Last night I went to see Fight of Your Life in Long Island. I know of them through some friends and wanted to get the hell out of the house, so I decided to make the hour long drive and show some support. Plus my friend WIP would be in attendance, and anytime he's there it's a bonus.
I got to the venue about an hour and half after doors, so by then it was already time for Push Play. They're your typical pop punk band whose singer sounds a lot like Jordan from New Found Glory. The set started out alright, but then about 3 or 4 songs in, the singer started getting off key and lost me. And what do you do when you're bored at a show? You head back to the bar.
Fight of Your Life was on next. Matt Pinfield came out to introduce them to a crowd who showed about zero response when he came out onstage. I don't know if it's because people aren't as stupidly starstruck as I am or they didn't know who he was. Anyway, FOYL only played a few songs, but did a good job nonetheless. They played "Phoenix and the Fall" which, as I told Rene to his face, I am obsessed with. It's just super catchy, and well, one of my favorite singers duos with him on the choruses, so that might be why I love it so much. But even Jacoby-less, it still sounded great.
Next, pop punk headliners The Rivalry played. They were vocally more along the lines of Fall Out Boy, who I am not a fan of. So musically I wasn't too impressed with them either, however I thought they put on a solid show.
Afterwards I met up with WIP and his friend to head back to The Dude's place. We ended up going to a pub where I devoured chicken strips that I felt the need to load up with extra salt, honey mustard and buffalo sauce. Which probably explains the cottonmouth that I'm still experiencing this afternoon. We talked about the Van Halen reunion tour, predicting what they would open with. I thought "Eruption" into something like "Running With the Devil." I don't know if I will go to this show or not. I hear that Roth's live show isn't what it used to be, but if it's remotely tolerable I'm ok with that. For me it'll come down to ticket price.
Yet a fourth friend showed up later and I realized I am now officially a "one of the guys" type girl. Don't think I'm bragging about being that way, I think you just get into a certain mindset when you're among a group of men, even if you're a girl. I even gawked at an older metal chick's cleavage as she bent over while shooting pool. She was pretty hard not to notice. She had long flaming red Elvira hair, and was dressed in all black lace and leather. When she leaned forward, her alabaster boobs were practically glowing. I'm not saying I was into this in the same way as the men I was with were, but how could I not stare at such a blatant display?
After that short disruption, we continued railing off all our old school metal shows. I was most impressed with the fact they'd all seen Motley Crue pre-Dr. Feelgood. I was especially jealous of The Dude, who saw them with Ozzy on the Shout at the Devil tour. That is a major score in my book.
This discussion inspired us to go back to the house and watch the classic "Decline of the Western Civilization Part 2: The Metal Years." It's a Penelope Spheeris movie that documents the L.A. hair metal scene that exploded in the mid-80s. Some of it is hilarious (the fashion statements), some of it sad (the unrealistic dreams amongst the crowd). The most depressing part is Chris Holmes' segment, where he's literally bathing himself in vodka- in front of his Mom, who is clearly trying not to burst out in tears while he babbles incoherently about his life. Yes. This movie is a must-see.
At around 1am I decided to head out since I was now sober and post-drunk fatigue was setting in. Definitely another fun night in Long Island that was worth the drive.
PHOTOS (They didn't come out that great, but you get the idea)
VIDEO:
Phoenix and the Fall:
Chasing Yesterday:
Sunday, January 28, 2007
Sunday, January 21, 2007
Rock Of Love? *sigh*
From Metal Sludge:
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The hot rumor with girlies & groupies around Hollywood is that hundreds have lined up to audition to be part of the "Rock of Love". This is rumored (of course) to be the new VH1 reality series featuring a bad boy rock star. After huge ratings with the "Flava of Love" starring rap legend Flava Flav from Public Enemy it seems that VH1 has taken the idea and added long hair, and some bleach blonde bimbos.
The latest is that it's gonna be bad boy Bret Michaels of Poison. God knows they ain't gonna line up for Jani Lane. At least we hope not! Stay tuned for more details as they spill all over like sperm in the back of a tour bus!
Metal Sludge Flava of Sludge
Last Updated ( 12/21/06 )
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As you can tell from some of my blogs, I am not afraid to admit (anymore) that I was a big time hair metal freak back in the day and still display some interest in the groups that once graced my walls and tape decks. That's because somewhere along the way, it became ok to come out of the closet and publicly own this part of my history (including the fact that I saw Poison twice in my life). But just when I got some self respect back and stopped hiding my Aqua Net past, they're going to remind everyone just how ridiculous that whole scene really was by throwing Bret Michaels back in front of the camera with a bunch of bimbettes in, no doubt, multi-colored metallic dresses.
