ThunderWeb V1.0
Saturday 7th September 2002 - Asbury Park NJ
God, it was so H-O-T!
Shit, I was drinking bottled water like it’s going out of fashion and I’m just sweating it all away.
After we got back from Suspenders, John was nearly ready to take us of to the HITS festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey. We got our gear, loaded it in the van and went via Jersey City to pick up some friends of his, before making for the Garden State Parkway and heading South. Now the last time I saw someone heading South on the GSP, Pauly Walnuts and Christopher got lost in the wilds of South Jersey, in the snow and had a battle for survival, with a mad Russian, who refused to die. No snow now though. Just blazing sunshine and unbelievable heat.
I didn’t realise just how far south, Asbury Park actually was. I thought it was just a few miles, maybe half an hour tops, but it was well over an hour’s drive. And, trust me you simply are not prepared for the sight that greets you as you enter the city.
I suppose I had some image in my mind that was a cross between Atlantic City, Blackpool and Scarborough. This was the seaside, but in America, so, better sea and sand, with all the glitz and glamour that you see in all those mob movies. You know the ones. The smart mouth guy, usually played by Joe Pesci goes off to the Jersey coast, wins big, pisses off some wiseguy and ends up in the trunk of a Cadillac Seville, gaffer-taped like a Thanksgiving Turkey, before ending up on his knees, an untraceable .38 pointing at his brain stem, falling face-first into an pre-dug grave, in a field in the middle of nowhere, shortly after the back of his head gets blown off.
Do I watch too many movies?
Anyway, Asbury Park. Sounds nice, posh, affluent, well heeled. After all, Bruce Springsteen is a big fan of the place, as is Mr Bongiovi.
Nah, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow…
Shit, I was drinking bottled water like it’s going out of fashion and I’m just sweating it all away.
After we got back from Suspenders, John was nearly ready to take us of to the HITS festival in Asbury Park, New Jersey. We got our gear, loaded it in the van and went via Jersey City to pick up some friends of his, before making for the Garden State Parkway and heading South. Now the last time I saw someone heading South on the GSP, Pauly Walnuts and Christopher got lost in the wilds of South Jersey, in the snow and had a battle for survival, with a mad Russian, who refused to die. No snow now though. Just blazing sunshine and unbelievable heat.
I didn’t realise just how far south, Asbury Park actually was. I thought it was just a few miles, maybe half an hour tops, but it was well over an hour’s drive. And, trust me you simply are not prepared for the sight that greets you as you enter the city.
I suppose I had some image in my mind that was a cross between Atlantic City, Blackpool and Scarborough. This was the seaside, but in America, so, better sea and sand, with all the glitz and glamour that you see in all those mob movies. You know the ones. The smart mouth guy, usually played by Joe Pesci goes off to the Jersey coast, wins big, pisses off some wiseguy and ends up in the trunk of a Cadillac Seville, gaffer-taped like a Thanksgiving Turkey, before ending up on his knees, an untraceable .38 pointing at his brain stem, falling face-first into an pre-dug grave, in a field in the middle of nowhere, shortly after the back of his head gets blown off.
Do I watch too many movies?
Anyway, Asbury Park. Sounds nice, posh, affluent, well heeled. After all, Bruce Springsteen is a big fan of the place, as is Mr Bongiovi.
Nah, I’ll tell you about it tomorrow…
We got to The Stone Pony, got our arm bands, had a quick look around then headed off to the hotel to freshen up, before making our way back to the Stone Pony, to prepare for The Skeptix big show.
So, how were the guys?
Chig was, well, Chig. He knows exactly what he is and does the best he can, relative to his level of intoxication. By the time they were ready to go on, Chig had had enough to drink to loosen him up but not so much that he couldn’t play.
Gash was surprisingly calm, looking cool and, obviously, his army training was coming into its own now, as he remained supremely in control under pressure.
Fish was all worked up and very highly strung. And so he should have been. Ha! He was having to borrow a guitar and couldn’t find the guy who was lending it to him with less than half an hour to go! Fish is a professional musician and likes to be prepared. If he, or someone else in the band, is not prepared, or has had more to drink than they should have to play at their best, Fish gets upset. I understand why that is. People pay to see you. They should always get your best. You should always give your best.
Usher, is an enigma. He always sounds drunk and looks drunk, whether he is or not. From the moment we landed, Ush was pissed to some degree or other. He never sobered up, just kept topping up the alcohol level!
Me? Actually, I had had a couple of Rolling Rocks at Suspenders, but it was so hot I had resorted to drinking water to keep me hydrated, with the odd beer every now and then to keep my alcohol level above zero, you understand. What did I have to worry about? All I was doing was taking pics and video from the stage. I had no probs
So, how were the guys?
Chig was, well, Chig. He knows exactly what he is and does the best he can, relative to his level of intoxication. By the time they were ready to go on, Chig had had enough to drink to loosen him up but not so much that he couldn’t play.
Gash was surprisingly calm, looking cool and, obviously, his army training was coming into its own now, as he remained supremely in control under pressure.
Fish was all worked up and very highly strung. And so he should have been. Ha! He was having to borrow a guitar and couldn’t find the guy who was lending it to him with less than half an hour to go! Fish is a professional musician and likes to be prepared. If he, or someone else in the band, is not prepared, or has had more to drink than they should have to play at their best, Fish gets upset. I understand why that is. People pay to see you. They should always get your best. You should always give your best.
