Lock 'N Loll

Guitar Wolf
Bottom of the Hill, San Francisco
Rocktober 4, 2010

It's hard to believe that it's been over 5 YEARS (!) since Guitar Wolf's last U.S. Tour and visit to San Francisco. The fact that original bassist Billy (aka Bass Wolf) died of a heart attack only 2 weeks after that S.F. show is still unbelievable; he was only 38 years old, man. In the years since, Guitar Wolf has been on hiatus for quite awhile until they reemerged last year with new guy U.G. on bass. The Bottom of the Hill was the final stop on the band's brief 7-city U.S. Tour and my anticipation leading up to tonight was off the charts.

By the time I got to the club the “Sold Out” sign was already posted on the door... and bummed fans stood around outside in disbelief.


Rookie mistake, kidz... If you wanna see a band really bad you gotta buy in advance. Anyway, as 11:00pm rolled around, the crowd was pressed down front and I was reminded how uncomfortable Bottom of the Hill is when it’s sold out packed… but I stood in basically the same spot as I did 5 year ago to witness The Beast From The East up close and personal again.

Number of beer bottles thrown onstage before Guitar Wolf came onstage = 4. Number of beer bottles that hit their roadie in the head before they came onstage = 1. There is more excitement in the first minute of a Guitar Wolf show than most bands have during their entire set! As they took to the stage, Seiji worked the crowd as U.G. and Toru (aka Drum Wolf) laid down a groove… Then Seiji put on his guitar, grabbed the can of Kirin sitting on top of his amp and slammed it, tossed the empty beer can into the crowd, held his guitar pic dramatically aloft… and then brought it down to hit his first chord of the night… and ALL HELL broke loose!! The Wolf was loose in San Francisco again!

(Photo courtesy of Sensory Abuse)

Guitar Wolf and their fans detonate together like no other combination of band / fans; the only other mutual concert mayhem that I can compare it to is the Dillinger Escape Plan live experience. It’s simple chemistry: You mix an alcohol fueled and volatile Japanese Punk band with 250 of their alcohol fueled fans, jam them all in a small space, and ignite them with volume. The result is terrifyingly fantastic! At the height of the mayhem bodies were literally flying everywhere… Off the stage... on top of the crowd… and people were hitting the floor face first at an alarming rate as the set got crazier and crazier.

(Point & Shoot by Umlaut)

It’s hard to describe the Guitar Wolf live experience with mere words. I’m sure it's not unlike when World War II vets attempted to convey how combat against the Japanese was on Guadalcanal and Iwo Jima to civilians. Words are simply inadequate to describe the smells, the sweat, the fear, the crushing of bodies, and the volume of close combat with the Japanese. Every song of Guitar Wolf’s set was a Banzai Charge of leather jackets, sweat, and volume that ended up in our foxhole to impale us on its bayonet.

(Photo courtesy of Sensory Abuse)

At one point, Seiji brought a dude onstage to play his guitar, which was pretty funny… but the guy could play and looked vaguely familiar; I wondered what band he used to be in... Then during the encore Seiji pulled people onstage to form a human pyramid (!?) which he then tried to climb. It was like he was trying to build a throne of Westerners upon which The Rising Sun could Lock 'N Loll.

How do you say "Human Pyramid" in Japanese?
(Photo courtesy of Sensory Abuse)

As the human pyramid shenanigans went on and on, I realized that I was super dehydrated so I pushed my way from the front towards the back. I mistakenly thought the pyramid was as crazy (or as us Orientals say “Clazy”) as it was going to be for the rest of the set… but I was wrong! The human pyramid ended with an onstage brawl between U.G. and Seiji… and the night closed with the band spewing out one more song and leaving the stage… Only then Seiji returned to the stage alone to play solo completely out of tune. This went on for 10 minutes as the crowd thinned out as both band and fans admitted the battle was over; Samurai Seiji finally threw down his guitar and crawled offstage... another city conquered with sweat and volume. Thanks to Sensory Abuse for filling in the details.

Number of Motӧrhead shirts = 3. If you bought one of every Guitar Wolf merch item you would have paid only $15… because they only had 1 (ONE) shirt for sale. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. The best thing about seeing shows at Bottom of the Hill is that I can be home in 10-15 minutes... Lock 'N Loll!

Click HERE to see Photo Ray's shots from the night!

R.I.P. Bass Wolf

Thanks to Umlaut friend Drunk Ted for passing on this STUNNING Guitar Wolf news:

We regret to inform you that Hideaki Sekiguchi, aka Billy, has passed away by heart attack in the morning of March 31st, at the age of 38.

Vigil:
18:00p.m. (non-relatives 19:00p.m.) on Tuesday, April 5
Funeral:
10:00a.m.-11:00a.m.. The Hearse to Leave at 11:00a.m. on Wednesday, April 6
Place:
Rinkaisaijo
1-3-1, Tokai, Ohta-Ku, Tokyo
Phone: 81-3-5755-2833
*Since there is NO parking lot, we kindly ask you not to drive to the place. We announce that all shows will be cancelled. We hope to have your understanding. - March 31, 2005 Guitar Wolf / SBT Music

The news was confirmed by Narnack Records within the past hour:

"It's with deep saddest and regret that we post this latest Guitar Wolf news. Last night Billy, aka Bass Wolf, passed away, he was only 38 yrs old. The band just returned from their US tour, and fortunately Billy did get to spend time with his wife and children before going into the hospital. He died in his sleep sometime during the night. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family, Seiji and Toru."

