Dateline: Washington, DC 5/31/10
Vaunted performance space and nightclub, the 9:30 Club, celebrated its 30th birthday on Memorial Day with a friends and fans-only concert at the club. Having won a ticket through a lottery for members of its email list-serve, I headed down the BW Parkway to check it out. What follows is one man's account of the 13-artist, five and a hour extravaganza that followed. Call it my running diary of the show.
A little background: My first trip to the original 9:30 Club at 930 F Street, NW was in the fall of 1989 to see Love Tractor and Frontier Theory. My only real memories of that show other than Love Tractor closing with a cover of Bowie's "Rebel Rebel", was how scary the bathrooms were. On July 19, 1990, I lost my hearing for two days after seeing Bob Mould (closed with a cover of Neil Young's "Cinnamon Girl"). On January 5th, 1996, the club opened its doors at a new location near Howard University (815 V St., NW) with the Smashing Pumpkins Yes, I was there and yes, it was quite good. Billy Corgan was only a level-one douche bag at that point in time. Times change.
The night has been billed as a party for the friends and family of the club. Many of the usual suspects who have played the club over the years are slated to play yet no line-up order has been announced and DC-expat, Henry Rollins, is set to host. Oh yeah, and they promise surprises (more to follow...).
Arrival: 5:50pm
The doors opened at 5:00pm so my best guess is that the first band will be on at 6pm and decide if I am going to do this, I'm all in. Maybe 200-300 spectators are already gathered. Total freedom to get up close.
Act 1: Tiny Desk Unit (6:00 pm sharp!)
Where's Henry? 9:30 Club night manager and all around scary dude, Josh Burdette, approaches center stage to announce that Rollins' plane is late but "he'll definitely be here". Burdette notes that show opener, Tiny Desk Unit, was the first band ever to play the club on May 31st, 1980 (along with the Lounge Lizards) and were the last band to play the old 9:30 on December 31, 1995. Their other main claim to fame is that NPR's All Songs Considered host, Bob Boilen, is the keyboard player. Three songs, twelve minutes and they are kicked off stage by the 9:30 crew. I am liking where this is going. I'll be back to Baltimore by dawn.
The Fleshtones
Act 2: The Fleshtones (6:20 pm)
Within seven minutes, the next band is ready to go (THIS IS HOW EVERY SHOW SHOULD RUN!!!). I'm excited to see The Fleshtones for the first time.
Quick history lesson - The Fleshtones were formed in 1976 in Queens, NY and were the first band booked (by current owner Seth Hurwitz) at the 9:30 Club. In the early to mid 80's, they signed to IRS Records, home of The Go-Go's, Fine Young Cannibals and a band called R.E.M. IRS Records created a TV show that aired on Mtv from 1983 to 1987 called The Cutting Edge, hosted by Fleshtones lead singer, Peter Zarimba, which had a profound impact on my own musical growth. The show eventually morphed into 120 Minutes which died a wonderfully awful dead following Nirvana in the early 1990's. Zarimba was sort of a indie-rock Issac Mizrahi - creative, campy and witty as hell. Back to real time.
Still no Rollins. Kim Kaine of The Slickee Boys arrives on stage and announces that, other than his own Slickee Boys, no band has played the club more than The Fleshtones. These guys are in their mid-50's and were the best dressed, most enthusiastic and most entertaining band of the evening (sorry Trouble Funk). I cannot believe they still do this shit at their age for a living. I pray to God they've put some money away for retirement. They start with "Hitsburg USA" (hello, great song title) and finish up three songs later with "Dance With The Ghoulman" during which they invite club owner and original club booker, Seth Hurwitz, up to play drums (this will become a recurring theme of the evening).
The Fleshtones - Hitsburg USA (mp3)
The Fleshtones - Dance With The Ghoulman (mp3)
The Fleshtones - Do You Swing? (mp3)
Act 3: The Slickee Boys (~6:45 pm)
Alright, the first band I've actually seen at the 9:30 Club, a legend in DC music circles and yes, another group of guys in their 50's (quick side note - for the first time at a rock show in forever, being 38 puts me firmly in the middle of the age distribution). Still no Rollins!!! WTF!!! Hurwitz hits to stage to introduce that this is the 80th appearance of The Slickee Boys at the club - a record and they broke up in 1991 so they must have played there all the time in the 80's. Solid set. High energy. Young bucks, you best watch out.
