X – at the Pacific Amphitheatre – Costa Mesa, CA

Tonight was a night full of firsts for me. It was my first time attending the Orange County fair, first time getting my palm read by a psychic (which was surprisingly accurate), first time eating fried frog legs, and my first time seeing the revolutionary band X, and hopefully not my last time seeing them.
 
The ticket to see X that night also included O.C fair admission, and all throughout the day Punks walked around and I thought to myself, "Oh, they're definitely going to the show tonight." Some people may think its wrong to assume this, but why would any Punk go to the fair the same night one of the most influential, praised Punk band is performing, and not go to see them?
 
Finally, at 7:30, the doors to the Pacific Amphitheatre (which is actually right on the fairgrounds) opened up. The first singer, Maria McKee, and her band waited until everyone settled down in their seats with their lemonade, pretzels, and beer to start their set. Maria and her group were different from any other performer I've seen, due to the major country sound she possessed. Her folk-style vocals seemed to bore some of the hardcore Punks anxious to see X, but her overall performance was an enjoyable experience to fans of various genres.
 
After Maria's interesting presentation, the Amphitheatre started to get noticeably full. I was shocked that the show did not sell out, but my theory is that no one really knew about the show, due to it being part of the O.C fair. When X came on stage around 8:15, the crowd stood up and roared in applause. People began chanting, "Exene! Exene!" until she started to sing. The band performed many songs off their acclaimed album, "Los Angeles", such as "Nausea" and "Soul Kitchen". John, Exene, Billy, and D.J also riled up the crowd with two of their biggest hits, "Los Angeles" and "Johnny Hit and Run Pauline", causing the audience to sing a long to every word and dance crazily. Another highlight of the night was when the band was performing one of my favorites, "Sex and Dying in High Society", when John Doe yells at a security guard, "JUST STOP! GO AWAY! This is OUR show, not yours!" directing the security's action of stopping fans from acting too wild. John's interaction with the crowd reminded me of Social Distortion's Mike Ness, giving some hardcore, witty advice on the Punk rock lifestyle.
 
Unfortunately, X left the stage shortly after the security incident, teasing the crowd with an obvious encore of some more pleasing hits. A few minutes later, both Exene and Joe came out and performed, "I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts", a deep and provoking display of the true intelligence X has. After they performed that tune, Billy and D.J. came out and joined them on stage, as John yelled, "Alright...we have 6 more minutes, lets cut the talking and bullshit!" The band left with a bang, passionately playing "Your Phone's Off the Hook, but You're Not". X left the audience, filled of old and young Punks all sharing the love of X, full of joy and energy, satisfied with the fact that they had just seen legends perform.
Band website: www.xtheband.com

(Due to a camera malfunction the photos may be a bit delayed on this report)
 

-Sarah K.-
Big Wheel Music Scene Reporter 

 

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