Show Review: Battles & Pony Tail @ Beauty Bar San Diego

Wow- I love the Punk Board- they are my new favorite people!

Like the guy who urged punk boarders to "call my office" and "ask for cat dirt." Ha-nice try asshole. Not even close on the office, and go ahead- call my office- the fuck to i care? it's my office.

Like being called "a gay andy dick". Good one! Gay Napoleon Dynamite would be better.

Like being called a nigger? Umm... ok... Is that an insult? Is being called gay an insult?

Anyway- I welcome the criticism. I'm not one to back down from attempts to "get me in trouble" with my "boss" (good luck with that!). The Punk Board is home to a bunch of bullies. My life is filled with long term conflict- it doesn't bother me.

Let's not get a little "flame" war- that's what non-"Noobs" call it when people argue about stuff on the internet(!) obscure very real facts:

1. "Right now there are 350 local bands trying to book shows- if you had asked me how many local bands were really viable ten years ago, I would have stuggled to name five." -Len Paul, San Diego Music Foundation Round table, last saturday.

2. "I remember even a couple years ago, just by going out you would regularly bump into everyone in the scene- now there is so many venues and events, I can go weeks without seeing someone I used to see every weekend." - Tim Pyles, 94/9/Casbah

The true goal of all of this shit is to expand the local market for music- djs, national acts and local bands. Let's not lose sight of that- anything that draws attention and potentially expands the market is productive.

I went to the Battles/Pony Tail show at the Beauty Bar San Diego. Gabe and Saul were in good spirits- thought the whole "flame war" was pretty hysterical. It could have had something to do with the fact that there were 75 people in line outside the Beauty Bar and 9:15 PM- waiting to get in for the show. Battles was a total sellout- when I left at 11:30 there were 100 people waiting outside for people to leave so they could get in.

Pony Tail was the highlight for me- they have a cute girl lead singer/screamer and a generally energetic arty punky sound that sounds like a band you would hear opening for Mika Miko at the Smell or whatnot.

I couldn't actually see them play, which limits my observational abilities. Between sets I spoke with Tim Pyles- who told me that John Reis has opened a new bar/venue(?) in the space formerly known as Dino's in North Park. Memo to John Reis- you should hang out at your bar, that way more people will come. It's called Pink Hippo? Pink Elephant? Either/or. Tim and I are both excited for the Southern Lord Tour with Sun 0))) and Earth at the Anti-Monday League- you should def. check that out for a once in a long while sonic treat.

Amanda from San Diego House Parties was there ("We deserve to have better DJ's in San Diego!), Andrea ("If one more of my friends walks up to me and asks me if I've seen the comments on Cat Dirt, I'm going to punch them in the stomach."), Morgs ("I almost called you because I'm afraid the comments are detracting from all the positive things you do.")

At times like this, I wish I had managed to perfect my pocket Abraham Lincoln project. Pocket Abraham Lincoln is basically a very small, speaking robot made in the form of the great emanicpator (you have to put the stove pipe hat on separately). Basically, the concept is that during periods of great controversy, you pull out your pocket Lincoln, and he starts reciting from one of five great Lincoln addresses. People listen to the pocket lincoln, and calm is restored.

Battles was pretty boring. People were into it though. All in all it was a fun time. It's good to see the Beauty Bar San Diego doing well on a Saturday night, although I'm worried it will make next saturday night look small by comparison. Hard to compete with the atmosphere last night.

Book Review: The North American Deserts by Edmund C. Jaegar

An Ocotillo plant of the kind typically found in the Colorado desert.

The North American Deserts
by Edmund C. Jaegar
Stanford University Press

My feeling is that people should be gathering new facts, and then forming opinions, plans of action, and generally making decisions incorporating those new facts into their daily lives. That's why I love non fiction books- they're full of facts! Sometimes it can be hard to figure out which books to read- that's why I always look for books that have lots of used copies available on line (i.e. "read by college students") or for the publisher (books published by schools like berkeley, harvard, oxford- are likely to be good.

I picked up North American Deserts at kobeys swap meet for some lady who charged me an arm and a leg. It's a handsome volume. Specifically, I'm interested in the Colorado desert, which, as I learned in this book, extends basically from south of mexicali all the way up through palm springs/coachella. I.E.- the place I spend most of my desert frequenting time.

North American Deserts is a silm volume that breaks out the individual deserts of North America, which, confusingly I think for everyone- are all touching one other- running basically from southern idaho/wyoming, into oregon, encompassing pretty much all of utah and nevada, arizona, south east california, all of central and baja mexico, and entering into southern new mexico and west texas from the south.

