NOT FORGOTTEN, BUT MOSTLY GONE

I seriously doubt anyone still looks at this page, but in the off chance that someone does, I'm making a little update.

This project is still very much alive, it's just not alive in real time. The method used to be that I'd write a piece and post it immediately, but I stopped doing that a long, long time ago. Like 4 years ago. Ooops.

I transferred everything that's on this site to a Google Doc and added every other out of town date that I've played withe Cherem, Tamerlane and Aftermath of a Trainwreck. I made little bullet points of things I remembered about each show and have been slowly plugging away at it ever since.

Earlier this year, I got a boring desk job that comes with A LOT of downtime. In some of that downtime, I've been pecking away at some of these stories and fleshing them out. The entry below (July 19, 2005 - Redlands, CA) is pages 49-50 of that document. I just hit page 116 this morning. Things are moving along nicely.

My goal is to have the whole thing finished by the end of the year. I'll let it sit for a month or so then dive back in for rewrites. I want to make the tone consistent throughout and hit all the little things that I missed along the way - anecdotes, side stories, new recollections, etc.

The plan is to put it together with some fliers, photos, set lists, news articles and things like that and make a nice, limited edition book. Mostly it would be just for the dudes in the band, but depending on how it turns out and how much it costs to manufacture, I might make a few extra available in the off chance that other people want one.

We'll see. I'm determined to get this finished. Whether or not anyone actually sees it is another story all together.

June 2, 2004 - SLC, UT

The only reason I'm writing about this show, is because it was a disaster as far as we were concerened.

Terror used to be one of my favorite bands, and some of the nicest dudes I know, so I'd been trying to get on a Terror show for months. They'd come through a few times, but for some reason we never got on the show. Finally, we got on the MADE tour as the opening band. Figured it was going to be a good show all around. We show up at about 6:45 and there's nowhere out front to park, so we used the handicapped spot. We were just going to unload the van then find a parking spot. We got about 1/4 of the way unloaded and parking enforcement shows up. The asshole tells us that we had to move and he meant business. I try and talk him into letting us just unload everything and then we'll move. He says if the van isn't gone in ten seconds, he's giving us a $75 ticket. We shut the van, I drive around the block and park in front of a driveway. We recruit some kids in line and get everything out before he gets back. I park the van and run back to the venue. It's about 7pm at that time. Chris is at work and Bill is at school. They said they'd be ther by 7:30 or 7:45. I figured that was no problem since show usually start around 8.

Not tonight, though. The club has just come under new management and set a curfew for 11pm. They also hired a stage manager. We'd played in this club at least 5 times before and never had to deal with anyone except Blake, but that night, Blake wasn't able to do much because the new managers had some grand idea of getting everyone out for no reason other than they wanted to get home in time for MASH. So as Clint is setting up, the stage manager walks up on stage.

"Alright, we're on curfew tonight, so you guys get twenty minutes. Start at 7:15 and be done by 7:35."
I looked at Nick, then turned back.
"Are you joking me? Start at 7:15? There's 25 kids outside."
"I'm serious. Get this shit set up, man. We've got a schedule to keep."
"Well," I said, "I think we have a problem because out bass player and singer aren't going to be here until at least 7:30."
"Why?"
"We were told the show wasn't going to start until 8."
"Nope. Doors are at 7, show starts at 7:15."
"Well. Fuck."
"What do you wanna do?"
"Looks like we're not playing."
"Are you sure?"
"Can't play without a bass or vocals."
"Shit man. Sorry to hear that. Let's get this stuff out of the way then."

Then he helped us move all of our stuff off the stage. At 7:45 Chris and Bill roll in, and I break the news to them. Chris thought I was joking and Bill didn't really seem to care aside from the fact that he left school early for nothing.

It was a hell of a last show for Chris and Nick.

April 1, 2004 - SLC, Utah

I don't write about local shows ever, mainly because they all blend together as one long show, but this is a story I felt needed to be told.

Some dude named Danny emailed us and asked if we'd play an animal rights benefit show. Seeing as how we're a vegan band, we felt it would be the right thing to do. He tells us that it will be on April 1st, which is April Fools Day. Now, I love April Fools Day, and am all about jokes. I took this as an opportunity to play a joke on everyone. I talk the dudes into posting on our website that Bill has had a run in with the law and is under investigation as a terrorist threat. Sounds ridiculous, but in SLC it sounds about right. Anyway, we post that his lawyer advised him against any contact with straight edge kids or vegan kids. Since we didn't want to bail on the show, we wrote, Brook Aftermath would be filling in on vocals. Everyone bought it. We had e-mails from all over asking how Bill was and if we needed any help. We were good to go.

The show was an akward line-up. There were two indie bands, a gutter punk band and us. We sneak Bill in through the back door, and start to get everything set up. We tell the sound guy that we need two microphones, and he gives us two mics. Now, the way it was supposed to go down was like this: Bill gets a mic stands to the side of the stage and sings, while Brook jumps around and lip syncs, thus confusing anyone paying attention. Then at the end of the first song, we say "April Fools" and Bill sings the rest of the set. There was only one problem: The dumbass sound guy didn't turn on the second mic. So we start playing with no vocals, and Brook stands around looking like an idiot waiting for Bill to start singing.

Needless to say our joke fell flat. I was disappointed.