// February 22nd, 2012 // No Comments » // Videos
This video, hot off the Punk Outlaw Press, tells the real story of what went on behind the scenes after the Black Cat Entertainment produced “Valentine’s Ball 2012″ by long time, questionable promoter Rich Vreede. Since our story first aired last week, bands and people have come out of the woodwork to report their shady dealings with Vreede with claims that he owes them money, some from as long as 3 years ago.
At the Valentine’s Ball it appears no less than half a dozen people were left holding the bag with Vreede and Black Cat owing money which looks to amount to around at least $14K or so total, an amount that appears only barely possible to make based on the business model of the concert ($20 or so per ticket, 700 or so people.. do the math). So the question remains, if Vreede knew he’d probably never even be able to break even much less make any $ based on simple math, why did he proceed with the concert anyway? hmmm? Something maybe the State Attorney General’s office should be asking yes?
Not to mention our agreement for a “loan” to him called for “first re-payment” before bands or anyone else got paid (a very common structure for business loans). As it turns out that “first payment” had also been promised to another “investor” who had his accounting folks collect money at the door that evening.
As you know, there can only be one “1st” so that fact alone, if true, would lead us to assume that Vreede willfully and knowingly committed what is known as “fraud”. Unfortunately there are so many breaches of our contract with Black Cat by Vreede that I can’t even list them all here, but patience my friends, we will… along with all back up emails, contract details and information we’ve learned since this story broke on the morning of 2/13/12.
BTW had Vreede held to his word that we were ONLY supplying a loan for a venue deposit that was “guaranteed returned” the night of the concert in cash, not only would we have been paid back, but there would have been plenty of money to pay bands as well. But the way the concert was run, there was no shot of anyone getting paid, and it looks like Vreede, a guy whose been in the promotions biz for over 10 years, would have known that going in.
To keep up on the latest be sure and check www.ScumbagPromoter.com for all the latest details and be sure and sign the petition so that we can finally put a stop to this long line of misery it appears has been perpetrated by Rich Vreede of Black Cat Entertainment and other morally challenged promoters over the years. And if you think Petitions are for pussies, you are wrong. It’s a shame some people have chosen to
Los Angeles is the entertainment capital of the world, or so it says in it’s tourism propaganda. I say it’s time it started acting like it don’t you? Leave the concert promotion to the MANY honest, hard working promoters and folks who abide by their contracts and do what they say and let the shady, unemployed, dishonest scumbag promoters get an honest job at the nearest fast food joint (And BTW nothing at all wrong with that line of honest work). But please, just don’t let them run the cash register.
Remember to sign the petition at www.scumbagpromoter.com
Valentine's Ball Band "Evil Devil" with Rich Vreede (Striped Shirt, Far Right)
// February 18th, 2012 // No Comments » // Videos
Continuing our mission in 2012 to keep cranking out the content, here is Quito, Ecuador’s DMTR (Demeter) with “Sin Balas, Sin Fronteras” (No Bullets, No Borders) available on the Punktology Vol. 1 – Free Cuba Now! cd.
One of my favorites on the whole CD.
// February 15th, 2012 // No Comments » // Photos
Cuban Punks
With all the Black Cat ripping bands off fiasco in Los Angeles, it might be easy for those caught up in the mess to forget there is a whole world out there going about their business. In Cuba, that means trying to survive another day under bleak circumstances and for punks, trying to stay out of jail while expressing their beliefs and love of punk music.
Remezcla recently published our article on Cuban punks. Check it out HERE.
You can help show your support and hear some pretty good punk music by giving the Punktology Vol. 1 – Free Cuba Now! CD a listen HERE. Remember, 25% of our profits will go to our good buddies at Cuba Skate who are helping the youth in Cuba build skate parks and bringing them skateboarding equipment.
