Full Circle

Devo
The Fox Theater, Oakland, California
June 28, 2014 

This show represented THE most full circle thing ever for Umlaut!   Flashback to 1984 in Berkeley, California...

[Photo courtesy of Harald O. - From Murder In The Front Row]

The teenager wearing the DEVO tee is Tour Manager Doug with members of Slayer, Exodus, Suicidal Tendencies, and Possessed.  At the time Doug was a member of Slayer's first road crew.  It's an iconic photo for many reasons, but for me because Tour Manager Doug's favorite band was Devo and he wore that t-shirt to practically every Metal show.  He suffered the abuse of his Metal peers who did not appreciate Devo but he never wavered from his support.  Fast forward almost 30 years later and that photo and friendship led to this on a Saturday night in Oakland here in the 21st Century:

 

This is what happens when one of your oldest friends ends up working for the first band he ever saw live in 1980 and who are also his favorite band.  Yes, that teenage Tour Manager Doug from 1984 is spending part of his Summer issuing backstage passes and looking after Devo here in the 21st Century!  The Fox Theater is not far from where that 1984 photo was taken as well.  Like I said, it's the most full circle thing EVER!  A-MA-ZING!

The pre-show backstage scene was very quiet and it took me a moment to realize it was Mark Mothersbaugh and Jerry Casale who were floating around the room.  Sadly, with the passing of Bob2 in February, this brief tour could very well be the final trek for Devo.  What impressed me is that on this tour the band is only performing songs from their formative years of 1974-77 and none of their 80's hits that made them famous.   

 [Photo courtesy of Photo Ray]

Most other bands would simply go back out on the road and play the hits, no matter how painful it might be so soon after losing a founding member and brother.  Not Devo.  This tour is a tribute to their salad days when they were weird kids in Ohio trying to figure it all out.  It's a nod back to a time when things were innocent and life probably felt indestructible for them.  The Devo-ised version of 'Satisfaction', 'Be Stiff', 'Uncontrollable Urge', and 'Jocko Homo' were my obvious touchstones that kept me engaged with the show, but I literally didn't know the rest of the songs... and I was fine with that.  Umlaut is not a hardcore Devo fan but this show was charming, emotional, and simply great.  I vicariously fed off the energy and excitement of the fans around me who understood the theme of the show and embraced it completely.  To be honest, I don't think any of the most important bands from my salad days could cause me to react like that; I'm just that jaded unfortunately.  Honesty is my only excuse.

The night closed with a song called 'Clockout' that was being performed live for the first time on this tour... and joining the band in Oakland (and I believe in Los Angeles the next night) was Bob2's son Alex filling in for his dad.

 [Photo courtesy of Photo Ray]

How full circle is that?  Bittersweet.. but still full circle.  I was introduced to Alex Bob2 Jr. briefly after the show and evidently he's a huge SLAAAYEER fan!  FULL. CIRCLE.

If you bought one of every Devo merch item you would have paid around $150.  On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. It was a perfectly surgical evening.  A big THANKS to Tour Manager Doug... and Peace In Rest, Bob2... and long live de-evolution!

A Revelation

King Buzzo / Field  
Great American Music Hall, San Francisco
June 15, 2014

This space has been both the bane of my existence and my "creative" outlet for 10 years now.  Right now it's a grind for me to put words together.  It feels like homework and that's not good.  So, with this in mind, I'm trying to hit reset and basically took a month off from ranting about shows in this space. For those who care here's where I was during that time:

• May 15th - Sammy Hagar with James Hetfield & Friends - Acoustic-4-A-Cure Benefit - The Fillmore, San Francisco.  Hetfield sang a Beatles song... Yeah.  It was definitely one of those "only in San Francisco" nights and it was for a good cause.  Oddly tickets were going for up to $500 via StubHub but Umlaut has a good friend who bought a ticket at face value only the week before via Ticketbastard.  Hmm...
• May 17th - Scion Rock Fest 2014, Pomona, California.  I had a TON of FUN and it was cool hanging with friends. I finally saw Midnight but was disappointingly underwhelmed; they had a large crowd but would have been better in a smaller space IMO.  Orchid's first show ever in Southern California and they owned.  Saw King Buzzo solo for the first time and I was impressed.  Then I walked the streets of Pomona with him for a bit which was entertaining.  I missed Coffins but Windhand were my favorite band of the fest.
• May 22nd - Black Cobra / The Cutthroat 9 - Slim's, San Francisco.  A satisfying evening of massive volume with my bros Jason and Rafa with support from Cutthroat 9 who feature Chris Spencer on guitar from the legendary Unsane and Will Carroll on drums from Death Angel.
• June 4th - The Damned - Slim's, San Francisco. The band were great.  The hits were played.. but old Punk crowds are WAY more uptight than old Metal crowds.  Lighten up, Punks Not Dead.

Yes, all of these gigs should have made for interesting blog rants..  Anyway, let's attempt to hit reset, shall we?  Here we go...

The opening singer / songwriter was named Field who evidently is also the drummer for the guy who sings for System Of A Down when he does his solo thing.  Field did exactly what you would expect from an evening of "acoustic" music.  He sat on a stool with an acoustic guitar and sang as if the ghost of Nick Drake would anoint him simply for sitting on a stool with a guitar and singing.  Field's time onstage made me ponder that if Nick Drake had lived 'Pink Moon' likely would have disappeared into obscurity and never been used to sell Volkswagen.  Discuss amongst yourselves.. Anyway, before the show this happened downstairs:

The Mary Poppins Guitar

 [Photo courtesy of Photo Ray]

Half of 7 Year Bitch were also downstairs, which was a nice surprise since I hadn't seen them in a long time.  Then Buzz went upstairs and set up his own gear.

I had seen the Buzz acoustic machine play an abbreviated set last month at Scion Rock Fest 2014 and it was an epiphany.  Seeing Buzz solo was like seeing the Melvins for the first time; I thought I knew what to expect but the reality was something different... and great.. and made me appreciate music in a different slanted way.  Buzz did exactly the opposite of what you would expect from an evening of "acoustic" music. He still brought the volume.

Buzz smartly opened his solo set with 'Boris' into 'The Ballad Of Bright Fry'.  These are songs that Melvins fans know well so they were old friends.. but the solo arrangements and interpretations made them new and engaging.  Alone on stage Buzz's guitar thunders and his voice booms.  Unlike with the Melvins, the words were as crushing as the chords. It was a revelation after having only known Buzz with an electric guitar in tandom with obliterating drums and bass all these years.  Buzz solo onstage was like having Thor slam the stage with his mighty hammer.  He also chatted with the crowd and told amusing anecdotes in between songs. Buzz was downright charming.

The songs off his brand new This Machine Kills Artist album work great in a live setting with 'Drunken Baby' being my fave of the night. Halfway through the set I moved to the back of the room to get another perspective.  I was struck by how completely Buzz filled the room with his voice and presence in a different way than his band does.  I've seen the Melvins more than a few times at the Great American and it was funny seeing only Buzz's hair onstage, but it worked.  It completely worked.  A very inspired and great version of the Melvins classic 'Revolve' closed out the 70 minutes and then it was Thankyouandgoodnight.

I didn't do a merch audit but there was a shit ton of Buzz merch for sale, only 2 of which were t-shirts.  On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag.  It's very, very cool that an artist who I've followed for so long can still engage me and remove my jaded view of things and crush it under his shoe.  King Buzzo does that. 

The Longest Day Turns 70

Today marks the 70th Anniversary of The Longest Day.  Last Fall, Umlaut accomplished a life long goal of visiting Normandy, France and the D-Day battlefields.  Calling the experience epic doesn't begin to do it justice.  Anyway, I have not been in a writing mood recently (which is why this space has been silent) but since a picture is worth a thousand words here are several thousand "words" on my pilgrimage: 

Pegasus Bridge

Sainte-Mère-Église [Note the tribute to Pvt. John Steele]

Sainte-Mère-Église.  This site is now a public restroom.... Awkward.

I stumbled into Carentan, France almost by accident.  If you've watched Band Of Brothers you understand why this was a big deal... Unfortunately, the plaque on the village's monument to the 101st Airborne was badly oxidized and hard to read.

 Dragon's Teeth - Juno Beach
 

This view is looking down on the Omaha Beach killing zone from the bluff where the Germans were entrenched in 1944.  It's now where the American Cemetery is located.

What I listened to while walking on Omaha Beach.  Maiden.  Always.

This is a panoramic shot of Omaha Beach taken from the water's edge and looking towards the bluff where the Germans were entrenched in 1944 and where the American Cemetery is now located.  I walked from the water's edge all the way back up to the top of the bluff.  Images from the dozens of World War II books that I've read since I was a kid and the scenes from The Longest Day and Saving Private Ryan almost blinded my psyche.  It was one of the most intense experiences ever and was made even more profound because I was literally the only human on the beach... which tripped me out.  As my feet sank into the sand with each step I felt like I was walking on the souls of all the dead soldiers.

Two of Robert Capa's famous Omaha Beach photos taken in the heat of combat on D-Day.

 Master Of Puppets.. The American Cemetery - Omaha Beach

I have no idea....

 

Pointe du Hoc.  The ground is still scarred and misshapen from the June 1944 combat.  The ruins of old German fortifications are everywhere to climb into and feel the ghosts of war. 

How do you say Master Of Puppets in German?  The German Cemetery - La Cambe, France

An Unknown German Soldier

An Unknown British Soldier.. The British Cemetery - Bayeux, France

 German Hetzer Tank Destroyer... I think.

German Panther with a shell hole in the right side of the turret that probably killed it.

Operation Overlord Cookies.  Deliciously liberating!

The American Cemetery Visitors Center - Omaha Beach

This has been my obligatory June 6th rant.  On the way back to America, some pimply-faced World War II vets called me a fag.  I'm way behind updating this space with Metal and Lock 'N Loll stuff... Writer's block is a bitch.  Stay tuned and let's see if I get my word mojo back. Until then, remember and commemorate this day: