The Claw

The Hidden Hand / Kylesa / Ludicra
12 Galaxies, San Francisco
February 3, 2007

The year is less than 40 days old and I'm already hard pressed to imagine a show blowing me away like this one did anytime soon. Last year Celtic Frost stood out as the show that left me completely gobsmacked.. I'm not exaggerating when I say I left this show with that same feeling of elation. While walking the bar time streets of The Mission after the gig I was happy to be alive.

Ludicra delivered a headline-quality set that left me stunned. I've seen them several times in the past and loved 'em, but tonight they seemed to have a fire lit under them. Their dark powers were hypnotic.

Ludicra are the type of band I would have been fanatical about back in 1984 during the height of my Old Metal Days.. Not because of the type of Metal they play, but because of the type of band they are: Focused on musicianship, songwriting that is epic, napalm smooth dual guitars, thunder on the tundra rhythm section, fire 'n ice vocals. A dark wall of sound that washes over you. Inspiring.

Ludicra is charismatic in that classic Black Metal way, but they don't do the Black Metal scowl thing 24/7 (yayy!)... After delivering a Lungs of Hell vocal performance, Laurie jokingly asked if anyone knew of a good local mechanic in between songs; I laughed. Maybe you had to have been there, but I bet you would have laughed too. I love having a local Metal band that I can support as if I was 19-years old again. I give Ludicra "The Claw" with much respect!!

Hmmm... Kylesa or hang out in front of the club talking with friends... Kylesa and their, uh, TWO drummers or hang out in front of the club talking with friends... Hmm. Bands with two drummers usually cause me to hear Spinal Tap dialogue in my head:

"Why don't you just make ten louder and make ten be the top number and make that a little louder?"

[pause]

"These go to eleven.."

If you don't know Wino, Saint Vitus, or The Obsessed get off the computer right now and visit your local indie record store. RIGHT NOW!

OzzFest cabin boy Zakk Wylde is a Hot Topic mall version of Wino. More heavy underground music has been inspired by Wino's fingers than can be calculated... but he'll never get the props he deserves. He's one of those musicians who'll always be in the shadows as the bands that he influenced get the glory. However, seeing Wino's pair of road-weary Les Pauls sitting onstage was symbolic that glory is fleeting. Wino's in it for the war, not the battles.

The look on Wino's face when he's onstage says it all; it's not often that you see a musician with that intense of a game face... and when he shoves his Les Paul into overdrive for a solo it's like watching something solid slamming into something fragile; the roar of something breaking. Inspiring. Combine that with Wino's distinctive vocals and it's impossible for me to take most other bands seriously. Heart. Soul. Volume.

The other 2/3 of The Hidden Hand are solid and they forge a mighty power trio with Wino; the brand new CD (The Resurrection of Whiskey Foote) is probably the best Heavy Stomp N' Roll release I'll hear all year. I give The Hidden Hand "The Claw" with much respect!!

I didn't do a merch tally 'cause I was yakkin' with folks in between bands, but I dropped $25. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. This gig was a mere $10, which wouldn't even cover the Ticketbastard service charge on one OzzFest ticket to see Cabin Boy Zakk.

A Nice Clean Garage

Little Steven's Underground Garage Festival
12 Galaxies, San Francisco
September 7, 2006

Before I begin I want to say THANKS to Todd for the +1, to Ref for being my strictly platonic heterosexual male date, and to Dema for looking fabulous despite having to wrestle The List.

Now I'm gonna be a jaded old Music Geek so bear with me (or you can just leave this space now.. I won't think any less of you). For the record the bill was The Zombies / Phantom Planet / Mooney Suzuki / The Woggles / Th' Losin Streaks... not that it mattered.

This show was the complete opposite of last week's Radio Birdman show; it was like seeing bands at a corporate party where the crowd is there for "the event" and not the music. The majority of the people in the crowd looked like they had Sirius or XM Satellite Radio in their Prius with a non-fat soy latte in the cup holder. This show was for The Hipsters who pose as Music Geeks; folks who are too lazy to do the work to get the credentials.

Call me old fashioned, but I think a Rock Show should be sticky from the spilled beer on the floor, and not sticky from the corporate sponsorship (AT&T and Rolling Rock beer in this case). Now, Umlaut ain't against money, but everything about the event seemed coldly calculated to appeal to the I'm-trying-really-hard-to-be-cool hipster demographic.

