Devilcake Unplugged....May 27, 2007 Andyman's Treehouse

2007-05-27

MEN OF GENTLE BIRTH
DEVILCAKE
COLTRANE MOTION
ELECTRIC GRANDMOTHER

Sunday night was the big Memorial Day Weekend blowout at Andyman's Treehouse, curated by Electric Grandmother. For many of us it was our first time at the Treehouse. And perhaps our last. Ha.

I arrived early, but again not as early as Michelle & Brian, who were already maxing out on the couch when I got there. We had plenty of time to kill & get acquainted with the, um, odd, venue. So many rooms. The biggest of which, oddly, was the dressing room area?

Of course the cramped little room with the big fucking tree in the middle was where theee action was to take place. A band was setting up while everyone else in our band arrived & dragged their gear back to the dressing room. Men Of Gentle Birth.... they were loud as shit, spunky as a monkey and I don't know, if I was 10 years younger, they'd be my new favorite band. Their songs were screamy but atmospheric too, kind of effortlessly forced, rocking like shit and I don't know, gracefully awkward. Like Sonic Youth a bit. Sure, why not. I enjoyed them immensely while I assembled my drums in the dressing room.

It only took me 16 years to realize that setting my shit up beforehand = the key to success. Be prepared. So when our turn came to rock, we did so with ease. Or something.

It was the inaugural Devilcake Unplugged show. Everyone in the band sat on stools. It was funny as shit. The tiny room we played in was very quiet. Like, silent between songs. It's a strange sensation. But, fortunately, the audience seemed to be on our side, so everything went quite well. For the most part.

During rehearsals for the unplugged show, we broke out a ton of old songs, most of which Brian had never even heard. I rediscovered my love for opening the show with Pie Hair Pie. Which is what we were gonna do. But somehow we opted for Fribble up top instead? Again?

Gourley busted out the harmonica on several traxx. The audience was so great, they didn't miss a thing. It was a really special evening. And, I'm scared to say, it was like the most mature & musically serious thing we've ever done. Strange.

Steve led the charge of twang & the rest of us followed. Brian broke a string about halfway through the set, I think.. The room was quiet enough between songs that Michael Bill had everyone laughing several times. It was that kind of night, kick ass & really strange.

We played
Fribble
Pie Hair Pie
Wienermobile
Hands Off My Oreos
Stromboli Fever
I Can't Believe It's Not Satan
Salad Bar Man
Burn Sandwich Burn
I Want A Big Mac
Chicken Nuggets of Sin
Marshmallow

encore
Pizza Party

And again we let Pizza Party get away from us. We need a better encore song! I don't know why it falls apart...

It was a challenge for me to play drums quietly. I bet I was louder than everyone else combined.... I hope not. I did use brushes on Salad Bar Man but it was totally pointless because I was beating the hell out of them. But after all the trouble I went through to get 'em, I felt like I had to break the sombitches out at least once.

Everyone agreed afterward that it was a lot of fun to play unplugged & that we should definitely do more shows this way.