Che Games: Mission accomplished!

A quick one, while he’s away: I’m tying up some loose ends before my flight back from San Diego to New Jersey after Day Two of the Che Underground’s Che Games for May reunion event at the Casbah Club.

Thanks to a crack team of documentarians, we’ve got audio, video and photos to share and enjoy — and those will be making their way onto the site in the coming weeks.

But for now, a simple “Thank you!” and an open invitation to talk about what our quarter-century reunion did to or for you.

You’re all very, very important to me, and easily my biggest regret is that I couldn’t be everywhere at once to talk to you and share time. But please: Let’s come together here and swap a few stories for each other and for our friends who couldn’t be with us this time out.

96 thoughts on “Che Games: Mission accomplished!”

  1. PS: A few initial, completely random observations from my overheated brain:

    1. David Fleminger is a g-ddamn hero. I knew he was a musical genius since we were kids, but he’s also got the heart of a lion and shouldered an insane amount of responsibility. Half of us wouldn’t have done half of this without Dave. If I had David Rinck’s upper-body development, I’d carry him around on my shoulders in a victory lap.

    2. David Doyle photographing me makes me humble. The Unknowns were gods. I’m still in awe of you.

    3. I love my bandmates — and I really like them, too. It just made me feel good prepping with them.

    4. Tim Mays thinks we’re the bomb. See Item 2: Tim is the real deal in San Diego, and I’m very proud that we came through and showed him what we can do.

    5. All of you are better-looking than you were in 1984.

    6. I’m thrilled Sergio’s creation made a guest appearance! I hope it got its own cut of Hair Theatre’s share of the door. 🙂

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  2. A truly fantastic event. I wish I could’ve attended the Saturday show. It was a true pleasure to be part of the whole thing, and it was such a joy to reconnect with so many people who are so important to me.

    Matt, I completely concur with your assessment of Flem. A consummate musician and a truly wonderful human being. A kind soul.

    My deep thanks to everyone who was involved in this event.

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  3. Sitting at the airport now, thinking about some more of the many acknowledgments due …

    Kristen Tobiason and Louie Damian did amazing work with today’s potluck picnic for participants and their families. Wow … Seeing you all with your beautiful kids — man, really a nice coda to an intense event!

    Eric Rife, Jason Brownell and Sean McMullen did stellar work capturing video, audio and photography from the event. Thanks to everyone who helped document … It feels really good to put some hi-fi evidence on our permanent record this time!

    Check out the Blues Gangsters’ CD, “The Perils of Life,” which arrived May 29. This rockin’ international collaboration by Che Underground veterans brings me great joy … So cool that we’re finding ways to work together again!

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  6. What a whirlwind event! It was so great to see such great musicians who have kept the fire burning for 25 years, and old friends. Many thanks to Matthew for getting it together and to everyone that showed up. Both nights were great. My only complaint was against Mays cutting bands short. When people travel as far, and work as hard as these people did--for no money--you don’t cut their sets short. Sadly, some aspects of the SD club scene don’t change. The Casbah bouncer should be fired, and if there’s a next time, no bands should be cut short.

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  7. REALLY nice photography, Shawn… these are awesome.

    Wow, do I look nervous here?…haha. I was as nervous as I looked, but it sure was a blast!

    Cole, we all got paid.

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  9. Wish I got to see you in action Joanne!!

    Hope you still got a little of that INJECTION beat!

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  10. I just got home and before I go to bed (ahhh, my own bed), I want to say that I had initial reservations about this event. I just felt you can’t relive the past. They were the best years of my life, but I have a good life now and don’t feel I need to go back. I also was a little nervous about trying to remember everyone. But I decided “what the hell, I’m going!” when I saw the stellar band lineup.

    Boy, was I glad I went! Not just because all the bands were great, but I have never experienced ANY shows like these two, with so many people around my age that are all so interesting, talented, and charming (and, I might add, attractive). It felt great seeing people again after 20-25 years, but even better I have made new friends of old ones. Back then in our youth we were more self absorbed and sometimes even mean to each other. Everyone got along so well this weekend. It was a weekend full of love.

