Here is Tien enjoying one of the great bands of the evening. He had that same shit-eating grin on his face all night.
I was not only invited but asked to chime in on the bill. Tien and I both love surf music. We also both love The "Verb so they were in automatically if they would join, they did. He loves another band that I had yet to hear; Acapulco Lips. They were glad to join as they love Tien back.
We also knew that Djake Noose, DJ and host extraordinaire would be spinning the discs between bands.
Here is Jacob and Jason of The 'Verb before the show.
We were still puzzling over a third band when I received a CD in the mail. The short note said that he had heard from Ferenc, the brilliant surf guitarist with Frankie and the Pool Boys, The TomorrowMen and many more, that I was a surf fan and somebody to reach out to in Seattle.
Their reputation had preceded them. They were already on my radar. In fact they were already on the surf communities radar. I had already heard their music on two very influential surf shows. They were solid before they even walked in the door.
Their CD was being played all over the globe but we hadn't seen them play. We finally asked them about playing and it turned out they had never done a live show yet. Pretty phenomenal that they would get that kind of attention and not even have 30 minutes of music.
After a moment of hesitation they said yes and proceeded to work their butt off to produce a show that blew us all away. The Delstroyers will be a surf-force to enjoy for years to come.
Here is Maestro Scott; the sound tech, co-booking agent and music historian at his board. He makes the bands sound great. So both the bands and the listener loves him.
The bill was set, the poster designed and the date secured. As always these events are staged at Darrells Tavern in North Seattle. This venerable institution has been a fixture in Shoreline WA for many years. Dan Dyckman took over the place several years ago and started presenting live music. It is one of the most cozy, fun and welcoming places in Seattle to see live music.
They also have a great staff and wonderful adult beverages.
Darrells has a great atmosphere and wonderful people.
Djake was spinning the killer surf vinyl when I walked in. He is a knowledgeble curator of several different genres. Surf is one of his specialties. He, like me enjoys the darker and rougher side of surf music.
I saw some good friends and got some pics of them along with Tien and some of his buddies. The place was packed; a combination of Tien's buddies and music lovers.
Here is Djake and Van Ramsey. They will be presenting an all-surf show Thursday night at 7 on Zorch Radio (Internet station on Real Punk Radio) I can't wait to hear.
Matt and Jake from The 'Verb and Scott.
Tien and some of his many friends.
Do you think he is having any fun? He is one of the nicest and most pleasant men you will ever meet. I am lucky to count him as a friend.
It turned out The Delstroyers lived up to their hype and more. They had this dark heavy vibe that I just loved. And I wasn't the only one who was floored, Tien and Scott both gave me that look; eyes a little wide open, mouth agape and then a little smile...awesome!
Here is a link to video I shot of the fabulous Delstroyers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cmoJgPyyNNo
The Delstroyers are Dr. Gnarly Fingers - Guitar, The Giant Claw - Bass, Creep Beat - Drums. You can connect with them here on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedelstroyers/?fref=ts and buy their music here: http://www.thedelstroyers.com/
Dr. Gnarly Fingers aka Andre Maguire was freaking amazing on lead guitar.
Animated and talented, he was surely having fun. The crowd was reacting with huge applause and was right up tight to the stage. Andre reacted with big smiles. Yes, you guys were great!
Todd Clineschmidt was playing the dynamite percussion in back.
This was some excellent surf. These guys were tight as hell and sounded as if they had been playing for years. They must have practiced their ass off before this show.
Scott Masoner was a phenom on the bass. He quietly went about his business of shredding the 4 fat strings on his beautiful Fender.
The lights were doing some spooky stuff to Scott, very appropriate given the heavy tunes.
The band that said that they didn't have much material ended up playing for a solid 45 and each note was perfection. We were all left with our jaws hanging wanting for more.
I could go on forever, I got some great shots and could drool about their set for the rest of the blog. But I will drool the same over the next 2 bands so must move on.
Here is their set list.