The Underground Garage Tour is a slickly contrived 21st Century version of a retro 60's Rock Show (like a hipster's OzzFest); from the circus theme, to the obligatory vintage B-movie footage projected on the club's walls, to the go-go girls dancing onstage. At least there wasn't an Austin Powers impersonator walking through the crowd handing out Rolling Rock bottle opener keychains.

Obligatory Music Geek observation: I saw The Woggles' guitarist several times in the 80's with his old band Guadalcanal Diary.

1986
(From the Umlaut Archives)

I realize The Hipsters in the crowd paid 20 bucks to be there and I skated in gratis via The List, but I was home early which made the dogs and the cat happy. It's interesting to note that despite having 5 bands on the bill, Radio Birdman drew a bigger crowd than the Shopping Mall Underground Garage Tour. The Real Deal always wins (at least in a perfect world).

Guitar Wolf shirts = 1 (mine). If you bought one of every merch item you would have paid over $200 but less than $300. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. The next morning in my office at work, I washed away the sticky film left on my psyche from this experience by listening to the Radio Birdman song 'Hand Of Law' as I drank my morning coffee.

SLAYER.

March Of Guitars

DMBQ / Drunk Horse
12 Galaxies, San Francisco
March 22, 2006

Umlaut was all set to see this bill back in November, but the tour was cancelled due to the terrible accident that took the life of DMBQ's drummer Mana (R.I.P.). Triumphantly, DMBQ regrouped and returned to the States in a remarkably short time.

This gig was also a convenient excuse for Umlaut to have a platonic rendezvous with Caucasian House Boy. As the Jetta pulled out of the driveway, Little Steven's Underground Garage was on local Rock Radio station 107.7 and 'Shake Some Action' by The Flamin' Groovies was playing. Nice. The tone was set for the evening.

My Indie Cred took a hit when I decided to arrive late and miss the opening set by Yikes!, the band that's staggered out of the ashes of the Coachwhips. Oh well.

I walked in just as Drunk Horse was starting. I really dig Drunk Horse. Their latest album In Tongues has been a favorite on Umlaut's iPod since its release. Dueling Les Paul Stomp 'N Roll straight outta Oakland. Gotta support the local boys! Any band with a song that references H.P. Lovecraft, as Drunk Horse does with 'Howard Phillips', has me in their merch line. Also, they did a credible cover of the Jeff Beck instrumental 'Beck's Bolero' .. I was impressed! Guess I'll be seeing the Drunk Horse boys at Jeff Beck's S.F. show in a couple of weeks.

Afrirampo are two girls from Osaka who have that Cool Kid appeal.. Anyway, I know I'm blowing cred with The Kidz but... I'll simply say I found them tolerable as I hung out on the sidewalk with Caucasian House Boy and Todd during their set.

BEST QUOTE - While standing out on the sidewalk, a guy came up to Todd and said "You look like a guy who I used to know in Philly named Todd". Yep. A Philly reunion on Mission Street after 20 something years. Magical in a Old School Punk way... I guess.

As DMBQ took the stage I was only intending to stay for 2 songs since I was TIRED and it was already past midnight on a school night.. But I ended up not leaving until after 1:30am.. Goddam but DMBQ TORE IT UP! Even more amazing when you remember the tragedy they experienced only 4 months ago.

When was the last time you saw a band's frontman held aloft by audience members ala Iggy Pop in Cincinnati 1970??

Iggy Pop - Cincinnati International Pop Festival - 1970

Well, my answer to that question is now 3/22/06 at 12 Galaxies.. "That's peanut butter!"

(Kudos to the Music Geeks who are laughing out loud right now..)

I wish I knew DMBQ's song titles, because they constructed a 20 minute song that blew my mind. If Japan had won World War II and Zeppelin wrote 'Dazed & Confused' while jacked on wasabi it would have sounded like that song.. Amazing. Plus, it was long enough so Caucasian House Boy went to the can, got another beer, and still made it back well before the song reached its climax. Someone once described DMBQ as being a fistfight between Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin, and I'd agree with that.

It's easy for an old fart like me to be cranky about this generation's Mission Kidz.. However, on this night I was proud of 'em. Umlaut was one of them 15 years ago (DOH!) and it was good to see Mission Kidz in all their drunken glory appreciating a great band like DMBQ. Fuck the rest of the S.F. Hipster Kidz: The Mission Kidz are keeping it real! Old man look at my life, I'm a lot like you.

