| by Mike Sheahan
F or almost two years now, "The Goods"
has been a column dedicated to providing you, the respected reader,
with the best ideas for fun and good times in and around Durango.
My suggestions have not always been winners (Cross Canadian
Ragweed, anyone?) or sometimes not even accurate, but the intent
has always been the same: For all of us to have the best possible
time while maybe sharing a laugh about some of the silly crap going
on around us.
The Pacific Ocean
and a more humid climate has called the Sheahan clan back to the
West Coast and, as much as I'd like to keep writing "The Goods,"
y'all probably don't give a whit about the goings on in Eugene,
Ore. There's no telling what p.16(ish) of this paper will look like
next week, but be sure it'll be there and at least as, or more, fun
and informative than it has been.
As much as I'd like to serve up a weepy, beery love/hate letter
to Durango with my last few precious words, that would be silly,
embarrassing and excruciatingly boring. Besides, there is too much
fun to be had to waste time on such treacle.
One could really spend this entire weekend at Storyville without
getting bored. On Friday, May 28, The 'Ville presents a double bill
featuring a couple of bands that are no strangers to "The Goods."
Suitcase , a group that I should be beaten with
an extension cord for not having yet seen, will split the bill with
Durango's nicest punks, Amazing Larry . Even though I've not seen the
Suitcase kids, friends whose musical taste is to be trusted like a
Psalm say this band is well worth their salt. Be like me, prove it
to yourself Friday.
Amazing Larry delivers a
steady machine gun blast of two-minute songs that contain enough
melody to keep them all from running together, but completely lack
any of the "Fisher-Price Punk" of bands like Blink-182. Simply put,
even if loud and fast is not your bag, this band should be seen
simply for their exuberance and energy. The show starts around 9
p.m.
The next night,
Saturday, May 29, at Storyville, another local group, Big Open Space will showcase its acoustic-based
sound. Lately rumors have been flying that this would be the band's
last show as a member was doing the fashionable thing by leaving
town. That is not going to happen, and Big Open Space will still be
hanging around, but that shouldn't diminish your sense of urgency.
These guys don't play out all that often. This is an early show,
look for the tunes to start around 8 p.m.
Fans of Cuban salsa
music will want to hit The Abbey Theatre on Saturday for a command
performance by Son
Como Son . The heat
and energy that this band produces has made even the most reluctant
dancers, specifically yours truly, horribly attempt the south of
the border two-step. I don't know if it's the horns, the syncopated
rhythms or the scantily clad clientele, but this salsa music is hot
stuff, get what I'm saying? The band should hit around 9
p.m.
Five years ago, I moved
to Durango with no real plan and in search of some vague connection
to my own personal history. I wound up with a life more planned
than ever and a dippy soul search that proved pointless. It's an
age old clich`E9, but what Wolfe, Kerouac and the rest said about
going home again is true. You literally can't because it's not
there anymore. As I stupidly learned the obvious though, I managed
to forge a new family in an old place, do some fun work and make a
bus load of friends that'll stay with me in my next new home. For
those reasons, and many others, Durango will always be my hometown.
I thank all of you who helped make that happen. It's been a great
run.
As a fitting end to this
version of "The Goods," it seems in order to revisit an old
feature, thanks largely to heads up work by "Ask the Diver"
stalwart and inside-out-coat-wearing local Dan Groth.
This week's sign the end is near:
From the world of bizarre
pairings comes news that rapper Ice-T has signed on to produce an
album of rap music by "Knight Rider" star and "Baywatch" mogul,
David Hasselhoff. Ice-T is best known for presenting the rap song
"Cop Killer" in the wake of the Rodney King riots and for claiming
to be an actual pimp even after making his millions. Hasselhoff is,
of course, best known for running down a beach in slow motion
alongside a hepatitis-free Pam Anderson. Ice-T is presenting his
new rapping friend as, and I swizzear to Gizzod this is trizzue,
"Hassel the Hoff."
Maybe we should have
seen this coming. After all, should a rapper named after a
summertime thirst quencher ever be taken seriously? Plus, Pat
Boone's foray into heavy metal should have taught us that nothing
is impossible. Still, don't be surprised if one of those mountains
outside of L.A. erupts and delivers a boiling river of cheese
through a particular Hollywood neighborhood. Hey, maybe it'll pick
up Joan Rivers and Michael Eisner along the way.
The rest of us should
simply dodge wayward asteroids. Thanks for reading my Goods,
friends.
mpsheahan@yahoo.com
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