The Dark Granulating Satanic Mills

The Decibel Magazine 2014 Tour
Carcass / The Black Dahlia Murder / Repulsion / Gorguts / Noisem
The Regency, San Francisco
March 26, 2014

Tonight was one of those magical times when everything became one with The Metal.  The blessings from the Metal Godz began when I found a parking space that was literally only 70 steps (yes I counted..) from the venue's entrance.  Hail!   There was also zero Will Call drama and the Will Call person was a Murder fan.  Praise be..

Once inside I was disappointed that Noisem were already finishing up their set due to the early start time.  Sorry I couldn't get there earlier, guys... but the brutal 5 minutes or so of Noisem that I did catch was better than some full sets I've seen by other bands in recent times. Next time for sure.

I should mention that tonight was sold out, which gives me hope that (1) The Kidz actually like the good Metal bands and (2) The Kidz actually read the good Metal mags like Decibel.  Full disclosure:  Decibel is the only music magazine that Umlaut subscribes to... which means I pay for it in order to support.  Comps are for posers.

During the changeover, the bar / merch area of the lobby filled to capacity.  The Regency was packed tonight and it was kind of inspiring seeing so many kidz in the house but not as many of the regular Metal faces.  Maybe there really is a "Metal Scene" lurking in The Bay Area that embraces the present instead of simply clutching onto its glorious past after all.  I caught myself thinking "Where did all of these people come from?"  While it was cool seeing the tribe gathered, I was thankful most of the punters didn't seem to know about the bar on the other side of the lobby that was comfortably empty.  It's also the bar that serves the better beers.  I guess it's not a "secret" anymore... Ooops.

Gorguts obliterated The City By The Bay.  Not since the return of Voivod has a Canadian band made me bow down and made me avert my eyes to their greatness.  Technical.  Precise.  Progressive.  Aural density that was heavy as fuck.  My brain thanked me for bringing it into the presence of this thinking person's Metal sledgehammer. 

 Gorguts 

Gorguts are the type of crushing cerebral Metal band that keeps my jaded self from giving up on Metal.  I usually start feeling that way when I see a shite band like Five Finger Death Punch being hailed as today's "Metal Gods".  Thank dog for Gorguts and their unorthodox onslaught led by the virtuosos on the 7-string guitar and 6-string bass.  My favorite band of the night.

The Regency is the one local venue where you can completely escape the stage area in between bands by going through closed doors.  It's like being back in school and having recess in between classes.  This gives shows there a more social vibe than other spaces.  It's not the best space, or even my favorite space, but I've grown to enjoy seeing shows at The Regency much more in recent times.  Tonight was also a rare occasion when my Murder In The Front Row co-author Harald O. and I were in the same room at the same time.

 Murder Unmasked... and 'Shandi' was not in our setlist.

It was mind blowing that Repulsion were on the bill for only the San Francisco date; their highly anticipated set lived up to all of the expectations and history.  It was impressive how confident and blistering the veteran band was despite their limited recent live appearances compared to the other bands on the bill.  Also, the full circle nature of having them sharing the stage with Carcass in San Francisco of all cities was pretty damn cool, man.  The room was overrun with the vintage aural stench that Repulsion spewed one song after another... and the room reacted with crowd action worthy of such a legendary band.
 

Repulsion

As I mentioned earlier, tonight was not only a gathering of great bands but the atmosphere in general was on another level as well.  It didn't feel like this was just another generic Metal show.  I don't know if it's because I'm an old man, but more often than not at Metal shows it just feels like people are simply "there".  There's no underlying sense of a higher common cause; tonight was not like that.  Blame Decibel Magazine I guess.  It's how all Metal shows should feel like; a gathering of the tribe.