DANKE to Todd for the pestlist and to Dema for just being Dema. Thanks to Caucasian House Boy for turning the world on with his smile and for taking a nothing day and suddenly making it all seem worthwhile.

Number of shirts with the pic of the Scorpions from the back cover of the In Trance album seen = 1. If you bought one of every Drunk Horse merch item you would have paid NOTHING 'cause they weren't selling anything. Every piece of DMBQ merch would have set you back around 8,000 Yen (around $70 USD). On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. I stayed out 'til almost Bar Time on a school night. I still got it.

===
INTERMISSION: In addition to the comeback of DMBQ from tragedy, I read this week that Guitar Wolf are back in action with a new bassist to replace Billy (R.I.P.). Good news for sure, like, Gamera is the friend of all children. Totally.

===
The Hellacopters / Nebula
Slim's, San Francisco
March 24, 2006

The Hellacopters haven't toured the U.S. in 4 years, so I should have known there would be some Rocker Hype surrounding this show. The gig brought a number of Umlaut friends out of the woodwork. Very nice.. So, a shout out to Timo, Old Metal Erik, Captain Fireball, Mark D., and Craig B. (Two Bit Thief!). Slim's was packed and you could tell it was gonna be a good night by how early the floor was sticky from spilled beer. Friday night Lock 'N Loll!

Space Geeks take notice, Nebula's new album is called Apollo. Tranquility Base, the Eagle has landed. Sometimes when I listen to Nebula at home I think "This is one of my favorite bands!" but then I go see them and I'm feeling that way for, like, 4 songs. Then I find myself wandering to the bathroom, or over to the bar, or over to the merch table. During their set I found a promo poster for their new album on the bench next to the Coat Check. I folded it up and put it my pocket. The Iggy thread I started earlier in this piece with DMBQ can be continued here because Nebula did a credible cover of the Stooges' 'I Need Somebody'. If Nebula were a NASA program they'd be the Space Shuttle 'cause some of their stuff flies and other stuff has O-ring failure during launch.

I missed The Hellacopters on their last tour in 2002... but I did see the Swedes on their previous Stateside treks in 1998 (12/18/98 @ The Justice League, S.F. w/ Fu Manchu and Acid King) and 1999 (12/99 @ Slim's w/ the Supersuckers and Zen Guerrilla). Remember when they were, like, one of the ultimate Music Geek bands?! Releasing a bazillion things on vinyl only!? Me too.

As they geared up for their final encore I thought it was odd that Front Man Nicke had strapped on a cheapie Epiphone Les Paul. The reason why came midway through the next song, which was a credible cover of MC5's 'Kick Out The Jams'. Midway through the song Nicke took the guitar off and tossed it in the crowd. An excellent example of planned spontaneity! Of course, an entertaining tug-of-war fight ensued between punters for the free axe.

The struggle came down to 2 guys, neither of whom wanted to let go of the guitar's neck. They were eventually ushered out the back door by a bouncer; maybe they settled it with fists outside. It was pouring down rain, so that would have been kinda cool. I suppose that since it was a left-handed guitar it was probably worth, what? 150 bucks? So the fight was worth it I suppose. I assume The Hellacopters are making the most of an Epiphone endorsement deal... for The Kidz!

During all of this, Nicke had already strapped on his real guitar and the band continued to channel Rob Tyner & Co. one last time for the night. Then Drummer Robert kicked his drum kit over. The wailing guitars, the crash of the drums, makes me wanna keep a-rockin' 'til the morning comes.

BEST QUOTE - Hellacopters Bassist Kenny stepping to the mic to give a shout out to Old Metal Erik's old band American Heartbreak. HA!

Unfortunately, the Swedes didn't play my favorite song ('Hey!'). However, they did play the oldie 'Born Broke' and it was rock-tas-tic. Also, there were an inordinate number of cover songs performed on this night:

• Nebula: 'I Need Somebody' (Stooges), 'Suffragette City' (Bowie)
• Hellacopters: 'Rock & Roll Is Dead' (The Rubinoos), 'Kick Out The Jams' (MC5)

Discuss amongst yourselves.

Music Geek Note: As far as I know, The Hellacopters are the only band to have recorded covers of songs by Venom ('Angel Dust'), the Rolling Stones ('Gimme Shelter'), the New York Dolls ('It's Too Late'), and the Misfits ('Bullet') as bonus tracks over the years. If you can prove me wrong, please do.

