Spirit of San Pedro
Where the heck is Harold's Place? That what I was trying to figure out last night since J Church was scheduled to play that San Pedro bar tonight. Turns out the place has been shut down. Instead, the band played a backyard party.
After I got the info from bass player and indie comic artist extraordinaire Ben Snakepit, I drove to the address in a residential part of the city and saw three people around J Church's black van. Lance and company just dropped off their stuff and were looking for some grub. I accompanied them to a pizza place called Filippo's. No slices were being served, so everyone got pasta. Not bad.
Back at the house, a bunch of local bands were playing. It was super young except for the presence of Mike Watt. Whoa, the godfather of San Pedro (and punk legend in general) was in the house! I struck up some small talk about my brother-in-law Carlos and sister Angelyn, since he recorded music at their house once, and he said, "Much respect." When I mentioned that our mutual friend Ray Barbee just played my wedding, the Minutemen/fIREHOUSE/Stooges/Dos/Secondmen bassist said, "He's bad..." Then he gave me a sticker.
Enough name dropping, and back to the music. We got back just in time to see Chinese Telephones. It's hard to give a full report on the Milwaukee band's songs because they played straight out of their amps, and vocals and nuances in riffs were impossible to discern, but there was a definite Screeching Weasel vibe, and the group even played a Naked Raygun cover.
Next up was J Church. I was sure the show would be busted by now, but that never happened. The band played seven songs, and the raw sound system was not a problem because I pretty much know the words. Any time I get to sing along to "My Favorite Place" is a good one. It's hard to explain why I think J Church is the greatest band in the world, but reasons include catchy riffs, smart lyrics, interesting cultural allusions, total DIY approach, great covers, maintaing the balance of everyday attitude and high-end chops, and Lance being one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet.
After that, Chinese Telephones' touring mates Modern Machines played. Very tight, very catchy punk--nearly mod. Good stuff. I bought their latest CD to help the Wisconsin contingent pay for gas.
Lance said it was a quintessential California backyard punk show, since the music was played under plantain and orange trees. I've never been to a show like that out of California, but I was proud to hear that since it was a good one.
After I got the info from bass player and indie comic artist extraordinaire Ben Snakepit, I drove to the address in a residential part of the city and saw three people around J Church's black van. Lance and company just dropped off their stuff and were looking for some grub. I accompanied them to a pizza place called Filippo's. No slices were being served, so everyone got pasta. Not bad.
Back at the house, a bunch of local bands were playing. It was super young except for the presence of Mike Watt. Whoa, the godfather of San Pedro (and punk legend in general) was in the house! I struck up some small talk about my brother-in-law Carlos and sister Angelyn, since he recorded music at their house once, and he said, "Much respect." When I mentioned that our mutual friend Ray Barbee just played my wedding, the Minutemen/fIREHOUSE/Stooges/Dos/Secondmen bassist said, "He's bad..." Then he gave me a sticker.
Enough name dropping, and back to the music. We got back just in time to see Chinese Telephones. It's hard to give a full report on the Milwaukee band's songs because they played straight out of their amps, and vocals and nuances in riffs were impossible to discern, but there was a definite Screeching Weasel vibe, and the group even played a Naked Raygun cover.
Next up was J Church. I was sure the show would be busted by now, but that never happened. The band played seven songs, and the raw sound system was not a problem because I pretty much know the words. Any time I get to sing along to "My Favorite Place" is a good one. It's hard to explain why I think J Church is the greatest band in the world, but reasons include catchy riffs, smart lyrics, interesting cultural allusions, total DIY approach, great covers, maintaing the balance of everyday attitude and high-end chops, and Lance being one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet.
After that, Chinese Telephones' touring mates Modern Machines played. Very tight, very catchy punk--nearly mod. Good stuff. I bought their latest CD to help the Wisconsin contingent pay for gas.
Lance said it was a quintessential California backyard punk show, since the music was played under plantain and orange trees. I've never been to a show like that out of California, but I was proud to hear that since it was a good one.
posted by gr at
11:00 PM
The J Church folks informed me that the backyard show was busted by the cops shortly after I left. But it was a gentle bust--no clubs or shields like Black Flag at the Palladium or anything like that.
mw
Post a Comment
<< Home