SmithAntics

Hilarity

2009-12-08T08:32:00.000-08:00

Idiots

2009-11-23T07:46:00.001-08:00

I can barely stand to watch cable news anymore, but the word this morning is that Lieberman-style health care "reform" is probably the only legislation that has a chance of passing due to the craven enemy whores within the Democratic party. I actually hate to pile on Obama when the nutters are gleefully crowing about him bowing to Chinese leaders, etc., etc., and the GOP groupies that are the national media are dutifully piling on, but, I’ll say it again, if the Dems don’t get healthcare right, sign me up for the backlash.

DEVO

2009-11-09T08:08:00.001-08:00

Rocked hard on Saturday night.

Happy Friday

2009-11-06T07:35:00.001-08:00

Holy shit, did you see the collection of fat, white, blithering idiots that gathered in Washington to protest the socialist takeover of America?

Happy Friday

2009-10-30T07:48:00.000-07:00

Another lying sack of Republican shit.

On Bended Knee

2009-10-26T08:10:00.000-07:00

So...healthcare reform for the 300 million people of this country is being watered down to appease one Republican senator from Maine?

In-fucking-excusable.

Happy Friday

2009-10-23T07:36:00.000-07:00

Fucking Blue Dog industry whores. There's little doubt they will sell us out on health care reform. When they do, I am de-registering as a Democrat. They will lose this life-long sucker, and I will make it my mission in life to convince other Democrats to bail the party. There must be consequences for their whoring. Fuck it. Let the Republicans regain power and flush this joke of a country down the toilet.

Better yet, a higher alien intelligence should come down and vaporize this planet.

Have a nice weekend.

Happy Monday

2009-10-19T07:32:00.000-07:00

See you in the concentration camp.

Listen Up, Y’all

2009-09-26T17:45:00.000-07:00

Mr. Fried Wire has a new blog!

Let’s help grow the community over there.

Happy Friday

2009-09-25T09:30:00.001-07:00

Anyone else tired of worrying that Obama and the Dems are going to screw us on healthcare reform?

It shouldn't be this way.

Isn’t it Funny When….

2009-09-17T08:02:00.001-07:00

Right-wing racists haughtily deny they are right-wing racists?

The Asshole Party

2009-09-09T20:17:00.000-07:00

This is dead on the money:

When I first started blogging, I too was taken in by folks like McCain. I thought they were serious people interested in a genuine meeting of the minds. I was dying to have useful conversations with intelligent conservatives, who knew how to write and also knew how to debate.

It has never happened. It will never happen with the McCains of the world, for they are not what we think of as conservatives. They are probably best described as part of the group that flirts with what David Neiwert calls Eliminationists and eliminationist ideas, but the standard term, when being polite to them, is "movement conservative." Whatever you call them, they hate liberalism with a passion. And by "liberalism" I mean liberalism as in the Enlightenment and the American Founders such as the Jefferson of the Declaration and the letter to the Danbury Baptists. These are people who are still fighting the battles lost by the Federalists in the earliest days of the United States. These are very, very strange people and there is no common ground to be reached between liberals and them. They can only be defeated and their ideas relegated to the margins of modern American political discourse, where they belong. Fortunately, as powerful as they are, there are not too many of them. Unfortunately, they are extremely good at disguising their extremism; many decent Americans have been bamboozled. (One of the major reasons I started blogging was because, at the time, very few people other than Krugman seemed to be onto their game. Many more are now, but not enough.)

Among the most important ways to defeat movement conservatives is to refuse to take their bullshit seriously, even for a moment. In fact, when they are given undeserved influence and respect, as they were in the months before Bush/Iraq, innocent people die.

On the other hand, dialogue with conservatives, genuine conservatives, is not only possible, but something liberals are having right now, every day. A prime example is the intense argument many in the blogosphere are having with the current president of the United States. I'm not kidding or being a smarty-pants: Whatever his personal beliefs, Obama governs as a centrist and even, in some areas, like a conservative. Therefore, it is no surprise at all that it has been very, very difficult to introduce genuinely liberal ideas into this administration, and that Van Jones' resignation is a genuine loss to liberals.