I've seen The Black Dahlia Murder around a half dozen times and I've never connected with them.  Part of it is probably because I have a hard time taking bands with more than 3 words in their name seriously; I'm just old fashioned that way.  However, the kidz love Black Dahlia and I decided before the show that I would embrace the night and watch every band which goes against my usual jaded self.  Anyway, three songs and I was out, but the kidz love Black Dahlia.   Not surprisingly, The Black Dahlia merch table had the longest line.

I love Bolt Thrower, but Carcass are England's greatest Metal band right now.  The most pleasant surprise of the night was that the crowd did not thin out after Black Dahlia as I expected.  Good on the kidz! Although it had only been 48 days since England's finest had last been on this very same stage, their set tonight was more triumphant and all conquering.  The classic 'Buried Dreams' made the first incision and it was a quintessential Carcass evisceration for the next 90 minutes or so. My favorite song of the set was the new 'The Dark Granulating Satanic Mills' with its infectious chorus of "Six, zero, two, six, nine, six, one". 

 

Carcass

I also appreciated how Jeff Walker wore an Electric Light Orchestra tee onstage.  I'm at the point where I've seen Carcass close to a half dozen times now and tonight's set solidified them as one of my all-time favorite bands.  This year is a strange year already as my interest in Metal has flat lined (again) and it doesn't feel like it did 4 or 5 years ago when almost everything "Metal" was exciting to me again.  Yes, Umlaut is fickle but all the gratitude in the world to Gorguts, Repulsion, and Carcass for plugging the Metal side of my brain back in again at least for another night.  Metal is a war and not just a battle and it's one battle at a time for me right now.. Hope I die before I get old.

There was so much merch for sale, but if you bought one of every Carcass merch item you would have spent around $265.  On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag... but at least I only had to walk 70 steps.  Before my return to Casa de Umlaut, one thing led to another and I found myself parked on a San Francisco side street eating drive thru food after the Metal show.  How old am I? 

"No thanks.  I don't need any crack."

All show photos courtesy of the great Photo Ray!

Weekend Of Horror

Kirk Von Hammett's Fear FestEvil
The Regency, San Francisco
February 6-8, 2014

The exciting sequel to Too Much Horror Business!

Yes, it's taken me a couple of weeks to pull this out of my brain... but better late than never.  Anyway, sometimes you have a friend when you're a teenager and that friend grows up to be a multi-millionaire Rock Star... and sometimes that millionaire Rock Star friend spends his hard earned money on insanely rare and cool things that meant a lot to him when he was a kid.  You can read more about this friend's collection HERE.

Thursday:  Preview Night
Tonight was the advance preview night for "VIP" fans and guests that featured Mr. KRK Hamster hosting a food 'n drink party in the upstairs Masonic Temple of The Regency aka The Lodge (!).  It's an amazing space and it was made even better by having artifacts from KRK's horror collection displayed effectively all around the room.  At one point this fanboy moment happened:

Carcass. Fanboy.

[Pic courtesy of Cable Car]

Yes, only half of Carcass caused me to get a "deer in the headlights" look because inside my head I was screaming "HEARTWORKCHANGEDMYLIFE!!"  Nice guys and one of my favorite bands, like, ever.   At another point I had a brief conversation with Kirk Von Hammett (aka The Host) and it was so cool that the very first thing he said to me was how excited he was to be playing with his old band Exodus.  He was genuinely giddy.  Not all Rock Stars are jaded muthafuckers.

Not Playing

Tonight was the social evening and I was able to hang out with several out of town friends who I had not seen in awhile and several local friends who I also had not seen in awhile.  Some good food was served by people in zombie makeup... but the beer selection was, for lack of a better term, lame.  Budweiser vs. Heineken.  Oh well.. It was still a really good time.  Then the next day it was...

Friday:  Exodus / Carcass
After some initial Will Call drama the Rock Godz worked their magic and this happened:

I'm with the band.

