Punk rock legends Bad Relgion (BR) recently announced on their website that they will be recording a live album and giving it away for free to all their fans. The album titled 30 Years Live will be recorded during BR’s 2010 tour and given away to all fans who sign up on their mailing list. If you are a BR fan, make sure you sign up so they can email you a link to the album for download.
Oh and if you have not heard yet BR will be playing back to back shows for a month starting March 17th. Sadly they will not be making it this way, but how awesome is that?
It was a sold out kind of night last night in Cleveland thanks to a couple of events that were going on. First there was the sold out Cleveland Cavaliers game going on at the Quicken Loans Arena. It was Sunggie night after all so you know everyone and their mother wanted to get a glorified Cavs robe and cheer on the hometown team. Apparently a new Guinness World Record was set for the most ridiculous looking people all in one place at one time. I’m sorry but being part of “largest gathering of people wearing fleece blankets” is not something that I want to think about in Cleveland on a Friday night.
Luckily for me and many other folk there was something much better going on just around the corner at the House Of Blues sans the Snuggies. UK artist Frank Turner and some Celtic punk rock band called Flogging Molly were playing a sold out show and I was a part of it. There was Guinness there too, the kind that is best served in pint glasses.
With many shows I attend I usually focus on the headlining act. Where I am a fan of Flogging Molly and always will be, this night was all about me seeing Frank Turner live for the first time. I am pretty sure I am the only person who was more excited for the one time punk rocker turned folk rock musician over the Irish punkers.
Opening act The Architects from Kansas City, MO started off the night with a bang. Having never heard of them before they grabbed my attention with their straight forward rock n roll styles. The foursome had great stage presence and the crowd rewarded them with constant approval. I later learned that three of the members of the band used to be in the ska act The Gadjits. featuring the three Phillips brothers. After hearing the Architects’ set I never would have fathomed them being in a ska band prior. Great set by a great band I hope to hear more from in the future.
To say I was excited when Frank Turner and his nameless band took the stage would be an understatement. With smiles on all of the band member’s faces they broke into “The Road” which just sounded amazing live. I am sure it is safe to say not a lot of the people packed into the House Of Blues knew who Turner was but after just a couple songs in the crowd soon learned about the UK sensation who openly admitted that it was his first time in Cleveland as well as offered apologies if the set sucked at he was fighting a nasty cold.
Pointing to the crowd for a volunteer Turner chose a young fan to play harmonica on “Dan’s Song” knowing fully that the kid never played the harp in his life. With a quick lesson Turner played the song alone on acoustic guitar and gave the honorary band member of the night “the look” when it was time for him to play. Sure it did not sound like the recorded version or anything close to it but it was hilarious.
Armed with his acoustic guitar Turner continued the night along with his band playing like it was his most important show of his career. He proudly yelled “Hello, Cleveland” to the crowd and fought his illness through each song. It was apparent how ill he was feeling but he kept trucking along through the set that included “Poetry Of The Deed” as well as “Love, Ire, & Song” as well as “Back In The Day”.
From where I planted my feet the fans around me all seemed to enjoy Turner who let many in on a little secret telling them all that is was not actually a folk artist but a punk rocker who plays folk music. Closing the night out with “Photosynthesis” I could only hope for a headlining show the next time Turner and crew come back to Cleveland. They put on a great show and I am thrilled to be able to say I saw Turner live finally.
Without a doubt everyone was Irish for the night as Flogging Molly is notoriously known for spreading the Irish cheer around with their likable Celtic punk rock sing along jams. Once the seven-piece took the stage it was clear how many people were packed into the venue to see them. Fueled mainly on Jamison and Guinness the crowd showed no sign of calming down throughout the set. Entertaining as always, Dave King pranced around the stage with Nathan Maxwell slapping the bass and the rest of the crew just playing a solid strong set.
I stayed for about the first half of the set and will try and post Flogging Molly’s set list on here the moment I find it. Remember, I was there for Frank Turner, so once things started getting really crazy I packed up and headed towards the exit. I have nothing against Flogging Molly at all but I have seen them multiple times and really am used to the good times they exhume. Being a proud Irishman myself I know all too well what an evening of Irish music and stouts can do to my body so I chose to play it safe. I am pretty sure not many followed my idea and are still battling the Irish flu today.
Speaking of flu it was reported by Frank Turner himself on Twitter that he had to pull from the Detroit show tonight so I am even more pleased I was able to see him last night.