That said, the Obama administration has not heaped the kind of eliminationist scorn on us that McCain and his fellow brown shirt wannabes have. It is with Obama and other Democrats that you will find the discussions you want to have. You may not like what they're doing, but they are not in the grip of a genuinely creepy ideology.

Indeed, most top Democrats adhere to what used to be called "conservatism," including the Clintons, Reid, and of course the even-more-conservative blue dogs. It has been noted, often with amazement, that today's Democrats are to the right of Nixon on many issues; needless to say, that is pretty damn far right.

With movement conservatives, however, there is not a chance of a real discussion. And yes, what that means is that to the (nearly complete) extent that Republicans have become synonymous with movement conservatism, they are, as Van Jones rightly said, simply assholes.

Bingo.

“New Signs of Compromise”

2009-09-09T08:01:00.001-07:00

That’s what I’m told to expect from Obama tonight.

Big surprise.

Happy Friday

2009-08-28T08:47:00.000-07:00

Baucus.

Mandate

2009-08-25T12:52:00.001-07:00

Idiots.

Happy Friday

2009-08-21T07:50:00.000-07:00

We're gonna get what we deserve, and I think it's gonna be Romney.

Surprised?

2009-08-20T07:41:00.000-07:00

So apparently the White House was "caught off guard" by the uproar among liberals that the public option (the heart of healthcare reform) may go on the chopping block.

Are you fucking kidding me?

These idiots are that detached? Or that dishonest?

Either option makes me want to puke.

I got hand-jobbed by this guy. I'm an idiot.

Last Chance

2009-08-11T06:07:00.001-07:00

If the Dems roll to industry / rethugs on health care (i.e., no public option), I am gone. I will register as an independent and will not vote for Obama in 2011.

These people raise an anger in me that is beyond description.

Happy Friday

2009-07-31T07:21:00.000-07:00

Going to see Judas Priest tonight. To celebrate the 30th anniversary of British Steel, they'll be playing the album in its entirety. It's gonna be a night of metal mayhem.

Happy Birthday Jack!

2009-07-23T10:49:00.000-07:00

One of the best, most candid interviews with Jack Grisham of TSOL

Truly a bad childhood influence, I've always loved Jack and worshipped TSOL, Happy Birthday!

More on the Quitta

2009-07-16T12:55:00.001-07:00

Hilarious.

Robert Strange McNamara 1916 - 2009

2009-07-09T01:35:00.000-07:00

Always a numbers guy full of facts and figures and the right answer.
During Vietnam, however, the numbers confounded him and he couldn't
find the right answer. The facts, as he knew them in his mind, didn't add
up to the reality taking place in southeast Asia.

No big surprise that I have always been ambivalent on the strange saga of
Bobby Mac and his wrenching quest to be loyal to his commander - in- chief,
his country and the troops caught in a quagmire of mindbending proportions...
and still try to "defeat" communism in a strange, far off land.

The Vietnamese tenacity and heart defied the facts and figures this
Berkeley/Harvard wunderkind knew in his heart to be right. It crushed
him and in the end he called it quits, resigning on March 1st, 1968.

I believe he did give it his all, the old college try as they say, yet my
ambivalence still looms. I do wish him a well deserved rest but I don't
think we should ever forget the heinous and painful mistakes this man
made. The one saving grace was that he was enough of a Dove to keep
Nuclear war off the table.

Weird

2009-07-08T07:26:00.001-07:00

Former SNL cast member Victoria Jackson is a nutter.

The Quitta from Wasilla

2009-07-06T07:44:00.000-07:00

Saw that on a blog. Love it.

I watched what I could of her sputtering announcement that she was quitting. Awful beyond words.

Thought for the Day

2009-06-28T18:11:00.001-07:00

It's not "edgy" or contrarian to be a right-wing asshole.

Happy Friday

2009-06-26T07:50:00.000-07:00

All this Michael Jackson imagery makes it hard to eat and watch TV.

Disgraceful Power-Sucking Pussy

2009-06-20T12:23:00.000-07:00

Underhill’s childhood chum (really a chum thrust upon him) sets the table for this this sad tale.

