Me First and the Gimme Gimmes – Pulley – and The Bombpops – at Fremont Country Club – Las Vegas, NV
May 26, 2013
Day 2 of the festival was in the bag, which means it was time for the Bowlers Party, with Me First and the Gimme Gimmes headlining!
Bad Religion is one of my favourite bands, and I've seen them close to a dozen times, so I left their set early in order to head to the Fremont Country Club. And I'm glad I did--the line stretched around the block! It had already been a long couple of days, with one more to go, but the excitement from the crowd was palpable.
Hailing from Oceanside, CA, openers The Bombpops brought their own version of pop-punk to the stage. I saw these ladies (and gentlemen) last year at PRB, and even then I was impressed. This year, however, I was wowed. Over the past year, their sound/maturity as musicians has grown in leaps and bounds.
The crowd wasn't small, but it wasn't huge, but when the band took the stage, all of the audience were nodding their heads and dancing along to "Outta Hand" and "Grocery Store". When they broke out "(Back to) The Medicine Cabinet", I couldn't help myself--I had to start bouncing around and acting like a fool.
Their music is just infectious and forces you to move. If you like 90's-feeling music with a touch of The Runaways, and see this North County band on a bill, please go check them out. You really won't be disappointed.
Partial set-list: Outta Hand, If I'm Pretending, Paranoid, Open Ended, Crazy, (Back to) The Medicine Cabinet, Losing Touch, Grocery Store, Can of Worms
After a semi-long wait, Simi Valley's Pulley took the stage. Except for the odd song of theirs, here and there, I had never really listened to them. (That is a mistake I have been remedying since PRB.) One word to describe their set? Awesome.
I can't describe them other than with a generic "melodic speed-Punk", but their set at the Fremont Country Club was nothing short of fantastic. Scott Radinsky asked of the crowd who had been here all weekend, which he followed shortly with his own answer of: "I don't think I could do it". "Bad Reputation" about halfway through the set energized the crowd into a fun pit, and they closed with "Cashed In", which got the fans riled and ready for Me First.
Set-list: Darkside, Second Best, Hooray for Me, One Shot, Stomach Aches, Rattling Rust, Ocean Song, Bad Reputation, Mandarin, Huber Breeze, Insects Destroy, Working Class, Gone, Cashed In
It was nearing 2:30 AM when Me First finally took the stage. Before the curtain opened, tensions were running high, and I saw a couple of fights *almost* break out. The crowd started booing the closed curtains during the final sound-check. As soon as they opened and the band took the stage, Fat Mike offered the apology of, “Sorry we took so long, but it takes forever for drugs to be delivered here.”
That diffused the tension, and as the band started up with their cover of "Danny's Song", the crowd was back to smiles and fun times. Spike, the lead singer, sounded freakin' awesome, and the band appeared to have a blast. Wearing horrible pink Hawaiian shirts coupled with white pants, the band went through the gamut of awesome covers of dated songs. Though at times it feels as though we (the crowd) are just a viewer to a hang-out with friends, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes always puts on a highly entertaining show, and tonight was no exception. About halfway through the set, Fat Mike disappeared and had Melvin fill in for a handful of songs (maybe he went to meet the late fabled drug delivery person?)
For those of us who are older, it's nice to hear the songs we grew up with (not necessarily the songs we chose to listen to), given a new and punk-y twist. When you have people like Spike Slaweson, Joey Cape, Fat Mike, Chris Shiflett, and Dave Raun re-creating songs from the 60's to 90's R&B, it is a breath of fresh (and beer saturated) air. If you have someone in your life who you want to introduce to punk, have them take a listen to Me First. They are the gateway band, for sure.
Set-list: Danny's Song, Country Roads, All My Lovin', Me and Julio, These are a few of my Favorite Things, Summertime, Ghost Riders in the Sky, Science Fiction/Double Feature, Isn't She Lovely, End of the World, Different Drum, Leavin' on a Jet Plane, Nobody Does It Better, Don't Cry for me Argentina, Seasons in the Sun, Sloop John B, I Will Survive, Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Rocket Man, Needles and Pins, I Believe I Can Fly, End of the Road
More photos of the show can be seen HERE
-Anni Thyme-
Big Wheel Staff Reporter
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