Monday, September 01, 2008

Rearview Look at the Past Week: Casbah, Radiohead, etc.

I really envisioned my Labor Day at home, parked in front of the TV, writing some posts and making my listings, however I'm now at the Casbah, selling merchandise for Southern Culture on the Skids who were incredibly nice and have their merch situation down to a tee; definitely the most organized band I've worked for, and with their credit machine, they're already moving some product. I also like that they used the entire counter space because it deters the leaners and people who like to set their drinks down.

I will try and recap my past week and post some pictures while I'm here for the next 3 hours. That includes Tuesday night for Circa Now, Fing, and Whiskey Circus, Wednesday night at Radiohead, Friday night for Writer and The Postals, Saturday night with Republic of Letters, AM Vibe, and Lanterns, and last night at Radio Room for Team Abraham, then The Down Family and Jivewire at the Casbah. It was definitely a busy week. All of it after the jump.


On Tuesday, Jake and I headed down to the Casbah for Whiskey Circus, Fing, and Circa Now's CD release. The show was incredibly loud; I was even wearing ear plugs on the patio. Whiskey Circus is a band from LA and they sound exactly like what you think when you hear "Whiskey Circus". They were very 'Sunset Strip' complete with foot on the monitor posing, spins, and using the mic stand as prop. Not my cup of tea, but whatever. I've enjoyed Fing a lot in the past, but with the sound as loud as it was, a lot of the dance stuff got lost and jumbled. Same can be said for Circa Now who are a local punk/rock band. We didn't make it to the end of the night.

On Wednesday I was having a crisis day at work coupled with the fact that I hadn't secured a ride to Radiohead and I was close to just giving up and selling a ticket. It was frustrating because I knew so many people who were going but everyone had a different plan on when they were leaving or their cars were full. Finally Xavie came through and offered a ride, plus he had an extra ticket, so I called the guy who was going to buy my ticket and offered him the other one instead and he accepted. Before the show, we had no problem getting into the lot and to the parking, but it was crazy to see the lines into the venue wrapped around so long that they merged into one another. We had some pre-show beers in the lot while waiting for Bahv as he was coming from LA, then hung out with him for a while. The line was still incredibly long, so we missed Liars entirely, but made it into the venue well before Radiohead started. They went to their seats and I made my way to the pit. I ran into James and ended up hanging with him the majority of the show.



I never considered myself a huge Radiohead fan, and I chose to skip the shows at the Embarcadero because I was just so sick of hearing people talk about them, but honestly, this show blew me away. They played 25 songs (full setlist on Street)and from the first note to the last I felt transported. It was incredibly powerful and a moving experience that made me want to laugh, cry, and hug everyone around me.












After the show, it took over an hour to get out of the parking lot because evidently CalTrans has closed the northbound 805 for road work, so we snaked through Brandywine, stopped at Xavie's and ended up at the Ken Club for a nightcap.

Thursday night I opted to stay home and watch the DNC, but then I had a very strange and uncomfortable situation which I won't go into here, but the result meant that I bunkered at the Ken Club until the situation was resolved. I am an open person, but even I have my limits.

Friday was a half day at work which was perfect. Jake and I had dim sum for lunch at Emerald then I went home and took a much needed long sleep. It was nice knowing that the huge project I'd been working on at work was finally in a place where we should meet our deadline by the end of the day tomorrow because it allowed me to wash away the week and really get into full weekend mode.

Friday night I had planned on stopping by Habitat, but I got a late jump on the night and instead went to South Park and hung out with Kristian for a while before we headed to the Whistle Stop. There was a line at the door, so Kristian didn't stick around but I wasn't gonna miss Writer so I opted to stay. They were amazing as always. I really wish there was better lighting because I recorded some video but you can't see any of it. I'll upload it regardless, because the sound is still pretty rad.




After they finished I didn't stick around and made my way back to Kensington to catch The Postals at the Ken Club. I only got to see Freddy and the guys do their thing for about 2 songs, but they're always rad. Particularly if you think Fred is this quiet Ken Club bartender, then you see him break into character and you wonder how that can be the same dude.


I stayed late, and for no apparent reason, ended up staying up till 6 am watching TV and playing on the internet.
Kensington Sky at 6:06 am

It was a pretty dumb move considering I was having the BBQ on Saturday. After just a few hours sleep I went to buy the carne asada and beer.

I was tired from preparations and cleaning, but was still in a good mood when everyone started to show up close to 6 pm, and the food was good. A lot of people brought hot dogs and sausages and I bought pre-marinated carne and made some rice and beans and we had plenty left over that I ended up grilling for my family on Sunday.

Sadly, the turnout for the show was pretty weak. I don't know why people are averse to the Ken Club but whatever, it's my spot and I love it. All three bands were great. Lanterns gave a great set despite the singer having a nasty cold, A.M. Vibe sounded great with Lisah smiling through the whole set as she does, and Republic of Letters were excellent despite Chris losing his voice toward the end of the set.

There was plenty of beer left over at my house, so Jake, Laura Jane and Abraham came over and hung out for a few hours meaning another late night for me. I love it though, and finally got to sleep in on Sunday before spending the day at my parents' house and getting some quality time with my niece.

I went home around 7 and was losing motivation to do anything, but I saw a flood of tweets and couldn't resist the peer pressure, I guess, so I started my night at the Radio Room for Team Abraham. The guy who played before them was David Dundero and he was really good. It was mmy first time going to the Radio Room and though the bathrooms are a huge improvement, the room still feels stark and boxy. I'd like to see them put some curtains behind the stage or something...even sconces or something to pep it up a little bit. Team Abraham played their set and then Abraham and I dropped my car off and went to the Casbah for the Downs Family and the Jivewire dance party. The Downs Family was always one of my favorite local bands to watch when I was in high school and they still bring a total party when they play. The crowd was really enthusiastic and it was incredibly crowded. A lot of the scooter club didn't stick around for Jivewire but enough people replaced them that it stayed pretty crowded all night long. I got dropped off at home and was asleep before my head hit the pillow.

Finally today, I slept in once again, had a late lunch/early dinner with Daye and Jake at DiMille's then we hung out in Normal Heights at the rec center before I got the call that I was needed to sell merch, and here I am.

So there it is, a longwinded post and I've got probably another half hour behind this booth. I'm ready for some sleep and then back to the day job in the morning. Hoping it passes swiftly because I'm already looking forward to next weekend.

4 comments:

bryan said...

awesome radiohead pictures. how awesome were the lights for paranoid android??? i unfortunately was on the lawn with a broken leg.. standing up for my favorites and sitting down for the slower songs.. The embarcadero was 10000 x more awesome because everyone was on the same level, the beer wasn't $10 (well maybe it was, i just didn't buy any that time) and they had like 10 tv screens in odd positions behind them plus all the lights..

Rosemary Bystrak said...

Thanks, Bryan. I read that you broke your leg, that really sucks. Hope you heal soon. Maybe the music helped.

by Mario S. said...

No way. The lights were waaay better this show. You even seen on a radiohead show? On WEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEd?

Tania said...

the lights were definitely out of control for this show. i went to the one at the embarcadero and it was great as well, but this one had a different feel. sucks you waited that long to get out, go the back way! i was out of there in less than 10 minutes! hit me up next time and you are more than welcome to hitch a ride with me!