Dark's Corner
The Only Thing Constant Is Strange - September 26th, 2000
I'm predicting a wave of toad-licking to begin sometime in the early part of 2001. By then, all of the current club drugs of choice will have become passe' or very hard to come by thanks to the Orange County Sherrif's drug task force. Their command center must be near
Cyberzone.
Good thing there weren't any troopers on 408 when myself and Greg Reinel of Nutrajet blasted onto the highway in his stealth-black turbocharged Mustang Cobra. It was while guttersniping an 18-wheeler at close to 100 m.p.h. that Greg cheerfully turned to me and said, "we're still in third gear." Disney needs to get an attraction like that. Oh wait--they do, it's called the Richard Petty Driving Experience.
We were both on our way to the Clear Channel building in Maitland to go in-studio with Melissa Foxx and Mimi Mouse (in da house!) for the "Get A Life!" show that airs Friday nights between 6-7 pm on 740 AM WWNZ. Mohave had just done the show two weeks earlier, but Greg thought it would be fun for us to go tag team and catch Melissa off-guard with our complete disinterest in plugging anything. We talked about anal Altoids, the Rolling Stones, thrift stores and what it's like to be an outsider in the Orlando music scene. We also talked about the new policy at The Station in Fernwood Park, something having to do with not playing a "rival" club, Lost & Found which is located in Longwood. Marc Padgett of The Orlando Weekly brought the story to the attention of those who hadn't heard about it elsewhere or through the Furious George mailing list. After the band was banned from The Station, the sparks began to fly.
I don't understand what The Station has to worry about. It should never go broke because of all those national shows that the locals get bumped for. They're sure to draw a crowd with a faded rock band that was at least famous once. So, I made it clear on what we thought was "the air", that I disagreed with the stupid policy. Unfortunately, there was some sort of technical glitch and only the music of Mohave, Nutrajet and
Human Suit was played.
Sa la vie. We got a picture of Mimi doing the nasty with a couple of mics though. She's a
raving doll isn't she? Wonder what that translates to in Norse.
Friday night, Nutrajet played The Station and I was looking forward to seeing the new line-up featuring drummer
Jeff "Bad Guy" Wood but unfortunately, sushi took longer than expected and my wife and I arrived just in time to hear the final chords of "Whip The Big Boy Out" echoing as we pulled into the parking lot. No worries though. Figure we'll get something to go on October 7th when the duo plays
Will's Pub with
The Hatebombs. Apparently, Will Walker
is returning to Will's, ironically enough. More on that in a few tokes.
Bughead was also on the bill that night and it had been awhile since I'd seen the guys. Of course, they've been nominated for a
2000 Orlando Music Award in the "Punk/Ska" category and tied with
Blue Meridian last year for a win in the "Rock" category. Lead vocalist and guitarist
Nathan Adams created a lasting impression when he dropped his pants and mooned the crowd while
Donovan Lyman spoke on behalf of BM. Both bands are ones to watch at this year's show, taking place October 14th at
The House Of Blues. Tix are going quix, $8 is a small price to pay for such hijinks.
Gargamel! was also on the bill, celebrating bassist
Crazy Hector's birthday and the arrival of new guitarist
Professor Knuckles also of
Foolproof Plan. Hector's Bo Derek look usually lasts only so long as he's sober and steady. Three songs tops. On guitar, Knuckles does a credible job following in the monstrous footsteps of
El Diablo Guapo, adding his own wizardry into the mix. "I just learned the songs as they were," he said shortly before the band went on. "When I'm more comfortable with the songs, then I'll start adding more of my influence into it." Still, the band had a different edge to it that night and it definitely marks the beginning of a whole new era for the group that took OMA honors last year and are more than likely going to repeat in October.
Junkie Rush was also on the bill, but we had just dug them at HOB for BYOB and my wife was HORNY, so that spelled GUTEN NACHT.
The following night at Will's was my first time seeing
Preferred 53 and their very L.A. brand of four-on-the-floor rock. Lead singer/guitarist Cameron is a grass roots kinda guy, laying CD's on me not only of his band, but other bands as well. "We have to support each other, we're all about that," he said outside after his group's energetic and well-received set. Second act
Boxelder is down with that concept and though it would be my first experience in concert with this tribe as well, we had all met before.
"Great seeing you again man," lead singer
Bryce Rutkowski said to me. I had pulled the group's
"What For?" album out of a pile at Jam some time ago and asked the band if they'd like to come out and do a live interview with us for
M4Radio.com. They agreed and we had a great time with the guys when they drove out from Jupiter, Florida early last year. Their music is groovy, full of energy and life, embracing change and social conciousness. The band vibe is like- wise on the positive tip, so I wrote a feature article about them, hoping to assist in getting the word out. This is one of those rare cases where I received a confirmation.
"That story you wrote opened a lot of doors for us," said Rutkowski. "We've never had the chance to tell you how much we appreciate it." I reached out and pressed half a joint into the dread's hand. "Could you play 'Void' tonight? It's my favorite song of yours," I said. Peering down at the treat, the singer smiled broadly. "We'll do that for you."
They did. It rocked. Mightily.
As I recall, there was jointage happening when I first hung with
Doorway 27 during
Cocofest 2000. That's the great thing about pot--it unites, unlike rum, which divides. Anyway,
Bryan, Max, Angel and
Chris are some of the coolest folks you'd ever want to meet and their music is as popular as it is different.
Yes, there's a hip-hop flavah to the mix, but for every convention, Doorway 27 comes up with something that's inventive, especially through the guitar playing of Chris a.k.a. "Captain Colors." Pretty intricate stuff he's doing over there stage right.
Will's booking agent/soundgirl/barmaid extraordinaire
Michelle has posted the October schedule for the pub but who knows
what will be going on when Will returns in November. The boycott that was started by several bands when Will vacated the place has been ditched by a few who apparently decided that they weren't getting enough gigs elsewhere. So much for loyalty. The alleged official date for Will's prodigal homecoming is slated for
November 3rd with Gargamel! and Bughead performing. What I'd like to know is, what of the band
scabs? It should be interesting to see if the open-door policy to bands remains in place or if the non-loyals will find themselves running into a
Sapphire type brick wall trying to get bookings. Either way, it'll probably pay better for those who
do play. Overheard from one of the bandmembers Saturday night, "I asked for a pitcher of beer and they said there wasn't enough clientele yet."
Maybe Will should consider drink coupons when he comes back.
Well, we'll see what happens this week. Until the next, be well, be wise and be wary. And go see a live show!
Pa gjensyn,
A native of Los Angeles, Bing Futch moved to central Florida in 1993 and immediately began performing. Since then, he's been actively involved in the local scene both as an artist and as a member of the media. Currently, he can be seen and heard playing Appalachian mountain dulcimer around the state with the band Mohave. Send flames and fondles to www.darkstudios.com or bing@ink19.com and you can also subscribe to The Dark's Corner Mailing List which is the official mailing list for this column. Send press kits, music and legal drugs to: J.O.B. Entertainment Inc. P.O. Box 560727 Orlando, Florida 32856