Happy Friday

2009-06-19T07:34:00.000-07:00

I’ll try not to let this get me down.

Fried: Can you give us your assessment of NHS?

BIAFRA!

2009-06-17T14:51:00.000-07:00

One of the biggest inspirations of my life is this guy. Anyone who runs for mayor of a major metropolitan at the age of 20, and almost wins, is a revolutionary in my book and a hero. I liked his old band too.
Eric Boucher (Jello Biafra) is 51 today! Happy Birthday!

*UPDATE*- Found this one just now. Biafra at the 2008 DNC delivers a barnburner of a speech. 9 minutes but well worth it. Almost prophetic considering what is going on now with the spineless Dems. Enjoy!

A 21 year old Biafra interviewed outside Oki Dog in West LA, 1980 - Great interview!

Dead Kennedys at the On Broadway in San Francisco June 16th 1984
Police Truck

Whores of Betrayal

2009-06-16T07:35:00.000-07:00

I think this blog has found new life, and it’s for the worst reason: Obama and his spineless allies in congress are corrupt corporate whores.

We now have every indication that desperately needed healthcare, education, industry, and environmental reforms will be watered down or sacrificed altogether on the altar of corporate appeasement and bipartisanship.

These people have done nothing to challenge the corporate-dominated status quo, because they creatures of that system. Anything that would even slightly piss off industry or Republicans is "off the table."

Lisa, you were right. I was fooled by Obama and his bullshit change narrative, and now I feel like punching a fucking hole in the wall for being so god damn naïve.

Fuck these people.

Happy 66th Malcolm!

2009-06-13T23:59:00.000-07:00

Tribute

McDowell is definitely on my top 10 list of classic, favorite actors!

Cheers!

Happy Friday

2009-06-12T07:21:00.000-07:00

Roll up a doobie and relax.

Sweeping Fucking Majorities; Does that Ring a Bell?

2009-06-08T07:48:00.001-07:00

Um, why should the Democrats have trouble passing anything right now?

Did I hear that single-payer healthcare care is "off the table"?

It’s as if the Repugs were still in power.

Oh my god.

Fucking idiots.

C –

2009-05-30T16:09:00.000-07:00

For letting war criminals off the hook, for bending over backwards to appease Rethugs, for continuation of BushCo policies, and for subservience to Wall Street.

Sounds more like an F, but he gets credit for being generally likeable and not being Bush.

Happy Friday

2009-05-29T09:09:00.001-07:00

I’m gonna keep this blog on very low simmer until political developments necessitate enraged blogging. We’ll all know when that happens.

Next Stop, Rethugville

2009-05-21T07:57:00.000-07:00

Off to visit mom, who is most definitely not a rethug, in Palm Springs.

Mo Do

2009-05-18T07:34:00.001-07:00

Is not a very good liar.

Happy Friday

2009-05-15T09:24:00.000-07:00

I need to be in a rock band.

President Poupon

2009-05-12T07:40:00.001-07:00

Via Bartcop

"John McCain has 7 houses, 13 cars and a private jet and the GOP wants you to think of him as a 'regular guy.'

Obama likes Dijon mustard on his hamburger and that makes him an out-of-touch elitist?"

Extremely Perplexing Ethical Dilemmas

2009-05-04T07:15:00.000-07:00

Indeed.

Happy Friday

2009-05-01T07:19:00.000-07:00

What will the idiot Rethugs do next?

Torture

2009-04-27T14:48:00.000-07:00

If Obama allows the torturers to skate, I will never forgive him.

Never.

Happy Friday

2009-04-24T09:26:00.001-07:00

Nite Owl...

2009-04-23T23:25:00.000-07:00

Happy Birthday Captain Sensible!!!
Born Raymond Burns, the good Captain is 55!

Everytime I've seen The Damned, the Captain has been amazing.

The first time I saw them was in Los Angeles in '86 on the Phantasmagoria tour and Roman Jugg, more than adequately, took the guitar seat.

