This past Winter went by so fast it seems like a blur. Found time to check out a few shows. The following is who I saw.
Monday November 11th saw Washed Out at Ace o Spade. Even though I said I would never go to that venue again, I went to this show back in November. The stage was strange. The entire band (with exception to the signer) were behind giant translucent boxes made of some gauze like material. The audience only saw the shadows of the band members. The set was long. I recall seeing the last song performed by Casey MQ, the opener.
Not much by way of merch at this show. I wanted to buy the latest album from Washed Out in CD but it was all vinyl. I like vinyl records to but I do not have a record player setup at home. I prefer listening to CDs in my car.
A few days later, on Saturday November 16th, I saw the great Lee Ving and his band FEAR at a new club called The Rinq in Del Paso Heights. The venue is nice. Small bathroom though. The bar only has full cans of diet coke for NA choices. Beers and alcohol for sale. They allow for smokers and generall fresh air breathers to hang outside which is nice. Inside the club, the dance floor is large. The sound is large in this building, so be prepared for music to be loud.
Lee Ving is still in top form. Must be in his 70’s by now. Gotta say, when I heard Ving sing the chorus in “More Beer,” I was impressed by the vocal range.
“And when I wake up in the morning
My mouth’s all parched and dry, parched and dry…”
DJ Test was on the turntables for this show. The Infirmities not bad. From Salinas. No CDs for sale but I bought a FEAR shirt.
In December, got back together with the Simple Solution gang for a show at On the Y, 12/19. This show featured Life Support who headlined, TV Static, several other bands. DJ Test on the turntables. Simple Solution lineup went through some changes. Met the new singer who replaced Jo that night. Bud was not on bass. No more keyboard/trombone player (Marcus). Aaron still on guitar, and Peter on drums. I left just before Life Support took the stage to end the night. It was a Thursday so had to get back home.
I did some photos for this show. Since On the Y is such a small venue (big bar, small dance floor and smaller stage), I rented a Canon 14mm f/2.8L II lens from Lensrentals dot com. About $100 for a few days. You have the option to buy the lens from them which is cool. The 14mm is not fisheye but close. I think a fisheye would be great in this venue but the 14mm is good.
Aaron from Simple Solution brought the Deli Punx food truck to On the Y. Cheeseburgers on the menu.
Missed Life Support who are good. I did catch TV Static. Dug the show.
A few days after that, Sunday night on December 22nd, got to catch The Pharcyde at Harlows. It was raining that night but it was still nice to hang outside. Not sure if there was an opener. There was a DJ. The Pharcyde did all the classics. Good crowd. Hip Hop shows are rare for me nowadays. Missed the Grouch and Hieroglyphics who played in Nevada City on 12/28. Was planning to go but it did not happen.
Spring has officially started but I will add that I went to Danzig at The Venue at Thunder Valley Casino on 3/22. Missed The Cro-Mags who started at 6pm that night. Way too early. Danzig did the classics with exception to “Dirty Black Summer” which I was hoping to see. The Venue is nice tho they charged $5.50 for an NA cocktail (cranberry+pineapple juice). Danzig encouraged the crowd to leave their seats and come up front which was cool. I thought it was odd to have seats on the floor. Hanging out in the casino after the show was OK. They have a Peet’s Coffee. I am not munch for gambling or hanging around drunk gamblers. Good to people watch.
Up next, not much happening until I go to the Buzzcocks on Monday night, May 12 at Harlows. That is around the time of Cruel World Fest in LA so maybe some other bands will roll through Sac.