Here is his Tweet he posted:
@fthc – MotherF***ER. Very sad to say I’ve got to pull tonight’s show in Detroit. Sick as a dog, no voice. A thousand apologies.
Get well soon Frank Turner and thank you for fighting through your amazing set last night in Cleveland. It was a highlight to my year.
Frank Turner Set: The Road
Try This At Home
Dan’s Song
Reasons Not To Be An Idiot
Sons Of Liberty
Poetry Of The Deed
Love, Ire, & Song
Back In The Day
Photosynthesis
(I may have missed a song or entered the wrong one. Corrections always welcomed.)
Pop punk rockers Alkaline Trio paid the House of Blues in Cleveland a visit on Thursday with special guests indie rockers Cursive as well as rock act The Dear & Departed. This was the second stop for Alkaline Trio who just started touring in support of their new release This Addiction. The line-up of the evening was an interesting mix but still it looked to be a great evening of music for all who filled up the venue.
Most commonly known as the guy who tattoos along side Kat Von D on the reality show LA Ink, Dan Under and his band did their best to warm up the crowd with their straight forward rock music. The crowd gave them the respect they deserved but it really did not look as if too many were really getting into them. A couple fans sang along and gave support but the energy level was still rather low.
Nebraska’s Cursive on the other hand played a solid, yet interesting, set that eventually caused a lot of cheer by the set’s end. Hammering through “Some Red Handed Sleight Of Hand” as later playing “Art Is Hard” the band threw on an absolutely amazing show. I especially enjoyed hearing “From The Hips” off their latest release Mama, I’m Swollen. Digging deep into their catalog the band even played “Mothership Mothership, Do You Read Me?” which absolutely floored me. It was clear though that not everyone around me was enjoying the indie, almost experimental, performance with a very vocal Tim Kasher but I will admit that there are some folk out there today looking into who exactly this Cursive band is.
Alkaline Trio took the stage in full force and started the night off with “This Addiction” off their latest release. The band looked so comfortable on stage and Matt Skiba and Dan Andriano shuffled about on stage as Derek Grant beat the hell out of the drums. Skiba announced in the middle of songs that he was at a photo shoot earlier in the day for some magazine called High Times admitting that “if it seems like I’m really stoned, it’s because I am.” Needless to say the crowd went berserk.
Adding to the energy of the night the band carried onward with an amazing set playing old and new songs. Seeing Andriano pick up the horn on “Lead Poisoning” was one of the highlights of my night for some reason. I really enjoyed that track off their new album but seeing it live just made me appreciate it even more. If that was not good enough, once the band finished that more poppy track they jumped back a few years and played “Mr. Chainsaw” only to return to new material again with “Dead On The Floor”.
Throughout the night I was continually impressed to see what song the band would play next. Hearing “Fuck You Aurora” and later the Manson inspired “Sadie” the set list just kept getting better and better and the band just hit every song head-on with almost everyone in the house singing along. Just when I thought think things could not get better the band played “’97”. At that very moment I was completely contempt with Alkaline Trio’s set.
The band exited the stage with fans pleading for one more song. I decided this might be a good time to make way to the back of the venue and to call it a night. As I was walking back the crowd exploded in cheer as the band did a little switch up with Skiba on drums, Andriano on guitar, and Grant on bass and vocals. The band appeased me by playing one of my favorite Misfits songs ever, “Attitude”. All I could say was “are you kidding me” and stopped dead in my tracks and started singing along with everyone else. It was the perfect way to end an amazing performance. I was a happy concert goer.
Alkaline Trio’s Set List
This Addiction
Armageddon
Emma
Dine, Dine My Darling
We’ve Had Enough
Lead Poisoning
Mr. Chainsaw
Dead On The Floor
Fatally Yours
Crawl
Fuck You Aurora
Goodbye Forever
In Vein
Continental
100 Stories
Sadie
Nose Over Tail
’97
Encore:
Attitude
It’s really not a secret anymore, The Avett Brothers are kind of a big deal these days. Not even a year ago brothers Scott and Seth Avett along with bassist Bob Crawford and cellist Joe Kwon brought their folk act to the Akron Civic theater to a decent sized crowd.
That show was just months before the release of the Rick Rubin produced I and Love and You, an album that would change their status as a band forever putting them in the spotlight they so deserve.
