Thee Oh Sees, the Urinals, and Unnatural Helpers Totally Fuckin’ Killed It
February 23rd, 2010
Dudes, I’ve been totally dying to get some of these pics up from the Funhouse last Friday night (2/19). It was easily one of the best shows I’ve been to the last few months (check the Show Critic tag, there are some doozies), as it was a garage rawk fest for the ages. Or at least the age that contains the last few months. Unnatural Helpers opened up for the Urinals who opened up for Thee Oh Sees, and all three totally fuckin’ killed it.
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I showed up just in time to catch Unnatural Helpers, as their dark and dirty Stooge-grooves turned out to be the perfect catalyst for a raucous sold out show (if you don’t frequent the Funhouse, then you’re missing out; no kiddin’). As you’ve likely heard, the band has an LP coming out on Hardly Art pretty soon, and all I can say is that I hope they were able to capture on record the gritty punk spectrum that the they so easily tread on stage. They’re not breaking ground, obviously, but they’re doing their damnedest to stomp all over it just for the hell of it. Led by Dean Whitmore on drums/vocals, this is a motley crew of shredders playing feel-good, drop-kick garage-punk. Sounded like they might lose another player (guitarist Brian Standeford; Kimberly Morrison has already been replaced on bass), but if Charles Leo Gebhardt sticks around, they should be alright.
That’s Thee Oh Sees founder John Dwyer up there, and it was a hoot watching him play guitar. My knees were against the stage for this set, so it was the perfect setting to finally see these popular San Franciscan swamp-punkers. Dwyer is a caricature on stage: tattoos and tank top, shoving his beat up Burns Double Six high into his armpit and shifting freakishly on his toes as if he were Wile E. Coyote on one of those ACME high wires. He plays like a maniac and his music shows it. I love the vocal interplay between he and Brigid Dawson, drenched in echo and retro sass. The rest of the band, it’s apparent, has to work at keeping up with the main man. Drummer Mike Shoun was front and center and played as if his life depended on it (it probably doesn’t). Petey Dammit plucked his Fender in the background like an old-timer, content to lay rhythm. They were all great, though, and you can see a couple (high quality) videos I shot here and here.
Thee Oh Sees
Thee Oh Sees
Thee Oh Sees
Unnatural Helpers
The Urinals
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