All In All We Had A Good Time

There are a handful of bands that turn us into chain-smoking, car-drinking, song-singing road warriors. Fortunately for our bodies, loved ones and general public safety this only happens a few times a year. Our transformation into alcohol-fueled smokestacks took place this weekend when Drag The River arrived in Los Angeles for their 8th annual Valentine's Day shows.

Friday night's show was at The Scene Bar in Glendale; a city that usually cannotes Armenians and people named Glen, but for us has become the destination for our annual DTR pilgrimage. Every great show begins with cheap domestic beer in the car and a couple tall cans while waiting in line, so this is what we did. Upon entering the venue we were greeted by the smell of urinal cakes and the visage of 'The Dude' (The Big Lebowski was being projected on the wall). We immediately cozied up to the bar and secured ourselves some $3.00 beers and settled in for an evening of music.

First up was Chris Shiflett, a member of the Foo Fighters. The music was alright, nothing that really tickled our interests. Just another dude going solo with an acoustic guitar and a sit-in lap steel player. Second up was Joey Cape, lead singer of Lagwagon, doing his solo performance. He played a lot of Lagwagon and Bad Astronaut tunes as well as a song or two off his solo record. Overall, he really sounds good and acoustic versions of Lagwagon tunes sound really good. Most of the crowd was there to see him, so we were sequestered to the back of the bar, often popping in and out of the bar for cigarettes. Once all the Joey Cape fans exited the building at the end of his set, we had prime front-row spots for the Drag the River Set. I can't really remember the set list, but they played a ton of their classics. The beginning of the set was Jon Snodgrass and Chad Price on guitar and singing. After a bit the drummer and bassist got in on 'Horses and Oxes' and just started ripping. All of us had a blast singing along and double fisting beers so we wouldn't have to head back to the bar and miss a song. After the show ended, the guys from Drag were really personable and had a few drinks and some drunken conversation with us. Sean had a few shots with Chad, and that probably turned the lights off for him that evening.

Hanging with Chris and Joey from Lagwagon

Bob and Sean Stocked up for DTR

Chad and Jon of DTR

Saturday was Valentines Day, no flowers or chocolates for us, it was time to drag our livers to the next show at The Gypsy Lounge in Lake Forest. Prior to heading down there we procured ourselves a meal at Grunions in Manhattan Beach. It is your typical bar fare; greasy burgers, fries and sandwiches. The grease was put to good use sucking up the alcohol from Friday night and providing a solid base for a second night of mass consumption. The highlight of the meal was not our food, however, it was an exchange we had with our waitress. It went a little something like this:

Waitress: What are you guys doing tonight?
Us: We're going to a show down in Lake Forest.
Waitress: Wow that's far, you guys must really like the band.
Us: Yes.
Waitress: I've never driven that far for a band, but I have driven down to San Diego for ass.

The Gypsy Lounge is located in your typical Southern California strip mall, but it does have an atypical neighbor, Captain Creams Cabaret (you can probably deduce what kind of establishment this is). The lineup was the same as the prior night. Joey Cape's set was hard to watch due to the fact the club was packed elbows to assholes and the bar was so crowded that it made getting a drink a drawn out mission. When Drag The River hit the stage, the club had thinned out a bit with all the die-hards singing along front and center. They did a ton of requests, which is usually how they handle their set. It's great to be able to yell out your favorite tunes and have them played for you immediately. We all split soon after their set ended since we had to face the long drive back up from behind the Orange Curtain.

The Crew

and don't forget Beez, please

Maybe we'll visit this place next year

The Tasty Morsel is on the wagon 'til next Saturday when we find ourselves in East L.A.