Last Saturday night the North Carolinian foursome returned to Ohio and played to a sold out crowd at the House Of Blues in Cleveland. With tickets being sold out months prior, it was pretty apparent that this was a show many folk were looking forward to be it new fans or long time followers. Looking around the venue as I arrived it was clear that the attendees of the night were a fine mix old and young. There were frat boys pounding Miller Lite’s as well as a dread-locked couple hanging back against a wall and even a couple punk rockers loitering by the bar. It would almost seem as if the night was all about bringing people together at the expense of music.
Folk act The Low Anthem from Providence, Rhode Island had the pleasure of being the opening act. Starting off with a couple slow folk songs off their latest release Oh My God Charlie Darwinit was clear that most of the crowd was not interested in them at all. Lead singer Ben Knox Miller did not let that bother him one bit though and continued playing songs to the packed house along with Jeff Prystowsky primarily on the stand-up bass. Joining them as well was Jocie Adams who took care of most of the percussion duties, and Mat Davidson. The band all played multiple instruments throughout their set showcasing their talent.
Just about half way into the set they switched gears and started rocking out heavily with Miller and Adams belting out vocals and Prystowsky beating the crap out of his stand up bass ever so passionately. Adams really caused some jaws to drop when she sang in full force as she was just a small framed thing. Many of the crowd soon quieted down and gave them the respect they deserved and by the set’s end the whole place was cheering for them.
It was clear that The Avett Brothers have reached that “rock star” level once the curtains were drawn introducing the Avett brothers, Bob Crawford, Joe Kwon, and a new touring drummer Jacob Edwards (of Samantha Crain and the Midnight Shivers) to the crowd that night. The entire place cheered and sang along as they opened up with the ever appropriate “Salina”. When the lyrics “Cleveland, I ain’t never felt nothing so strong” were recited the entire crowd went crazy and that would not be the last time that happened. In fact the boys kept the momentum going following the opening song by playing “Slight Figure of Speech”.
Continuing for the hour and a half set the band played a few songs off their latest release but also dug deep into their catalog as well as even hammered out “Where Have All The Average People Gone”, a Roger Miller cover. Not surprisingly the touring drummer entered and exited the stage when the time came for Scott Avett to get behind the drums. It was also nice to see a very energetic Joe Kwon stay on the stage for the entire show. The last time I had the please of seeing the Avett’s the celloist walked on and off the stage throughout the night but this time he stood his ground and played his heart out.
There was no “Kick Drum Heart” or “I and Love and You” played during their as many might have wanted to hear but “January Wedding” as well as “And It Spread” was suffice to all as everyone sang along when each was played. I myself was most thrilled to hear “Murder In The City” as I just had listened to the song the other day on my record player. Still fresh in my mind I sang along with everyone around me just enjoying every second of it.
“Go To Sleep” was perhaps one of my favorite tracks to hear during the evening. Joe Kwon took his cello and played the beginning of the song and in no time the entire crowd decided to help by screaming “La La, La La La La” throughout as the rest of the band sang and played the boot stomping jam. Sure the song is not about the happiest of times but the energy exhumed out of the song from all was just incredible. As the song came to an end the boys left the stage to an over-adoring crowd.
All I could think of in my head was “they get it”. When I say “they” I meant the crowd, and “it” of course was the music. Sure the place was sold out, packed, and full of people who had one too many but they all were there for a good time with good people thanks to good music. Better yet I was overly pleased with the set list of the night as the Avett’s took and played songs from a whole slew of their albums and tried not to just focus on the new stuff and most of the fans around me sang along to every single song.
As the crowd continued to sing “La La, La La La La” in a rather collected harmony the boys returned to the stage and started their encore with a slowed down version of “Traveling Song”. Ending the night with “If It’s The Beaches” off of The Gleam, the crowd was not ready to let the Avett Brothers call it a night but sadly they exited the stage and the lights were turned back on. As those lights became brighter I could start to see more people’s faces with smiles reaching ear to ear. It was proof of how amazing the night was and just how great of a time was had in the venue on a Saturday night in Cleveland.
Set List:
Salina
Slight Figure Of Speech
Where Have All The Average People Gone? (Roger Miller Cover)
Please Pardon Yourself
Distraction #74
Perfect Space
Murder In The City
Tear Down The House
At The Beach
Laundry Room
And It spread
Head Full Of Doubt
I Would Be Sad
January Wedding
Famous Flower of Manhattan
Colorshow
Go To sleep
It’s been years since I have been on TV. I remember a couple of times when I was in the background for a news broadcast. Most notably there was that time in the Coventry Courtyard where a juvenile me was sucking down a cigarette as someone was getting interviewed about some murder. Adolescent and just not paying attention, let’s just say that I might have been busted by my Mom that night for smoking when I returned home thanks to that news story.
