The Quitters, The Moviees, Krypton 88, White Cotton Panties and the Frantic Flattops at East End Fest July 14, 2000; and The Quitters at Village Gate Square July 21, 2000

Both of these shows were for the most part, very entertaining. The bands were great, and there were some uh, interesting people there to say the least. The guy that most sticks out in my mind- and I'm sure he does in everybody's- is the dancing guy with the white mesh shirt, green shorts, pink nailpolish and long white beard from East End... very scary. He asked me to dance. Like I said, VERY SCARY. I took a picture of him. I don't understand why these old men like me. Why can't I find a guy relatively close to my own age? (Oh Mr. Pompadour...)AAGH!!! Help. For matters of convience (and becuase I'm lazy), both of the Quitters shows are combined into one review.

The Quitters were up first at East End and the only band type ensemble to play at Village Gate. I'm guessing that I have gotten my Quitters fix until next summer. (Note the sarcasm). The East End show, which was suppossed to start at about 5 pm didn't start till about the 6:30-7:00 pm time frame, which meant a very short set, in order to keep the time frame that was set up for the bands somewhat in place. The East End show was my first time seeing the Quitters since last August; the age thing and all, so even though the set was short yet solid, I enjoyed it very much. They even had Jay from the Runs do a song with them- a Runs song- which was good, but with the addition of another guitar, the vocals were pretty much drowned out, so that kinda sucked. It's my only complaint. The Village Gate show, on the other hand lasted for almost a good two hours, with a mix of stuff from way back in the day (okay, 1994/1996)-"Telling You Everything", and "Wasn't Born in Love"- and more recent tunes like "Bang Bang Bang" (featured on the Garage-Pop Rock and Roll Compilation), "Hey!", and "That's Cool, That's Trash" (Well, that's been played for a while, but it's not on anything yet). This set has got to be one of my favourites becuase of those three songs (I love them), and if they had pulled out "Bad Day", which is probably my favourite Quitters song, it would've been the ultimate set in my eyes. They even did "Monkee Suit". Lots of fun despite the rain and the coldness, and I would once more like to thank Dan for the use of his jacket, because I was dumb and didn't bring my own. If you're into catchy power-pop/garage with a little twist of trash and great harmonies, check out the Quitters! Do it! Now!
The Moviees were on at East End after the Quitters, and are like a flashback to the mod 60's. I heard them once on the radio (Rochester Beats on 89.7, WITR) and wasn't too impressed. After being told to "give them a chance" by my cousin (whom I would like to thank for chauferring my friend Crystal and I around to these shows), I decided I would, and went into watching their set with an open mind. They were better than the song on the radio that I heard, but I'm still kinda iffy about them. They're okay, but nothing that really sticks out in my mind as being great. Their songs are well done and performed; I remember one being a little a little rough vocally, I think. (Crystal didn't like them at all). Very mod sound and image, so if you're into that kind of thing, take a listen. I still don't know about them. I did like their Rickenbacker though.
Krypton 88 were up next; their bassist was the sub for the Villains bassist Andy at the Bug Jar show (see below), so now I know. Krypton 88 are pretty much your basic rockabilly band: nothing too flashy or out there, and pretty much solid performance wise. The only thing that I did notice though, was that they do a lot of standards, or covers. I heard a couple Gene Vincent tunes ("Blue Jean Bop" being one), Eddie Cochran, and Elvis, as well if I'm not mistaken. And while they played / sung them very well, a little bit more of original stuff would've been nice.
The White Cotton Panties were on the Richmonds stage next, and I must say, that was a very entertaining set. There was this guy dressed up in the Bacardi thing and he like jumped on stage right in the beginning of their set... interesting to say the least. The Panties' set wasn't the most solid performance wise, but as I was told, that's what makes seeing them enjoyable. I agree. They just go out there and do their thing, and don't really care about other people's opinions. Usually though, the opinion leans towards the positive, so that's always good. Along with their cool cover of the Raunchettes' "What? Scuz Me?!", there was also the likes of "Nitty Gritty", "Have You Seen Me Move", and others, but I'm having a mental block and can't remember them. Sorry!!! An all around good set that was very enjoyable.
Last up for the East End Fest were the Frantic Flattops. They put on a great, solid set, and by the time they actually played (which took a little too long to get going), everyone was pretty much inebriated and insane. It was during the Flattops' set that the scary guy asked me to dance, so thank you Flattops. Hee, hee. Anyways, like Krypton 88, the Flattops are rockabilly, but with more punk and rock influences than anything else; some full out fast stuff, others were sultry, etc., and as far as I know, they played one cover, "Pirate Love" (it's on one of their albums as well) by the Heartbreakers (featuring Johnny Thunders of NY Dolls fame. And if you don't know who the NY Dolls or the Heartbreakers are... shame on you). Otherwise, it's pretty much originals for these guys. And good stuff at that. The Frantic Flattops played an energetic and solid set that included Frank playing his guitar behind his head- I (and those who were with me)enjoyed it a lot. If anyone's interested, they're playing w/ Rev. Horton Heat and Hank Williams III on Saturday 7/29, and tour around the US incessantly, so be on the lookout for them. Check out their web page by clicking here