    THANK YOU Matthew, Dave Fleminger, Kristi Maddox, Kristin and Louis for a fun picnic, Tony the Tyger for playing great tunes on Friday, everyone in the bands, and everyone who came.

    Pat and Jerry: I really missed you guys.

    Robyn Wexler: send me your email address! (send it to Matthew and he’ll pass it on)

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  13. >>Wow, do I look nervous here?…haha. I was as nervous as I looked, but it sure was a blast!

    Dave Ellison: You nailed it SO hard in your Wallflowers debut! That was just awesome.

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  14. It was nearly a year in the making. I’ve got most of the early emails from those of us who were kicking ideas around, and I must say that the weekend evolved impeccably. Kristen, David K, Tony Suarez and I met many months ago to plan an opening night get together which at one point was looking like an expensive, stuffy catered event with a sit down dinner and a jam room! Everything was just perfect--thanks to everyone who helped make it happen.

    It was a real pleasure to see so many of my favorite musicians after all these years. I’m glad to see Dave Fleminger getting the love and respect he deserves as a musician (and a person), but I’d also like to add how much I enjoyed seeing Dave Ellison rock out, Jeff Lucas effortless master that little Musicmaster bass, Matt Johnson hit the tubs like a pro, and Kevin and Bart in top form. While I’m at it, I must say that Noise 292 was incredibly cool and that Hair Theatre should have never stopped playing!

    May I add that the women of the Che Underground looked absolutely stunning!!! As I sat speaking with Megan, Ava, Monica Sullivan and Kristen, I was struck at how beautiful you all are, even more so with the experiences life has provided us all with. (You are all, as is my Raquel, incredible mothers to boot.)

    I was surprised to see so many people I had no idea even knew about the shows! I’m not sure what the figures look like, but there must be thousands of lurkers on the site who are also enjoying the reminiscing and reconnection. Please--join us in these conversations!

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  15. Told you my brain was just throwing off random sizzles and sparks by last night! (I just landed back in NJ and sprang for a taxi … Hurrying home to honor my beautiful wife on our 18th anniversary.) 🙂

    That’s my only excuse for not mentioning Ray Brandes right up front. Ray did so much to keep this event on track, including talking me down off the ceiling on about 20 occasions. He and the San Diego event team were indispensable, and it’s a very personal pleasure to have become friends with Ray after years of respectful distance. And the Gay Dennys rocked!!

    This show would not have come together without him.

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  16. Here’s one of me from Mr. McMullen:

    And here’s a picture by Kristen Tobiason that means a lot to me … Me at the picnic with Fleminger/Lucas, the greatest songwriting matchup I’ve ever known:

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  17. The fact that Bart Mendoza lent his 30-plus years of San Diego media mojo to this gathering made it super, too. Whose endorsement is better’n Bart’s?

    I’m going to tell my favorite anecdote from the show now: A woman came up to Eric Rife after the Wallflowers set and asked why they hadn’t played their “big hit.” He asked her, “You mean the one on the radio? Uhhhh, did you think that was Jakob Dylan?”

    It turns out this woman flew in from NEW YORK to watch those Wallflowers open for Hair Theatre and Noise 292!! LOL

    Dave Rinck: Practice up “One Headlight” for the next event, man. LOL

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  18. That’s pretty rad that that woman still thought we were Jakob Dylan’s band AFTER we played. hahahahaha . I hope she enjoyed our set.

    What a wonderful two nights.

    Here are my Shout Outs,

    Matt Rothenberg. What more can be said. Thanks for throwing this thing. Thanks for having me DJ on the second night. Big up everyone involved in the planning and organization of this thing. And Maximum respect goes out to Kristen Tobiasen for organizing the picnic, sorry I was just too tired to make it.

    Tim Mays and the full Casbah staff. Excellent job. Thanks for having us ! Special shout goes out to Jake the sound man. Who mixed another whole show before the Saturday night show even started.

    Big up all the bands and each and every musician that played.

    Big up Tony the Tyger, I enjoyed your selections on Friday.

    Shout goes out to the full “back in the day” crew. I had a blast hanging out with everyone (you know who you are !). My sincere apolgies to those I didn’t recognise right off the bat. I never knew everybody back in the day either, but then and now I appreciate your presence. Big up all those who weren’t able to reach.

