narrow basement, really packed, hot wild atmosphere. Camera battery is fully charged, everything ready, we’re thrilled at the idea of filming such an event. Except... five minutes later, the camera’s dead! The battery was fucked up. What do we do? We can’t miss something like this. Between the sets, we ask if I can keep the camera plugged to the only socket around, at the back of the stage, and they say ok. So for the whole gig I’m there in a corner, trying not to pull my 3′ cord too much, horrified at the thought of blacking out amps and P.A., making the band and the crowd mad at me forever. Luckily, I didn’t. And we came home with some real crazy footage!

Was there any band so far that said NO to an interview for the film?

Considering that in most cases we basically popped up at sound-check asking for an interview for a basically nonexistent documentary, we’re really grateful that they all said yes in that moment, despite the often dire circumstances. It gave us the confidence to persist.

As for the future, we haven’t contacted 100% of those we’d like to interview yet. Until now there was only one who said, “Maybe, it depends.” But I already sort of expected this could happen, and in fact I contacted him way before all the others, in order to have time to figure out my countermoves. Not all hope is lost, ha!

Tell us anything else you want about the movie.

We want our documentary to reflect what we think was the feel of that era -- no bullshit, fun, crazy, and not too high tech!

Follow the film’s progress here!!

[halsteadproperty]

Small Business Spotlight Series: LIVE Music Venues in NY Metro Area 

Curated by Our Halstead Agents 

Since the beginning of time, music has connected us with other human beings, our inner spirits, and our history in a way that words alone cannot. Music is the human language that bridges cultures, genders, and generations. The power of music grows as we age. 

Everyone has a taste in one form or genre of music, however nothing beats hearing live music up-close. Sure, you can buy tickets to a concert or musical, but the authentic vibe that comes with listening to live music in a small, intimate setting is unattainable at your typical festival.

Our Agents, as hard as they work, know the best-of-the-best to unwind, grab some food, and get groovy. As experts in their neighborhoods, we decided to center our Small Business Blog Series around live music venues in the NY Metro area. Take it from our agents on where to go to connect your inner spirit and dance the night away!

Music Hall of Williamsburg Williamsburg 66 N 6th St, Brooklyn, NY 11211

This triple-tiered club has three bars and is the ultimate spot for Indie-rock fans looking to groove to live music. According to agent Maxfield S. Wiseltier, the venue attracts big artists and gives concert-goers a unique ability to see their favorite musicians in an intimate setting. “I love the Jazz standard, which sits below Blue Smoke BBQ. Nothing makes a jazz concert better than some of the best barbeque in the city,” Wiseltier says.

(Recommended by Maxfield S. Wiseltier of our Park Avenue Office)

White Eagle Hall Jersey City 337 Newark Ave, Jersey City, NJ 07302

Newly renovated White Eagle Hall recently opened in May, and the historic theater is thriving. As one of the most unique live-performance and event spaces in the Northeast, it adds to the growing scene in Downtown Jersey City, NJ. White Eagle Hall presents live music, theatre, comedy, dance, film, family shows and other performances while serving food and drinks. When you aren’t catching a performance, there are two restaurants on the ground level –  Cellar 335 and Madame Claude Bis.

(Recommended by Matt Brown of our Hoboken Office)

The Bitter End Greenwich Village 147 Bleecker St, New York, NY 10012

When Broadway’s most talented musicians are not playing with celebrities, you’ll find most of them at The Bitter End playing their own original music with other established musicians. “It is the Woodstock of Manhattan,” says agent Amelia S. Gewirtz. “It’s the smallest place on any list with this much talent sitting so close to you.” Gewirtz also plays at the venue, playing out herself as Amelia’s Dream, and believes the opportunity to sit and chat with musicians after they perform is what separates this venue from the rest.  

(Recommended by Amelia S. Gewirtz of our West Side Office)

Joe’s Pub Lower Manhattan 425 Lafayette St, New York, NY 10003

Amelia’s husband, who is a professional musician himself, has a fortunate advantage when it comes to exploring unique musical venues. Joe’s Pub is one venue not to forget about. The pub includes a wide & eclectic range of musical performances offered over dinner & drinks in an intimate space. “Joe’s Pub consistently offers top notch music and is even connected to the historical Public Theater, which Hamilton started out in,” Gewirtz says.

(Recommended by Amelia S. Gewirtz of our West Side Office)

Mezzrow Greenwich Village 163 W 10th St, New York, NY 10014

Agent Michael Petrosino is a professional Jazz musician on the NYC scene for almost 25 years now. According to Petrosino, Mezzrow is not to be missed by any true Jazz fan. The venue is an intimate, relaxed lounge featuring live jazz pianists & a full bar, plus a simple snack menu. “Mezzrow has quickly become not only one of the preeminent clubs to hear world class musicians, but also the spot where these musicians congregate to hear each other and make the hang,” Petrosino says. Mezzrow is an intimate venue for up close and personal listening. With an impeccably maintained Steinway model “A”, it focuses on the pianists in the city and is a truly special place. On the cutting edge of the live music scene, you can become a member of their website, where they live stream all performances!

(Recommended by Michael Petrosino of our Park Slope Office)

An Beal Bocht Café Bronx 445 W 238th St, Bronx, NY 10463

“The best, most attractive, and most comfortable place for live music in Riverdale,” says agent Marilyn B. Wegh. The true Irish pub is a gathering spot for the neighborhood and has been a venue for local artists since it’s opening. There is a rich and varied weekly schedule of events with a hefty dose of Irish, including performances by “The Poor Mouth Theater”, poets, folk singers and a regular Sunday evening set at 9:00 p.m. when new music is performed by singers/composers. Wegh’s favorite and the ‘best-of-the-best’ is Linda’s Jazz Nights, where Riverdale resident Linda Manning brings world-class jazz artists to this intimate pub setting. These artists have extensive discographies, careers across continents, and Riverdale roots.

(Recommended by Marilyn B. Wegh of our Riverdale Office)

Sunny’s Bar Red Hook 253 Conover St, Brooklyn, NY 11231

This saloon has been around in one guise or another since the 1890’s. It features an expected rustic décor and a fantastic view of the Manhattan skyline right outside its front door. According to agent Barbara Dahl, the music is top notch with a bent toward folk, bluegrass, country. “Seating is relatively easy to come by but it is a good idea to get there early for prime seating (before they move the tables and chairs back for dancing),” Barbara says. “A large outside patio, within earshot of the stage gives an additional option for people that want to enjoy the night air.” Sunny’s Bar also includes a large bar offering people an opportunity to step away from the music and chat, while enjoying a tier one selection of spirits, microbrews and wines. 

(Recommended by Barbara Dahl of our Cobble Hill Office)

Rockwood Music Hall Lower East Side 196 Allen St, New York, NY 10002

Agent Jill Jordan often leaves this venue feeling like she experienced something special. “With three listening rooms of various sizes (all intimate), it is easy to gamble on an unknown band because you can move next door and try another if the tunes don’t get you tapping your toes,” Jordan says. The quality of the music – heavy on the singer/songwriter, alternative rock, and progressive pop genres—is easy to love. “When it comes to quality up-and-coming musicians, paired-down famous acts, and popular regional groups (from other regions), Rockwood Music Hall is the place to go,” says Jordan.

(Recommended by Jill Jordan of our SoHo Office)

Prohibition Upper West Side 503 Columbus Ave, New York, NY 10024

Comfortable/friendly neighborhood bar meets fun music roadhouse. Prohibition offers great food, elevated well beyond bar food. The venue includes a lively lounge with Jazz Age-themed decor, a long cocktail list and free nightly music performances. Agent Keith Marder says, “the signature mini cheeseburgers and show-stopping fresh jumbo pretzel (you have to see it) are a must-get and the cocktail program is top-notch.” The friendly atmosphere includes excellent bartenders and the bands attract crowds and crowds of people who really get into the music. “With football season in full swing, it is a place you don’t want to miss,” says Marder. 

(Recommended by Keith Marder of our West Side Office)

Fairfield Theater Company Fairfield 70 Sanford St, Fairfield, CT 06824

The multi-faceted Fairfield Theatre Company is agent Robyn Kammerer��s go-to venue for a relaxed and enjoyable experience. FTC has two venues on site, right next to the Fairfield train station. “StageOne is consistently voted as the best place to hear live music in the entire region because of the quality of the sound, the intimacy of the space, and the caliber of the artists,” says Kammerer. “The Warehouse, which is bigger, has two levels with a cool bar and people can be standing or sitting depending on the artist. It’s the most versatile space in FTC.”

(Recommended by Robyn Kammerer, Exec. Director of Sales in our Darien and Rowayton offices) 

Small businesses are the fabric of authenticity and we celebrate all of our small business owners throughout the NY metro area. These live music venues are so special that they are top of mind to our Agents and for that we salute each of them.

Don’t forget to check back in for our next Small Business Spotlight.

[textales]

“Fight for Your Right.”

“Who the fuck are you?” asked the leader of some band we hired to play that night.

Good lord, how could anyone have the audacity to be so disrespectful and rude?  He had to have known this was the office where the check would come from as he was being escorted by the guy who hired them.  

I stood there with my mouth gaping open, stunned like a deer in the headlights, then just like that he and his entourage moved on before I could scare up an answer. 

My work-study job was more fun than most.  While others were stocking shelves at the bookstore or washing dishes at the food service, I worked for ASUM Programming, the entertainment arm of “The Associated Students of the University of Montana.”  A New Yorker named Erik curated concerts. A grad student picked the lectures.  And there were three red-headed sisters – triplets no less – from a windswept town near some Indian reservation. One ran the performing arts program, one picked the movies, and one was the benevolent boss of all of us. 

Working for the student government was an honor and a responsibility that I took very seriously, and figured it would pay off when I had to get a real job after graduation.  Thirty years later I can say I was right – if not for me, at least for many of my co-workers who went on to become big deals.  One girl got a gig at some software company in Seattle and was so successful she retired in her 30s.  Our student body president became a senator.  And that New Yorker responsible for bringing concerts to our college made a fortune when he sold the newspaper he founded to a big media conglomerate. 

I did the advertising – a position that completely went to my head.  Looking back, I was a pain-in-the-ass prima donna, but my intentions were righteous (or at least I thought so).  Although we were in the sticks, I was insistent that our image be every bit as cool as those of giant schools like UCLA or Harvard.  It was my personal mission to showcase how we were so much better than our redneck peers at MSU in Bozeman who offered washed-up has-beens filling dates between county fairs.  As our community’s un-elected curators of cool, we presented performers on the cutting edge.  Oh sure, occasionally we had a show a little past its prime, but we knew how to position it as the best thing to happen since the advent of electricity, and we’d sell out the biggest venues on campus every time.  

I made ridiculous demands of our graphic artists and printers, maxed out every budget and milked my media partners for every last free commercial. I shamelessly coerced radio stations into selling us commercials for pennies on the dollar. I hired the most expensive television production house in the state and ground them down until they agreed to the pittance I was willing to pay.  On broadcast TV, The Cosby Show was the number one hit in prime time (years before any controversy) and I demanded our commercials on the local NBC affiliate play “first in set” when the most people were watching. At $75 bucks a pop, I got our money’s worth and then some.   I was making my mark, dammit, hell bent on proving this was no hokey small town operation!   

