By Scott Pam
My feet were tapping and I was ready to do the “pogo” again. I lost 36 years in one song by Bridger – I felt like I was 15 at my first Ramones show. It is hard to also get good photographs while doing the Pogo…
Bridger opened up the “CV Weekly Presents” show last Saturday night at Schmidy’s. Headlining the show was Se7en4 and the middle act was Th3 Strykes, an up and coming rap trio.
Way back in the 70s I found the Ramones and made 19 shows in four years. They were loud, fast, tight and were able to express raw emotion in three to four chords in three minutes.
Bridger is a modern version of the Ramones with a phenomenal drummer who rivals the skills of Neil Peart, two guitarists – one on rhythm and is also the lead singer, the other plays incredible leads – that bring the Ramones type sound and speed to a whole new level.
Taking the stage just about two months after their initial gig in December, the band demonstrated how much they have been rehearsing and how seasoned they are as musicians each in their own rights.
Katie and Jim Cathcart are sister and brother and cover drums, rhythm guitar and lead singing respectively. Jacob Miller handles lead guitar and Daniel Wheat handles bass.
Where the Ramones were three and four-chord simple, Bridger adds intricate leads and bass lines that give the songs depth and intricacy.
Next up was Thr3 Strykes, a high energy rap trio. SMALLZ (J RAW), PROTEK (Remedy), SURV1 (Petey Dolo) make up the trio.
The last rappers I covered was back in 1982 – Grandmaster Flash – and the style has totally evolved. Rehearsing next door to an up and coming rap/hip hop group in the 90’s was the second closest I got to the rap/hip hop scene.
Thr3 Strykes paid homage to those who came before them, dedicating a song to the Beastie Boys, who successfully mixed rock and hip-hip. The Beastie Boys actually started as a hardcore punk band in 1981 and made the transition when a band member left.
Thr3 Strykes gets their audience involved through their set giving them the lyrics to chant with the band during refrains. Their high energy set has them flying around the stage – jumping, dancing and other acrobatics – and at times crowd surfing. The photographic challenge is getting these guys captured….it’s easier to photograph moths in the dark. Their energy is infectious and the lyrics are catchy even if they are difficult to get on film.
The headliner band, Se7en4, is pure hardcore punk. Not one note was wasted on fluff or fancy riffs.
With Steven Hall on drums, Nick Flores fronting the band, Trevino Martin on bass and Pete Burquez playing guitar, there is pure raw punk energy. This is the same energy I found back in the late 70’s in clubs like CBGBs, Max’s Kansas City (last I saw it was now a nail salon…), Heat, and a few other clubs that were brave enough to host the scene. Due to its size, there was not much slam dancing at CBGBs…but other slightly larger venues had their share.
We did slam dancing back then. Most of the slam dancers were acts that would be on shortly and needed to make sure they stayed in good shape to play and get their money. At the show, there were a number of dancers who were quite a bit more energetic in their efforts to slam into other dancers.
After this many years out of the scene and carrying my pro camera system, getting into what this crowd was doing might have required care beyond three visits to a chiropractor and the inevitable repurchasing of a new camera and lens.
Se7en4 proudly carries on in the tradition of the great punk bands of the early scene in the 70s. Like other genres that many thought would come and go, punk lives on and is thriving with bands like Bridger and Seven4.
Phil and Tracy have found a great mix of bands to showcase here in the desert with their regular series of “CV Weekly Presents”.
