Burritos and Pancakes

Will's Birthday Show: Ash Williams - Weekender - Sic Waiting - Western Settings - Shinjoku Riot/No Talent (2/13/15 @ Til-Two Club, San Diego CA)

Oh, hello there! I didn't see you come in. It's been a few weeks since I have graced the music scene with my presence, but here we are, back in the saddle. Kevin rides again. Whatever.

Hard

This Friday just so happened to be on the 13th. So as is tradition, after 9 soul crushing hours of working, I ventured off to a tattoo shop to grab one of those quick $13 tattoos. Excitedly, I rushed to San Marcos, ran into the shop to sign in, and sat down on the world's most inappropriate and extremely uncomfortable waiting room "chair" that has ever existed (This tattoo shop is super hip, so fashion over functionality, you know?) Have you ever gone somewhere and walked in and just felt like you shouldn't be there? I'm looking around at all the people in the room, and I realize I'm the oldest person here by at least 8 years, I'm still rocking work clothes, and I'm the only guy. These are the types of situations most dudes would fantasize about, but in real life, fuck that, I'm surrounded by annoying children was my only thought (I'm aging very nicely into my personality). Thankfully I overheard that the wait was about 3 hours, so I packed it up and bailed before I had to explain to Chris Hansen why I was there.

The second obstacle to getting to the show was my softball game. Yes, I play adult co-ed slow pitch softball. It's fun, sue me. Our team is The Parking Lot Drinkers, a name we have earned. This weeks game was against our bitter rivals, and old team mates The Velocibatters. We totally fucking lost. But we had fun doing it!*

Two disappointments down, it was time to head down to San Diego to watch some bands!

Shinjoku Riot/No Talent

Only half of both of these bands from Mexico showed up, so instead of letting the people down and canceling their appearance, they did the quick math and realized half a band plus half a band equals a whole band! One mega Tijuana band. Which I completely missed. Traffic down there was a bitch, even at 9 at night. I blame the stupid fake love holiday.

Western Settings

Almost every time these guys play, for whatever reason I just don't watch them. I have no idea why. Maybe its because I know them. Maybe its because I know I'll be able to see them play again. Maybe it was the evolution of Ricky's rat tail to full blown mullet. Whatever the reason, I decided tonight I was going to not only watch them, but actually pay attention, no matter what. It was Will's birthday after all! But after half a song I found myself involuntarily outside smoking a cigarette. Like they play and I just get teleported elsewhere. Luckily some naggy blonde a dear friend was there to remind me I couldn't write about the show if I didn't watch the show. So I ventured back in and forced myself to stay, like a dog, with promises of treats (beer).

I'll be the first to admit when I'm wrong. Most of the time. Sometimes. Maybe. If I'm drunk. What I'm trying to say is, yes I am dumb for not really paying attention to these guys. I'm sorry. The whole band plays with this energy, almost like they enjoy playing music! Audible gasp! Weird right? Tonight was no different, very solid, very good. About halfway through, Ricky had us sing Will happy birthday, which is normally cliché and dumb, but when you have a room of about 75 friends singing to another friend, its actually kind of cool. Another point of interest, is during the last song, they were joined by Kevin White, formerly of Caskitt, currently of living in Florida, who apparently hopped on a plane and flew in to hang out.

I'm an idiot, this is a known fact. It always takes a while for a band I eventually end up liking to actually click in my brain. I have seen Western Settings play a ton of times, I have their old EP on my iPod, I have even streamed their new full length that's coming. I've liked this band, but I've kept them at arms length. This show has made me finally want to fully embrace Western Settings in nice big warm awkward holding it for too long hug.

Disappointed Will wasn't wearing a party hat

Sic Waiting

I'm not going to lie, I mostly wanted to watch Jared and company because Jared has a broken foot, and I thought seeing him hobble around on stage in a cast would make me feel better about myself. And it totally did. In spite of that, I think WS left some of their energy on the stage, because this is probably the best I have seen Sic Waiting play yet. Jason broke a bass string he was rocking so hard. A bass string! Those fuckers are thick. Very well done. I was thoroughly impressed with the San Diego music scene that night.

 

Nice cast bro.

 

 

I wanted to watch Weekender, I have heard really good things about them, but unfortunately the night kind of devolved into a drunken shit show. So while I didn't watch Weekender or Ash Williams, I did smoke an entire pack of cigarettes, took shots of what tastes like Listerine, and watched part of Beverly Hills Cop II on mute. Kenny was really hammered, and wouldn't shut up about breakfast foods. Particularly pancakes and breakfast pizza. I have one note in my phone that Jess had me take:

 

Life's weird man, like we are hear now and tomorrow we're like, "I just want to eat some pancakes" (makes pancake eating motion), and then we are back at work"

-Kenny

 

So that pretty much sums up where the night went. Which don't get me wrong, I absolutely love. I had a blast. Good night, good music, good friends. Party.

 

Next weekend should be a good one. Friday is Dre day in Hollywood, which is a celebration of Dr. Dre's birthday with a bunch of bands playing and covering Dre produced songs, and games and shit in-between. And Saturday is Mac Sabbath, a Black Sabbath / McDonalds cover band. Look them up. Please.

 

*that's a lie. Losing is never fun. fact. Win or die.

