The Residents: a concert review, Vancouver 2023 - a worthy 50 year celebration

All photos by Bob Hanham, March 18, 2023; not to be reused without permission

My friend David M. - the only person I know who covers the Residents, FEAR, and Bruce Springsteen in his live sets - has said that he loves shows that do not go as planned, where bands have to improvise, adapt, make adjustments. He finds that a degree of chaos, frustrating as it can be for musicians, often results in a better, more memorable show. 

He should have come to see the Residents last night. It was the Residents show I have enjoyed most of the three I have seen, an amazing, crowd-pleasing representation of highlights from their long career, including, unbelievably, "Smelly Tongues," which I never thought I'd get to hear live. But it was also by far the show most beset with difficulties of the three, stripped down by circumstance beyond what was intended, so David might be onto something, there. I did not envy the challenges faced (all of which, I believe, can be blamed on the US/ Canada border crossing; the Hollywood Theatre did everything right that I could see, and seems a fine, fine space for live music). I felt bad for the band, on a couple of fronts, but from the point of view of a selfish fan, last night's show was a delight from start to finish, with the only disappointments (no merch) being somewhat epiphenominal, if you see what I mean.        

I did not get an authoritative point of view about how things happened, but word spread via various channels as people chatted up the unexpectedly-present soundman Chris Crud or reported stories from people who talked to people who had dined with Eric Drew Feldman (who I hope I can say WAS present in Vancouver last night, though gee, was he onstage? Who knows!). A picture emerged: there were key members of the crew that did not get across the border, from the soundman to the merchpeople. If merch was packed on the tour bus, the crew who DID get across the border were unable to find it for the hopefuls who stood around the bus afterwards, hoping to buy a t-shirt - including a drunk girl who was hoping to get one for $10! It was to no avail: wherever the boxes were packed, there was no time or manpower to dig them out, let alone let us pick through them). Last-minute adjustments needed to be made to compensate (Crud did great, by the by - I can only speak for the experience from the front of the house, but by DAMN it sounded good to me; I think the only complaint I heard was a second hand report that one person, Crud himself, was not entirely pleased, but my friends and I all were really impressed). The band also had to load out almost immediately, because - neverminding crossing back to join up with their soundman and merch guy, waiting, I guess, in Seattle - there was a kink show set to start at the Hollywood at 10:00, with the audience for that show waiting in the lobby as security urged Residents fans towards the exits and a clown in a green wig and a bondage-cum-fishnet-lingere costume loaded crates of equipment in from a U-Haul parked outside ("the changing of the guard," I quipped; it pleases me to know that there are, apparently, people with a fetish for clowns in green wigs, though I myself am not one). And finally, there were tech difficulties: there was supposed to be a video component projected on the screen, the content of which remains almost entirely unknown to me, as other than a Residents' 50th anniversary logo that started the night off, all we got of the multimedia component were occasional HDMI error messages (see pic above) that flickered on the screen while the wrong people, I guess, occasionally ventured forth to lamely push buttons on the projector and shrug. Ultimately the projector was just turned off and the white circle in the set design that was supposed to serve as a screen remained a white circle. A zero. Which in its own way, is perfect too, and went mercifully unnoticed by most band members, since it was behind them on the stage.  

So I have no idea what the show had been supposed to look like. I have not seen the Residents since the days of Randy Rose - whose "death" is the partial theme of the film Triple Trouble, which screened before the concert, playing like a sort of Lynchian, expanded Twilight Zone episode. Directed by the Residents and Residents manager/ graphic designer Homer Flynn, it tells a story of Randy's estranged son Randall, who is obsessed with a malign fungus that he believes is spreading through plumbing throughout San Francisco, and who occasionally receives spectral communications from his dead father (tho' be clear on this: the Residents' unfolding narrative may have Randy being dead, but the person who plays Randy, "the Singing Resident," is still very much alive and still singing for the Residents). Randy was a bit of a handful, as you may recall, offering cranky monologues, strange stories, and colourful, occasionally slightly digressive opinions between songs. Thanks to the film, where his ghost, like Hamlet's father, appears occasionally to impart advice to the mentally ill main character - a former priest turned plumber - we did get to taste a bit of Randy's philosophy (a speech about the importance of passion was particularly significant), but unless I missed something, the Singing Resident (whose current moniker I do not know) did not utter a word that was not a song lyric last night, mostly withdrawing into a contemplative, hands-folded pose between songs. 

The Singing Resident has very expressive hands. And he really should market those costume designs on pyjamas or something - they're great. 

Whatever we were supposed to experience, the show we GOT was, happily, quite magnificent. As fulsome and rich and maximal as the show I caught at the Rio was, last night ended up, whether by design or default, a brilliantly-executed presentation of JUST THE SONGS. I'm the kind of music fan whose favourite moments at a concert often involve me listening with my eyes closed, such that the absence of much in the way of elaborate set design, costume changes, multimedia or so forth only helped me get into the music more; I was even able to dance a little (to "Diskomo!"). I welcomed the lack of distractions and while I was glad Randy did pop up in ghost form in the film, there probably wasn't enough TIME for him to talk much between songs, if he had manifested onstage... so it's just as well. Last night was maybe disappointing to people whose primary orientation towards the band is visual, who WANT the theatre and the multimedia and so forth (tho' Graham seemed to enjoy himself, and his background with the band is almost ALL video). But for people who just want to hear their favourite Residents songs... crikey it was good. 

...And possibly better than the Dog Stab! tour would have been, though who knows what that might have looked like had COVID not gotten in the way. Bubba Hodges of Cryptic explained it to me in a previous interaction, since the original tour was conceived - booked before COVID, and twice-cancelled, he wrote, 

the show has evolved quite a bit. It started primarily as a promotional vehicle for the Metal, Meat & Bone album which was new at the time. The entire album was to be played in that version with added selections from Duck Stab, mainly for the fans. When that one was cancelled, it evolved toward the 50TH anniversary with less MM&B, more Duck Stab and even a Third R'nR encore. That tour was cancelled except for three California shows in 2021. The next version - the one you will see in Vancouver - has retained a handful of both MM&B plus some Duck Stab songs and added quite a few "classics" to make it an authentic 50TH Anniversary show.