The office was situated in the student union building known as University Center. The glass walls were covered with posters from past performers – everyone from Alabama to Van Halen had been through that town. I was proud of the bands we presented during my tenure there, including 38 Special, Cheap Trick and Corey Hart.  On that cold winter day, a red and shiny silver poster hung on the front door to promote the music group who had just blessed our office with their presence.   

After cooling-off for a minute I conjured a response to that obnoxious “up and comer” who wanted to know my purpose in the overall scheme of things.  Given the chance, I would have shot back with something snarky like “I’m the reason you sold out your show here in the middle of nowhere, you stupid fuck.”  But by that point the ungrateful bastard and his band were halfway across the snow-covered campus.

“I like Dick’s.”

Once a year, our team would make a trek to Portland to go shopping.  We were looking for “the next big thing” and we’d find it at the convention of the National Association for Campus Activities (NACA) where aspiring music artists, comedians and speakers would present themselves for hire by colleges in the region looking for entertainment options for their respective campus constituencies.  The convention was held at the Jantzen Beach Red Lion, a big fancy hotel on the waterfront. Artists would do short performances for the crowd, then interested buyers would have an opportunity to meet with them and their agents at a conference room where deals were cut on the spot. At the conclusion of each three-day trip we’d come home with a pretty good idea of what the next year’s entertainment line-up would be. 

I was fascinated with Portland – it was a “real city” (at least compared to Missoula) and traveling at the expense of someone else was cool shit for this 21-year-old college kid who at that point could count on one hand the number of times I’d stayed in a hotel or eaten at a restaurant with cloth napkins. 

My first taste of fine dining happened on a NACA trip at a restaurant named the Couch Street Fish House.  Knowing it would cost a fortune I was reluctant, but caved to peer-pressure as I was reminded such opportunities for fancy were nonexistent where we came from.  Trying not to look like a total hick from the sticks I gawked at fish tanks in the lobby where you could pick a lobster or sea critter they’d kill and cook right then - ain’t never seen that before!  Dinner was presented in a coordinated reveal as servers lifted silver domes covering the entrees of all patrons at the table, in unison, at the direction of the lead waiter. There were so many different forks and knives I had to ask which to use for what, and I recall being given a hot towel at some point, along with grapefruit sorbet which was to, according to the sharp-looking waiter in a bow tie, “cleanse the palate between courses.”  Hardly an adventurous eater, I had a simple Sirloin Steak (AKA high-grade hamburger), but rest of the crowd went crazy with escargot, scallops and crab.

Split among us, my portion of the bill was $106.  To put things into perspective, I made $290 a month before taxes, so this was absurdly high for this poor college kid, consuming over half of my take-home for the month.  But I don’t regret it, and to this day that dinner over thirty years ago remains one of the fanciest of my life. 

We went night-clubbing on Front Street at The Satyricon.  This place was buzzing with sketch-looking guys with mohawks, tight leather pants, chain necklaces and tattoos.  And there were women in fishnet stockings looking all slutty with black lipstick and winged eyeliner. A few emo kids and some nerds rounded out the crowd, which contained more diversity than anywhere I’d ever been back home. Oh sure, I’d set foot in The Top Hat and AmVets in Missoula, but never a gritty place like this. I recall a wall of black and white TVs showing nothing but snowy static…a wall of TVs just for decoration?  This is nuts.  It was literally on the edge of railroad tracks, complete with an angry punk rock band, a bouncer with bad teeth and bulging biceps, a coat check hosted by a girl who looked remarkably homeless, and there was a ridiculously high cover charge.   The door person asking if my male co-worker and I were a couple.  Before I could answer, Kevin blurted “yes,” knowing we’d get a discount.  Still deep in the closet, I was mortified at the consequences of having my cover blown.

As college kids are known to do, we drank a lot of beer on those trips. In eco-conscious Oregon, with progressive recycling laws decades ahead of the rest of the country, empty bottles and cans could be redeemed for a refund of five cents each.  On the way out of town, we’d stop at Fred Meyer to return the cases of empties.  We were so proud of ourselves, having consumed so much beer over the weekend that the refund money was enough for beef jerky and bottled water for the nine hour drive back to Missoula.  

In Spokane we stopped for burgers and fries at a drive-in.  Without realizing how dumb it would sound, I proudly blurted “I like Dick’s,” as I stood there in acid-washed jeans and a pink polo shirt.

“He is so gay” the New Yorker exclaimed to the red-headed triplets.  And here I thought I had them all fooled.  

“Fight for Your Right”

Erik must have seen something promising when he hired the group of white rappers at the NACA conference that year.  Yes, we wanted to be “cutting edge” and all, but white rappers?  In Montana?!  I didn’t see it…but what did I know? I was a fan of the fluffy pop I played on the radio, like Exposé, Bananarama and Madonna, which Erik considered the musical equivalent of cotton candy.  

As it turned out, he proved to be a programming genius.  When he signed The Beastie Boys months prior in Portland they were nothing more than an unknown opening act for Run-D.M.C., dismissed by industry pros as three obnoxious white kids from New York trying to sound black. Then they blew up…and it was like ASUM Programming hit the jackpot.   The album “Licensed to Ill” was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on February 2, 1987 – just five days after their appearance in Missoula.  This was an unofficial launch of the “License to Ill” tour, which started three weeks later.

Those Beastie Boys were obnoxious alright. And they were pissed, because just before coming to Missoula they were offered a show in Toronto and tried to cancel ours. Erik held their feet to the fire and threatened to file a lawsuit if they bailed on us, so they conceded and came to Montana in the dead of winter to do a gig for pennies of what they might have otherwise made in a bigger city. 

They were nice to Erik at first, but told him once the show was on they’d have to portray the image of the obnoxious rebels their managers were so carefully crafting.  They delivered on their promise to their management and then some. No wonder the lead guy was such a dick to me at the office. 

We suspected they might be rowdy and cause a ruckus early on. Their contract required multiple cases of beer and bottles of whisky, and they wanted their dressing room stocked with a “rainbow assortment” of condoms.  Such demands are not uncommon, and often ridiculous demands are written into the contracts just to make sure someone is actually paying attention to the small print. I’m not sure if we provided the condoms, but we definitely didn’t supply the beer and whiskey since University policy wouldn’t allow.  So they brought their own, and sprayed two cases of warm Budweiser on the crowd as part of their performance. They encouraged the crowd to rip-up the seating in the first few rows of the venue, and they trashed their dressing room, which I suspect got charged-back to the promoter.  

I recall not wanting to see the show….it was rap, after all, and I liked “the musical equivalent of cotton candy.”  But I was curious about what made this group so popular, so I found my way to the University Theatre for the last few minutes of their show that snowy January eve.

I don’t remember much, other than the crowd went absolutely wild and most were certainly fighting for their right to party.  I also recall fighting for my way to the bathroom, where dozens of drunk fellow college kids were using every available piece of porcelain all at once, including the urinal, toilet, sink, floor drain, and even the garbage can.  It was filthy, but efficient.

The Missouri Lounge is located a few blocks from my home in Berkeley, California. I discovered this place after moving into the neighborhood over a dozen years ago.  Sometimes referred to as “unassuming” or “low key,” truth is it’s a total dive.  The bar and apartments above it were built in 1961 by a serviceman who retired to the area after doing his time in the Navy on The USS Missouri.  I just learned the music video for Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time” was filmed aboard that battleship.  Now I love even more this bar named after the boat.  

On the walls you’ll find pictures from the early days. Not unlike the black & white pictures I’ve seen of my grandmother playing pool at Reed’s Tavern in Great Falls, these framed photos are evidence of innocent local fun…people wearing paper hats and shooting confetti at a New Year’s party when 1962 rolled in… people not interested in going to the big celebrations across the bay in San Francisco…people looking for something comfortable and close to home.

The bar has seen many generations of customers and countless changes of ownership and décor. My first visit was in 2003, just a couple months after the then new owner had repainted in pretty pastels and neutral tones.  Concert posters from famous folk like Janice Joplin, the Beatles and the Rolling Stones adorned the walls.  And they had a brand new 48” flat screen TV hanging smack dab above the middle of the bar, presumably intended to lure sports fans hoping to see their favorite games in a venue more convenient than those in downtown Oakland or Berkeley.

After a few months the newly remodeled bar wasn’t doing so well, so a consultant was hired to “spruce things up” by “dumbing it down.”   As she told me a dozen years ago, the bar was essentially “too nice” for the neighborhood, so she decided to make it look more like a pool room in someone’s basement. Down came the framed posters from historic concerts at the Fillmore and Cow Palace.  Peach and pastels were covered over with battleship gray and brown paint.  A tired old couch was moved in, and so was an old Zenith console TV that for years doubled as the DJ stand.  The flat screen TV was moved into the corner, and they’d start showing classic horror movies with a Pulp Fiction feel.   Whatever magic she did seemed to work, and the place became a goldmine that it is today.  

Regulars at happy hour include Tim the glazier, Ian who works for the county, and Hans who owns a construction company.  Later at night, once the pool table is covered and moved to the corner, a totally different crowd of college kids and younger neighborhood professionals come in to drink and dance.   There’s a professional sound system and a proper DJ Booth, and the back patio which started out with a portable BBQ from someone’s back yard now features a commercial kitchen with permanent built-in stainless-steel sinks and a granite countertop.   But still, honestly, the place is a total dive, with picnic tables and chain link, where a shot and a beer are cheap, and the bathroom walls are covered in graffiti (even if that graffiti was put there on purpose in the first place). 

“I Played That Song When It Was New.”

One of the Disk Jockeys at the Missouri Lounge is a guy named Pat, who is around my age and plays lots of songs from the 80s. Whether it’s Thompson Twins, Prince or YES, he’s often spinning something that I can say I put on the air when I was a Top 40 DJ in Missoula. 

One random Friday night I noticed Pat wearing a hat from some bar in Whitefish, a small town in Montana, which spawned a conversation about my college days. I learned Pat’s wife is from Missoula, and my world continued to grow smaller as he cued-up “(You Gotta) Fight for your Right (to Party).”  

But as much as I was enjoying the conversation, I had to excuse myself (discount dive-bar beer like Olympia has a way of working its way through quite quickly) and headed toward the bathroom where I stood in line as polite millennial men took their turns one-at-a-time in a bathroom that has both a urinal and a toilet.  “Why can’t these kids be efficient like at that Beastie Boys concert where they were using the sink, the toilet, the floor drain and a garbage can?” I wondered without saying a word out loud. Okay, I understand not peeing in the sink or the floor drain or the garbage can, but they can use the urinal and the regular toilet and cut the time in line in half. “Hurry the fuck up. I gotta pee, besides, I have to get back to my conversation with Pat.”

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity in line, I returned to the DJ Booth where Pat told me the wife’s father founded “The Independent,” a newspaper in Missoula, and his business partner was a guy named Erik. 

