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ON THE FRONT LINES with Freak |
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DOWN @ H.O.B. Chicago, Illinois ~
5/11/02
I had just reached for the door handle when I heard it.
The distinctive sound of metal hitting metal followed by the
screams of a freshly injured human being.
Behind me, a vehicular jousting match had just played out leaving
the victor, a green SUV with a twenty-something blonde sobbing
hysterically into her steering wheel, looming over a banged up electric
wheelchair while its fifty-something occupant lie writhing in the
intersection.
It’s just another day in the city and as a crowd began to gather
around the injured man, I pulled open the door and entered the bar.
Rossi’s is the perfect place to drink before a House of Blues
show, especially when it’s sold out.
I’ve never seen more than ten people in the joint so it’s easy
to get fresh beers and an old TV hangs at the end of the bar for your
viewing pleasure. It’s cool because even if you’ve already seen the
movie they’ve rented, the dialogue between the bartender and the steady
stream of homeless derelicts stopping by for their nightly pints of rock
gut is far more entertaining than anything Hollywood has ever shoveled at
us.
Two hours and ten beers later, I was ready to head over to the
show.
The opening act was a montage of vintage metal videos shown on a
theater-sized screen. Classic
live performances like Slayer’s “Die By The Sword” as well as clips of Thin Lizzy and Led
Zeppelin set the mood nicely.
Suddenly, after an AC/DC video, the face from Down’s Nola CD appeared and a monstrous roar erupted from the crowd.
The curtain began to rise revealing the ever-menacing Phil Anselmo standing center stage. To his left, guitarist Pepper
Keenan (C.O.C) and on his right, bassist Rex Brown (Pantera) and guitarist
Kirk Windstein (Crowbar). The
roar continued and the all too familiar scent of reefer filled the air as
drummer Jimmy Bower (EyeHateGod)
started the group into “The
Seed” from their latest release Down II: A Bustle in your Hedgerow. (Note the Led Zeppelin “Stairway...”
reference).
The fourteen-song set, featuring six tunes from their debut release
Nola
and eight selections from Hedgerow,
was heavy as hell. The only
problem was that Phil seemed so annihilated, he could barely stand.
While his vocal abilities remained rock solid, he stumbled about
the stage like a polio victim on rubber crutches.
He was constantly tripping over the monitors and nearly fell into
the crowd on at least two occasions until finally, after finishing
“Learn from This Mistake,” plopping down and lazily leaning
against one of the monitors. There, he began a conversation with Trouble bassist Ron
Holzner, who happened to be sitting in one of the boxes, telling him
if his band ever got their act together to call him so they could jam.
He then remained seated for “Beautifully
Depressed,” rising only as he finished to accept another freshly lit
joint from a roadie.
I realize that by reading this you would think the show really
sucked but that was hardly the case.
It was actually freakin’ awesome. Now I’m not sure what it was.
The smoke, the drink, or a combination of the two, but to me the powerful
guitars, along with the jazzy drums and the antics of Anselmo, all came
together to create the type of atmosphere that I would assume encompassed
an early Doors show.
I imagined Manzarek, Krieger, and Densmore jamming on as Jim
Morrison ping-ponged between being the amazing frontman he was and an
indecipherable maniac rambling on about grasshoppers much like the guys in
Down watched Phil doing much of the same.
It was simply beautiful in its raw ugliness.
The show ended with “Bury Me in Smoke.” A
song that got every stoner in the place to light up, transforming the main
floor into a massive bong chamber. No
one left that show without a contact high and a smile. In the parking lot,
I’m reminded that only a few blocks away, a local club called Nokternal
is featuring live white monkeys under black light. Sure it’s a dance club but the thought of monkeys hurling
their feces at well-dressed suburbanites under black light is just too
whacked to miss.
I jump in a cab and disappear into the night.
It’s only 1 a.m. and I still have plenty of energy. Side Note: Phil Anselmo’s other side project Superjoint Ritual will be at the House of Blues on June 17th. If you miss this show, you’ll hate yourself for the rest of your life. See you there.
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