Since then I've seen the Damned another four times with the good Captain and everytime they were better than the last! The Captain's brand of punk, psychedelia and pop still holds up for me and of the three punk majors - the Sex Pistols and the Clash being the other two - The Damned have always been my hands down favorite.

I've seen the Captain's nuts, cock and arsehole and he's spat gum on me even... but what I always took away from those shows was the sound of his guitar in my head. A crunchy, skyscraping whine or watery psychedlic landscape - usually in the midst of some elegant chaos between the band and the crowd, are but two of the many memories I have of the Captain's great playing over the years.
Happy Birthday and Cheers!

Captain goes solo... Wot?!

The Damned - San Francisco, 1979 Born to Kill!

Sensible on drums, Scabies on guitar...Pretty Vacant!

Cukoo's Nest, Costa Mesa, Ca. 1980

Happy 5th Anniversary!!!

2009-04-23T22:52:00.000-07:00

Captains Log:696969

Dear Stevie,

Happy Fifth Anniversary Captain Smith!
Spock, the "boys" and I want to say "keep it up", Way Up! (Ha Ha- <;{0)

We of the SS Enterprise have loved getting cranked up and checking you out! We wanna say we look forward to another five years of intergalactic poundings from you!!! If you ever get down to the Tide Pools by the Felcher Moons then call Sulu and we'll beam you aboard for fun & frolix, but only after Dr. Bones gives you a full exam!

All the best,
Jim

Smithantics is Five

2009-04-21T07:54:00.000-07:00

This blog was born five years ago today!

While I struggle these days to maintain the fire that led me to start this blog, I’ll take that struggle over having Rethugs in power, ripping apart my fucking soul. I think this has been a good place for us to hang out and vent and laugh. Let’s keep it going.

Merchant Marine Organizers

2009-04-20T07:31:00.001-07:00

Wow.

Happy Friday

2009-04-17T08:58:00.001-07:00

Congratulations to Viking and Jen on the birth of their son!

(I need details)

Happy Idiot Day

2009-04-15T08:12:00.000-07:00

We're havin' a teeeeeeeeee parteeeeeee across this land!

The Progressive Pastor

2009-04-13T07:26:00.001-07:00

He’s part of the new breed of evangelical Christians. He drives a hybrid, hangs out with Democrats, and hates fags.

Happy Friday

2009-04-10T07:43:00.000-07:00

My new hero.

Cock Sucker

2009-04-08T07:51:00.000-07:00

Not that there’s anything wrong with that.

It’s pieces of shit like this that will keep this blog alive.

Teee Partee

2009-04-06T07:37:00.001-07:00

Multiple levels of idiocy.

Happy Friday

2009-04-03T07:55:00.001-07:00

If I don’t find a steady rock gig soon, I’m going to go postal.

Struggling

2009-04-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

Guys, I’m really hard pressed to come up with good blog posts these days. The main driver of this blog was BushCo outrages, and now, thankfully, BushCo is gone. Still, I really don’t want to end the blog, but I also don’t want to phone it in.

I'm gonna think on it some more....

Securitization

2009-03-30T07:40:00.001-07:00

Another must-read piece from the bearded prophet.

Happy Friday

2009-03-27T08:01:00.001-07:00

My wife left me a voicemail of my snoring last night.

Maybe I should look into taking care of this.

Culture Jamming at it's finest!

2009-03-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

I know you Freeway bloggers will appreciate this!

We all, myself included, need to be doing more stuff like this!

The businessman at the end is priceless! He's so upset, as if he can actually hear the neighborhood, and his property value, going south on him. Hilarious.
Thanks to Pat Lavalle for directing this gem my way and cheers to Donny Miller!

Wednesday

2009-03-25T07:47:00.000-07:00

Blogging was much easier when the war criminals were in charge.

It's up to you guys to fill the comment box with witty chatter.

Not a Liberal Country

2009-03-24T07:47:00.001-07:00

It’s comforting to believe that Obama’s electoral victory meant that most Americans finally wised up and embraced liberalism again. But I’m thinking a huge chunk of people who voted for Obama could easily fall back into right-wing idiocy if a light breeze blew them that way.

