archive six

December 18th, Haujobb and Velvet Acid Christ at Slims...

Arrived at the show after meeting up with Yara Du-Jour, and managed to miss Din_Fiv, which wasn't the initial intention because they're really good, but I have seen them already in the past few months, so it seemed a little pointless. Anyways, Haujobb was already on stage and totally kicking my head with their industrial beatings. I've never really gotten into any of their recordings, but the posts on RMI made it pretty much clear that this wasn't a show to be missed, especially since the last two tours had been cancelled. So while I was watching them I sort of realized that the whole gay scene in the industrial people in SF had pretty much turned out in force for the show. Seeing people dancing like Madonna onstage certainly didn't help, but when VAC tried to mimic the same thing during their set, it got a little contrived and flat. Haujobb is really good live, see them on this tour or on the upcoming one in the spring. The singer was OK too, I told him I liked his show and bought a t-shirt from him in approval. I especially liked the underwear dump on the audience, but more on that later...

Velvet Acid Christ was a whole other issue. Brian obviously is trying to be a bit too much like Ogre from Skinny Puppy. What tipped me off was his trying to be disturbing bit he did by putting a piece of the Haujobb underwear in his mouth after he saw that people were laughing at one that had gotten impaled upon one of his liberty spikes... Dude, that's not disturbing, it's just comic.

Dec 16th, Mission eviction party next to the Victoria Theater with The Centimeters...

Called the place earlier in the day and figured out that festivities would start at around, so I hung out with Yara Du-Jour drinking momosas before heading to the Potrero Hill Brewing factory for a bite to eat. The funny thing is that we showed up at the PHBF and they were having a private party, but after sneaking into their upstairs bar we were able to order a hamburger before the elite dot-comer private party started. So after getting a few drinks and eating a bit we were asked to leave with the full bill paid and a few drink tickets thrown in for good measure. So obviously whatever e-company that had rented the place didn't like two dressed up new wave kids leeching off of the bill. Whatever, they paid our bill, so we were stoked, and the waiter was totally cool about it too. Yara wanted him.

So we head to the warehouse in which the eviction party was and walked in with a friend of ours who was about to get evicted, but there were all these smelly hippies sitting on the floor trying to pawn off what they consider artwork upon the unsuspecting partygoers, who I later found out were all referred there from the annoying squidlist (a local list that pretty much caters to the e-people in SF with lists of parties and crap like that). We'd had enough at that point and walked up to the Uptown with Cookie from the Subtonix to have a quick drink, where we ran into members of the Phantom Limbs and their ilk at the bar. So after a nip we headed back to the party, just in time to find out that the fourth floor ad been set up as some sort of DJ room, complete with some fascinating art installations and wacky lights. Pretty cool stuff. Two noise technicians appeared with cartoony-Japanese inspired masks and proceeded to do a bunch of awesome songs for the fourth floor, but when they ended I skipped down to the third floor to scope out the band I'd wanted to see The Centimeters from LA.

They were awesome, doing such standard songs as Dracula Gary and Hovering ponies, complete in all the new wave wackiness and ire. These guys are so great, I really think everyone should have access to their CD, one of the greatest CDs in my private collection. I really can't gush enough about them.

November 30th, God Module, Flesh Field, and Negative Format at Slims...

Illustrious ex-editor of Industrial Nation and current label runner of Gunn Music, Kyron5 hooked me up with a free ticket for doing a bit of promotion for this show, so I had my hopes up when I showed up at Slims to see the bands (all from other areas I might add). So after drinking a beer and contemplating the current sad state of music in the Bay Area, I headed around the corner to Slims, probably one of the most unlikely places for an industrial show these days...

8:30... No bands, so I scam my way onto the ticket because I got there too early to officially be added onto the guest list, no problem.

9:30... I get back from having a drink at my house, and the venue is packed with local industrial kids, not to say that the venue itself was "packed," but there were a lot of the die-hard locals there, with nearly no pretentious fucks. A welcome change from the majority of Goth/industrial shows I've been to this year.

9:45... God Module rocks my world with their awesome music. I buy their CD and then head home to drink a less expensive drink, after having two of Slims overpriced ones (although they were mixed very well for a change). Buy their crap.

