EXTREME NOISE TERROR

EXTREME NOISE TERROR live at 924 Gilman in 2008! That show (and tour) was definitely an adventure for Yapple and myself.  First I got A.D.T. a tour with Extreme Noise Terror, which is crazy, then Yapple's van (the van and gear for both bands) breaks down after a couple of shows.  Yapple rents a Winnebago or whatever, then calls me from the road with an update.  Tours going great, but Dean bailed in L.A., so Phil Vane (R.I.P.) is doing all the vocals, which is the norm it turns out.  I remind Yapple that I have giant posters hanging all over Gilman and the East Bay with Dean's big blonde mug on them.  So, right before the Bay Area gigs, someone tracks Dean down in L.A. and puts him on a Greyhound headed to Oakland, where he is met by a dominatrix, who takes Dean back to a dungeon located in the East Bay and expertly restrains him until the Winnebago arrives en route to Gilman. Long story short.

Jerry's Margaritas

Last Saturday we made a pit stop in El Cerrito, California for Sherri Norris' housewarming / Sam Bortnick's visiting from Dallas, Texas BBQ.  Sam Bortnick has contributed photos to UGZ for over a decade, in addition to being a mainstay of the North Oakland / Piedmont Avenue scene since the 80s.  Sam moved from his pad on 41st and Broadway in Oakland to Dallas, Texas a few years ago, so we only run into one another about once a year at this point.  I snapped this photo of Jerry Buchanan whipping up a batch of his signature Avocado Margaritas in Sherri's kitchen.

WORD SALAD

One of my favorite bands - WORD SALAD - played a reunion show at 924 Gilman in 2007, and luckily there was a video camera or two present to capture the moment.  This video in particular was shot by Dan Hashthrash / killthatcat.com

The WORD SALAD reunion shows that took place in the Bay Area back in 2007 came about because, going all the way back to 2001-2002, I was like a broken record when it came to asking these guys (mainly Jase and Sonny) to reunite the band for some huge shows I had in the works.  Both guys were in WATCH THEM DIE, a band I worked closely with, so at some point it was like open season when it came to pestering everyone about reuniting their former band.  Finally in 2007, Jase called me from Los Angeles and to my surprise he informed me that WORD SALAD was finally ready to play some reunion shows in California.  Stoked, I immediately booked them on a show I had on the calendar at 924 Gilman in Berkeley, then I called Scott Alcoholocaust who helped to nail down a second show in The City, and...the rest is history.  Don't forget that today's Throwback Thursday post was brought to you by the letter B, which stands for many things, but most of all it stands for beer!

Meet Jeff Armstrong

Meet Jeff Armstrong, East Bay native and Gilman booker. I asked Jeff to book at Gilman back in the fall of 2008 when I noticed that he was always at the club with another dude I was training to be a booker (Bobby Adopted), so those two eventually became Gilman's dynamic duo in 2009. The rest is Gilman legend.  Okay, maybe not, but Jeff has become THE d.i.y. flyer guy for the East Bay. When you see Prank Fest flyers and 1-2-3-4-GO! fest posters on every telephone pole between Albany and Oakland, that's Jeff. I showed him (and Bobby) all my flyer routes back in 2008, so Jeff still kicks me 15% of all the money he makes from his corporate flyering gigs (not really).

Here's an interview we did with Jeff Armstrong, discussing Gilman's 25th anniversary, as well as his personal reasons for volunteering at 924 Gilman.

Photo by Ingrid Johansen

GRIMPLE

For today's Flashback Friday post we have some shots from 1999 of GRIMPLE playing Bike For Beers in San Jose, CA.  All photos by Murray Bowles