// February 13th, 2012 // 6 Comments » // Events, Photos, Videos
There were near riots in downtown Los Angeles this past Sunday night at the Mayan Theater. No, Occupy LA didn’t gear back up, but Rich Vreede of Black Cat Entertainment was back in action… spreading his unique brand of concert promotion and “nice guy” misery, which means a packed house but unpaid bands, ripped off “investors”, people on the verge of tears trying to maintain their dignity and in the end, a police escort out of the building among a throng of the pissed off for a guy some have dubbed the “Bernie Madoff of Concert Promoters”.
The approximately 650 attendees paid their $20-$25 at the door of the Mayan Theater for the Valentine’s Ball and spent unknown thousands at the bars (beers at $8 a pop) and would have no idea that most, in not all the bands they just enjoyed would end up not getting one penny owed them by the promoters.
Waiting in line to buy Tickets
There were hardworking and respected guys like Elvis Cortez from the bands like Left Alone shaking their heads in disbelief that they had to put up with such amateur behavior just a couple of hours after the show. A booking agent for another band said that in all her years of booking, this would be the first time she’d never gotten paid.
The Surf Rats from the UK who flew all the way over for the gig told me that in the Europe they were always paid their due, even when the crowd was light, much less when the crowd was packed. Word was, and I wasn’t able to substantiate it personally but believe it to be true, that even the lead band Frantic Flintstones got stiffed. My buddies from Italy, Evil Devil good naturedly took it all in stride, just saying “he hasn’t paid us everything just yet”. Good luck fellas! At least you got a trip to the U.S. out of the deal.
Packed house at the Mayan.. yet no one gets paid?
And then there was the pissed off “investor”, a stocky, muscular dude with an indiscernible accent that I would never, ever even think about crossing up with financially, who after frantic searching, found Rich and reportedly got him in a semi-headlock before security could intervene and break it up.
By the end of the concert there were people floating around Rich like so many flies around cow dung. And yes I dear reader, I am sad to report, that I was indeed one of the unfortunate flies. Yes, I was one of the pissed off (or pissed on), who had been suckered into thinking I was going to be helping a nice guy that I thought I knew. A guy who, though sometimes seeming a little disorganized at times, had always managed to pull off some pretty good events for over 10 years.
Where does all the bar money go?
Oh, but little did I know then, when I loaned my “friend” some money for a deposit he needed to make to secure a venue for the event (which was originally supposed to take place last September at the Music Box), that once money is obtained (in my case under fraudulent circumstances which I can prove in court) by the “Bernie Madoff of Concert Promotions”, your chances of getting money back depend on where you are in the pyramid scheme of payments, not how tight your legal agreement (mine is water tight) or how long you have known the guy (I’ve known him since 2006).
For me, it’s a relatively small business hit. If I never see it, I’ll absorb it in stride as part of the cost of doing business, but for the bands who had set aside the dates, refused other gigs and in the process promoted their hearts out so that someone else could make all the money with what turned out to be their free music? Well, it is an understandably bitter pill to swallow. We all know the stories of musicians who make extreme financial sacrifices to make their music, just to work their way up to a level where they can actually get paid at a gig like “The Valentine’s Ball”. It’s not right, that once they finally get that opportunity, seemingly morally challenged promoters then screw them out of their hard work. Some people I’m sure were sorely depending on that money.
I recently learned the list of bands shorted by Black Cat over the years reads like a “Who’s Who” of psychobilly acts. From the famous to the not so famous, the bigger the tab, the less likely the band is going to get paid.
I’m not sure who made all the money at the Valentine’s Ball at the Mayan Theater in Los Angeles last night, but it sure wasn’t the hardworking and talented people who the people paid to see. And I gather from the angry crowd, the police escort, the Mayan Theater Security Guards who kept insisting that we turn off our cameras and go home and the weasley way our Rich had to slither out of the building under heavy police escort (seriously, there 6 police cars and as many or more officers), that it wasn’t Rich either. I mean he’s not that crazy is he? Or is he?