Yes, THAT Erik, the same guy from New York who brought the Beastie Boys to Montana for their first concert out west. 

It’s a small world when the Missouri and Montana collide with the Beastie Boys.

[meltedmagazine]

AN INTERVIEW WITH SUNLAAND

    Sunlaand delivers a huge down payment on teenage rebellion in their most recent self-titled album. Songs such as “Trip Sit and Bad Mood” describe what any teenager expressing their rebellion and confusion might feel.  It is the currency of teenage punk, a smack in the face of angst mixed with a jaw hammering shout for more and better.

   The mixture of Michael’s skate punk vibe and Sara’s unique vocal tones make this EP a gift in itself. Sara stands in the shadows of Gwen Stefani's debut No Doubt as a unique and gifted vocalist. Debbie Harry meets Joan Jett. She shows that punk rock is not a boys club and gives Sunlaand a unique shot at glory. I got a chance to talk to the band (consisting of Sara Windom (guitar + vocals), Michael Chmura (bass) and James Hoag (drums)) about their journey out of the desert and into the limelight and just how fucking cool they are.

______________________________________________________________

How and when did you guys start?

Sara: Back around 2014, Michael and I kept trying to start bands together but we didn’t know any drummers. Then, in October of 2015 we met this guy from our school who played. We tried him and a few other people out, but nothing really worked, so Michael and I just decided to be a two piece, and he’d play drums for a bit. (Fun fact: on bandcamp, the original Boney demo is Michael.) Then I saw that SWMRS was playing a show here in a few months and I was somehow convinced to ask the venue if we could play. We got it, but Michael didn’t have a kit, our only drummer friend wasn’t available for the show, and we never played before. That’s when I remembered this friend of a friend who really liked Boney and played drums, so I sent this super long message to him, begging he’d help us out just this once. He agreed, and Sunlaand was born. A year later, and he’s still with us

In what ways does the Arizona music scene influence your sound? 

Sara: Well, right now particularly, there’s so many good local bands out there, and a lot of the people we play with influence us. Like after seeing Phantom Party play a killer surf-set, it makes me want to change our sound completely to be like that. 

Michael: The AZ music scene is really cool because it’s influenced by the California music scene, so it’s kind of like the bands we already listen to, but with a little twist, so it’s more rocky and less beachy so I like that a lot. Also there’s a lot of metal here, and fuck that.

James: It’s a really collaborative scene. Bands like Twin Ponies and Dent are pretty cool, and they take music from the east coast and put their own spin on it. What’s your creative/songwriting process? 

Michael: I get really high, and lock myself in my room and force myself to write music. Usually the lyrics come to me in bits every day and once I finally write melodies to songs, I put it all together.  

How would you guys compare where you were a year ago compared to now musically?

Sara: A year ago we were scrambling to write enough songs for a set for the SWMRS show. We trashed a lot of those songs after. It’s incredible what a year can do. We’ve been published in Phoenix New Times, JAVA Magazine, our songs are on spotify, iTunes and KWSS, one of my favorite radio stations, we’re planning to release more music, and we’re set to tour California in February. I’m so excited to see what this year does for us.

Michael: A year ago, we were stressing because we were trying to open for SWMRS and were trying to find a drummer, but now, we’re prepared for shows. Also, our music is a lot more mature and now we’re starting to find our sound, because a year ago we were all over the place.

Any artists that influence you the most?

Sara: I absolutely love Hot Flash Heat Wave, but Joyce Manor, Surf Curse and Cherry Glazerr are definitely some of my biggest influences too.

Michael: Wavves 100%, and together PANGEA, what they’re doing now, we’ve kind of been doing.

James: Mike Wallace of Preoccupations, John Clardy of Tera Melos, Greg Saunier of Deerhoof, and Joey Castillo of Queens of the Stone Age influence my drumming.

Best show you’ve ever been to?

Sara:Being front row at the Frights, SWMRS and FIDLAR show on Halloween night definitely takes the cake. I got Joey’s drumstick and got to talk with Cole afterwards. The three hour drive to Tucson was totally worth it.

Michael:Semi Social at the Trunk Space was really cool.

James:It’s between Preoccupations with Methel Ethel, Band of Skulls with Mothers or Queens of the Stone Age.

An artist/song/album that makes you feel a heavy dose of nostalgia?

Sara: I feel like everybody went through that middle school phase of never getting enough of the Strokes, for me, Room on Fire is particularly nostalgic.

Michael: Probably Room on Fire by the Strokes, I don’t listen to the Strokes enough anymore, but sometimes I’ll go back and listen to Reptilia or something and it’s really good.

James:Either Preoccupations by Preoccupations, or II by Unknown Mortal Orchestra.

LISTEN TO SUNLAAND HERE

interview by ATHENA BURTON

[jerome-blog1]

The Sounds of the Sixties

Bristol & West Country Bands – Music of the 60’s

In the heady days of the early 1960’s, a time of massive change and innovation in the world of popular music. Fuelled by the excitement and electricity surrounding the new sounds of the time.

Merseybeat stars head down south – With the Merseyside inspired "Beat Boom" in full swing, the big stars in Bristol this week in 1963 had to be from up north.

Topping the bill at the Colston Hall were Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas who had just had a couple of massive hits with Do You Want to Know a Secret (No.2) – a Beatles’ written ditty – and Bad to Me (No.1).

You certainly got your money’s worth in those days. Also on the twice-nightly bill was Tommy Roe, an American who had shot up the charts with Sheila and the Folk Singer, plus a string of lesser acts. Tickets ranged from four shillings and sixpence to 10 shillings and sixpence (average wages were then about £10 a week).

The end of the month would see Freddie and the Dreamers, the Searchers and Brian Poole and the Tremeloes (who were riding high in the charts with Do You Love Me) invading the city. The Tremeloes had previously reached No.4 with that "oldie, but goodie" Twist and Shout – a raucous number recorded by the Beatles on their first album.

Topping the bill was Roy Orbison, who had just made the top 10 with In Dreams and Falling. His Blue Bayou would reach the No.3 spot on September 19. Top tickets, in the balcony, would set you back 12 shillings and sixpence.

In 1963, the smallish, local venues were still torn between promoting beat music or jazz. Local bands Johnny Slade and the Vikings plus Dean Prince and the Dukes were on stage at Clifton’s Victoria Rooms, with the Chinese Jazz Club at the Corn Exchange booking the Alan Elsdon Jazz Band.

"Thomas Alstone", the man with his finger on the pulse, tells us that local instrumental band the Eagles (and stars of the Bristol-made film Some People) were about to try their hand at vocals as well.

The result, on the Pye label, was an updated version of the Helston floral dance called Come on Baby, to the Floral Dance. I don’t think it made the charts. If you really wanted to know what was going on in the city in 1963 then the newly published Bristol Beat was the thing to read. Billed as "Young Bristol’s entertainment paper", it cost six pence.

This magazine informed us that the best- selling single in the city was She Loves You by the Beatles. Runner-up was Billy J Kramer’s Bad to Me. Other top sellers were Wishing by Buddy Holly and I’m Telling You Now by Freddie and the Dreamers.

If classical guitar was you thing then Julian Bream was playing at Stourhead gardens on the Sunday evening. The two guinea tickets included soup, cheese, French bread and a glass of wine.

Back in the city – the Centre to be precise – comedian Jimmy Edwards was getting astride a horse to promote his autumn spectacular at the Hippodrome. If none of this was your cup of tea then how about a trip to the movies to see some really big stars – a trio in fact.

At the ABC you could join the queue to see Marlon Brando, Trevor Howard and Richard Harris in Mutiny on the Bounty. And in September 1963, Bristol Zoo had its very own stars on show to the public – the only pair of white tigers in the world (outside India).

Bristolians were huge fans of Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas.

Recommended Link

bristolrock.net/c.aspx

www.bristolarchiverecords.com/people/people_Tony_Dodd.html

Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs

The original Bristol Comets and special guest star Sandra McCann. Formed in 1958 and playing Hamburg’s Kaiser Keller Club alongside The Beatles, Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs are the authentic sound of the ’60s. It was said that The Cadillacs were performing Twist and Shout, You’ll Never Walk Alone and Shoutlong before they became hits for The Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers and Lulu.

Formed in 1958. Lineup: Vocalist; Lead guitar; Rythm Guitar; Bass guitar; Drums Dave Purslow. For many years considered by most to be the most popular ‘pop group’ in Bristol. Every teenager knew of them. A very polished group fronted by the stong vocals of Johny Carr (Con Sullivan), they had a solid style and had that certain charisma that got them noticed. This was what took them to Hamburg’s Kaiser Club and playing alongside The Beatles, Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs became the authentic Bristol sound of the 60s.

The Cadillacs were performing songs like Twist and Shout, Youll Never Walk Alone and Shout before they became hits for The Beatles, Gerry and the Pacemakers and Lulu. In the early 1960s the drummer was Dave Purslow, a very large gentleman. John rennie writes: Downend had a very popular R & R club which was every Wednesday I think. Knowle had serious Saturday evening dances at the community centre featuring top local groups. Speedwell TA hall had some big dances, one easter I remember starring Johnny kidd and the Pirates with Johnny Carr and the Cadillacs supporting. There was a memmorable local group R & R concert at the old Cabot cinema (before it closed down) in Filton along the same lines as the ones at the Colston hall. What about the rag week mersey versus avon beat shows at the Vic rooms in the early 60,s I hope this stirs some memories. Regards John Rennie.

See photo link below

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2050007986/

Chet And The Triumphs

This Bristol band once supported The Beatles at The Bath Pavilion in the early sixties. The drummer was Graham Nicholson, who lived in West Park Road, Downend. His practice sessions could often be heard when you passed by on the pavement outside. His father was an inspector on the buses, based at nearby Staple Hill Depot.

John Coldrick lived a few doors away, also in West Park Road. He often passed by when we children were playing in the street outside our house on the corner of West Park Road and North Street. He always had a cheery word for us and took it in good spirit when we called out cheeky things about teddy boys and suchlike. A thoroughly nice young man. Regards Fray Bentos

Email to the webmaster: Hi, just looked through your website,brilliant! i saw a picture of Johnny Coldrick, with his band The Triumphs. I knew john in the early 60s and would love to get in touch with him.can you help? Regards Paul Newman….would be good to hear from anyone with contact details.

Email to the webmaster: I have great memories of the Glen ballroom and the club next door called Cupids Bar. Also the bouncer at the door of the Glen being David Prouse (of Darth Vader fame)I often would have a quick dance with him which looked strange as I was barely five feet tall and he was probably at least six seven. I now live in Australia but have great memories of Bristol, which I return to on a regular basis. I was also married for nineteen years to a member of the rock band Chet & The Triumphs. Regards Pam and Gary O’keefe

See photo link below

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2975315707/

Fred Wedlock

Once described as a ‘West Country Billy Connolly, although he probably came first’, Bristolian singer and raconteur Fred Wedlock has been performing in folk clubs and concerts since the late 1960s. He was born in Bristol, England, on 23rd May 1942 and had various jobs, including being a teacher, before turning professional in the early 1970s. He is related to ‘Fatty Wedlock of Bristol City FC fame. Fred had various albums on small labels issued in the 1970s, and became widely known early in 1981 when his single The Oldest Swinger In Town hit the UK charts, rising to no. 6. Unfortunately he has never maintained that success, but the song is almost guaranteed to be played at family gatherings such as wedding receptions, as the middle-aged uncles and aunts take to the floor to gyrate after a few drinks.