11:00... Negative Format plays and I am less than impressed, although I also buy their CD out of solidarity with Electro music. It's not that they weren't good live, but in hindsight, they could have been better. As I leave, I run into friends who are about to go to a bar down the street. I head home, since I'd had another 3 drinks during their set. Luckily the free sushi platters kept me relatively sober.

12:15... I decide to go back to see Flesh Field. I buy one of their CDs after remarking that their lyrics are the worst out of any band I've EVER seen. I buy a Cop International T-Shirt, and then get talked into going home by my alcoholic angel of death.

Final tally: Drinks: 16, Bands: 3, CDs I end up with: 5, Friends I've made: 3, Food I've Eaten: too much to count...

I end up puking up regurgitated free sushi later on that evening outside my door.

It was a great night.

November 4th, The Subtonix, the Phantom Limbs, The Monitors, and The Dayglo Abortions at various venues around the SOMA area.

Wow. I picked up Yara early on in the evening and we restlessly drank a few beers before heading off to the Tempest which is everyone's favorite bike messenger bar in the SOMA area, but we still managed to get there about an hour early than any of the bands, so it was up to us to drink a few mixed drinks before the night's shenanigans. First up was the Monitors who played a noisy set of early eighties industrial sounding songs with a massive fog bank built up, so that seeing them perform was nearly not even an option. I love these guys and hope they play a lot more shows really soon. I even told the singer that if they wanted to release a 7inch record, I'd be happy to help them out... an offer which still stands if they read this.

The Subtonix hit the stage and played a whole slew of new songs for the restless crowd. They are expecting a new record soon, hopefully through the No Love label, look here for details on when that should be available. So I grabbed a bunch of pictures of them and sat back to eagerly await the new Phantom Limbs set...

The Phantom Limbs hit the stage and also played a bunch of new songs for the eager crowd. These guys get better each time I see them, and here I had missed their earlier show with Dead and Gone earlier that week... wah waaah. Anyway, they have a new record out and I urge everyone to get it through the Phantom Limbs website!

Here's where it gets a bit hazy... The Phantom Limbs ended their set and Yara and myself jumped up to head to the covered wagon in order to try to catch the last couple of songs off of the Dayglo Abortions set. It was complete chaos inside the CW Saloon, so we just walked right past the door people with no excuses and jumped into the melee that the place had become. It was awesome! There were drunkpunks everywhere singing along to favorites such as "argh fuck kill" and "proud to be a Canadian," as well as a bunch of new songs off of their "Death Race 2000" CD which is actually really good considering the age of the bandmates. So I bought a couple of CDs and a t-shirt from the band after the show, although I was so drunk that I think I must've seemed pretty incomprehensible due to the bevy of drinks I had downed during the entire evening. It was a fantastic night!

October 21st, Subtonix at Amnesia.

This was the first night that Adrienne turned up as the new keyboardist for the Subtonix, so naturally we had to show up. After arriving a bit late, and yet still having to wait nearly an hour for the initial soundcheck, myself and the Julio were getting restless. Afterall I had dressed up as a DEVOesque looking highlighter pen and he had dressed up as me on a bad day. So we tried to stay and listen to the Subtonix, but the sound was so bad (the vocals had problems), so we left to enjoy all that a Halloween night in San Francisco can offer.

September 30th, the Phantom Limbs at Gilman Street.

After putzing around West Oakland and visiting a few friends, myself, Jessy Trash and Adrienne of the Subtonix all headed over to Gilman Street to see the much heralded Phantom Limbs and yet another brilliant show on their part. The whole show was a benefit for the names project which was set up to try to combat police violence, so when we got there there was a bunch of black boards featuring the victims of police violence all over the walls. It was interesting and odd to see all the interaction between the normal Gilman street crowd and even a few local luminaries from bands such as Neurosis etc...

The Phantom Limbs started off by giving the wall in back of the stage a much needed red and black facelift with their homemade logo using a bunch of housepaint. No shrieks or moans occurred, so they must have done it professionally enough for the Gilman staffers who usually are really uptight. Ryan Hopeless hit the stage with his patented green/black facepaint and a long slim black dress. The carnage was about to start, as signaled by the freakish synth pulse that happens whenever the Phantom Limbs play a show. New was the PIL influenced red. white and black armbands that the bandmates wore, perhaps in an effort to incite anti-communist rhetoric from anyone who was true-blue?