I made notes of the songs played, but they are likely incomplete, especially since a few songs were actually medleys of tunes, a verse or two from one morphing into a verse or two from another, starting with a mashup of  two Hank Williams songs, "The Singing Waterfall" and "Jambalaya" (as also yoked on Stars and Hank Forever). "Hello Skinny" was followed by "Cut to the Quick" off Metal, Meat & Bone, followed by "Laughing Song" off Duck Stab, which I wonder inspired Flipper with "Ha Ha Ha." That was followed by "Boxes Full of Armageddon" off The Bunny Boy, then "Bach is Dead" (and some song that seemed to have a lyric about Bach being born again, but maybe I was hearing that wrong?). "Cold as a Corpse," I think, morphed into "Would We Be Alive," which I think was the only song representing the (four-album, or is it five?) Mole Trilogy, appearing as it does on Intermission. We heard favourites like "Moisture" and "Constantinople," the latter with the singing Resident, in an acapella introduction, riffing at the end on the childish hide-and-go-seek intonation of "ready or not, here I come." "The Monkey Man" off Animal Lover appeared, though with a very different vocal and percussion that was less Harry-Partchlike than the studio version. There were a couple slightly obnoxious characters at the front, including someone who seemed pretty drunk, who got the stinkeye from a few of us for making himself a bit too audible between songs (word to the wiseguy: a better index of how much certain songs mean to you is for you to shut up and listen to them, compared to, say, turning to the people next to you, who do not know you or care, and explaining how much the song means to you in a booming cackle, so that everyone around you can hear you, too), but he also cheered loudly for Duck Stab!-era classics like "Semolina," was clearly a true fan of the band, so we cut him a little slack (tho' his buddy's drumming on the stage reminded me of Grant Hart chewing out some fans trying to clap along with "It's Not Funny Anymore," the one time I saw him: "You weren't at the rehearsal and you're not in the band!" he said, and so they started over. Two slightly obnoxious people in an audience of a few hundred is not that bad, however -- a better ratio than Vancouver shows usually have). 

There were some very deep dives in the set, at least relative to my knowledge of the band, like "Kill Him" off Wormwood, with its memorable chorus of "God said kill him!" or "Theme from Buckaroo Blues," which morphed into "The Stampede." (I do not know my CUBE-E material at all). You could tell people who did know these songs were very pleased by their inclusion (I might have liked to hear the song off The Mole Trilogy with the chant of, "Let my children live/ in a holy land," which is a weirdly evocative lyric that has been echoing in my head of late, but I had not come expecting any particular tunes and felt privileged that I recognized so many of them. I was mildly surprised that no Third Reich 'n Roll material was repped, but I guess if you open that can of worms, you're committing to a 20-minute set of it, so...). 

Since I see the setlist IS documented, on Setlist FM, I'll leave some of the songs off, here, but the closer to the main set was a terrific twofer of "Hungry Hound" (that's a live clip from a few months ago in Germany that, other than the presence of working multimedia projection, could have been what we saw the other night) and "Die Die Die" (that's a different video from the one I posted previously!). They're both Metal, Meat & Bone songs, which is the one album I would suggest people who know only their early Residents check out, since there is still quite a bit from it on the setlist. The encores were particularly satisfying ("When We Were Young" off The Commercial Album really amped up the energy, as did a rockin' "Diskomo," previously mentioned, And "Nobody Laughs When They Leave," off Freak Show, was a perfect show-closer, but given lie by the enormous grins I saw on the faces of the members of the audience thereafter - a few of whom got to high-five with a fellow in an eyeball mask who worked the crowd towards the end, though whether they were with the band or not is anyone's guess. We may not have been laughing as we left this particular freak show, but we sure were smilin'. While I had enjoyed the elements of overblown, multi-media theatre at the Rio and Randy's cranky, almost standup-comic-like monologues between songs at the Rickshaw, last night was ALL ABOUT THE MUSIC, and to be honest... so am I. 

So I am very glad I went. I urge anyone on the fence about catching these shows to do so; they are a very worthy representation of the best of the Residents. If you don't necessarily have a huge investment in the lore of the Residents, if names like Randy Rose and Charles Bobuck (RIP) don't mean much to you, if you don't necessarily want to have your Residents served with between-song creepy mini-movies from the point of view of the mentally ill... if you know your Residents and just want to LISTEN TO THEIR MUSIC...

...this is the tour to catch, presuming (of course) that what I saw last night is in any way a fair approximation, minus some visuals, of what I was SUPPOSED to see. 

If it wasn't, I guess I owe the border guards a thank you, because it sure worked for me! 

BTW, if the Singing Resident was no longer the speaking Resident, he kept up a very enjoyable routine of dancing, during the songs, with moves that I suspect probably helped keep his body loose and limber; one wonders if he does tai chi or something to keep fit. The Singing Resident - invisible behind his costume - could have been 25 or something, from how engaged his performance was, but he's a fair bit older than that! And he was in fine voice. There were some really powerful growls and roars for some of the later songs, tho' I cannot say which. He has done a much, much better job - given that he is at least in his mid-70's - of preserving his voice than some much younger singers. It's kind of amazing, really - and makes me hopeful that there will be a live album documenting this tour. I had not planned to go, initially, and am so glad I did. And I'll go the next time they're in town, too...

So see this show if you get the chance! (And note: the film Triple Trouble, which I had speculated was some sort of tour film, in fact is nothing of the sort, and comes out on video this next week and apparently will be in stock at Videomatica, though you can also buy it online. I enjoyed it and am probably going to pick it up. There is another Residents video coming out that day, too, but I do not recall what it is). 

Residents tour dates here! Catch them on their 50th anniversary! Buy or die! 

Weirdness Within: the Residents 50th Anniversary Vancouver Return, this Saturday, with a Welcome from Some Fans, also featuring (mostly previously unseen?) photos by Bev Davies, Bob Hanham, Erik Iversen and others!

1. On Interviewing Members of the Cryptic Corporation: Hardy, Homer, and, uh, Bubba?

I have interviewed two, or possibly three, members of the Cryptic Corporation, depending on who or what Bubba Hodges is (more on this below). Much of this has been because of my brief time contributing to the Georgia Straight, where I was getting paid to write about bands coming to town. Truth is, I am not actually that far down the Residents rabbithole. My introduction to them happened when I got the Third Reich 'n Roll off Ty Scammell at the Vancouver flea market somewhere in the late 1980's or early 1990's; from the over-the-top, Dick-Clark-as-Hitler cover art to the genius of sending up 50's pop music in a way that counts both as savage satire and deranged, mirthful, intoxicated, quasi-ritualistic celebration, the album has a richness that immediately appealed to me, even as I gaped in youthful horror, wondering what the exact fuck Ty had turned me onto. It remains my favourite Residents album, the album that would earn the band my lasting respect and admiration even if it had been the only thing they'd done, and the only one that has been more-or-less consistently in my collection in some form or another since those days (though it has had, and presently has, a fair bit of company). 