Acker Bilk

The chances are that if you were asked to name a clarinet player, the first name that would spring to mind is Acker Bilk. Somerset-born Acker became world famous in May 1962 when he became the first British artist to top the US pop music charts, paving the way for other acts from the UK, such as a then still unknown band who were to have a fair amount of success on both sides of the pond a year or so after Acker’s trailblazing hit – The Beatles!

Acker’s US chart-topper Stranger On The Shore had topped the British chart some six months earlier, following its use as the theme tune of the eponymous BBC children’s TV series. The record, which would nowadays be described as easy listening, perhaps seems an unlikely double number one on both sides of the Atlantic, but in those pre-Beatle days the charts contained a fairly eclectic mixture of ballads, rock ‘n’ roll and Dixieland-style ‘trad’ (short for traditional) jazz.

See photo link below

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2080583036/in/se…

Pete Budd and the Rebels

Pete Budd and the Rebels Line up: Lead guitar/vocals, Rythym Guitar, Saxophone, Bass and Drums. Pete Budd, then apparently voted as the ‘best guitarist in the West’ (according to the local pop music magazine ‘The Western Scene’) succeeded Les Watts as the lead vocalist and guitarist. Ivor Newick played drums and there was also had a saxophinist.

‘Somerset Born And Proud’ Pete later replaced Reg Quantrill as the Wurzels’ guitar and banjo player. One of the trio who continued after Adge Cutler’s death, he was the only member of the 1970s Wurzels who actually comes from Somerset. His is the distinctive lead voice on all of their 1970s chart hits, including their number one smash Combine Harvester and the follow-up hits I Am A Cider Drinker, Farmer Bill’s Cowman, etc. Pete is still with the band today, and therefore the second longest serving current Wurzel after Tommy Banner. Pete started out in the band Pete Budd and the Rebels and also made a few records in the 1960s in a band called The Rainbow People. Pete was running a pub/restaurant in the West Country for a while. A keen fisherman, Pete emigrated to Devon a while back. His voice has been heard in recent years singing on the TV commercials for Ambrosia Creamed Rice.

Adge Cutler

The original and indisputably the greatest Wurzel of all time, and the brains behind the whole concept. Born 1930 in Nailsea, north Somerset. Held a series of jobs before becoming a Wurzel, including working as road manager for famous clarinet player Acker Bilk (who is also from Zummerzet) and his Paramount Jazz Band, working in a cider mill (Coates of Nailsea), and working on building a power station in North Wales. Spent a year in Spain working as an agent looking for property. During his time there he grew to love the country and the Spanish way of life, as well as becoming fluent in Spanish. Formed the Wurzels in 1966 and continued to gig and record with the band until his career was sadly cut short by his untimely death in 1974, when he overturned his MGB sports car at a roundabout while driving himself home from a gig. Buried in Christchurch, Nailsea.

The Comets

One of Bristol’s own first-generation rock ‘n’ roll bands the Comets they had supported such acts as Gene Vincent and Billy Fury. The Comets were almost certainly the first Bristol based band to make the enormous leap from Skiffle to amplified music, and thus paving the way for countless other local bands in the late fifties – early sixties.

A talent contest at the Glen Ballroom in 1958 in which the Sapphires, a vocal group, and the Comets were competing. Their sound blew everyone away that night. They not only sounded great, they looked great as well, dressed like quintessential rockers of that era.

In 1960 a unique show took place at The major concert venue in the city of Bristol, England….The Colston Hall. 2000 fans packed the place on December 16th to witness the best of the cities young Rock,n,roll bands & singers, even though not one of them had a recording contract, and some of the musicians were still in school ! Such was the popularity of local bands, when there was no such thing as a disco. let alone MTV, and when there was very little "pop music" on the then austere stiif upper lip Radio.

Andy Perrott (acoustic guitar and vocals) started out as half of the ‘Antones’ with Tony Sweet and has featured in several local rock’n’roll bands including the ‘Echoes’ and the legendary ‘Bristol Comets’. Andy left the music business for a twenty year sabbatical but returned in 1984 as front man with the reformed ‘Comets’.

Tony Dodd (electric guitar and vocals) started his career in music at about the same time, as guitarist for ‘Mike Tobin and the Magnets’. Unlike Andy, Tony has been playing continually since those heady days with the Magnets, including a band in the USA where he lived for three years. Locally Tony held down a residency at the renowned ‘Dug Out’ club and his bands include ‘Hugget’ and ‘Dodds Army’, and he is now a member of the Bristol Comets’.

See photo link below

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2050007986/

The Eagles

The Eagles were formed by Terry Clarke www.terryclarke.com/ (lead guitar), Johnny Payne (rhythm guitar), Michael Brice (bass), and Rod Meacham (drums), all students at Connaught Road School in Bristol. Their name came from the youth organization, the Eagle House Youth Club, to which they all belonged. The quartet played local dances, parties, and bingo halls, performing during the intervals between the sessions at the latter, often for whatever was in the hat that was passed around.

The Eagles were a Bristol music quartet active from 1958 through the mid 1960s.

Led by guitarist Terry Clarke, who used a homebuilt custom instrument, the group included drummer Rod Meacham, bassist Michael Brice, and Johnny Payne on rhythm guitar. Playing primarily instrumental rock, they began their career in Bristol playing local venues such as dance halls.

They were launched into the world of professional music in 1962 upon being noticed by composer Ron Grainer, probably best remembered for his theme to Doctor Who. Grainer was interested in The Eagles for a film project he was working on, Some People, about a fictional Bristol band not unlike themselves. The Eagles contributed to the Some People soundtrack, and became Grainer’s protegees, recording new versions of some of his film score work like the theme of the Maigret television series. The Some People soundtrack reached No.2 on the EP charts, and remained on the charts for a stay of 21 weeks.

The Eagles were awarded the Duke of Edinburgh Trophy for their work on the film, and soon after were signed to Pye Records, at the time among the top three labels in Britain. After releasing the singles ‘Bristol Express’ and ‘Exodus’, The Eagles embarked on a major tour of England along with more established acts Del Shannon, Stevie Wonder, Johnny Tillotson, and Dionne Warwick.

The tour world lasted much of 1963, during which their debut album, Smash Hits From The Eagles was released in the UK and the United States. The following year brought their most successful single and the one for which they are best remembered today, a vocal rendition of ‘Wishin’ And Hopin” backed with ‘Write Me A Letter’. Unfortunately, 1964 also brought a pair of tragedies which ultimately led to the end of the group: Grainer went blind, and Meachum suffered a nervous breakdown. Soon after, in late 1964, the band went their separate ways.

After The Eagles Clarke continued in the music business, with the band Pickettywitch and later as a session musician and solo artist, working with such artists as Michael Messer, Willie Nelson, Joe Ely, The Band, and Johnny Cash. He released nine solo albums between 1990 and 2006, on Transatlantic Records and various labels. Payne returned to Bristol and continued to play with local bands.

The Eagles’ music is available on many compilations of the era, and in 1998 Sanctuary Records released a massive 61-track two-disc compilation set Smash Hits from The Eagles and The Kestrels, by far the most accessible overview of the Eagles’ music today.

See photo link below

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/2094324558/

Teach the world to sing – Rogers Cook and Greenaway

Britain’s best ever song-writers hail from Bristol, well Fishponds/Kingswood namely Rogers Cook and Greenaway. They used to be David and Jonathan in the sixties, wrote ‘If you like alot of chocolate on your biscuit join our club’ and Cookie formed Blue Mink. Later he went to Nashville where he become the only Briton ever to be inducted into the Country Hall of Fame.

Bristol’s Rolling Stones

Mick and Keith, Brian and Bill and, of course, Charlie were already world-famous as the Rolling Stones, pop music’s favourite rebels, by the autumn of 1965. They’d just celebrated their biggest hit of all, ‘(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction’ when word came through that a Bristol band were claiming that they, not Jagger, Richards, Jones, Wyman and Watts, were the original Rolling Stones.

And it was all too true. Bristol’s Rolling Stones were the three Stone brothers who’d formed their own skiffle band at the height of the Lonnie Donegan era and played gigs like the Bristol Press Ball in 1957. Skiffle came from American blues music which often featured light travelling heroes described as rolling stones, so it was a good title.

The washboard group had changed their name to the Stone Brothers to avoid confusion when Mick, Keith and co. sprang to fame after taking their name from bluesman Muddy Waters’ classic ‘Rolling Stone’, but the matter still rankled. ‘We have no desire for the Jagger Stones to change their name. We only want to establish that the Bristol Stones are entitled to the name and were the first Rolling Stones,’ the group announced.

Top rock promoter/agent Tito Bums, then representing Mick, Keith and the rest chortled, ‘This would make a wonderful film.’ The Bristol Stones even consulted lawyers, but the matter ended quietly and amicably. . . and almost no one remembers the original Rolling Stones.

In the 1950s, Bill, his brother Ken and an unrelated Stone (Brian) formed a skiffle group. Their father was Moss Stone; not surprisingly, they called themselves The Rolling Stones. On the demise of the skiffle boom, they broadened their repertoire to include country and western . In 1965, there was a legal battle with the other ‘Stones’ which resulted in them being unable to continue with their name. A publicity leaflet for the Bristol Stones band at the time said ‘Bill Stone plays a very fine banjo and can perform equally well Liszt’s Liebestraum or Bye Bye Blues. Bill is a devotee of the great Eddie Peabody’ (an American plectrum style player)

The Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra

The bands who put our city on the map THE Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra, so the story goes, first got together after Fred Wedlock’s 1968 New Year party at Clifton’s much lauded Troubadour Folk Club in Waterloo Street. The "Piggies" as they were affectionately known, derived their unusual name from a specific location up the Gloucester Road – the section that goes uphill from the old Bristol North swimming baths to the turning just before Horfield prison.

Composed of musicians from other local groups the band weren’t in fact an orchestra at all but comparable to Viv Stanshall’s Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band or the zany Temperance Seven. John Turner (yes, the radio presenter and newspaper columnist) came from the Downsiders, Barry Back and Andy Leggett from the Alligator Jug Thumpers and Dave Creech from the Elastic Band.

Their music, which has been described as 1920s jazz and blues, actually sounded more jug band. Unbelievable sounds emanated from a collection of hot water bottles, plumbing pipes and the like. With a good dose of comedy thrown in, it all seemed to go down well. A music paper even labelled the "Piggies" the band "most likely to succeed". Things were looking up. With the Plastic Dog agency handling their gigs, a well received album, PHLOP, was released in 1970 on the Village Thing label. This was the year that John Turner left to be replaced by bass player Wild Bill Cole.

