So that was a very successful show! We had a nice full-ish audience with lots of familiar faces (and a few unfamiliar ones), got on the news, had a fun group shot taken by Toni-Moore Ruck (though Erika is hidden behind Nick), paid back my advertising expenses and Nick's ferry fare, and raised $430 for the Community Bat Programs of BC. (I hope some of the bat facts presented in the video by Brynne Graham in the vid as well were of interest, as well; I also learned a bunch about bats from doing this). Cake was there for Adam Kates and Nick Venditti (Hüskee Düde). Everyone was very entertaining (and I do hope entertained) and though I was half-lost in just keeping things organized ("can we get plates for the cake?") and saying hellos to people, the high points were very high. These included:
Rowan Lipkovits' cover of Tom Lehrer's "An Irish Ballad" (which I didn't film, but here's the original; I did shoot a clip of Rowan doing Al Mader's "Dead Man's Pants", which I am glad of, because Al was at the bookstore Rowan mentions, doing his shift, so he couldn't be there). Rowan's Youtube channel is here and filled with delights; I love what he does, wish we'd see him do it more often! He also did two bat-centric Sesame Street songs, a small bit of the first of which is perfectly placed at the end of that news clip (can we get a "batty batty batty"?).
By the way, was the context for "Alabama Song" actually the rise of Nazism? Did I misunderstand that? I thought it was just a kinda downbeat drinkin' song!
We played Brynne's vid at that point -- see my interview with her here -- then Sister DJ and the Hired Hand (whose names are Jill and Quentin) took the stage for a brief but charming set, mostly of originals, including one actually about bats). I didn't like the one vid I shot, of their one-non original, and wish I had had my phone up for "Vegan Vampire", which was brilliant and hilarious (and is not on their bandcamp yet, alas). Apparently she is, in fact, a vegan, so I was very glad to have a vegan cake on hand, at request of my buddy Adam (whose request that I organize some sort of birthday thing for him was in fact crucial to motivating me to get the whole show happening). I doubt many people in the audience had seen Sister DJ before but she's a true enthusiast and should get more appreciation! She would also later join NO FUN onstage to add some wickedly enthusiastic harmonica to "Work Drink Bat Die", also with Dave Dedrick of the Sneaky Dragon Podcast).
Nick just being there was, I think, a special motivator for people to come out -- he was the person whose set times I was most asked about. He's had some issues that kept him off the stage for a long while, but he was in fine form, doing a four or five Dü tunes and a couple of originals, including one I shot, called "What Happened". It was meaningful to me that Erika got to see that set, because she's only seen Nick in other contexts (like ranting cynically at me about the incipient destruction of the world by an asteroid when we ran into him at a Coquitlam bus stop! He can get intense at such times), had never heard him play before (unless seeing him in Little Guitar Army counts; I don't think it does, as he was sorely under-used in that band).
Birthday boys Nick and Adam!
High points of Nick's set were seeing Adam, seated on the far side of the stage, mouthing the lyrics along with Nick to "Never Talking to You Again" (which I was also doing from where I was seated) and Nick's brother (Chris I believe) joining him, in lieu of an absent Brock Pytel (who had other commitments) to do a stellar cover of "Ice Cold Ice". (Didn't shoot that but I shot this when Brock did do this with Nick). I wasn't taking notes but he also did a "Makes No Sense at All" and at one point during that song, audience member Tony Lee leaned over an unused kit and gave a perfectly-timed drumroll, just hands on a floor tom, I think it was, where Grant Hart would have done it, which I think startled Nick a bit but was real fun. Tony also wisely took the mic to get everyone to sing the embarrassing birthday song (which I hadn't planned on doing, but I'm glad it was done, especially since I didn't have to; thanks for doing the heavy lifting, Tony!).
By the by, Nick will be part of this show, if you're on the island this weekend!
And speaking of people who I hadn't seen play in awhile, there was NO FUN. Of course, it is fun to get up onstage to "eep" and flap bats with David M. and Iggy (real name Haskell), but as with Nick, the fact of him performing to a fullish house, which we hadn't seen him do for awhile, was the real thrill of his set; I don't think I'd heard a few of these songs since the last time David played one of my events! "Work Drink Bat Die", with Sister DJ on harmonica, was real fun, with the hand gestures now corresponding to "eeps" (though I sat that one out; I didn't realize there were eeps in it!). (The original of "Work Drink Fuck Die", if anyone doesn't know it, is on this album, the cover artist of which was also present over in the merch corner, with some ARGH!! boxes and more). I also really enjoyed Danielle M.'s vocal on "Manic Monday" and shot video of the two closing songs, "Fall Like Us" (adapting "Be Like Us," which also appears on that album) and (I hope I've got this right) "The Ship Called the Anna Maria", a sea shanty complete with a singalong scroll prepared years ago by the late, great Paul Leahy. We're working on a NO FUN at Christmas event, which may indeed involve the Good King Wenceslas show. More deets to come!
Thanks to people who came out, people who performed, and (behind the scenes) to the Community Bat Programs of BC, CityNews (and whoever their unnamed bat expert was!). Also thanks to anyone who donated who was not there, to ARGH!! for coming out with some seasonally appropriate art, to Angela Bower for the fun and informative news report, to LanaLou's staff and to Lana herself, and to Alex Varty for helping me shorten-down my novel-length press release (!). And to Bob for the photos! We have already begun (sort of) planning next year's event...!
Also, thanks to everyone who I gifted "Release the Bats" shirts to by the late Vancouver artist Exu Nazares. He passed this year, only a few months after I interviewed him last. His absence is very much still felt by those close to him -- he was actually a pretty big personality, though not in the booming-egomaniac way that that term can denote; quiet, funny, smart, observant, and wholly unique. I will try to have a few of these shirts on hand for next year, or maybe even a new run of "If I Was a Bat" shirts, since people were asking about shirts.
And do note that when you walk the streets of Vancouver this season, remember, there did used to be bats flying around some of those streetlights. I haven't seen a bat this year, anywhere. If you still have bats, where you are, you might be able to help preserve their populations, which are in serious peril. There are a few organizations involved in bat preservation--the one I reached out to is here, and there's lots to be done. Like Ed Hurrell says at the beginning of that City News clip, do it for the bats!
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