But I don't listen to the Residents every day. I have ventured just far enough into the weird world that the Residents curate to realize that, as with a very small handful of other bands (Swans, anyone?), they are a band of whom it may be said, the more you listen to them, the more you WANT to listen to them; and the more you WANT to listen to them, the less you want to listen to anything else. At some point you have to forcibly extract yourself, lest you start turning up at parties with an eyeball on your head; it's not just a rabbithole, it's a rabbithole with SUCTION, and you - or I, anyhow - actually find it a little unnerving. But you have to respect them for it: The Residents are truly one of the most unique bands in American popular music. A band like no other. I can see why some folks become obsessed, and why their brand should have 50 years worth of longevity. 

Hardy Fox - the deceased composer and musical director of the band - spoke with me for the Georgia Straight in 2011, prior to an amazing show at the Rickshaw (the Talking Light tour) circa Lonely Teenager. When Hardy's illness was announced, I posted some outtakes from that conversation on my blog, as well. He denied being a Resident, at that point, but was, at some point between his retirement from touring in 2015 and departure from this bardo in 2018, officially outed as a member of the Residents - though the New York Times was content to leave this matter ambiguous in his obituary. I'm sure Hardy would have enjoyed this fact - that confusion about his actual role in the band survived him in the press, even after the band itself has fessed up. It's a triumph of self-obfuscation that really has very little else to be compared to in popular culture... just like the Residents' music.

In truth, I had assumed throughout our conversation that the assurance that Hardy would not be onstage that night at the Rickshaw, when the show went on, was nothing more than a ruse, a posture, a game. Of COURSE Hardy Fox was one of the musicians who would be playing that night, I thought. But the challenge of the interview was not one of tricking him into confession, PROVING that he was a Resident - I realized I couldn't, not could I see the point - but of finding a way to ask someone about their music so that they could answer in an interesting and revealing way, while still being able to deny involvement in the making of it. How do I play by the Residents' rulebook, and still have an interesting and readable article? It's a fairly unique challenge for a journalist - a hard game to master, but also a somewhat fun one to play, and I suspect that many journalists have worked harder than I to rise to the challenge. There are probably people who have gotten very good at interviewing the Residents, but I am not one of them. 

To return to the point: never did I doubt, during the interview, that Hardy really WAS a member of the Residents. Except at that very show - which he did say he would be at, just not onstage - he did something that completely convinced me that he had truly not been up there, after all, since when I was exiting the venue after the show, coming up from the theatre into the foyer, I bumped into Hardy and a friend who were apparently coming in from the street, when most musicians would surely be chilling in the green room in back. I still have no idea what magic exit he had used to materialize around the front when the band had barely gotten off the stage - surely he didn't go out into the alley and do a three-quarters circumnavigation of the Rickshaw so as to pop in the front JUST IN CASE someone who knew his face might see him - no one would do such a thing, especially not given the neighbourhood, would they...? But there he was. I recognized him immediately. "You're Hardy Fox, aren't you?" I said. "I interviewed you. You really WEREN'T on stage, then!" 

Hardy just smiled. 

We chatted there for a few minutes in the Rickshaw lobby, with no one making a big deal of his being there, his anonymity apparently secure (because, y'know, he wasn't wearing a giant EYE on his head or anything; how interesting that he had the privacy and freedom to move un-harassed through his fans, afforded him because of the band's anonymity. It would take an obsessive and well-informed fan indeed to spot his face in the crowd, and I only did so because I'd been speaking to him a couple of weeks before, and had Googled his image). No one asked him to sign anything. No one snooped on our conversation. No one who heard me say "You're Hardy Fox, aren't you?" turned to observe us, as if they'd heard a name they had recognized, even though everyone around us had paid to get in there and was to some extent a fan. No, no one paid us any mind at all. I could have been talking to Wayne McCarthy (a Facebook friend who I run into from time to time at the Rickshaw; he's no more famous than I am, as far as I know). 

Anyhow, Hardy seemed affable, gentle, smart, grounded and relaxed, without a trace of "rockstar ego" or whatnot. I genuinely liked him, based on our interview and this brief personal encounter, and liked that a man so seemingly normal could still contain such a phenomenal amount of weirdness within, and channel it into his art. (It added a whole other level of fascination and admiration to read in obits that he had a husband, who - who knows? - might have been the man he was with that night; but I don't even begin to know how to write about that; Googling "Queering the Residents" nets only articles on LGBTQ+ housing). 

Talking Light tour at the Rickshaw 2011, photo by bev davies; is that Hardy on the left? (Not to be reused without permission)

Then I interviewed Homer Flynn, back in 2016, when the band played the Rio on the Shadowland tour. Hardy was still alive, at that point, I believe, but very ill, and had ceased to perform. As of the days of Theory of Obscurity, Flynn is described as the "secretary" or, uh, the "Captain Doc" of Cryptic; he is also sometimes described as the band's manager; and publicly known to be their graphic designer - the man responsible for that amazing Dick-Clark-as-Hitler cover previously mentioned. As far as I know, he has not been officially and publicly identified in any other role in regard to the band, but, again, he does tour with them. I agot to speak with him after that show, at somewhat greater length than I had with Hardy, and he also seemed a surprisingly relaxed, no-nonsense fellow, a very ordinary man, really, considering his association with one of the strangest, most outlandishly creative bands in American musical history. As with Hardy, you would not think anything if you looked over and saw him at the restaurant we went to, after the show (Dosa King on Kingsway; after his traumatic attempts to find food in the city by walking around the neighbourhood of the Rickshaw, he was game to be brought to a restaurant by a helpful journo). 

Homer Flynn by yours truly, not to be reused without permission

Much of that conversation will remain unreported by me - you kind of want to play by the Residents' rules - but besides his confirming that Hardy had been onstage at the Rickshaw, and not being able to explain my surprise encounter with Hardy at front of venue, Homer did mention another person of musical association with the band: Eric Drew Feldman, whose musical history includes playing with Captain Beefheart and the Magic Band, Pere Ubu, Snakefinger, and Black Francis. (The Residents Wiki article on him goes into more detail about his career).

Eric Drew Feldman, maybe? Photo by Bob Hanham, not to be reused without permission; Residents at the Rio, 2016

I do not know what the rules are about outing Eric Drew Feldman as having replaced Fox in the Residents, but Wikipedia pretty much goes there, and Bubba Hodges, the person (or possibly AI) from Cryptic who responded to a recent email, when asked if Feldman can be named as being involved with the Residents, says that indeed, "Eric is involved, primarily as The Residents' producer and architect of their recorded sound."