After the show Timo and I continued our tradition of a post-gig meal, this time at the classy 24-Hour eatery Sparkey's on Church St.. I had the Umlaut Classic (a 2-egg combo breakfast and a beer). As we drove through The Castro, Rock Radio 107.7 appropriately played Judas Priest ('You Got Another Thing Coming').

If you bought one of every Hellacopters merch item you would have paid $193. All of the Nebula merch would have set you back $49. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. For the 2nd time in 3 days I was out 'til almost Bar Time. I still got it.

High On Fire

High On Fire
12 Galaxies, S.F.
January 18, 2006

Ahh, can you smell that?? It's the smell of the first gig of the New Year.. Here's to Umlaut's 27th year of seeing live gigs! Let this one be as rewarding as all the others have been.

Trivia: High On Fire (HOF) were the subject of one of the first posts on this space almost 2 years ago. Time flies, etc. etc.

As the signs taped to the front of the club said, the show was "Completely Sold Out" (in advance no less). This was the first time I'd seen High On Fire with Joe Preston in the lineup. Of course, while Matt was in Sleep, Joe was in the Melvins during their classic Lysol era. Trivia: When Lysol was released, black stickers had to be put over the title because "Lysol" is a registered trademark and the Melvins / Boner Records didn't obtain permission to use it.

There were a number of years when the Melvins were Umlaut's absolute favorite band. Remember when each member recorded a solo album ala 70's KISS? A great Music Geek stunt... However, like most things, my Melvins fanboy days ran its course.

I saw Joe in 1993 after he'd "left" the Melvins.. It was backstage in Portland at a Neurosis / 7 Year Bitch show.. Of course, I happened to be wearing my Melvins Army shirt, so I felt obligated to talk to him.

Click HERE for a PDF of Umlaut On Tour With Neurosis / 7 Year Bitch from Umlaut #9 (Fall 1993). Find out what Umlaut and Joe talked about (sort of..)!

It was good to see Joe back onstage again. When they launched into the first song his contribution to the band was obvious; like a herd of bison thundering across the plains. His command of the bass adds a great Old School bottom end to HOF's foot-on-monitor wall of sound.

Even if they are the Nu Motorhead, HOF's '10,000 Years' is still one of the most godhead songs ever. The fact that they played it was reason enough for me to be there. If you're a newbie and want to fit in with the HOF fanbase you should get (1) a black hoodie and (2) a neck tattoo.

This was also the first show of HOF's almost 5 MONTH U.S. Tour, which doesn't end until the beginning of May. DAMN! Umlaut likes to see a band do things the old fashioned way.. Lock 'N Loll.

It's always nostalgic for Umlaut to attend a Rock Show in The Mission again, but the large number of Neurosis shirts in the house was kind of disturbing... Are they selling them at Hot Topic now??

THANKS to Todd Leafy Green for the +1 on the Pest List. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. Unfortunately, Umlaut forgot to do a merch tally... sorry 'bout that. The new HOF hoodie was sweet, but I didn't want to spend 35 bones on it.

In light of a stunning announcement at work today, I'm listening to the HOF song 'Hung, Drawn & Quartered' as I finish this up... 'cause that's how I feel right now.

Sweet Young Thing Ain't Sweet No More

Dema's Birthday Bash with Mudhoney
12 Galaxies, S.F.
Nov. 19, 2005

Dema gets the award for best Lock 'N Loll 40th Birthday Party eh-vah! How many birthday girls can have a famous rock band (who weren't on tour) fly into town to play her party? Now, if I heard the story right, Mudhoney also played at another Dema birthday celebration many years ago in Seattle during the Grunge era. Pretty cool circle of life thing, innit?

At the pre-show party over trendy (but delicious) Middle Eastern-style food at Medjool, Umlaut was introduced to another party guest and we had a conversation about..... Iron Maiden. Yes, it was exactly the type of conversation you think it was. I wonder how many other people attending a 40th Birthday party in S.F. on this same night had a conversation about Iron Maiden over trendy (but delicious) food? I'm guessing not many.

For one evening, Grunge burned brightly again in The Mission... The flannel flames lit up the night like so many candles on a birthday cake... or something like that. The last time Umlaut saw Mudhoney was in a club in Amsterdam and the venue was unbelievably uncomfortable. This time was better and it included birthday decorations in the upstairs bar... Awww (Nicely done Mr. Cote).