    Big up Jeremiah Cornelius.

    Big up Ray Brandes, thanks for taking the master of ceremonies role on Saturday.

    Special thanks to everyone who enjoyed my DJ sets on Saturday, all those who came over to the booth to find out about the tunes i was playing and especially those who purchased one of my mixed CDs. Thanks again to Matt Rothenberg for letting me share where I’m at musically these days.

    Have to big up the full Cyba.FM family, React.FM family, the full London crew, the full US Dubstep crew. (Way too many to list here).

    Shout out to Tommy Clarke and all the other Wallflowers members especially, Cecil Daniels without whom I would never have been the musician I am today.

    Last in listing but first in my heart, Mr. David Rinck, Mr. Matt Johnson, Mr. Dave Ellison and Mr. Dave Fleminger. Thanks for all your hard work, it was an honor and a privilege to play with you all.

    Apologies to any I forgot.

    Maximum Respect.

    P

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  19. >>>A woman came up to Eric Rife after the Wallflowers set and asked why they hadn’t played their “big hit.”

    I think she wanted to hear Paradise On 4th Ave.

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  20. Ellison made me LOL! 🙂

    >>Special shout goes out to Jake the sound man.

    Yeah, he’s one cool guy, Paul — and listen, folks, one of us accidentally walked off with the snare stand he lent the bands. I figure a Che APB is the quickest way to recover it … Who’s got one more snare stand than they arrived with? 🙂

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  22. Regrets? not too few to mention: missing the picnic is the biggest… I would have loved to watch my kids play with all yours while I talked with all the people I missed talking to at the show. I had intended originally to cart the family down from S.F., but economics / logistics struck down that plan and had me driving back home Sunday. Other than that, this whole experience, was among my most memorable since starting my own family up here in S.F. Big up and respect (yeah I like tha dubstep too, Paul) to Dave Fleminger, the hardest working man in show business, for his many great performances on both nights, for graciously hosting and participating in all our S.F. rehearsals at his studio, for the guitars and amps we used and for remotely organizing so much for us, and also to ALL my Noise 292 band mates… I love you guys, sniff…

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  23. subterraneans;
    though our hellos may not have been exchanged in the past or over the loud blast of last weekend… I’d like to let y’all know, it was a pleasure and a bang seeing the bands i loved pre 85. I would have liked to go to Kristin’s picnic and met some friends, friends of friends old and new.
    Sharing: Funny moments for me relived as a nerdy geek kid of days or yore: Walking in Friday to the Casbah & Dave F was the 1st person I got to see and say Hi to and met his lovely wife Heather. I was and am still a Dave F geek. Seeing Eric Bacher walk thru the club before playing, I was the 15 year old again at Headquarters and let out a giddy wee! I wish I would have said an in person Hello to you Dave Ellison. I hope there is a next time. The music was ampy, spacey, groovy, thumpy, shakey. Is it okay to say we all wanted to be each others DOG for one tiny moment? Just in the literary sence of course.

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  24. So, I need a diagnosis: Every time I look at this picture Sean shot of Kristen and me, my eyes start stinging really bad and I get tight in my chest. Seasonal allergies?

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  25. Paul, Kristen, Matt- Wish I could have been there. Would have been worth the air fare just to hug you. Hope you could feel psychic love and applause from the east coast. (Kristen, you are reading this and thinking I would not have applauded you because you were not on stage. Incorrect. I am applauding you right now.)

    Tom- if you lurk here, I hope you can feel psychic love and applause as often as I send them toward you. You were a mensch.

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  26. Another great thing about this weekend is that it has inspired further creation and collaboration. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I’ll say that I woke up Saturday morning to emails from the guys talking about recording new material. And there’s some minor rumbling about a possible fun side-project (Sean being one of the people who suggested the idea).

    But to me, bringing such great and important people back into my life is the true blessing of this weekend. I can’t begin to express how thankful I am for having such great people as my friends and how wonderful it is to be reconnected with them.

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  27. Wow, just wow! Such an amazing week. So happy to have played with 3 of the bands. My biggest thank yous go to Dave F., Matthew, Hobie, Carina, Joey. Huge thanks and hugs to all my bandmates!