I do not know if Eric is in the touring band this time around, but, uh, it seems at least possible, though with a tour as postponed and reconfigured as this, who knows? You won't be able to recognize him onstage, anyway! 

Randy of the Residents, 2016. Photo by Bob Hanham, not to be reused without permission

I had a couple of other quick questions of Bubba, who identifies as "the Cryptic version of ChatGBT, struggling to find my own identity in a vast sea of misinformation." (The B in ChatGBT may or may not be a typo, as there is also a Chat GBT, in addition to the more famous ChatGPT. Nothing, it seems, is simple when it comes to Cryptic). For example, I asked, with this twice-postponed show, if the set list had evolved much since the original Dog Stab tour - cancelled by COVID - was conceived?

Bubba: The show has evolved quite a bit. It started primarily as a promotional vehicle for the Metal, Meat & Bone album which was new at the time. The entire album was to be played in that version with added selections from Duck Stab, mainly for the fans. When that one was cancelled, it evolved toward the 50TH anniversary with less MM&B, more Duck Stab and even a Third R'nR encore. That tour was cancelled except for three California shows in 2021. The next version - the one you will see in Vancouver - has retained a handful of both MM&B plus some Duck Stab songs and added quite a few "classics" to make it an authentic 50TH Anniversary show.

For those who missed it, the Metal, Meat & Bone album contains both demos and modern reworkings of what, in their original form, present as somewhat rude, harsh blues songs allegedly recorded by a figure identified as Dyin' Dog, a forgotten Louisiana bluesman who sounds very much like the Residents' vocalist at times, albeit in a rough, Tom-Waits-y growl not generally heard on Residents albums, like the singer had been gargling with razorblades and tequila. There is enough musical complexity to some of those raw demos to make one wonder if perhaps even the alleged timeframe of their recording - the early 1970's - might be as false as the other circumstances reported by the band (the Residents are not, after all, above what Hardy called "a lot of lying." The truth is out there, no doubt, but when it is surrounded by so much falsity, you won't trust it when you see it). Granted the allegedly contemporary reworkings are more sophisticated, musically, and have their own artful appeal, though they lack the shockingly rough charm of the so-called "early" versions (though I'd in fact be delighted to discover that the timeframe between versions was a matter of weeks, not decades). The whole idea of the Residents taking on the blues is pretty appealing, too. It works pretty damn well.

There are other surprises. The video for "Die Die Die" gets a bit more directly topical than one expects of the Residents, with COVID viruses and the face of Donald Trump appearing, all singing (with help from Black Francis) that they want you to die. There's plenty of other violent imagery in the lyrics on the album, as well as sexual double-entendres. Take, for example, "Bury My Bone." (The rock video for the reworked version has honest-to-Jeezus tits in it (there are quite possibly tits in other Residents videos, too, but not that I've seen myself). The Residents are not really ever safe for work, unless you really trust your coworkers or have tenure or something, but this video, shared with a co-worker, could probably get you fired, which, say, would probably not happen with "Moisture." People would just look at you funny, for that one.

Anyhoo... seeing that the costumes have changed since the twice-cancelled Dog Stab shows here - wise, considering the original costumes (above) are a little less inviting than the ones at the top of the page - I asked Bubba if Homer designed them.

Bubba: The masks are British and were found online - perhaps at Etsy. The costumes were designed by Homer.

And since I had no idea what else to ask, not knowing if Bubba would even be able to engage me, I threw a random catch-all at him for the hell of it: "Any comments I can use are welcome. Seen any good movies lately?"

Bubba may or may not be an AI, but he sure did sound like Alexa in how he - they? it? - framed his answer: "I hear that RRR (Netflix) is a terrific movie. While I haven't seen it personally, several of THEM have seen and raved about it." Good to know! 

The Singing Resident n 2018, Bob Hanham photo, not to be reused, etc. I missed this show! 

A final note of some relevance, re: movies, for those who have not heard, the showtimes for the night at the Hollywood have changed, to accommodate the screening of a feature film directed and written by Homer Flynn, Triple Trouble, presumably so entitled because this is the Residents' third attempt to conduct this tour (but I don't really know). Doors will be at 5pm, and the evening will commence at 5:45. The actual concert begins at 7:25, apparently. I have done nothing to prepare myself for the experience of watching the film, have not seen it, have not even read that description I linked, so I will not describe it... because why do I want to know what I'm in for? I hereby license Homer, the people of Cryptic, and the Residents themselves, whoever they might be, to surprise the hell out of me. 

2. The Residents: Bev Davies' story, plus Snakefinger! 

From the Residents 2011 show at the Rickshaw, by bev davies, not to be reused without permission

Vancouver cultural treasure Bev Davies has photographed the Residents, Captain Beefheart (see here), and Snakefinger (a sometimes Residents-collaborator who toured through town with the aforesaid Mr. Feldman back in 1982). Earlier this week, she told me a story involving a musician named Paul Young, who is NOT the Paul Young of this horrifyingly lachrymose earworm (exposed to it, I feel compelled to revise the lyrics, changing "me" to "cheese," to make the experience more tolerable). This other Paul, Bev explained, was nicknamed "Eazy Teeth" by Beefheart because he was always smiling. (Bev points out that there is a record by Captain Beefheart called "Eazy Teeth," but the only thing I can find on Youtube is not by Beefheart - it sounds more like the Residents, in fact, but is not them, either). 

Drawing by Don Van Vliet of "Eazy Teeth," provided by bev davies

Bev's story:

Paul Young, who is a friend of mine - or was a friend of mine; I haven't seen him in years. He used to be in the entourage for Captain Beefheart. And Paul told me a story about the Residents; when the Residents lived in San Francisco, there was a warehouse district in the neighbourhood where their studio was. Everyone knew they were there. And Paul said that the Residents were always a bit apprehensive of Devo, and felt that Devo were going to steal their thunder if they weren't very careful about it. They felt a competition between Devo and themselves, that they hadn't initiated, but maybe Devo had initiated. It was this edgy thing that happened. 

Sometimes Residents-collaborator and Ralph Records bandmate Snakefinger by bev davies, not to be reused without permission. April 10, 1982 at " In Concert" 315 Carrall Street

Bev, continued: So some people got together that were friends of the Residents, but not the Residents themselves, and postered the neighbourhood right around where the studio was. And the posters were of Devo with giant heads, with big eyes on their shoulders. The Residents hadn't released the record yet, the record where they had the eyeballs, what is that?

Allan: Maybe Eskimo?

Bev, continued: But they were Devo posters that had the eyeball, and the Residents came out and they went, "Oh my god, they stole our idea!" And they were hysterical about it. But it was just a joke. Devo had no idea, had nothing to do it.