Hearing 'Keep It Outta My Face' and 'Touch Me I'm Sick' made Umlaut want a Red Hook.. I haven't had a pint of RH in a long time since I generally only drink Stella when out now. Hope I die before I get old.

THANKS (and XOXO) to Dema for the +1 into her All-Access Birthday Girl World.. Umlaut can't remember the last time he attended a Birthday Party that required a tour manager and booking agent to pull off (Nicely done Mr. Cote).

Iron Maiden - Number Of The Beast shirts = 1. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. Umlaut spent his 40th in a French restaurant in London and Skychick spent her 40th in a village pub in Ireland, but no Rock was involved in either event.

Grunge lives in our hearts.

Things This Week

EDDIE: UMLAUT'S NEW KITTY



Half Siamese.. Half Black Cat.. All Sweetie.

Despite The Sheriff's best guess (Evenflow? NOT..), Eddie The Kitty was named after THIS Eddie [click for link].

*****
FOLKS IN NEW ORLEANS LIVING ESCAPE FROM NEW YORK

For firsthand accounts of what's going on go HERE and HERE [click for links].

"We heard from some of the police that live near us, they told us it was NOT SAFE- the local Walmart had been looted for guns and drugs."



The Big Easy needs Snake NOW.

*****
MASTODON GETS KICKED OFF OZZFEST



SMNnews.com has received reports from sources close to the OZZFEST 2005 camp that 2nd Stage artists MASTODON have been kicked off the OZZFEST 2005 bill, and are no longer a part of the tour. The statement reportedly indicates that the band were (or have been) "destroying" things backstage while drunk and disorderly, and have been considered problematic. A more official announcement is expected shortly, as well as more details as to why MASTODON are no longer a part of OZZFEST 2005.

A couple of weeks ago it was Iron Maiden vs. Sharon Osbourne. Now the Southern Boys take her on. Maiden and Mastodon uber alles!!

*****
THOR
12 Galaxies, S.F.
August 31, 2005

Unfortunately, I missed the afternoon instore (I mean "IN-THOR") appearance at Aquarius Records [click for link]. When I called Aquarius earlier in the week to confirm the instore (I mean IN-THOR) the guy said "Well, it's not really an instore... More like a performance and bending stuff.." (laughter).

On the way to the show, Timo told me about the transsexual mechanic named Turbo who worked on his truck's transmission. Turbo the Transsexual Transmission Mechanic?! C'mon! You can't make that shit up!!

Umlaut admits that he's considered Thor a joke since the early 80's.. But I now believe there is something very legit about him. Practically every Music Geek / Rocker friend of mine knows about Thor and even DEVO [click for link] are fans!

A cab pulled up in front of the club just as we got there. I wasn't paying attention to the cab's passengers until someone yelled "THOR!".. I looked up and Thor was walking in front of me into the club... and he was wearing a cape!


Thor approaches the stage! (Pic by Umlaut)

Later, Thor and his band walked past us as they made their way to the stage from the dressing room. When we raised our fists as they passed, Thor stopped to smile and shake our hands! Thor is THE nicest man in Rock!

Thor is cheesy...But Thor has been conquering stages since the 70's and still THROWS IT DOWN onstage in such a genuine way that he cannot be denied... and he has a sense of humor which only makes him more powerful. It looked like most of the crowd knew all of the songs and everyone was having a blast and had smiles on their faces.. including me! At only $9 this was THE best value-for-the-money show I've seen this year! The Stones and their ridiculous $500 tickets should take note.


Thor hits the stage! (Pic by Umlaut)

Thor changed masks and battle helmets for almost every song. Thor broke a mic stand in half and handed the pieces to fans! Thor battled a hooded skeleton demon onstage accompanied by a smoke machine! After playing "Thunder On The Tundra", Thor bent a 1/4" thick piece of steel with his teeth! Then he gave the bent piece of metal to a fan. You won't see that at a Franz Ferdinand concert!

Unfortunately, my camera packed it in a couple of songs into the set ("Card Read Error" bullshit). At the same time, Thor brandished a sword onstage and made a point to shake the hand of everyone standing in the front row. Thor is THE nicest man in Rock!

There were an inordinate number of denim vests in the crowd. If you had bought one of every Thor merch item you would have paid $80.. and after the show they were selling alot of merch. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. As he left the stage and walked past me, Thor shook my hand again. Thor is THE nicest man in Rock!

