DR. BOOGIE and THE BLESSINGS, LIVE dream double bill at El Cid 4.8.17

Here we had a dream double bill at El Cid club April 8th, 2017 with two of the best acts currently playing Los Angeles and points beyond --DR. BOOGIE and THE BLESSINGS-- then what happens? Well, as the lead singer of The Blessings said of his mic stand twirling in the second photo above, "I was aiming for the so-called soundman's head."

Yes, both bands predictably spun their respective hard rock magic as always to the infinite delight of appreciative crowds packing the club despite what purportedly seemed like sabotage by the club's new management. Let's put it this way, Dr. Boogie, nor the Blessings, two bands who have gigged there many times in the last two years, nor I as a photo pro whose prior experiences at the club yielded many great looking shots, one even gracing Dr. Boogie's debut album, will be recommending this venue as a well lit, great sounding one any more. 

Jeremy White, lead vocals, harmonica + guitar did his finest, even without benefit of a live microphone on for the first two songs. (I goosed the lighting to make up for lack thereof in these two variants.)

      

 Inevitably, tensions

percolated. Singer Lavone

Barnett-Seetal said of the photo at left with guitarist Mike Gavigan, "I look like Aunt Esther

from Sanford & Son! Hah! 'You ol' heathen!' "

Bassist Lights Out Levine off camera, but

below we find drummer Jason Upright and keyboard player Jeffrey Howell rounding out the full, Exile on Main Street-y sound of The Blessings who compare in cool songwriting as well.

 

Dr. Boogie benefitted from staff's tinkering with ironing out the sound of the prior acts, and delivered their usual solid set of originals led by Chris's raspy authority in their pre-East Coast tour warmup.

 

Pictured: Chris P. lead vocals, guitar; Dustin James, guitar, vocals; Pat Salway, bass, vocals, Luis Herrera, drums, vocals.

"Oi Vey!"

PHOTO OPS:

 Who's that hiding behind the cloud of smoke (and a mighty "Hi yo, Silver!?") Answer: singer/guitarist/producer Richard Duguay, seen with Mike Spent, rock and roll couturier Evita Corby and Lisa Lee.

Also on hand to see this great bill, Loren Molinare of The Dogs and Little Caesar (behind a cloud of spectacles glare,) Shelley Mitchell and California Rocker Editor Donna Balancia.

R.I.P. EMI CANYN

 Rest in peace Emi Canyn, A.K.A. Emi Jo Schmidt Canyn Mars Pierson, gone far too soon at age 62.  What little is known is that she passed away at her home in Lacey, Washington on Feb. 25, 2017 but the announcement wasn't made until some two months later.

Her main notoriety followed her stint as one of the Nasty Habits, the backup singer/dancers who wiggled around in nurses' outfits and custom metal maiden haute couture for Motley Crue at the height of their worldwide touring success, plus Emi's marriage to Crue's Mick Mars. She later fronted a band named Alice N' Thunderland with Chet Thompson of Hellion and WWIII, with its sole eponymous cd release in Japan.

However, Emi genuinely had a strong, wailing multi-octave voice, and my photos are from her lead vocals performances in She Rok, who also included Mary Kay of The Dogs on bass, Lisa Lichtenstein on drums and the late Gerri Edinger on guitar. 

 These hail from my stills taken for She Rok's appearance in Thunder 'n' Mud, director Penelope Spheeris' last film before her breakout success with Wayne's World, plus from gigs in Hollywood and some forgotten metal venue in Long Beach, Calif., hotbed of South Bay Metal after South Bay Punk receded. 

 Emi (pronounced "Amy" by Emi herself) was a stunning looker with a "Seven of Nine" (the Star Trek:Voyager Borg with the reconstituted, perfect human female physique) figure who could really sing full on. She was quite actively dynamic onstage.  She knew what boys liked.  And She Rok kicked bigtime metal ass. All the right commercial ingredients at the right time and right place for a change, sigh, but... for naught. Like many of the best, it just didn't happen.

This proof sheet dates from the She Rok gig 8.2.89 at Club Lingerie, Hollywood CA

FUCK YOU PAY ME live at THE GARAGE, VENTURA CALIF. 4.7.17

 

Tony Erba and his band Fuck You Pay Me (after the most memorable line in Goodfellas and usually acronymed in most family periodicals as FYPM) emoted like mad 4.7.17 at Ventura County, California's premiere rocker hangout, The Garage. FYPM are a Cleveland, Ohio combo keeping hardestcore punk alive and screaming. I drove 100 miles to and fro in the rain to catch this act, well worth it!

Erba's high-voltage energy proved a challenge to document photographically, as he's a peripatetic dervish found anywhere from amp stacks/stage walls to the mosh crowd's interior dance corps circle, usually within nanoseconds. And as a finely honed tradition, he wrestles any takers in the crowd (as seen in a gawd knows what move above)...

 Other bands on the bill did not launch themselves into or at the audience until FYPM showed them how...Cleveland's finest in action!

FYPM
Merch!

WATCH MARIJKE KOGER-DUNHAM of THE FOOL's ADVENTURES in THE SUMMER OF LOVE 1967 for free, now!

 

Watch Marijke Koger-Dunham's art adventures in the Summer of Love, 1967, free below in this short feature about this amazing, influential fine artist who introduced the world to psychedelic art via her clients The Beatles and Apple Boutique. My recent photos of her grace this film production, and my interview with her can be found here, click LINK*

 

*http://fastfilm1.blogspot.com/2016/02/interview-with-marijke-koger-dunham.html

PRECIOUS METAL version 2017 LIVE at THE ROSE 4.22.17

Precious Metal, the most charismatic all-female metal band of the 1980s and 90s is, after a successful 2014 reunion for ChemoWize cancer charity (LINK,) back via a fulltime working configuration as depicted herein. Added to founding members Leslie Knauer (vocals,) Alex Rylance (bass,) and (pre-Carol Control) Susette Andres (drums) are guitarist Jeff Mattern (The Wild Side) and multi-instrumentalist Aviva Maloney (The Monkees.) Note oodles of personality, pulchritude and confidence in both stage presentation and my new studio shots for them below.

 The Rose club in Pasadena featured a full house for Precious Metal opening for Richie Kotzen (Mr. Big, Poison) on 4.22.17. Their dynamic set rock and rolled PMetal favorites from their three major label releases of yore like "Right Here, Right Now!" plus fun new originals, including one sung by Susette.

 Below, America's (and Australia's!) favorite Heavy Metal Sweetheart, Leslie Knauer, once deemed "the 38th best rock singer ever, either gender" by some Brit trade rag. High praise indeed, and utterly deserved. Leslie's amazing vocals are still everything they ever were and more, alongside her always upbeat presence.

 The venue in Pasadena's Old Town area was a former high-end grocery, hence the all sheet-metal-walled backstage dressing room in its former meat locker (which given the current state of the music biz some might consider all too apropos...)

Precious Metal 1986 and 2017. Left, fair use © Julian Wasser. All Rights Reserved.
Right, re-staging for 2017.

HH SOLO PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION TODAY

 Anyone in the greater Los Angeles area May 6th...

Free. And early, 5 - 7 p.m. so that Saturday night revelers may continue with their plans. My music photography with almost 100 shots from 1967 - 2017. 

Also, my choice of band THE BLESSINGS perform at 6 p.m.