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Eric's Show Journal

  
7/31/2008
Portland, OR @ Rock N Roll Pizza
Wednesday 13, Still Dead, Regiment 26
I had no idea what to expect the crowd tonight to be like. On one hand Wednesday 13 is a kind of punk-ish band with songs about zombies and b-movies. On the other hand they are ex-Murderdolls and their album is pretty metal. The answer was just about every type of music person. Goth, metalhead, punk, and just curious "regular" music fans were all in abundance. True to form we arrived annoyingly late and had to load straight up the 5 foot high stage. Ouch. Regiment 26 was up first and was super metal. We watched the headbanging and circle pits and knew we had our work cut out for us. Our solution was humor. We got on stage, sound checked and jsut before we started to play Dave says in his monster truck announcer voice "Do you all want to hear some crazy fucking metal?" Crowd: "Yeahhh!" Dave: "Ok, give us like 25 minutes and then they'll be another metal band later." Too funny. Our set wasseemed pretty solid. Not really our typical audience but no one seemed to dislike it too much. We played lots of new songs so again it was extra fun for us. Still Dead was up 3rd and played a very eclectic and energetic blend of metal and rock. Pretty good stuff and the guys we met seemed super cool. Wednesday 13 was the main event and I gotta admit they were pretty great live. Their sound was amazing, the songs were catchy and they even quoted Ric Flair within 5 minutes of starting their set. We were all seriously impressed. Thanks to Endeavor Productions and Rock N Roll Pizza for having us.

 

 
7/26/2008
Portland, OR @ Kelly's Olympian
The Crawlers, Accidental Gun Death
Ok, so that was a fun show. Two killer bands, lots of friends and most importantly for me is we finally got to play a batch of new songs. Nine of them in fact. Man, it felt good to finally bust out some more new material. Playing old songs is fun, but playing these new songs that we're so stoked on is a feeling that's a bit hard to describe. Accidental Gun Death was pretty great tonight. It was their usual blend of amusing stage banter coupled with raw aggression delivered in 30-90 second bursts. I think their whole set took less than 15 minutes. The risk of on stage defecation added to the excitement, but thankfully there was none. As mentioned previously our set was pretty fun. It was hard to move around on such a small stage but it didn’t really matter too much. The Crawlers were up last. We had heard great things about them and the descriptions were dead on. They totally rocked. I only watched the first few songs from the main room, but listened to most of their set from the bar while catching up with some friends and holy smokes those dudes can rock it. Fast, aggressive, and just totally raw. I would gladly play with either of these two bands again. What else can I say? It was a good night. Thanks to Kelly's, AGD and The Crawlers.

 

 
6/20/2008
Portland, OR @ Mt. Tabor Legacy
Altarboys, 3 Inch Max
Tonight's show was sort of a whirlwind. Since our van is still DOA Justin and I had to drive out to Dave's house to load up his truck. I don't know why but I always feel so amateur loading out of a pick up truck. Might as well be mom's station wagon. At some point on the trip Justin uttered what I found to be the funniest thing I've heard all week. The discussion leading up to this is a bit too long to describe, but at some point Justin said the following: "I think Pele died of cancer. Or did he got shot? Wait, was that Bob Marley? I don't know, I always get Pele and Bob Marley mixed up." I literally had to write that one down so I could remember to mention it here. Justin, I'm sorry. Everyone else, you're welcome. It took forever to get to the venue and when we arrived we were informed we were not only first but furthermore we were supposed to start 15 minutes ago. Oops. We setup fast and were playing within 15 minutes. Despite the quick turnaround the set was pretty fun. We tried a bunch of new songs for the first time ever, so if you were at the show consider yourself lucky to have seen 6 song debuts. It's always fun to play new stuff and they all went pretty well. 3 Inch Max was next and I gotta say they were pretty awesome. Very catchy, very tight and very loud. We were all impressed. Since Neversleep cancelled The Altarboys were up last and they through us all for a curve by playing acoustic. It was pretty stripped down and raw and for the most part pretty entertaining. It was a little strange because when I think of them, I imagine rock, but all in all given the laid back feel of the night it was pretty cool. Thanks to all who arrived early and were nice enough to stand up front.

 

 
6/7/2008
Olympia, WA @ China Clipper
Stupid In Stereo, Sledgeback
We were pretty stoked for the show tonight as it was two bands we had played with before and liked as was taking place in a bar located in a town we like playing. Sounds like a good night, but our van had other plans for us this evening. We met up early (around 5:30) to run through some of the new songs. We were planning on playing mostly new songs which is always fun for us. We stopped in Longview for some Burger King and later decided to pull over in Chehalis to get some gas. We fueled up, got some junk food and when we tried to start the van we got nothing. When we turned the key all you'd hear is a loud click. We tried and tried with no avail. We called a mechanic friend for advice which didn't help. We tried to get a jump from someone which did absolutely no good either. We took off the engine cover and Dave managed to make a giant spark fly off of the starter which in retrospect was not a good move at a gas station. Ryan from Stupid In Stereo offered to come pick us up but there were a few logistical issues. Namely, how do we get back to Chehalis at 1 AM and where does the van (with all our gear) wind up? Accepting defeat, we called for a tow and managed to find someone who could haul us back to Dave's house. 90 minutes later they finally showed up. If you are watching a movie, 90 minutes isn't too long. If you are at a Shell station in Chehalis it's an eternity. They finally showed up with a small flat bed truck with a 2 person cab. That means two people had to ride in the van. Our van is big. In fact the truck towing us really wasn't too much bigger than we were. The driver opted to back us onto the truck bed, which thanks to our extended length meant the front of the van was facing backwards and almost hanging over the back edge of the truck. The front tires had to have been within a foot of the edge of the bed. One small slip or one loose chain meant the van and at least two of our band members would go plummeting to their demise on I-5. Additionally our van is taller than normal and heavier than normal which was going to make for one terrifying ride for whoever wound up in the cab. It was totally sketchy but I was sure the van wasn't really going to fall off. I was so sure in fact, that I was more than happy to take a seat in the cab with Dustin and let Justin and Dave ride in the back. They strapped into the driver seats facing backwards, driving 70 mph with the van one foot from sure death on any side of it. I think we made it about 60 seconds before the phone rang with Dave and Dave saying it was absolutely terrifying. Our driver found this amusing and kept chuckling every time we come to a rut in the road or a series of bumps. It was pretty funny but then I came to the realization that almost everyone and everything I care about was on that truck and we stopped encouraging the driver. Eventually we made it back in one piece. Overall the evening pretty much sucked. I got home at 2:00 AM and never even got to play a note. Fucking van. Many apologies to Sledgeback and Stupid In Stereo.

 

 
5/10/2008
Portland, OR @ Mt. Tabor Legacy
Zombie Prom w/ Written In Ashes
So when we got asked to play the Zombie Prom many months ago we were imagining a small 50-100 person crowd with maybe half the people dressed up. What we got was so much more than we could have ever possibly expected. The Mt Tabor actually sold out and from what we heard had over 400 people in there and I would about 98% were in costume. Most of the costumes were actually good costumes which was amazing. I heard the phrase "brains" uttered so many times it jus became background noise after a while. As for the prom theme they really did everything right. Balloons and ribbons lined the hallways and main room, and off in the side bar they had a full "prom photo" booth setup with gravestones and trees. It really was pretty spectacular. Written In Ashes was the first band and for their set they played all covers. I must confess their selection of covers was damn near perfect. Simple Minds, The Eurythmics and even some Billy Idol for good measure. We were all impressed with their effort to learn so many covers. After their set there was more DJ's which climaxed with my personal highlight of the evening, the playing of Thriller. The song has been a bit overplayed in recent months with everything from that Korean prison video (look it up on youtube if you haven't seen it) to the appearance of the song in a Geico commercial. I will go on record to say seeing a room full of bloody zombies scream and cheer at the opening notes to the song actually made me cry a little bit. Perfect timing! After that song it was time for the costume contest which we used as our chance to get a fresh coat of blood. This was important because we had been skirting the fine between bum and undead all night. Blood = zombie. No blood = derelict. We got our introduction and tore through our set as fast as we could. Although it was fun to see so a wild looking crowd we had all sorts of problems on stage. The worst offender was Justin's guitar amp which squealed the entire show. Every pause, every break in the music and even while playing there was a constant squeal that was obnoxious even on stage. About half way through my amp started to go out and the volume dropped down from the normal deafening roar down to a half assed nearly jangly guitar tone. Not having any other option I played through and hoped the sound guy would adjust. It eventually came back but two half powered amps is not good. The Justin aerial show was also grounded tonight due to a sprained ankle he suffered yesterday. I suppose it was the one show where slow moving is acceptable, but we all missed his energy. Speaking of energy, Dustin was suffering as he had already played a set that night with another band in Longview, drove to Portland and played this one. He started off strong but by the end was barely hanging on. I know we could have done better, but all in all it still was ok and given the fact it was a zombie prom, no complaints here. We'd definitely like to thank Michelle for hanging out and to the organizers and all on the prom committee for having us!

