July 9, 2008

Hate to sound like a broken record, but did ya’ll know that Strung Out and No Use For A Name are in town this week? If you’re an uber fan, make sure you head to Barwon Club or Peninsula Lounge to take up the rare opportunity of checking out two legendary international acts in some teensy venues. You know what freaks me out about tiny venues? When the stage is on the floor and you’re suddenly on the same level as the band. It’s like an invitation to cease ogling them from below in a weirdly subservient manner and instead become one with the entire live performance. It’s amusing to see many people battling the urge to grab at their musical icons, and others hobble awkwardly around the band, looking rather disoriented at the lack of barriers and the consequent implications for their various forms of self-expression. The mystery of backstage is usually completely abolished in regional shows (cos er, there is none) and the look on the local security guards’ faces is bloody priceless. It’d be a rare occasion when Barry the middle-aged bouncer who proudly swings his security badge about his neck like some kind of swollen bollocks gets a taste of kids in Dickies doing awesome air kicks, instead of his nightly tussle with pissed locals falling off their barstools. Can’t wait. See ya’ll there. PS. New Hold Steady is out this weekend. Get it. It’s ace.