The animal highlights of the region include the big horn vulture, the turkey vulture (aka "el zapolote"- can we adopt that name instead of turkey vulture?), a racoon like animal I've never heard of: the Coati, and of course- tons and tons tons of SNAKES! and LIZARDS! Many POISONOUS!

As one would expect, the plant descriptions revolve around differentiating one type of big cactus from another, and one kind of anonymous ground cover from another. It's a desert, people.

You can genuinely sense the excitement when the author starts talking about insects- the book jacket calls him a "professor of zoology" so when we drops the info that he recently discovered two desert snails in northern mexico, I took his claim at face value. I always though insect study was a different speciality?

left unanswered: What the fuck is a "skull kontrol"?

Be sure to check out the San Diego Union Tribune "Scenemaker" monthly feature with... Skull Kontrol! Yay!

Let's play the MO blind item guessing game:

Start:

Question: What a tool. Speaking of, who's the biggest tool in town right now?

MO: I'll describe him. He wears print hoodies, "DJs" crapola from a laptop, doesn't love music and does what he does for "chicks."

You may post guesses in the comment section. I KNOW who he's talking about- but I ain't talking shit. That doesn't mean anonymous commenters shouldn't' "SPREAD THE HATE."

And, for those of you who are going to cleverly nominate "cat dirt"- I don't know how to dj, and chicks hate me, fyi.

7/7/7 Cat Dirt Presents v. Skull Kontrol @ Beauty Bar San Diego
7/6/7 Cat Dirt Presents Vinyl Radio, Fifty on Their Heels, The Dirty Novels (Albuquerque, New Mexico!) @ The Ken Club

skull kontrol/cat dirt presents 7/7/7 DANCE PARTY

skull cat control, originally uploaded by catdirtrecords.

lyrics to December 63 by the Four Seasons (AKA "Oh What A Night")

Oh, what a night, late December back in '63
What a very special time for me
As I remember what a night!

Oh what a night,
You know I didn't even know her name
But I was never gonna be the same
What a lady, what a night!

Oh, I got a funny feeling when she walked in the room
And I, as I recall it ended much too soon

Oh what a night,
Hypnotizing, mesmerizing me
She was everything I dreamed she'd be
Sweet surrender, what a night!

I felt a rush like a rolling bolt of thunder
Straining my head around and taking my body under

(Oh what a night!)

Oh, I got a funny feeling when she walked in the room
And I, as I recall it ended much too soon

Oh what a night,
Why'd it take so long to see the light?
Seemed so wrong, but now it seems so right
What a lady, what a night!

I felt a rush like a rolling bolt of thunder
Straining my head around and taking my body under

(Oh what a night!)

I felt a rush like a rolling bolt of thunder
Straining my head around and taking my body under
Oh what a night! Doo dit doo dit dit doo dit doo dit dit

Ponytail (band)(Baltimore, Maryland)(Monitor Records)

Hey everybody: Ponytail!
on Monitor Records.

They are opening for Battles on Friday at Beauty Bar San Diego

A tiny bit of (8.1 style)love from Pitchfork.

Your hand 'Fork reference point for cool chatting at the show Friday night:

People might compare Ponytail to Deerhoof-- indeed, some already have-- but I'm not really the one to debate the comparison's accuracy. And maybe it's just the weird gloss of digital production, but what they're doing sounds pretty damn original to me.

You are WELCOME for that!

How about a little local love?

Known for their floor-shaking, sugar-fueled live sets, local quartet Ponytail is shockingly melodic on its debut album, Kamehameha, recently released on local art-rock baron Peter Quinn's fledgling Creative Capitalism label. Though usually described as post-art school punk, or pop-punk, or whatever people are calling the undeniably infectious rock that's started multiplying in the depths of the Copy Cat Building, Ponytail nimbly defies classification.

Whatever- you are going to have to come early on account of the no advance ticket/sure to be a sell out tip of the Battles show- so be educated.

Wouldn't it be funny if Ponytail played "Check Yo Ponytail" in Los Angeles?

7/7/7 Skull Cat Control @ Beauty Bar San Diego

Image Credit: KillDesign.com "Rae Wynhaughton" Image Title: Guniea Skull Cat

I'm breathless with excitement...

7/7/7
Skull Cat Control
@ Beauty Bar San Diego
with
Fifty on Their Heels and The Vultures
Skull Kontrol DJ's
Cat Dirt human beatboxing
"Team Korea Voltron" International Break Dancing Exhibition
"Boogie Down, Long Beach" Party Photography
more to be announced...