Allan: That might be in the film!

Bev: It might be!

Allan: How did you know Paul?

Bev: Just met him here probably at the Railway when he came to town with Beefheart. And when Beefheart came here, he stayed at a hotel in the West End, on Burrard, there, on the west side of the street. And when I went to photograph him, Paul went, "I have to show you something, but you cannot tell anyone." And he took me to the top floor of the hotel, which was all burnt out. And he said, "Beefheart just is terrified of fire, and would not stay at this hotel if he knew the top floor was burnt. Don't tell him! Don't tell him..."

Eric Drew Feldman with Snakefinger in Vancouver, 1982, by bev davies, not to be reused without permission

Allan: Apparently Captain Beefheart hated the Residents. This is something I've talked to the Residents about. 

Bev: That history I don't know, other than, that's a good story. 

Allan: Do you have any history with the Residents? A first moment discovering them?

Bev: No, but Snakefinger was on the same record label, Ralph Records, and I have that t-shirt, "Buy or Die." That's where I probably met Paul first, was at Snakefinger. I saw him a few times. Really liked him! And I have the Snakefinger t-shirt with the finger and the snake coming out of it...

Snakefinger in Vancouver, 1982, by bev davies, not to be reused without permission

3. The Residents by uber-fan Erik Iversen

All photos in this section are copyright by Erik Iversen (except the Snakefinger gig poster) and not to be re-used without permission.

Photographer Erik Iversen is a "long time fan" of the Residents, a man much deeper down the Residents rabbithole than I, who first saw them over 20 years ago at the Commodore on the Icky Flix tour. He'll be in attendance on Saturday as well, but less to shoot than to focus on the music and performance, he tells me. During a brief interaction on Facebook, however, he mostly communicated his fandom through images - which is possibly wise when trying to talk about the Residents.

Here are a couple of snaps that Erik shot that night the Commodore - a photograph of photographs. As you see, Erik got to see an eyeball mask (something we did not get to see here in 2011 or 2016). He further explains that "Molly Harvey is the singer in the pink wig;" she apparently no longer tours with the band, but plays with them when they come through Georgia. You can also see some really striking shots taken by Eric on the Concert Addicts website from that Rio show of 2016.

Erik's first encounter with the Residents was on the Vancouver cable access show Nite Dreems, "when John H. Tanner showed videos for 'Moisture' and 'Hello Skinny.' That's how I also first heard Snakefinger's 'Man In the Black Sedan' and was instantly hooked. I love the early music, but their recent albums are excellent as well."  (Doug Smith - of "Hell is a Microwave" fame - also reports early exposure to the Residents on Night Dreems - "Hello Skinny" and "Constantinople," in particular.  Meanwhile, I was probably seeing these on a different cable access show, Soundproof, out in the suburbs, where I also first heard Snakefinger's "I Gave Myself to You," which you could buy on 7" at Collectors' RPM. The earliest Residents video I can recall from those days is "Simple Song," but there were a few that played fairly often back then, so who knows?). 

Erik still has his first Residents LP, which he got some 45 years ago; it was also my first Residents' LP, as previously mentioned. Erik apparently has also had The Commercial Album (and the single below) since his high school days. And he saw Snakefinger at the Luv-a-Fair, at a later show than Bev was at, adding - knowing that I am a NO FUN fan - NO FUN opened that night.

Except they didn't. Responding to a query for Snakefinger memories, David M. of NO FUN - who did see the Residents with me in 2016, who tells me he has "been playing 'Birthday Boy' from Duck Stab at midnight on my birthday every year since I bought the E.P. (with t-shirt) at Black Swan Records in 1978," and who is known to occasionally cover "Santa Dog" during his Christmas shows (and who gave me a CD of his interpretations of that song to pass on to Cryptic) - responded via text that, "Once again I see that it is being suggested we opened for Snakefinger. Which we did not. No one ever asked us to play with Snakefinger, and our name was never on a Snakefinger poster, so I'm not sure where the persistent rumour came from, other than that Black Swan was the one record store to carry a wide range of Residents/ Snakefinger/ Ralph Records product thanks to my friend Tim [Keenliside, though I cannot confirm the spelling; I know him from avant-garde gigs around town] who ran their rock/ punk/ new wave section. He was the guy bringing in all the non-jazz stuff, and his tastes ventured further than the au courant punk and new wave stuff that was teaching kids how to dress in those days. Because of Tim, our second EP, "NO FUN at the Disco," was exclusively available at Black Swan (we provided them with a large Werewolf record rack for both EPs that they had on the counter). So in 1979, people would probably have associated Residents and us with Black Swan, and a lot of people remember the Snakefinger performance in Vancouver at that time."

Incidentally, apparently Kent Lindsay of NO FUN's new label Atomic Werewolf has a "short musical message from Hardy Fox" inserted into a bonus track - "boner track," in NO FUN speak - on an album by his band New Heads (but that's a link to the Spotify page; he mentions Bandcamp, but I can't find the New Heads page there...). 

And Doug Smith, who was at the Snakefinger show in question, says it was "insane," adding that he "always thought it was crazy that [Snakefinger] was in a Pub Rock band with Martin Stone and Pete Thomas! Ace musicianship or what!" 

4. Graham Peat (best known for his association with Videomatica)

Graham Peat is another notable Vancouverite with a history with the Residents, who will be present at the Hollywood Theatre on Saturday. He tells the history thus:

In Videomatica's early days we imported music videos taped in San Francisco like the Cramps, Throbbing Gristle, Bauhaus, Dead Kennedys and the Damned.

But the most disturbing and compelling videos to me were from Ralph Records' The Residents. They were sinister, funny and so cinematic. Every video was an elaborate production that you just couldn't forget.

How can I shake off "Hello Skinny," "Songs for Swinging Larvae" or "Third Reich 'n Roll"? And then there was the mystery. The group was so perfectly impenetrable then. Astounding that they are still around 50 years later.

The Residents in Vancouver, 2018, by Bob Hanham, not to be reused without permission

5. Jordan of Nomeanswhatever: the Residents by PowerPoint

I do not remember Jordan's real name. I know him from a long-since mothballed Nomeansno discussion forum where we both used to post under aliases. We are also now Facebook friends, and we chatted at that Invasives/ Rong/ Pet Blessings show I wrote about a few months ago. I think in each instance he has used a different name; this also seems like something the Residents might approve of. They would probably also enjoy knowing that Jordan "did a PowerPoint presentation about them for my grade 11 media arts class. Been a big fan since I was about 13 or 14, though I'm not too into a whole lot of their stuff after Mark of the Mole."