This isn't the only upsetting news I have received recently. I heard on VH-1 Classic the other day that Vince Neil is now a cruise ship performer. There was a time I actually thought Vince was cool. Now he's a metal Kathy Lee Gifford. I feel very conflicted about this, because it's for a good cause. But I just feel like he's somehow setting himself up for embarassment. I hope for his sake he has record-breaking sales and makes enough cash for his foundation to make it all worth it.
It could be that I'm just in denial and hair metal was in fact NEVER cool. No way. It was. But like every genre, you had the cool bands and then the lameasses that ruined it for everyone. What bad things could you have to say about a scene that was all about rock music, girls, hot guys in black eyeliner, drugs and liquor? Nothing. Too bad I was nowhere near a legal age to fully partake without getting a few people arrested.
-----
The hot rumor with girlies & groupies around Hollywood is that hundreds have lined up to audition to be part of the "Rock of Love". This is rumored (of course) to be the new VH1 reality series featuring a bad boy rock star. After huge ratings with the "Flava of Love" starring rap legend Flava Flav from Public Enemy it seems that VH1 has taken the idea and added long hair, and some bleach blonde bimbos.
The latest is that it's gonna be bad boy Bret Michaels of Poison. God knows they ain't gonna line up for Jani Lane. At least we hope not! Stay tuned for more details as they spill all over like sperm in the back of a tour bus!
Metal Sludge Flava of Sludge
Last Updated ( 12/21/06 )
-----
As you can tell from some of my blogs, I am not afraid to admit (anymore) that I was a big time hair metal freak back in the day and still display some interest in the groups that once graced my walls and tape decks. That's because somewhere along the way, it became ok to come out of the closet and publicly own this part of my history (including the fact that I saw Poison twice in my life). But just when I got some self respect back and stopped hiding my Aqua Net past, they're going to remind everyone just how ridiculous that whole scene really was by throwing Bret Michaels back in front of the camera with a bunch of bimbettes in, no doubt, multi-colored metallic dresses.
This isn't the only upsetting news I have received recently. I heard on VH-1 Classic the other day that Vince Neil is now a cruise ship performer. There was a time I actually thought Vince was cool. Now he's a metal Kathy Lee Gifford. I feel very conflicted about this, because it's for a good cause. But I just feel like he's somehow setting himself up for embarassment. I hope for his sake he has record-breaking sales and makes enough cash for his foundation to make it all worth it.
It could be that I'm just in denial and hair metal was in fact NEVER cool. No way. It was. But like every genre, you had the cool bands and then the lameasses that ruined it for everyone. What bad things could you have to say about a scene that was all about rock music, girls, hot guys in black eyeliner, drugs and liquor? Nothing. Too bad I was nowhere near a legal age to fully partake without getting a few people arrested.
Sunday, January 14, 2007
Comedy Steel with Metal Man
At the last minute, I went to see Jim Breuer's Comedy Steel show at the Nokia Theatre last night. Due to recent events I felt I needed to laugh, so I went ahead and bought the $30 ticket. If I had shelled out $60, I could have taken part in a Breuer meet n' greet and received a signed DVD as well as early entry (it was General Admission). But again, due to recent events, I decided not to spend the money.
After descending down the neon-lit escalator to the bottom floor of the building, I paid the $3 for coat check and $7 for my vodka/Sprite and went inside to the performance area. Considering I had arrived about 15 minutes before showtime, there was plenty of space in the front, so I walked right up to the barricade with no problem. However, that didn't stop a short guy with a crew-cut (semi-decent looking) from brushing up against me, even though there was a lot of room for movement. I just ignored him and moved up closer to get away from him, but he ended up standing next to me on the barricade anyway.
Right at 8pm Eddie Trunk came out to get the crowd going. He began the show psyching the crowd up by telling us Ozzy was there. But instead, out came Billy Mira with his Ozzy impression. Wearing a wig, sunglasses, black long-sleeved shirt and the same black Adidas workout pants that I have, he ran around the stage singing the classic Ozzy tune "I Don't Know." I think the crowd was pissed at first because they actually believed Ozzy would grace us with his presence. As for me, I was only mildly entertained by this display. In hindsight, I'm sure if I had drank at least two more vodka/Sprites, I would have been into it. After Billy, comedian Don Jamieson performed. He was OK, but nothing spectacular. Not many "LOL" moments from him.
In between comedy acts there were some all-star metal jams involving Frank Bello of Anthrax, Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister, Jack Frost (who I am not familiar with), and Overkill's Blitz and D.D. There was a short time I had a crush on Jay Jay actually. Don't get excited. I said a SHORT time. Anyhow, they played covers from AC/DC and Black Sabbath, so it was total sing-a-long time.