Yeah, but for real though, I am getting too old for this shit

Sic Waiting - Great Apes - Caskitt (1/10/2015 @ Tower Bar, San Diego CA)

I woke up this Saturday morning feeling like absolute shit. Not sick, but more exhausted. Since the new year began, I have been sleeping less like a baby, and more like a meth addict. I can definitely feel my shitty body getting old, and it fucking sucks. So needless to say, my original plan for the day was to shut my blinds and forget the world existed. The weekend only comes once a week, and I wasn't going to waste this one by being all proactive and responsible. So I turned on Netflix and watched season 4 of Portlandia. By the end of the last episode, I realized I was actually hungry, and I had an errand to run. Begrudgingly, I put on pants and ventured out into the world. First stop: Wal-Mart. I needed a frame for my awesome poster I picked up at the RVIVR show and because I frame my posters now because I'm an adult. Why Wal-Mart? Because I got that fucking frame for $4. I may be an adult, but I'm still poor. Now to solve crisis number 2. My ever rumbling tummy. I decided I hated myself just enough to go to this hole in the wall Chinese food place that gives you a mountain of food for like 5 bucks. "Food" acquired, I realized I had been out in the real world for far too long and raced back home to eat the 6 pounds of noodles and chicken and watch Silence of the Lambs for the millionth time.

Oh wait, was she a great big fat person?

Why is any of this important you ask? Because this was the plan for the day. To keep on doing this until I eventually passed out sweaty and ashamed. (Un)fortunately, my buddy Rich decided to text me and tell me he was going to the Great Apes San Diego show, he was leaving at 8:30, and he was driving. I figured since I missed (didn't watch, whatever) Great Apes the night before, that I guess I could abandon my grand evening plans and go.

When we arrived at the Tower Bar in North Park, the first thing I noticed was how many fucking people were there. I was shocked, I absolutely did not think this many people would show up for this. I knew for a fact, that at the very least half of our friends who usually go to these shows were down the street at the Ignite show. After we parked and actually rolled up to the bar, it all became clear. All the bands were hanging out in the back parking lot and I could hear the muffled double kick drums and high pitched screeching from inside the bar. Turns out, there was a show before this show. A quick search I did right now tells me it was "Pyrate Punx" featuring the headlining act "Oakland Crust Legends" Born Dead. Needless to say, we had about an hour to kill before our shift started, so we did what any responsible adult would do and headed to the liquor store to buy 40's. Hanging in the parking lot, shooting the shit with the buddies, my belly full of Chinese food and dead brain wouldn't let me enjoy my 40 ounces of freedom, so when we got yelled at for the second time about not being able to drink in the parking lot, I abandoned all hope and pounded ye Monster Energy drink. Caskitt was about to play anyways.

Caskitt

First things first, walking into the bar, it smelled like when you drive past a garbage dump on a really hot summer day. A few of the trash people were still lingering at the bar, trying to extract every last drop of their $3 tall cans of PBR when Caskitt began playing. I decided to watch the reactions of the bullet belted punx, and they did not disappoint. A few seemed to enjoy what they were seeing although with a look of disdain on their faces, a few had the reaction most people have, "the drummer is the singer, dude",  and a few completely ignored what was happening in an attempt to up the punx through shitty beer flavored water. It was all very entertaining. As for Caskitt, I give them 4 liberty spikes/5.

My laziness is starting to show

Great Apes

Great Apes are a band from San Francisco. That is all I know about them. I've heard a bunch that they are a band I would enjoy, and I have even gone as far as downloading their music. But like most new bands I try and get into, I just don't. I sat on Direct Hit! for at least 6 months before they randomly came on shuffle on my iPod, and now they are one of my favorite bands. I always feel like an idiot when I eventually realize I like a band, but sometimes it just doesn't click in my stupid brain. Well, after seeing them play live, it is starting to click. To my musically untrained ears, they played extremely well. The singers voice is the right amount of gruff, the guitarist didn't fuck up, and team rhythm seemed to be on time. I liked it a lot. Since I am not really familiar with the bands body of work, I can't say exactly what they played, but after listening to their albums again I know they at least played Seventeen Years. So the fact that I can remember hearing that song is a good sign. I think. Needless to say, I will be rechecking them out and I suggest you do to. 5 vest studs/5.

I thought it was really funny they had to share a mic for some reason

 

Sic Waiting

Apparently I have a habit of not really watching at least one band at every show. I was so tired at this point I decided to just sit at the bar and have a beer. Its not like I couldn't see the band from there. I wasn't really drinking at this point because I had no money from 1) Surprise unplanned trip to Oakland for new years 2) I had only worked 2-1/2 days the week before. So, I pretty much slow drank a Cali Creamin and listened to Jared ramble between playing songs. 4 del scorchos/5.

 

And that was that! Another day, another show. Don't worry, I did get to finish my just be a piece of shit day on Sunday. Nothing but Carne Asada fries and Broad City!  I highly recommend both. The ladies who made it are geniuses and Hannibal Buress is hilarious. And carne asada fries, pretty self explanatory why those are good.

 

So now I am caught up on show reviews so far. This weekend I will be attending Western Addiction at VLHS and Lagwagon at the Fonda Theatre in Hollywood. Its going to be rad.

 

 

Would you fuck me? I'd Fuck me. I'd fuck me hard. I'd fuck me so hard. Goodbye Horses...