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6/24/2001

EAR PLUGS
Saturday we headed to Lenny's to catch The Moonshine Killers' last show. As usual, I arrived a bit early to socialize and spread party invites, but I figured 10:30 wasn't really THAT early. The first band didn't go on until 11:30 or later, and it turns out they were added to the bill after the show announcement and there was a second act before Moonshine Killers would even go on. So I ended up hanging out with former Dottie's regulars, now apparently Lenny's regulars, for some three hours before the Killers got on stage, about 1:30 AM. Unfortunately the Killers are also Dottie's/Lenny's regulars and by that time they were as drunk and sloppy as the crowd so things kicked off out of tune and out of rhythm and only got worse from there. One of the fans stripped down to nothing and hopped around on stage, generating lots of long stares in the opposite direction. And that was only the first three tunes, things got even weirder from there.
"We're gonna have a little wedding here, which is a good thing because the drummer is too drunk to play the fast stuff anyhow" yelled the lead singer. They took a quick break between tunes so the singer could recite the vows and the happy, drunken Cabbagetown couple made it legal (assuming the lead singer of Moonshine Killers is an ordained minister) right then and there.
If there is a hell and they hold weddings there I've seen a preview - a drunken band singing about sex, drugs and more drugs, insane naked rednecks dancing on stage, confused, lost souls wandering in and wondering what the hell is going on, the newlyweds rolling onto the concrete floor to disappear in the shadows, only to resurface later already fighting and cussing. Thank Satan for Dottie's - er, uh, Lenny's. Where else are you gonna find these reminders to keep your day job?
Eventually I couldn't take the sloppy set of "music" the band was playing any longer. It's unfortunate they're breaking up because they have some fantastic songs, some of the best dark southern gothic stuff around, they just need some sober talent to play them.

Speaking of local redneck acts that are breaking up, here's the official press release from Truckadelic, straight from Ms. Ratt herself:
Billy has asked me to send out this release since he is out on the road and won't be home for a week. Truckadelic is breaking up and will be playing their final show July 7 at the star bar. The reasons for the breakup are a multiple choice and feel free to take your pick: A) Billy's ass is too old to be flashing around in public anymore B) Stomp and stammer doesn't think that Truckadelic is 'all that C) Shawn 'the whacker' Thacker is getting married and the boys won't have anybody to 'do it' to on the road anymore D) Truckadelic only has three or four hours of original material and feels guilty about making so much money for such a short set

In other musical obituaries, you may not have heard that John Lee Hooker passed away last week, since the news was all over the death of Archie Bunker instead. I don't think there's a more badass voice in the history of the blues than John Lee.

HA
The "all your base" stuff got old fast, but here's someone that's taken it to a new level, using it to satirize the Smurfs and $20,000 Pyramid: http://216.149.89.225/ayb/allyoursmurf.swf
Click on "check please." Thanks to degenerate GS for sending us that one.

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