Saturday afternoon's sun was out with a vengeance when I pulled up to park near Cafe Colonial on Stockton Boulevard. I get out and trudge down the glass strewn gutter toward the bustling, dusty boulevard. I turn the corner and come across a familiar face leaning against the shady side of the Cafe's neighbor, The Colonial Theater. It's Jason Parkerson, the bass player from the 3 piece punk outfit, Rebel Radio, who are slated to play their final show as a band this particular night at Cafe Colonial. As part of a stellar 4 band line-up tonight, they are joined by At Both Ends, SKASUCKS (from South Korea), and Dan P & The Bricks. We are eventually joined by Tim Williamson, front-man of Rebel Radio, who seems equal parts excited to play, and equal parts emotional about the fact that tonight is his band's last show. He quips, as the night goes on and more people begin to trickle in,
"I've been in this band for 9 years. I don't think I've ever committed to something that long, ever."
Eventually, as the venue fills up more and more, we are joined by Jerred Whitbey, loaded down with his monolith of a drum kit. All three of them look ready to rock.
As if on cue, the boys of ska outfit At Both Ends show up. Decked out in ties, long sleeved shirts, and dress pants, one can't help but wonder how they are surviving in these outfits in the 100+ degree day, but they are all smiles nonetheless. I head back into the Cafe to get my next beer and am finally experiencing the ambient indoor heat of this now bustling venue. Thankfully, the beer is cold, so I may survive after all.
Pressed together near the stage as the lights are switched off, At Both Ends hits the stage in full blast from minute one. With Gene on vocals/guitar, Sean on bass/vocals/trombone, Junior on drums/vocals, Jason on guitar/vocals, and George on trumpet. Their whole set fluctuates across the whole spectrum of skate punk and ska, and I hear a whole range of influences from Less Than Jake to Streetlight Manifestio, to Mighty Mighty Bosstones. The Bosstones further underscored by George's wild hype man antics when he's not wailing on his trumpet. Their set climbs to a fever pitch of ska-based goodness and crashes in spectacularly awesome fashion.
Soon enough, Rebel Radio's turn has come to take the stage for the last time. As they are setting up, I can't help but think about that night way back in 2013, when I got the chance to write about this very band. Tim and I just sat back and chatted away, which was good enough to get published in The Press Tribune, and jump start my passion for writing that persists today.
I am not the only one that could say this about Tim and Rebel Radio, who have collectively become fixtures in the local music scene over these last few years.
Soon enough, they hit the stage, bringing their own trademark fury to their performance that screams (literally!) of bands like Operation Ivy, Rancid, and NOFX. They roll through their compendium of rock that you can't help but flail around to. They even played my own personal favorite, "Eating Faces", dedicating it to Trump.
Fitting. And hilarious. In a dark, yet positive style that is unique to Tim and Rebel Radio.
Eventually, all good things must come to an end. This set ended with thunderous applause and screaming, providing a proper send off to a band that has done so much for the scene they have been a part of. I am proud that I got to witness such a fitting and enjoyable end.
The night continues and I sneak out to the parking lot, where I catch up with the lads of At Both Ends to get their story on how they came into being. When I ask them when they started, Gene tells me that they played their first show in April 2015, as a result of coming together through various ads off Craigslist, put up by Junior's boss. Their first practice, even, was a hell of an event. Junior explains to me,
"My old boss put up an ad for a guitar player...long story short, he got some of us together in this green room for this first practice, you know, one of those rooms you paint green to record movies in. There was no sound proofing, there was a metal desk, and other random shit, and it was awful. Everything just bounced around...it was fun! We came back and played again a few days later..."
Over time, since that auspicious beginning, they have morphed into the now sweaty band that stands before me. As our conversation goes on, it eventually turns to their future plans, to which Gene elaborates,
"We head to SoCal in August...We Are playing this tour with Lowbrow, who we played with up here, and we are doing two shows with them in San Diego and Anaheim..."
Another thing I noticed, when they were playing earlier in the night, was how tight and cohesive they were as a band. Gene explains,
"We've practiced really hard in the past, which has allowed us to be able to maybe not practice as much as we need to...there was a time when we were practicing for like 3 and 4 hours, 3 times a week to get to where we are at..."
This alone is impressive, considering they all have day jobs, Gene has kids, and George is a trumpet player in the Air Force. He had even driven straight back into town from L.A. that day to be there, after doing a show with the Air Force band. Sean adds to it by saying,
"We were burning the candle really hard there for a bit, and we were, like 'Fuck this is a lot of work' (laughs)..."
Also fitting. Also hilarious.
Our conversation ends there, because we are eager to catch the South Korean band, SKASUCKS, that has joined Dan P & The Bricks on a tour of the U.S. They are a 5 person band, with Jin on vocals, Kyeongchan on guitar, Donghyuk on bass, MH Ryu on drums, and Goyang as the lone lady of the band on organ. I was already excited, and then their set started.
I may have been excited, but my body wasn't ready. And it was fantastic.
From note #1, this band was a whirling dervish of energy and sound the likes of which I have never seen. They had an unbridled fury that sounded a lot like Operation Ivy and Rancid, as well, but WAY more intense. Between Jin's frantic running around, Goyang's wailing organ, and MH's furious drumming you couldn't help get excited and remain there until the song was over. Their set came to a cataclysmic end, compete with bass ridden thunder, and Goyang hoisting her organ on her shoulders like Atlas holding the heavens. My ears have never enjoyed such BDSM-quality abuse in my entire life.
Upon going outside after this set, I need to catch my breath from the shock of my sweat on the cool wind that has emerged in the night. The place is full of musicians and music fans alike, all milling around. Even more so, due to the show going on at The Colony next door. I can't help but stay excited as I sweat away any excess moisture. Eventually, I find my way back inside for Dan P & The Bricks set. A 6-piece ska group, fronted by Dan Potthast on vocals/guitar, they brought their bigger version of pure ska to the steaming crowd. Singing about space travel, and wading into the crowd with his mic, Dan and his band picked it up big time. Showing their English Beat, late 80's/early 90's style, you couldn't help but groove to all the way to the end.
Eventually, I found my way back out front, and took the rest of the night in. I bid goodnight to Tim and reflect as I march back to my car about how I got to this point. It was that article all that time ago that opened my eyes to a whole other world that I knew existed, but not on this scale.
As I get in my car, I am hit by another thought.
Only in a place like Sacramento could a night like this happen. I am eternally thankful I get to be here and know the people that put shows like this together. I drive home with a slightly sweaty smile on my face, and all is right with the world.
