The One where Tom Selleck doesn't have a Mustache

Pears - Caskitt - Bainbridge - Old News (8/18/15 @ Tower Bar, San Diego CA)

I decided before this show in the interest of professionalism I should get a camera that doesn't start with a lower case i and end in a 5S. I mean, the best reviews have pictures, and I've always been one to follow the crowd, not stray away from. Luckily for me, my forever friend Brendan had one lying around that he never uses and was generous enough to lend to me until I either: a) buy my own, or 2) get sick and tired of doing all this and just quit only to fade away like my name was Marty McFly and I just prevented my parents from fucking for the first time because I got my past mom all horned up with my purple Calvin Klein underwear and now she wants to bang it out with me instead. One of these is more likely to happen then the other. Hint: I'm a poor person.

Anywho, my friend Julie, who happens to also be Brendan's girlfriend, wanted to go to this show because she did an awesome interview with Matt Caskitt the other day and wanted to see them play again, PLUS she volunteered to drive to North Park. Seriously if you ever see these 2 around, give them a hug and buy them a booze. You can't miss them, they both have visible halo's hovering above their heads. We rounded out our crew with everybody's buddy Rich and trekked south for the show.

Lazy eyed white bitch and friends (photo by Saint Brendan)

Old News

Rich's roommate Ricky is in this band and they are pretty rad. Last time I saw them they covered Dillinger 4 and Kid Dynamite which automatically makes them awesome in my very shitty book. I left the camera in the car when we first went in because I saw Paul Silver there with his camera and immediately got intimidated, mostly because I had 15 minutes to dick around my new toy and had absolutely no idea what I was doing, and if there is one thing I hate, it's looking like a fool. So we walked in and watched about 2 songs before I realized I was standing directly beneath an air conditioner vent that was apparently set to "Arctic Circle", and this was the perfect opportunity to practice taking pictures idiot. So I ran to the car and grabbed the camera, but on my way back I ran into Madeline, who is an editor and fellow team mate at For the Love of Punk, and we ended up talking for the rest of the set. My bad Ricky, I'll watch you guys next time promise. 

Bainbridge

Bainbridge is a relatively new band featuring Ziggy (Breaker Breaker One Niner, Ziggy's Love Chicken, booking 99% of the shows in San Diego) Tim (From Scars), and 2 other dudes who I'm not sure who they are or if they play in other bands but they probably do and now I look like a dick. Tight. To further me being a dick, I was distracted by my camera instead of paying full attention to them, freaking out because I couldn't figure out why the god damn shutter speed kept changing. From the couple songs I did actually listen too, they sounded good. They are one I will put on the list to check out at Awesome Fest in the coming weeks. The bummer part is I didn't even get any good pictures, they were all blurry as shit. Fucking amateur.

Much profesional

Caskitt

I've written about Caskitt a million times, but honestly, still not sick of them. They are that good. Funny thing is I ran into drunk Devito during their set and he somehow grabbed me in a "buddy headlock" and dragged me over to Jesse's microphone to scream along to Life on Ridgeview Drive as I'm hunched over like Igor about to get rammed in the ass by one of those dildo fucking machines. It was rad. Thank god Ricky from Western Settings taught me how to sing backup vocals last week. They also played Midwest Summer Nights which always makes me happy. And hey, I took a few pictures that weren't total garbage! So win-win.

I said not total garbage, that doesn't mean good.

Pears

I was excited to see Pears because this was the first time I was seeing them since they clicked with me and I realized I did, in fact, enjoy them. It makes seeing a band that much better when you actually like what you hear. They played with the same intensity they seem to always play with, with shirtless singer Zach looking like he got possessed by the demon spirit of a punk rock Freddie Mercury. What I'm saying is they put on a good show. At one point during a breakdown, he crawled through the crowd, where he sat at the bar for a minute, then sauntered back to the stage to finish screaming out the end of the song. They ended their set on the song Grimespree, which I personally think is their best song, and the perfect way to end a show and an album. Immediately after the set I went to their merch booth and bought a shirt and a vinyl copy of their album (Probably the last opportunity to get the Ryan Young Anxious and Angry version before it's re-released by Fat Wreck Chords, for you vinyl nerds). Pears will be playing at Riot Fest and then going on tour with Lagwagon after that, and I am very very curious to see how their live show translates to the bigger crowds and venues. 

Hint: Probably well

Things I learned: "photographing" shows is "hard." I say "Photographing" and "Hard" because, I mean, it was my first time even picking up a camera that cost more than $70 let alone trying to figure out how to work that camera while simetaneously paying attention to the bands that I'm there to see. If I can get over feeling like a fucking nerd with a camera around my neck and practice, I'm sure it will be a lot easier.

Also, apparently I need to edit my photos because thats a thing. I was asked several times what I use for picture editing, and my response was always a slacked jaw shocked, "Huh? Edit?" 

Also part 2, I would like to figure out how to add a gallery of pictures at the end of my blog, because I think that would be way cooler and give me that extra "hoorah" into looking less like I have no idea what I'm doing. 

Let's see, I'm going to try and make it out for one of the Breaker Breaker One Niner shows coming up (either San Diego or Riot Fest), Masked Intruder plays next Tuesday (the only reason I want to go is to finally see The Blackjackits), The Flatliners play ON MY FUCKING BIRTHDAY next Friday the 28th (come, buy me whiskey), going to Denver the next day for a little Riot Fest action, then the week after that is the mega party known as Awesome Fest. I am pumped, my liver, not so much. 

See you at a show.