From that moment on the day and evening was pretty much a blur.  Scott Ian sat in a chair on the main stage for 3 hours having makeup applied by a Hollywood makeup artist to "transform" him into Jack The Ripper.  Three. Hours.  It was literally like watching paint dry.  Needless to say Umlaut did not watch the entire process.  The end result was pretty cool, but I wonder what the appropriate time ratio is for keeping elaborate monster makeup on versus how long it took to apply.  Maybe Scott is still wearing it..

The vendor area in the basement was interesting but I wasn't in a buying mood.  However, it was an impressive mix of the standard toy and collectible vendors as well as Iron Maiden's original artist Derek Riggs (!) and Doyle of the Misfits (?).  One of the most poignant images of the weekend for me was a throng of people crowding around Riggs' table to meet the creator of Eddie while at the table right next to him Doyle (in full makeup and devilock) sat quietly alone staring at his phone and texting.  I remember Halloween too, Doyle... I remember.

Anyway, as the time for the bands drew near they cleared out the main room so Carcass could soundcheck.  Which was awesome because there were maybe only 5 other people in the room.. and it looked like this via Umlaut's blurry iPhone:

After watching Carcass getting their levels set we few, we happy few, wandered down the street to get some food and caffeine fuel before returning for show time.  By now the main room had been reopened and was nicely full for the return of the Grind Gods to San Francisco.

Carcass opened with '1985', the first song off their insanely great new album Surgical Steel, and then went into the brutally iconic 'Buried Dreams', the first song off their insanely influential (for Umlaut at least) album Heartwork.  Nicely done, lads.  I will admit to being concerned when Michael Amott left the band in 2012, but the current guitar duo of Bill Steer and new guy Ben Ash were steel encased solid and surgically brilliant.  I should not have worried.  It was also very cool that Jeff Walker gave The Bay Area and Bay Area bands a heartfelt shout out in between songs at one point.  Carcass are a band that changed my life at a time when I thought I was too old and *done* with Metal.  I didn't think anything in the genre could inspire me again.  Carcass restarted my Metal heart and seeing them again reminded me of their role in my life.  However, since Carcass will be back here at this same venue in March on the Decibel Tour, halfway through the set I made my way back upstairs to say "Hi" to tonight's headliners and witnessed this:

Holt Awaits

It seemed like all of the throat-scratching fog from Carcass' onstage smoke machines had drifted upstairs because the dressing room hallway was choked full with it... (cough cough)... So I went back downstairs and witnessed the rest of Carcass' beautiful evisceration of San Francisco from stage right.  Then I think I met friends in the lobby for a beer.  I think.  Probably.  Needless to say I'm really looking forward seeing Carcass again when they play a full headline set next month.

Carcass Stage Right:  Tools Of The Trade

I missed Exodus' rare headlining hometown show in December so it was a priority for me to soak up as much of their old school energy as I could.  Unfortunately, the Umlaut Archives doesn't have an accurate count of how many times I've seen Exodus. However, it's safe to say it's around the 40 show range dating back to when Kirk Von Hammett was still in the band.  Tonight was full circle special for that history alone.

Exodus came out and played a steamroller 8-song set that culminated with their original guitarist KRK joining them on 'Pirahna' and then a very inspired (the actor who was the original Godzilla was one of FestEvil's guests) cover of Blue Öyster Cult's 'Godzilla' featuring Godzilla himself dancing onstage.  Godzilla is much shorter in person.  Later I asked Gary why they hadn't played an early Exodus song from the KRK era... like 'Impaler' or 'Whipping Queen' or 'Death and Domination' or 'Warlord'... and he said it would have been "too much work".  Fair enough.

"How does 'Impaler' go again?"

[Pic courtesy of Photo Ray]

"History shows again and again how nature points out the folly of man.."
[Pic courtesy of Photo Ray]

In all seriousness, it was profoundly awesome to see KRK so happy and obviously having F-U-N onstage.  Let's be honest, I'm positive that sometimes being in Metallica is more like a job than being in a band. That's not meant as a negative, it's just what comes with the territory of being in the biggest Metal band of his generation.  So it was just awesome seeing KRK being that pimply-faced kid again onstage. Somewhere Baloff smiled.

