The Only Thing Constant Is Strange – September 26th, 2000
by Bing Futch
[[bingwwrr3]]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</b>. 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</i></a> brought the story to the attention
of those who hadn’t heard about it elsewhere or through the Furious
George</b></a> mailing list. After the band was banned from The
Station, the sparks began to fly.
[[mimimic]]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.
[[nutrajet]]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.
[[bugheadstation]]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.
[[crazyhector]]Gargamel! was also on the bill, celebrating bassist
Crazy Hector’s birthday and the arrival of new
guitarist Professor Knuckles also of Foolproof
Plan</b>. 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.
[[cameron53]]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.
[[bryceboxelder]]”Great seeing you again man,” lead singer Bryce
Rutkowski</b> 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. [[boxelder2]] “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.
[[bryangun]]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. [[doorway27wills]]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.
[[michellewills]]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,
“bfsig”
