w/Living Colour
Mon 9/12/05
Dan called one day and told me we got offered a Monday night at El Corazon (formerly Off Ramp, Sub Zero, Graceland) and asked if I wanted to do it, knowing what my reaction would be. Immediately I launched into some tirade about how I couldn�t believe he would even consider this gig. Playing on a Monday is about as worthwhile as belt sanding your nipples, and far less pleasurable.
After listening to me rant for a minute or so, Dan replied, �Well I guess I�ll just tell them we�re not interested in opening for Living Colour.� I literally jumped out of my sofa, startling Marci, who was directly to my right. After confirming that Dan had indeed just told me that we were offered an opening slot for one of my favorite bands of the late 80s/early 90s, and changing my tune from �Fuck no!� to �Fuck yes!� I again berated Dan, this time for breaking my balls. This brought him great pleasure. Dick!
The days leading up to the show saw me, as well as the rest of the band, getting more and more giddy with anticipation for what promised to be a huge night on many levels. I figured the show would sell out, seeing as Living Colour were HUGE in their time, and apparently hadn�t toured in a while. I couldn�t believe they were playing El Corazon, and not the Showbox or an even bigger venue, but was thrilled at the prospect of watching them up close and possibly even meeting them.
Unfortunately things didn�t work out the way I thought they would. Sure, I got to meet everyone but the drummer, Will Calhoun. Doug Wimbish, their bassist, even came to our dressing room to introduce himself. And watching them play �This is the Life� during sound check is a musical memory that will bring a smile to my face as long as I live. So it wasn�t a case of meeting your heroes and being let down, and they certainly played as well if not better than back in the heyday.
We went on 2nd, right after Top Heavy Crush. We had to set up around Living Colour�s ridiculous array of amps, computers, and foot pedals. These guys had more technology onstage than NASA would need to send humans to Pluto. There were maybe 40 or so people in the house, and for the most part they weren�t digging us. I appreciate the few who did, but we were mostly greeted at the end of songs with slow, polite, applause. As we were running a bit late, trying in vain to rock out in our 2� by 2� spaces, and obviously were not exactly setting the room on fire, we cut our set a bit short and retreated backstage.
When Living Colour finally hit the stage (over an hour later than advertised) there were maybe 130 people there. In a club that holds 600, for a band with their level of accomplishments (Grammys, tours with the Rolling Stones, etc) that�s a fucking disgrace. As I said before, they were nothing short of awesome, though I wish they played more songs and fiddled with knobs and computers and other effects less. They essentially put on an arena show in a club.
So where was everybody? I think a few factors worked against the show. First was the fact that it was exactly a week after Bumbershoot, an annual four-day music festival at Seattle Center. The show being on a Monday probably didn�t help either. Nor did the $20 ticket price.
Most egregious was the utter lack of promotion, which consisted of one quarter-page ad in The Stranger two weeks previous, the club�s regular ads, a small blurb in The Stranger�s �Up and Coming� section, and a few monochromatic posters around town. This is fine for a local punk band, but paltry for a band of Living Colour�s calibur. The Times, Post Intelligencer, Seattle Weekly and every radio station in town (except KEXP, who mentioned it a few hours before show time) completely ignored the show. I�m guessing they were all too busy wiping their mouths off after blowing Death Cab For Cutie for the past week or two.
Admittedly my complaints reek a bit of sour grapes, as I expected a huge turn out and a nice payday and was sorely disappointed. Still I can�t believe a brilliant band like Living Colour can roll into town virtually unnoticed and unheralded while the �music press� soil themselves over a Queen tribute band headlining The Paramount. I�m actually less upset over our underwhelming response than the fact that a supposed musical Mecca like Seattle can ignore a highly rare visit from a truly original and influential band.
On the plus side, I got paid to see and meet a band I love.