DEVILCAKE | BLOODCLOT | DD & THE TTs
Thursday, April 17, 2003
High Five

The first gig of the 2K3 and what's become something like an annual appearance at High Five for us. Seems like we play there once a year, usually during the summer. And that suits me just fine.

On the evening of show I arrived late (as usual) but not as late as some were predicting. I've found that hanging around at High Five is something I really need to be in the mood for and I definitely wasn't in the mood for any shenanigans on this particular rock 'n' roll Thursday night. So I got there as late as I possibly could. Which worked very well for me because everyone else in the band was already set up and ready to rock. All I had to do was plug in my amp (easier said than done on the dark stage when all of the electrical outlets were already claimed by bigger amps), plug in my bass (easier said than done when the soundman is crawling all over my paltry "rig" and plugging in the DI box) and tune up (which was easy because I used MCB's tuner pedal.).

My arms will still wobbly and my head was slightly spinny from carrying in that ungodly heavy bass amp several blocks up 5th Ave, and I never really regained my bearings once my shit was set up and we were on the tractor beam to showtime. Mentally, I was extremely hyper but I just couldn't seem to focus on anything.

Playing fretless bass onstage is almost like work because I have to look down at the neck all night. It's not like a regular fretted bass and my aim is impaired by the stage lights and an overall lack of technique (which is required of any Devilcake bassist). And anything resembling work onstage with Devilcake is not cool. Not for me anyway.

So even before we played a note I was already wobbly, unfocused, tired/wired and extra shaky from being such a wimp. Showtime was called and we made our way to the stage.

And again, I know I say it in every gig diary because I either forget at the time or it just doesn't seem important, but for me, rocking out with all the stage lights on is a losing proposition. Note to self: see previous notes to self about onstage lighting.

So um, all the lights were on and they stayed on the whole time we played. I feel really self-conscious when there's no darkness to disappear into between songs. I feel like a science project on the stage, like everyone is looking at us through a microscope. Feeling self-conscious onstage usually translates to me spending waaaaay too much time at the microphone between songs. I try to make myself loosen up by making a bunch of typically useless and retarded observations into the mic - and it usually just makes me feel more awkward and distanced from rocking out. But at the time it feels utterly necessary. I see holes in the performance and I want to fill them. All at once. It's futile and stupid but that's where my head was on this particular rock 'n' roll Thursday night.

We started with Marshmallow in the full glare of the lights. Then I think we did Wienermobile. The bass chords on the chorus are hard enough to play on a regular fretted bass, but on the fretless it's always a mess. And it wasn't rocking me to play, despite my best efforts. I was making the motions but I wasn't feeling them.

We've played the exact same set before, to much smaller audiences and I've felt every note of it. And that's nice when it can happen but that wasn't the case for me at this show.

Gourley's vocals came off the track a few times but nobody else lost their place. He seemed to be struggling too, I don't know.

There were several lulls between songs. I think it's important to not be tied down to a dogmatic set list because you can't react to the moment. You're looking down and literally playing to the piece of paper. You're mentally checking off the songs and you're thinking about what comes next. Instead of existing in the moment and playing the piss out of the song you're playing.

However, the downside to having no set list is when no one can think of what song to play next. You wind up standing there throwing titles around and it feels unprofessional. So I guess there is a balance to be struck.

We played Pizza Party at some point and Sacrificial Leg Of Lamb, Deez Nuts, um...

Pizza Party was tough because even though all of the notes were there and we played it exactly as it was written, it still felt hollow and weird to me. I can usually dredge up a scream at the end of the song from the depths of my soul but I wasn't feeling it that night. I was considering not screaming at all. That would've been a better course of action.

We played Pie, Hair Pie and I Want A Big Mac. And Fribble at the end.

I was already shaky and out of it before we began, so by the end of the set I was having an out of body experience. I gathered my gear as quickly as possible and got it out the back door.

It was good to comiserate with Kyle Foolery and the others out back afterwards. Even a little bit of support on an evening such as this is extremely rewarding. It doesn't take much. But it's always good to know when peeps who aren't directly related to the band in some way actually get it. And I'm not just talking about enjoying the spectacle, I'm talking about really understanding what Devilcake is.