    Thanks so much to Kristen for organizing the picnic on Sunday — nice to be able to talk to everyone at conversational volume (not so easy to do at the Casbah).

    Fun to see all the kids. Sorry I couldn’t bring my daughter this time. (She did get Lemons are Yellow to play at her 1st b-day party, tho’) ; )

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  28. This weekend was an everlasting gobstopper that still tastes sweet. I am keeping all of you in my front pocket, right by my heart. El Completo. It seems just like yesterday that I wandered in through David Klowden’s backdoor and partyfouled my shoes all over his freshly steamcleaned carpet! And Ray and Tony were there to sketch a plan over pizza for what actually evolved on its own -- with special thanks to Mr. Mays to his gracious offering of the Casbah and all its endowments.

    I kowtow to all who made this possible: Matthew. If Dave Fleminger is Saint Che, you are the almighty visionary and creator. You took an idea and it has transformed all of our lives! If that’s not a ticket to get you into heaven….it’ll at least get you into the Casbah right? I bow to Dave Flem, Bart, Tim Mays, Ray Brandes, and Sean McMullen for capturing it all with his magic camera.

    Highlights were:The music! All the bands were incredible but I agree, too short on set time, just as I was beginning to loosen my hips and let my hair down, it would be over. Things that stick out for me are:
    * Matthew, the man of a thousand faces. Can’t get enough of watching you play. I could be a deaf person and still hear the songs.
    * Kristin Martin’s vocals (wow) -- Noise 292 in general -- original & interesting in a NOW -- non-time-capsule way. And David Rives is one of my new personal heros (even more than at that Liquid Sky party….a long time ago.)
    * Paul’s spiritual bass language -- if meditation would be funk.
    * David Klowden’s drum style -- the little rolls and snaps in between the concise & conventional. David is full of surprises.
    And handsome to look at. *wink*
    * The tight power pop precision of Manual Scan
    * The Mirrors -- timeless. i want these songs on my ipod. can I?
    * Dave Fleminger’s gracious talent and genuine kindness omitted from deep, big, beautiful eyeballs.
    * David Rinck’s muscles. baby.
    * Murph! Chaka! Bobby!
    * Jeff’s perspective
    * Lou Damien’s shirt
    * Megan’s perma-grin
    * The old man sweaters!
    * The hugs! -- some people hug so good they could warm up the dead.

    Don’t even get me started on the picnic which was a huge success in spite of my complete lack of any hostess with the mostess Martha Stewart qualities. I just put out the beacon and you all followed it. Amazing. Sorry my sun dance didn’t work on the weather guys. I’ll keep trying. I think the sunshine emulated from the children, yes? We stood in awe of the angels present. I will hear that sweet voice singing “You Set the Scene” in my dreams at night.

    Matthew. I’ve got that allergy too.

    PS: And I LOVE my P-man Dubstep CD. If you didn’t get one, your music collection is seriously lacking.

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  29. Well done all around. and a bargain at twice the price. Night one would have been worth it just bumping into old friends. and for the record nobody tells you “Man, you look really good” until your 40 :-0. While on the subject, I must say that mods age very well. The years have everyone looking less Quadraphenia and more Mad Men. Speaking of Madmen: Manual Scan never sounded better. The “meta band” Gay Dennys were a gas, Bring it to Jerome. But for me Night two with Noise 292 was tops. I’ve seen some reunions lately and been a little disappointed and questioning the value of nostalgia but that 292 sound is timeless. Eyesight to the blind was as good as I half remembered it (last time I heard it was at the Texas Teahouse as done by Three Guys named Jesus ’87?) Not that I didn’t close my eyes for a minute and feel like I was at a grad student art opening in the Mandeville pit. Of course when I opened them Judy Holzman was standing next to me beaming, “that’s my girl”. Matt was indeed “father of the bride”. Beautiful ceremony. and I loved that you did two songs after being given the 1 song to go signal. Being “father of the bride” should have it’s privileges and I’m not sure if this was a conscious choice (man, I feel like I’m back in a VA class with that line) but I loved how you ended with Patti Smith’s version of Them’s Gloria. Tying in the two elements of “punks” and “mods” together. But didn’t they teach us to discard labels in art school?

