superkate: journal
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point and click
listening to | faith no more \ album of the year
feeling | headachy
on thursday i went to sydney to see tomahawk. tomahawk's band members comprise of
mike patton (mr bungle, fantomas, faith no more, peeping tom, lovage) on vocals/weird noises/samples, duane denison (the jesus lizard) on guitar, kevin rutmanis (the melvins) on bass and john stanier (helmet, the mark of cain) drumming.
i met up with fellow mike patton devotee tom at 8pm. we walked down to utopia as he had not been there since it relocated. we then made out way to a bar and had a beer before making our way to the metro theatre.
upon entering the metro i realised this gig was going to be even more lacking in oestrogen than previous patton experiences. there were
so few girls there. i have never been to a patton gig without at least one guy drunkenly attempting to impress me - this one was no different.
tom and i made our way to our usual spot - the 1st step behind the dance floor. from here you have a great view of the entire stage, and the sound is also much better from here. some weird/drunk guy beside me tried to talk to me over the top of the very loud music the dj was playing. then he kept getting up and going away and coming back and talking to me again. i was so in. aren't i the lucky one?
a little later rock journalist extrordinaire, craig new, was standing in front of me. he turned and saw me and came and sat by my side. "hey, i thought i knew your face! i drove you to katoomba... kate? isn't it?" we then had a bit of a chat about tomahawk and the solo patton gig that was to be on the next night. he also pointed out that dj erazorhead was also dr katz of sounds of seduction fame and also the lead singer of the mu mesons, who supported fantomas last time they were out here.
dj erazorhead was playing the most obscure songs! basically 70's tracks, but kinda turning them into an industrial type dance music. very freaky and very cool. combined with the 50's tv shows that were being broadcast onto the big
screen, it made for a very interesting experience.
finally, tomahawk took to the stage. the red curtains opened to reveal mike patton dressed as a sherif. the now regulatory hair net was also in place. as the curtains widened, it could be seen that the entire band were decked out as law enforcement officers of some sort or another. kevin even sported a funky police hat. it matched his pink sparkly bass
spendidly. kevin is really funny to watch. he sways his hips as
he plays, and this doesn't stop even when the song has. in
between songs he still sways his hips back and forth.
the band went through most of the album, and added in a couple of covers here and there, none of which i recognised. mike was in a funny mood, at one stage making fun of the guy on the barrier right in front of him. the dude had bleached blonde, spiky hair and mike yelled dramatically "you look like you should be in sugaaar raaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!!!" and pointed at the poor guy as everyone laughed at him.
later, when introducing a slower cover song, mike stated that "this one is for the laaaadies in the crowd!" to which the few girls present (myself included) cheered loudly. "boys! i hope you know how to dance! do you know how to daaaaaaance?" he asked as he placed his hand to his pelvis and swayed back and forth. cue more loud screaming. the band then launched into a song that allowed us to hear mike croon like we all know he can. something that, unfortunately, has become a rather rare
occurrence.
after the song finished mike asked duane if he had anything to say to the crowd. duane stated that he did, but he thought it was too offensive and he might upset us if he said it. mike egged him on and teased him about being chicken to talk to us and got the entire crowd chanting "wanker" or something similar until duane agreed to tell us what he was going to say.....
"YOU GUYS AND GIRLS SUCK!"
that was it. hehe.
after about only 45 minutes, the band left the stage. the crowd was so vocal and noisy. one of the loudest crowds i had heard in a long time. after a few minutes the band made their way back out onto the stage. they had had a costume change. this time mike and john were wearing white singlets and kevin and duane had on white t-shirts... all of these had the word "CUNT" emblazoned across them in large red letters. the first thing mike said was "hey you guys invented the word! we just use it!" the crowd cheered even louder than they already were. i knew that it wouldn't matter what messer patton said, it would be met with loud, enthusiastic screams from the entire crowd.
and after two more songs they were gone. the crowd was pretty unhappy about the
short one hour set. a large contingent started booing and most of the crowd were still chanting "tomahawk" when the house lights came on. even then a majority of the crowd hung around in the off
chance the band would come out once more. but it didn't happen.
i bought myself a tomahawk "comic book" t shirt. very colourful. one of the guys shirts available was basically the album front cover art, with "put on the mask and dance for daddy" written in large text on the back. i laughed so hard when i read that. how very, very wrong.
as we left the venue, there were a couple of guys at the door giving out fliers advertising the "secret" mike patton solo show that was to be on the next night at club 77. anyone who has been to club 77 can attest to how small the place in. triple j had already advertised the gig a number of times, it wasn't as if they weren't going to sell the gig out. i abused the guy who gave me a flier. i was.not.happy. we knew that we were already going to have to be at the venue early to have any hope of seeing mike, this only added to our frustration. as we were walking to our respective bus
stop/train station, a couple of guys beside us were also bitching about the fliers and the fact that even more people were going to know about the gig now. but here is a scan of the flier.
the next day i had fully intended on seeing mike, but i didn't get to william street until 5.45pm. by this stage there was already a number of people lining up. it had been raining and i didnt really feel like standing in like for 2.5+ hours to get in. plus as everyone no doubt knows, my
fiduciary state is not the best at the moment. there was no way i could really afford the $30 to get in and most likely not really even be able to see mike all that well. so i ditched the idea of seeing mike.
instead i went out to dinner with my grandmother, aunt and two little cousins at gelbisons in bondi. my grandmother and i walked up the road to meet my aunt, but she wasn't there yet when we arrived. as she went inside to see if my aunt had made a booking for dinner, i waited outside playing on my phone. i looked up and sitting immediately in front of me was john stanier. and i had on my brand new tomahawk t-shirt. how
embarrassing. so i wandered away from the restaurant and waited for my aunt. eventually a table out the front became available. the table right next to john and the two guys he was with. as i approached the three of them looked at me and one of them grinned wildly as i sheepishly walked past them.
i tried to listen in on their conversation to see if i could pick up on any interesting info, but they were just basically talking about different gigs they had been to and such.
i told aunty caroline who was sitting beside me and she was all "omg! go get him to autograph your shirt!"
(loud enough so he could hear) and i was all "nooooooo. i don't want to hassle him, he is having dinner." she then threatened to go over and talk to him, and so did my grandmother. i even had my tomahawk cd case in my bag, but i still wasn't going to interrupt his meal. i have no problem talking to someone in a band if i am at a gig, but i feel a little weird about
interrupting them when they are out relaxing with friends. it just feels rude. plus it's not as if i haven't spoken to him before, or won't get the chance again. he is playing for the mark of cain now, which makes him a little more
accessible now. though if he had have been mike i don't think there would have been any way you could have held me back. lol.
after dinner we went over to the beach and watched the lightening cracking over the ocean in the distance as the sun set. so beautiful. and i missed dan so much at that moment. but not long now!!
if i can give one piece of advice it is to love mike patton's genius like i do! fuck he is good!
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