Show Date: January 24th
What better way to spend an evening on vacation then taking in a Supersuckers show?
Rocking this show with my wife. Hey ho, let’s go. Last time we saw Eddie Spaghetti and crew was around 1995 at Portland’s own La Luna. Memories of that show are a little dicey, but I do remember a banana being pulled from a guitarist’s pants.
Not sure the Supersuckers are the music to get something in my pants pulled out, but we are hitting this fucker anyway.
After getting a total price of $41 on Ticketmaster for 2 tickets, I give that the finger and pay $30 at the venue instead. Sorry Ticketmaster, you lowly fucks. $11 for the “convenience” of buying from you isn’t worth it. Firestone Live is a club. Tonight it is fronting a rock show before a hip hop DJ set at 11:00pm. Venue is decent if not a little oddly setup. A long bar is where a stage would normally be. The upper level is glassed in VIP areas where I am sure very VIPish things happen. My wife reports the mixed drinks are stiff. Righteous. People are smoking, too. Tobacco, I mean. Nice. Like a real rock show. Fuck you Oregon and your damn clean venue air. The South will rise again! Apparently with cancerous lungs.
Away we go. Eddie Spaghetti takes the stage with his black, weathered Gibson bass. Probably the same one he played when we saw him last. He’s rocking a black cowboy hat, cop shades, a flannel (hell to the fucking yes), jeans, and a rhinestone studded guitar strap. A shiny bottle opener hangs from his belt to complete the ensemble.
After flipping the sign of the devil to the crowd, the set for the self dubbed “Greastest Rock n’ Roll Band in the World” begins.
The Supersuckers play punk inflected rock and country (cowpunk?) tunes. This set was almost all rawk. Dan “Thunder” Bolton, and “Metal” Marty Chandler play guitar and make sure everything is loud. Unlike other bands from the 90′s Sub Pop Seattle scene, the Supersuckers give you rock stage flair with a tinge of self-aware satire. Rock bravado. It’s cool. A behind the head guitar solo, guitars raised vertically during solos, the devil sign, and the insistence that everyone in the crowd flip the bird during “Born With A Tail”. There you go. Fun. A show.
In terms of music. Nothing is really going to rattle these guys. Some moron was violently trying to start a pit, some genius got on stage and was forcibly removed, and they didn’t really bat an eye. In fact, for a show with MAYBE 100 people it was actually kind of wild. Orlando represent! I dig.
Muscially, loud. Fast. Fun. If you don’t like a song, a new one will come in about 2 and a half minutes. The setlist was a decent mix of new and old. “Rock Your Ass”, “Mudhead”, “Bad, Bad, Bad”, and “Born With A Tail” were my personal faves.
Hit a show. They need the support. Before the final song, Eddie laid this down. “We have t-shirts and CD’s over there. I’ll be there after the show. That would be a good time to get something signed, or to shower me with your drugs….particularly high powered prescription painkillers.”
Rock and roll.
