Photos by Alex Castillero | Words by Max Gardener
Well, we did it, again. Our second event of the summer, and our first at Permanent Records, is officially in the can. And we were riding higher this time. More people showed up! I kept shaking hands with our team every moment I could, our sign of a good thing happening in real time. This was what we'd hoped for. We felt lucky. Everyone was in great spirits, friend circles had open spaces, and all the bands had a crowd. What more could we ask for? And if my math is right, we had about a hundred people show up. Thank you, if you're reading this and you were there, we appreciate it. And if you weren't, there's more to come.
This show was a quick one. Anyone who's a musician can tell you that waiting around to play will make you feel all kinds of ways. I tend to dread it, and this current iteration of my band and I have only played four shows total. A few years off, now getting back on stage without a sip of liquid courage. A new bull to be riding.
All of that said, we got lucky. We loaded in and were on stage within 30 minutes at most. We played as people arrived, and I looked around to see some close friends watching as we kicked off the night with songs of our own. And our set felt great. We opened with "Look Beyond the Hill," my nod to The Crusaders song of the same name, then pushed through to some of our in-band favorites like "Venus," "Already Alive," and "Pinch." And the band is working. We're starting to play together, which is a moment you hope to find from the start. Not just playing the songs... playing together.
I've also been hearing that I'm very serious on stage, which makes me laugh. Too serious, apparently. I can't help it, but I'm working on it. "I want to see you let loose up there, man," Nate from Pop Club told me. He then mentioned that we're starting to sound like "a happy Lou Reed," giving off the vibe of band-geek, early-years Talking Heads taking their piece of CBGB history. "Fuck yeah."
Big Jesus Trash Can was next. We filed off stage quickly and made room for the band I most wanted to watch, Pop Club aside. They've only got one song out, "Little Stealer," but I'd seen their set at La Poubelle and was blown away. They're all quiet on stage. They, too, look serious, but they seem to do it for the right reasons. No forced banter, and every song has a reason for its place in the set. The songs vary in pace, and their sound, modern alternative with a can't-help-but-be-inspired-by-the-90s streak, still feels fresher to me than most of what I've heard lately. On the slower takes, Thurston bobs left and right, back and forth like a dizzy boxer, his fist cocked, almost ready to swing at the person in the front row, the one most wishing to be there. I can't tell if it's a bit or if he just can't help it, but it's a hell of a thing to watch.
Blake, a fellow member of Sadie Street, caught my eye, nodding more than enthusiastically, like he'd found what he was looking for. "This is my shit, this is alternative rock. I fucking love this shit!" I nodded and laughed, having told him confidently many times before that "these guys are it."
Then Pop Club, who are now officially back, and this was their first real show since our Barbecue Pop event in June, so we were eager to see what the new lineup would do with a headlining set.
They truly looked like a headliner, which I admit I must've forgotten is really an important piece of the puzzle. It's rock and roll. They carry themselves the way a headliner should, in the best way possible.
They kicked into gear right away. I stood in a full crowd from the back and watched them hold it down. They played songs old and new, and I tripped on the number of people who almost looked like they'd wandered in by accident, until I saw how locked in they were on Pop Club. It's hard not to be. The chord choices, the harmonies, the lyrics, all of it. It's an awesome thing to see your friends present themselves and their art, knowing that we all do it so differently, but maybe also so alike. Our sounds can be almost entirely different, but we're inspired by a lot of the same things, people, songs, and so on.
These guys always play tight, but tonight they had something relaxed happening. They were loose... practiced. Letting the notes slide just a little longer, the dueling guitar harmonies of brothers Bennett reverberating out to a crowd of kids bobbing along to their hit "Silence." I keep thinking back to how right it all looked, how it all felt. Pop Club's back, and we're stoked to have helped kick it off. They ended the night the way it needed to end. On a high note.
By now it's probably obvious how much this night meant to us, and it was so simple. Did I have a great time playing with my band? Of course. Was I happier to step off stage and watch two of my favorite bands play? Without a doubt. Big Jesus Trash Can and Pop Club are both just getting started, and it's with easy confidence that I say it'll be fun to watch them grow. Keep an eye on both through the rest of this year and into next. More singles are coming before you know it.
On Sadie Street, we've got another event coming sooner than even we can believe. And what's exciting for us is that we're not just staying inside the indie rock world. We're venturing out to try our hand at giving other artists the opportunities we know they deserve. Friends of ours, friends of friends, and the ones we luckily stumble on one fine day.
In the meantime, support these bands if you can. Stream their music, give them a follow, show up to the shows.
Cheers.
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