There was some rumor of some other mystery guy who disappeared with the money, but nobody knew who this guy was or why he was involved since all the contracts were with Black Cat. But one thing is for sure, with this packed house, somebody made off big… like a bandit.
Evil Devil with Rich from Black Cat (Striped Shirt on the Right)
There is more to this story and I’m sure we’ll get to the bottom of it soon. Yeah right, ha, ha! But why let it die? Lets put a little sunshine on this dark little business.
Over the past few months, I kept thinking about the money I loaned the guy on good faith and a rock solid contract that now seems to not matter anymore. I certainly don’t trust the California justice system but I’ll give it one shot in this instance on principle alone and because there are few other options. Hopefully, they’ll prove me wrong and I’ll write a mea culpa. At least I have the resources to chase the guy. Some people will have to try to simply move on.
For me, that money had been set aside for marketing for the new Punk Outlaw Records, a digital label we recently began. I thought it would be a good way to help a “buddy” out while also promoting the label, and then when the INTEREST FREE LOAN was paid back as promised and agreed to on the day of the concert, I could promote some of my own events and maybe even bring a band or two from South America to play in LA.
But when it became clear I was dealing with a con (apparent to me the very next day after my check cleared, when my phone calls, which up to that point had been returned immediately, began a markedly slower pace of returns or were downright ignored) and not a reputable business relationship, I needed to program myself with different motivation to keep doing the crazy, mind boggling stuff you have to do to try and get money from someone who doesn’t to my knowledge have a job; someone whom I once treated to a Social Distortion concert and didn’t even have the common decency to buy me one beer as a thank you.
I pledged to myself that if I got any of the money back, I’d offer it as microloans to people who really need it. People in places like Africa, South America, Southeast Asia, Haiti, etc. who literally don’t have much but just need a little boost to try and survive. Microloans are tiny loans (as small as $25) that can help people who are trying to lift themselves out of impossibly bleak circumstances by doing something that our buddy Rich doesn’t seem to understand… a little thing I like to call “working”.
With as little as $25, you can actually help change an entire family’s life by loaning them money to buy cows, pigs or chickens or a piece of farm equipment for their farm, or perhaps a sewing machine so a single mother can start a tailoring business for her village, or whatever the case may be (I also bet you stand a better shot of actually getting it repaid).
I had already set my sites on Kiva, a fine organization that passes all scrutiny and is recommended by major media outlets like CNN, etc. (yes, charities have their own Bernie Madoffs who do the same thing so do your homework).
Turn a negative into a positive.. provide a small microloan to a poor family
I knew I’d have to document every bullshit email exchange, every little facebook encounter, text and telephone call where the guy said one thing and did another time after time and I’d have to try and keep my cool. It was exhausting and the only thing that kept me going was the thought that maybe I could allocate that money, borne in such a negative, shitty circumstance of one person trying to con money out of another (some rob you with a pistol, others with a pen), and give it to someone who genuinely needed it. Someone who’s life would literally change overnight. Out of the cracks of the sand in the desert the most beautiful and colorful flowers so often grow, that was my admittedly cliche but optimistic and obviously unrealistic hope in this situation.
But alas after chasing the guy down Friday night at the Pre-Valentine’s Ball party where he said “whatever your thinking is happening, put it out of your mind, it’s not”, after numerous emails and promises that I’d for sure get paid back all my money the night of the concert “if not before” (can’t tell you how many times I heard that one), from “nice guy” Rich of Black Cat, I was ultimately made painfully aware that if I were to get my money, I’d be standing behind a long line of people, many who probably need it much worse than me. To add insult the the wound, Rich didn’t supply much of the marketing support he’d promised in our agreement as well, breaching the agreement almost before the ink was dry by putting out flyers without our logo included.
