My re-entry to local music has been part nostalgia and part shock. I am partial to old venues I have performed at years back, but equally surprised at new venues that are getting solid acts. On Monday, 14 Nov, our show at Infoshop was part of the latter.
As I drove up I noticed it was only a few doors down from Chinatown Youth Center (CYC) another all ages venue. I was not sure what to expect when I showed up. I knew we were going to be performing in a basement. Having performed in a cafe's basement in Stockton almost nine years ago, I was relishing the opportunity. However this basement was nothing like the one in my memories.
The cafe is not really a cafe. I was sad about that because I was hoping to grab a cup of coffee. We noticed an old espresso machine under all the dust and concluded it was a real cafe in the past. Surviving in downtown Fresno is hard, even for businesses. There was word we might perform upstairs but that idea was quickly put down. After scoping my surroundings I decided to descend. I had already been warned by Emelia of the strong odor of mold and marijuana. Still, I had hoped for the best. Usually I am calm about most situations (I believe I was in this one too), but I was freaked out. There was a hole in the ceiling once you arrived at the bottom of the stairs that contained all this gooey stuff that I believed to be tiny eggs of a bug just waiting to hatch. At any moment they would burst open and fall on the floor - or someone's unsuspecting head - and begin to mate again. So I opted for the other side of the basement. Perhaps if all the matresses, bikes, old bed headboards and other junk was removed it would be a more comfy place to perform. The junk itself took up half the room. The junk did not bother me, I just thought it would make the place more hospitable. I got worried again when I saw "dnt pit ull kill us all [sic]" and noticed the makeshift beams with old rotten wood holding them up. Hearing some discussions about, "Oh yeah, the whole place would probably cave in." Good thing I do not play music that requires pitting to enjoy.
The thing that probably annoyed me the most was the pot smoking. I really do not care if you want to smoke, just do not do it in such a closed in area. Take it upstairs and I would have been fine. I thought it was a bit rude; but if not for these few people, the whole crowd was super nice and responsive (albeit I was even offered a hit on the pipe if I choice to... thanks but no thanks). I could not have asked for a better crowd. Whether they wanted to be in it or not was never a choice. A few people got up and demanded everybody get up. It was awesome because it helps to really enjoy the show. Never harsh words but only love seemed to emanate from this unruly bunch. Then from time to time I would glance at somebody leaning on a pillar and I had to suppress the urge to stop the show and shout "GET THAT MOTHERFUCKER OFF THE BEAM MAN!!"
Regrettably I had to work that same night so I had to leave immediately after our set. I heard Boom Boom Kid (all the way from Argentina) was fantastic. I was tempted to call in, but with more shows coming up this week could not risk losing more hours of work.
Venue: 2 out of 10 (at least they had a PA system & the place still hasn't collapsed)
Crowd: 9 out of 10 (if not for those few people)
Here's a video of our closing song Broken Sleep. Our friend Elizabeth did the honors of recording the whole set for us with excellent video commentary by our friend Malahyeka. It is very nice to have awesome friends who come out and support. The sound quality is not that great and I am working on that for future videos.
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