Oh Yeah, Oh No!

Before I go on with my post about last night's show, I would ask you all to read these lyrics:

Sometimes when facing common trouble
When whole town is screwed
We become actually human
Act like Prometheus would
Suddenly there is more humor
And a party tabor style
People ringing one another
"Yo man, how was your blackout?"

Suddenly there is more music
Made with the buckets in the park
Girls are dancing with the flashlights
I got only one guitar!
And you see brothers and sisters
All engaged in sport of help
Making merry out of nothing
Like in refugee camp!

Oh yeah, oh no!
It doesn't have to be so
It is possible any time anywhere
Even without any dough!
Oh yeah, oh no!
It doesn't have to be so
The forces of the creative mind are unstoppable!

And you think, "All right, now people
They have finally woked up!"
But as soon as the trouble over
Watch them take another nap
Nobody is making merry
Only trotting scared of boss
Everybody's making hurry
For some old forgotten cause

But one thing is surely eternal
It's condition of a man
Who don't know where he is going
Who don't know where does he stand
Who's dream power is corked bottle
Put away in dry dark place
Who's youth power is well buried
Under propaganda waves

Who's dream life is in opposition
With the life he leads today
Who's beaten down in believing
It just kinda goes this way!

Oh yeah, oh no! It doesn't have to be so
It is possible any time anywhere
Even without any dough!
Oh yeah, oh no! It doesn't have to be so!
The forces of the creative mind are unstoppable!

That is a song called Oh No by Gogol Bordello, who after one listen last night on my way home from the show have become one of my favourite bands out there. In their broken English, they have crafted as perfect a Socialist anthem as I have ever seen... Love and fun and brotherhood are possible with or without money... All it takes is a sense of fellowship and a love for one another. I strongly, strongly urge you to give them a listen... How could any genre called "gypsy punk" ever be bad?

So, the show last night was very, very awesome... Pre-show, Graeme picked Alex, Joey and I up at my house, and we headed out to Newmarket listening to Choking Victim. I downed 2 caffeine pills before we left, and then another one in the car. We stopped off at Harvey's, where I bought a small fries (As that was all I could afford, though Alex offered to pay for my meal), and ate those and a fuckload of pickles (Alex asked for a "substantial wad" of pickles, it was excellent.) I downed my vodka, and then Alex and I shared a slow dance in the middle of Harvey's, where one poor little boy pointed us out to his Dad, who in turn shot us the dirtiest look. We kept dancing.

We got to the show, and the bands were, in order of playing, Riot Control, Crooked Hook, Outbred Inlaws, Buzz Deluxe, the STDs, the Heatskores, and the Expos (the Donuts). Riot Control is a band headed by the friend of a friend (Dave's friend Alex), and though I wasn't expecting too too much, they turned out to be much better than expected. I wouldn't drive all the way to Newmarket to see just them, but I'd also much prefer they opened over a lot of other local bands. Crooked Hook I remember nothing about, except turning to Alex to remark "They are a good filler band!", so the last comment about Riot Control applies to them too. The Outbred Inlaws were very good, very good indeed... The lead singer opened the set with the band's tagline: "Putting the cunt in country". I knew, after this, that they had to be at least half-way competent, and they proved to well exceed that... They were good enough, and fun enough, that I bought one of their CDs (for $3), after borrowing the money off Alex of course. It turns out the lead singer is actually a really nice guy too. Finally, Buzz Deluxe proved to be good psychobilly, and despite the fact that they weren't the STDs (I had thought they were up next), and I had resigned myself to sitting Buzz Deluxe out, I ended up dancing, at least for a little while.

The STDs were up next, and despite the fact that upon the opening chord the pit exploded into violence, and I ended up being punched in the throat and then thrown off to the side, I had a great time during their set. The skanking was a little more violent than I prefer during such a ska-centered band, and some stupid kids were going through the circle for the express purpose of punching people and generally stirring shit up, it ended up being a really, really good set. I don't quite remember, but I believe they opened with Skank it Up, and I don't quite remember, but I believe they closed with My Friend The Criminal (if that is the correct title, I'm not sure). All in all, great set, great band, I will be back.

the Heatskores... Ah, the Heatskores. I was reaaalllyyy excited to see them, as I haven't in a good long while, and they didn't disappoint (as they never do). I don't remember much of their set, only they didn't play Tapioca (sigh) and that the opening of The Day The Heatskores Died was one of the highlights of my night, it was absolutely fantastic.

Finally, the Expos played. At this point, I was completely dead, as was Alex, we were both crashing off our caffeine pills (which we had been taking periodically throughout the show, I don't know how many they had had, but I was up to probably about 8 or 9), and we sat out most of the set on the side, just grooving out to the music. I was somewhat disappointed that the Heatskores hadn't closed, but as soon as I heard the Expos, all those thoughts were pushed out of my mind. They were just so... Good. Mellow, but so, so danceable, and the crowd clearly loved them. The vibe was so different too... No circle skanking, no pushing in the pit, just a mass of kids all dancing and feeling the music. Finally, Alex and I couldn't take it anymore, and had to get up and dance. We ended up sharing another dance in the middle of the crowd, and then just grooved out and skanked until the set was over.

Also, Yvonne Moir (the saxophone player) is probably the hottest woman I have ever seen on a stage, ever. Seriously. If she wasn't going out with that guy from that band... I would still not hit on her, because I'm pretty sure she's about 6 years older than me... Wait, why would that stop me? Because I am a child at heart.

My state during the show varied... The start was excellent, but then I started to cramp up from the caffeine/alcohol-induced dehydration... Finally, my heartburn got so bad that even water started to burn going down. I got punched in the throat as I mentioned before, and got nailed a few times while standing at the front... I got pushed around constantly while trying to skank, and I got launched into the crowd a couple of times. All this is expected at shows though, and it ended up being a really, really excellent show. I saw Shannon again, which was really cool, and I really like her, she's a cool girl. Alex and I did another little sing-along together, and found out we actually harmonize pretty damn well when we're singing together... Our folk-punk band is going to be awesome.

So... Yeah, that's about it. I'm off to listen to Gogol Bordello, and maybe go down to get some lunch later... Or something. I greatly dislike Sundays... But man, do I need a day of rest.