Hello,

i had a great time at the convention! I had a blast!
In case others want to see I uploaded a few picts from the convention.
http://gallery.me.com/guymoore#100056

Thanks
Guy

PS: Big Tiki Dude! you're the best!

Baja Marty worshiping at the "Altar of Reverb"
known as "The Surge"

and Brian looking on, and laughing.
http://gallery.me.com/guymoore/100056/DSCF0355/web.jpg?ver=12496149250001

Jeff(bigtikidude)

Last edited: Feb 02, 2010 14:27:57

Ok I am finally digging out of my hole and am able to write a bit. This first post will be about the San Diego show on Friday night.

Shari and I spent Friday afternoon at the San Diego zoo, which was very, very cool. So we were tired from all that walking around and had napped a bit too long before the show. We hurried to get to the venue a little early to maybe talk to some people and find some food nearby. We got maybe a mile and a half from the Bar Pink when suddenly the cops pull into the intersection in front of us and turn on their lights. Huh? Turns out there was some kind of night bike ride/race or something, and hundreds of people on bicycles start riding by. Great. So we sit there for like 20 minutes waiting for that to clear up. And then had to dodge stragglers on crowded streets during the rest of the way. We got there in time to have some excellent pizza around the corner from the venue, but not enough time to talk to anyone in any great detail. It was so great to see Ryan, Danny, Steve-O-San, and Ran again. It was great meeting TonyBaloney after talking to him in IRC so many times. Got to meet Lady Reverb our podcast host as well as Miles from the T-Men. I also got to meet Jason Lee for the first time, he's a little hard to miss in a crowd. He's a real cool and friendly guy!

The first band was The Verbtones from Portland. It was great to finally see these guys, and the first thing you notice is how good Kyle's Bandmaster / Mosrite combo sound. It's the real deal alright. The guys played a great set including songs from their new album (which I bought the following day). They played some of my favorite 1st wave songs, including Podolor's "Black Boots and Bikes" and The Pyramids "Bikini Drag". During "Drag", the drummer Steve gets up and runs around the drums while still playing! Awesome. So yes I really dug these guys, they had a very trad sound and played solidly, it was great fun. I finally said hi to Kyle after their set but didn't talk to the rest of the guys (including Scot, err SurfMole) until Saturday.

The crowd was very appreciative despite the fact it wasn't a "surf" crowd. How could you tell? There were actual WOMEN present! And lots of them. Far out man. The place was packed, actually, and the constant stream of people walking by the stage to go the the back got kind of annoying. One over-served young man actually got up on the "stage" during the Secret Samurai set to shout into the mic and knock it over (big dent in the wind screen). Fortunately the management quickly escorted him outside where I assume he was savagely beaten and left in the dumpster.

The TommorrowMen were next and I was really looking forward to seeing them for the first time. I love their EP but seeing them live was sooo much better. The guys are dressed like refugees from a time traveling movie, it was a real hoot. Tony's got the Man or Astroman jumpsuit thing going on, the bass player is in a kilt, Miles is the deranged professor in a lab coat, and Danny is wearing a glowing medallion. And they killed! Danny writes such interesting songs with unique parts and they are all great players. Tony is quite explosive on the drums, he is so fun to watch. "Skyles Angstrom" plucks his lefty bass with a sardonic smile. My wife thought he must get mistaken for that Will Sasso guy from MadTV a lot. All of the T-Men originals are fantastic (again, Danny is an awesome songwriter), and I can't wait to hear the album they are recording later this month. I just love Chronosurf, Requiem for a TomorrowMan, and the new song Run Ripley, Run. There were a few originals I didn't know the names of, but they sounded great. Thanks guys for the killer set! I actually had that surf music euphoria swell up inside me during their final song, it was so great being there.

And finally The Secret Samurai took the stage. I saw these guys last year and they were one of the highlights of last years convention for me, so I knew it was going to be good. What was very surprising though was how much better they were this year! And they smoked last year! Ryan was playing a Strat this time and he is quite the virtuoso on the guitar, with fingers flying up and down the fretboard, it was quite jaw dropping. And on top of that, I heard many new originals! So it is really promising that they are writing new material and it is high quality stuff. I hope they are able to record it soon because it was killer. The new material is also of a wide variety, there are the usual fast and intricate shred pieces that Ryan is so good at, and some really moody slow numbers. Shari got some video of this and I hope we can get it posted soon. They were really amazing and a great way to end the night!

Thanks to the Verbtones, the TomorrowMen, and The Secret Samurai for kicking off the convention weekend for us. We had a blast!

More later on the convention and the pier shows....

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

it was really cool meeting you Brian, and your lovely wife also.

Brian is so surf that he holds a cocktail glass with a 1st position Dm chord.

Don

Now I know how band members must feel when people post random photos of them on the internet.

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

I really missed Eddie too. He was definitely there in spirit. I hope his back gets better quickly.

Site dude - S3 Agent #202
Need help with the site? SG101 FAQ - Send me a private message - Email me

"It starts... when it begins" -- Ralf Kilauea

Brian
I really missed Eddie too. He was definitely there in spirit. I hope his back gets better quickly.

Me too. I picked up the Bel Airs Origins of Surf Music and have been listening to it all week. Is it too late to give 3 cheers to Eddie?
Hip hip hooray!

kick the tank: Sweet tattoos.. looks Japanese style. I have one sleeve done and am working on my other arm currently. Sorry --->

thanks alot SurferXmatt. I think i'm done though. The older i get the more they hurt.

Brian you RULE!