So I wouldn't say it was a bad show by any stretch. I still think that Devilcake at its worst is more entertaining than the majority of the bands we've played with. No one else in the band complained (apart from Todd sabotaging his keyboard by accidentally unplugging it) and we just kinda did our thing and left. I would've preferred to play a shorter set. I didn't have any "oh hell yeah" moments all night either.

I think I usually feel this way when we play at High Five. Sometimes, in the glare of all those damn lights, it feels to me like we're just pushing a lot of hot air. And that people aren't surprised by us or what we do, and they're not necessarily interested either. And that's fine actually, but at least turn off the fucking lights so I can create the mental illusion of there being a huge audience that's really into it out there. Come on.

DEVILCAKE + DICK DELICIOUS AND THE TASTY TESTICLES + BLOODCLOT
High Five
Thrusday April 17th, 2003

By: Daiwin da Dwummer

We had a gig last Thursday at High Five. We rolled into the joint around 8pm. A few members of the other bands (Dick Delicious And The Tasty Testicles and Blood Clot) were already there. When I asked about the order, they asked if we would mind going on last. I said, "Well, we hadn't planned on that. We were told we would be on first." I knew I had to be at work the next morning, so the earlier the better for me. Getting home at 2 a.m. was not going to make the next day much fun. But, as it went, we did get to go on first at about 10:30pm. It appeared that Blood Clot brought with them a following, so there were actually a few patrons there, somewhere in the area of 20 or 30 people, which, for Devilcake, is a large gathering.

We did a sound check around 10pm or so. Guacamole Dammit, of course. I think this is the first time I ever had the sound man actually put anything into the monitor. I usually just shrug off the whole 'Do you have enough bass in the monitor' deal, but I decided that maybe hearing tonight would be valuable. Anyway, Guacmole Dammit didn't sound too bad for a bunch of guys who hadn't hardly played together for 5 months. The last time we have played was Dec 30th at Bernie's. I goofed up the ending, forgetting that we repeat it. I looked over at MCB and he was just laughing at me. And who could blame him. The look I get on my face when I end a song early is much to laugh at.

We got back onstage around 10:30pm and started off with Marshmallow as usual. We did this one old-school because Nancy wasn't there. The guitars were blaring, the bass was boomin', the keyz were screaming and Gourley was growling. It was good stuff. After that we went into Weinermobile. This song always makes my arms ache. I think alot of the songs were a bit slower tonight for that simple reason. I was out of practice. Funny thing is, I usually play the songs too fast so they were probably at the speed they were supposed to be.

Since there wasn't a setlist, I am going to guess at the rest set list. I think we did: Hands Off My Oreos, Pizza Party, Pie Hair Pie, I Want A Big Mac, Sacificial Leg Of Lamb, Cereal And Beer, Deez Nuts (not sure on this one), Fribble. I swear we played more than this. Someone in the crowd yelled out a song and Ian said 'Really?', shrugged, and then said 'Okay.' I can't remember what song it was though. I'm pretty sure I'm missing a song or two. The set seemed longer than normal.

I remember Ian starting Pizza Party and me doing the hi hat count in. I was, at that moment, in a goofy mood so I was playing the disco hi hat. I looked up and there was Ian shaking his head. Silly me thought he was giving me the 'You big goof-ball' head shake. However, in my oblivion, I failed to realize that Steve was trying to tune his guitar and Todd was working with his rig. So I jump into it and those two were kind-of 'Oh fuck'. But they jumped in rather quickly and we didn't miss so much as a beat.

Overall, I think the gig went pretty good considering we hadn't really practiced at all. I was goofing up songs here and there. Each time MCB would laugh. And of course, I would laugh too 'cause, in the end, we're all up there to have a good time. Might as well laugh along. The look a drummer gets on his face when he drops a stick is priceless. Bwa-ha!

After I dragged all 500 pounds of equiptment out to the car, we all ended up chatting for quite a while. It was kinda nice, really. Everybody just talking about whatever. The ever-supportive and hard-core fan Kyle from Tom Foolery came out and we chatted with him. After our show, he bolted. Now that's a fan, I tell you. About 11:30 or midnight or so, me and the woman and jumped into the car and took off. We hit White Castles on the way home for a midnight snack and all was good.