Boy things really suck right now for so many reasons, its just a good thing I’m seeing The Stooges and The Kills this coming week

Yes it is indeed.  I dunno about you but this has felt like one hell of a cruel summer for a lot of different reasons.  Did Mercury go into retrograde like about three times lately?  Has just about everyone you know lost their jobs, mostly after 10 or 20 years of loyal service and suddenly the carpet is pulled out from under their lives so to speak, sometimes with a vague warning, others with no warning at all.  My condolences go out to all my co-workers from The Eagle who this spring ended up with out an income, a home away from home, and a comfortable community meeting place where they could invite anyone to and anyone would enjoy it.  Bar tending is a tough job to lose, its like breaking up a family or banishing one from their loved ones when they no longer appear behind that bar ready to pour and chat with you.  I havent even mentioned the loss felt by the many people who chose the bar as a hub for all things rock and roll–Live shows, unforgettable energy, relentless fun and huge amounts of talent allowed to grow, gain huge followings and literally blow minds week after week.  Thats what i miss the most about The Eagle–the brilliant music venue it had become.  But I dont want to pick that scab any more…everyone is trying to move on with their lives.  Its over, its sad, its missed.  The 13 years that i worked there were the best that bar has ever been and the former owners and all the staff who made that long stretch possible should be commended for this achievement.  It all got muddled towards the end and confusion and conjecture and mudslinging really drew attention away from the aforementioned achievement.  I suppose all of this Eagle closure stuff came to mind again this week when I learned that the world famous End Up had changed ownership and the new owners had decided to fire some of this city’s most beloved and respected Bartenders after as much as 20 years loyal service and huge customer followings.  Sad but true L.B. Jones,  Kerstin, and Cara Crash are no longer employed there and i’m certain i’m not the only one who is outraged to the point of boycotting that formerly brilliant,  historically rich, culturally significant bar.  Without those valued employees it is merely a Hell hole and I wont set foot in there again.  This nails the lid of the coffin tight–and I hope the owners have fun keeping it alive now.  Theres no rest for the wicked, especially if their conscience isn’t clear, and firing great bartenders who have given years of their lives to serve with a smile and make your customers happy, well thats gotta make for a shit-storm of a mess in ones conscience.  Shame on the new owners of The End-up, thats on you.    It is a shame–that place hosted some of the finest moments of a nightclubbing generation–things so many will never forget.  Fortunate that one’s memories cant be taken away, because that is indeed the only thing left of the place we all loved and lived through so much with.  Gay Bar/Nightclub institutions are dropping  like flies all around us.  I pity those who come here and set out looking for a world class night life because it doesnt exist and hasn’t for awhile.  Look around you SF–if you truly enjoy any of the remaining bars and clubs in various neighborhoods from SOMA, The Mission, Castro, Polk, The Tenderloin, etc and want to continue enjoying them you must patronize them like a loyal customer.  They need you–always have and continue to do so.  On second thought, i dont care if the bars in the castro survive–like many others i know, I hate those crowds and avoid them at all costs.  Those people are young, rude disrespectful, loud and stupid and they really turn my stomach.  I hear they dont tip well either.  That’s the face of GLBT future–and its already over,  or just vomiting in front of the Deisel store dressed like lady gaga.  What is wrong with people?  Sometimes thing s just seem so abysmal and doomed to mediocrity.  It’s as if all of the genius moves, the concerted movements, the shared and common goals beliefs, pleasures, grace and identity of the said Gay community over the past three decades has disappeared or  is fading from view.   I’m not satisfied to just make a special page for it on Facebook so we can all reminisce about the good times and fun and trade pictures and stories about it with each other and estimate the body count and say in disbelief, “We’re still here!”  Granted, things change, people change but we are not done here by far.  We needn’t remain in the past like all of the fun has.   Okay, i’ll stop being so totally grim, and i dont want to act as if certain forces in the nightlife scene aren’t trying to make a difference because there are some people who do go the extra length to create great events with imagination and fun and a vital sense of camaraderie and elements to pull a diverse crowd together for something us gays are supposed to be experts at, having a good time.  Hard French is a club that has really blossomed into a very multifaceted roaming series of extravaganzas where the happy people go, and I need to catch up on all the fun.  I also must say that all events created by DJ Bus Station John–the long running  Tubesteak Connection and his two year old monthly party Le Perle Degli Squallor are providing a nice dose of our gay past by way of music and theme to a younger and retro-delighted fan base and its all very heartwarming and specific.  I’m also a big fan of Something, the weekly drag showcase every friday at the Stud with a trio of great talents Glamamore, Downey Friend and Vivianne Forevermore presenting two shows a night and lots of dancing till 4 am with a host of guest DJs of all kinds and generally they never seem to go wrong, whenever I go there the music is insanely good or maybe just insane which is even better sometimes.  I love it when a song makes me laugh out loud and this happens there.  The young-ish crowd eats it up and the trio of rulers are always thinking–creative, wicked, glamorous and smart.   So you see–i dont have every single bit of hope completely squelched out of existence by the rather dour state of  San Francisco’s night life.  It has been a cruel summer but I’m not a completely bitter shut-in just daring this town to try to show me a good time.  Honest.

Over the course of writing about all this came the news that Iggy Pop sustained a foot injury and now the Stooges show is postponed till a later date.  Naturally I’m totally bummed because i was really anticipating one of those life-affirming shows one grows to expect from The Stooges.  Iggy is 62 now and still a wildly unhinged performer whose spirit is an inspiration and I was really needing a dose of that.  I was also really looking forward to the opening act as well.  They are a group with an incredible buzz going on about them right now called Le Butherettes.  I hope and pray that the rescheduled dates will still include them on the bill because by that time this band just might become the fastest hottest fiery meteor hurling towards the consciousness of all mankind.  Yes, its true, we got us a dangerous fucking live one in Le Butcherettes.  They are led by an amazing young woman named Terri Gender-bender, with a hell of a lot to say and she says it in a lot of ways that really get me totally excited, like with extremely over-the-top Iggy-like aggression, boldly un-feminine behavior like urinating onstage, stage-diving, wearing a blood-splattered apron over a pretty sundress, playing several different instruments and hurting herself onstage, scaring the lighthearted and challenging issues of sexual politics and societal expectations.  She’s incredibly pretty, sexy and young.   When Iggy wrote “Gimmee Danger”  I think this is exactly what he was talking about.  Their LP Sin Sin Sin is a killer ride through all kinds of  the aformentioned territories and it fucking rules.  Take a look at this video of her star-turn performance at the Lolapalooza and you’ll get an idea of whats going on here.

and heres another fun video as well

and another–i could watch her all day

So, lets just hope that they get rescheduled with The Stooges when Iggy is back on his feet.  The combination of these two will be giving plenty of danger if all goes well.

At least I will still be seeing The Kills on Friday and I cant fucking wait.  There are few bands today that put on as such a great rock show, proving yet again that two people can indeed do that, especially these two.

Icant fucking wait.  this show is gonna save souls.