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  30. MATT -- you asked for a diagnosis earlier. To quote the great Leonard Cohen.

    “I showed my heart to the doctor, he said I just have to quit. Then he wrote me a prescription, I think your name was mentioned in it”.

    This seemed apropos…somehow.

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  31. Oh man, I omitted Jason Petteway from the hug list. That’s not right. I’m sorry. Jason, I’d show up wearing double-knot polyester at a Debbie Boone concert in Siberia for the chance to hug you again.

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  32. Kristen, I still got a few of them CDRs left, peeps give me a shout if you want one, I’ll mail ’em out. I’ll have them with me at Kava Lounge on the 20th too, arrive early, I’m starting at 9pm sharp. Please don’t duplicate, respect the limited edition. Plenty of free mixes on my blog as well, just click on my name above this post, then when you get to my blog, click on the crossfader.

    To all others who got some eye water this weekend, and again looking at the pics and stuff, I’m right there with ya. Anyone who can look at that picture of Matt and Kristen hugging at the graveyard and not catch an emotion, take a voight-kampf test.

    Couple more shouts,

    Cecil “P-Nut” Daniels , known to most of us as Aaron, huge influence on me and a bunch of other people in the scene.

    The full Tijuana Wallflowers connection, Armando Reyes R.I.P. Arturo, Louis.

    My new Wallflowers, Daves Ellison and Fleminger.

    William Tee, Mike, Ted Friedman, Sammy Dog, Tommy Clarke, Todd fricken Lahman. I know I’m forgetting others.

    Respect

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  33. Thanks Matt for putting this all together! I had a great time Djing and seeing lots of old friends.

    Where was Dennis Borleck?

    If anyone is around San Diego June 19th and wants to see Mike Stax, his band the Loons are playing at the Casbah. At least ten people asked me where he was this past weekend. He couldn’t make it, his little boy Philip was sick.

    Most Groovily Tony ‘the tyger’ Sanchez

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  34. That lady from New York reminded me of the time I went to see the Wallflowers at the Sports Arena, and no one could understand why I kept yelling “Rubber Room”.

    I just got back, and I’m still bathing in the after glow. I feel very lucky to have had this chance reacquaint with those I knew, and meet some great new friends, too. Thanks everyone for a unforgettable event.

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  35. takin jeff luck lucas down
    to bar pink
    juice-ballgame-cue stix

    north county love
    kavika-matt-paul a-matt & sergio
    at Qs house
    drinkin 4 strng cups coffee

    introducing my wife to
    everyone

    having no destuctive thoughts

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  36. First big thanks to Matthew for birthing this baby!

    The commencement of the reunion was for me, when I picked David Rives up from the airport on Monday morning, and steadily gained momentum until the Hair Theater climax on Saturday.

    Highlights for me included:

    *Walking into Matt’s parents house after 25 years and remembering instantly why I wished they were my parents then and now
    *Hearing the voice of Lou Damain in my home before I had the chance to see his award winning smile and precious green eye’s
    *Our polyamorous North County Love-In
    *Outside the Casbah at 9:00pm on Saturday
    *David Flimgers face and musical mastery
    *Talking with Carol Coleman
    *Standing next to Season, as she watched Hair Theater perform for the first time, and the both of us falling in love all over again with her husband.

    I will confess, I was secretly hoping Jerry was going to jump on stage at any moment and blow my mind. His absence for me, was like having a fantastic meal, saving room for desert, and being told
    “sorry, we just ran out of pie”.

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  37. My sleep pattern will be screwed up for a while……

    I had a blast, I saw way, way more people than I ever thought I would.

    Paul,

    Do What………..Stick it in the micro……..

    I need to grow back some brain cells and will be back for more comments then.

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  38. A few people blew me away with their hard work despite the fact that they didn’t even spend their juvenile delinquency in San Diego!

