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Wednesday, May 30, 2012
On Stage 19 - Consume!
A continuing series of insights from the stage at the local club level...
19.
Eat something. No, really-- you're spending energy up there, and with a rumbling stomach and a blood sugar crash, you're going to feel like you're half way through a marathon in steel toed combat boots.
Saturday, May 19, 2012
The Dead Milkmen
Who:
Where:
When:
When:
I'm so happy The Dead Milkmen are back!
I was thrilled when I heard about their resurrection; when I heard
they booked a Seattle show, it became the first must-see of 2012 for
me. Sure, they're not a Seattle band, but I saw them here, and I'm
writing about shows in this town, so....
Different bands carve their initials
into the cultural wall different ways. Some have lengthy and solid
careers, some explode on their creative peak, some have one
unforgettable song, The Dead Milkmen have a perfect album. To me,
Beelzebubba should be discussed with the same reverence as
Check Your Head or Raw Power or Sergeant Pepper
or Seasons in the Abyss or OK Computer. Beelzebubba
cements The Dead Milkmen's legacy; it's one of my all-time favorite
albums, I wouldn't miss the band that released it when they came to
my city... especially when it seemed like none of us would be seeing
The Dead Milkmen again.
After many years defunct and a band
member's death, I had no intention of missing this reunion... though
I have to admit, I don't listen to DM records thinking “this would
be so much better live.” They've always existed as a collection of
recordings in my world; I've never known them as a live band.
The changes in a song like Smokin'
Banana Peels work on the record, but played live, the quiet/loud sections in the “mellow” middle, the breaks that lead into the
verses... these are the kinds of dramatic shifts that punch through a
live show, the parts of music that are never really captured in a
studio. Surfin' Cow (not one of my favorite Dead Milkmen album cuts)
seemed grandiose and ethereal live, and Big Lizard in My Backyard was
strangely melancholy. Even though The Dead Milkmen was the first
spotlight show of the year for me, I still think I underestimated
them: you really ought to see them live.
The Dead Milkmen have always had a
loose, smart-ass vibe, and their comedic banter comes through live.
I fired up my crappy video camera when I heard the faux-blues of
Bitchin' Camaro start up because I knew it was going to include a new
story leading into the song (the video is over 6 minutes long; the
actual song is under 2 minutes). While you couldn't call them a
political band, the Bitchin' Camaro had a lot of gay rights in its
pre-song banter, and Right Wing Pigeons now has a verse for Rick
Santorum... Santorum is a perfect punchline for these guys (and
anyone whose education wasn't derived solely on a bible. Just
sayin')
When Surfin' Cow closed Rodney
Anonymous announced “You were great, [the band] was beautiful, and
I'm very sexy for an old man!” The house lights came up and the
house music started over the PA, usually the de facto close of any
show (if there's going to be an encore, the band usually leaves the
stage, but no one starts playing CDs on the sound system or turns on
the lights.) I wonder if they were even supposed to come back out...
but they did. There was an encore of The Thing That Only Eats
Hippies and I Walk the Thinnest Line, which was probably above and
beyond, and it was pretty sweet.
The venue sold out well before the day
of the show, and, though DM has always been kind of light and jangly,
the crowd wasn't lacking for liberty spikes and mohawks (considerably
more punk than my last visit to El Corazon, for the more
hardcore Meatmen.) The mood was high, there was a lot of stage
diving, and the main floor was completely packed. It's good to know
people still remember this band-- I hope they sell out venues
throughout their tour and are encouraged to come back around.
Thursday, May 10, 2012
On Stage 18 - Wrecking your own sound
A continuing series of insights from the stage at the local club level...
18.
On more than one occasion, I've rolled my eyes at a band and thought “Come on, guys, just mic the kick drum.” Plenty of good groups, with good drummers, have made their sets completely unlistenable by the awful click click click of the triggered kick in the PA. It's usually the loudest part of the mix, too, and actually sounds nothing like an actual bass drum; usually, “triggered kick” means that the rhythm of the kick drum will now be reproduced by a sample of a tin can being thrown against a concrete wall.
Wednesday, May 9, 2012
El Corazon
but there's more "the club is the way it is" acceptance balancing the hate than anything resembling love) to see what I mean.Longstanding reputation aside, I want to make clear that my most recent El Corazon experience was extremely positive. I was impressed by how well the show was handled, how professionally the sound crew adapted to and handled trouble, and there were no problems with the people working the door or security. It was a hardcore punk show, too, and I was distinctly impressed that El Corazon had taken measures to overturn its reputation.
The reputation was well earned. The last time we played El Corazon was the worst we've ever been treated by a venue (door, sound, stage... the whole staff treated the bands and the audience like shit... though the club's owners were not on site, or even in town, at the time), the sound off the stage has a spotty reputation, and a lot of Seattlites celebrated when the gang members got fired from the club's security staff.
Currently, these issues seem to have been handled. The main stage and stage area is fairly large, and this is a club that often serves up mosh pit-friendly music (though I've seen everything from German electonica act Haujobb to space surf Man... Or Astro Man? there). There is a large floor in front of the stage and a raised second level if you want to drink your beer without getting hit.
The sound seems to depend on the band. Though the stage area is basically a rectangular concrete box, and some bands sound washed out in the space, NoMeansNo sounds better at El Corazon than in any other venue in this city... I have no idea why. My recent visits to the club have sounded pretty good, but I don't know if they have new people running sound, new gear, if there's been acoustic treatment.
From the stage, this is a mic'd cabs and drums kind of place. The space is large and cavernous enough to require the club's formidable sound system, and the large stage, with lots of space between members, necessitates a strong monitor mix. The large stage allows for bands to backline, which is normal at a venue this size, which cuts down on setup time, but an opening band can end up pushed pretty far forward if they're supporting a headliner with an elaborate stage setup.
Drink tickets (or booker-supplied-beers, or the like) seem dependent on who's putting on the show, and some shows are All Ages/Bar with ID, which also plays a role. Several large booking companies set up shows at El Corazon, so a lot of the particulars shift depending on who's in charge on any given night. I imagine the band's cut of the door and guarantees are similarly linked to the booker, but I haven't played here often enough to be specific.
Tuesday, May 1, 2012
Let's lynch the landlord
The Funhouse has been sold.
...or, the property on which it sits has been sold. The property owners, not the owners of the club who (like most of us) were renting the land they inhabit, have closed a deal. In fairness, a property owner isn't obligated to care about the club that sits on their property-- they have real estate, and can do with it what they please.
The Funhouse as an entity, as stated in that release, isn't dying... it's just moving. So we'll keep our feelers out for where the new version of the venue pops up.
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