Monday

2009-03-23T07:41:00.000-07:00

Still a bit groggy from a wild weekend in So Cal. Normal blogging to return soon.

Happy Friday

2009-03-20T08:08:00.000-07:00

I’m heading down to So Cal to hang out with Adjective, Underhill, and other friends I haven’t seen in years.

Have a good weekend!

Comment of the Day!

2009-03-18T12:43:00.000-07:00

And the winner is....(drum roll please)

Fried Wire!

...with today's zinger regarding "favorite drum albums"! (See post below)

"I'll stay out of the internecine squabbling about what constitutes a good drum album... but I'd have to say the cover art would probably have been turned down by Soft Cell for being too gay".

crying...,
thanks Fried...

Don’t Fuck with This

2009-03-18T07:42:00.001-07:00

Since I have nothing to add to the AIG debacle, I’m gonna throw down my favorite drum album.

Suck on that, bitches.

Turning the Page

2009-03-16T08:56:00.001-07:00

I’m afraid Mr. Cheney and the rest of the criminals will ride into sunsets of pampered luxury. The evidence that the administration violated international law is overwhelming, and in a functioning democracy a trial for war crimes would be inevitable. However, Watergate and the Iran Contra experiences set the terrible precedents of pardoning high officials who commit high crimes, all in the name of "national healing." Accordingly, Obama says he’s inclined to turn the page and focus on the future -- as if bringing individuals to trial under the face of such massive evidence is a choice.

Happy Friday

2009-03-13T07:43:00.000-07:00

I think this is pretty much my favorite guitar album, and it is definitely in my top five albums of all time.

Thanks a Lot, You Fucking Assholes

2009-03-12T07:49:00.000-07:00

Who Would've of Thought?

2009-03-11T14:36:00.000-07:00

"Bristol even told him that she hates him (Levi Johnston) and, when she learned she was pregnant, wished the baby wasn't his".
-- from RadarOnline.com

Say it ain't so, Bristol! You and hunky Levi Johnston already on the outs? But...,but...,but...,girl, you crazy!

Yet another hit for Governor Palin and the Republicans, who have so pompously touted themselves as a paradigm of family values! The facade continues to crumble for the GOP as I sit and laugh smugly.

I smell a Lifetime mini-series.

More from RadarOnline

His Worrying Worries Me

2009-03-11T07:45:00.000-07:00

We should all pray that the Obama team knows something that Paul Krugman doesn’t.

Tuesday

2009-03-10T07:52:00.000-07:00

Sorry, y’all, I got nothing.

What do you want to talk about?

Nite Owl - 45 Grave

2009-03-07T05:38:00.000-08:00

A late night wild hair brings you 45 Grave, introduced here by the late Peter Ivers on the New Wave Theater, 1981.

Evil

Enjoy!

Happy Friday

2009-03-06T07:33:00.000-08:00

Fire Geithner and replace him with Paul Krugman. Seriously.

Obama’s belief in the wisdom of the very people who got us into this mess is very troubling.

Grovel-O-Matic

2009-03-05T07:39:00.000-08:00

You guys may have already seen this, but in case you haven’t.

In other news, the ax fell in my office yesterday, and once again I escaped its terrible toll. A handful of people in our California offices were let go due to weak backlog. I hate this shit. The fear in my office is palpable, and when HR shows up, as they did yesterday morning, the fear turns to panic. "Who’s it gonna be?" I started looking around my workspace, mentally packing up my personal stuff.

A large part of the fear is thinking about the indignity of the actual layoff -- the embarrassment. "Well, it’s been nice working with you guys."

I can breathe a sigh of relief for now, but I’m pretty sure there’s a list. And if there is, you can bet I’m on it -- hopefully not too close to the top, or the bottom, or wherever the fuck they start.

Fuckin’ A.

Man of Steele

2009-03-03T07:44:00.001-08:00

Sans testes.

A Gaggle of Circus Clowns

2009-03-02T07:12:00.001-08:00

Indeed, they are.

On a minor related note, why are Democrats compelled to preface all their criticism of Bobby Jindal with a statement of how brilliant he is?

