Last Saturday night my buddy Nazz and I went to see the legendary Los Angeles punk band Fear at the Starlite Room here in Edmonton. We had hemmed and hawed about this for a while, but decided to go just days before the show. Fear were one of the headliners for this years Winterruption Festival here in Edmonton. Am I ever glad we went, as who knows how many more chances one will get to see Fear.
The first band of the evening was local band called the Cutoffs. This was my second time seeing the band live. High energy rock with punk elements with two EP's available on bandcamp. Led by lead singer Bob Prodor on vocals and guitar, my brother (Citrus) reminded me that Bob used to play in a band called Unsound way back in the day, a band I had seen ages ago. For being the opener, they had a small turnout, part of that was because so many people in the merch line-up. Great band and look forward to seeing them again.
Next up was a band out of Calgary called Cat Piss. Had no idea what to expect from this band as I had never heard of them before. their set started with a lady on the drums standing playing a very tribal beat, and then all hell broke loose with an industrial noise sound, lots of synth and heavy guitar, she then got from behind the drums and started to scream like a fucking banshee. Now, I like weird music, but this was too much for me. I couldn't understand a word she was screaming and it was just loud noise to me. That was my cue for some fresh air and smoke. To checkout their music, click here. Not a fan!
Second last band of the evening was another local band called L.A.M.S. This band has been around for ages, yet I had never seen or heard them before. That all changed on this night. By the time they hit the stage, the place was packed, and for good reason. These guys are fucking awesome! A four piece band led by Tavis Edwards on vocals, Bryan Moisan on bass, Carmen Jak on guitar and rounded out by Shawn Thompson on drums. Their music would be best described as a thrash, metal skateboard band along the likes of D.R.I., Municipal Waste and Suicidal Tendencies. These guys were so much fun, a tight band yet loose and having a whole lot of fucking fun up on stage. Some of the song titles that I heard and played were "Old School", "We Want Your Beer" and "Party Song", these guys are all about having a good time. Their 35 minute set went by way too quick. I was very impressed and will be sure to be seeing them live again.
And to close out the night and one of the big headliners of the festival was Los Angeles punk legends Fear, a band that has been around since 1977. Most infamous for being banned from the television program Saturday Night Live in 1981 when they performed on the show, at that performance John Belushi who pulled some strings and got them booked for the show invited a bunch of punks to the show. Well, from there everything went off the rails. To hear about how it all came together checkout the video by clicking here. And to watch the performance, click here.
In the words of lead singer Lee Ving who at the age of 75 and still has a great voice 1,2,3,4, woah doggieeee!!!
Am I ever glad that Nazz and I decided to go to this show. The venue was packed and ready to party with Fear. It was cool to see drummer Spit Stix (70 years old) on drums. This was an old school crowd for this show and everyone was having a damn good time. Their hour long set was punk from start to finish playing such songs as "Fuck You Let's Rodeo", "The Mouth Don't Stop (The Trouble With Women Is)", "Do Me Some Damage", "Responsibilities", "Beef Bologna" and of course the triple punk of "Have a Beer With Fear", "More Beer" and "I Believe I'll have Another Beer", yup the beer was a flowing among the crowd now. Closing out the show with "New York's Alright If You Like Saxophones". I don't think anyone left this show disappointed. A great show and really good time!!!
T-shirt front.
T-shirt back.
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