 

 
4/26/2008
Eugene, OR @ Irving Grange
Sam's wedding reception!
First off, congratulations to Sam on his marriage! For our gift we were asked to come play a set at the reception. We should have just mailed him a backup hard drive for his gift since he lost all of our 20 demo tracks last year but that's another story. Due to real world issues (i.e. - jobs) we had to split up on the drive down there. Justin and Dave took the van and arrived around 3:30, unloaded and got setup. Dustin and I arrived at 4:45, walked in and literally picked up a guitar and played. If you've never played in a band before, it's hard to appreciate this, but when you walk in and play you never really feel like you are at a show. Normally there is a ritual to the whole thing. You ride together, you load in, you meet other bands and sound person, you watch someone sound check, you hang out, you watch opening bands and eventually you get to play. For this one we walked in the door and were making noise within 5 minutes. It's always odd and really makes you respect bands who can play well anytime and anywhere. As for the set, it was uhmm, interesting. The people to square footage ratio was drastically in favor of the square footage. Thankfully we recognized and knew the bulk of people there. I don't really think we played very well. It felt like Dustin was dripped in molasses before starting as everything was dreadfully slow, especially having been in the studio recording some of the fastest songs we've eer written. Dave kept defaulting to "last band of the evening" banter between songs. My favorite was "thanks to everyone who stayed late". First off it's only 4:15 and second of all they were coming to the wedding anyway. Definitely not an earth shattering performance. Getting a hug from Sam at the end made it all worthwhile because we've known him and his bandmates for a long ass time. He told us many many, many years ago, "stay together so you can play my wedding" and it sort of became a joke over the years. Now we can finally break up. Highlight of the show? About two songs in the room was dreadfully dark and was only being illuminated by some christmas lights on the ceiling. I'm not really paying attention and all the sudden it get brighter. I look forward and everyone is laughing and clapping. I look back and there is a 4 foot tall cross positioned behind Dustin illuminating the room. Never thought I'd be able to say we were illuminated by the light of the lord while we played. After the show we went to Elmer's where Dave displayed his german pancake eating style. For those in the NW, go there order one and see if you can consume it in 4 bites. We dare you. Anyway, in all seriousness congratulations to Sam and we really are happy you made us a part of the wedding!

 

 
3/8/2008
Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
Chaospalooza w/ Agent Orange, MDC, Toe Tag, Dreadful Children, Embrace The Kill, CLR, The Blanx
Here we are at our third consecutive year of Chaospalooza. The first one we played was pretty fun. The second one was not as much fun as it was very long and somewhat poorly attended. This one was however was a total blast. I'm not sure how they got Agent Orange and MDC on the bill but we are pleasantly surprised when they announced their addition to the lineup. In total there were 12 acts and we arrived during the 3rd band. We might have gotten there earlier but we must have spent a good 20 minutes watching Dave park and re-park in the no parking zone. Frankly I'm just glad the van ran ok. By "ok", I mean it moves but with a broken turn signal, sketchy brakes and a new addition to the van's charm which is actual mold around the windows. Nice. We caught a song or two of the Blanx and before we knew it we were on stage. I'm glad it went quickly because we hadn't played a show in 3 months and I was feeling quite rusty and even a bit nervous. Not much of a reaction from the crowd but no real anger or hostility either. The biggest surprise of the evening was about two songs into our set when I looked over and saw our old drummer Bryan standing beside the stage. Bryan was in the band from our inception up until 1999 and recorded the first two albums with us. For about 60 seconds I was totally energized by seeing Bryan again and promptly got quite a bit more into the show. At about the two minute mark I became self conscious and realized I weigh about 20 more pounds than last time he saw me, I've got some gray hair, my guitar is going out of tune and worst off I'm having a hard time playing because we took three months off from shows. Man, I never thought seeing an old friend would cause so much pressure. Despite my mind games we finished off our set strong and loaded into the cold night. We caught a little bit of CLR (because they rock) and then headed off to a bar to catch up with Bryan, Kelvis, Sam and Chris. We reminisced for a bit and headed back over where they were finally 6 bands into the show. After a blistering set by Embrace The Kill, MDC took the stage. They were definitely not what I expected, but this is mainly to the fact that half the set was acoustic. The unplugged aspect was pretty cool though and I never thought I could so sincerely enjoy a song about chickens. Agent Orange was the reason we were stoked and they did not disappoint. We've been playing for 13 years. Those guys have been playing twice as long as us and were still energetic, tight as hell and totally entertaining. Most significantly I can finally say I saw "Bloodstains" performed live. After the show we headed back to Disgraceland and rocked some guitar hero until the wee hours of the morning. Pretty fun evening to say the least. Bri and Greg get honorable mentions but main thanks to the one and only Boss man.

 

 
12/15/2007
Portland, OR @ Ash Street Saloon
The Secludes, Bitchin' Summer
So last night was the feel good show of the year. I kept hearing everyone call it the family reunion all night which seemed pretty accurate. I saw people I hadn't seen in years last night and I must admit it was pretty fun. The reason for the reunion was a show by The Secludes, who stopped playing back in 2003. I recall first meeting them outside of EJ's and were impressed because they had played with a bunch of really big bands like Strung Out and I think even Bad Religion. They were always a great live band and totally nice dudes so we were stoked when they asked if we'd play this show. We were up first and I think it was easily the most people we've ever played to at the Ash Street. I thought we played well but no one moved, no one really clapped and only a few people even registered a facial expression. No one left though and that is the ultimate sign you are sucking so I guess we were ok. Nothing too spectacular to report from our performance other than Dave's voice sounding like he had rinsed with some sort of battery acid. The Secludes were up second and I was stoked to see them again. The songs all came back to me as they started them and I can't even describe it other than to say it was such a good time. Adam is still an amazing drummer and I still wish I could play as well as Jason. It really was the feel good night of the year and whether we had played or not I would have enjoyed it. The last band of the night was Bitchin' Summer. As much as I love The Secludes I'm pretty sure Bitchin' Summer is my new favorite Portland band. They were amazing. I don't even really know how to describe them. They took some rock, some punk, some metal and merged it one amazingly energetic and enticing package. They were seriously awesome live and I will definitely check them out again. Thanks to Heather, Bitchin' Summer and super huge thanks to The Secludes for asking us to hang out and play this show.

 

 
12/14/2007
Richland, WA @ Ray's Golden Lion
Dreadful Children, Cab, The Irts
Wow, what a long night. We started off on the wrong foot with Dave arriving an hour and a half late. Thankfully the van is running again, however the smell that has accumulated during the months of limited use was practically unbearable. At every stop handfuls of trash were extracted. Some loads were in bags and some just fell out on their own. Had a homeless person discovered the van they could had lived for a year off all the cans and bottles. Dustin and I played a five minute round of "find the duke" as we thought for sure there must be feces somewhere in the vehicle. No excrement to be found though. The worst offender was the McFlurry cap and spoon that was stuck to the floor. Another mixed blessing of being in the van was it's size. On the way to show the winds in the gorge were so strong I honestly thought the van would flip over. We got gas and food in The Dalles. I got a milkshake and corndog because I am disgusting. At this point it also started snowing which would come back to haunt us later. At some point during the drive we sat and listened to 'The Return'. It was kind of charming hearing it again and thinking back about the record and release of the album and songs. However the moment was short lived as by the 5th song we had decided that making fart noises was the best way to accent the music. It's hard to believe I am technically an adult when the most humorous part of my day was watching three of my friends make elementary school noises repeatedly. Sadly that flatulent accompaniment continued for well over 30 minutes. Due to Dave lateness we arrived at Ray's just after 10:00. We were annoyed because we were so late but the first band had just started. They were ok so such a young band. The drummer couldn't have beeb out of middle school and was rocking a mohawk that would make Rancid envious. Cab was second and sounded pretty good. Dreadful Children was third and holy crap they rocked it. We had seem them once before but they killed it tonight. Serious props and admiration from our end. We were last and started at about 12:45 (remember this was an all ages show). The set was pretty good. Dustin and I liked, Dave and Justin did not. Dave was just embarrassed because he forgot how to play Radio after playing it for 8 years. Justin didn't like it because he preferred the fart noise version we had created in the van. In all seriousness the show was a very good time. We left at 2 and made good time until we hit The Dalles. In the course of those few hours the snow had accumulated a few inches in the gorge and had a mildly treacherous drive for about an hour there. The last 15 minutes was a freakish downpour and finally by 5:45 we arrived at Justin's. Longest night ever. Thanks for Dustin and crew, Dreadful Children, Kiah and everyone who chose to stay up late with us!