Happy Friday

2009-02-27T06:14:00.000-08:00

May your weekend be free of pants-soiling anxiety and fear.

Hug They Do

2009-02-26T07:40:00.001-08:00

George Will is a fucking idiot.

Moron

2009-02-25T07:05:00.000-08:00

Even idiot David Brooks thinks so. What planet is this nimrod living on?

This is the new light of the GOP?

Good.

Little Bitter Man

2009-02-24T07:33:00.000-08:00

Guess who?

Monday

2009-02-23T08:06:00.001-08:00

I’ve got nothing at the moment. Maybe Underhill will chime in. Otherwise, consider this an open thread.

Happy Friday

2009-02-20T07:34:00.001-08:00

What's on tap for the weekend?

Feeling Violent

2009-02-19T07:48:00.001-08:00

I am surviving pretty much day to day on scraps at my job. There’s talk of more layoffs coming, and I’m not at all confident that I’ll survive this round. My high school teacher wife could get the ax any day now. Of course, we’re not alone. Everyone is pissing their pants right now, and the unemployment rolls are growing by the thousands each day. And these cocksucking Republicans, who made this fucking mess, have the balls to smirk and balk about socialism.

Fuck you, George Will.

Cali Braugh

2009-02-17T07:50:00.000-08:00

Surprisingly, we haven’t discussed California politics too much on this blog, which was born out of the national / global tragedy that was BushCo. Through this post I discovered the progressive California blog Calitics, which includes a huge blogroll of California blogs.

Orange County punk - Moral Threat

2009-02-16T13:35:00.000-08:00

In northern Orange County the kids were just as detached but seemingly less priviledged or spoiled, though. Areas like Placentia, Buena Park and Fullerton were downright depressing and consisted of an endless landscape of strip malls and suburbs, high schools and cops. It was in late 1978 that 16 year old Mike Ness from Fullerton decided to form the first incarnation of Social Distortion.

Mike Ness was a known character in OC. Living in the low-rider, ghetto area of Fullerton, Ness stuck out as one of the early progenitors of "punk". In fedora and eye make-up, Ness never backed down from a fight. He also began a Heroin habit that would plague him for the next ten years.

Mascara lesson!

Ness eventually moved into an apartment in Fullerton were the local "punks" came to congregate. It was know simply as "The Black Hole" and the Adolescents immortalized it on their 1980 self-titled album. Social Distortion would later do "Playpen" in honor of the hangout.

The first Social Distortion lineup was with Casey Royer and Rikk Agnew, both 19 and friends of Ness' who played in the La Habra based outfit The Detours. Agnew would play lead guitar and Royer the drums. Rikk's brother Frank (not pictured) age 14, was brought in on bass.

Casey Royer
Rikk Agnew

It didn't last -- Agnew was constantly in and out of the band and unreliable. Royer left after Ness brought in high school chum Dennis Dannell to take Agnew's place. Dannell had never played an instrument and Casey and Frank didn't feel like waiting for him to learn.

Robbie Fields of Posh Boy records liked what he heard and recorded 'Moral Threat' with Dennis Dannell on Bass and a drummer named Carrot. The trio did 6 songs for Robbie Fields and Posh Boy in April 1981 including the above mentioned Playpen as well as 1945, Mainliner, All the Answers and Justice for All. Social D. were now alongside contemporaries such as TSOL, Shattered Faith, The Crowd and Channel 3. Carrot was replaced later that year by Derek O'Brien on drums.

1982. Solo in his room, a young Ness composes Another State of Mind.

The final 'Original' lineup of Social Distortion circa 1981 -- Brent Liles- bass, the often overlooked Derek O'Brien - drums, Mike Ness, and Dennis Dannell on rhythm guitar and vocals.

The first LP, Mommy's Little Monster, 1983. By far their best album, sorry Butterheads!

Winnipeg, 1982 Mommy's Little Monster.

Social Distortion rehearses in Fullerton 1983. Under My Thumb / 1945.

The Creeps, It's the Law and Moral Threat.

