Last night our band, Shanghai Butchers, had a gig at Macs Bar here in Lansing. They’ve played there before, but not with me as drummer (I’ve only been with the band “officially” since November or December 2008 and have only been playing drums since October).
We opened for Portland punk rock band, Vampire Lezbos. They are on tour at the moment and stopped at Macs to do a gig. Thankfully, we were contacted about opening for them, because I was excited about doing the gig. Macs is a fun place and I think it is pretty neat to have played a show there.
We did a quick set run through at our practice place and loaded up for Macs, which thankfully was only just down the road. Seeing our name on the sign out front was pretty dang neat, I gotta admit. (click on photos to see bigger versions)
Unloading and set up went smoothly, and we met the guys from Vampire Lezbos.
Due to a snafu, we were told that we’d either be one of two bands playing (the other being Vampire Lezbos)…or one of four. But, it ended up just being the two of us, which was good because the crowd was sparse (but remember, it was a Monday night and MSU isn’t in session).
Our set went OK. Brian had some issues with his guitar strap coming undone mid-song, and during one song it even pulled his cord out–resulting in some funky feedback as he tried to get it back in (amusingly, a few in the audience thought it was part of the song…)
I think I did alright, all things considered. I messed up a few times, but nothing major. I was dying under the stage lights though, and sweating like crazy–it was hot in Macs to begin with (I think it was nearly 90 outside all day), and the lights didn’t help matters. But between the heat and the drumming, I’m sure I worked off my pre-performance pint of Guinness.
Our set was six songs and after that we quickly tore down so the Vampire Lezbos guys could get ready. We dashed back to Jon’s (bass) to drop off our gear and then returned to Macs to catch the latter half of Vampire Lezbos’ set–and I’m glad we did, they were great. I even bought their album.
I told the guys we need to work on their between song banter/song intros a bit…or just get me a microphone. I think the latter option is the favorite for the moment.
While not a perfect performance on our part, it was still a great experience and I hope the first of more to come. Thanks to everyone who came out.