Act 4: Marti Jones & Don Dixon (a little after 7pm)
Here comes Hurwitz again. Is Rollins going to show? Seriously, people.
Don Dixon is probably best known as a producer (R.E.M.'s Murmur, The Smithereens) but has had hammered out a solid singer-songwriter career both as a solo artist as well as with his wife, Marti Jones. So what I'm telling you is that we've left the aging hipster part of the evening and entered the aging singer-songwriter part of the evening (Dixon will turn 60 later this year). They're fantastic. Wonderful harmonies and both have incredible voices. A real palate cleanser - time to get a beer. (First musician sighting - Ted Leo is hanging out by the soundboard. I decide to text my friend Mike who couldn't make it as my plus one. He's pissed). We're still keeping to the 3-4 songs/15-20 minute sets. This is awesome!!! Hurwitz is back up to play drums but this time with Tommy Keene on guitar.
Don Dixon - Roommate (mp3)
Act 5: Tommy Keene (I don't know 7:30pm?)
Five acts in and no Rollins. Tommy just hits the stage and gets going without intro. Bravo Tommy, no need for pomp and circumstance. Oh yeah, another guy in his 50's although you would never know it. Tommy to many, represents what happens to the Paul Westerberg's and Robert Pollard's of the world if they never make it big (big being a relative term). The Bethesda native tore through a couple of songs before bringing on stage his pubescent nephew to play drums. Now I ran into this kid later in the evening (wearing a Minor Threat tee and hanging with his mom) to give him some props and he was seriously about five feet tall and weighed no more than 85 pounds but holy shit, could he rock. Remember the name Hunter Keene. You will hear it. I promise. There were some serious drummers in attendance including Brendan Canty and an as-yet-unnamed surprise guest (read on) but this kid was the best drummer that actually played drums this night. Fantastic. Bravo Keene family.
Tommy Keene - Circumstance (mp3)
Tommy Keene - Hanging Over My Head (mp3)
Amy Farina (l), Ian MacKaye (r) - The Evens
Act 6: The Evens (just before 8pm)
Set up in the balcony overlooking the crowd, Ian Mackaye started with anecdote about how when his first band, The Teen Idles, played the original 9:30 Club nearly 30 years ago things got so out of hand that original club owner, Dody DiSanto, banned them and all the young harDCore bands. Rollins will later recount this story as well (Where the hell is Rollins???). Eventually she changed her mind; the rest is history.
Act 7: Justin Jones (~8:30pm)
Never heard of this guy. He's sort of an ordinary looking guy, maybe mid-20's (our youngest performer yet, other than Tommy Keene's nephew). Seth Hurwitz arrives on stage to announce that he's seen a lot of artists in his time and he knows how to spot the next big thing and this Justin Jones kid is the next big thing. So Jones and his band, The Driving Rain, hit the stage in their John Mayer meets Kenny Chesney mainstream musical grandeur. Justin attempts to engage the crowd by announcing "this next song is for the farmers" WTF??? Does he realize we're in DC? Nashville is 650 miles to the southwest down route 81. I should lay off because he seems like a nice kid, but the irony that the most traditionally mainstream act received the crowd's poorest response of the evening was not lost on me and not for a lack of musical talent (just creativity). It was about this time that I looked up to see Washington Capitals and Wizards owner, Ted Leonis, in the VIP area with Seth. It's all coming together.
Bob Mould
Act 8: Bob Mould (just before 9pm)
Within seconds of Justin Jones leaving stage, there is Bob getting ready to go. I love the old school spirit...no bullshit, just get up and play. Then out of nowhere, a manic Henry Rollins hits the stage (more old school spirit) and spends the next several minutes attempting to convince the audience he never truly left DC, at least in spirit. He's entertaining and I can't help but be incredibly excited that both Rollins and Bob are sharing the same stage. Rollins proceeds to compliment the hell out of Bob before handing over the stage to him.
Bob, solo electric. I've seen it many times. Honestly, it is my least favorite way to see him. I like Bob with band and Bob with acoustic guitar but Bob with just electric guitar is sometimes too much for me. Not tonight. "Hoover Dam", "See A Little Light", "I Apologize" and "Makes No Sense At All" - that's the set list. The crowd, many of which probably saw Husker Du at the old club, are out of control for him and I feed off this energy. I am officially really fucking happy right now.