The Veins with The Villains, The Grinders, and some band no one's ever heard of called Plastics Hi-Fi at the Bug Jar, June 3, 2000

A great show indeed; besides all of the men touching my back for some unknown reason, I liked it a lot. I guess the back thing could've been worse- they could've been old men, considering they all want me. (It's true, and it's VERY scary. Another one complimented my eyes a few weeks ago!) Anyways...
Plastics Hi-Fi were on the Bug Jar stage first- they're from Chicago, and remind me of a bunch of people who saw "That Thing You Do" and decided they wanted to be in a band just like the Wonders... The plastics were tolerable; not horrible by any means, but not fantastic either. I feel (and I've heard others say this as well) that they didn't really fit in with the rest of the evening's bill, whic was unfortunate for them, as about ten people actually sat (or stood rather) and watched them. And probably half or so of those ten were the Villains, waiting for their set to start. Better planning should have been done on the Bug Jar's part.
The Villains took the stage next with their dead on punkabilly and explosive vocals (which I love) courtesy of Steve, and aimed to please. With a strong set that just had, for lack of a better word, it- whatever you want feel it is- the Villains got the rocking really started for the nite. I like watching these guys a lot; they know how to put on solid show that's entertaining. I did notice that Andy, their bassist, was absent from this gig and in his place, the bassist from Krypton 88. While performance wise he filled the position fine, I was kinda hoping for some fire breathing action from Andy. Although with the Nashville Pussy fire picture mishap featured in the Democrat and Chronicle a couple years ago, you never know if it would've been done anyways...
Up after the Villains were The Grinders, who combine delightfully dirty minds with full-out rauncy Rock and Roll; a technique that's guaranteed to bring pleasure to all who hear them- or choose to spend the nite with them- same thing. Playing for an energetic 45 minutes or so and incorporating both old and new songs like "Clam", "Crack Your Head Open", "Lotion" (which is featured on the Gararge Pop Records Rock and Roll Compilation and is about uh, well... it isn't that hard to figure out if you're perverted like me, hee hee), "Sunglasses", and my favourite song, "My Girl", the Grinders managed to entertain, keep their clothes on and stay fairly in tune. If the Grinders don't do it for you even a little bit, get Viagra.
The Veins played last on the Bug Jar stage, and what a great show it was. In my book, the Veins rarely fail to please, and tonite was no exception. The Veins took their special blend of glam rock attitude and sound and kicked ass up there on stage, mixing crowd pleasers like "Miss Anne", "Wake Up the Undertaker" (my favourite), and "Fallout Shelter"- which used to be and Uncle Sam song for those of you who really care-to name a few in with other greats. And just when you thought that the blues couldn't get any mopier, the Veins remind you that they can, taking the style to the brink of death in their song called, uh, "Blues" according to the set list. Though it was slow and lilting, the song managed to come across as strong, dark, and incredibly creepy(it could easily double as a Priests song with a couple changes here and there, and held its own well. How can you not go wrong with these guys? Go out and see them!