The band’s next album, Piggery Jokers, was recorded in Cornwall in 1973, had its distinctive cover put together by artist Rodney Matthews in a unique, self designed font. Now it was Barry Back’s time to call it a day being replaced by Jon "Wash" Hays on washboard. Then Andy Leggett left, too. But the "Piggies" weren’t ready to call it a day just yet. Dave Paskett, Richie Gould, Pat Small and Henry Davies, plus guitarists Chris Newman and Robert Greenfield came on board (plus, on occasion, a fine guitarist called Diz Disley who had tasted fame with folkie guitarist and singer Martin Carthy and legendary fiddler Dave Swarbrick).

All these musicians featured on the next album, imaginatively called The Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra, 1976. The music press were very kind. A Melody Maker hack wrote: "The Pigsty Hill Light Orchestra must be one of the most popular acts on the folk scene. Their spontaneous humour and good time songs have held many an audience anchored to the floor in wonder."

Three years later, despite a loyal following and much touring, the "Piggies" decided to throw in the towel. But still it wasn’t the end. In 1988, the band reformed, by request, to play at Trowbridge’s popular Village Pump Festival.

The gang were so well received and had so much fun that they decided to stay together, add Pat Small and singer Hannah Wedlock (Fred’s daughter) to the line-up and go on tour again. Out of it came yet another album, Back On The Road Again. This was in 1991, the year Jim Reynolds and Dave Griffiths joined the band. The following year, Musical History, a compilation album consisting of a selection of tracks taken from 1968 to 1992, was released.

Barry Back, who had been the driving force behind the "Piggies" reunion, sadly died in 1992 and, shortly after, the band decided to pack up for good. Al Read, in his excellent book about the Granary Club, says that the band’s first single on the Village Thing label, Shake That Thing/ Cut Across Shorty, can be bought for 47p.

The Retreads

One of the better bands was the Retreads, and were constantly booked to play most of the big venues, and played together with some of the bigger names of the time, Hollies, Searchers, Gene Vincent etc etc.

Jim Durcan, rhythm guitar, Derek Martin lead guitar and Ron Chappell on bass guitar, John Watson on drums. The band was soon signed up for Germany and spent a couple of years working the clubs there and under the management of the Star Palast owner Manfred Woitala, but returning every so often to play the Bristol scene.

While in Germany Jim had an accident and left the band, returning to his hometown Dursley in Glos, in the lineup at that time was a brilliant German pianist Jerry B, (Barthold Dunker) who made a great hit with the fans when the band once more returned to Bristol and on a longer tour covering the whole of the south of England.

After years in Germany and a few gigs in Sweden the Retreads returned to Bristol where eventually the band broke up. ( late 1966 ) Ron and Derek stayed in England and John Watson decided to go back to Sweden.

The Corvettes by Dark Haloun

I joined the corvettes as lead guitarist after Dave Fahy and Ray Truscott left for richer rewards. Steve Thynne had taken over as singer and rhythm guitarist. Geoff Fothergill played bass and Dave " Bocker" Box was on drums. We played most of the halls round Bristol and the villages within a fifty mile radius. Didn’t do much for my uni studies but it was fun.

Strictly a covers band, but weren’t they all back then. Alan B Williams drove the van and acted as roadie. He was chronically late, and we always told him that we were starting an hour before we really were. Geoff tried to teach me to drive in his Morris Minor, though without much success. When Steve moved on we got Alan Dale in as singer and Mike Morley( I think, memory is not what it used to be) on rhythm guitar. We discovered that Alan could sing a strong falsetto and started to do three part harmonies: Beach boys, Four seasons. It was a point of difference given that there were so many bands doing the same stuff. I was transferred to London and left the band in the mid-sixties.

Kinda lost touch with the guys after that. In 1973 I moved to Perth in Western Australia with my Aussie wife. Played in several bands over the years. For the last four years I’ve played lead in a sequenced trio, still doing the old fifties and sixties stuff. At 75 years of age it gives me an interest and keeps me off the sreets. Sorry I have nether photos nor memorabilia of the band but the memories remain undiminished. Dark Haloun

Anyone out there name any more ?

Email bristolhistory@googlemail.com

Can you Help ?

Does anyone remember the Glen Ballroom, Locarno, Dug Out, The Granary Club, Town’s Talk, Corn Exchange or any 1960s clubs or dance halls in Bristol?

The Glen

I’ve tried to find info & Pictures of it but no luck so far. We used to go ballroom dancing there back in the 60’s. There was a club attached to it but you had to be 18 to get in, they played rock ‘n’Roll their as apposed to the ‘Proper’ dancing in the ballroom.

Does anyone know if any of the Discs a gogo programmes were kept by the old TWW company.I would love to see us doing the Bristol Stomp again!

Anyone have any memories of the Mods & Rockers era and the coffee bars or the local West Coast Hells Angels in Bristol back to a time when British built motorcycles ruled the road ?

As a 51-year old Brisolian stuck in a 1960s timewarp, how many people recall the Monday night sessions between 1966 and 1968 at the then New Bristol Centre in the Locarno ballroom? (sadly now demolished) As I recall, this was THE place in Bristol at the time for 14-18-year-olds, with the entrance fee being 3s 6d for a session from 7pm to 10.30pm.

Records were provided via DJ (anyone recall names?) and there were two bars, The Bali Hai, where if you could stand tiptoe and lower your voice, you might get served with a half of cider by a waitress in a mock grass skirt!

Music was generally Top 30 stuff with a sprinkling of rarer Stax, Atlantic and Motown items which kept the Mods happy, and I am sure many a long-term relationship was started on the dance-floor.

Luckily, prior to demolition I was allowed in, and now am the proud owner of the Bali Hai mock Totem Poles which adorned the entrance to the bar, and also the sign from the Gents Stag Room – my partner thinks I’m crazy!

Chris Powell, Bradley Stoke

Danny Clarke and the Jaguars, Dean Prince and the Dukes, Jonny Slade and the Vikings, Mel Taylor and the Trek a beats, Dee Stars Predictions, A J and the others. The Road Runners.

The Quad. Mark Roman and the Javelins , Franklin big six, The Exiles, Mike Starr and the Citizens. The Blue Sound. The Lincolns, The Travellers The Concords The Ramrods. Dale Martin and the Mysteries. The Retreads The Strange Fruits The Burlington Berties. Venues the Vic rooms Carwadines Cool for cats (Yate) Bath pavilion the Corn Exchange the all nighter and all the church halls.

www.flickr.com/photos/brizzlebornandbred/5165126654/

Mods and Rockers

Email from Chris Powell to me: I was a 17 year old Mod living in St George/ Hanham at the time (1968/9). Most of us rode Lambrettas or Vespas, and The Rockers (or Greasers as we called them) rode old Vincents or Triumphs.

Generally there wasn’t any problems although it did kick off big time in the Summer of 1969 around the Centre- there were running battles for 2 or 3 nights and anyone on either a scooter or motorbike was considered "fair game"

A meeting was arranged on College Green between the Pascoe brothers (Willie and Angellino?) who were the "Ace Faces" in the Bristol Mod movement, and the leaders of the Rockers (names N/K)- there was the customary handshake and peace reigned thereafter. In all honesty, most of the "trouble" was built up by the media, as mainly Mods and Rockers were good friends. Indeed, I still have Lambrettas to this day and occaisionally meet Rockers of that era whilst out and about and chinwag over the good old days!

Main "Mod" places were- The Locarno; The Top Rank; The Never on a Sunday Cafe in Fairfax Street: Aunt Gemimas; Coke and Clobber; Beau Brummels on The Centre; The Weigh Inn (spelling) on College Green.

The Rockers used to hang out at The Starsreach Cafe in Staple Hill.

Posted by brizzle born and bred on 2007-12-08 14:55:08

Tagged: , 1958 , 1962 , 1966 , 1984 , 1963 , pacemakers , wurzels , ambrosia , adge cutler , cook greenaway , al read , nailsea , pye records , banner , dodd , pete budd , wedlock , spanish , beatles , corn exchange , bath pavilion , pigsty hill , eagles , sweet , towns talk , tww , johnny carr , johnny tillotson , kaiser keller club , blue mink , granary club , rock band , sandra mccann , sixties , spain , stevie wonder , del shannon , andy perrott , bristol comets , lulu , dionne warwick , mike tobin , chet triumphs , cadillacs , Merseybeat , Beat Boom , Billy J Kramer and the Dakotas , Johnny Slade and the Vikings , Dean Prince and the Dukes , Chinese Jazz Club , Bristol Corn Exchange , Devon , Somerset , Bristol-Music-&-Arts , Acker-Bilk , The Corvettes by Dark Haloun

The post The Sounds of the Sixties appeared first on Good Info.

[gunboatbaylodge]

Things to Do in Vancouver this Weekend: October 5, 2017

Autumn is in full swing with festivals and feasts this weekend and there are many ways to toast your glass or stein to good harvests. For those of us who solidly believe that this is the most wonderful time of the year – Fright Nights begin this weekend, marking Halloween as just around the corner! There’s also music, circus performance, dance, and it’s not too late to catch some VIFF flicks!

Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Ongoing

Friday October 6

The Goblin Market

The Goblin Market Where: The Cultch What: A contemporary circus re-telling of Christina Rossetti’s poem, following two sisters, their temptation, sacrifice and eventual salvation. Lively circus is precariously balanced with gritty performances and candid story telling. Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Harvest Haus

Harvest Haus Where: 88 Pacific Blvd What: Combining modern fare with authentic European harvest traditions, gather your closest mates for what may be the most gluttonous and gratifying Oktoberfest in the city. Runs until: Saturday Oktober 14, 2017

Terra and Beyond with Chris Hadfield and Danny Michel

Terra and Beyond with Chris Hadfield and Danny Michel (show 1 of 2) Where: The Orpheum What: Share Colonel Chris Hadfield’s viewpoint “Beyond the Terra,” with music and inspiring images from the International Space Station.

Thanks For Giving Where: Arts Club Theatre What: While Nan bastes the turkey and prepares the stuffing, her husband hides a freshly hunted bear in the garage and her troublesome daughter is raiding her purse again. To top it all off, her grandchildren have chosen this Thanksgiving to disclose some unexpected personal truths to the family.  Runs until: Saturday November 4, 2017

Fright Nights Where: Playland What: Misty, dark, dreary, and full of spooks and scares may not sound like everyone’s ideal night out, but to those of us who love Halloween, nothing could be better! Playland turns into an animated haunted carnival, including seven haunted houses and fifteen of its best rides; what better way to scream away all of your fears? Runs until: Tuesday October 31, 2017

North Shore Craft Beer Week Where: Various locations What: The North Shore has a rich history of craft brewing and was home to Canada’s first ever microbrewery – Horseshoe Bay Brewery in 1982. Download the Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week Passport, get a stamp at each brewery as you travel around North Vancouver sampling special craft beer menus and unique casks. With your stamps, you could win prizes! Runs until:  Friday October 13, 2017

Experimental Ink Where: Museum of Anthropology What: The award-winning Assembly Dance Theatre from Taiwan will perform the newest addition to their Dancing in Ink series, choreographed specifically for MOA’s Great Hall for their Canadian debut. They will be joined by Sammy Chien, a Taipei born, Vancouver based interdisciplinary media artist, and Kimura Tsubasa, a renown calligrapher from Japan, featured in the Traces of Words exhibition.