    • I already mentioned my Amazons brudda Jason Brownell’s faithful manning of the recording gear for two nights straight … Jason’s been my pal since Milwaukee 1974 and an audio engineer for nearly that long. I expect we’ll be sharing some wonderful recordings pending the bands’ kind permission.
    • Heather Vorwerck — Dave Fleminger’s partner in life and music — enriched the weekend with her marvelous cello playing. She’s a talent of the first string (har!), and I’m glad she’s part of the gang.
    • Seth Affoumado drove many miles and practiced many hours to drum brilliantly for Lemons Are Yellow and the Mirrors. He was a gentleman throughout, even when a scheduling snafu curtailed the Mirrors’ great set prematurely. Again, Seth, very proud to have you in the club.
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  39. A surreal step into the past -- the years erased a lot, and skinned us all down to heart and soul and a common thread of appreciation for great music. Many lives have changed, but we all own this past. Thanks to everyone for the incredible weekend.

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  40. Back at work this week, and finding it really hard to get back into work mode… still buzzing with adrenaline from the weekend, and still exhausted from it at the same time.

    So many highlights… the people I wish I’d had more time (or any time) to talk to and hang out with… I could have used another two days just for that… hanging out with Cole all weekend… and the best part of all, playing in the Wallflowers. It was so great to be included in that… all I can say is I wanna do more.

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  41. Almost forgot to mention how much I enjoyed all the bands… especially Hair Theatre, who were as fantastic as they were 25 years ago… I sure hope to hear more from them and everyone else.

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  42. amazing, solid and continued were the threads of grace between us.

    dean, james, megan, monica, amylu, justin and jody, mike goddamn sherman, wendell, eric sloan, seth veitzer, carla, sean, dirk, dave acampora, sara, anne, kyle, kristina, joey, marcie, kim and shelli, dave rinck, louis damien, louis and dennis, kevin and annemarie, kevins mom!, ray, matthew, kristin martin, kristen tobiason, vince, rosemarie, bart, the pauls, lefty, tony, paul and alena and pia, and on…

    reconnecting gave my battery a serious charge.

    everyone looks awesome and the vibe was rich and mellow, energetic and rejuvenating, all heightened by familial affection. like an espresso poundcake.

    thank you, matthew. for everything.

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  43. Tony,

    I talked to Dennis about a week before the show (sold him back a guitar he sold me several years ago). He said he’d be there. He was really interested in going. I don’t know what happened.

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  44. he said that he got the nights mixed up. we saw him at hamiltons. louis was there, too. that was good.

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  46. Still feels a bit like opening one’s eyes after an incredibly beautiful dream…but in this case part of the wonder is knowing that somehow we managed to bring an amazing dream back intact along with us into the waking present, and forever.
    I simply cannot express enough my gratitude to be a part of this event, to have collaborated with and enjoyed great times with so many of my heroes and friends (interchangeable terms as you are both my heroes and friends), without getting the computer keyboard all soggy ‘n stuff…

    Many, many thanks…I’m afraid to list names as it would entail leaving anybody out, but right off the bat…Matthew, you have made it possible for all of us to see and hear each other in the now, rather than only when walking through our dreams.

    Thanks to everyone that I had the gift and incredible honor of performing alongside this weekend…it felt like being given a front-row seat to my fave-ever shows along WITH an instrument to play along…wow!!! Unbelieveable.

    To live the fantasy of playing Answers and Mirrors songs again with Dave A, Joe, Tony, Jeff, and Seth (Diego brother from an alternate universe)…again a dream come true.

    To see bands that I’ve always been a huge fan of and feel that same familiar rush…digging them all over again and hoping to hear much much more!!!

    Lemons are Yellow….and it’s a beautiful day.

    Sunday in the park Lou’s daughter sang with a beautiful voice a song that brought me much closer to understanding what life is about than ever before and how deep my connection is with everybody. I will always cherish that moment and all the others that made up this magic time.

    I’ve been smiling an extra lot this past week…

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  47. Well that settles it… lets all quit our jobs and go back to doing nothing but playing music. I’ll put my notice in right now.

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  48. Matt,

    It was a pleasure to officially meet you! GREAT JOB!!

    Please pass my email address on to Dean Curtis.

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  50. Robyn, I found your business card in my wallet w/your email address. Guess I forgot that you gave me that, haha!

    Regarding photos, most are on Facebook so far. Is there a place we can put photos for those not on Facebook? I will offer my Flickr Pro account for that, but I don’t know how to give access to that without giving everyone my password. Perhaps you could email me the photos in JPEG format and I will upload them.