This was one hell of a debut. I can see that they will be asked to play far more than they will have time for...can you say Surf Guitar 101 Convention? Thanks to The Delstroyers for knocking it out of the park.
Tien was having a blast, I saw him down a shot of something with a tequila tinge. He was being loved by all his buds, it was fun to watch. Here he is with one of my birthday gifts to him; a T from a Starbucks sign.
I also threatened to bring a paddle so we could initiate him into his second 50 years. Instead I made a graphic one that all his friends could sign. Looks like the real thing...thank you sir, may I have another!
As Djake continued to spin the great surf, Acapulco Lips were mounting up. I love their self-description on Facebook: The band did indeed emerge from a damp Seattle basement, but that’s about the darkest visual of their origin story. Rather than a kiss with mortal doom and destruction, Acapulco Lips sound much more like a make-out session on a hot, salty beach, where summer is eternal and there’s no notion of the fun stopping any time soon.
They are an up and coming Seattle band. The members are: Maria, Christopher and Davy, that's all I got. You can connect them here: https://www.facebook.com/Acapulco-Lips-162959996397/
As soon as I heard them I sent a note to my buddy that manages TacoCat as well as another great punk band. I thought Acapulco Lips might be right up his alley. It turns out Maria is already connected to him and the record company he works for.
They had a great sound, an incredible sound for a trio. Here is a link to a video I shot at the show: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYj41rKhzwU
Maria had a great voice and played a mean bass. The whole package was awesome, I saw why Tien loved them so much.
Here is Tien swooning to Maria and her mates. Still with two drinks, he is a double fisted drinker.
Acapulco Lips were really superb and a totally different sound than we just experienced. While it did have some surf overtones, the vocals added the pop to the raucous set.
We had some royalty in the house tonight, Tad Doyle who was one of the very first grunge musicians to come out of Seattle was sitting right up front.
The 'Verb was getting ready as Djake continued to spin the killer surf. He called for a toast to Tien. That is when I noticed Tien standing outside talking with some buds. I laughed as I pushed him back in the bar as the toast concluded.
Here is the song list for The 'Verb set. They always have great graphics. I will replace this with a better file as soon as I get it from Jake.
We were all waiting for the headliner and they did not disappoint. In fact this was one of the best sets I have ever seen from them. They had played the night before and were tight and passionate tonight.
I have asked The 'Verb to play my Surf Show in December for the last 3 years. They have the most unique sound. Last night was a demonstration of their expertise at The 'Verb sound. Here is a link to one of their signature tunes from last night: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1yKbchly7_A
I have reviewed them many a time, they are one of my all-time faves! You can see some of those posts here: http://liveseattlemusicintheclubs.blogspot.com/2013/12/aloha-baby-cathies-surf-spectacular.html and here: http://liveseattlemusicintheclubs.blogspot.com/2014/12/zombie-transplanr-surf-party-at.html
They play the finest vintage instruments in a very special way. 4 guitars blazing to the unique sound that has become The 'Verb's famous brand.
The 'Verb is Eric Cranfield, Jacob Dobner, Jason Aumann, Matthew Beck, and Michael Ball. Sitting in at the drums for Michael was Wendell Howell who did a great job reproducing The Sound®.
Here is Jacob and Eric mugging for the camera.
The crowd was still huge and The 'Verb rolled through some of their greats and a few more.
They played well past midnight coming back for an earth-shaking encore. Once again The 'Verb has emerged from hiding to blow the minds of every one within earshot.
Thanks to Darrells for always having the greatest venue on earth. Dan and Scott worked with us to set-up the show and make sure we had a good time. Darrells IS the happiest place on earth.
Here are some of my friends who are demonstrating the happiness of Darrells.
Happy Birthday Tien, this was a good one. I know you don't remember everything but hopefully this will help you recall some of the better moments.
Oh, and always;
Thanks to Six Gun Romeo for letting me use their skull image. They are a great rockabilly band out of B.C., see them when they are in town.