Then there was that other time when I was at the Warped Tour and a TV crew focused in on me and my pal Jonah walking where I attempted to eat an entire hamburger in one bite once I saw the camera was aimed at us. I later walked up to the nervous news reporter who was doing a story on the excessive swearing at the outdoor event and thought it was a good idea to throw the “horns” over his head on live TV. At age 19 I was happy with my 15 minutes of fame that day.
Needless to say I have not taken on being on TV too seriously. That all changed on Saturday when I was invited to appear in the background on an episode of a national cable show at Cleveland’s gourmet grilled cheese goodness gurus Melt Bar & Grilled.
Why was I invited you asked? Well I’m family.
A few months ago I decided to join a food cult of sorts. Melt Bar and Grilled in Lakewood, OH (owned and operated by Matt Fish and crew) put together one of the greatest promotional ideas. Get a Melt tattoo and receive 25% off for life. Having been obsessed with Melt since I had my first sandwich about a year earlier I was intrigued and wanted to do it. Seeing how I am pro-Cleveland and pro-Melt it just made sense to do it. Within a month I was sitting in the chair at the tattoo parlor and getting my permanent coupon tattooed on my forearm.
I got the tattoo back in October but thanks to lack of money and shortness of time I was not able to get up to Lakewood to show it off and get my membership until December. I am, and always will be, number 47. 47 meaning the 47th person to show their love and join the Melt tattoo crew.
Being part of the crew has its perks. First off I get the discount and secondly people love it. My co-workers love the story I tell of why I have a grilled cheese with a sword through it on my arm. It is an attention getter and I do like talking to people about it.
There is also the special event perks. Recently Matt Fish sent an email out to all of the tattoo members letting them in on a little secret. There was going to be a show filmed at Melt and all close to 80 Melt tattoo crew members were given first chance at being part of something awesome. I replied instantly.
I was not going to miss out on this so I planned my Saturday accordingly and headed out to Lakewood at about nine in the morning to get a good seat. I found out what the show was when I arrived as a disclaimer was on the door. Looked like I was going to be on an episode of Man Vs. Food.
Being a huge fan I was more than excited to spend a few hours at one of my favorite restaurants in Cleveland with a bunch of other tattooed grilled cheese loving people. Walking in alone I did not know what to expect. None of my friends have a Melt tattoo so I went solo knowing that the general public would have to wait to get in. The bar was actually empty when I poked my head in the establishment and there were just a few folk who were hanging out at the bar. That number doubled of course in less than an hour and by 11am the place was jamming.
Guinness for breakfast is always a good idea. Luckily I was not the only one and I sipped on my beverage and made acquaintances with fellow members. Everyone had no idea what to expect and it was just fun to sit there and wonder what was going to happen. Making things even more interesting and surreal was the fact that the Travel Channel crew was running around the restaurant with cameras and lighting equipment. They were filming the episode before we even got there and that was one of the reasons Matt Fish invited his family in early. He wanted all of us to see the behind the scenes. Very cool Matt, very cool.
I sat at a table just near where the challenge was to begin with some guys from the Westside I just met thanks to pint sized beverages. All three of them were good friends and all had Melt tattoos. After talking for a bit we found out that we were allowed to stay in our seats for the whole event – or so we thought. More on that in a bit.
Now for those of you who do now know what Man Vs. Food is you are missing out. The show is a challenge every episode for host Adam Richman who takes on the most insane food entrees. No it is not sheep eyes and ox tail, it is typical American foods but in extreme portions. From the world’s hottest wings to burritos the size of babies this guy has no limits when it comes to stomach capacity. That is not to say though that he finishes the plates all the time.
Melt has been trying to get Adam to come to Cleveland for a while. For months Melt fans have been sending requests on forums and directly to the Travel Channel to get Adam to Melt. The challenge you ask? How about a 12 cheese almost 4lb. grilled cheese. Yes, almost 4lbs of cheese! Every type of cheese that Melt puts on their sandwiches (american, sharp cheddar, provolone, pepper-jack, havarti, monterey cheddar-jack, swiss, muenster, smoked gouda, blue cheese, feta, herbed cream cheese, and goat cheese) is piled on three giant pieces of bread with a heaping potion of fries as well as their homemade slaw.