Another favourite, that was the second Residents album I bought, possibly from Ty, as well, but I found it too weird at the time (I find it deeply fascinating now). Apparently it was recorded close to the time of a rupture between factions in the band, and seems in fact a metaphor for it, telling a veiled tale about the tension between those members of the band who wished to remain "underground," as it were, "working down below," and those who wished to move "up" in the world, with all that implies - success, fame, money, and so forth. The liner notes for the Mole Trilogy in those fancy hardback CD reissues that came out a few years ago are uncharacteristically informative in this regard, and are a must-read for Residents fans (as I recall, the notes to Tunes of Two Cities are particularly revealing). 

Jordan continues:

Here's a little more context to that Residents anecdote... I first got into the Residents when I was around 13 I think. My two favourite bands at the time were NoMeansNo and Primus, both of whom had each covered the Residents, so I knew I had to check them out. My brother ended up special ordering The Third Reich 'n Roll from our (terrible) mall CD store in Nelson, BC and the first time I listened to it I wasn't sure if I liked it exactly, but I definitely thought it was compelling (and certainly the most jarring, bizarre music I'd ever heard at that point). I spent some time on the library computer reading more about them (my family didn't have internet while I lived at home) and was really fascinated by their concepts and mythology. 

A few months later I got The Commercial Album which I instantly loved, and I started trying to acquire everything from them I could get. In my grade 11 media arts class we were tasked with designing a PowerPoint presentation to give to the class. I can't remember what the parameters were regarding the topic we could choose but whatever it was I was able to shoehorn the Residents into it. I gave a presentation highlighting their career at that point - releases, tours, artwork, and innovation in the mediums of music video and CD ROM, as well as fan theories about their identities. My presentation was the first given and my teacher was actually quite impressed and told me that I'd set the bar very high and that I had piqued his curiosity about the group. He had me launch the splash page again at the end so he could listen to the first 30 seconds of "Constantinople" again, now that he had just learned about the group. 

One other kinda funny side note - my dad was also familiar with the Residents, though he was never the major fan that I was. He told me that at one point many years prior he owned a dub of a Ralph Records VHS compilation. One night when he and my uncle were watching some low budget horror movie that they had rented, they got the idea (probably while stoned) to hook up another VCR so that they could splice in a brief clip from the video for "Simple Song," of The Residents dancing around the rotating pig. He insisted it looked seamless. I wonder if the video store ever found out.

The Residents in Vancouver, 2018, by Bob Hanham, not to be reused without permission

That's all I've been able to amass in the time allotted. Tony Balony of the Rubes, the Real McKenzies, and some incarnations of Rude Norton, as I recall, also is a big Residents fan, but didn't really have a story - save that he "was a big fan in the early 80's. I met Penn Jillette" - who toured with the Residents for a time - "and he was wearing a Residents shirt with a top-hat eyeball." 

Still, as of this writing, there are still tickets left for Saturday's show at the Hollywood. There are not many opportunities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of a band so storied and significant. Even if you don't know what to make of the Residents - even if you figure they are just "weird for weird's sake," as another friend of mine observed - the experience of seeing them live is singular, spectacular, and very, very entertaining. Like the guy says - 

Bev's Buy or Die t-shirt, art by Gary Panter, photo by bev davies

See here for more.

Get It On: A Benefit for Ukrainian Refugees in Poland

I'll never understand it: who the hell wants to pay $1000+ for tickets to some aging American multi-millionaire singing songs about the working class when you have a chance to see seventeen great local bands, many actually from the working class, for a worthy charity, for under $50? I've seen half the bands on this bill, have always enjoyed them, and in many cases have interviewed or reviewed them, including Invasives (interview/ review), Daddy Issues (Betty Bathory interview/ Daddy Issues review), Bad Beats, Vanrays, NO FUN, and China Syndrome (one of many interviews here). Plus you have a chance to help out Ukrainian refugees in Poland, via a charity organized...uh... wait, what does Turbonegro have to do with anything?

This ain't your grandad's NGO folks, this is a Turbojugend charity: What? 

I thought some background on this weekend's coolest gig might be in order. But before we get to people's stories, local Turbonegro fans might enjoy the clips I shot of former (and now departed) Turbonegro vocalist Hank von Hell the last time he played Vancouver, in 2019, of "Bombwalk Chic," "Wild Boy Blues," and that Turbonegro classic, "I Got Erection." It's truly delightful that a loose organization of fans of a band - started practically as a gag by the band, in homage to the KISS Army - should come together to make a meaningful difference in the world and help people in need... and that we Vancouver music fans have a chance to participate!

Commence backstory! 

From the Facebook Event Page:

Turbojugend Rescukraine is the brainchild of Wiktor Marszalek. It brings a worldwide network of 700 superfans of the Norwegian punk band Turbonegro to bear on providing rescue and relief to Ukrainian refugees in and around the Polish city of Poznan. Since the outbreak of war, the group has already helped with the evacuation of over three hundred refugees, resettling and offering ongoing support for forty-six of them including many children. They are determined to do more and can with our help. 

          All proceeds from both nights go directly to Wiktor and Turbojugend RescUkraine.

Friday

Doors at 7pm

Advance tickets $15 + s/c available here:

https://orangetickets.ca/detalles_evento.php...

At the door: $20

Line-up:

Invasives

Daddy Issues

AK-747s

Austringer

Saturday

Doors at 2pm

Advance tickets $25 + s/c available here:

https://orangetickets.ca/detalles_evento.php...

At the door: $30

Line-up:

Gnar Gnars

Gung-Hos

Bad beats

Rebel's Rebels

Rebel Priest

Van Rays

Ophelia Falling

The Furniture

Danny Echo

David M. of No Fun

China Syndrome

Barbarians

If you like the work RescUkraine is doing and want to support it beyond the price of admission, you can make a Paypal donation (in USD and marked as a gift for family/friends, please) to: turbojugendpoznan@gmail.com

Sometimes they will take specific actions as a result of requests they receive, so feel free to ask!

The following sections give background on the event, then we check in with some of the musicians...

Dave Bowes, promoter, sometimes musician, and bon vivant about town, on the germ of the event: 

Like a lot of people, I felt the urge to help the Ukrainians early on in the invasion. All the destruction and suffering we witnessed secondhand, your heart would have to be stone not to feel something for them. But I made no concrete efforts in that direction until Chris Thompson (Corporal Ninny), one of my former drummers with Fucking Unicorns came to me with the seeds of this benefit. He'd already tried to mount it at the Bullet Farm but it hadn't worked out. The Turbojugend connection is his. He is in fact a member. I liked that they were grassroots, had some connection to cool music and were on the front lines of the refugee crisis. Better than giving your hard earned to maintain a gaggle of pencil pushers in a major NGO head office somewhere. Granted, it's an offbeat charity but to my mind that makes it more attractive.