Ted Leo
Act 9: Ted Leo (~ 9:20 pm)
Rollins is back on stage to talk about the 9:30 Club - recounts the same boycott story that Ian mentioned an hour earlier. Makes his first declaration that Ian MacKaye is, in fact, his best friend since 1973.
Theodore Francis Leo, solo electric. That's what he does and I've been known to like it. The native New Jerseyian, one-time Mount Pleasant resident, and current Rhode Islander always give DC a lot of love. The four song set - "Nothing Much To Say", an unknown cover, "Bleeding Powers", and for allegedly the first time in 12 years, a rendition of Chisel's "The Dog In Me"!!!
the surprise act
Act 10: Dave Grohl and SCREAM (~9:40pm)
The rumor running around town for the last several days is that Dave Grohl will be the surprise act. My aforementioned friend Mike placed the idea that maybe Fugazi would reunite for the evening (I see Brendan and Guy in the audience and clearly Ian is here. Where is Joe? Has anyone seen Joe Lally?). My ultimate fantasy is that Jawbox will reunite tonight but that is the most far-fetched idea of them all.
I'm psyched to see Grohl play but the way Rollins is selling it (and the crowd is buying it) you would think Prince or Hendrix or The Clash were coming out on stage. He came on alone to play a cover of "Everlong" and then invited on Pete Stahl, Kent Stax and Skeeter Thompson of Scream to play with him. At this point, Grohl has moved over to the guitarist role, with Pete Stahl on vocals for the only attempt at harDCore the evening will see. One Scream song, two Bad Brains covers ("At The Atlantis" and "Stay Close To Me") and two dip-shits standing next to trying to create a most pit. Seriously???
Act 11: The Pietasters (~10pm)
I'm losing a little bit of steam. Maybe some ska will help me out. Quick side story: In the spring of 1995, I was in a band with a couple of guys in Fairfax. The drummer, by far the most talented of the bunch, played drums in a gospel band at a Seventh Day Adventist church. He convinced his pastor to let us practice in the church during off hours. Anywho, we were playing a house party near GMU one weekend and after finishing a bunch of the guys from The Pietasters asked to use our gear and play. We weren't very good to start, but I wasn't going to let them make it any more obvious by allowing them to play. Seems like it didn't really affect their career.
Act 12: Clutch (~10:20pm)
What do I know about this band? Nothing, other than Baltimore's own Duff "Ace of Cakes" Goldman considers them the best band on Earth. I'm usually not one to take my music cues from a dope smoking pastry chef but his favorite band filled the role of rock/metal band well. Rollins uses this introduction to reward the bands out there that have stuck it out over the years. Inspired, I mosey over to the cafe to get some eats. I'm starving!
Act 13: Trouble Funk (10:50pm)
Rollins introduces Trouble Funk by relating another story of how he and Ian MacKaye are best friends. We get it, Henry. Rollins makes the same case that the Smithsonian did ten years ago by declaring that Go Go music is the music of the 202 area code (Chuck Brown, EU, Trouble Funk). That drumming pattern takes me back to watching kids playing paint buckets outside the Metro. It's infectious.
Fifteen minutes go by and the T Funk look like they have no intention of stopping. Seth Hurwitz is back again behind the drum kit but this time it's to play Go Go. This ain't your daddy's 4-4 rock and roll. It's Go Go. I find myself watching Guy Picciotto and Brendan Canty having a quiet laugh at Seth's expense. He pulls it off. Leonis and his posse (including his two sons) are still watching the show. Did anyone invite Ovechkin?
Now we're 30 minutes in and I'm starting to wonder if the staff has lost control or if The Psychedelic Furs aren't playing and T Funk has become the headliner. I've gotten myself to the back where I strike up a very brief conversation with Ted Leo about Trouble Funk and out of nowhere appears Rollins standing next to me to talk to Ted and the recently arrived Guy (clearly I am the odd man out). To me Rollins has always appeared larger than life but what I'm realizing is that he is not a big man at all (IMDB lists him at 5'91/2). But tonight, it doesn't matter. There is this intense DC pride in the house and I got to be part of it. As quick as Rollins arrived to the back of the club, he's gone. Forty-five Go Go-riffic minutes have gone by (5 1/2 hours of music total) and it is time for Trouble Funk to exit and for Rollins to wish us good night.
Good times. mike
Washington Post article with pictures here