 

 
12/7/2007
Portland, OR @ Bitter End Pub
Drawback, The Royal Tees
Lots of surprises tonight. First was the start time and lineup. The web site said music at 11 and all we knew was that Drawback was the only other band playing. We show up to load in and there is already another band on stage setting up and ready to play. Waiting in the wings are The Royal Tees who are up second. So in a few minutes this went from a late two band bill to an early four band bill with one of our friend's band opening. After unloading Dave and I went to park the van. If you've been to NW Portland on a weekend you know this is pretty much impossible. We dove around so long and parked so far away that when we returned the first band was on their last song. Never even caught their name either. The Tees took forever and a day to get setup. Not because they are slow but because the first band took forever (I hear it was their first show ever?) but more significantly there was no sound person or microphones. Turns out the first band were the only ones who had mics and stands. Fortunately they were nice enough to let the other bands share their equipment. Had they said no we were fully prepared to "fix the glitch" and just go home. The Tees played well (as they always do) and ironically the PA sounded great thanks to the knob turning skills of the first band. Drawback was up third and they were damn entertaining. Don't know if they'll care for this comparison but they reminded me of a more technical Lawrence Arms. Fun to watch for sure and I definitely wouldn't mind playing with them again. We started last (after midnight) and I guess it was ok. We played pretty well but there was lots of sitting. It's hard to rock for people planted into their chairs. Eventually some friends of Drawback got up and got sort of rowdy almost knocking out Dave's teeth at one point. Props to Jeff for checking out the show and forcing us to play 'Still The Same' for the first time in well over two years. We'd like to wish him luck in his move to Chi-town. Thanks to Drawback for hooking up the show, The Tees for being a pleasant surprise to our evening and the few friends that showed up and hung out.

 

 
11/23/2007
Longview, WA @ Chinese Gardens
Dateless, The Peabodys
We arrived a little after 9 via pickup trick as the van is still dead. Watched the Peabodys, setup, played and were loaded out before 11. Dateless played last and the whole thing was wrapped up by midnight. I like late nights, but at the same time I also love a quick and timely show. The Peabodys were good and it amazingly was our first time seeing them despite having Dave's roommate on bass. Our set was pretty good. It got a little rowdy there for a bit and I felt like a fight was going to break for a song or two. Cooler heads prevailed and thankfully there was no such incident. Dave said it best when he proclaimed "I don't care if you fight or not, just don't do it in front of my teeth." My man gets enough microphones to the mouth when people are having a good time, an angry one would be far worse. It was all good and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves. Dateless was up third and despite listening from the back of the room they sounded pretty damn good. Kind of bubble gum pop punk, but a little too fast and a pretty raw. Very cool. Thanks to Eric and Jill for setting up the show. If you haven't checked out their zine yet (called 'Scene Not Herd') it's worth a look and listen.

 

 
11/17/2007
Portland, OR @ Satyricon
The Royal Tees, Dying Days, Super Kung Fu Masters
Pretty cool reason for a show tonight. Our friend Brandi has a brother named Arthur who just got back from Iraq literally this morning. His gift? A show just for him. Needless to say we were more than stoked to play this one. Our van is still not functioning so we had to move what gear we could in a pickup truck and VW Golf. Nice. To make our load in worse part of it was over and across a stream of urination courtesy of some nasty crack head perched in a doorway. Despite all the constructions, condos and cleanup it's really amazing how little has changed for life on 6th avenue. Our first time at this venue back in 1997 we saw a pimp while loading in. Tonight, literally ten years later we see a woman pissing on the street. As for the show Super Kung Fu Masters were up first and I was stoked to finally see them after stumbling across their songs many moons ago on MySpace. Very energetic and very entertaining to watch. Dying Days was up next and sounded pretty solid. We'd really like to thank them for letting us borrow their guitar cabinets as ours wouldn't fit in our makeshift ride. We were up third and had a good time. Whenever Brady is at a show you know it's going to be good. There was a decent sized crowd there considering it was all local bands so we were pretty stoked with that as well. Better yet they all seemed entertained and happy to rock out and have some fun. Not a bad crowd reaction considering we hadn't practiced since Olympia. The Royal Tees were up fourth and we'd like to thank them for taking the late shift and playing last so that I could more easily make a plane flight. I think the slot was well suited for them though as all their friends were there standing up front cheering and singing. I'm not sure we could given the closing spot it's due justice, so all it all it went pretty well. Thanks again to Brandi, Arthur, Brady, Lucas, Bri, Shell-O and all at the Satyricon.

 

 
11/3/2007
Olympia, WA @ 4th Avenue
Man Alive
When we arrived at the 4th Ave our first thoughts were "ok, this is going to be the worst show we've ever played". We walked in and it was a sports bar. No cover charge, no flyers, ESPN on the televisions and the place was populated by a mix of jocks, thugs, skanky looking girls and some pool playing cowboys. We soon noticed the back room which did have a very large stage with a band playing. The sight of real stage was encouraging but the vibe was not. The band was ok, sort of an alternative/indie/rock thing, but the "crowd" consisted of 20-30 bored looking people sitting at tables drinking heavily. I don't mean to sound jaded but when we go to a show we expect other similar bands. These people had no idea what they were in for and from the looks of the patrons they would be not be enjoying their time evening with 800 Octane. After about 60 seconds of observing I had a quick meeting with Justin and said I was cool with turning around and going home. He agreed. We went out to run our idea by the others but it was too late as they already met the promoter. He was well aware of what we sounded like and had actually requested us so we were finally a little encouraged. Additionally we met a couple that drove down from Seattle jut to see us. Game on. The promoter said we'd play second which was cool since the first band was just finishing their set. The third band was not stoked by this decision and one of them broke off into a cursing fit and started bitching at everyone for changing the order. I wanted to offer up a "we only play 30 minutes" explanation, but in the end decided I really didn't care that much. Let him be angry. They probably wouldn't like us anyway. We set up and tried our best to dodge the looks of the country and western fans a few steps away whose pool games we would soon interrupt. We're getting ready to start and an amazing thing happens, a steady stream of folks in black band shirts shows up and stands up front. This is good. People are standing and they might actually be there to see us. Amen. We started and thank god for the folks up front as they made the show amazing. They shouted, cheered, sang along and were a fricking riot to play to. There were only a dozen of them but we quickly forgot about everything else there and played what I even thought was a pretty badass set. In my head we could have been playing the Rose Garden. It's amazing how easy it is to forget your surroundings when you've got people that are genuinely entertained in front of you. We can't thank the group of folks that showed up enough. The last band (who was still irritated they were playing last) did admirably. I'm thankful we didn't have to follow them because as I predicted they were on stage for over an hour. They do get the prize for owning one of the oddest band vehicles ever which appeared to be an airport shuttle bus. Funniest moment was while we were loading up the truck (the van is still immobilized) when Dustin, who has a few drinks in him, gets accosted from across the parking lot by a girl looking for a cheeseburger. Girl: "Do you have a cheeseburger?". Dustin – "Yeah I got a cheeseburger". Girl – "You have a cheeseburger?". Dustin – "Yeah I have your cheeseburger". The girls then turns to her friends and begins to walk away. Dustin proceeds to shout "Come get your meat baby". Quite possibly the strangest interaction I've heard in ages. Anyway, thanks to the manager and sound guy at the club as well as those who stood up front and had a good time with us.

 

 
10/12/2007
Portland, OR @ Satyricon
TSOL, Mercy Killers, Plan R
Ok, now that was a good show. Good music? Check. Lots of friends? Check. Home made cookies delivered fresh? Booya. Plan R started off and started correctly with a blend of smart but snotty punk rock the way we wish could deliver it. It was definitely nice to see them back in action again. We were up second and our set was pretty solid. No real highlights to speak of, but no real lowlights either and with our limited practices schedule for the last month that’s a good thing. The Mercy Killers were up third and were very cool. They were best described as Rancid meets Alkaline Trio with a little bit of a crust edge to it. I dug them immensely. The reason for the crowd was TSOL and they did not disappoint. I will say I actually thought they sounded better last time we played with, but it was a whole different ball game seeing them in an all ages setting with such a diverse and rowdy crowd. Nice to see such a legendary band can still throw down live. Thanks to Thrasher, KB and the Satyricon staff, TSOL and those who came out early to see us and the other Portland natives. No thanks to the failing electrical system in the van

 

