It was a hell of a night.
Last night, that is.
After having one of these moments thanks to a house party on Park Road, then waking up on a sofa in a house I didn’t immediately recognize, then slowly realizing that my 40D and brand new 16-35mm f/2.8L II (only hours old. dayum) went missing along with my 580 EXII. Someone must have swiped that piece after I put it down somewhere. I fucking hated that camera anyway, but I loved that lens. This is a good time to buy a 5D, like I meant to in the first place.
Which brings me to tonight, the Matt and Kim show and my trusty 30D back-up rig with the 14mm f/2.8L. I skipped the first two bands for fear of killing precious juice; so I passed time snackin on some nice vegan cupcakes.
By the time Matt & Kim came on, I was front and center along with a bunch of other photogs and videoheads.
The show popped off. Everything I read about these dudes — the incessant smiling, the high energy, the good vibes — was all true. Kim laughs at the end of every song. Matt tells a funny story at the beginning of just about every song, sometimes while standing on his chair. Plus, loads of wonder twins activatin throughout. And most of the kids there knew all the words to the songs.
Right then and there, the Bobby Fisher Memorial Building became one of my favorite places in DC to see live music.
So back to my cam. If you see anyone out there shooting with my main rig, tell the kid he needs to tuck that piece between his buttcheeks and go hide behind a tree, for real. Doing felony time in DC jail’s got to be a bitch.
Some thoughts from Cale:
-Vibe was good, first two bands were fun and cute, don’t remember their names, somebody who does please comment.
-Power was running off a generator, total punk rock.
-Matt told some hilarious stories and wore a dungeons and dragons shirt. I love him. At one point he said he wanted everyone to experience a concert like Kim, who is very very very short. So they turned off all the lights and played a show in the dark. And by lights I mean that single light bulb thing hanging from the ceiling. It was fun.
-Too loud. I hate wearing earplugs, it doesn’t make it quieter, it just muffles the sound, but there is no way I could handle the decibel levels. I’m not being an old man here, I promise, too loud does not equal cool. Small space + small crowd who was respecting the bands = turn it down. Nobody in there actually wanted it that loud but they felt like it would be uncool to say otherwise.
-That last pic with the ear plugs up my nose and Grace with the scarf? That wasn’t a joke. This crowd fucking stunk. It was like if a foot could fart. I literally had to leave the room for a while because the BO was so bad, and I wandered out to this table selling books, one of them was ‘anti-establishment for beginners’ or something like that, and they had a whole section on why deodorant was a capitalist ploy to keep you down. Don’t believe this. If there is one good thing capitalism has done for the punk rock kids, it’s widely available deodorant. It comes in a variety of flavors and sizes, get some, put it in your purse or messenger bag, and re-apply throughout the day as needed. If someone is not following this rule, don’t fuck them. It’s that simple. Don’t fuck smelly people and they will eventually realize they need to start using deodorant.
-Seriously kids, use deodorant. You can still be anti-Bush, I promise you.
“Seriously kids, use deodorant. You can still be anti-Bush, I promise you.”
March 31, 2008 at 8:31 am… what I meant to say before accidentally pressing ‘enter’ was “HAHAHAHA.”
March 31, 2008 at 8:32 amopening bands:
Ingrid and the Max Levine Ensemble
I AGREE. EVERYONE SMELLED SOOOO BAD.
also, DC did not bring the party. Matt tried to crowd surf and had to stop and say “uuuumm i think i might fall, can you guys please put me down?” ADORABLE. People weren’t into it as i would have hoped :o(
on my way out i high-fived Kim and said “You guys are the most adorable” and she said “You meant to say “tough” right?” I just want to carry both of them around in my pocket.
Playing in the complete darkness was rad.
March 31, 2008 at 8:54 amI noticed the BO for a second, then totally forgot about it. Maybe my allergies protected me, or my wargod hangover disorienting me to def, I don’t know.
Not the case at the Japanther show last year ( http://www.brightestyoungthings.com/live-dc/japanther-and-vegan-cakes-at-the-bobby-fisher-memorial-bldg/ ). Body smells were scrrrrrrrrrreamin at the top of their lungs, man.
I loved the 12year-olds in “The Max Levine Ensemble.” They were so appreciative when I bought their cd for 5 bucks. Ingrid was earnest.
Matt and Kim were adorable.
As for the crowd: Seriously. Deodorant can be punk. Use it.
March 31, 2008 at 9:41 am“Deodorant can be punk.”
Hahahahahahahahhahahahahahhahahaaha
March 31, 2008 at 11:05 amdid anyone successfully pull off an ‘en passant’ on the dance floor? it is the bobby fisher memorial, after all.
“It was like if a foot could fart.” - ha! dood, you need to write some stand up comedy.
March 31, 2008 at 11:05 amfor more examples of Cales comic genius. Read just about anything he’s written.
March 31, 2008 at 11:22 amsorry guys, my bad… long week.
March 31, 2008 at 11:24 amone of my favorite sentences (or two) from the Japanther show review @ Bobby Fisher Bldg:
The only drawback is the psychotically terrible stench of teenage dudes sweating all over each other. What is it about puberty that makes kids smell like rotten meat?
March 31, 2008 at 11:32 amfor the record, i showered before and after this show.
March 31, 2008 at 11:46 amare you serious? punk and b.o. go hand in hand.
if you cant stand the smell youre too old.
March 31, 2008 at 11:54 amSmelling like shit = one of many ways that punk rock leads to progress.
March 31, 2008 at 1:16 pmnot sure that punk rock ever claimed to lead to progress.
anyway, it was a great show at one of those venues people will be like, “damn I miss that place” 10 or so years down the line.
10 years? that would be lucky.
smerg, thinking something smells bad has nothing to do with age nor is any scent tied to punk or any other genre of music. take a bath. slap on some deodorant. get a grip.
Just to clarify - it was cold as balls in there. We’re not talking a bunch of sweaty people going crazy, in that sort of environment, a little body odor is expected. This was during the opening act when the room was less than half full, with plenty of space between each people, and everyone was huddled up in their hoodies, and there was still a monster funk coming from more than one individual.
Doo Dah Doo Doo, get sexy kids!
March 31, 2008 at 3:22 pmYes. It was that girl in the rat tail who reeked. It was like a freezer in there so there was no excuse to smell that bad.
I spent enough years in the punk scene - including as a straight edge vegan - to earn my cred. I laughed at stinky chicks then and I laugh at them now.
The crowd was mostly fun though. Not everyone took themselves as seriously as rat tail girl who thought she was saving the world via her underarm.
April 1, 2008 at 10:34 am
Baltimore report here:
March 31, 2008 at 6:57 amhttp://www.brightestyoungthings.com/tangents/live-b-more-matt-kim-the-death-set-naked-on-the-vague-lo-fi-social-club/