Evil Devil puts on a great show, despite getting shorted
It’s a shame that one person can cause so much pain, negativity and misery for so many. One buddy told me a story about how on another occasion the guy stiffed some artists from Europe and one poor soul, this big, intimidating psychobilly musician with a Mohawk was literally crying in his hotel room lamenting “I don’t understand why we can’t get paid, this never happens in Europe. Why do people do business this way?” Good question.
Well, I could be cynical and say welcome to Los Angeles, the music industry or the psychobilly scene my friend… but that would not be right. There are many good promoters in the music industry and in the psychobilly scene in LA. I guess it’s welcome to the land of Black Cat Entertainment, a parallel universe where a guy who rarely pays anyone, keeps a promise or apparently tells the truth, still is able to keep promoting concerts and people still go and bands still perform and suckers like me are still born every minute. I say that madness has to stop and I hope it stops with me and anyone reading this blog. See you in court Rich.
If you’re reading this post and especially if Black Cat screwed you over, I invite you to visit Kiva and offer a microloan for $25 or $50 or whatever you can afford whenever you get to where you can afford it again. I know it sound weird to lose money and then give some more away, but I think maybe we can help offset the miserable karma put out by people like Black Cat and the ilk by doing some actual, real good in the world.
Has Black Cat or another promoter screwed you over? Then shoot us an email at info@punkoutlawrecords.com or leave us a comment. Our new site www.ScumBagPromoter.com will hopefully be up and running soon and we’ll tell your story and publicly out some of these shady promoters and maybe, who knows, we can even help clean up the scene a bit.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: It should be obvious, but in case it’s not, we want to go on record to say we do not under any circumstances condone the threat or use of physical violence or emotional harassment. How he has gotten away with this for so long is indeed mind boggling and it is frustrating, I realize, but there are legal steps we can take that while they may not recover everyone’s money or peace of mind, will prevent Black Cat from ever promoting in the state of California again and we are going to pursue them. Fraud is a very serious charge and when it is backed up by multiple counts then indeed there are some things we can do. Stay tuned for updates.
// February 11th, 2012 // No Comments » // Events, Photos, Videos
Evil Devil at the Meet & Greet Friday Night in Reseda, CA
Our good buddies from Italy, psychobilly band, Evil Devil are back in Los Angeles to play the Valentine’s Ball on Sunday night at the Mayan Theater.
Evil Devil will be performing with Frantic Flintstones and Left Alone. We caught up with our buddies from Italy at the Pre-Valentines Ball meet-n-greet in Reseda, CA last night, where we caught a performance of LA’s “Dr. Bizarro’s Victims” . We bolted thereafter but we heard the “Howlers” played as well as “Evil Devil” performed a few songs in a preview of whats to come Sunday night.
Dr. Bizarro's Victims @ the PreValentine's Ball Show on Friday
If you missed the Friday night event, well no worries, because the big event is this Sunday at the Mayan Theatre in downtown Los Angeles. Punk Outlaw will be there with our table with stickers, CDs from Punk Outlaw Records, and of course, the Punk Outlaw tanks and tees. Be the first cat to come up to the table and say “I want my free Punk Outlaw Tee” and we’ll get you a shirt along with your choice of a Dorado’s Rockabilly Trio or “Punktology Vol. 1″ CD.
Look For Punk Outlaw's Booth @ The Valentine's Day Ball on Sunday Night @ the Mayan in LA
And of course, we’ll have some in depth coverage including photos and videos after the event next week, so stay tuned.
More information about the event can be found HERE.
Be the first to hit the Punk Outlaw Booth on Sunday and get a free Dorados Rockabilly Trio CD
Enjoy a short clip from Dr. Bizarro’s Victims below as well as our feature on “Evil Devil” from 2010.
// February 6th, 2012 // No Comments » // Videos
Our buddy, cameraman Francisco Mora with Juan Carlos (former member - drums) & Paul Roman (founder/vocals/guitar) of The Quakes
It took a little longer than we anticipated, having interrupted our work flow by traveling to Latin America and all for a year, but we did finally get interview edited from our good buddies The Quakes.
They had just played a gig in Los Angeles and we were able to catch up with them the next day. We get the scoop from the original, U.S. psychobilly band that helped pioneer the genre in the U.S. and are still going strong (even if they aren’t crazy about the genre’s name).
These guys are really respected at home and abroad and are my personal favorite psychobilly band of all time bar none. Grab one of their CDs and I think you’ll understand why.
Special thanks to Francisco Mora (camera) and Camilo Mendoza (editor).
// January 31st, 2012 // No Comments » // Music, Videos
PUNK OUTLAW RECORDS LAUNCHES NEW MULTIMEDIA WEBSITE
& SIGNS ROCKABILLY BAND FROM COLOMBIA
- Emerging Label Features Several Newly Signed Bands from Latin America & Announces First Rockabilly Release with Colombia’s “Dorados Rockabilly Trio” -
Los Angeles, CA January 31st, 2012 – Punk Outlaw® Records announced the launch of its newly redesigned website at www.PunkOutlawRecords.com which showcases several newly signed bands from Latin America.
The site also displays greatly enhanced features where fans can preview and listen to the individual artists’ releases and if they choose, purchase and download music. Fans can also view photos and videos from the different bands as well as join the newsletter where they can keep abreast of new releases and receive free music downloads on a periodic basis.
In addition to the label’s recent releases from the label’s original roster, Colombian Punk Rockers “Los Suziox” and Uruguayan Punkabilly stalwarts, “Rudos Wild”, the label recently released its first compilation collection, “Punktology Volume 1 – Free Cuba Now!” which features 16 punk and hardcore tracks from 8 artists from Latin America and the Caribbean.
The label’s site also features the debut release from the label’s first rockabilly band, Colombia’s “Dorados Rockabilly Trio”. The release titled “Conflicto de Espacio Blanco” (White Space Conflict) features six (6) original tracks, in English and Spanish including one dedicated to pin up icon “Bettie Page”.
“The redesigned site will help us more effectively share the musical experience of punk, rockabilly, psychobilly, ska and reggae from our travels all over the world. We plan on signing more bands and releasing more music and we hope that the fans will come to view the site as a valuable resource for discovering new music and artists regardless of their geography” States Robert G. Rose, Founder of the Punk Outlaw Records. “We plan to run the label in a non traditional manner, more like a cooperative, with artists and fans both contributing to and benefiting from the label’s success. We also hope to always keep a higher purpose in mind, experimenting with unique promotional ideas that can also help others” Rose continues.
The fledgling record label hopes to showcase a minimum of at least one new release each month, from a variety of punk genres and subgenres from artists the world over. The label’s current roster of bands include the afore mentioned Los Suziox (Colombia), Rudos Wild (Uruguay), Dorados Rockabilly Trio (Colombia) as well as Punktology Vol. 1 participants, Anti-Everything (Trinidad), Demeter/DMTR (Ecuador), El Terrible Y Los Mongoloides (Peru), Lokekeda (Colombia), Warning (Guatemala) and Fertil Miseria (Colombia). More announcements are expected in the coming weeks.
Visit www.PunkOutlawRecords.com or email info@punkoutlawrecords.com for more information.
# # #
Comunicado de Prensa
Para su Publicación Inmediat
Punk Outlaw Records
Tel (646) 644-6153
PUNK OUTLAW RECORDS LANZA UN NUEVO SITIO MULTIMEDIA E INCORPORA UNA BANDA DE ROCKABILLY DE COLOMBIA
El incipiente sello discográfico cuenta con diversas bandas latinoamericanas incorporadas recientemente y anuncia el primer lanzamiento de rockabilly con la banda “Dorados Rockabilly Trio”
Los Ángeles, CA, 31 de enero de 2012 – Punk Outlaw® Records anunció el lanzamiento de su sitio web recientemente rediseñado www.PunkOutlawRecords.com, el cual exhibe diversas bandas latinoamericanas incorporadas recientemente.
El sitio también muestra funciones totalmente mejoradas mediante las cuales los aficionados pueden previsualizar y escuchar los lanzamientos de sus artistas favoritos, y comprar y descargar música si lo desean. Los aficionados también pueden ver fotos y videos de diferentes bandas, así como unirse al boletín informativo con el cual pueden mantenerse al día respecto de los nuevos lanzamientos y recibir descargas de música gratuitas periódicamente.
Además de los lanzamientos recientes de la lista original de artistas del sello discográfico, los artistas colombianos de Punk Rock “Los Suziox” y los gigantes uruguayos del punkabilly, “Rudos Wild”, la discográfica lanzó recientemente su primera colección de compilados, “Punktology Volume 1 – Free Cuba Now!”, la cual cuenta con 16 temas de punk y hardcore de 8 artistas latinoamericanos y caribeños.
El sitio web del sello discográfico también cuenta con el lanzamiento debut de la primera banda de rockabilly de la discográfica, los colombianos “Dorados Rockabilly Trio”. El lanzamiento titulado “Conflicto de Espacio Blanco” cuenta con seis (6) temas originales, en inglés y español, incluido un tema dedicado al ícono del modelaje fotográfico “Bettie Page”.
“El sitio rediseñado nos permitirá compartir de manera más eficiente la experiencia musical del punk, el rockabilly, el psychobilly, el ska y el reggae obtenida en nuestros viajes por todo el mundo. Nuestro plan es incorporar más bandas y lanzar más música, y esperamos que los aficionados vean el sitio como un recurso valioso para descubrir nueva música y nuevos artistas, sin importar el lugar donde se encuentren”, dice Robert G. Rose, fundador de Punk Outlaw Records. “Nuestro plan es administrar la discográfica de una manera no tradicional, más como una cooperativa, con artistas y aficionados que contribuyan al éxito del sello discográfico y se beneficien de él. También esperamos mantener siempre un importante objetivo en mente y experimentar con ideas promocionales exclusivas que también puedan ayudar a otras personas”, continúa Rose.
El novel sello discográfico espera exhibir, al menos, un nuevo lanzamiento por mes de artistas de diferentes géneros y subgéneros del punk de todo el mundo. La lista actual de bandas del sello discográfico incluye a las bandas antes mencionadas: Los Suziox (Colombia), Rudos Wild (Uruguay), Dorados Rockabilly Trio (Colombia), y a los participantes de Punktology Vol. 1: Anti-Everything (Trinidad), Demeter/DMTR (Ecuador), El Terrible Y Los Mongoloides (Perú), Lokekeda (Colombia), Warning (Guatemala) y Fertil Miseria (Colombia). Se esperan más anuncios en las próximas semanas.
Visite www.PunkOutlawRecords.com o envíe un mensaje de correo electrónico a info@punkoutlawrecords.com para obtener más información.
// January 30th, 2012 // 1 Comment » // Videos
When I think of Miami, I think of that song by Gainesville, Florida punk rockers, “Against Me” that goes something like this.. “Miami.. Fu*@ing Miami.. Sharks circling full of blood”... or something like that. What sticks in my mind is that line “Fu^?ing Miami”.. over and over again. As you might have guessed, it’s not exactly a positive portrayal of the famous southern Florida metropolis.
Now I’ve been heading down to South Florida (SoFlo?) since way before I began writing this blog or working on the “Punktology” documentary and I would be lying if I said I did not like it. In fact, I’ll admit it, I LOVE it! What’s not to love? It’s Latin but somewhat safely tucked inside the only slightly porous and imperfect bubble we call the United States; It’s usually temperate in November until March and from NYC it’s a short, and usually very cheap flight away; the beaches are awesome, the people relatively friendly, I get to practice my Spanish and there is always a party going on.
