Seeing Jesse Michael live was definitely on my bucket list. It was actually the only point on my bucket list. Now I can die a happy man. It was even worth missing the Voodoo Glow Skulls/Suicide Machines/Less Than Jake show next door. I got there around 10 p.m., to be sure there would still be tickets. The naivety of being an old fuck...
When I got there, Opposition Rising was getting ready to play in front of about...five people. It was probably the band that was the farthest removed from punk during this weekend. They even said at the beginning that we had to pretend they're punk, just before playing some of the most aggressive hardcore I ever heard (but I didn't hear much). They're a bunch of hippies though. They even have a song against animal cruelty. Pussies.
The next band, Slobs, didn't seem to have been doing that for a long time. They looked quite young. However, I really liked the frontman. I thought he had a rock star attitude. It was more punk than Opposition Rising, and a lot more garage-sounding too. It sounded like music that wouldn't have felt out of place 20 years ago. It was a good show.
The next band, Porcelain Forehead, was awesome. It was a bunch of old punkers of the '80s who had reunited recently and who started playing shows again. Their age was quite noticeable until they took the stage and played some good old-fashioned punk rock. The singer has a very distinctive voice and the way he moves on stage is awesome. I talked to the bass player a little bit after the show. Very nice lady.
Then Classics of Love got on stage. When Jesse Michael appeared in front of the crowd, everybody cheered. The room was packed at that point. Normal, since most people only wanted to see this band. I got to say, they did not disappoint. They delivered the goods big time. I wasn't actually familiar with their material. It's a lot harder than what Jesse used us to. The people in the pit were crazy. I got hit pretty bad at some point, but I went back in anyway. I didn't know the night was only getting started... During the show, Jesse said that the Suicide Machines would play a set after, or a secret show if you will, at the end of the bigger (but not better) and probably more crowded show next door.
When Jay Navarro and a bunch of other dudes walked on stage, I knew it was going to be the best night of my life. I had never had the chance to see them live, so I was excited like a young college girl attending her first Aerosmith concert. They played some of my favorite songs, like "Hey," "Too Much" and "Numbers," and they played "Silence" for the encore. I don't remember the whole set, but it was a mix between their first two albums and their last two. Their self-titled and Steal this Record were ignored. Those two had some good songs, but they probably knew that most people didn't expect them to play any songs off those records. It was easy to see that Jay had been doing that for a long time. He had quite an easiness on stage, and he was constantly interacting with the crowd. During one song, he even jumped right in the crowd to sing with them. He had no problems passing the mic during most of the songs so that people could sing with him.
When all is said and done, it was easily the best night of my life. And I'm happy to say that the pit was douchebag-free. Those who went in with only the idea of picking a fight got thrown right out. Everybody was there to have a good time, and we had an awesome time instead.