Usher, is an enigma. He always sounds drunk and looks drunk, whether he is or not. From the moment we landed, Ush was pissed to some degree or other. He never sobered up, just kept topping up the alcohol level!
Me? Actually, I had had a couple of Rolling Rocks at Suspenders, but it was so hot I had resorted to drinking water to keep me hydrated, with the odd beer every now and then to keep my alcohol level above zero, you understand. What did I have to worry about? All I was doing was taking pics and video from the stage. I had no probs
The time came and the previous band came off stage. I went on and gaffer taped set lists down and then I looked up and out at the audience... it seemed like most of New Jersey was out there, staring expectantly at the stage!
As for their performance, I really couldn’t tell you whether it was good, bad, or indifferent, I was so busy, trying to get good video footage and good pictures that, I hardly heard the music. I wanted to get some unusual footage, from on-stage, behind the drum kit, front of the stage, of the crowd. I did too. I spent a lot of time filming the crowd. They were all so young. The Skeptix and myself are all of a certain age. My eldest daughter is older than some of those young kids who were singing along to Skeptix songs - songs that were written before they were even born!
Like I said, I can’t remember much about the performance other than that Gash was a star. He did a fantastic job. He could quite easily have folded under pressure and forgotten words, panicked and made everybody look bad, but he didn’t. He actually added a dimension that The Skeptix didn’t have in Blackpool: motion. I realise that Snotty can’t do anything about his condition but Gash’s ability to stalk around the stage leant an air of menace to the band that is otherwise lacking.
All in all they all did well. The crowd loved it – I have the pictures to prove it. This was the show that we all went over to do; them to perform; me to record for posterity. It went well. Anything else was a bonus.
The rest of the day was devoted to schmoozing, handshakes and drinking.
As for their performance, I really couldn’t tell you whether it was good, bad, or indifferent, I was so busy, trying to get good video footage and good pictures that, I hardly heard the music. I wanted to get some unusual footage, from on-stage, behind the drum kit, front of the stage, of the crowd. I did too. I spent a lot of time filming the crowd. They were all so young. The Skeptix and myself are all of a certain age. My eldest daughter is older than some of those young kids who were singing along to Skeptix songs - songs that were written before they were even born!
Like I said, I can’t remember much about the performance other than that Gash was a star. He did a fantastic job. He could quite easily have folded under pressure and forgotten words, panicked and made everybody look bad, but he didn’t. He actually added a dimension that The Skeptix didn’t have in Blackpool: motion. I realise that Snotty can’t do anything about his condition but Gash’s ability to stalk around the stage leant an air of menace to the band that is otherwise lacking.
All in all they all did well. The crowd loved it – I have the pictures to prove it. This was the show that we all went over to do; them to perform; me to record for posterity. It went well. Anything else was a bonus.
The rest of the day was devoted to schmoozing, handshakes and drinking.
Now that the big performance was over, each Skep proceeded to celebrate in his own way. Chig and Usher drank themselves steadily to a state of stupor. Gash drank but seemed to have hollow legs and never became anything other than happy. So many people came up to them to be with them, I was quite frankly amazed that my friends should be so hero-worshipped. I, simply by my association with them, was also of interest to these seekers of their idols.
I spent much of the evening wandering around, watching the bands and taking pictures of the ones I enjoyed. I realised that, as I would be unable to download my pictures to a computer until I returned home, I would have to be careful. I had the capacity to take some 600+ photos, but that had to include not just the HITS festival, but also a trip to New York, the Long Island gig and any craziness that went on in the meantime.
So, which bands did I see that I really liked?
Well, before I give the honourable mentions, I should say that all the bands that appeared over the weekend deserve a huge amount of respect, as do Darren and Jenny, the organisers, and all the staff at the Stone Pony, except for that miserable fat fuck behind the bar, who had all the personality of a stepped-in turd.
With such a big festival as this, you can’t possibly see everyone in full. You have a tendency to catch bits and pieces as bands overlap and you are bound to miss someone. Thankfully, The Skeptix would be playing a gig on Monday with all the bands I had missed, from Friday, so that was OK. The only band I truly missed, totally, all weekend, was Electric Frankenstein. They went off just as we arrived on Saturday. I was really pissed about that.
Click here for a reviews and pics from the Saturday
I spent much of the evening wandering around, watching the bands and taking pictures of the ones I enjoyed. I realised that, as I would be unable to download my pictures to a computer until I returned home, I would have to be careful. I had the capacity to take some 600+ photos, but that had to include not just the HITS festival, but also a trip to New York, the Long Island gig and any craziness that went on in the meantime.
So, which bands did I see that I really liked?
Well, before I give the honourable mentions, I should say that all the bands that appeared over the weekend deserve a huge amount of respect, as do Darren and Jenny, the organisers, and all the staff at the Stone Pony, except for that miserable fat fuck behind the bar, who had all the personality of a stepped-in turd.
With such a big festival as this, you can’t possibly see everyone in full. You have a tendency to catch bits and pieces as bands overlap and you are bound to miss someone. Thankfully, The Skeptix would be playing a gig on Monday with all the bands I had missed, from Friday, so that was OK. The only band I truly missed, totally, all weekend, was Electric Frankenstein. They went off just as we arrived on Saturday. I was really pissed about that.
Click here for a reviews and pics from the Saturday