That being said, on the negative side, there are horrible drivers and that oh so annoying cheezeball music in the “nightclubs” where douchebags the world over travel and tend to gather and pretend they are cool. A little LMFOA or Pitbull is OK, I suppose and to each their own, but Miami takes it to the next level where it’s all mindless commercial dance music all the time. I suppose the girls dig it! As a result the sheeplike guys at least pretend to love it, so the radio and clubs play it and the cycle goes round and round and like a nightmare that you can’t wake up from, I believe it will possibly not end until 12/12/12 perhaps.
But that’s South Beach, which has now officially jumped the shark and hasn’t been remotely cool or laid back for at least 15 years now.
New amigos from Enough! & Destroyio! Records
But Miami is way bigger than South Beach and there are, believe it or not, many people who live and travel there who rarely if ever even go to South Beach. Locals always seem to know to stay away from “la trappa de tourista” (Sic) or Tourist Trap. And you can say a lot of things about South Beach, but Tourist Trap MUST be one of the first words anyone uses to describe the place.
To me, the whole South Beach thing can feel like one big Will Smith video; very commercial trying to look real and thug and tough and it comes off as a contrived and weak playground for the low self esteemed but act like big money crowd. I think of South Beach, I think of P’diddy, Kanye and Russell Simmons… with their “bitches” and “hos” and bling and VIP ropes and “look how much money I have and you don’t” lifestyles. South Beach gobbles that up, packages it, marks it up 190% or so and sells it right back to the clueless and wannabes who happily lap it up.
On this trip, like those before it, I was in Miami for a bit of business for my real job and having finally had enough staying in SOBE hotels where there is a DJ mixing and scratching in the lobby over the years, I decided to stay in a much less sexy (and decidedly less expensive and quieter) part of town. I elected to stay in an AIRBNB secured room in someone’s house in the Design District, very near Little Haiti and a scant 15 minute drive from the expensive $300-$1,000 a night rooms at the Fontainbleu where the conference I was attending was being held (and where incidentally they add a 20% gratuity to all your food and service items and hope you don’t notice and will provide a nice little additional gratuity so your actually tipping 40% before you realize it…geez!).
A happy side benefit to saving a lot of cash, by choosing an alternative area of town, it turned out that I was staying a mere few blocks, actually within walking distance from, one of the most legendary punk venues still around today (thanks to NYC’s CBGBs closing)… the legendary Churchill’s Pub which has been going strong since 1979!
Churchill's Men's Room: That "punk rock" smell - not as rare as you might think in Miami
On Wednesday night, my final night in Miami, my amigo, local political writer and radio personality, Ivan Lopez introduced me to his buddy Brook, a local art gallery owner steeped in the punk and art scene there. Brook joined us for dinner and give me a quick lesson in South Florida Punk 101.
Now you may know this already but it turns out Miami has quite a bit of music history outside of the aforementioned Pitbull, 80′s icons Emilio & Gloria Estefan (Miami Sound Machine) and some hip hop / rap artists I personally never heard of cause I don’t giva a sh@%, , etc., etc. (Out of this heap of tasteless, pop culture excess emerged the freakish Marilyn Manson, who is probably the most famous misfit, though he hails from nearby Ft. Lauderdale).
Even more surprising to me at least is that there is still a vibrant punk music scene here. If you remember about a year ago in Medellin, Colombia we covered a concert where the hardcore band Flees from Ft. Lauderdale were playing. Brook also referred to a rising number of local “Sludge” and Noise bands that he often hosts in his gallery. And then of course, there is the legendary Churchill’s which still host everything from punk, to jazz to whatever is NOT being played at the beach.
Churchill’s is sort of like the Anti-South beach and the place where the locals who have a little bit of rebellious spirit in them and travelers in the know visit. I had heard a lot about Churchill’s but never before had made it out of touristaville to give it a tour.