In 1987 - after numerous stints in county jail and detoxes, a sober Ness reformed Social Distortion and took them in a more country & western or "Cowpunk" direction. They are seemingly more popular now then when they were labeled "punk".

In 2000 Dennis Dannell died of a brain Anuerysm at age 38. Bassist Brent Liles was killed in a cycling accident in Placentia, he was 44.
Mike Ness, a true survivor, carries on with Social Distortion to this day and are regulars at KROQ's "Weenie Roast" as well as other "alternative" festivals and shows.

Agent Orange & Adolescents to follow...

Home Sick

2009-02-16T07:57:00.001-08:00

I watched The Godfather yesterday. I think I’ll watch The Godfather II today. I think I’ll smoke marijuana too.

Is the Godfather III worth watching?

Happy Friday

2009-02-13T07:56:00.000-08:00

Behold the glory....

Thursday

2009-02-12T08:20:00.001-08:00

I got nothin' at the moment. What do you want to talk about?

Paging Fried Wire

2009-02-11T08:21:00.001-08:00

Again with this shit. Jeezus.

Orange County Punk Rock: Jerry Roach and the Cuckoos Nest!

2009-02-10T17:50:00.000-08:00

"The pigs were really heavy... they carried mugshots of punks -- guilty of being a punker! If you looked funny, they'd take your picture and you went on a sheet. I felt bad for those (OC) kids."

-- Mike Watt of the Minutemen on playing the Cuckoos Nest in Costa Mesa.

The Cuckoos Nest was a night club in an industrial / business area at the end of the Newport Beach freeway in Costa Mesa. In law and order Orange County, circa 1980, the "Nest" was really the only mainstay venue that hosted "Punk-style" or even "New Wave" groups. In the beginning you could see a bill that consisted of The Chiefs, The Crowd, Eddie & The Subtitles one night, and The Zippers, UXA, Redd Kross, and TSOL the next. As the club grew in reputation and popularity, nearly every cutting-edge 80s act, including The Ramones, Iggy Pop, Black Flag, and the Damned, ventured into Costa Mesa to play the Nest.

Club owner Jerry Roach booked the bands and dealt with the cops, who invariably descended on the Nest. The club shared a parking lot with Zubies Cowboy Bar & Grill, and this unlikely arrangement would bring violent consequences. It was not uncommon to witness a late-night fight between a kid with green hair and combat boots and some shit-kicker in a cowboy hat and Nocona boots outside the Nest. Since the doors of both establishments faced one another, the brawls were almost inevitable. Indeed, The Vandals wrote "Urban Struggle" about the legendary battles between the punks and the cowboys. Casey Royer talks of beer and cowboys at the Cuckoos Nest in a new documentary titled We Were Feared.

By late 1980, the fun and violence was gaining media attention. Here's a great 10-minute piece on Jerry Roach and So Cal punk rock. Some footage may be from The Starwood, probably early 1981.

The Legend of Pat Brown is born February 2, 1981 at the Cuckoos Nest.

The incident was immortalized later that year when the Vandals', The Legend of Pat Brown, appeared on their debut release, Peace Thru Vandalism.

The following 30-50 second clips are from the newly re-released Urban Struggle: The battle of the Cuckoos Nest, now on DVD.

Jerry decides to make a movie.

Jerry on OC punks and Disneyland.

Jerry thinks of quitting!

Jerry's philosophy on punk music.

More to come...

Stupid Piece Of Shit

2009-02-10T07:25:00.000-08:00

Sony Releases New Stupid Piece Of Shit That Doesn't Fucking Work

Watch your volume if you're at work.

Centrist Mojo

2009-02-09T07:35:00.000-08:00

Not what I voted for.

But hey, at least the Republicans have been placated. Oh wait, no they haven’t.

Loving this "chess match."

Sunday Jazz - Kind of Blue 50th Anniversary.

2009-02-08T15:36:00.000-08:00

Simply said, this album kicks ass! I am a jazz fan and have been since I was a kid so I have a fairly decent collection of jazz classics, greats etc...
I own three copies of Kind of Blue, however. If one copy should get lost or break due to overplay... then I have another copy waiting! The album is just that good and important. Miles breaks all kinds of shit down here and then beautifully re-assembles it before our ears.