Ironically, because I had just seen them a week before and had been geeking out on them again, I happened to be wearing a Blue Öyster Cult shirt tonight.  It was a completely random coincidence; sometimes The Rock Godz work in mysterious ways.  Later at the After Party I had some quality time with a couple of old friends who I've known since before any of us could buy alcohol legally.. and this happened:

 

Holt. B.Ö.C. shirt.

[Pic courtesy of Cable Car]

Hammett.  Hanneman.

 [Pic courtesy of Photo Ray]

Right after this photo was taken KRK reminded me that he's known me since he was 19 years old.  Trippy... and pretty cool he even remembers that, right?   Then 24 hours later it was...

Saturday:  Death Angel / Orchid
Due to a prior commitment I had to forgo the Horror part of the fest and arrived not long before the band portion of the day was to start.  One thing led to another and despite my late arrival I ended up here:

Standing at stage right with Orchid I asked if they did a pre-show band bro hug before playing... and they did one right in front of me.  Awww!  I then had a special geek chat with Mark and Theo before they walked onto the hot 'n sweaty stage to pound their hometown under their boot heel of tone.  The local lads were given a full hour so they were basically able to recreate their recent European headlining set on a big stage in front of family and friends.

If I had to choose I'd have to say Orchid was my favorite set of the weekend.  The other bands on the bill are veterans with years in the trenches and who are used to having "famous" friends and admirers.  While Orchid are not kids, the deserved adulation and attention they've been getting recently is something they're not used to yet.  Their fanboy appreciation about being asked by KRK to play at his event was profoundly cute (for lack of a better more endearing term) and translated into how they took over The Regency's stage confidently and made it their own for their allotted time.  Great guys.  Great band.

Tonight was the 3rd show on Death Angel's latest U.S. Tour and it's pretty amazing how the band has come back to be such road dogs in the last several years.  All of that work has paid off as they were the most well-oiled Metal machine of the weekend despite a couple of the guys being sick with flu (cue Purell).  Thirty or more years on from the Murder In The Front Row days and I'm not ashamed to say I get kind of emo watching Death Angel here in the 21st Century.  The current version of Death Angel is so good it's frightening and it's inspiring to see a band that has survived and adapted but remained true to their roots.  It was also an appropriate reality check that tonight also happened to be Mark's birthday, which was celebrated onstage with a cake presented by some of his best friends.  Adorable!  At one point while I stood at stage left between songs this happened:

Mercyful Fate Fanboys

Okay, now get back out on that stage, Mr. Guitarist...

Anyway, 'Seemingly Endless Time' was, as it usually is, my favorite song of the set but the new song 'Fallen' was especially crushing as well. The set and event closing cover songs jam with KRK on 'Heaven And Hell' and 'Trapped Under Ice' sealed the fact how special this event had been.  In all seriousness, it was profoundly awesome to see KRK so happy and obviously having F-U-N onstage with the band whose demo he produced a million years ago.

Let's be honest, I'm positive that sometimes being in Metallica is more like a job than being in a band. That's not meant as a negative, it's just what comes with the territory of being in the biggest Metal band of his generation. So it was just awesome seeing KRK being that pimply-faced kid again onstage.

Apologies that I all but glossed over the Horror aspect of the weekend which was just as impressive as the music side.  Actually, it was probably more impressive to many attendees but truth be told I am a very casual Horror fan.  I watch Walking Dead and read the Walking Dead comics but that's literally it for me and Horror.  I'm just not qualified to comment on it, no matter how cool it all looked to my casual Horror fan eyes.  Yes, that guy who's a makeup artist and a producer on Walking Dead was there.  Yes, the actors who were Ultra-Man and Godzilla were in attendance.  Yes, P.J. Soles was there.  Again, sorry... but I'm sure there are other places on The Internets to read about that side of this event.  Yes, this means I'm not Metal and I am a poser.