After Don and another jam, was Jim Florentine. I was the most excited for his performance. He's always cracking me up on Stern, so I 've wanted to see his standup for awhile. Unfortunately I missed a few of his jokes because this drunk chick, that was a constant presence all night, was super distracting. Security had her sit in front of the barricade until she mellowed out, but that plan failed. She just kept shouting at Jim to bang her and yelled out the "WAOOHHH!!"s that drunk girls feel they need to express at random moments. The only time Jim acknowledged her was as Security finally moved her back behind the barricade: "Uh oh- someone's getting kicked out already. Oh cool- it's a rock slut!"
Out of all the comedians, Florentine made me laugh the most. I was kind of surprised he showed up though, because about two weeks ago they announced on Stern's show that he found his girlfriend's body in his apartment after she had apparently committed suicide. At the end, he thanked the crowd and mentioned this was his first show back, presumably referring to the tragic event. He also said that he would be at the merch booth to sign stuff, but I didn't go over to meet him. I didn't want to buy something, and since I didn't have anything for him to actually autograph, I'd feel like a dumbass. Plus I didn't want to give up my position up front.
During the downtime, Crewcut struck up conversation with me. He was nice enough, but I don't really take to guys who make me the topic (asking me what I do, where I live, etc.). I'd rather just talk about the surroundings, the show, or pretty much anything but me. It's not that I find it obnoxious when they ask me stuff, it's just that forced conversation is a big red flag to me that the person is boring. Smartass comments about the drunkies behind us would have been a quicker way to my heart.
Finally, after a short comedic film depicting a child's first life-changing exposure to Judas Priest, Jim Breuer came out. He's dressed, as he puts it, either "totally metal" or "totally gay." How the show works is that he tells stories as a backup band plays mood music with a hard rock slant to it. So it's sort of like stand-up with a metal soundtrack. It's a unique concept that I think he pulls off, but only if the stories are really entertaining. Tonight, I felt they were kind of long winded. He doesn't perform that much these days, so maybe it was new material he was trying out or something.
During his set, he was disrupted four times by crowd members crashing the stage. The first time was by two drunk stagedivers. The second was by a lone drunk who ran up and actually tried to make conversation with him. After that incident, Jim stopped the show to try to explain to security how to do their job and told the crowd "Up here? That's where I hang out. You guys hang out down THERE." Even after all this (which Jim handled very well by the way), there was yet a third incident in which the previously mentioned drunk chick ran up onstage past Security on my side. She screamed "WOOAOHHH!!!" in his face and then ran off, eventually getting thrown out of the venue. The fourth crasher was unsuccessful, because the short security guard stagefront center threw him to the ground right as he made his attempt. Finally Security did their job.
How did all this happen? Well for starters, the guard on my side was very involved with his cell phone all night. This isn't the first time I've seen him at a show- he's at almost every local venue I go to. One time I saw him actually take a call while a band was playing and kids were crowdsurfing to the front. Nice to know that the performers can trust him to keep his focus. When his manager came over to bitch him out, he acted like the girl was too wiley for him. But really if he had just been paying attention, he would have had plenty of lead time to grab her by the braids and yank her off the stairs. In all seriousness, we can laugh at Jim's "Security 101" jokes, the idiot guards and lameasses who run up there, but this is how we lost Dimebag. Luckily, these were just harmless goofy drunks, but you never know.
After Breuer was finished, they had a final jam and then the show was over. It ended at 11pm, clocking in at 3 hours. As the crowd broke up, Crewcut hung around and I knew what was coming next. He asked if I'd like to meet up sometime, but I declined. It's true. Girls know right away if they're interested in a guy, and I already knew that I wasn't into him. Especially after he stated that he liked Nickelback.
Overall I'd say that I honestly wasn't that thrilled with the show. The material was pretty bland and at times I found myself (especially during Breuer's set) waiting for it to be over. The jams were probably the highlight for me, because I always get a kick out of seeing the metal legends play. I wish Florentine's set was longer, but I'll probably end up seeing him headline at some point anyhow. Having said all that, I am still glad I went. But with some material editing on Breuer's part and better security, I think it could have been a better show.
PHOTOS
After descending down the neon-lit escalator to the bottom floor of the building, I paid the $3 for coat check and $7 for my vodka/Sprite and went inside to the performance area. Considering I had arrived about 15 minutes before showtime, there was plenty of space in the front, so I walked right up to the barricade with no problem. However, that didn't stop a short guy with a crew-cut (semi-decent looking) from brushing up against me, even though there was a lot of room for movement. I just ignored him and moved up closer to get away from him, but he ended up standing next to me on the barricade anyway.
Right at 8pm Eddie Trunk came out to get the crowd going. He began the show psyching the crowd up by telling us Ozzy was there. But instead, out came Billy Mira with his Ozzy impression. Wearing a wig, sunglasses, black long-sleeved shirt and the same black Adidas workout pants that I have, he ran around the stage singing the classic Ozzy tune "I Don't Know." I think the crowd was pissed at first because they actually believed Ozzy would grace us with his presence. As for me, I was only mildly entertained by this display. In hindsight, I'm sure if I had drank at least two more vodka/Sprites, I would have been into it. After Billy, comedian Don Jamieson performed. He was OK, but nothing spectacular. Not many "LOL" moments from him.
