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RICH'S SHOW DIARY |
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Chop Suey 4-23-05 |
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OK - first off I gotta say that I was shocked this show even fell in our laps. We recently were offered a similar show at Chop Suey, also with The Spits, and turned it down. Hoagie at the time was also playing with Motorik, along with facing a grueling period in his day job. He felt a Tuesday night show in the middle of all this, coupled with recent harsh issues thrust upon his personal life, would be a bit too much. Dan and I had hoped to persuade Hoagie to do the show anyway, but Hoagie was understandably overwhelmed with everything on his plate. The problem was that Dan and I didn't know about all of the stuff going on in Hoagie's life at that time, and couldn't understand why he would want to pass on this show. After a week of angst riddled lunacy, in which each member of the band (except the ever level-headed Greg) pitched at least one rock star fit, we decided not to take the show. In hindsight, it was clearly the right decision. Now here's where the shocking part comes in. |
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A third party (not someone I would call close to the band) got wind of the situation. They proceeded to pass a completely distorted version of what went on to The Spits. We found this out when Dan went to the Tuesday show and spoke to them. He told them the real story, and apparently all worked out well, as they asked us to open this show.
So there we are - Chop Suey. We had to play in front of the other bands' backlined gear, so there was precious little room on stage. Thats OK - I'm pretty much a friggin' statue mounted front and center anyway. Still, its a bit rough worrying that your next move lands you in the drummer's lap. |
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Going on a shade before 9:30, the crowd was wafer thin. It started filling up nicely as our set progressed, but it was still a bit too early for the monsters to come out. This was also possibly the worst we've ever played. We just couldn't focus. It wasn't sphincter-puckering awful, it just wasn't up to our usual standards.
I usually don't crowd watch while onstage, especially since I can't see more than a few feet in front of me through the glasses and wig. Sure, I notice the usual crazies crawling up my nose. Other than that, I'm usually pretty ignorant of what's going on in the rest of the club. |
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This time was different. I noticed once again that for opening bands, some folks feel the need to keep a certain cautious distance, like moving three feet closer to the stage will activate their ankle bracelets and violate their house arrest. Actually, its more like they'll have their hipster card pulled for actually enjoying themselves - watching a tribute band no less! I actually saw more than one person bobbing their heads, subconsciously lip-synching, only to catch themselves having a good time, look around nervously, then take 3 baby steps backwards. |
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All that being said, we won over the growing crowd on sheer tenacity alone. On another positive note, this show marked the debut of Marci Smith as our ... uh... new Mark (good luck bro - we'll miss you!) It also featured our brand spankin' new "Gabba Gabba Hey" sign (thanks Jonathan Hewes.) We desperately needed a new one, as our old one was a little big. OK - it was a lot big. You could show movies on the friggin' thing. The new one allows me to finally kick the nasty steroid habit I developed trying to build the muscle it would take to hoist that behemoth one handed. Finally - I can resume my baseball career guilt free. But I digress... |
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| One perk of being in this band is regularly getting turned on to great new bands - and getting paid for it! This time I got to check out The Amazombies, who careened through 45 minutes of Fastbacks inspired power hooks, instantly making me a fan. The Nice Boys had a more 70s inspired set, but also managed to charm with three part harmonies, Sweet influenced tunage, and curious hair. Unfortunately for most of their set I had to endure a rapid fire barrage of gossip in the bar's back lounge, all the while surrounded by hipsters, tourists, and people just way too cool to actually check out the bands. |
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Which brings us to The Spits. If I had to describe The Spits in two words, the words would be "HOLY CRAP!" These guys are possibly the most over the top local band I've seen to date. From their Vietnam themed stage entrance to the musical haymakers they hit the crowd with it was obvious why these guys are local legends. Picture The Ramones, Devo, and The Tubes Jell-o wrestling and you'll get the idea. I wish I had the energy to stick around for their entire set, but I was running on fumes. I needed to recover for the events of the following day. |
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Thanks to Marcia for the pics |
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