Lacuna Coil / Kill Hannah / Seventh Void / Dommin
Slim's, San Francisco
July 27, 2009
I knew going into this show that it was not going to be an "Umlaut" show.. but thankfully Umlaut friends Photo Alan and Hard Rock Chick were in attendance to give the show the proper journalistic slant and they had my back in case I got into a fistfight. Anyway, I'll just cut to the chase:Dommin: I know, I know, this is a chick band.. but I wanted to see this gothy band at least once "properly" in a dark club versus the first time I saw them under the hot Summer Sun. I have to admit I found Dommin's onstage drama of having roses placed like guitar picks onstage to be plucked and tossed into the crowd entertaining in a Metrosexual sorta way... and the chicks dig it. I was also entertained by how the drummer doesn't seem to have natural rhythm while playing.. I mean, he holds it down alright, but it's almost like he's battling some inner metronome that's counter to what he needs to be playing. It was like watching someone counting with their fingers, if that image makes sense. Anyway...
Seventh Void: Two dudes from Type O Negative (I just threw up a little in my mouth..) trying to do the Down / Black Label Society thing but coming off like a Soundgarden cover band. Evidently this was the final show of the tour and, near the end of 7V's set, members of Dommin pranked them with balloons and silly string and a sign that read "You've Been Domminated"... HaHa.. "Domminated" geddit!?? HaHa...ha........ ha.... uhhhh... Remember when bands would prank other bands with strippers? Me too. Anyway...
Kill Hannah: It's been awhile since I've been at a show and thought to myself "What the fuck am I even doing here??" Kill Hannah came on and the sound of screaming girls down front was as loud as the PA and I literally could not believe that I was wasting time from my life watching this crap band. On my deathbed I will regret wasting this 25 minutes that I could have used more wisely... and I won't spend another second even typing about them. Anyway...
I was basically "at work" so I shouldn't complain. I didn't do a merch audit because I was too dumbfounded that I was even at this show. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. It was obvious that most of the audience were fanboys there to see Cristina Scabbia, but Kill Hannah kept making me look at my watch... so it was off to the 2nd feature of the evening before The Italian even arrived onstage. Ciao bella!
Spinnerette / Mini Mansions
Great American Music Hall, San Francisco
July 27, 2009
I knew going into this show that it was not going to be an "Umlaut" show.. but thankfully Hard Rock Chick was in attendance to give the show the proper journalistic slant and she had my back in case I got into a fistfight... and Wexford Girl and The Bassist were there to answer some work questions I had (I'm not kidding..).We walked in as Mini Mansions were playing and I was struck by how musical and pop sensible they were, which was probably a reaction to the crap bands I'd just left. The band features the current bassist from Queens Of The Stone Age (NOT Oliveri) and after their set I dropped $5 for their 8-song "limited edition" CD (I got #13 / 500), which is actually a CD-R... but whatever.. DIY, dudes. As I type this I'm listening to the CD-R and I can confirm that my reaction to their set was definitely a reaction to the 2 hours I'd spent at Slim's prior to seeing them. Uhh... sorry MM but I probably won't be listening to your CD-R that much moving forward.
I actually like the Spinnerette album... and obviously, Brody Dalle has always had the Courtney Love *thing* about her and as their set played out I kept having flashbacks to seeing Hole when Courtney was in her pre-Mrs. Cobain glory. Brody is pretty good with the slurry, drunk *thing* onstage.. but if she could just focus her act a bit she could transcend the Courtney *thing*... Plus, getting slurry drunk onstage while swigging Coronas is kinda lightweight, babe. Remember when bands would get slurry drunk onstage while swigging Jack? Me too. That being said, the version of 'All Babes Are Wolves' stood up to the album version and was my favorite song that I heard all night.
The thing that struck me about both of the shows on this night was that I could wander around (to the merch table, to the can, to the bar..) and not pay attention to the bands, but when I returned my attention to the stage I didn't feel like I'd missed anything. Afterwards, I realized neither show had any sense of danger or unpredictability whatsoever... both of them were safe and packaged and, despite the trappings of being edgy, there was very little chance of anything profound happening. To quote the Stooges: "Gimme danger, little stranger." Anyway...
I was basically "at work" so I shouldn't complain. If you bought one of every Spinnerette merch item you would have spent around $120; it's nice to see a merch company do quality work. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. Upon returning to Casa de Umlaut I made myself a delicious Boca Burger that was actually the most profound thing I experienced the entire night.