 
9/15/2007
Chehalis, WA @ Matrix
Go Get The Scissors, Pirex, Something Orange
You know your night is going to start off wrong when your vehicle has no brake lights, no speedometer and no cruise control. We're not sure why but despite the lack of brake lights Dave seemed to insist on braking suddenly and often the entire way out of town. I am fairly sure this is the first time everyone was adamant about buckling up, attaching headrests and maintain good posture while riding in the van as we were certain a truck would plow into us at any minute. There wasn't much traffic on the interstate so gauging our speed was tough. We thought we were going fast enough until we got passed by a late 70's model Plymouth with no muffler and rust holes big enough to put your hand through. First we thought we'd get pulled over for speeding but soon realized we were actually running the risk of getting stopped for impeding the flow of traffic. About half way there we realized the GPS could be set to display the current speed. Problem solved and a consistent speed was obtained. It should be noted that the GPS also contains the voice of Mr. T who barks out directions, calls you a "fool" and threatens to "jump out this tiny machine" if you go the wrong way. After a 25 minute stop at Jack In The Box we arrived at the show. Sadly we missed all of Something Orange so I have little to report on their set. Another small detail is that when I walked in there was literally all of about 8 people there. I actually went out and apologized as it really was looking pretty grim. GGTS set up and fortunately a few more people wandered in. They sounded great as usual, with stronger vocals and even better sing along parts. A cover by the man in black is always a plus too. Pirex was third and sounded pretty good as well. I wasn't sure what to expect when I saw make-up, blood and vampire teeth on the stage but was relieved to learn I would not be enduring a black metal band. We were up last and thankfully a few more people wandered in. Dave was in rare form tonight. My favorite comment was his observation that "you may think I'm an active guy but I'm actually much more comfortable at rest." At some point Justin inadvertently mentioned we missed the first band because we were waiting at Jack In The Box. That statement has made my Top 10 list of things never to say on stage. Say you were stuck in traffic, say you were in jail, say you were doing lines off a stripper's back, but never, under any circumstances, say you were late because you were waiting on chicken strips. Ironically the strangest moment of the evening also involved food. At some point between songs we were interrupted by an announcement from the sound guy who offered this query to the crowd … "did anyone order a turkey sandwich and forget to pick it up? We've got an extra one here." It pretty much rendered us speechless and I am quite sure in 13 years it's the first time we've heard that over the PA. The crowd sang along, moved around and made an otherwise tiny show pretty kick ass to play. The drive home only had one highlight, a small electrical fire in the speaker wire. Our van is seriously going to explode soon I just know it. Anyway, thanks to GGTS, the Matrix and all who traveled long and far and made the show fun for us.

 

 
9/8/2007
Portland, OR @ Kelly's Olympian
MusicFestNW w/ Amadan, The Ones, Go Fever, Das Llamas, The Heavy Hearts
It's a day later and I'm still not sure what to think of our MusicFestNW show. Kelly's Olympian was a really cool place, the sound was good and all the staffers were very nice. All the bands on our showcase were really good as well, which is always a huge plus. Most of the bands leaned towards the indie rock side of things. By indie rock I mean good musicians, meaningful songs and generally hip looking people. In other words, pretty much nothing like us. They were all very good (especially the first band) but we stuck out like a sore thumb. As soon as we set up there we noticed a quick change in the attendance. I guess three large skulls on the amps is a turnoff for some people. Appearances or not I can't say I blame some people for bailing as our setup was a bit problematic. The band before us took a really long time to unload so we were already about fifteen minutes behind. We got up there, got tuned and began sound checking. Somewhere in there Justin's tuner decided that tonight was the night it was going to stop working (despite having worked 3 days prior) and that pretty much threw him into a panic. He hit things, slammed his guitar on the stage and cursed repeatedly. I kept thinking we were selected to play from hundreds of applications to represent the best of the NW and here we were standing around unable to even sound check properly. By 12:15 Justin was tuned, checked and we finally started with 'Radio'. Within the two minutes it takes to perform the song Justin was out of tune, I was out of tune, Dustin's kick pedal had come loose and Dave couldn't hear the monitors. I think the subsequent pause was longer than the song we had just played. The next song started off promising enough but afterwards it too was met by another pause of indeterminable length filled with guitar tuning and drum set adjusting. By about 12:30 we're three songs in and we've finally gotten our shit together and have started playing well. Only problem is we're supposed to be done in 10 minutes. We blasted through the songs as fast as we could and finally picked up some momentum. So how was the crowd? There were more people than we expected but they were all a good 20 feet back from the stage leaving a large and empty floor right in front of us. Somewhere in there the "dancing" began. In the beginning the "dancing" was limited to one rather preppy-ish looking guy with flip flops and a collared knit shirt head banging and air guitaring by himself in our previously established "no standing zone". There was a moment where I was honestly wondering if he was possibly retarded and that I would go to hell for making fun of him? I quickly deducted that he was just drunk. Eventually a few other people joined in up front and started moving around (including my neighbor of all people) and everyone seemed to be having a pretty good time. We finally looked and sounded like a real band. All good things must come to an end and during one of the last few songs one of the revelers fell down and twisted his knee. He laid there on the liquid covered floor of Kelly's for half a song while a circle of people formed around him. They moved him out and the "no standing zone" quickly returned to it's former size. It's only inhabitant was one drunken guy who kept slamming into bystanders and those at tables, trying to grab them and get them to move up front with him. Charming. At that's was it. Twenty five minutes had passed and it ended just as awkwardly as it began. For the average observer I guess the show wasn't that bad overall but at a showcase like this I always hope a little more. If any of that stuff went down at a "normal" bar show (equipment failure, drunk guy dancing, retarded air guitarist, etc) I probably wouldn't have cared. Tonight it was all a little disappointing. Maybe my expectations are just too high for such an event? Anyway, we got off stage quickly and Amadan closed the night very nicely. We watched a few songs, then a few fights and finally went home for a long night of sleep. Thanks to those who stuck around and I hope this doesn't taint your recollection of our show!

 

 
8/12/2007
Portland, OR @ Michelle's Back Yard
Broadway Calls, New Found Glory Holes
We've played two free house shows in the past few weeks and I couldn't imagine having them being at any further opposite ends of the musical spectrum. One was a loud hot drunken mess in a dingy basement, while this one was outside near cute dogs, soft drinks, bowls of candy, a trampoline and a somewhat high contingent of straight edge folks. The reason for the season was Michelle's 24th birthday. We actually had a horrible surprise planned for her where we were going to dress up as clowns. Seriously. In fact we all spent quite a bit of time and money procuring appropriate clown attire over the past week. However after having to setup the gear, change band lineup and realizing how few people were in attendance we opted against it at the very last minute. We do apologize to the few who were in on the secret and attended the show in hopes of seeing that spectacle. The good news is, sometime, somewhere, someday we will put those shoes, oversized neckties and horns to good use when everyone least expects it. Broadway Calls opened the show and yes, they are still my favorite local band. Now that I have their CD in my possession and have learned many of the songs I like them even more. Every time they play it makes me want to quit because we'll never write hooks that good. I'm not sure we did as well but we did have one secret weapon up our sleeve, a whipped cream pie with Michelle's name all over it. Predictably she came up to sing Golden Road and when we got to "her part" Justin smacked her in the face with a cream pie. That wasn't some sort of sexual innuendo; it was literally a whipped cream pie. Within seconds it was picked up off the ground and applied to Dave's face, only with the less appealing addition of dirt and grass. Yuck. The New Found Glory Holes were up last. They could best be described as several guys who probably know better, playing pop punk songs and sung by a gang of people who knew not all, but many of the words. By all accounts it really was pretty terrible, but then again I'm pretty sure it was supposed to be. It did make me smile though and in all reality I think that was the goal. Happy b-day to Michelle and thanks to those who attended on a lazy Sunday.

 

 
7/28/2007
Portland, OR @ The Crypt
Krush Klamath, Embrace The Kill
It's been a while since we've gotten to play a good basement show. Our recent Portland shows have ranged from "sort of ok" all the way to "totally underwhelming" so when Krush Klamath asked us to play their basement we were all over it. Everyone there was totally cool and although we didn't know too many people we all seemed to know the same people. All night was a perpetual game of two degrees of separation. Before the show we headed over to Dial A Pizza. Let's just say I was correct to be skeptical of any place offering two pizzas for $9.99. Should have been dial a toilet for the next half hour. Embrace The Kill (aka - most of Valid Effort) opened the show playing a handful of good songs. Krush Klamath was the main attraction and I was totally impressed. Their songs were catchy but totally rocking too. In fact I should point out all of those dudes were totally cool too. All I knew was their song called 'Can't Skate' from the Crash Assailant comp and I really enjoyed seeing them play in person. We played last and it was a blast. It was incredibly hot by the time we went on, people were sloppy drunk, the floor had about a quarter inch of beer on it and we were playing on borrowed gear. I swear I lost about 5 pounds from sweat alone. Totally fun evening. Thanks to Krush Klamath for setting everything up and letting us use your gear!