I will say that in addition to the music (and the Horror), Kirk Von Hammett's Fear FestEvil had a profound sense of community around it.   The Bay Area vibe was very thick in the air for me due to the host being a local boy made good and the double digit number of friends who were in attendance.  I'm sure this event would still be special if it were held in other cities, but there's something very special about home cooking.

I didn't do a merch audit and I forgot to score the special event tees that Carcass and Exodus did for the weekend.  Oh well... However, it was obvious that there were more SLAAAYEER shirts than any other band shirts amongst attendees.  Interesting.  On the way back to the car all 3 nights, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag.  Full disclosure:  Writing this blog entry felt like a homework assignment and was a real struggle as I wrestled and did hand to hand combat with the words and sentences.  Writing can be hard.

Click HERE to see more of Photo Ray's awesome photos from the weekend.

The Dynamic Duo

It was a good week for Old Metal in S.F.: First it was Schnitzel and then 3 days later it was:

Carcass / Death Angel / Suicide Silence
The Grand, San Francisco
March 26, 2009

Umlaut was shocked when Carcass announced another U.S. Tour on the heels of last year's trek. The band hasn't toured in over 10 years and now they won't go away; they're like Grindcore Zombies or something.

This was one of those ridiculous Metal shows with 7 (SEVEN) bands on the bill and a 6:30PM start... Fuck that! Umlaut stayed on his couch as long as possible and didn't arrive at the venue until about 9:15PM, so we were able to miss 4/5 of the support bands who would have annoyed me... but unfortunately we did see a couple of songs by the 5th support band (Suicide Silence), who are one of those annoying new Metal bands who do all of the annoying things that annoy me about all of those annoying new Metal bands... but I don't wanna come off sounding like too much of a jaded old Metalhead so I'll just leave it at that.

Anyway.....

Local heroes Death Angel were amazing when I saw them last year, but since that triumphant night they had a significant personnel change with original bassist Dennis Pepa leaving the band in January. While this show was only a one-off appearance on the heels of a just completed Australian Tour, it was also their first hometown show with new guy Sammy Diosdado holding down the bottom end. Dude, it was weird seeing a white guy onstage with Death Angel after all those years of 100% Filipino ultra-violence... but that was forgotten once they started playing.

Death Angel are one of my favorite live bands.. The lads just come out and DO IT with no bullshit... They came onstage, played a slow buildup, and then SLAMMED into a Thrash Metal groove that got a pit going immediately... and The Pit didn't let up for the entire set. It was obvious most of the crowd were DA fans, but it was cool seeing some of the new Metal kids getting schooled in how Metal should be done. The set closing 'Kill As One' pretty much summed it all up, man. Also, seeing Death Angel after the annoying support band reminded me that the majority of the new Metal bands today simply do not have a clue about songwriting.. There, I said it.

Question: Who are THE most crushing band to emerge from the streets of Liverpool, England?? The Beatles? A Flock Of Seagulls? Badfinger? The La's? Ladytron? Echo & the Bunnymen? Frankie Goes To Hollywood?

Answer: None of the above. THE most crushing band from Liverpool is Carcass.

Given the fact that Umlaut missed most of their set last Fall, it made me happy that Carcass came back to town so soon. Jeff Walker is from the "foot on monitor" school of bass players, and it was cool he gave props to the Bay Area's Metal history in between songs and commented how Carcass had supported Death Angel in Liverpool years ago. Daniel Erlandsson was a good choice to fill in on drums for the Reunion Tour and I like his pounding work with Arch Enemy, but the guy is so robotic in his playing it's inhuman, but that does fit into the Carcass vibe. Of course, the band's main attraction is the twin guitars of Bill Steer and Michael Amott and it's easy for me to get put into a headlock by their crushing tone and fluid playing. For the second time in a week, I was angry that so many people were at home pushing plastic buttons on a fake guitar instead of standing next to me supporting legitimate Guitar Heroes... The harmonized guitar soloing in 'Heartwork' ranks right up there with my favorite 6-string moments.

