AFG Must Rock!

Wow, what an incredible weekend of music! The Swagger Sticks did a show at Trip in Santa Monica on Saturday. Sitting in on Drums for The Sticks was the incredibly talented Jose Gonzalez and, on bass, my one-time guitar teacher (and Icky’s Ego bassist), Vreny Van Elslande. Vreny is a Berklee College of Music grad and I studied guitar with him in 2003-04. I never thought I would share the stage with a musician of this caliber…now If I could just figure out the difference between a major and a minor chord I’d really be one my way. Thank you Vreny and Jose – it was a priviledge sharing the stage with you muthas. Special thanks to Malcom, Lucie, Nancy, Simon, Dave and Cela for coming to the show!

Also on the bill were some really kick ass metal bands, Sleeping With Angeles and A Typical Mess. These “east of the 110″ rockers know how to get it done. No shit. If they’re not playing Ozz Fest of Crue Fest one of these days I’d be surprised. It would be a shame to see all those riffs go the waste. I believe both bands will be sharing the bill at the Puka Bar in Long Beach on 1/23/10. 

Ego Trip!
On Sunday I went to The Cat Club to see my local favorite, Icky’s Ego. Their show has gotten as tight as a drum in the past month. They flowed smoothly through an eight or nine-song set in front of a full room. I’m constantly amazed by the quality of Dave and Celas’ vocals. One word: Wow. These “Worldwide Popstars” are moving up fast so make sure you catch one of their shows soon!

Dictators R Us!
Playing their third show at The Cat Club was Everyone Needs A Dictator (E.N.A.D) featuring guitarist Alex Kane (and bassist Claire B) of Anitproduct and Marky Ramone’s Blitzkreig, the current incarnation of The Ramones. The Ramones, incidentally, are one of my all-time favorite bands! They’re big in Japan (I swear) but they’re not playing free-from jazz just yet (whew).

I had actually met Alex about a year ago at the ASCAP Expo here in Hollywood. We sat next to each other during a Jeff Lynne interview on the last day of the event. I spoke to him after the show but he has no recollection of meeting me. That bastard! I’m kidding. (No, seriously, he has no idea who I am). But I can say this: Alex is fuckin’ cool AND he’s from Chicago so there you have it.

At any rate, E.N.A.D melted the stage with a sonic boom of rhythmic assault worthy of the master himself, Johnny Ramone. Word on the street is that The Swagger Sticks will be camping out in Alex’s yard (and his buddy Happin’ Harry) until they let’s us open the next E.N.A.D. show. The same goes for Icky’s Ego. Rock n’ roll stalkers of the world unite!

By the way, here’s Marky Ramone’s Blitzkreig at Punk Spring 2009 in Japan with Alex Kane on guitar and Claire B. in front of 20,000 screaming fans. This will blow your mind:

AFG Must Rock!
Check out: The Swagger Sticks