 

 
7/13/2007
Richland, WA @ Ray's Golden Lion
Mayhem '88, Stupid In Stereo
Now that was a damn fun show. Sadly Mourningstar couldn't make it due to a tour cancellation. You know, come to think of it at our last show in Richland the touring band we were going to play with cancelled too. In fact both shows were on a Friday the 13th. Weird. Although Mourningstar was absent Stupid In Stereo filled in which was cool because we knew their singer from a previous band in Pullman. Nice to see them play finally. I don't have much else to say about the show other than that it was a total blast to play. Kind of a small turnout compared to some past shows, but I think we played well and that's something. Thanks to all at Atomic, the other bands and those who stayed until 1:00 in the morning to see us play!

 

 
6/9/2007
Portland, OR @ Mt. Tabor Legacy
Coffin Cruisers Hearse Rally w/ Sado-Nation, Antiworld, Hot Rod Carl, Hotrod Hooligans
The show tonight started off with a hearse rally. What's a hearse rally you ask? It was a gathering of the Coffin Cruisers club of Portland and despite the rain they brought out about 13 hearses of varying age and styles. I didn't see it until a few had dispersed but pretty cool to see darkening up the otherwise hippie-ish part of town. The show was cool. Missed the first band but Hot Rod Carl was pretty damn good. Antiworld was up third and I thought they sounded a little more rocking than normal. They are quite possibly some of the nicest people we know and we don't get to play with them enough. Our set was uneventful and that's a good thing. Pretty solid, no major mistakes, all good as the kids used to say. Sado-Nation was last and really caught all of us off guard. They started in 1982 and completely and totally rock. Seriously the guitar player was amazing and despite being several years older than us (and we're old) I think they had just as much energy as we did on stage, quite possibly more. Very impressive and I'd like to see them again for sure. Thanks to all who attended and to Mt Tabor and Antiworld get getting us on the show!

 

 
5/18/2007
Longview, WA @ Reid's Pit Stop
Jackmove, Dead Fucking Serious, One Way Mule
Ok, now that was a pretty fun show. I would even dare say it reminded me of the "good old days" of Longview shows. Lots of kids just there to see some decent live music which was a welcome change from the dwindling attendance over the past few years. I guess if you have Broadway Calls in your hometown why would you bother seeing anyone else? I wouldn't. Anyway, solid lineup, solid crowd, solid show. Bowels? Not so much. One way mule was not what I expected. They had a very diverse sound and lots or refreshingly original guitar parts and sounds that went from radio friendly rock to metal to punk. Pretty cool stuff. It was great to finally see Dead Fucking Serious play featuring Sam and Chris from EPD/This Day's End. The song were definitely abrasive enough to be worthy of containing the f-bomb in their band name. It was an awful lot of hostility from a frontman short one testicle. Maybe that explains it? Our set was fun. Justin went through broken strings on both guitars and couldn't work his strap for at least one whole song but what else is new? All in all we had a very fun time playing. Jackmove was up last and killed it like always. I always forget how incredibly bad ass they are until I see them again. They are kind of like Zeke but a little catchier. Very cool night so thanks to the usual suspects who always show us a good time in Longview.

 

 
4/28/2007
Salem, OR @ The Ike Box
Accidental Gun Death, The Crawlers, The Casketeers
Shows in Salem are always pretty fun and tonight was one of the best ones yet. Unfortunately The Crawlers cancelled which was a bummer since everyone has been saying they are great. Rather than starting later the venue had everyone start early which was a bit odd. Speaking of the venue, the Ike Box is awesome. It was hard to put a finger on what was unique about it but it turns out the building used to be a funeral home. The upstairs décor is pretty creepy looking and the owner said the original equipment is still down in the basement. Next time we'll have to get a tour. Anyway, we got there at 7:15, loaded in and Accidental Gun Death had started by 7:30. I know I'm getting old because I now get excited by shows that end early. Anyway, AGD was awesome as usual and have always been one of the most entertaining and rocking bands I've ever seen. We played second and it was pretty good. People moved and we were left a bag of Swedish Fish on stage so I can't complain. Nothing too memorable other than Dave announced 'Lost At Sea' was about pirates and sea men. Say it fast and you'll see why it was just a little wrong. The Casketeers were last and it was probably the best I've seen them play yet. They have a pretty good following and Salem and it's cool to see them get the props they deserve. Thanks for all who helped put on the show and those who attended.

 

 
4/27/2007
Olympia, WA @ Black Lake Grange Hall
The Royal Tees, The Ballroom Bastards, Think I Am
We had heard tonight's venue was off the beaten path and that was no lie. Only Roseburg and possibly McMinnville comes close for the prize of "least accessible Grange Hall". As usual we arrived late and unfortunately managed to miss the two opening bands. For those in the opening bands, we apologize for missing your sets. We did catch one GGTS song performed by 2/3 of the band which is a plus, because whenever we think about Olympia we think about those guys. Although we were late, our trip up did have one mentionable moment. Actually two. Somewhere around Centralia we got flashed by girls in a passing car. To quote the great poet Sir Mix-A-Lot, "38 D's will make a man skid". I can now confirm that statement is in fact true. Sure it took a little prompting from Justin (who offered the subtle suggestion of raising his shirt) but in the end it was well worth the effort. Speaking of huge boobs, we did catch the entire set of The Royal Tees who did a damn fine job of rocking the small crowd. We were up last and highlights included a request and delivery of Pimp Ray, Dave calling things "gay" into the microphone, the crack in the stage that could have swallowed our singer's leg and someone's rancid body odor that 3/4 of our band assumed was Dave. Thanks to Kevin for setting up the show the Tees for just being the Tees.

 

 
4/14/2007
Portland, OR @ Mt. Tabor Legacy
Eat Your Heart Out, The Casketeers
I was a little nervous about this show. We loved everything about Sabala's and were a little skeptical when we heard they got bought by someone else and changed the name. Needless to say we were very relieved to open the doors and find the place was largely unchanged keeping the same décor, sound system and overall dirty rock bar vibe. Plus, they still have the coolest wall paintings and decorations of any bar in town and that goes a long way for me. Sadly, The Independents had cancelled so we pushed back the start time and kept it a three band bill. The Casketeers were up first and sounded pretty darn good. I'd actually go so far as to say that was the best I've heard them play. Very cool stuff and I find the stand up bass with spider webs hypnotic to watch. Eat Your Heart Out was second and in keeping with the theme they sounded pretty amazing too. I've always liked them but they really seemed to up the rock factor tonight and sounded really, really good. They played so well in fact that I was a little scared to follow them. Thankfully, our set went well. No real problems to report and everything fell nicely into place which was a welcome change from the previous night's struggles. Funniest part for us was Dave's special set list he made up for Justin which included a person's face (presumably Justin's) with the words "bla bla bla" and a big circle with a slash through it. This was a well needed reminder for Justin to focus on playing and avoid his well meaning but often indecipherable rambling into the microphone. Anyway, thanks for the Caketeers, EYHO, Dawning and the Mt Tabor as those who stayed up late to support some local bands.

 

 
4/13/2007
Richland, WA @ Ray's Golden Lion
Schoolyard Heroes, Better Off Naked
Usually we like Friday the 13th shows. After this one, I'm not so sure. First are foremost we found out that The Independents cancelled due to a family emergency. Total bummer as that's the reason we wanted to play the show and we were looking forward to a weekend of shows with them. The trip up was also riddled with headaches and bad luck. We knew we'd be getting a late start out of town but we didn't know the brake rotor on the van would be stuck to the wheel rendering it completely and totally unable to move. With five hours to show time, we scrambled around and wound up cramming all our gear into Justin's car and Angela's car which are both Honda Elements. If you aren't familiar them they are part SUV and part little rolling boxes. At one point Dave wondered aloud if the two vehicles would assemble into a large Voltron like creature? Sadly, it did not. These cars are handy for carrying things, but are not so handy for feeling like a band on a trip as we had to split up into pairs. We hauled ass up to Richland stopping at what turned out to be the dirtiest Wendy's on Earth. Trash on the tables, squirted condiments on the counters, mashed fries on the floor, oh man it was bad. The bathroom was even worse as the toilet had still fresh vomit and dried feces on it with a puddle of urine in the front. Wow, talk about losing your appetite. We moved on and quickly as we good only taking our drinks and a case of hepatitis with us. Shows at Ray's start at 10 and we arrived at 9:55. We parked as far away as we could from the door to minimize our visibility with our two yuppie rides. This led for a long walk with the gear but it was worth it. The Elements were shameful to unload from. Better Off Naked was first and sounded good. We only got to see a few songs, but they seemed solid. They played a short set and before we could catch our breath we were on stage by 10:30. Our set was affected by the curse of Friday the 13th too. Although it was passable, I gotta be honest it wasn't our best effort. Kids moved and sang and that's always appreciated. I did think for a while the tides would turn on us though when Justin started to ask if anyone saw the Cubs game. Someone yells "fuck sports" and he continues on with "no, really did anyone get the score." Wow. Amazingly this display of microphone rambling was actually surpassed during our last song when he thanked the opening band, the staff and all the people who showed up. I attempted to gesture the words "thank the other band." Somehow this was misinterpreted as "Eric needs a rubber band" which he mentioned out loud. Soon people in the crowd start to try and locate a rubber band. He never did thank Schoolyard Heroes and I never got my rubber band either. Sadly, the unprofessionalism didn't stop there. Dave announced this was our last song only to have Dustin interrupt us all and start insisting we play a few more. My man had absolutely no idea another band was playing after us. Granted they were standing by the stage with all their equipment and had brought in most of the crowd and he was none the wiser. Again I blame the 13th. Anyway, our set was passable … but barely. Schoolyard Heroes played last and they were very, very good. The guitar player was damn near amazing and it further solidified our amateur hour performance. We took off around 1:00 and of course had to split up again thanks to driving two cars. At the first turn out of town we got split up at a red light. I'm not sure exactly what happened to them but Dustin and Justin wound up getting lost and turned around so many times they wound up about 30 miles behind us. Needless to say both of them were quite irritated because nothing sucks as bad as leaving for a 3.5 hour drive and turning it into a 4 hour one. The drive home really did suck. Lots of really hard rain, plenty of puddles, and people driving with their high beams on. We eventually got home and I slept like I've never slept before. I'm not sure if Friday the 13th was to blame but it sure is a good explanation.

