Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco
March 20, 2011
The last day of Winter brought an intense storm that blew through the area the night before with shitloads of rain and crazy wind. However, today was the first day of Spring that delivered the good 'ol partly cloudy and mild thing. The first day of the new season also unleashed a storm of a different kind upon San Francisco: A rare hometown show by Acid King! This was only the band's 3rd S.F. show in 4 1/2 years; during that same time they’ve played more shows in Germany than at home. Sprechen sie Deutsch?This was also a rare Sunday afternoon BBQ show at Bottom of the Hill and it brought out a good sized crowd that created an excellent vibe. There seemed to be a lot of Acid King newbies in the crowd, which was fine… because I believe that children are our future… teach them well and let them lead the way. Seriously though, why doesn't Bottom of the Hill have more of these afternoon BBQ shows?? Good times.
Carlton Melton started playing while I was out on the back patio chatting with friends so I missed their opening salvo. The band (featuring former members of that mighty fine band Zen Guerilla) weaved a compelling volume web. They won me over pretty quickly because their music shoved my head right into the Spacemen 3 section of my record collection. Carlton Melton dropped a thick curtain of psychedelic volume on the afternoon that was mesmerizing... and that made me want to buy something from their merch table. Mission accomplished, dudes.
Both Lori and Mark carried 6-packs of beer onstage... Then Acid King downshifted the afternoon and lurched into 'Busse Woods' > '2 Wheel Nation' and it was quickly obvious this was going to be an Acid King set for the ages. Not bullshitting: This was the best set I've ever seen the band play... Seriously... and I wasn't the only one who made the same comment later after the volume had settled. Lori's TONE has never been so all enveloping and the backing thunder of Joey and Mark has never been so crushing. As a volume beast, the 3 heads of Acid King were so locked and loaded in together it was scary.
It was an epic set that was highlighted by the 2 excellent new songs the band had unveiled at their last S.F. show almost 5 months ago: 'Red River' and 'Coming Down From Outer Space'. The set was rewarded when the crowd called for the band to perform an encore... which they obliged by leveling the neighborhood with a full 10+ minute version of 'War of the Mind'. WOW.. As I said at the beginning of this, there seemed to be a lot of Acid King newbies at the show… and this paid off handsomely with a heartwarmingly long line at the band's merch table after the set. AWWW... and so ended the first day of Spring 2011.
Yob shirts = 1 (mine). I didn't do a merch audit, but Acid King sold out of vinyl. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. Besides being a special afternoon of beer, volume, and friends this was also a nice warm up show for Acid King and Carlton Melton before they head to Europe together in a couple of weeks. Europe is gonna have a total bangover...
ACID KING / CARLTON MELTON EUROPEAN TOUR 2011
4-1 Marbehan, Bois-Des-Isles
4-2 Rennes, Le Mondo Bizarro
4-3 Paris, Le Labo - Théatre de Ménilmontant
4-4 Geneva L'Usine
4-5 OFF
4-6 Stuttgart, Kellerclub
4-7 Wien Arena w/ Place of Skulls
4-8 Luzern, Sedel
4-9 Milano / Mezzago, Bloom,
4-10 Athens, Rodeo Bar
4-11 Jena, Rosenkeller
4-12 TBD
4-13 Hamburg, Hafenklang
4-14 Tilburg, O13, Roadburn, Midi Stage
4-15 Bielefeld, Falkendom
4-16 Berlin, Wild At Heart
4-17 London, Purple Turtle
Click HERE to see Photo Ray's shots from the afternoon!
