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2/17/1997
"Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit...."
degenerate X
It's rare that ANY event lives up to the hype, but faithful I am here today to tell you that the Degenerated Heart party kicked the hype's ASS!!
For starters, I'd like to thank Catfight, Dragline, and Sweetheart for performances that were FABULOUS. Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Thanks to degenerate DC for providing what proved to be the perfect amount of space, open enough to breathe but close enough to be intimate.
Thanks to those who cleaned, and, of course, thanks to those who came.
Not to sound like I'm getting an Academy, let's move into some details for the fools that missed any portion of the festivities.
8 PM the initial round of guests arrive. Frederick starts up the pre-live music with 90 minutes of brokenhearted blues, appropriately enough. The faux prom room got cranking with the disco ball, balloons, tacky Valentine's decor and the Ultimate Random Slide Show - a couple hundred slides from several different photographers and several different occasions, vacations, and continents. It was a do-it-yourself thing that sucked in far more people than expected and the improvisational narrations taken up by spectators were quite entertaining.
9ish the bands begin arriving. Dragline's drummer walks in the door only to be the victim of a Degenerate Baptism, of sorts. One of the neighbors had already had one too many and hurls right on the poor guy as he strides in the door. I must commend this man, who's name escapes me, for even sticking around, even more so for playing a fantastic set.
10ish everyone wants some live action so Sweetheart takes the living room over and gets in the groove. Once the sound problems were solved, they hurled along (sorry) for a good 45 minutes of swingin' tunes, even a random Beatles cover for the occasion.
11ish the Ultimate Random Slide Show entertains many while Catfight sets up. The Watney's Red Barrel and Bud kegs have been amply suckled and the crowd is good and ready as the lovely ladies of loudness start taking requests and blow through their tunes as they are yelled out by the capacity crowd.
11:30ish "Hey, Freddy, the cops are here!" Oh hell.
"Yes, Officer?"
"Do you live here?"
"Uh, no, but I kind of organized this thing."
confused look
degenerate DC appears, "But HE lives here!"
"You know you're violating a noise ordinance?!?!"
"No?" DC says with a straight face.
"Yeah!!"
"You want us to turn in down then?"
"Well... yeah!"
"OK, no problem."
"Well... OK, 'cause if I have to come back I have to shut you down!!!"
The officer was obviously ready to deal with someone far more stubborn than the cooperative hosts.
Catfight does another two songs, at a SLIGHTLY lower volume, and the Man goes away.
More and more degenerates are packing the DC Cabbagetown Crib as Dragline hooks up their equipment.
"We're gonna do it 'till the cops kick us out!" yells John Dunn, lead singer.
"Oh hell."
Dragline doesn't pull any punches, as is their idiom, and everyone in the living room is shakin', the plaster is falling off the ceiling, and Frederick is staring out the front window for the inevitable return of the authorities.
Next song, no cops.
Next song, no cops.
No cops.
No cops...
"Hey, watch the door, make sure it stays shut, I gotta get in there!"
degenerate X jumps into the crowded living room to thrash about with random degenerates of all variety, stumbling into the mic stand once or twice but John doens't even notice.
1ish? Who knows. The Watney's is long gone and the Bud follows. The hosts fall back on emergency supplies and whip out random bottled beers as Dragline seems to get only louder and louder, and better and better.
1:30, maybe, doesn't matter, -poof- Police officer walking INTO the house, with DC shortly behind. John spots him, and the flashing blue lights coming through the windows, and cuts the sound. DC cuts the power and the Man says "Everybody out in 10 minutes or I have to issue everyone a ticket."
Well, it ain't 10 minutes, but eventually the crowd winds its way out the door, all smiles and giggles.
As was the theme of the party, there was an abundance of single folk cruising about in search of a new toy. Many purchased new toys, or found them for free, and there were locked lips in every corner. Wow.
Yeah, the place survived.
Yeah, we're gonna do it again - July 5, the annual Summertime Blast party at the Littleton Art Community and Party Emporium.
Details when we have 'em.
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