Epilogue: While driving to work this morning I noticed someone at a bus stop reading this week's issue of the SF Weekly... with its THOR COVER STORY! Click HERE to read the hilarious interview. When it rains it Thors!

Obligatory Election 2004 Epilogue

"When there's no more room in Hell, the dead will walk the Earth."

I'm proud to say that Haggis Buffet / Umlaut stayed above the fray and only reported what Satan told us to:

Bloggers Said to Blame for Bad Poll Info

We now return to regular Umlaut programming.

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Submitted by Heather:

The Cramps
The Warfield, S.F.
Halloween 2004

The Cramps were cool as always. Lux is so HOT! I'm so in love with him. Ivy was gorgeous also.

I had an extra ticket with me and there was this (authentic!) tough punk chick that somehow got into that section and was in our seats. They tried to get her to leave and she wasn't gonna go down without a fight. When the bouncers came thay said "Lemme see your ticket!" and so I gave her the extra ticket. It was meant to be.

I had a bad cold and I put my back out sneezing and had to walk with a cane!

The unfortunate part was that the sound person fucked up the sound SO BAD that it was intolerable and people were leaving! I left early also and on the way out, I poked the sound person in the back with my cane to get her attention and I told her it sounded AWFUL and she flipped me off. I in turn, flipped HER off then went to find some management. They told me it was the BAND'S soundperson, and there was nothing they could do and that I should call The Guardian.

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ADDENDUM - Nov. 4, 2004

After a couple of days to reflect upon Election 2004, Umlaut felt it was time to make a change. So, I ditched the venerable circa 1992 7" single cardboard storage box:



For a sleek 21st Century corrugated plastic 7" single storage box that is chaste of any political affiliation:



As Bono once (sort of) said before he became UN Ambassador to Narcissus: "It's a box drained of all colors.." This 7" single storage box is not a rebel 7" single storage box.

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EPILOGUE TO THE EPILOGUE - Nov. 5, 2004

I suppose as a Lefty Liberal this week was a reality check. I guess God might not be a bargain bin act after all. Who woulda thunk?! He's been repackaged and rereleased with bonus tracks!

I suppose you could say I regained my perspective on life today... and I did so via an unplanned 3-point method:

POINT 1: It began with a leave-work-early screening of The Incredibles. Straight up: I LOVED IT.. which the Cheesehead Duo can attest to. It truly emasculated the silly new Star Wars trailer that proceeded it. Too bad their licensing doesn't include very cool action figures..

POINT 2: My journey then shifted to S.F.'s lovely Tenderloin and the Golden Era Restaurant. An incredibly great meal followed... Which included fine conversation and the sharing of Lock 'N Loll war stories and gossip with Merch Guy, Kamehameha, and Diamond Head ("The teacher?! Really?!") . An all around meal most excellent. A nice cherry on top was seeing the same guy I saw at Dio last week who was wearing the same denim vest with the large Slayer - Hell Awaits patch on the back. In Nomine Satanic Vegetarians! "Angels fighting aimlessly.. Still dying by the sword.." SLAYER... Now more than ever.

POINT 3: Then it was across town for the obligatory Rock Show:

DRUNK HORSE / ACID KING
12 Galaxies, S.F.

Two of S.F.'s finest kickin' it live in my old 'hood.. Acid King threw up a wall of sound unequaled by any band who are like family to me. So many beers and burritos have been killed in the bloody juggernaut I've cut with them over the years... Drunk Horse are Southern Rock without the Confederate inbreeding.. They're like the South back when the South voted Democrat (obligatory Election 2004 analogy). Earlier I said how this week had seen God rereleased and remastered... But so has Acid King, with their classic Busse Woods CD rechromed and detailed. Nice. Beer count = 2. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenage crack whores called me a fag. My trusty companion, the iPod, once again proved that it's my soulmate by randomly playing Black Sabbath / Dio's 'Heaven & Hell' once the Jetta was fired up... The lyrics were quite apt as the theme song for this week:

"They say that life's a carousel, spinning fast you've got to ride it well.
The world is full of Kings and Queens, who blind your eyes and steal your dreams.. It's Heaven and Hell..."

"They'll tell you black is really white, the moon is just the sun at night.. And when you walk in Golden Halls you get to keep the gold that falls.. It's Heaven and Hell.."

Today was also my mommy's birthday. Yes, I called her. She told me she loved me.

Peace out.

"You've got to bleed for the Dancer.."