Artifacts | The Che Underground

New Sounds Festivals 1985-1991

March 27, 2019April 10, 2010 by admin

(Bart Mendoza describes the arc of an important San Diego music festival he co-founded.)

Helmed by myself and, at first, Ron Friedman, and later Matt Fidelibus (with huge help from Secret Society Scooter Club, Dimitri Callian and many others), there were seven New Sounds Festivals in all, always one big blowout event surrounded by a week of gigs by the touring acts.

I had been bringing groups to town for awhile anyway, so the idea of focusing efforts appealed; the chance to do these events as a benefit for SDSU’s student-run radio station, KCR, was even better. The motive for the New Sounds Festivals was simply to promote and showcase music influenced by Mod / ’60s/ Garage, in particular local groups like the Tell-Tale Hearts, the Nashville Ramblers, Donkey Show, the Trebels and the Event. With short sets and a backline, it was like a really, really cool jukebox.

The Morlocks between the covers

January 6, 2011March 28, 2010 by admin

More video from the original Morlocks has emerged on YouTube, including covers of songs by the 13th Floor Elevators, Q65 and the Count Five.

Exhibit A is a video by Eric Predoehl of the Morlocks performing the 13th Floor Elevators’ “You Don’t Know.” According to the post, it’s from an event produced by KFJC Radio and I.B.S. at the Works Gallery in San Jose, Calif., on Nov. 22, 1985:

The British Invasion hits San Diego

April 14, 2012March 24, 2010 by admin

(Bart Mendoza gets a sneak peek at a new DVD collection straight out of SD.)

San Diego has many great music-related companies within its borders; besides music labels, Taylor Guitars, NARM, Carvin Guitars and Deering Banjos immediately spring to mind. Top of the list for me, however, is El Cajon’s Grammy-nominated music archivist Reelin’ in the Years, “The world’s largest and most respected source of music footage.”

I bring this up because I’m really excited about a new DVD series from RITY, The British Invasion. The first four discs are out March 30, the box set featuring a bonus disc. I love that this, and RITY’s other series devoted to jazz, folk, blues and Motown, are from a San Diego company. But as you’d guess, any series that includes The Small Faces is especially going to get my attention.

Birth of the Che Cafe

January 6, 2011February 18, 2010 by admin

I love learning about the origins of our old haunts — those rare places in the San Diego construction boom of the ’70s and ’80s that actually pre-dated us! Case in point: the Che Cafe itself, which is profiled starting on Page 16 of this virtual version of the latest UCSD alumni magazine.

N.b.: While I appreciate the attention, the article gives me disproportionate credit for bringing rock ‘n’ roll to this hippie haven. (Considering I first saw the Answers at the Che and Noise 292 made our debut there as the Answers’ guests, it’s hard to paint me or my band as lone pioneers!) And it doesn’t quote some people I hoped.

That said, I really enjoyed learning about how that rickety old place got its start: “The three wooden structures … that today house the Che Cafe were accumulating grunge long before UCSD was even founded.

Gary Heffern + the Town Criers
+ benefit raffle = Jan. 30 fun!

December 14, 2017January 25, 2010 by admin

Attention, San Diego scenesters: To cap the run of special guests at at the Casbah’s Che Underground showcase Jan. 30, Penetrators vocalist Gary Heffern is coming in from Finland to join the festivities!

Heff will be singing with the Town Criers (while his Penetrators bandmates Chris Sullivan and Chris Davies join Manual Scan onstage). He’s also helping Che Underground: the Blog jump-start a San Diego underground retrospective exhibit and raise money on behalf of Unknowns vocalist Bruce Joyner.

Men of Clay: Artifacts

December 31, 2010December 25, 2009 by admin

Courtesy of Clay himself, here’s a set of artwork that evokes his work as editor of Bamboohead and eponymous frontman for Men of Clay.

As these flyers demonstrate, MoC performed frequently in San Diego at the turn of the ’80s and was featured in 1983’s “Our Blow Out” compilation. So far, however, we’ve only discussed the band in passing. Please chime in with your memories of Men of Clay!

Unknowns interview by Dan McLain

December 16, 2017December 10, 2009 by admin

Courtesy of Mikel Toombs, here’s a joint artifact of two hugely influential forces in San Diego music: an interview of the Unknowns that Dan McLain conducted for Issue III of his Hobogue ‘zine, dated February 1982.

“I interviewed the Unknowns 2 years ago for Snare magazine,” McLain writes. “In retrospect, I found our previous outing so incomplete that I simply had to do it over again.

Jamul meets Little Richard!

February 20, 2018December 8, 2009 by admin

(Courtesy of Mikel Toombs, drummer Ron Armstrong of San Diego’s Misfits and Jamul describes the latter band’s TV appearance supporting a rock-‘n’-roll legend.)

It was 1970 and our band, Jamul, was playing the Whiskey in Hollywood. We were stoked that Little Richard came in to catch our show. We learned he loved our cover of his song, “Long Tall Sally.”

He told our leader/singer/guitarist that he liked our band better than his previous large 16-piece group and wanted us to back him for a Barry Richards TV special in Washington, D.C. We did and also performed a song … explained from a recent Internet link here.

Our family tree, revisited

December 31, 2010November 22, 2009 by admin

Thanks to the Cardiac Kidz’s Jim Ryan, Che Underground: The Blog has a fresh supply of artifacts from his band and other early participants in the San Diego punk scene.

Among Jim’s contributions is this chart from early 1980 composed by Dan McLain. It testifies to Dan’s role as underground historian and adds new fuel to the longstanding discussion of our family tree.

Eric Rife’s punk-rock picture show

December 31, 2010November 19, 2009 by admin

In another exciting development for fans of San Diego’s musical history, the San Diego Union-Tribune has officially twigged to the long-pending documentary by veteran scenester Eric Rife.

Besides being a friend of many participants here, Eric was the primary videographer at our Che Games for May reunion … and an inspiration for the magical history tour embodied by this blog.