The set was enhanced by an appropriate visual presentation to accompany each song, with some nice use of lovely archival autopsy and medical research footage; the band's name is Carcass after all. I think if fellow Liverpudlian John Lennon came back to life he'd want to play with Carcass, mainly because he'd be all decomposed and undead now. Maharishi's transcendental meditation wouldn't do him any good at this point, but some METAL surely would.

It was an interesting night of contrasts having an old school American Thrash Metal band and an old school British Grindcore band on the same bill; Thrash Metal's groove versus Grindcore's blast beats... but the thing both bands have in common is old school musicianship and stage presence. Total value for money, man... and a valuable history lesson for the kids in attendance. Yes, there will be a quiz. To quote Carcass: "Prolific food for thought.. Contrasting fed with force.. Abstraction so choking, so provocative.."

If you bought one of every Death Angel merch item you would have paid around $150. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. Umlaut was back at Casa de Umlaut at 12:30AM; a surgically precise 3 hours of Metal with most of the fat trimmed off so that it was an all killer, no filler night... exactly the way I like it.

Click HERE to see Ray's Carcass pics from the show.

On another note, Umlaut recently received this e-mail from Chatty Kathy:

I've never heard of lots of the bands you write about but your blog is still really fun to read! It's like how I skim the obituaries every day. I didn't know these people, but once in a while there's an awesome obituary. Sometimes the peoples' lives weren't even that remarkable but obviously someone in their family is a very talented writer.

Best feedback ever.

Cave > Carcass > Cave

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds / Red Sparowes
The Warfield, San Francisco
September 19, 2008

Awhile back, Umlaut had a mini-obsession with Red Sparowes, so it was cool they were given the opening slot on 3 of Cave & The Bad Seeds' California shows... and I was surprised how well they were received by the partisan Cave crowd. Nice.

As we waited for Cave to arrive onstage, Umlaut passed the time recreating the Kennedy Assasination with himself as Lee Harvey Oswald in "The Book Depository" (the Lower Loge section of the balcony) and Umlaut friend Raymond as Kennedy in "The Limo" (the photo pit). The role of Oswald's Carcano rifle was played by my cell phone... I guess you had to have been there AND been as nerdy as us..

I believe this year marks the 20th Anniversary of when I started being fanatical about Nick Cave's songwriting... and I like the new album more than anything he's done in recent years... so I can't believe I'm saying this:

For the first time EVER, I was NOT impressed by Cave's performance.

Now, I know most other people who were at this show loved the performance... but to this Cave Geek he just seemed *off*... like he wasn't really in synch with the band and was working really hard to keep it together during practically every song. Also, it's interesting in both a good and bad way how the Bad Seeds are the Grinderseeds onstage, with the members who are in Grinderman with Nick segregated on stage left and the others on stage right; remember when the Bad Seeds were like a gang onstage? Me too.

Also, the fact that Nick now ties himself to the keyboard and guitar ala Grinderman has changed the whole dynamic of the Bad Seeds onstage... Especially since they're touring without James Johnston and, let's be honest, Nick doesn't really "play" guitar. He's like a little kid with his Telecaster onstage, hitting chords and doing leg kicks... which looks cool... but the music suffers IMO. The Bad Seeds need a "pro" guitarist up there.. and I say that 'cause I care..

Timo agreed with me about the performance... and I was so distraught about it afterwards that I actually told The Sheriff via text message that it was my least favorite Cave performance EVER.. Wow, right?

If you bought one of every Cave merch item you would have paid $165. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. We bailed before the encores and jetted the 1 mile to Van Ness Avenue in order to catch some of:

Carcass
The Grand Ballroom, San Francisco
September 19, 2008

Parking karma was in full effect as Timo found parking only a block from the venue.

