the guest list
If the kids are united...
By Bobby Wilcox 02/23/2012
Solidarity: Unity or agreement of feeling or action, esp. among individuals with a common interest; mutual support within a group.
Our music scene is thriving, and always has been for this one reason: We stand together, support each other and keep fighting the same fight, regardless of the payoff or support from the outside community. Among most of our active bands right now, it’s pretty astounding how many are “former members of.” We all, at one time or another, have either played with each other, or been the only ones in the room as the others played for us. For that, I’m proud to be a part of it all. The days of taking over Kinko’s at 3 a.m. to make hundreds of flyers to litter Main Street with may be gone, but the attitude (as we age) I’d like to believe is the same. It just happens via Facebook and mass-batch text messages, now. I wonder if the kids starting bands here now feel the same. Where do the kids play these days? We haven’t had an all-ages place since the Mayfair shut down (thanks in part to a good old-fashioned West Side Story-style “rumble” at a Green Day show) so we made them.
The Déjà Vu was a vacant car dealership. The Spot was a secret. Kenji’s Shack was just that. These are the things we did for the sake of making music for our friends. Are there house parties now where the kids actually play without getting shut down? Are there great bands that just never leave the garage? Those of us who are older have just migrated into the bar scene. But I guarantee that we all miss playing for kids on a regular basis. Numbskull has some good things going on at Zoey’s now and again, but there isn’t a regular spot for all-ages shows. That’s been the story for 20 years — it’s nothing new — and rather than complain, we need to be inventive again: Someone knows someone with a warehouse, some property — something. We just need to work together to find it.
I also wonder if there are as many kids starting bands now as there used to be. Every week there were at least 15 bands playing the Living Room in Goleta. Kids would watch their friends, then start their own bands, then they’d trade members, and bands would multiply like wet Mogwais. Who’s inspiring the younger ones to get together and play? Being fans of music and wanting to play is one thing, but watching it live and thinking, “This is what I want to do,” is a tremendously important moment in any young person’s musical life. I hope they know that there are so many bands playing now, in so many different styles, that all came from the same roots, and that would be happy and honored to give them some pointers on how to make it happen.
From T.F.W. to Tall Tales and the Silver Lining — we all occupied Kinko’s and secret spots over the years to learn what we now know. I know that there are some great younger bands out now, and some even played the picnic at Plaza Park, but I want to see them regularly. I want to see more of them. I want the sheer volume of young bands demanding attention, to scare the pretentious oldskies in the Ivory Tower. I know for a fact there’s plenty of fuel. It’s the same fuel all of us filled up and are still running on: boredom, creativity, passion for playing and the adrenaline from doing it live. There’s no shortage, and there never will be.
The secret is doing it. Doing it united. And doing it yourself.
Bobby Wilcox currently plays bass for Radio Threat and Spivey. His former local bands include The Pretty Uglys, Gun of a Son, River Bottom Nightmare Band and The Coathang’r Kids. He’s toured for hire with various other bands as well. When he’s not playing he is a signmaker at Dave’s Signs. He can be reached at Bobbyramone77@gmail.com.
The Guest List is an occasional column for people involved in local music to express an opinion about it. If you would like to contribute, send an e-mail to michel@vcreporter.
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