Improv Wars: The Laugh Jedi Where: Vancouver Improv Centre What: Vancouver TheatreSports takes you to a universe that exists outside of normal time and space – where unlikely characters co-exist. Hosted by a mysterious hooded figure, the players and the audience search for an individual of unique abilities – one with the power to cloud people’s minds, to slip into any role, to make intuitive connections at lightning speed – The Laugh Jedi.  Runs until: Thursday November 2, 2017

54-40 (show 1 of 2) Where: Commodore Ballroom What: You know them from Ocean Pearl and I Go Blind, this Canadian band is on for two shows on back-to-back nights.

1 Hour Photo

1 Hour Photo Where: The Cultch What: From the creators of Empire of the Son, 1 Hour Photo is the story of Mas Yamamoto, a man whose life was swept up by the major currents of the 20th century; from growing up in a fishing village on the banks of the Fraser River, to being interned as a Japanese Canadian during World War II, to guarding the Canadian arctic against Soviet bombers during the height of the Cold War. Runs until: Sunday October 15, 2017

Potter’s House of Horrors Where: Potter’s Farm & Nursery What: Gather your moteliest crew and drop into one of the area’s biggest and best-rated haunted houses, celebrating 15 years of screams! Attractions include two haunted houses (plus a “Li’l Haunters” attraction geared to kids 12 & under), a coffin ride, a haunted paintball shootout, and a photo booth. Partial proceeds go to Critter Care Wildlife Society. Runs until: Tuesday October 31, 2017

Vagabond Players presents Little Shop of Horrors Where: The Bernie Legge Theatre (New Westminster, BC) What: Meek and mild flower shop assistant Seymour Krelborn has stumbled across a peculiar new plant species, which he names after his stunning but vulnerable crush Audrey. The plant, Audrey Two, has plans that are far greater than Seymour can imagine as it grows into a bad-tempered, foul-mouthed carnivore who offers fame, fortune, the girl he loves, and an escape from skid row in exchange for feeding its growing appetite for blood. Runs until: Sunday October 29, 2017

Hyperlink

Hyperlink Where: Firehall Arts Centre What: A collaboration between The Elbow’s artistic director Itai Erdal, writer/performer TJ Dawe, and director Rachel Peake, Hyperlink delves into life online and the limits of digital empathy.  Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Oktoberfest at the Vancouver Alpen Club Where: 4875 Victoria Drive What: The Deutsches Haus boasts German favorites from Spätzle to Schnitzel and the best selection of German beers and wines in Vancouver. Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (weekends)

Jim Park: Unknown Terrain | SEPARATION, 2017, 36 × 48 inches, Oil & Acrylic on Canvas

Jim Park: Unknown Terrain Where: Kimoto Gallery What: The Northern landscape forms an important part of Jim Park’s practice. Park sees paint as a language; the memory of lived experience merges with the pictorial possibilities on the canvas. Runs until: Saturday October 28, 2017

Sarah Slean

Sarah Slean Where: The BlueShore Financial Centre for the Performing Arts What: Slean’s sound has been compared to Kate Bush, Fiona Apple and Tori Amos, while her deeply personal songs draw from jazz, classical, pop and global influences. 

Lab Art Show Where: Chinese Cultural Centre What: Up to 150 artists including local galleries and artists from over 20 countries including Canadian artists Chili Thom and Natacha Trottier.

  Saturday October 7

top of page

Harvest Dinner

Harvest Dinner Where: Sea to Sky Gondola What: A cozy harvest dinner atop a mountain! Share the entire menu with your group, family style.

BC Lions vs. Ottawa Redblacks

BC Lions vs. Ottawa Redblacks Where: BC Place Stadium, 4:00pm What: It’s football. If you like football, go see it and cheer for these fellas.

Rare book, Photograph and Paper Show Where: Heritage Hall What: A curated event featuring twenty-three exhibitors with specialized collections of books, fine maps, photographs and interesting paper items.

LA Witch

LA Witch Where: The Fox Cabaret What: Rock from Los Angeles, on tour to support their debut self-titled full-length release.

Necromantix Where: Venue What: It’s a psychobilly show, playing with Deadcats.

Wild Salmon Caravan Parade Where: Vancouver Aboriginal Friendship Society What: Bring your drums, regalia, town clothes, costumes, banners, flags, streamers and any other parade wares you need. Celebrate the spirit of wild salmon.

Terra and Beyond with Chris Hadfield and Danny Michel

Terra and Beyond with Chris Hadfield and Danny Michel (show 2 of 2) Where: The Orpheum What: Share Colonel Chris Hadfield’s viewpoint “Beyond the Terra,” with music and inspiring images from the International Space Station.

Fort Langley Cranberry Festival

Fort Langley Cranberry Festival Where: Fort Langley What: Experience the popular cranberry stomp, and play a host of cranberry and farm related games.

BP20YR Where: Pacific Colloseum What: Blueprint celebrates 20 years with Diplo, Zeds Dead, Showtek and more.

Hershe National Coming Out Day Party Where: Prive Nightclub What: Celebrate National Coming Out Day at this all-inclusive dance party.

East Side Flea Where: The Ellis Building What: 50+ local vendors, makers, vintage sellers, oddity finders. Play pinball and pool. All this, with a bar! Runs until: Sunday October 8, 2017

54-40 (show 2 of 2) Where: Commodore Ballroom What: You know them from Ocean Pearl and I Go Blind, this is the second of their two Vancouver dates.

  Sunday October 8

top of page

Imagine Dragons

Imagine Dragons Where: Rogers Arena What: American millennial rock from Las Vegas with hits like Believer, with guests Group Love and K. Flay.

Bass Coast Festival Showcase

Bass Coast Festival Showcase Where: The Commodore Ballroom What: Basscoast DJs The Librarian B2B Mat the Alien, Michael Red, Barisone and SHAH.

Fred Penner

Fred Penner Where: The Orpheum What: He’s a Canadian icon of entertainment and inspiration for children and families. Who’s more stoked – adult millennials and gen-Xers or their children? Come find out.

Sumac

Sumac and Boris Where: The Rickshaw What: Japanese experimental music playing with sludgy growly metal.

  Ongoing

top of page

The Christians Where: Pacific Theatre What: After taking his church from a meager storefront to gleaming megachurch, Pastor Paul overturns one of the most sacred tenents of his congregation’s beliefs, sending them reeling towards schism. As they grapple with the mysteries of faith, certainty, and what happens after we die, they must also face the reality of loving those whose beliefs have made them into sudden strangers. Runs until: Saturday October 7, 2017

Mount Pleasant Farmers Market Where: Dude Chilling Park What: Amble over and pick up some afternoon picnic supplies, groceries for the week, and Sunday dinner fixings from 25+ farms and producers. Each week you’ll find a fresh selection of just-picked seasonal fruits & veggies, ethically-raised meats & sustainable seafood, artisanal bread & prepared foods, craft beer, wine, & spirits, handmade craft, and coffee & food trucks. Runs until: Sunday October 8, 2017

Angels in America Where: Arts Club Theatre What: Witness the soaring conclusion to the acclaimed play that asks us what we do for those we love. Perestroika is a revolution against the politics and prejudice in the 1980s as the AIDS epidemic rages on, and the characters wrestle with their ideologies and an angel looking for an answer. In the centre of it all is Prior Walter, a man in a world of peril who chooses to live in his light. Runs until: Sunday October 8, 2017

East Side Flea Where: The Ellis Building What: 50+ local vendors, makers, vintage sellers, oddity finders. Play pinball and pool. All this, with a bar! Runs until: Sunday October 8, 2017

Traces of Words: Art and Calligraphy from Asia

Traces of Words: Art and Calligraphy from Asia Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology What: Words and their physical manifestations are explored in this insightful exhibition, which will honour the special significance that written forms. Varied forms of expression associated with writing throughout Asia is shown over the span of different time periods: from Sumerian cuneiform inscriptions, Qu’ranic manuscripts, Southeast Asian palm leaf manuscripts and Chinese calligraphy from MOA’s Asian collection to graffiti art from Afghanistan and contemporary artworks using Japanese calligraphy, and Tibetan and Thai scripts. Runs until: Monday October 9, 2017

Richmond Night Market

Richmond Night Market Where: Richmond, BC What: There’s a dinosaur park! Anamatronic dinosaurs! Also – live performances, carnival games, over 200 retail stalls and over 500 food choices from around the world. Runs until: October 9, 2017

Vancouver International Film Festival

Vancouver International Film Festival Where: Various locations What: In addition to over 300 of the best films from around the world, VIFF expands the frame to incorporate and celebrate some of the exciting new aspects of visual story telling. This includes events such as the world’s largest showcase of elevated YouTube content by digital-first creators and the Kronos Quartet performing a live score to renowned filmmaker Guy Maddin’s latest film The Green Fog – A San Francisco Fantasia.   Runs until: Friday October 13, 2017

North Shore Craft Beer Week Where: Various locations What: The North Shore has a rich history of craft brewing and was home to Canada’s first ever microbrewery – Horseshoe Bay Brewery in 1982. Download the Vancouver’s North Shore Craft Beer Week Passport, get a stamp at each brewery as you travel around North Vancouver sampling special craft beer menus and unique casks. With your stamps, you could win prizes! Runs until:  Friday October 13, 2017

The Goblin Market

The Goblin Market Where: The Cultch What: A contemporary circus re-telling of Christina Rossetti’s poem, following two sisters, their temptation, sacrifice and eventual salvation. Lively circus is precariously balanced with gritty performances and candid story telling. Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Aileen Bahmanipour: Technical Problem

Aileen Bahmanipour: Technical Problem Where: Grunt Gallery What: An exhibition of mixed media drawings by Vancouver-based, Iranian-born artist Aileen Bahmanipour that explores cyclical political power and cultural identity. Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Amphibia

Amphibia Where: Centre A What: Amphibia, Tromarama’s first solo exhibition in Canada, will transform Centre A into a hybrid physical and digital space using five newly commissioned works, ranging from site-specific pieces to pulse-sensing technologies that interact with our own physical, individual bodies. Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Harvest Haus

Harvest Haus Where: 88 Pacific Blvd What: Combining modern fare with authentic European harvest traditions, gather your closest mates for what may be the most gluttonous and gratifying Oktoberfest in the city. Runs until: Saturday Oktober 14, 2017

1 Hour Photo

1 Hour Photo Where: The Cultch What: From the creators of Empire of the Son, 1 Hour Photo is the story of Mas Yamamoto, a man whose life was swept up by the major currents of the 20th century; from growing up in a fishing village on the banks of the Fraser River, to being interned as a Japanese Canadian during World War II, to guarding the Canadian arctic against Soviet bombers during the height of the Cold War. Runs until: Sunday October 15, 2017

