Funhouse, Seattle 4-26-2012

     The Funhouse was one of the first venues I went to when I got to Seattle. Much like Lenny's in Atlanta, The Funhouse provides a place for punk and underground bands and fans to come together for cheap drinks and loud music. Unfortunately, The Funhouse's days may be numbered. The building that houses it has been sold and is slated to be turned into condos or some such. More on that here and here. If this happens it will leave quite a hole in the Seattle scene. EDIT: Just received news that The Funhouse will vave to vacate their current location by October 31st. Let's hope they have good luck finding a new location.

     I had the chance to catch a great show at the Funhouse the other night. I went to see Lazy Animals and got to see The Spinning Whips and The Burnz as a bonus. All three bands put on a great show and here is a selection of the shots from that evening. I wasn't shooting with an ideal camera setup, but I tried to make the most of it. Shot with a Canon S90 and a handheld flash triggered manually.

   

    First up, The Spinning Whips played a pretty sick but straightforward rock n' roll with a 70's Detroit vibe. At one point Silly String and bubble makers were distributed to everyone and they killed it on the stage.

Spinning Whips at The Funhouse 4-26-12

Spinning Whips at The Funhouse 4-26-12

Spinning Whips at The Funhouse 4-26-12

     Lazy Animals were up next. Larry, Lesli, and Eric always put on a great show and tonight was no exception.

Lazy Animals at The Funhouse 4-26-12

Lazy Animals at The Funhouse 4-26-12

Lazy Animals at The Funhouse 4-26-12

     The Burnz finished off the night with a bit more of a 60's punk vibe. Loud and raw. A bit different sounding than what I heard from them online but I would call it a change for the better. I liked it quite a bit.

The Burnz at The Funhouse 4-26-12

The Burnz at The Funhouse 4-26-12

The Burnz at The Funhouse 4-26-12

     This is only a selection of what i shot at the show. If you would like to see more from this show you can look here. EDIT: okay, all the photos are actually there now. Fail at Flickr.

OXES

Baltimore's OXES hold a title I rarely bestow. They were a truly entertaining instrumental band. Two guitars, one drummer, and a metric ton of entertainment. No vocals needed. I saw them several times and they never failed to bring the rock. Here are some shots from their show at the Pilot Light. They chose to play on the floor instead of the stage. The show became quite interactive. You can see my friend, compatiot, and fellow ASSKRIEG member, Brian, chasing the OXES guys around. Brian used to be a lot more chase-oriented back then.

OXES at the Pilot Light - Knoxville, TN

OXES at the Pilot Light - Knoxville, TN

OXES at the Pilot Light - Knoxville, TN

OXES at the Pilot Light - Knoxville, TN
Don't use wireless guitars if you don't want to get chased.

OXES at the Pilot Light - Knoxville, TN
Cornered by drunks!

Here are a couple of OXES songs that in no way convey the level of smartass the band is capable of.

Okay, maybe this video conveys it. Warning, there are gratuitous genitals in this video. Probably NSFW.

The ultra sexy aluminum gutars played by OXES in these videos are made by my friend Matt. Matt playes in New Brutalism and makes cool stuff. You can learn more about them at Obstructures

Melt Banana

Japanese noise/grind masters, Melt Banana, made it to Atlanta in the summer of '98, their first trip through the South unless I am mistaken. They had just put out the "Charlie" LP and were really on a roll, musically speaking. That LP and the 7" EP they put out on Slap A Ham that year are still two of my favorites. They played Dottie's, later known as Lenny's, which was both the shittiest and best place a band could play in Atlanta. (Rumor was that Antiseen had nearly burned the place to the ground during a show a month before.) I traveled from Knoxville with a couple of friends to see this show. I remember the opening bands being pretty bad that night. This contributed to a considerable over-consumption of alcohol before Melt Banana even started playing. I confess to being quite drunk when I shot these. Thankfully I still managed to focus the camera (mostly) and got some images I am happy with. I was still using a Nikon FG at the time. Film was Tri-X, of course.

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

Melt Banana at Dottie's - Atlanta, GA

The legacy of Dottie's/Lenny's is pretty fascinating. I made it a regular hangout when I lived in Atlanta and am sad to see that it is no longer there. A great article about it can be found here.

Here are a couple of Melt Banana songs from this era: