"Save The Stupid Tree House In The Woods" Benefit Show at American Legion
"Thank god the relief efforts in Haiti worked, so let's save the stupid tree house in the woods," said the lead singer of Ice Cream, before the band started a set that, to say the very least, blew my mind and took me through a journey of all my years following underground music.
Friday night, March 12, I went out to The American Legion in the Upper East Side for the Hostel In The Forest Benefit Show. I know that American Legion has been hosting a lot of shows and parties, so I wanted to check out the venue, as well as support a benefit concert featuring art and music.
According to their website, The Hostel in the Forest is "a center which promotes and teaches environmental sustainability, while also serving as a spiritual retreat, and hostel for international and domestic travelers." The benefit show was to buy some more land so the Hostel could expand into neighboring plots.
Truthfully, there was not a whole lot going on at the show. I don't know if plans were ruined because of the weather, or because they just didn't have that much planned - but what else could you expect form Nu-Hippies (not exactly known for their organization abilities)?
Either way, there was art from one artist, Reiner Gamboa, for sale in silent auction.
But, the highlight of my night was "freak-out band" Ice Cream.
I was a huge punk rock fan growing up. In Miami, that automatically meant that I was a fan of Against All Authority. But really there was one person who had the largest influence on my "punk" life, beginning with a music video that I saw in 1991, Henry Rollins' Liar.
His music so completely typified my teenage anger, that I felt he was the voice in my head telling me to hate the world around me. After that point it was an easy transition to find his previous band, Black Flag. Again, Black Flag was the sound of my early development as a social outsider. My War and Slip It In are two of the best and most angry albums I have ever heard in my life.
Ice Cream personifies a modern version of Black Flag. Their lead singer is confrontational, aggressive, and generally disinterested. Several times he marched his way through the crowd, got in people's faces, kicked around some chairs, and at the end of their set dropped the mic and abruptly left.
Their music is equally aggressive, but with a heavy foundation on, what I could only describe as, satanic chanting. If you to go their myspace page you can listen to the songs from their debut EP, Pussy Rot. Their recordings really capture the mesmerizing flow of their chant, but doesn't capture their live aggressiveness in any way whatsoever (a constant complaint of Black Flag as well).
Beyond that, this show was pretty surreal, and it brought several questions to my mind:
1. Why are there no fat hippies?
2. Are lycra and spandex eco friendly?
3. And, most importantly, how does a show like this occur at The American Legion?
Let's not fool ourselves here: what has happened to the anti-societal message of underground culture? I remember growing up watching Dee Snyder testify in front of congress why they shouldn't ban music because it had bad words.
Seriously, 20 years ago, Congress considered banning certain music because of bad words! Even stranger, in the 1950's, Elvis was considered obscene because he shook his hips while he danced.
But, in the year 2010, we can have an underground hippie and punk rock show in The American Legion without there even being a shred of social attention paid to it (and don't even get me started on the fact that Ice Cream's logo on their myspace page is an upside pentagram, the recognized symbol for Satanism).
What happened? At what point did art and music get free reign to do whatever they wanted? When did music lose it's danger?
My theory is that Marilyn Manson pushed the restraints of mainstream music so far, that unless someone literally murders someone on stage, or rapes children, or does something overtly dangerous, it won't garner a shred of attention (I can't even say illegal because musicians always talk about doing drugs and are rarely arrested on site). I think it is possible that music will never be able to push people out of their comfort zone ever again.
And trust me, it didn't go unnoticed by Ice Cream. If I was 15 years old again, and this was 1995, and a band like Ice Cream would have taken the stage, there would have been a massive, and probably extremely dangerous, mosh pit. But what is the crowd's reaction in 2010? Sitting in chairs and laughing and smiling as the band played. Some people danced but other than that... zilch.
What was the bands reaction? A short set and a complaining lead singer. It must feel strange to play rebellious music, only to be met with applause and words of encouragement.
How deflating. Even check out these two videos. The first from Ice Cream's kick off tour, the second from a concert in 1981 from a High School with Black Flag and Dead Kennedys:
Is that not the two most strikingly different scenes you've ever seen?
I'm still reserving any judgment if this is good or bad. I suppose it just shows the difference of what'll happen if you repress underground and youth culture (1981) versus societal acceptance of it (2010). One is an aggressive and angry response, fighting against the oppression, and the other is calm and pretty positive (other videos of Ice Cream's even show groups of kids dancing together!).
These times are a changing, that's for sure.
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NOTE FOR COMMENTS: Do not flame or leave obnoxious comments, THEY WILL NOT BE APPROVED. Constructive criticism should always be welcomed by any artist, but don't be a d-bag, show some class. Thanks. - REVMiami Staff
The show was for a good cause, and this article completely ignored that. The author should have spoke to the person throwing the benefit show and used a quote from her, not the really insignificant quote used at the beginning. All he wrote about the cause was: "The benefit show was to buy some more land..." And then he dismissed the show as unorganized, though he obviously didn't speak to the people who put it all together to find out what work went in to it. Did the rain affect plans? he asked. Don't ask in an article! Ask before you write and publish something! It shows that the article was a whole lot of BSing. Do your research.