Kind of Blue

Orange County punk rock

2009-02-08T02:49:00.001-08:00

Night Owl here! Happy Sunday y'all!

Orange County (OC), in the late 70's, was the last place one might think of finding a youth sub-culture by way of Clockwork Orange, but as author Steven Blush writes in American Hardcore (Feral Press, 2001), "...scattered action began in OC as punk-minded bands played high school keg parties".

Blush goes on to cite The Middle Class as the only OC band to gain acceptance by the LA/Hollywood crowd at the time.

We'll start at the begining with what has been long reported as the very first "Hardcore" record. The Middle Class, from Santa Ana, with their 1978 debut single "Out of Vogue".

It wasn't long after this, while bands like X, The Germs, The Weirdos and The Bags flourished in Los Angeles, that a somewhat different form of "punk rock" manifested itself in the endless suburbs that stretched southward into OC and beyond.

Along with the Middle Class, Orange County initially sprouted groups like The Crowd, Eddie & the Subtitles, Snickers, The Klan, The Chiefs and, though technically from Long Beach, Vicious Circle -- whose shows were reportedly "magnets for mayhem".

Graverobbers, being some of the more extreme cases, OC kids seemed more bored, aimless and angry - products of the ultimate suburban joke. Author Steven Blush simply points to "broken families" and general apathy from parents.
"No artistic hipsters, these (OC kids) were the products of the American Dream gone awry....with some absolute monsters among them".

More to follow

Happy Friday

2009-02-06T08:01:00.001-08:00

Paging Fried Wire.

Take it away, Underhill....

So Long Lux

2009-02-05T08:44:00.000-08:00

Lux Interior 1946-2009

Lux Interior passed away this morning at Glendale memorial hospital here in the San Fernando valley, so I'll definitely be spinning some Cramps today.

A comment from Fried Wire on Lux's passing got me thinking about all my punk heroes who are turning fifty or passing away and making me feel, in turn, quite old! Granted I am the youngest of the group here, but with guys like Casey Royer and Rikk Agnew turning fifty recently, I can't help but notice the 'snow on my own roof' and feel a little depressed.

R.I.P. - Lux, thanks for the memories!

The Cramps - live at Napa Valley state mental facility, 1978

The original video for Garbageman

Fear Monger #1

2009-02-04T14:25:00.000-08:00

Is it just 'sour grapes' on this vile, creep's part or is the big Dick playing the politics of fear to the hilt? How dare this son-of a-bitch cast his poison upon us all.

Chris Matthews just mentioned that Cheney's comments today are like "something out of Dr. Strangelove".

To imply that the new administration is going to make us unsafe by "talking friendly" to Al Qaeda is almost treasonous in my book! What good does it do, Dick?!

In Politico.

It’s Fucking Distraaaacting....

2009-02-04T07:49:00.000-08:00

I’m in a rush this morning, so I offer this.

And this brilliant remix.

Big Tent

2009-02-03T07:33:00.000-08:00

The fucking idiots we need to stroke because we’re better than them.

Monday

2009-02-02T08:13:00.001-08:00

I played a gig in lovely Stockton yesterday afternoon, but I made it home in time for the second half of the Super Bowl. Good game.

What’s going on?

Not Ready for Prime Time Birthday!

2009-02-01T17:52:00.000-08:00

I was at home today, nursing a late winter cold, when I got a reminder note from a Mr. Richard Fader of Fort Lee, New Jersey that original Saturday Night Live Not Ready for Prime Time player Garrett Morris is 72 today!

Since football isn't really my thing - my money is on Pittsburgh - I've been eating Zinc tablets and watching season four of Saturday Night Live, 1978-79.

I think season four may be the original cast's best season, and Morris is definitely this group's most overlooked performer.

Thanks for all the laughs!

A brief 1986 interview with Ebony/Jet.

Garrett's bio.

Since SNL footage is hard to come by on You Tube, I would advise you all to go out and purchase season four of Saturday Night Live. Not only is Morris in his prime, but the entire cast, and writers, are at their best!