SNFU, photographer unknown, L to R Rob Johnson, Corporal Ninny, Marc "Muc" Belke, Mr. Chi Pig, taken at the Irish Heather, Gastown, 1999; courtesy Corporal Ninny

Austringer bassist (and former SNFU/ Fucking Unicorns/ Red Hot Lovers drummer) Corporal Ninny on the connection to Turbojugend RescUkraine: 

I have a Turbojugend chapter here in Point Roberts; I simply messaged [Turbojugend RescUkraine founder] Wiktor and told him last year I was going to put on a show to raise money for TJ RescUkraine. Part of the inspirations for the show comes from my time as a UN Peacekeeper during the war in the former Yugoslavia. The images hit home for sure. 

(The border between Poland, left, and Ukraine, right)

Wiktor Marszalek, Polish Turbojugend RescUkraine founder on the function of the organization and its accomplishments: 

The idea itself was born in the first days of the war when we found out that our friends from the Ukrainian Turbojugend needed help. 

Who are we? We bring together people we know or have met around Turbojugend chapters. We are based on the values that Sailorettes and Sailormen (all Demin Demons) know. We have added just one element to all of these - selfless help and solidarity. At present, our group has more than 700 people from all parts of the world. Almost every continent has own representation in this crew. 

(a rescued dog)

How do we work? We operate from the grass-roots network, without any state support. Sometimes we use formal channels through friendly people or NGOs. We do the whole thing free of charge in our private time. We act on three levels: 

1. Local in our village and in Poznan. We help Ukrainian families from official matters to finding their way in a new situation. We take care over 20 Ukrainian kids in our area, and five families. 

2. We operate on a national level based on our network of contacts. We act as administrators on the aid forum supporting initiatives, but also reacting to critical situations that refugees unfortunately face. We support children in various initiatives by giving them opportunities to develop. 

3. On an international level helping people from Ukraine with the most necessary items. From evacuating people from places of danger to taking care of them in their new safe place. Preparing parcels or taking part in organizing humanitarian aid convoys. We try to make each of our actions as transparent as possible, which we have proven many times. We describe all our actions in a group on FB. Unfortunately we don't go beyond fb and insta because we don't have the strength or time for that anymore . 

Our achievements (short list of most important actions): 

1. Creating an amazing network of mutual help 

2. Participation of people connected with Turbojugend in the evacuation of civilians over 300 people 

3. Direct involvement in dozens of evacuations from individuals to families. 

4. Support and accommodation of 46 people (Poznan, Warsaw and others) and 43 animals (cats, dogs, snake and horse) 

5. Possibility to provide 5 additional places for refugees. 

6. Volunteers in Kutte at the border or train station giving direct help 

7.Support in critical moments - helping to raise money for a generator for the hospital shortly after the bombing 

8. Delivering 50 tons of donations directly to the border. 

9. Preparing over 2000 different meals / welcome packs at the railway station in Poznan 

10. Providing food to animals in Ukraine - over 1000 kg of food 

11. Providing over 400 kg of food to rescued animals that are already in Poland 

12. Delivering parcels with clothes and cleaning products to humanitarian points and refugees places 

13. Medical examinations and visits to doctors: paediatrician, gynaecologist, psychologist, dentist and ophthalmologist. 

14. Delivery of dozens of packages to Ukraine 

15. Purchase of food, cleaning supplies, underwear and clothing, containers for belongings, and help in finding oneself in a new situation. 

16. Organising Easter and Children's Day and Christmass for refugees 

17. 3 scooters, 5 notebooks 2 tablets for kids 

18. School trips for the kids to the mountains and to Torun and half-day camps. 

19. Assistance in finding a jobs, flats also to gather stuff in new places like used washing machines, furniture etc 

20. Support friends who are on the first line of duty eg. combat medic or people who risk own lives to evacuate people or deliver help as far as possible. 

And many more... What can you do ? You can prepare packages, which we will give either directly to the needy or locally, we support kids who have found themselves in a new place. We happen to send parcels to our friends in 4 different locations as well as we happen to send parcels close to the front line to liberated areas - in the case of parcels we always ask for direct contact.

Wiktor on connections with Dave, Corporal Ninny, and Vancouver

A year ago we founded this Turbojugend RescUkraine team which brings together fans of the Turbonegro group from all over the world. Many people started to get involved in various forms. Among these people was Corporal Ninny from Vancouver. This acquaintance began to gain momentum, all the more so as a number of common themes emerged, unfortunately concerning conflict and relief. We have nothing in common with Vancouver except the dream of one day visiting Canada. We have a Polish friend in Vancouver, but she is not involved with the aid group. We receive a lot of support from all over the world, there have been benefit events in Hamburg, Germany and Helsinki, Finland, and there are plans for one in Warsaw, Poland, and one in Vancouver, which is actually the biggest event in the history of the group. For the future we also will send parcels with food to Zaporoze region and medical supplies to Hulajpole...

The musicians speak!

I asked a fairly generic set of questions to the musicians performing who I had email contacts close at hand for. There are lots of stories not represented here!

Orchard Pinkish and Betty Bathory of Daddy Issues courtesy of Betty (is it a Dave Jacklin pic? Bob Hanham? Dunno).

1. Betty Bathory (Daddy Issues)

Allan: Will you be doing anything special for the Ukrainian benefit, related to the situation there?

Betty: Everything we do onstage is "special" but yes Rich will likely be wearing his helmet this time.

Do you have any ties to Ukraine, Ukrainian refugees, or Russia?

I'm half Ukrainian. I think its the bottom half, my dad always tells me i have my mothers vagina.

It's cool and slightly weird that a Polish Turbojugend chapter is involved. Do you ever cover Turbonegro? (It would be pretty funny to hear you do "I Get Erection," I guess).

We do not. There's MORE than enough Turbonegro covers going around these days. We prefer to twist the content of songs you didn' t know were about your dads cock ("Love Gun" by Kiss) or Ted Bundy ("Be My Baby" by the Ronettes), so you are haunted by the visuals of what we portray onstage everytime they come on the radio. Or somethin'.

2. David M. of NO FUN

Allan: What will you be doing for the show?

Pete (Campbell), Dave (Dedrick) and I will be presenting as a trio for a 15 minute set worked up specially for this show. We will be playing four NO FUN classics and adaptations and one new cover version. I will make one amusing comment, and Dave and I may sing an impromptu Russian Army song that we wrote with S. Prokofiev.