Well despite the vague promise of not playing Gilman Street again, I think because the show went so well that it's a good possibility that the Phantom Limbs may make a much heralded return to Gilman, but really... Ask them yourself!

September 24th, The Folsom Street Fair in SOMA.

Well after waking up a bit late and meandering over to the 12th street stage, I found myself in the middle of the biggest leather/bondage festival in the country! Woo Hoo! Amid the naked middle-aged leather daddies, punks, circuitboys, and candy ravers, the Folsom Street Fair had a stage set up for all sorts of relatively decent bands such as Black Kali Ma, Cara Vida, Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies, Pansy Division, Connie Champagne, Blue Period, and Fabulous Disaster.

I mistook Black Kali Ma for being Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies, so I videotaped a song of theirs, remembering after a few minutes that I had caught them at the Eagle the week before. They were pretty rocking and were MUCH better than when I had seen them at the Eagle, but there was next to no crowd to appreciate them. I guess their brand of metal/rock wasn't appreciated so much by all the fair queens prancing around, but that's the loss of the crowd, I'd see them again. Cara Vida was up next, and she's really awesome! She had a short frock of pink hair on her shaven head and sang five of (from what I can tell) her own composed showtunes that were both funny, sad, and ironic at the same time. Powerful stuff. Me First and the Gimmie Gimmies were up next, and I ran into Christine and Danh from the punk list, so we all watched their showtunes-gone-bad set together, laughing at all the people and the really bad version of Barry Manilo's "Mandy!" Suddenly I caught the tail-end of some aging leather daddy pushing around one of the Subtonix friends. I started walking up, but then everything seemed to get under control (I found out later that the guy was totally drunk and was eventually kicked out of the fair, that'll teach him for threatening to punch a girl).

I walked around between sets for a bit, marveling at the amount of leather that was all in one place, and loosing the other plisters on my way back to the stage to see Pansy Division. Pansy Division's set was plagued with mic problems and was not a very good set, but the crowd seemed to enjoy both it and their gogo dancer immensely (well actually the gogo dancer was probably the bigger draw)...

Connie Champagne, Blue Period, and Fabulous Disaster were all interesting. Connie Champagne plays too much, so I walked a little. Blue Period is pretty bad sounding Glam rock that sounds frighteningly like the Lunachicks on a very bad day. Fabulous Disaster was really good, but I got a little tired of being knocked around by all the lesbians... That'll teach me for wearing my GG Allin T-Shirt, I'm such a Nihilist.

September 23rd, VNV Nation, Apoptygma Berzerk and Din_fiv at Slims.

After stalling for about an hour so that I would miss Din_fiv, I headed over the short walk to Slims just to find that the doors had just opened, not a good sign for a tour that had already cancelled 3 shows on the east coast due to what I perceive as the Euro-trash rockstar attitudes of Apop. Luckily as I scanned the awaiting crowd I spied Kyron5 and company waiting amid all the Goths and rivetheads, so I slipped into line with them and got to meet some of the local SF industrial scenesters who all seemed pretty cool. As I slipped into Slims, the guys from VNV Nation walked up and spirited Kyron and co away, but that was cool as I wasn't even expecting to really run into them or anything. I had initially bought one ticket, but the people handling the tickets messed up and sent me two, so that was a bonus in my book, $35 is a lot to see a bunch of guys karaoke on stage.

Din_fiv was pretty good. I've heard their stuff a couple times before, and they were pretty awesome and right on, even if the whole karaoke factor was really self-evident. I'd see them again if the ticket was free. They played a pretty short and straight-forward set of catchy industrial rhythmic songs, and the crowd seemed to enjoy them.

VNV Nation was what I really came for and they didn't disappoint me the way that could have been possible. They had a relatively big projection screen in back of them that showed some fantastically edited (and choreographed) photography and lots of words that related to the songs on their albums. They were actually so into the karoake thing while they played that I half expected to see a bouncing ball following the lyrics that appeared on the screen as they played... Funny stuff indeed. VNV Nation dedicated the song "Standing" to Julio and the crew from Deconstruct who had put on last years show at the now-defunct DNA Lounge, where during their last song half the audience rushed the stage. But I missed last year's performance... Wah Waaaahhh.