Anyone is welcome to try it, at $22 a sandwich of course. The rules for the challenge are simple: No time limit, eat everything on the plate, and no bathroom breaks at all. A reheat of the dish was even allowed.
I joked with my new friends and thought about trying the challenge myself but I had to weigh the pros and cons.
The pros, if I killed the sandwich I would be cheered on by everyone in the house and have something to (gluttonly) brag about for years to come.
The cons though outweighed that one pro. First, 4lbs of cheese??? Yeah, can you say cholesterol increase? How about high fat intake, constipation, and the risk of vomiting a warm sea of cheese that might represent what happens when you mix salsa with Velveeta cheese. Not to mention I drove there alone and risked going into a food coma. Oh yeah, I also had a ticket to see The Avett Brothers at the House Of Blues in Cleveland at 8pm that night.
Yeah, no giant Melt catastrophe for me.
There were a few others though who did try the challenge earlier. Once kid got half way through and another had at least six bites left but rushed to the men’s room to…well…think about it. Adam actually was walking around and got a sneak of the sandwich and made the most classic scared-face look.
I like it when you call me Big Popper.
At about 12:30 our super rad waiter told us we could start ordering food so I opted to get a Big Popper. Just imagine a giant jalapeno popper with a side of raspberry dipping sauce. Fresh jalapenos with cream cheese, cheddar cheese slapped in bread, battered, and deep fried. It was 100% fat free and the healthiest option on the menu… I am lying. No sandwich is “healthy” for you on the Melt menu. That is why it is called comfort food people!!!
Adam and his video crew was walking around interviewing people from table to table for a couple hours but sadly they never stopped at ours. I was a little bummed out because I, and the guys I was with, thought at least they would want to see our tattoos. I can though lay this claim to fame – In the episode, should it air, the menu Adam had in his hands at one time was mine.
Wow I sound lame. Let me make that up to you…
After we finished eating and after the interviews were done Adam and his crew took a break. The waiter told us regretfully that we had to give up our table. I was bummed out about it as were the other guys but we all knew that Melt needed to keep business going so we finished up our meals and left the prime real estate.
I was not about to leave and neither were the guys I sat with. We decided to hang out at the bar the best we could with a super cool girl named Russa who actually bought our table a round of Black & Tans earlier because we were “so nice”. Free beer from a cute girl? I’ll take it!
Note: That is not Adam sitting there. We were getting instructions.
Turned out where I was standing by the bar was the exact area Adam was going to do his challenge. After about an hour or so a table, cameras, and lights were set up for the main event and I was right behind it. Suddenly being moved from my table was not so bad.
Being on a recorded show with a director was kind of hilarious. You were not allowed look at the camera and you had to smile or else the director would have asked you to move and let someone else in to smile. I had no plans on moving so I put the cheesiest (no pun intended) smile on my face and prepared to cheer for what the director said could be upwards to an hour.
When the filming of the challenge started, Adam came out wearing a shirt that said “I Still Call It The Jake” and advised all who were in house that he is a Cleveland native. The place went insane.
So what happened after that? Well let’s just say there was a lot of cheering done by yours truly as well as everyone else behind me. In fact my hands are still sore from clapping so much, my ears are still ringing, and I sweat through my clothes from all the warmth generated from the cheering. Oh, I also lost my voice. Small prices to pay to be on TV I suppose.
Adam Richman (Man Vs. Food) and Matt Fish (owner of Melt)
The result? Did he finish it or did he fail? Well you are just going to have to wait when it premiers on the Travel Channel sometime in June.
I can not tell because if the Travel Channel sees that I leaked anything about the main event they will prosecute me. Completely understandable.
June is just a few months away so be sure to check out the episode when it airs. I am so curious to see how much footage of me will be in it. Who knows I may be in it for three seconds but then again I can scream pretty damn loud so perhaps it will be longer.
Big thanks to Matt Fish and his amazing work crew for not only being incredibly generous by inviting me and the other tattoo crew to something that will be remembered for years but for also being so friendly and calm throughout the entire day. I was there for over eight hours and everyone staffed was smiling and making sure all the guests were comfortable and taken care of. It’s not just the gourmet grilled cheese that keeps me going to that establishment; it is also the employees that make it what it is. I’m proud to be an honorary member of their family.
If you have not ever been to Melt you need to do yourself a favor and check it out at least once. With a new Melt restaurant opening soon on the Eastside in Cleveland Hts. you have no excuse to not try it.
