BEAUMONT, TX 9.10.05

This show was just plain weird. Weird in a very entertaining way.

First of all, this was a 9/11 show held on 9/10. Huh? But wait, it gets better. It was supposed to be indoors but the venue was turned into an evacuee shelter. So we played next door at a massive 15,000 capacity outdoor ampitheatre instead. Amazing facility. Great sound. Good line-up. But things can always go wrong - even in the best situation.


1000 tickets were pre-sold, but because of thunder storms and the change of venue only about 200 people ventured out to the show. The two side stages were rained out and 47 independent bands slated for the festival had to be whittled down a bit and then the remainder thrown into the main stage rotation through-out the day. There wasn't enough time for everyone to get their promised set lengths so label artists cut their sets and independent artists played only two songs each. I felt horrible for guys who drove long distances to play longer sets for big crowds but wound up playing eight minutes for 200 people with no time for a soundcheck.

I got to see Paul Colman play again, taking the opportunity to grab a picture of him in action. He stopped in the middle of his song and asked me to get one of his "good" side. Thunderous laughter from the small crowd. Ok, a smattering of laughter.










The Swift, friends Brian and I made on our trip to El Salvador, rocked out with their cross between Weezer and Ben Folds pop. They (pictured here with Brian and on stage) piano-rocked the crowd just after One Bad Pig, a middle-aged punk outfit from the eighties reuniting for a few shows this year, awed the crowd with tight power punk and a dive from the drum riser into a swimming pool filled with ice cream. "The world is like an ice cream sundae. It's all gonna melt someday!" they shouted again and again. Not sure why one decides to incorporate large amounts of dairy desserts into one's show but some things are meant to be enjoyed and not judged. Ashamedly, I did like it. I bow before the legends and inventors of 80s Christian punk.

The sound company was truly horrible, mistreating the promoter, trying to pick a fight with Brian, and walking off from the main board randomly and not returning for long periods of time. I was ready to start my set, for instance, but instead sat on the edge of the stage talking to the "crowd" while waiting for the sound man to finish his smokie-treat and return to work. Never seen anything like this before. The production crew's juvenile apathy and the other hurdles of the day eventually led to a minor emotional meltdown by the promoter and his team. Understandable. It's not easy being a promoter, especially of a show this large. Add bad help to the mix and it would force anyone into the fetal position in search of a happy place. Paul prayed with the promoter and encouraged him to go on with the show, telling him we'd get through this together. His charisma and pastoral gifts came in handy, saving the day perhaps.

And we did go on. Every band got to play eventually, we weren't rained out and great music and relationships were made - along with sundaes of unusual size. (below)