In between comedy acts there were some all-star metal jams involving Frank Bello of Anthrax, Jay Jay French of Twisted Sister, Jack Frost (who I am not familiar with), and Overkill's Blitz and D.D. There was a short time I had a crush on Jay Jay actually. Don't get excited. I said a SHORT time. Anyhow, they played covers from AC/DC and Black Sabbath, so it was total sing-a-long time.
After Don and another jam, was Jim Florentine. I was the most excited for his performance. He's always cracking me up on Stern, so I 've wanted to see his standup for awhile. Unfortunately I missed a few of his jokes because this drunk chick, that was a constant presence all night, was super distracting. Security had her sit in front of the barricade until she mellowed out, but that plan failed. She just kept shouting at Jim to bang her and yelled out the "WAOOHHH!!"s that drunk girls feel they need to express at random moments. The only time Jim acknowledged her was as Security finally moved her back behind the barricade: "Uh oh- someone's getting kicked out already. Oh cool- it's a rock slut!"
Out of all the comedians, Florentine made me laugh the most. I was kind of surprised he showed up though, because about two weeks ago they announced on Stern's show that he found his girlfriend's body in his apartment after she had apparently committed suicide. At the end, he thanked the crowd and mentioned this was his first show back, presumably referring to the tragic event. He also said that he would be at the merch booth to sign stuff, but I didn't go over to meet him. I didn't want to buy something, and since I didn't have anything for him to actually autograph, I'd feel like a dumbass. Plus I didn't want to give up my position up front.
During the downtime, Crewcut struck up conversation with me. He was nice enough, but I don't really take to guys who make me the topic (asking me what I do, where I live, etc.). I'd rather just talk about the surroundings, the show, or pretty much anything but me. It's not that I find it obnoxious when they ask me stuff, it's just that forced conversation is a big red flag to me that the person is boring. Smartass comments about the drunkies behind us would have been a quicker way to my heart.
Finally, after a short comedic film depicting a child's first life-changing exposure to Judas Priest, Jim Breuer came out. He's dressed, as he puts it, either "totally metal" or "totally gay." How the show works is that he tells stories as a backup band plays mood music with a hard rock slant to it. So it's sort of like stand-up with a metal soundtrack. It's a unique concept that I think he pulls off, but only if the stories are really entertaining. Tonight, I felt they were kind of long winded. He doesn't perform that much these days, so maybe it was new material he was trying out or something.
During his set, he was disrupted four times by crowd members crashing the stage. The first time was by two drunk stagedivers. The second was by a lone drunk who ran up and actually tried to make conversation with him. After that incident, Jim stopped the show to try to explain to security how to do their job and told the crowd "Up here? That's where I hang out. You guys hang out down THERE." Even after all this (which Jim handled very well by the way), there was yet a third incident in which the previously mentioned drunk chick ran up onstage past Security on my side. She screamed "WOOAOHHH!!!" in his face and then ran off, eventually getting thrown out of the venue. The fourth crasher was unsuccessful, because the short security guard stagefront center threw him to the ground right as he made his attempt. Finally Security did their job.
How did all this happen? Well for starters, the guard on my side was very involved with his cell phone all night. This isn't the first time I've seen him at a show- he's at almost every local venue I go to. One time I saw him actually take a call while a band was playing and kids were crowdsurfing to the front. Nice to know that the performers can trust him to keep his focus. When his manager came over to bitch him out, he acted like the girl was too wiley for him. But really if he had just been paying attention, he would have had plenty of lead time to grab her by the braids and yank her off the stairs. In all seriousness, we can laugh at Jim's "Security 101" jokes, the idiot guards and lameasses who run up there, but this is how we lost Dimebag. Luckily, these were just harmless goofy drunks, but you never know.
After Breuer was finished, they had a final jam and then the show was over. It ended at 11pm, clocking in at 3 hours. As the crowd broke up, Crewcut hung around and I knew what was coming next. He asked if I'd like to meet up sometime, but I declined. It's true. Girls know right away if they're interested in a guy, and I already knew that I wasn't into him. Especially after he stated that he liked Nickelback.
Overall I'd say that I honestly wasn't that thrilled with the show. The material was pretty bland and at times I found myself (especially during Breuer's set) waiting for it to be over. The jams were probably the highlight for me, because I always get a kick out of seeing the metal legends play. I wish Florentine's set was longer, but I'll probably end up seeing him headline at some point anyhow. Having said all that, I am still glad I went. But with some material editing on Breuer's part and better security, I think it could have been a better show.
PHOTOS