A journalism class wouldn't hurt is all I'm saying.
Naomi,
I had absolutely zero interest in the "good cause" that the show was for. I wrote an article about a band, and made a brief mention of the cause, because I didn't care about it or care to learn anything about it. If anything, I felt that the brief mention of the "good cause" was doing someone a favor, but apparently that isn't the case. Next time, I'll completely ignore it.
Just because you found it important doesn't mean you should force it down other's throats. If you feel it's that important than do something about it, not just bitching and complaining that other people could care less.
Ric
thanks for writing this article, it was well written and put together... but maybe im just saying that cause im in ice cream haha... in all seriousness its very much appreciated and hopefully people will bleed at our next show.
oh and ive questioned myself several times why the fuck they have shows at the american legion... its pretty bizarre and mildly hilarious.
I'm glad you guys liked the piece. I know I keep saying it, but I really like your music a lot. So keep it up!
And truthfully, I think it's cool that more venues are opening to allow shows. It's better than trekking out to Churchills every single night. But what's weird is you guys playing in a place that is the support group for soldiers, especially from World War II! Like, the place you'd expect the most social repression, and there you guys are playing... definitely bizarre and mildly hilarious.
Good! You SHOULD leave it out next time if you don't care enough to be accurate. I'm just saying that if you would have asked the people who put it together how they ended up at the Legion, your article would have had more substance, rather than solely being based on assumptions and your memories of the 80s. You could have taken out that 4th/5th paragraph and it wouldn't have affected your piece at all. That's pretty high up in an article for insignificant material to be placed.
P.S. I have nothing to do with the cause and don't really care about it. The article's lack of journalistic effort just bothered me.
thanks man we are actually recording our LP, it has about 12 songs in it... we just started so should be ready in a month or two, but ill give you a free copy for sure... i think you might have talked to roy about all this though.
Naomi i dont want to be a dick but the man said the article is about us not the fucking treehouse, so if you had nothing to do with the cause then get over it and move on man.
Lady, have you never read a friggin' blog before? Holy crap man. It's 2010, this isn't new technology for christ sake. Blogging = personal experiences that people write about because they aren't crappy newspapers that are a failing industry that no one gives a shit about. God, get with the times man.
Oh, my bad. I thought it was an online magazine. Well, as long as we've all agreed there's no journalistic integrity behind the website, I'll move on... Have a good one!
LOL. As long as we're agreeing.
Your review doesn't make me want to go to the legion or support any new, local acts and kind of makes me raise an eyebrow about whatever friend you appear to have in Ice Cream. Even if that's just an assumption, it's not hard to see why I'm assuming it. Things like that just kind of cheapen your work and the band because it kind of just looks like you're ruthlessly pitching your friend's act.
Your review also doesn't make me want to read any of your demeaning comments.
You could bother with a steaming, defensive retort or you could just take this as a bitch slap reality check. The main thing you should get from this message is this: you may think that taking defense and berating your readers is protecting your integrity but all the readers see is an insecure person masking any shortcomings with pretension and elitism.
Get a pen name if you already haven't.
Tootles.
Yes, I have friends in Ice Cream. REVMiami has existed for over 1 year, and I decided only now to review them, because I was lurking and waiting to bring in new readers, only to spring upon them my friend's band so that they unwittingly will go and check out their music!
I am so evil. You caught me.
Truthfully, not that it matters if I have friends in Ice Cream or not, I don't know any of them at all, I just enjoyed their music, and enjoy supporting a group whose art I enjoy.
I suppose, what you're saying, is that I should write articles that bash bands and talk about how much they suck, because that is... not pretentious and elite? Doesn't make much sense.
Additionally, you set up a situation that saying my responding to a persons' (not a reader, because anyone who regularly reads the site would never say anything related to "journalistic integrity", my work speaks for itself) negative comments against me, is, by default, "defensive", and yet somehow, your negative comment is a "bitch slap of reality."
So, by your logic, I should let people make extremely negative comments about me personally, not that you or the other comment knows me in anyway whatsoever, and I should also let them ignorantly (ignorant meaning lack of knowledge) insult me and just suck it up and take it.
I think you have a pretty warped sense of reality. If you don't like my writings or the site, then you are perfectly free to not visit it. Like your mama should've told you, "if you don't have something nice to say, you shouldn't say anything it all." And you really would be mistaken thinking that I wouldn't defend myself.
"Tootles" (god what a condescending thing to say)
By the way, this is the one negative about supporting bands and events run by young people. Passion comes out in several forms, one being the response of the guys in Ice Cream, which is a lot of appreciation, and recommending REV to a lot of different people, or the other side, absolute negativity and flaming.
It's ok, I welcome it, truthfully. I understand the strength of opening up music scenes to young people, but there is a definite negative to it.
haha sounds like some people are bitter
It's alright. Like I said, it's all part of including young people in a discussion, etc. Lots of passion, and youthful revolt, teenage angst.
But, just keep in mind, I am probably the most tolerant people out there. But club owners, promoters, and "music professionals" absolutely can't stand it in any way whatsoever. There's a reason why there are never "all-ages" shows anymore (not in normal venues at least), and why there are a lot of 21+ shows.