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  55. that last one is my favorite. sean really captured kevins mood and performance.

    i can see the real you! i can!

    hell yes, manual scan was in prime form. rocking so hard that monica, megan and i were a trio of sweaty silly giggly gals by the end.

    yay!

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  56. Yah, wow man oh man, Manual Scan really rocked! I loved their version of “The Real Me”. These guys have gotten damm good!

    For a mod band I mean of course…

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  57. I must 2nd that Manual Scan were fugging great, they nocked my socks off… Scan was the first band I ever saw in a small venue and they were great then and later on I took them for granted, never again.

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  59. dave! ha! “for a mod band”. man, kevin gave daltry a run for his money, no? i wish i had a record of that night. they were ON.

    you guys didn’t exactly slouch through your set, either, you know.;-)

    seeing you all play again made me proud. what a group of unreal musicians you all are.

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  60. Indeed, “The Mod band” ruled the roost on Friday against stiff competition! Best Manual Scan show I ever saw. I would not have wanted to be The Gay Denny’s and have to follow them. But The Gay Denny’s were great too.

    The drummer for Hair Theater was awesome!

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  61. Damn, Lori’s video on Facebook of the Wallflowers’ “Funland” is so cool … “I’m lookin’ for the Grinding Wheel … Like an evil, Buddhist, whaddya call those things, Kristen? Mandala!”

    Like many other moments from the weekend, it actually blows away the old recording, IMHO. Some living seems to have seasoned the stew since 1983!

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  62. A mandala is a microcosm of the Universe from the human perspective. It is a map of “completion”. We made one collectively last weekend. I would like to use that map to timetravel back to Funland. Or at least the Casbah a few days ago. The Wallflowers were better than I ever remembered them. Dave Ellison blew me away.

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  65. Great double date of shows, thanks Matthew, Tim and Bob, and all the bands that pulled it all together. Seeing the pic above, I gotta swami Hair Theater, their set was amazing! I’m still humming their hits a week later. Microphone stand endlessly tortured, drunk woman almost whipped in the forehead with windmill microphone, grabbings of crotch, sinister Sergio smiles, and the band never let up after leaving the gate.

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  66. I second that, Paul! Hair Theatre performed an AWESOME set!!
    Mindblowingly great….encore, please!!!!

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  67. OK where’s the vid? A lot of us couldn’t make the games…but would love to see/hear the performances…

    Zo….?

    Patrick Works
    Promises to dance if the tunes are funky enough

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  68. >>OK where’s the vid? A lot of us couldn’t make the games…but would love to see/hear the performances…

    Patrick: Go check my Facebook page for some Wallflowers/Noise 292 bits, and even a scrap of Hair Theatre. The Che Underground gnomes are toiling way underground to assemble all the video and killer audio. We’ll start rolling some fuzzy warbles out this week!

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  70. lesha, i hear you. when manual scan played that first night it was the first time i had been with james and dean and monica and megan and amylu and justin in far too long. dancing with them again, and hearing the guys sing and play, took me to another place. the times when all of us were together all those years ago. as much as i felt like a misunderstood blacksheep in school back in the day, i knew i was at home with my friends. having that back, however briefly, meant a lot. and i also feel so glad that i have come so far and grown into myself. we all have.

    the thread about talking to who you were then from where you are now comes to mind. i think i would tell my 14 year old self that she was just fine as she was. that she didn’t need to worry and fret so much. and i would probably tell myself that the girls who intimidated me were just as intimidated :by: me. i was so glad for a few conversations in the bathroom that were just hilarious and lovely and as animated as they used to be. we women of che are a strong, amazing bunch. hearing about the directions you have all gone is something to be proud of. truly. pat yourselves on the back for the work you do, have done and continue to do as mothers, friends, partners, professionals. no doubt about how we have all maintained our own set of connections with each other over the years, but i was so glad to see a few of you who, through time and geography, had just slipped into the ether of memory. tangible you, the hugs and backslaps made the weekend so real.