 

 
4/10/2007
Portland, OR @ Satyricon
Zombeast, The Quintessentials, Eat Your Heart Out
Despite being a Tuesday and having one of the bands cancel this wound up being a pretty fun little show. Obviously not a ton of people were there but everyone seemed to be into and even moved around a little. Even if everyone secretly hated us, they at least put out the vibe they were enjoying it and that makes us play better. Speaking of which, I thought we played pretty damn well. Sixteen hours in the studio the prior weekend probably helped out. I must admit it was strangely liberating playing first at a show again. We get stuck headlining so often that you forget how nice it is to play early and then just sit back and watch. Usually we're watching the clock wondering what's taking everyone so long or whatever other problems or drama will unfold. The Quintessentials were up second and did admirably. I guess it was their first show as a Portland band so that was pretty cool. Zombeast was the reason we took this show and I gotta admit they were pretty cool. It's hard to avoid Misfits/Samhain/Danzig comparisons but if you can accept it they are a pretty good band. Sounds like it was their first tour which was hard to imagine since the recorded songs I heard were so good. Anyway, all in all a fun show. Thanks to Jeff and the Satyricon and all who attended early on a Tuesday night!

 

 
3/24/2007
Longview, WA @ Chinese Gardens
Lung Invasion, Last Shot
In all of years playing Longview, this was actually the first time we've ever played a bar there. Unfortunately it was also the first time we booked a show where there was another show in town happening as well. If you aren't familiar with the area, the pool of people in Longview that goes to shows is pretty small. Take out the all ages group and you've cut out about half the crowd. Then split it in half again for the two shows and you get what we got which was about 20-30 people actually paying attention and wanting to see music. Don't get the wrong, there were quite a few people in the bar, but most were there to drink, eat Chinese food or watch the UFC night. I'm definitely not complaining though as everyone who stood up front seriously made it a blast. Rick, Cory, Brady, Joel, most of Lung Invasion and a few others we didn't recognize … I could have gladly played for that small group and been stoked. They were noisy and singing along and made the Chinese Gardens feel like Madison Square Gardens. We even saw Brady's zombie dance (acts 1 and 2) which is always a plus. We had a totally fun time. Lung Invasion played last and seemed right at home with the increasingly intoxicated crowd. Lights, guitar solos and metal … what more could you ask for? Thanks so much to Nick and Lung Invasion for the show hook up!

 

 
3/11/2007
Eugene, OR @ Agate Hall
2nd Memorial Show for Hopper w/ Grounds For Assault, Jean Grey, Set To Fire
It's not often we get to play in the daylight hours. It's much warmer and you can actually drive to and from the show in daylight which is a plus. Unfortunately you can also clearly see when people are not impressed with your band which was the case today. The show was a memorial for our friend Hopper who passed away two years ago. A little sad reason for a show, but still a good vibe for everyone. We were late as hell as usual, no thanks to the daylight savings change which apparently was not advertised in the greater Longview metropolitan area as Dustin managed to not get that memo. We loaded in and went for some pizza which took about 30 minutes to find. We would up missed two of the bands we wanted to see which sucked. We did see one band whose name is escaping me and then we setup and tore through and 8 songs as fast as we could. I think we played well but when you want to see Grounds For Assault a band like us doesn't impress like it should. Speaking of which, those guys totally ruled the school (literally) and were totally entertaining as well. They definitely ended the show on a high note. Thanks to everyone who made it happen. No thanks to Justin and his two hours of garlic calzone belching.

 

 
3/9/2007
Bend, OR @ Domino Room
The Roe, Easy Does It, Rental 58, After Hours
I think this was the smallest Bend show I've ever been too. It was still fun but it's been interesting to see how the turnout there has ebbed and flowed over the years. From 50 people with Thrust all the way up to 400 with Dead Even to the huge Misfits show and now down to 50 again. I'm fairly certain the Domino Room's price gouging has something to do with this. Last I heard it $650 to rent the room for the night. Nice people and a nice club, but it's no wonder local promoters have to charge an arm and a leg for local bands. Good news is the show was a blast … for what we saw of it. We missed all the openers including Aces Over Kings whom we've played with before. We did catch The Roe and they were entertaining to watch. Not often you see an arena sized show in a tiny club. Our set was highlight free but overall pretty fun. I sort of felt like we sucked at the last few Bend shows and this felt like redemption. Of course on the way out I heard two groups of people say this was the worst show they had seen in a long time. Hope they were talking about the show as a whole and not us. (Of course since they stuck it out we couldn't have been that bad.) Also on the way out some girl wanted to buy a CD and her male friend dragged her away from the merch table explaining that she shouldn't ever buy CD's because it's "the biggest scam there is". According to him, buying CD's is "a rip-off", musicians make "a ton of money" and you should "download your music for free" to fight the system. I don't necessarily oppose downloading of music, but holy shit, that was the dumbest fucking thing I've ever heard. I bit my tongue but was about one comment away from explaining that we pack up our van that we bought on our own, drove 4 hours over the mountain with our own money, setup our gear, played our balls off, and are about to unload it and drive 4 more hours back home … for nothing. Nada. Zero. Zip. That $3 compilation you refuse to let your girlfriend buy (that we paid $2 for) is the only money we'll be making this evening. Jesus, what a douchebag. Next time in that situation I will stop to ask myself "what would Dave do?" The answer of course would be put him in a submission hold and throw him out the door head first. Note to self, play less Guitar Hero and more Fight Night. You know, just in case. Ok, I'm rambling. Thanks so much to everyone to stayed late as well as thanks to Dan and Bleeding Through productions for a very smoothly run show.

 

 
2/10/2007
Portland, OR @ Tonic Lounge
Bomf! Reunion Show w/ us and Lopez
Talk about old school. Man, oh man, this show was a blast from the past and we ran into just about everyone we had ever seen or met in between 1997 and 1999. No they weren't there to see us, they were all here to see the Bomf! play their first show in about 8 years. For those who haven't been with us long, Bomf! is quite possibly Dave and my favorite Portland punk rock band on both a personal and musical level. They were one of the first bands we really hung out with. Lyle played in our band for a short while, I filled in for them on guitar for a few months and we've played with Brent and Scotty's other bands since many times. Needless to say we were stoked when we found out they were playing, even more so when they asked us to play. In fact we actually had a Seattle show booked this night and cancelled it to play. Even if we couldn't play we would have cancelled to attend. So how was it? Awesome. I walked in the door and saw people I literally hadn't seen in 6 or 7 years. Crazy. The show started off right with Lopez who are also just as entitled to their wayback credibility award as we are, possibly even a little more. The only word I can ever find to describe them is "gnarly". Super fast, abrasive, in your face hardcore/punk rock. They also get the prize for the funniest in between song commentary. As for us, our set was good. I'm not sure how it went over with the crowd but we enjoyed the hell out of it. One added bonus is that in all of our trips to the Tonic over the years it was the first time we've played to more than 30 people. Sadly, I am not exaggerating. Anyway, the reason for the season was Bomf! and although they all look older (and bigger) they can still lay it down live. Hearing the songs again was great and my face is still sort from the perpetual smile throughout the night. Definitely the most fun I've had at a show in a long time. Thanks so much for having us and feel free to look us up in another 8 years guys. Also, thanks to everyone from the old school who has kept up with us as well and gave us a warm reception.