Tell us about your ties to the Ukraine?

I have many distant relatives in Ukraine I'm sure, but my grandparents left Ukraine, via Austria, around the turn of the previous century with the intention of never going back there and they never did. My parents were born in 1920 and 1922 in Saskatchewan. I alone of my family was born in B.C..

Any connections with Turbonegro or Turbojugends?

I know almost nothing about Turbojugend, but bless them for wanting to help victims of war.

I see that The Night Smells Like a Dog is the most recent NO FUN release to appear on CD through Atomic Werewolf. What's next?

I do not know what is next from Atomic Werewolf, but Kent was asking about expanding “The Beatles of Surrey”, so I pulled out the various planned versions from my archives.

3. Cam Alexander, the Bad Beats

Allan: Very cool to see the Bad Beats again - this will be the first time I've seen you since the last hiatus. 

Cam: Yeah, so the Bad Beats have been back together for probably a year and a half now. Adam and I had been back to writing songs for awhile, so when things started opening up again we started to book some shows. We've been relatively quiet lately. Just working on a new record.

Anything special for the occasion, re: the situation in Ukraine?

We are just gonna stick to the usual plan, do our thing. We're going to kick ass as hard as we can and make some bucks for some people that really need it. We don't have any ties to Ukraine, no, but of course we feel terrible about their situation. I don't think you need to actually have Ukrainian ties to feel empathy for them, the horror of this war.

Any comments on Turbonegro or the Turbojugend connection? Will you be covering any of their songs? Any fave songs of theirs?

We won't be playing any Turbonegro songs... That said, and I can't speak for the rest of the band, but I am definitely a big Turbonegro fan. I was never a Jugend member, but I think what Wiktor is doing is really commendable. He's trying to do his part to make the world a kinder place, and that's beautiful.

Favourite song is a tough one. I'll go with "Good Head."

4. Tim Chan, China Syndrome

China Syndrome with guests, Bowie Ball 2020, by David Jacklin

What will you be doing at the show? Are any songs being chosen especially for the event?

We will be playing a half hour set of songs from our most recent album, Hide in Plain Sight, and a couple of new ones. We haven't chosen anything specific for the event, just want to pack in as many songs as possible into our short time slot. This will be our second 'official' gig with our new keyboard player Greg Kelly, who also plays in Coach StrobCam -- it's been absolutely fantastic having Greg in the band, he's the new secret ingredient in our sound!

Do you have any ties to the Ukraine I should mention, or are you impacted by the situation there?

Our drummer, Kevin, and his wife Erian have assisted in housing and helping many Ukrainian refugees and immigrants get settled in Metro Vancouver. In doing so, their Ukrainian friends have become very supportive of our band and we've had some great audiences at our recent gigs thanks to them. Some of them will be coming to this gig. Such nice people!

5. Rob JL/ the AK-747s  

Brief introductory sentence: I've actually never seen the AK-747s, but I have a few of their songs on old Not Yer Buddy comps. I was still surprised at how good their last album, released during COVID was - they seemed to really up their game, musically. "OK Boomer," in particular, is a great tune. Take a minute, if you don't know them, and check that out... there will be vinyl at the show! 

Allan: What will you be doing at the show? Are any songs being chosen especially for the event?

We are gonna play songs about the futility of war, the absurdity of the human condition, and the inevitable destruction of regular people at the fringes of empires. So, 'movies'.

Do you have any ties to the Ukraine I should mention, or are you impacted by the situation there?

Nope.

It is something that Wiktor's organization is a Turbojugend. Will you be doing anything related to Turbonegro's music for the benefit? (Any stories or opinions about Turbonegro...? Favourite songs by them? I saw Hank last time he was in Vancouver...).

I am glad that Turbonegro brings happiness to people. I used to wear a lot of denim too to the point that one of our bass players called me Dr. Denim once and I laughed very hard at the Bob the Angry Flower comic about Denim Man, so I feel that we have that in common. However I no longer wear lots of denim, with the exception of jeans.

That part of my life is over.

5. The Vanrays 

I asked the band all the same questions, and got a quick reply from Eric. If you haven't seen them lately, the Vanrays new album is great, as is the live show! Bandcamp here... 

Eric Lowe (drummer, impossible to photograph live behind a band that large): The Vanrays aren't planning anything special for the show, and none of us have a direct connection to Ukraine. But we jumped at the chance to be on this bill and do what we can to help people affected by this war.

ALLAN'S ADDENDUM: As an added way of supporting the cause, I've rooted through a closetful of t-shirts that I no longer wear, either because I don't fit into them (some are only XL and too small, while others are XXXL and too loose) or because they're for bands I don't listen to much or because they just don't fit my aesthetic these days. In one case (Russian folk metal band Arkona), I'm selling the shirt because there is an icon on the back - a sunwheel - that is sometimes given political meaning (it's a proto-swastika, in fact, though more associated with paganism than anything political); without understanding more about it, I just don't feel comfortable wearing it (and I have another Arkona shirt anyhow). There's even a Bison shirt (top left!). A couple of them are rather rare; the Winks shirt was handmade for me, in fact (but I've gotten a ton of use of it). I'll have a merch table and will be selling them, with 100% of the proceeds going to Turbojugend RescUkraine. If you want to donate cool, clean t-shirts (most of mine are rock or horror themed), you're welcome to bring them to my table and I'll flog them for you! (Dave Bowes will be bringing some vintage Iron Road t-shirts, as well).

Prices for the lot vary - mostly I'm asking $20 each, a couple of the more worn out or rough-looking ones (like that Redbubble Phase IV t-shirt, the art for which is falling apart, or that homemade Winks shirt, which is 20 years old) you can have for $10. The Nomeansno Kill Everyone Now shirt I'd like $60 for - though again, all of the money is going straight to the cause. Note that the Fuck You Pigs t-shirt - which I like, but just don't have the jam to wear in public - was actually smeared with Betty Bathory's fake GG Allin poop at the BB Allin show I wrote about!  

All shirts have been laundered, though some are a bit wrinkly in the photo!  I'm re-laundering a couple of the wrinklier ones as I write! Bring your used (clean) rock tees and a very simple price list and I'll sell them for you!

See you at the East Side Boxing Club!

Wiktor's announcement for the show is here; Facebook page here; tickets for Friday here; tickets for Saturday (starts at 2pm!) here. Note that to the best of my knowledge the lineup on this blogpost is accurate; a few initially-scheduled bands that have since dropped out, like Spidercracker, are still on the website, but will not be playing. Also, a big thanks to the Invisible Orange and Mayo for donating the use of their ticket site for this occasion! Dave says thanks!

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