Apoptygma Berzerk was relatively boring, but they did remind me of N-Sync or something, so they did have some stage presence. I left after three of their songs, missing the Duet that VNV Nation did with them, but I felt no loss at missing that upon hearing about it. I picked up a bunch of VNV Nation merch on my way out the door as to support their tour, especially since they have apparently gone back and re-booked the cancelled dates of the tour on the east coast as soon as they split away from Apoptygma Berzerk's leg of the US tour.

September 15th, Alice Cooper at the Warfield.

After waiting for way too long to meet up with Spanky of http://www.gregoryp.com/ we met up with Zoe and Yara because somehow we ended up with two extra tickets for the show. The show was incredible! FYI, I've been a long time Alice Cooper fan since the seventies, but some of what I saw this night completely opened my virgin eyes to the whole concept which is the Alice Cooper Show.

First off, there's a whole subsection of the metal scene which is totally flaming-gay, which is awesome... But it can get a little disconcerting when you go to the men's bathroom and there's about twelve middle-aged men picking up on the young drunk guys.

We totally missed the Donnas, thankfully! They are one of the worst bands I've had the misfortune of seeing. Their management must be totally out of control though because they keep getting added on to shows of bands that I like. Alice cooper had a wide variety of props including the guillotine, the jail cell, and a bunch of awesome extras like Nurse Rosetta, an executioner, and a couple of strong-arm thugs. Alice was ever the consummate showman throughout the entire performance, lip-synching during some of the more difficult notes in some of his songs in order to play up the hammy act that he's the king of doing.

I would totally see him again, and I think that everyone should see him perform at least once in their life!

Sept 3rd, Akimbo, the Liars, and Teen Cthulhu at Kimo's.

After consoling my high-school friend Harmony about her love life (and that's no easy task, let me tell you!) I finally headed to Kimo's to see the show just to find that Teen Cthulhu had already played! Wah waaaaaaaaahhhhh...

Luckily TJ informed me that that was the case, and let me know that there were other bands besides themselves and Akimbo for the evening. Akimbo was OK, but I realized that the one song that I thought was the best was the only one with keyboards that they played this evening (after discussing the matter with fellow P-lister Christine, her friend Cory and my other friend Ben). Nonetheless the show was pretty good except for the fact that there was NO promotion for the show.

The liars set up, and started playing while our little group of misfits contemplated gentrification, Dune, and sad movies which are released via Hollywood these days. The Liars started, and they were so annoying that we all decided to leave en-mass, stopping outside to compare Olympia and its crappy cliques to the Humboldt County scene of yesteryear. Finally the homebells started ringing in my head, no doubt helped by the liquor I had consumed throughout the evening, and I walked home through the insidiously treacherous SOMA area. More on this debacle later!

Sept 2nd, Akimbo and Teen Cthulhu at Mission Records.

As shows rarely ever start on time at Mission Records, I thought that by getting there an hour late would leave me with a minimum of wait time, but I was mistaken. After walking in and discovering that I was pretty much the first person to have showed up, I ran into TJ from Teen Cthulhu and Nat from Akimbo who both said that I could videotape the show if I wanted, but that they show wouldn't start for a while. Oh well, time to browse the collection of punk records... (note to self, see Erase Errata when they get back from their tour!).

Finally Teen Cthulhu set up, and although their set was painfully short, it was great as usual (I saw them at the Breakroom in Seattle in July). They played a few new songs and a couple off their homemade CDR giving the relatively sparse crowd a dose of their wall-of-sound music. These kids are so awesome, I hope that they have a good tour and a long lifespan.

Akimbo hit the six-inch stage, and suddenly there was a pretty packed room filled with kids. Akimbo is fast, kind of quirky, and just really tight and fun to watch. Unfortunately the lighting was so bad that I decided that any effort to videotape either band would be pointless, but hopefully this won't be the case on Sunday. I liked both these bands so much that I've already planned on seeing the show at Kimo's on Sunday. Right before I left to go take a nap, I ran into Brandan of Teen Cthulhu who remembered me from the punk-list and from the show at the Breakroom, and so I left the show satisfied and clutching a Teen Cthulhu patch, a Captured By Robots CD, the Erase Errata 7inch record, and the new Blessing the Hogs CD.

Sept 1st, Marc Spitz Freestyle (L.A.) at the Covered Wagon.

