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by
 Welcome
to the goods, where I’m grumpy because it’s only
Dec. 5, and I’m already tired of Christmas.
With the smarmy TV shows, the junk mail and the blatant, over-the-top
commercialism, it’s enough to make me want to convert
to a religion that doesn’t do Christmas. I wonder if Buddhism
has any room for a pasty white, chubby misanthrope like me?
I do like the egg nog though, I can feel my arteries hardening
just thinking about it. But enough of this, here are a few things
to take your mind off of what to buy this year for that cousin
you never see.
It’s a punk rock bonanza this week in Durango. I enjoy
the punk rock, although I’m not a big fan of what passes
for punk these days. For example, popular groups like Blink
182 and Sum 41 don’t play punk rock. They play fashionable,
loud pop music. Punk is more about an attitude than a sound
or a look. Punk is thumbing one’s nose at convention and
doing whatever one pleases. That is why I can’t think
of a more punk thing to do than Ska’s “Punk Rock
Breakfast” at Storyville on Sunday, Dec. 8. Local legends
The Thirteens and the Denver group Gina Go Faster will play
loud and fast while patrons dine on eggs and potatoes and maybe
even sip a bloody mary. The festivities begin at 9 a.m. so get
to bed early Saturday – this is a don’t-miss affair.
 There
is more punk rock for the all-ages crowd at Fort Lewis’
Extreme Room at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 10. There are a bunch
of bands I’ve never heard of that are playing, but that
shouldn’t stop you, the punk rock lover. Cover is only
$4 for students and $6 for everyone else.
I know I complain a lot about what a sleepy town Durango is
and how there is so little night life (which I incidentally
believe contributes to the reason meathead kids keep tipping
over trash cans, but more on that later), but what about towns
like Dolores? I mean no disrespect, Dolores is a lovely town,
but an open-mic poetry reading must be the big event of the
season in a town that size. Except this Saturday, when Durango’s
Lawn Chair Kings take over the Dolores Brewery.
If you read this column with any regularity you probably know
that I think the Kings are the best live music deal around and
worth the trip two towns over. If you live in Dolores go for
sure, what else are you going to do?
Those wanting to shake their booties should head down to Steamworks
tonight, Dec. 5, for Samurai Sword Testing. They play dance-friendly,
Latin jazz and the crowd they attract is fun and mostly easy
on the eyes.
This Week’s Sign The End Is Near: Because I work at night
downtown, I often find myself on Main Avenue late. More often
than not, I’ll see trash cans or newspaper boxes pushed
over into the road. At first I thought this was the behavior
of a small handful of hooligans, but after more than three years
of witnessing such antics on an almost nightly basis, I realize
we have an epidemic on our hands. I have to assume that the
decision to dump trash on the street is a spontaneous one, or
else I’d go completely crazy.
But I wonder what drives a person to do such a thing. Of course,
alcohol plays some role, but there’s more to it, I think.
This is my theory: If I spent my nights in a club listening
to some DJ play “Funkytown” and “Saturday
Night Fever” over and over, I might be inclined toward
meaningless violence. I can say that I have never left a live
music show to find the same wanton destruction. That’s
right, I blame the club DJ, the incessant beats and same, old,
overplayed songs for the garbage and real estate guides that
often litter our streets at night. Help clean up Durango by
supporting live music.
This Week’s Suggested Album: The Sadies are a Canadian
quartet that are at once a driving surf-guitar band, straight
up rock group and cosmic cowboy outfit. Their most recent effort,
“Stories Often Told,” is a dark, reverb-drenched
affair that is a bit of a departure for the group.
The one-minute, double-tempo rave-ups they’ve become
known for are absent, traded in for somber tunes with actual
lyrics. This is not to say that the Sadies have forgotten how
to rock. “Lay Down Your Arms” and “Tiger,
Tiger” both have plenty of gas. It’s just that the
band seems to be focusing on melody over rhythm on “Stories
Often Told.” The result is a musically diverse and sometimes
weird album that I can’t stop playing. You can check the
band out www.yeproc.com.
Are you the meathead who tips over garbage cans? mpsheahan@yahoo.com
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