Hyperlink

Hyperlink Where: Firehall Arts Centre What: A collaboration between The Elbow’s artistic director Itai Erdal, writer/performer TJ Dawe, and director Rachel Peake, Hyperlink delves into life online and the limits of digital empathy.  Runs until: Saturday October 14, 2017

Onsite / Offsite Tsang Kin-Wah

Onsite / Offsite Tsang Kin-Wah Where:  Vancouver Art Gallery What:  This large-scale composition transforms English texts to form intricate floral and animal patterns. The work draws from discriminatory language that appeared in newspapers and political campaigns in Vancouver during the 1887 anti-Chinese riots, the mid-1980s immigration influx from Hong Kong and most recently, the heated exchanges around the foreign buyers and the local housing market. Runs until: Sunday October 15, 2017

Oktoberfest at the Vancouver Alpen Club Where: 4875 Victoria Drive What: The Deutsches Haus boasts German favorites from Spätzle to Schnitzel and the best selection of German beers and wines in Vancouver. Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (weekends)

West End Farmers Market Where: 1100 Comox St What: Located in the heart of Vancouver’s busy West End, this laid-back Saturday market looks onto beautiful Nelson Park and adjacent community gardens. Each week, shop for the best in local, seasonal produce, artisanal bread & prepared foods, craft beer, wine, & spirits, ethically raised meat, eggs, & dairy, sustainable seafood, wild crafted product, and handmade craft. Hot food & coffee on-site as well. Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (Saturdays)

Trout Lake Farmers Market Where: Trout Lake What: This is where you’ll find the vendors who have been doing it since the beginning; what started as 14 farmers ‘squatting’ at the Croatian Cultural Centre back in 1995 has grown into Vancouver’s most well-known and beloved market. Visitors come from near and far to sample artisan breads & preserves, stock up on free-range and organic eggs & meats, get the freshest, hard-to-find heirloom vegetables and taste the first Okanagan cherries and peaches of the season. Runs until: Saturday October 21, 2017 (Saturdays)

Kitsilano Farmers Market

Kitsilano Farmers Market Where: Kitsilano Community Centre parking lot What:   A great selection of just-picked, seasonal fruits & vegetables, ethically raised and grass fed meat, eggs, & dairy, sustainable seafood, fresh baked bread & artisanal food, local beer, wine, & spirits, and beautiful, handmade craft. Kids and parents alike can enjoy entertainment by market musicians, a nearby playground and splash park, and coffee and food truck offerings each week. Runs until: Sunday October 22, 2017 (Sundays)

Contemporary Iranian Cinema Series Where: The Cinematheque What: Acclaimed and accomplished new films from Iran are in the spotlight in this new monthly showcase. Runs until:Thursday October 25, 2017

Jim Park: Unknown Terrain | SEPARATION, 2017, 36 × 48 inches, Oil & Acrylic on Canvas

Jim Park: Unknown Terrain Where: Kimoto Gallery What: The Northern landscape forms an important part of Jim Park’s practice. Park sees paint as a language; the memory of lived experience merges with the pictorial possibilities on the canvas. Runs until: Saturday October 28, 2017

Vagabond Players presents Little Shop of Horrors Where: The Bernie Legge Theatre (New Westminster, BC) What: Meek and mild flower shop assistant Seymour Krelborn has stumbled across a peculiar new plant species, which he names after his stunning but vulnerable crush Audrey. The plant, Audrey Two, has plans that are far greater than Seymour can imagine as it grows into a bad-tempered, foul-mouthed carnivore who offers fame, fortune, the girl he loves, and an escape from skid row in exchange for feeding its growing appetite for blood. Runs until: Sunday October 29, 2017

Fright Nights Where: Playland What: Misty, dark, dreary, and full of spooks and scares may not sound like everyone’s ideal night out, but to those of us who love Halloween, nothing could be better! Playland turns into an animated haunted carnival, including seven haunted houses and fifteen of its best rides; what better way to scream away all of your fears? Runs until: Tuesday October 31, 2017

Potter’s House of Horrors Where: Potter’s Farm & Nursery What: Gather your moteliest crew and drop into one of the area’s biggest and best-rated haunted houses, celebrating 15 years of screams! Attractions include two haunted houses (plus a “Li’l Haunters” attraction geared to kids 12 & under), a coffin ride, a haunted paintball shootout, and a photo booth. Partial proceeds go to Critter Care Wildlife Society. Runs until: Tuesday October 31, 2017

Improv Wars: The Laugh Jedi Where: Vancouver Improv Centre What: Vancouver TheatreSports takes you to a universe that exists outside of normal time and space – where unlikely characters co-exist. Hosted by a mysterious hooded figure, the players and the audience search for an individual of unique abilities – one with the power to cloud people’s minds, to slip into any role, to make intuitive connections at lightning speed – The Laugh Jedi.  Runs until: Thursday November 2, 2017

Circle Craft Christmas Market Preview Exhibit

Circle Craft Christmas Market Preview Exhibit Where: Net Loft building on Granville Island What: Circle Craft Gallery’s Fall exhibit will give Circle Craft Christmas Market lovers a sneak peek. Exhibitors in the Preview exhibition are: East Van Jam, G Ceramic & Co, Ludviks Designs, Lulu Fiedler, Market Canvas Leather, Misheo, Rosewell Woodworking, Susie Benes, and Yifat Jovani. Runs until: Thursday November 2, 2017

Thanks For Giving Where: Arts Club Theatre What: While Nan bastes the turkey and prepares the stuffing, her husband hides a freshly hunted bear in the garage and her troublesome daughter is raiding her purse again. To top it all off, her grandchildren have chosen this Thanksgiving to disclose some unexpected personal truths to the family.  Runs until: Saturday November 4, 2017

Intangible Where: Bill Reid Gallery What: Contemporary Coast Salish art is embedded within a traditional cultural framework that includes community, ceremonial life, territory, history and innovation. Six artists challenge our expectations and illustrate Coast Salish art as a thriving art tradition – a dynamic one that demonstrates both continuity with the past and exploration of new ideas and technologies. Runs until: Sunday December 10, 2017

Bill Reid Creative Journeys | Image via the Canadian Museum of History

Bill Reid Creative Journeys Where: The Bill Reid Gallery What: Celebrating the many creative journeys of acclaimed master goldsmith and sculptor Bill Reid (1920–1998), this exhibition provides a comprehensive introduction to his life and work. Runs until: Sunday December 10, 2017

Entangled: Two Views on Contemporary Canadian Painting | John Kissick burning the houses of cool man, yeah No.5 (hang the DJ), 2016 (cropped)

Entangled: Two Views on Contemporary Canadian Painting Where: Vancouver Art Gallery What: An insight into two distinctly different modes of painting that have come to dominate contemporary painting in this country. The origins of both can be effectively traced back to the 1970s, to a moment when the continued existence of painting was hotly debated. Runs until: January 1, 2018

Amazonia: The Rights of Nature

Amazonia: The Rights of Nature Where: UBC Museum of Anthropology What: MOA will showcase its Amazonian collections in a significant exploration of socially and environmentally-conscious notions intrinsic to indigenous South American cultures, which have recently become innovations in International Law. These are foundational to the notions of Rights of Nature, and they have been consolidating in the nine countries that share responsibilities over the Amazonian basin. Runs until: January 28, 2018

Tin and Gold: A 10 Year Anniversary Show Where: The Fall What: Celebrate 10 years of alternative music, tattoo artistry, and multimedia events. The art show includes artists Megan Majewski, Jenn Brisson, Alison Woodward and more. Runs until: February 1, 2018

City on the Edge: A Century of Vancouver Activism Where: Museum of Vancouver What: A photo-based exhibition exploring how protest demonstrations have shaped Vancouver’s identity from the Vancouver Sun and The Province newspapers’ photo collection. These photographs are exceptional historical records of intense and transformative moments in the lives of Vancouverites. Runs until: February 18, 2017

Tasting History: The Traveling Tales of Tea Where: Roedde House Museum What: Tea is one of the most consumed liquids in the world, second only to water. But the beverage that brings much pleasure and calm to our 21st century senses is steeped in a turbulent history of politics and society. The exhibit will also feature stories from Vancouver’s modern-day tea community. Runs until: March 2018

Emily Carr: Into the Forest

Emily Carr: Into the Forest Where: Vancouver Art Gallery What: Far from feeling that the forests of the West Coast were a difficult subject matter, Carr exulted in the symphonies of greens and browns found in the natural world. With oil on paper as her primary medium, Carr was free to work outdoors in close proximity to the landscape. She went into the forest to paint and saw nature in ways unlike her fellow British Columbians, who perceived it as either untamed wilderness or a plentiful source of lumber. Runs until: March 4, 2018

The Lost Fleet Exhibit Where: Vancouver Maritime Museum What: On December 7, 1941 the world was shocked when Japan bombed Pearl Harbour, launching the United States into the war. This action also resulted in the confiscation of nearly 1,200 Japanese-Canadian owned fishing boats by Canadian officials on the British Columbia coast, which were eventually sold off to canneries and other non-Japanese fishermen. The Lost Fleet looks at the world of the Japanese-Canadian fishermen in BC and how deep-seated racism played a major role in the seizure, and sale, of Japanese-Canadian property and the internment of an entire people. Runs until: March 25, 2018

Chief Dan George: Actor and Activist Where: North Vancouver Museum What: An exhibition exploring the life and legacy of Tsleil-Waututh Chief Dan George (1899- 1981) and his influence as an Indigenous rights advocate and his career as an actor. The exhibition was developed in close collaboration with the George family. Runs until: April 2018

In a Different Light

In a Different Light Where: Museum of Anthropology What: More than 110 historical Indigenous artworks and marks the return of many important works to British Columbia. These objects are amazing artistic achievements. Yet they also transcend the idea of ‘art’ or ‘artifact’. Through the voices of contemporary First Nations artists and community members, this exhibition reflects on the roles historical artworks have today. Featuring immersive storytelling and innovative design, it explores what we can learn from these works and how they relate to Indigenous peoples’ relationships to their lands. Runs until: Spring 2019

What are you up to this weekend? Tell me and the rest of Vancouver in the comments below or tweet me directly at @lextacular

Inside Vancouver Blog

[houstonlocalus-blog]

High & Dry: The Best of The Week

Allah-Las. Photo:Paradigm Agency

  Well, things are slowing down a bit after SXSW as there aren’t countless acts vying for your attention this week, but there’s still plenty happening. Bands like the Allah-Las and legends like Southern Culture on The Skids and Reverend Horton Heat will be here while locals The Wheel Workers, The Mighty Orq and more will be on hand for all to enjoy. Houston, here’s how to spend the next week.

  On Wednesday you can get going at Walter’s when the post hardcore meets Nintendocore of California’s HORSE the Band swings by.  These guys are screamy, they mix in video game sounds, and they’re all kinds of nutty in a live setting.  This show should be interesting, as their last release was over eight years ago with Desperate Living.  The post metal electronica of New York’s Infinity Shred will be on as direct support while the grindcore of LA’s Graf Orlock will also be on hand while the noise experimental thrash intensity of Houston’s MOTHS will open up the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $12 and $14.