After the hell day at work, I grabbed Kyron of Industrial Nation fame and went to a local bar before the work day was over to get a few drinks. I mentioned that we should go check Jula Bell's of Bulimia Banquet's new band at the CW Saloon, and although she wasn't too into it, we both walked down there. I last saw Jula when Bulimia Banquet and Final Conflict played at a hippie party in McKinleyville up in Humboldt County, circa 1994 or so. I had actually recorded the show too, so when I finally got in touch with Jula, I had told her that I'd bring a copy of it for her to check out when she had time. We got into a bit of an email conversation about how she had been the set designer for Twin Peaks, and how she sometimes sells rare items off on ebay, so you TP fans, take note that you may be buying from a bono-fide punk rock girl. Oh, Jula besides being in the fantastic Bulimia Banquet, Jula was also in the LA punk Band Bobsled.

So Here it was a few months after retouching bases with her, and I actually had the video. I must be a man of my word or something. So I walk in the CW Saloon and the first person I see is jula. I did a graceful handoff into her waiting arms and then hid in the back (actually it was more of a little small talk where she informed me that the singer of Marc Spitz Freestyle was in rehab and wouldn't be singing... Oh well, like I had come to see him anyway). I was obviously bedazzled by her aura, because I hid at the pinball machine (medieval Madness) until they began their sat, racking up the second highest score there I might add.

Marc Spitz Freestyle (and Jula) came on, and I was pretty impressed. the drummer is totally solid, Jula's voice is as awesome as ever (including the funny quirky she-growls she does), and the guitarist was amazing too. So I recorded 3 of the songs for memory's sake, and then settled back to enjoy the speedy country songs that were the bulk of the last few songs. I gently suggest that you see Marc Spitz Freestyle if you get a chance.

Aug 29th Tuesday, Croatan at the Bottom of the Hill.

As this was a Man's Ruin showcase of sorts, it was expected that Croatan would make the long and lonely trek from Cincinnati to the West Coast for their yearly appearance in the city by the bay. So there was no way I'd miss them. Myself and my friend Yara from Portland walked in and were supprised to discover that there were pretty much only band members from the other bands and a couple of die-hard fans there, of course this was at 8:30, and the show wasn't scheduled to start for an hour or so. Luckily this made hanging out with Mark and Jenny before the show really easy! Jenny informed us that the new CD is slated for full release in February of 2001, after a long delay due to Man's Ruin having some sort of distro problems (It was actually recorded in November of 1999!). Additionally, the New 7inch is centered around Darva Conger, that chick who "married" a millionaire, then turned tail and pursued her 15 minutes of fame... The vinyl is clear too, a bonus! After a pretty long talk debating the merits of Xena Warrior Princess, Pantera, and the drag queens of Huston, the booker came up and told them that it was time for their set.

Unfortunately there wasn't too many people there, but this set was way better than last years sadly short Kimo's experience, where someone set off a stink bomb and the whole place had to be evacuated. That sucked.

They played 4 songs off some of their older recordings, Army of God, then they played their brilliant version of Jocko Home (DEVO cover). They put on a great show, but again it was sadly marred by the lack of people in the venue (which finally became more crowded around 11:00pm). After the show I checked out their new pins and various merch, leaving them happier and with gas money, and me happier with a pretty good assortment of pins for my wardrobe.

Aug 25 Fri Tight Brothers From Way Back When, Black Cat Music, Blast Rocks, Fleshies, Phantom Limbs, Close Ups, and the Jag-Offs somewhere in Berkeley...

Because of a little misplacing and a growling stomach a bunch of us got to the venue late, but we did have time to scope out the local liquor store before the Fleshies went onstage. I guess the venue is some sort of student collective, and it being the first week of school at Berkely there were TONS of new students running around with their bright eyes and optimistic outlooks. It was quite a spectacle.

So I walk in and immediately meet up with Christine from the punk-list and her friend Cory who's pretty wacky (I like that guy, he's my kind of kook). We talked about how awesome the place was (huge, private security, and sort of like a dorm/labyrinth for not-so-rich college students). The whole situation brought back lots of memories of keg parties in Humboldt County.

Because Ryan, the singer of the Phantom Limbs was missing, the Fleshies went on stage first (we missed the Close Ups and the Jag-Offs). The Fleshies were fun in a punk rock sort of way, and definitely have an audience in the area, but I got bored with it pretty quickly due to a lack of beer on my part and headed out to the grassy area to speak with Greg and his roommate about various punk-list related drunk antics and background checks.