We rushed into the venue and my glasses immediately fogged up as we were hit by the wall of heat from the crowd and the lack of ventilation. METAL. A minute later, Carcass slammed into their final song ('Heartwork'). METAL. Timo and I had at least caught a full song by the legends. In hindsight, given my disappointment with Cave, I should have chosen Metal over Cave on this night... but then again the conditions inside The Grand would not have been not fun at all.

If you bought one of every Carcass merch item you would have paid $260. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. Timo and I retired to Sparkey's for our semi-ritualistic post-gig meal; I had the Umlaut Special of course (2 egg breakfast and a beer). Yes, I know Sparkey's is what you do when you're 20-something, but it's better than the Gangsta Denny's in Japantown... Plus, I almost laughed out loud watching the young gay man in a nearby booth sitting with his eyes closed as if in a dream and singing along to the Abba and Wham! songs playing on the jukebox.. You go, girl!

24 hours later it was:

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds / Red Sparowes
The Warfield, San Francisco
September 20, 2008

Prior to the show the Umlaut Nation convened at The Irish Bank for a pre-show dinner... and just after we ordered our drinks I realized I'd left the Cave tickets AT HOME... A ROOKIE MISTAKE of the highest order.. Wow.. How embarrassing.

So, while everyone graciously hung out, I had to run back to Casa de Umlaut.. which took around 50 minutes. THANKS to Skychick, Lori, Timo, Teri, and Chris for not hitting me with a chair upon my return.. Thank Dog I found out about my gaffe early enough so I got back in time for everyone to eat, drink, and socialize... and the waitress got caught up in the drama as well, so she was tipped generously of course... AND we made it to The Warfield just as Red Sparowes were starting their set.. So, No harm > No foul, right?

Tonight's show was MUCH better than the previous night! I also wasn't as bothered by Nick being tethered to the keyboard and guitar, maybe because I was expecting it now... and when he was sans instruments he worked the stage better than he has in years, going to the lip of the stage as often as possible, etc.

Oddly, I liked the new songs more than the old classics.. Highlights: 'We Call Upon The Author', 'Midnight Man', 'Today's Lesson', and 'More News From Nowhere'... The new stuff has a groove that doesn't exist in most of Nick's older material, dyaknowwhatimean?

So, remember when I said earlier how I was REALLY bummed after the Friday show... How *off* Cave seemed to be with the Bad Seeds and how he seemed to be working hard just to keep it together? Well, several other longtime fans agreed with me... and after this show I learned that evidently there had been sound problems onstage during Friday's show and additional equipment had been brought in for the 2nd night to remedy it.. SEE! I WASN'T CRAZY!

Trivia: Nick's show were the first concerts at The Warfield since its recent renovation and sound system upgrade.

Oh yeah, hasn't Warren Ellis' transformation in recent years into the Mad Scientist / Mountain Man been trippy as all hell? Remember when Dirty Three first visited America in 1995 and he was simply the low key guy with the violin wearing an AC/DC shirt and jeans? Me too... Now he resembles a homeless mad scientist onstage behind his bank of effects, Fender Mandocasters, and (thankfully) his violin. Shine on, you crazy diamond!

Scorecard: According to the Umlaut Archives, this was my 14th time seeing Nick Cave (including solo and Grinderman) and my 63rd visit to The Warfield dating back to the early-80's. Yes, I keep score... it's on an Excel spreadsheet... I think it's about 90% accurate documenting every concert I've attended since losing my gig cherry in 1978. The Geeks shall inherit The Earth.

Members of Neurosis who stopped to talk to me = 1 (Dave Ed). On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called us fags. It tripped me out that it had been a bit over TEN YEARS (!) to the day since this Cave experience (Highkat!):


I still miss Blixa in the lineup.. There.. I said it.