So after dinner, Ivan and Brook graciously took me over to Churchill’s to introduce me around. As I said, Churchill’s has been a staple of the Miami alternative music scene and shows no signs of stopping, probably in part due to owner, David Daniels who lives in a place out back of the club. The club has a few stages, one right up front and one out back in the patio area, so they can host a lot of different bands on one night.
Our trusty bartender (Nick?) was super friendly and wasted no time in introducing me to the cats from Destroyio! Records. These are guys who have their finger on the punk scene in South Florida and book many of the bands at Churchill’s. They had just recently opened a rehearsal space conveniently next door. And get this, turns out one of the main cats from Destoryio is from Medellin and eager to get some bands from down there up to Miami to play and visa versa!
After spending some time talking to these guys it became clear the punk scene in Miami not only has a long, rich history, it is indeed precisely as Brook and Ivan painted it, very much alive and well in South Florida. I had just missed a show of Agnostic Front & Madball and the very next night Destoroyio! was hosting a big show featuring no less than 7 local punk bands.
If you find yourself in Miami and you are craving a different scene than that sometimes ok, but mostly silly light weight commercial crap cranking out of the speakers of every other tourist’s car cruising along South Beach, well then you gotta go to Churchill’s and you got to look up my boys from Destroyio! Records.
They have a calendar on their website with upcoming shows and if you reach out to them and tell them you are headed to town, you are probably gonna get some love.
I had to return back to Los Angeles the next day and get back to work trying to do whatever it is I’m supposed to be doing these days to eventually make some money, but after my experience with the guys from Churchill’s and Destroyio! you can bank that I’ll be rolling back to Miami again real soon and this time bringing a real camera (the ones above were taken with i-phone, sorry) and spending some time digging into the punk scene there.
I’m not sure what happened to Tom Gabel and Against Me! that prompted him to pen the song “Miami!”, Perhaps it was a personal situation, a riff on the South Beach silliness or something as simple as North vs. South Florida… regardless, I still like the song, but after my trip, I like the city a whole lot better too. Miami is indeed a cool spot, with really, really cool people. I knew this all along but my couple of nights there reminded me of the “Love” part of the love/hate relationship I have had with Miami over the years.
I can’t wait to get back there real soon and do a proper job of reporting on the scene for you but in the meantime, here are some cool links to the sites that were also recommended that might help you with your research if your heading to Miami and a cool video from our buddies at Destoyio! Records that can clue you in about the scene.
Churchills - legendary punk and music venue
Chumbucket – All volunteer performance space
Destroyio! Records – Record label and promoter plugged into the Miami punk scene
Enough! – local punk band
Sugar’s Drop Shop – A local skateboard shop
Amigo Cuba Skate – Skateboard shop helping Cuban youth build skateparks, etc.
Brotherhood of Mustache & Beards (BOMB) – For guys (like me) who don’t like to shave
// January 27th, 2012 // No Comments » // Videos
As you may know by now, Cuba Skate is an organization we’ve pledged to help by donating a % of proceeds from the “Punktology Vol. 1 – Free Cuba Now!” compilation CD from Punk Outlaw Records.
They bring skateboard equipment, build skateboard parks and in general provide some hope to Cuban youth, who often suffer the indignities of extreme poverty and, as we’ve seen with the punks, may lack basic freedoms on the island nation. Cuba Skate is a good organization that is non political in their efforts to simply help our neighbors in the Caribbean in a non partisan, humanitarian way.
Here is a little video documentary they put together from their last trip down to Cuba. If you like what they represent, then support these guys and share the video, give it a “like” or a kind word or even monetary donation if you can. They are doing a good work.
// January 21st, 2012 // No Comments » // Videos
We recently unveiled our online Punk Outlaw Promo. Big thanks to Pablo Barrera (AKA Paco) in NYC (via Ecuador) for editing this bit of punk magic and yours truly for most of the camera work, so if the lighting is bad, camera angle wack, etc. you know who to blame.
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