Guitar Wolf (L. to R.): Toru, Seiji and Billy
(From the Umlaut Archives)

Man, Umlaut had his mind blown by Billy and Guitar Wolf only TWO WEEKS AGO. Sad and unfair... and yet Sting still walks the Earth..

Umlaut is now cranking Guitar Wolf even as he types this. "Time Machine Of Tears..."

R.I.P. my Asian Brutha.

Battle Of The Indie Bands #2

The sequel to Battle Of The Indie Bands #1!

Slint
Great American Music Hall, S.F.
March 10, 2005

There was an unusually high percentage of guys in the crowd wearing glasses (Guilty!). Now I know what I'm about to say will destroy all Indie Rock Cred that Umlaut had, but... I thought Slint were terribly boring.

Yes, yes I owned Slint's Spiderland CD 14 years ago. Yeah, I "got" them. But here in the 21st Century they did nothing for me. I honestly can't remember the last time I reacted so negatively to a band. Hope I die before I get old.

I suppose their inclusion on the Kids soundtrack 10 years ago might explain their large 2005 fan base (3 sold out nights)... 'cause I couldn't imagine most of the people in The House tonight hanging around Rough Trade Records on Haight St. in 1991.

The "Dieter!! Touch my monkey!" tone for the evening was set by the opening act Matmos. A trio alternately manning a Mac G4 laptop, a metal pipe and bongos, a guitar, and various other flotsam. They proved that just because you can afford a Mac G4 laptop, it doesn't mean you're a musician (Was that the sound of another nail in the coffin of Umlaut's Indie Cred?).

As a looped electronic beat streamed out of the G4, their set closing finale was to inflate 5 or 6 large white helium balloons and release them to the ceiling. I am not kidding. It was like watching 3 guys performing a circle jerk (to a looped electronic beat and samples of course). It's such a fine line between clever and stupid.

BEST QUOTE - Timo: "They could be doing this alone in their bedroom."

The weird energy of the evening was brought to a crescendo as Timo and I crossed Franklin St.: On the way back to the car, we weren't called fags, but someone from a passing car THREW AN EGG at us!! I am not kidding. The even weirder thing was the egg BOUNCED OFF of Timo and broke on the pavement! Good thing he had his force field activated. Weird scenes inside the goldmine. Take the highway West, baby.

Guitar Wolf
Bottom Of The Hill, S.F.
March 14, 2005

There was an unusually high percentage of Asians in the crowd (Guilty!). My favorite Guitar Wolf song is 'Zaaa Zaaa Asphalt'... I can't understand a lick of what they're saying.. but it doesn't matter. My Asian Bruthas have been together for 18 years and are still wasabi on 11!

That Techno music you listen to is GUTLESS! This is REAL... I know, I know.. The Valley was always good enough for you, blah blah blah (Name that movie...).

Twas hard to recall the last time I saw the sidewalk outside of B.O.T.H. so jammed with people who didn't have tickets to a sold out show. Twas also hard to recall the last time I saw the following events at a show:

• A band's 2 roadies struggling to prevent a guitarist from throwing his Marshall half stack into the crowd as he got caught up in the Lock 'N Loll Frenzy.
• A guitarist jump into the crowd and wade through the jam-packed room to the bar. As this happened, members of the audience held his guitar cord above their heads as he climbed onto the bar to play.. Wireless systems are for pussies!
• After climbing up on the bar, the guitarist taking a leap back into the packed crowd, only to be caught and passed above their heads until he fell back onstage.. The whole time he played his guitar as he lay on his back above the crowd.
• A band's 2 roadies, plus a club employee, carrying the guitarist off the stage because he was either too exhausted or fucked up to walk anymore.
• After minutes of the crowd showing their approval by howling like wolves, the band jumping back onstage as if for the first time and ripping through 2 more songs.
  

Guitar Wolf are the REAL fucking deal. Rock Stars in the purest, uncut form. The antithesis of, say, Lars Ulrich. However, Seiji does have his own Epiphone signature model guitar in Japan.. and the band has a branded line of leather pants and jeans (natch!). Corporate Rock Rules!

Seiji is THE hardest working frontman in Show Biz!! A sweat-drenched 90+ minutes of mayhem, chaos, and laughter. I gladly forked over a mere $10 (TEN BUCKS) for a Guitar Wolf shirt... Twas not a gesture of consumerism, but respect.

Leather jackets with King Diamond painted on the back = 1. Denim vest with large Venom Black Metal patch sewn on back = 1. Rose Tattoo shirt (!!) = 1. On the way back to the car, some pimply-faced teenagers called me a fag. For the first time since 1992, I stood behind Jello Biafra at a show.

And The Winner Of The Battle Of The Indie Bands #2: Are you kidding?! Twas no fucking contest. The Asian Bruthas ROCKED!! And they will NEVER do you laundry or math homework. Ever.

Guitar Wolf: Toru, Seiji, and Billy
(From the Umlaut Archives)