The Fleshis ended and the Phantom Limbs hit the stage with a vengeance. Singer-Ryan was dressed in an atrocious dress (no underwear) and a super realistic wig, so good that until it got moved around by a drunken fan, I actually thought he had gotten his hair done at some beauty parlor! They opened their set with a new song that blew the regulars away and then proceeded to play nearly all old stuff, including a song/set dedicated to Tomata Du Plenty of The Screamers who died of cancer in San Francisco the weekend before.

All-in-all the show was fun, but I had to leave early to meet up with some old friends who were in town for the evening on their way to the Burning Man festival.

Aug 18th Fri Raw Power (Italy), Tongue (L.A.), and The Barfeeders at the El Rio.

After spending the Day with Jessie from the Subtonix and my friend Malati shopping for records and trying to decide if I should go see Erase Erratta or Raw Power, Raw Power won out because it was in the city and not in Oakland. I warmed up for the occasion by drinking some Lambik for the first time. Hmmm mmmm, good stuff!

Walked over to the Subtonix house and picked up Jessie for the short walk over to the El Rio. The El Rio somewhat reminds me of The Eagle, except the patio isn't exactly heated, and the crowd there (at least that night) is primarily heterosexual. There was a whole lot of old-skool fashion there, which was a little annoying. So Tongue played first, and they were alright. Nothing to write home about, but they were lively and entertaining. I watched two of their songs then I had to go get air. Hung out with Jeremiah from KRON for a while talking about a future film project which will remain nameless because it's still a work in progress. Then drank a few drinks in anticipation of the Barfeederz set.

The Barfeeders are one of the best punk rock bands in SF as far as I'm concerned. They're funny, wacky, quirky, and fast which makes them pretty popular in SF punk circles. I rarely miss a show they play at, and usually the drinks are flowing, so the majority of the audience has fun (even though they may not remember it the next day)! Tonight's set was really good, but I wasn't impressed with the sound quality... Oh well.

Raw Power came on and I suddenly realized that I'd had about 6 mixed drinks and it was nearly time for me to go home. They sounded really good for an old punk band from Italy, and I picked out two songs out of the five I heard during the short time I was paying attention. So I jetted over to the merch booth and picked up a poster of theirs where they had p,played with Penis Flytrap, mostly for the memories, then I set off on my walk back to the homestead. A good night was had.

Aug 4 Fri The Causey Way, The Mooney Suzuki, The Rondelles at Cafe Du Nord...

I got there a little early and got to catch up with my show-friend Elizabeth from Oakland who seems to be doing good, so we headed in after commenting on how the SF "scene" is all about fashion especially when it comes to shows at the Cafe Du Nord. The Mooney Suzuki was pretty rocking in a Iggy Pop sort of way and were better than what I expected. They had a cool tarantula banner with the same logo that was on their shirts, and I thought it was designed pretty well.

The Rondelles were totally annoying and just plain BAD. They've certainly dropped a level since their previous band Luxo Champ, which I've had in my CD player since I picked it up in Seattle last week. I guess loosing Jet, their last singer to the business he runs in Fremont took a pretty big toll on them. I did talk to Dragon Lady a bit before she went on with the rest of the band and she was really nice, but again I just thought they were pretty much following the whole Donnas "girl band" thing and it just wasn't very interesting. They started playing one of their songs and a friend of mine looked up and yelled out "This Song! fuck these guys" and stormed out the room. It turns out that the song they were playing gets quite a lot of airplay on the radio station he listens to at work, and he totally hates it. So after leaving for a while during their over-long tedious set to get the Causey Way "Testimony' CD and a couple of stickers, I went back to the show area and waited for the glorious Causey Way set to begin.

They were HOT! I love the Causey Way more than should be allowed. If you haven't gone to see them in one of their last few tours, now is the time to see them. The singer still bears an uncanny resemblance to David Koresh, and the drummer dude is still totally crazy looking. The music is a blend of ATish rock with tons of synth stuff thrown in for fun. They were so good that even my sister the music major who generally only listens to jazz and blues was totally impressed. She even bought a sticker to put on her car just in time for her migration to Yale.