 

 
2/9/2007
Seattle, WA @ Studio Seven
Chaospalooza - tons of bands TBA
You think you've been to a long show? Try enduring a 10 band lineup sometime. It's brutal. We missed 4 of them and it was quite possibly one of the longest shows I've ever sat through. The sheer lack of attendance after the 10:00 mark made it all the more challenging since the show ran until nearly 1:30 AM. We walked in around 8:00 and about 100 people were going nuts for CLR. There was maybe 20 or so watching us and by the time the last band played (thankfully not us) it was down to about 8 utterly exhausted looking people. We joked at one point we need to start carrying tumbleweed in our gear so we can roll it across the floor at such sparsely attended shows. So why would we even take this show? We felt like we owed Local Chaos a favor since they have gotten us a few good shows over the year. The one cool thing about tonight it that every band we saw was really good. Seriously. Really, really good bands all the way around. I think The Rebel Spell impressed me the most and Full Frontal Assault being a close second. The other strange thing about this evening was I think that we played really well. It was fast, tight and pretty angry sounding. I only wish there were more people in the room as it probably would have gone over better. It was long but all in all a pretty good night.

 

 
2/1/2007
Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
Only Crime, New Mexican Disaster Squad, The Bullies
I actually had a long show review typed up but after fouling up an upgrade to Windows Vista I managed to lose it during the restore process. Anyway, the quick version is that The Bullies were entertaining to watch. Our set was very fun but not earth-shattering by any means. New Mexican Disaster Squad was fast and good. Only Crime was utterly humbling and awesome to watch. Heavier than we all expected but they still had some terribly catchy moments as well. Seeing as those influential musicians in one band was cool. Thanks to the Hawthorne. No thanks to my computer.

 

 
1/27/2007
Portland, OR @ Sabala's
The Royal Tees, Chesterfield, No Red Flags
If you asked me to sit down and make a list of all the things I don't want to do while enduring a migraine, playing a show now tops my list. Every step, shuffle and head movement was uncomfortable at best, downright painful at worst. The 100w amplifier right behind me didn't help matters. I just kept telling myself "25 minutes, I only gotta make it 25 minutes". Out of instinct I'd find myself forgetting about my ailment and go for the head band only to see stars each time. It's definitely easier when you pretend those stars are camera flashes from thousands of adoring fans, rather than jolts of discomfort given to oneself while trying to entertain a few dozen people in various states of intoxication. Thankfully all three other bands were very good (definitely a rare occurrence) and the turnout was better than we expected. Despite the headache, it was a pretty good night. Thanks to everyone who stayed up late to support four local bands.

 

 
1/19/2007
Longview, WA @ Reid's Pit Stop
Much The Same, The Scurvies, Defect Defect
Slight bummer on the show tonight. Much The Same (aka - the band from Chicago on Nitro Records that we wanted to open for) got in a bad van accident two night ago and had to cancel this show and several others. They are all ok but we were a little bummed as we were excited to see them play. The show must go on and it did. As usual with trips to Longview we arrived inexcusably late and only caught a song or two of the first two bands. I got to see a little more of the Scurvies set who are also on tour but from Alaska. Talk about a drive. Damn. They were pretty cool guys and fun to watch. As for our set, it was pretty good. Since tonight wound up doubling as Brady's birthday party we let him write the setlist and he hit us with some old ones. Can't recall the last time we played 'Get In The Van' or 'Roads Less Traveled' at a show. Pretty fun to bust out some less frequently played material. Highlights included lots of stage diving, Justin's incoherent rambling and the mystery gasser who must have been situated near the front of the stage. Seriously, how can anyone smell worse that Reid's? Anyway, thanks so much to all who attended on short notice, thanks to Reid's and best of luck to Much The Same.

 

 
1/6/2007
Sandy, OR @ Sandy Community Center
Atypical Theme, OBriens Enemy, Blacklist 40, Silenus
Kind of a strange evening as we were the lone punk rock band in a sea of metal and hard rock. Everyone was nice enough and the bands were plenty entertaining, but I'm really not sure we presented enough headbanging opportunities for anyone to really enjoy us. A couple of people moved around and we learned some interesting new dances but definitely not the same reaction we saw in Sandy last time. In retrospect I now realize we never turned down from practice volume which would explain why the middle cleared out and people covered their ears and moved to the side of the stage. Anything else note worthy to write about? Not really. I think Del Taco and my long awaited reunion with the del beef burrito was the highlight of the evening for me but then again I'm easy to impress. All in all a good show though and thanks to Nate for having us. It's still amazing you can still get a better turnout in Sandy with two weeks notice than you can in Portland with two months warning.

 

 
12/15/2006
Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
The Living End, The Briggs, The Civies
Now that was an awesome show. So many friends we haven't seen in a while came out of the woodwork that it was impossible not to have a good time. Every corner we'd see someone and think "holy crap I haven't seen you in years". Very cool. The show itself was great. Our homies The Civies kicked it off with fast sing along street punk. We played second to a pretty awake crowd. We played 'The Gambler' by Kenny Rogers tonight. The consensus afterwards was that the song was a hit for the folks in the bar but a little odd for the all ages portion who might not be familiar with the song or the chain of fast food chicken stores. Fortunately we chose not to play our alternate version called The Nambler or Dateline NBC would have shut us down. The Briggs were awesome. Solid and catchy punk rock songs. They seemed like super nice dudes too which is always a plus. The main reason of course was The Living End and I gotta say they were amazing. I had seen them last time in 99 at The Warped Tour at wasn't that impressed. In a small theater it was a whole different story. They were incredibly tight, totally entertaining and they just controlled the crowd. It's nice to see a band used to playing arenas rock a smaller club with even more intensity. Totally impressed. Didn't get to talk to them at all, but they had a full tour bus and a line of fans waiting to meet them it's all good. Thanks to Thrasher Presents and all who took the time to watch us!

 

 
12/2/2006
Olympia, WA @ Manium Warehouse
Go Get The Scissors, Aces Over Kings, The Ballroom Bastards
Back to Olympia for our second time this year and in fact our second time ever. We arrived fashionably late as usual and missed the first band (sorry!) and caught the latter half of Aces Over Kings who was actually a pretty damn good band. We loaded in the cold (29 degrees), setup and rocked as hard as we could. We definitely got a better response than our last trip to the Manium. I think the show in Chehalis the prior week as a few people came out to this show too. Plus, if you didn't move around a little your legs would most likely freeze and shatter in the unheated warehouse. GGTS was up last and sounded great. Definitely a lot more crowd participation which is always fun to watch. The trip home was uninteresting at best with the thickest fog I've seen in ages. All in all a pretty good night. Thanks to GGTS and Kevin for the show hookup.

 

 
11/25/2006
Chehalis, WA @ Matrix Coffee House
Go Get The Scissors, Desensetized Youth, The Wobblies
Just when we thought we had played every small town in the Northwest Chehalis, WA comes along. We had heard really good things about the Matrix from quite a few bands and you know what, they were all right. The place was great. Nice owners, cool kids and a pretty nice community vibe to it. Due to a late arrival we missed The Wobblies. We had actually met and played with them before in Eugene or Corvallis and one can only assume they rocked. Desensitized Youth was second and sounded pretty good. Kind of street punk, and still pretty catchy. Go Get The Scissors was up third and I really like these guys. They sound solid, play well and are very energetic on stage. They always seem a few steps ahead of other bands their age. Very cool and always fun to watch. We had to play last which is always interesting in a place you've never played before (especially following "locals"). A few people up front knew all the words so that made it cool right from the get go. I'm not sure if it was the excessive volume or the spectacle of the jumping guitar player but people stuck and sang along where they could. Props to Taylor for the vocals and picking up the tab for dinner. More props to Michelle for the merch help, camera blinding and overall level of sass. Last but not least thanks to the Matrix and GGTS for the show hookup!

 

 
10/30/2006
Eugene, OR @ The Headquarters
Left Alone, Ugly Litter, Pirate Radio
Holy crap. Want to talk about a rowdy show? Things we saw tonight: drinking, smoking, vomiting, fights, a split open head, people passed out, hair pulling, people in bloody costumes, people making out, a projectile vomit attack, circle pits, a collapsed drum set, skinheads, crusty punks, hippies, a ten person pile on and this was all in the course of Left Alone's set in a 20' x 20' garage. Good bands, good crowd and all in all a seriously fun night. Thanks to Jeff Litter for the show and also apologies to Jeff Litter as well for being so late! Huge props to Teren for the latest 800 Octane tattoo!

