Now, I am back because my buddy Shawn Rainier and his band SXX are there to play, but they are not alone. Along for the ride were The Luminous, Killing For Sport and Seizure Lake.
Martha and I went not knowing what to expect. Certainly running into one of my old work buddies from Ameritech was the last thing on my mind. But, there was Brian. He looks the same and remembered me even though I have much more beard and a lot less hair.
Anyway, that was cool and then we went into The Redrum. The entire place was a blast from the past. The wallpaper was that gold metallic look with the red velvet patterns on it. All the pictures on the walls looked like they belonged in the mansion of a Resident Evil game. In other words, it was cool.
Two things about the place that torked me off were the one urinal that had a loose pipe so that if you flushed it it sprayed water. Not cool. The other thing was the douche bag bartender that I accidentally handed a five spot and a single to pay for a Diet Coke and he pocketed the whole thing. I used to be a bartender and that was a douche bag thing. If and when I go back he will never receive another tip from me again.
But, let's hit the bands shall we?
First up was The Luminous. Three kids with a ton of energy from Grand Rapids. The three piece was wailing and they call themselves Grunge, experimental punk, but I think a better description would be...The Luminous. Definitely a unique sound and I would go see them again if they played in Kalamazoo or the surrounding areas. Here's their MySpace page so you can go and get a taste. THE LUMINOUS
Next we had Seizure Lake. This band threw me off because the lead singer was this nice looking blonde who really didn't strike me as someone who could blast us with the guttural growls of speed/death metal that came from her vocal cords. The band gave us an awesome set and afterwards she was handing out free CDs. I took one and we listened to it on the way to church this morning. It sounded much better than their live set, but that wasn't their fault. More on this later. Check out their tunage at SEIZURE LAKE
Then there was Killing for Sport. Probably my least favorite of the night. That doesn't mean they were bad it was just that I had already had that type of music with Seizure Lake and I thought they did it better. One thing I will give this foursome is that they have tremendous energy and they look like no other foursome I have ever seen. A group of four of the most different looking guys you have ever seen in your life. I couldn't believe they were the band! Anyway, here's their site if you want to check out their sounds. KILLING FOR SPORT.
Finally, we come to the reason I was there for the night. SXX! I hadn't seen them since Martha and I braved the wilderness and drove to Hastings in a snowstorm. It had been too long. My one true regret is that it's not the original line up. We still have Shawn and Rich, but no Phil and I really like Phil's guitar work. They have these two new guys and while that is fine, it's just not what I want because I am spoiled to the core. That being said, they did an awesome job and played a couple of my favorites. And, anyone closing their set with a kickass rendition of Ace Of Spades is always good in my book. Here's where you can dig one of my favorite bands. SXX
One last gripe concerning the sound. The Luminous, Seizure Lake and Killing For Sport all got a shot in the foot due to the sound guy. I know this because Seizure Lake sounded so much better on their recording and SXX is able to rise above the crappiest of sound men because of the time they have played together. I think that might have made a big difference in the overall vibe of the night.
In the end it was four bands for five bucks, a bargain anytime and a fun time to be out on the local music scene.
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