    also, i spent most of both nights just hanging with monica and megan, watching and listening and talking to the people who came and found us. it was lovely to catch up and visit without needing a drink to calm me. sober as a judge i feel like i was able to fully relish the event. and i don’t feel like i had any urgency with anyone. no need to resolve or address or express. just good, happy interaction. if things came up then great, but no seeking to convey. that was refreshing. the lack of drama. in the work i do i face enough of that. grounding out with the lovely people i know was cool water. i keep revisiting the moments to recapture that thrill of reunion. i think i have a hangover from ::that::…

    dean recently said that he felt that on sunday, when we were at graveyard park, there was no lack of warmth despite the chilly weather. and i agree. communities like ours are not something to squander. it is rare that so many talented, intelligent, enthusiatic people find one another and create art, music, poetry, of the caliber delivered by the che underground. but even more so are the deep connections built and maintained despite geography and time.

    threads of grace.

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  74. oh, fer krissake, please post some HT video from the games. It’s painful to listen to all the reverence; it hurts to have missed them.

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  75. The reason there were so many people not even going in was ” I think ” because they were there to see the Wrong Wallflowers. There were a lot of people out of place and this explains it.

    Pretty Funny

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  76. >>The reason there were so many people not even going in was ” I think ” because they were there to see the Wrong Wallflowers. There were a lot of people out of place and this explains it.

    Hmm. I truthfully did not recognize about three quarters of the people who were there on Saturday night. I assumed it was because they were the North County contingent of the Che Underground.

    Somebody please assure me that human beings are in general not that stupid. PLEASE.

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  79. Awwwww, sheesh! Ray, the big crowd was in fact North County old-timers. 🙂

    Maybe there were a few profoundly confused FM-friendly rock-of-the-’90s types who showed up … But the crowd was glued to the stage all the way through Hair Theatre.

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  84. He He Ha Ha

    Stupidity at it’s best. But their take from the door spent just as well at La Posta………….

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  85. Don’t know about you all but my banner ad for this site is Punk * Match, with two lame-o SuperCuts models. What do we have to do Can’t we get the Christian Dating banner back?

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  89. The Mirrors as described form the link that Ray posted:

    “The lead singer Jeremy’s vocals have been compared to Rod Stewart. Displaying lush harmonies and a 70’s edge, they have drawn comparisons to the likes of Muse and Wolfmother. However, it is their raw energy, catchy melodies and thought provoking lyrics that show The Mirrors clearly have their finger firmly on the pulse of today’s new rock music scene.”

    I particularly like the comparison to Rod Stewart :::gag::::

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  90. P Gargoyle: I like the reference to the band’s “70’s edge.” What edge would the ’70s manifest in 2009? The faint, receding rear edge?

    Jeff does have that Rod Stewart thing happening, though! 🙂

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  91. Let’s have a reunion tour: (Noise 29) U2, The Wallflowers, The Mirrors, and (Hair) Dream Theater.

    Seriously, though, I missed this thread earlier somehow…I just want to thank all the people who worked behind the scenes to make the Reunion happen: Matthew, Ray, Dave F., Kristi, Tony Suarez, Kristin T., Jason B. and everybody I can’t think of right now. It was a blast. I’m just now getting back to normal, but a better normal. Video, audio and photos are still percolating up for people who couldn’t make it. And I liked what Dean and Ava said above, so lacking their eloquence right now: what they said. I dug all the bands. Hearing the Answers really took me back. I love all those weird chords Flem plays.

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  93. never forget my mom hearing about Jakob Dylan’s band…SCREAMING at MTV

    “those aren’t the Wallflowers…the REAL Wallflowers played at my HOUSE!”

    I wish I coulda been there. Hell….I’d have liked to bring my mom.

    Patrick Works
    Not absent; just fashionably late. Really late.

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  94. Pat, your Mom sounds like a super supportive person. My Mom was going to go, but she was holed up with her fellow writers, working on romantic mystery manuscripts.

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  95. I just uploaded some photos my girlfriend of 12 years, Annie Garcia, took of the Saturday show to my Flickr page at: http://www.flickr.com/photos/polalyn/ . Unfortunately, the uploader program doubled the photos I had reduced to meet Flickr’s monthly limit, letting only half of them through. I’ll upload the rest, plus a few of the picnic she and I took at the beginning of July, when Flickr will let me upload more.

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