 

 
10/7/2006
Richland, WA @ Ray's Golden Lion
The Independents, The Ashamed
Richland, Washington. Oh, how we love Richland. Although the last two shows were fun they definitely weren't anything to write home about. This show was amazing. There were a ton of people lingering out front so we knew it was going to be good. The Ashamed opened up and rocked hard. They sounded like Zeke but a little heavier and more technical. Very good. The Independents actually played second and finally got their due reward … a crowd. I think they caught everyone off guard at first but by the end everyone seemed to dig them. The cover of 'Mother' was the clincher as I don't think anyone saw it coming. Our set was amazing. We stuck to the old stuff and played our asses off. Broken foot tendon be damned, I was intent of jumping around again. Seriously one of the most satisfying shows we've ever played. Since we had to bail the last two night, we chose to stay in Richland and hang out with the Indy's. We headed over to Denny's and it was insane. Every 10 minutes or so a fit of clapping and cheering would breakout from everyone in the restaurant. I mean everyone. It was beyond nutty. We got to hear some good tour stories as well as the infamous "who threw a ham at me" tale. Totally fun. Afterwards those guys did the coolest thing ever and bought us a room at the hotel they were staying at. Knowing damn well how little money people make on the road I've got to say that was an incredibly nice gesture. We hung out for a bit and crashed until the morning where we were greeted by a call from Willy who asked if we wanted a Chinese buffet for breakfast. It sounded strangely appealing so we headed over and chowed down on some surprisingly good food. All in all a very cool weekend and we definitely hope to play with the Independents again. Cool guys, good band, it's too bad all the bands can't be like them. Thanks so much to all who attended the show, Dustin and the gang and especially the SC wrecking crew! Thanks for the great weekend!

 

 
10/6/2006
Bremerton, WA @ Hansen's
The Independents, Project 9, Potbelly, Mr. Plow, State Of Revolution
We've been late to shows before but I think this too the cake. We got to Bremerton at 11:20. Load in was 8:00. Doh! We were actually still in Longview waiting for Dustin to finish work at 8:00. Oh man. Amazingly when we arrived we still had a band to go before we played. Wow, this was going to be a late one. Potbelly played before us and totally shredded. Whenever you hear Slayer during tune up and it's played well you are always in for a treat. Then finished, we loaded up and played on the Independents amps to about eight people. Sometimes it dipped into the 3 or 4 person range, but never exceeded the magic number of 8. In all honesty the show totally sucked ass. We were all pretty bummed after hauling ass to Bremerton only to play seven songs to so few people. After our set the Independents merch guy vomited all over the bar which sadly was the high point of the evening. I felt absolutely horrible for the Independents who are based out of South Carolina and were literally across the country and subjected to the same lackluster crowd. Here's the amazing thing … they totally rocked and made it a totally fun evening. I can't think of any other band that could have turned that show around. We've been playing a long time, but they've got the gift to turn the dismal show into a blast for everyone watching. The night turned out to be so much fun. The songs were great, everyone was smiling, the vibe was fun and I can't even describe how fun it was seeing Justin being ushered from the room by Evil during every song. Every time he would creep back in he would get somehow violated by the big man. Totally amusing for all of us. The fun was short lived though as we had to drive home after the show. We got into Portland at around 5:30 AM just in time to prepare for work. Had the Independents not played I honestly think this would have been a contender for 'worst show ever'. Thankfully it was not and we'll have to save that title for another day.

 

 
10/5/2006
Portland, OR @ Satyricon
The Independents, The Civies, Eat Your Heart Out, BXF
Never thought I'd get to say this again, but we actually played at the Satyricon tonight. It's been a long damn time since anyone has but they recently reopened as an all ages venue. Definitely nice to be back. How have things changed? We used to play weeknights to a dozen people. Now almost 9 years later we play weeknights be to two dozen people. Actually all things considered the turnout wasn't half bad. BXF opened the show which was a surprise. I think I gave poor Joel a heart attack with my greeting of "what the fuck are you doing here?" Hopefully he knows we mean well. They did well as did Eat Your Heart Out who gave us a new move called the skeleton dance. Very nice to see The Civies play again as they have always and will forever rock. The recently added second guitar was a nice touch. We played next and it was pretty good. Thankfully some of our Longview posse was in attendance so the response was pretty good. The Independents were up last and as always they rocked. We're absolutely stoked to be playing two more shows with them this weekend as they are some of the coolest guys ever. Thanks to King Banana, Shell-O for the cookies, and the Longview crew.

 

 
9/16/2006
Reno, NV @ House On The Hill
New School Records Tour w/ Top Of The Fair, Mourningstar, The Juvinals
Day 7 - the drive to Reno was grueling. My foot was aching from the night before and I could barely walk. There are only so many ways one can elevate their foot in a van. We left town at about 7:30 and there was insane traffic down I5 for the Ducks game. Justin nearly killed us at one point when all the traffic suddenly stopped for no reason on the interstate. Had the car in front of us not swerved onto the median they would have eaten our grill (our what?) for sure. At some point we busted out the Xbox and noticed the return of the burning plastic smell. We discovered it was actually the crossover to the back speakers so we were able to enjoy video games for many hours to come. Tiki took the wheel for the second half of the trip. Thankfully there was no naked dude at the bathroom in Weed which we experienced last time. After 12 hours we finally got to Reno as dusk was hitting. It was fricking cold there (in the 40's) and the house we played at backed up to a cemetery. The whole thing was surreal. The house was in between two frat houses, backed up to a gravel parking lot and cemetery and glittery casinos could be seen in the other direction. I gotta be honest, the show sucked ass. There were maybe 12 people in attendance for TOTF and Mourningstar. There were probably 20 or more for us which was cool but it was honestly one of the worst performances we've given in a long time. Dustin had 5 beers and played everything way too slow. Justin was annoyed at the drive to playing time (44 minutes in car for 1 minute of playing). I broke an E string in the first song and the spare guitar wouldn't stay in tune for the life of me. Dave was the most together but I think he was still spacey after walking in on the owner's girlfriend taking a crap only a few minutes before. It was pretty bad, but people seemed to have fun so I guess it wasn't a total bust. The Juvinals were last and sounded great with their garage-rock influence. Afterwards we hung out with the other bands as Dave revealed he had actually "fat guyed" everyone and had 3 of the tacos that were given to us while members of the other bands didn't get any. I'm not sure how much with we bonded with the other bands (since we had so many nights at home) but they were all good guys, had good energy and were great to play with. I definitely wish them all the best of luck. After the show we said our goodbyes and we headed over to Shane's to crash. Dave, Justin and Dustin headed off for some casino action. I stayed behind with Tiki and managed to put my foot in mouth by questioning the cleanliness of the couch that I slept upon while someone was in the next room. Oops. Serious thanks go out to Shane and Tim for the place to stay and hooking up the show. The next morning we headed out, grabbed a buffet and made the trek back to PDX. I nearly hit a deer, Dustin came within 5 feet of getting t-boned by a car doing 55 MPH. I could have done without this last day but it makes me appreciate the rest of the "tour" so much more. Thanks to Mourningstar, Top Of The Fair, Jeremy and NSR, plus everyone who gave us a place to stay and the took some time to listen to a band they might not have ever heard of.

 

 
9/15/2006
Longview, WA @ Reid's Pit Stop
New School Records Tour w/ Top Of The Fair, Mourningstar, The Coterie
Day 6 - Another night at home and another short drive on the least tour-like tour ever. Reid's is always a blast to play and tonight was no exception. A few people had some gas problems tonight. We learned that one member of Mourningstar is known as "a layer and bailer". You do the math. The Coterie played first and despite a few technical difficulties managed to rock the crowd. Although we had no idea they were even playing until our arrival, BXF was up second. Always nice to see them, especially on their home turf. Top Of The Fair and Mourningstar did well and got a pretty good reaction. Smaller crowd than I would have liked to have seen for 'em, but the people there gave them a chance which is always appreciated. Our set was good with one small hiccup. During the second song I jumped in the air and landed on a cord. Normally when this happens the cords lay there but this time it went rolling sideways taking my ankle along with it. I felt a distinctive pop and just about fell over. Oh man it started to burn and I could barely put any pressure on it the rest of the show. I tried my hardest to "walk it off" during our set but man it was hurting. Aside from that it was a blast with quite a few sing alongs and the witnessing of Brady's zombie dance. We got out of town late and headed home for one more quick night in bed before the drive to Reno. It was just in time too because the other bands had a fire extinguisher fight and someone was trying to get underage girls to kiss. Always a good time to bail.

 

 
9/14/2006
Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
New School Records Tour w/ Top Of The Fair, Mourningstar, The Coterie
Day 5 - This was the easiest day of the tour yet as I slept in my own bed, used my own shower and ate in own kitchen. Nothing rock and roll about that. I'll take it though. The show tonight was fun. Very poorly attended, but fun. In fact Dave joked we should call this the "Is it still Tuesday tour" due to all of the rotten attendances. Top Of The Fair and Mourningstar both made it to the show which was cool since both had broken vans to contend with over the past two days. The Coterie opened up the show with mo