rock 'n roll ain't cheap so do your part

I met Chopper (the tallest guy in the picture above) the lead singer/guitarist of Kissinger on Friday at the Sidecar Pub in Cypress this past Friday. What did I think of the Sidecar Pub? I think it's a waste of a great live music venue. The acoustics in that place are incredible. The actual room is a comfortable size and the stage is intimate with fairly sophisticated lighting. But all this went to waste because the opening band before Kissinger was way below par and the crowd was sparse and impersonal. That means you can't trust the management to book good bands and you won't be meeting any new friends at Sidecar. I've never been to a show before where I didn't have to go early and fight my way to the front. There was no standing crowd to fight through and no strangers beside me to grin at during a good song. Everyone hung around the back of the place-- most chose to sit at the bar. They were so passive and detached from the show that when they clapped and hollered after each song I was momentarily surprised to find that there were actually a good number of fans behind me. I hated that. I could tell the band was a bit discouraged because of the unenthusiastic crowd. They're from Austin which means that they're used to playing in crowded bars on Sixth to over-friendly t-shirt-clad college students instead of middle aged professionals in their button-downs and the Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Gang. At one point in their set, Chopper actually felt compelled to invite the people to move towards the stage instead of lingering around the tables in the back. My friends and I and a handful of other people were the only ones who moved closer. He later thanked us personally and gave us each a free, autographed CD. They play rock and roll the way I like rock and roll. Powerful vocals, mic-ed up drums that you feel in your chest, and solid guitar rifts that make the hair on the back of your neck stand up. No teenage vocals, no screamo, no accidental speeding up at the climax of the song, good melodies, and a fair amount of dancing and power stances. Chopper slung his guitar behind his head for a few bars while his Bruce Vilanch sidekick (pictured above on the left) rocked his guitar between his legs. It made me smile. (As you might deduce, I don't know much about rock. But I smiled because it was a nod to the rock and roll greats of the past who pulled stunts like that during their shows.) I tried buying a Tshirt after the show but they were all out of my size. The lady working the merch table gave me a free pin as a consolation gift. Free swag makes a happy fan. I'm going to keep my eye on Kissinger. I like what they do. Their CD is pretty amateur but I think they've got potential. As for the Sidecar Pub, I don't think I'll be back anytime soon. I know you go to a show for the band and for the music. But after Friday I realized that live music is a total experience which includes the people you're surrounded by when you're watching your favorite band. The only way I'll go back to Sidecar is if Pete Yorn himself appears on that stage. I hope some other bars in Houston will book Kissinger the next time they come to town. Did I mention that Sidecar is located in a shopping strip behind a Hartz's Chicken? Cypress, Texas at its finest.