  La Sien. Photo: Anthony Rathbun

  In the studio at Warehouse Live you can get down with the Argentine reggae of Dread Mar I. You don’t have to know who this guy is to realize that his mix of reggae and Spanish lyrics are pretty catchy, and he’s huge around the globe.  He’s here in support of his latest, 10 Anos (En Vivo) from last year.  The Spanish rock of Houston’s La Sien will be on as support and openers for the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $20 and $23.

  At the Foundation Room at House of Blues, another edition of The Rush will take place, this time with Houston’s Alycia Miles and Michele Thibeaux.  Things get kicked off by DJ 4k and the 21 & up show has doors at 7 pm, and it’s FREE until 9:30 or $10 after.

  Thursday you could find yourself wanting to get all of that indie rock goodness, but acoustic, and if you do then you should go to White Oak Music Hall for a solo set from Andy Hull.  Hull, best known as half of Bad Books and the lead singer for Manchester Orchestra, should have a couple of new songs as well as tracks from all of his projects to play.  Dustin Kensrue, best known for leading the band Thrice, will be on as direct support and should bring tunes from his latest Thoughts That Float On A Different Blood.  The  indie goodness of Atlanta’s Gobotron will open the SOLD OUT all ages show with doors at 7 pm.

  Rockefeller’s will host the always entertaining roots Americana of Shinyribs.  This band has been grinding hard as of late and their latest album, I Got Your Medicine from this year, is fun and full of energy.  The enigmatic roots blues of Houston’s The Mighty Orq will be on as direct support and opener for the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $20 and $25.

  We Were Wolves. Photo: Randy Edwards

  At Continental Club you can get down with the rock n roll of Houston’s We Were Wolves.  I’ve always said that these guys are like getting punched in the face with riffs and beer, and their last EP Ruin Your Weekend just proved they aren’t slowing.  NOLA’s Bantam Foxes will bring their throwback sound mixed with guitar grandiose and swamp sludge riffs that comes out like a heavy indie rock on last year’s Gold Record on as direct support. Austin’s Otis The Destroyer will be on as opener for the 21 & up show with doors at 8 pm and a measly $7 cover.

  Mucky Duck will host the phantom voiced beauty of Nashville’s Shannon LaBrie.  I’d be lying if I said that the genre defying sounds of this singer songwriter weren’t as intriguing as they were engaging, and her latest release War & Peace from last year is hard not to love.  The 21 & up show has doors at 9:30 and tickets between $20 and $22.

  Friday you can help celebrate the One Year Anniversary of The Clinic in an all-day blowout before they move to a new spot.  Over 25 bands will commence on the DIY venue for a show that should go down in the history books.  Sets from Dallas’ I AM, St Louis’ Welcome Home, Houston’s Delivery Boy and many more will be on hand.  The all ages show has doors at 2 pm and tickets for $10 with all of the information available here.

  Bunny Galore. Photo: Cherry Bones

  At Numbers you can catch another solid set from the ladies of Dem Damn Dames at their Cabaret Hideaway show. Featuring Bunny Galore debuting what are called “fire tassels,” this show should be pretty stellar.  Performances from May Hemmer of NOLA, Maria Bella of Baltimore, Paul Garbanzo of Virginia and more as well as the Dames themselves.  Hosted by Nick The Vegan and Skabz the Clown, the 18 & up show has doors at 7 pm and tickets between $15 and $30.

  House of Blues will have the popular hip hop of Atlanta’s 21 Savage.  While this guy has only been solo for a short time, last year’s Savage Mode threw the rapper into the mainstream and he’s become quite the act to watch.  Brooklyn hardcore female rapper Young M.A. will bring her intensity on as direct support while Detroit’s Tee Grizzley will go on prior.  The hip hop of Young Nudy will open the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets for $29.50.

  Walter’s will have the psych doom of Dallas’ Wo Fat.  Their latest release, last year’s Midnight Cometh, is a steady stream of heavy riffs, thick and murky bass lines, and thunderous drums mixed with psych undertones that’s worth hearing live.  The trippy psych blues of Austin’s The Well will be on hand as direct support while the prog meets doom of Houston’s Blues Funeral goes on beforehand.  Warlung will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets for $10.

  Southern Culture on the Skids. Photo: The Billions Corporation

  Continental Club will host their annual shows with Southern Culture on The Skids.  This three piece never disappoints in a live setting, their music is a mix of hanky and panky, and last year’s The Electric Pinecones is their best album to date.  Nakia and the Blues Grifters will be on as direct support and openers for night one of the 21 & up show with doors at 8 pm and tickets for $17.

  Satellite Bar will have the punk sounds of Austin’s The Awful Lot.  These guys sound like they’re fans of Rancid and British punk, so they could be pretty tight to catch live.  The three piece punk of Yikes will provide direct support while the punk ska reggae of Bottom of The Food Chain will go one before.  The hardcore of Houston’s Feels Like Murder is also on the bill and the all ages show with doors at 8 pm will get opened by Baytown’s The Drafted with an $8 cover.

  The popular indie folk duo of Shovels & Rope will be over at White Oak Music Hall in the big room downstairs.  This married couple from South Carolina have gotten bigger and bigger with time, and their latest album Little Seeds from last year has made them a household name. Matthew Logan Vasquez will be on as direct support and opener for the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $18 and $22.

  Merel and Tony. Photo: Ralph Elliott

  On Saturday you could get started at Cactus Music for an in-store set from Merel and Tony with The Woe Woe Woes.  There for their EP release, you should know that Merel and Tony make some of the most intriguing and interesting music coming out of our city today.  Mixing electronica with orchestral influence, the best way to describe them is to hear last year’s Protest Psalms for yourself.  The all ages event gets going around 1 pm, there’s gratis beer for the adults, and it’s 100% FREE.

  Later on at Rockefeller’s you can get your laugh on with the comedy of Rick Gutierrez.  Known for his appearances on BET and Comedy Central, Gutierrez has been making audiences laugh for years.  The feature act on the show will be Whiskey Brother and all around funny man Sam Demaris, while Matt Golightly will open and host the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $20 and $25.

  Rec Room will host Beta Theater’s April Fools Thing.  Sets from The Mustn’ts, YouTube sensation Colby Beserra, Gino Sandoval, and much more will greet you when you attend.  The diverse mixture of improv, music, comedy and more should delight anyone who’s into the funnier side of things with doors at 7:30 pm and a $10 ticket.

  The Wheel Workers. Photo: Allison McPhail

  Upstairs at White Oak Music Hall you can get down for a double release show from Houston’s A Sundae Drive and Glass The Sky.  The new A Sundae Drive album Versailles is pretty amazing while offering up a more Sonic Youth type of sound to the indie rockers.  The Glass The Sky album is lush with detail and full of pop that should delight anyone who’s unfamiliar with the band’s sound.  Houston’s The Wheel Workers will go on prior while College Station’s The Ex-Optimists will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and a $7 cover.

  Night two of the Southern Culture On The Skids weekend will commence at Continental Club. The honky tonk hanky pankers will play their second set in support of last year’s The Electric Pinecones, and the trio is always a trip to see live.  San Antonio’s matador surf rocker King Pelican will be on as direct support and opener for the 21 & up show with doors at 8 pm and tickets for $17.

  Nashville’s Starlito and Don Trip will be in the studio at Warehouse Live.  The rapper has been reinventing himself after leaving Cash Money Records, and his latest drop with Don Trip Step Brothers THREE is impressive enough for Trip to perform on this show as well.  Houston producer and DJ Trakksounds will be on as direct support and opener for the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $20 and $50, the latter being a meet and greet option.

  Reverend Horton Heat. Photo:Victory Records

  Downstairs at White Oak Music Hall, the Dallas based rockabilly meets psychobilly of Reverend Horton Heat returns.  This guy is hell on a stage, his live shows are always amazing and full of energy, and his latest release Rev from 2014 is his best since Liquor In The Front. The strange yet entertaining honky tonk of Unknown Hinson will be on as direct support while The Goddamn Gallows will bring their crazed country folklore on beforehand.  Nashville folk female duo Birdcloud will open the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $18 and $22.

  Sunday you can get going at Insomnia for the Sticky Fingers 3 Sticker Art show.  Diablo Macabre, Honeybones, Dre Forgotten and so many more will have art in sticker form on display and for sale.  The all ages event gets started around 6 pm and it’s 100% FREE.

  Over at the Marquee Moon Lounge, Houston’s The Cops will co-headline a set with Alabama’s Daikaiju.  Daikaiju play furious surf punk, they go into the crowd, they light things on fire, and their latest single Cock Lobster is a trip. The Cops dress like cops, sing from their point of view, and the tongue in cheek band sounds closest to Hot Snakes on their series of singles like “Street Hooker.”  The 21 & up show gets going around 7 pm with a TBA cover, and should be fun no matter what.

  Robyn Hitchcock. Photo: Yep Roc Records

  House of Blues will host the return of new wave legends The Psychedelic Furs.  The London group has been a big deal since the eighties, and with tracks like “Love My Way,” “The Ghost In You,” and “Pretty In Pink,” it’s no wonder.  British singer songwriter and legend in his own right Robyn Hitchcock will be on as direct support and opener.  His latest single “Mad Shelley’s Letterbox” just proves he’s not slowing down anytime soon.  The all ages show has doors at 7 pm and tickets between $26 and $32.50.

  Rudyard’s will host the stoner rock of Detroit’s Bison Machine.  This four piece plays riff heavy tunes that are hard not to like, and their latest single “Cloak & Bones” is like saying you should check them out.  The squeal heavy stoner doom of Houston’s Funeral Horse will bring their energized sound on as direct support and The Satanic Overlords of Rock N Roll will bring their riff heavy punk on as openers.  The show has doors at 8 pm and a $10 cover.  

  Monday you should find yourself at Walter’s for the psych sounds of Allah-Las.  Mixing the surf sensibilities of California and the grit of garage psych, this LA four piece has gotten pretty popular as of late and their new album Calico Review from last year is pretty solid.  Australia’s The Babe Rainbow will be on as direct support and openers for the all ages show with doors at 7 pm and tickets between $15 and $17.

  Tuesday you can head to Mucky Duck for the funny and strange sounds of the Austin Lounge Lizards.  Lampooning religion and politics in their songs, this group definitely “keeps Austin weird,” and their latest release Home and Deranged from 2013 is pretty fantastic.  The 21 & up show has doors at 7:30 pm and tickets between $25 and $27.

  The Octopus Project. Photo:Greenbelt Touring

  If you’d rather get a little weirder, you can head to Walter’s for the fun and electro pop sounds of Austin’s The Octopus Project.  While their album Identification Parade will always be near and dear to my heart, their upcoming album Memory Mirror sounds pretty amazing.  Couple with that a fun and crazed live show and this is where you should be on a Tuesday.  There’s no word of support or openers, but that will likely change for the all ages show with doors at 8 pm and tickets between $12 and $15.

  That’s about all that’s happening around town this week.  No matter what you decide to do, please remember that being responsible is in everyone’s best interest; and a safe ride home is just an app away.

High & Dry: The Best of The Week this is a repost