Superbowl or Superbore?

What to make of the story last week we found on Billboard.com (and which, by the time you read this, may already be official) announcing a Sept. 14 KROQ-sponsored “Levi's Inland Invasion 2” show, their “punk superbowl,” to be held at the behemoth Glen Helen Blockbuster Pavilion, with its star-studded lineup of Blink-182, the Offspring, Social Distortion, X, the Damned, TSOL, the Distillers, the Vandals, the Adolescents, Pennywise, GBH, Unwritten Law, New Found Glory, Bad Religion, and, if rumors hold true, the Buzzcocks and the Sex Pistols? We asked several smarty-pants denizens who happened to be milling around the LowBallAssChatter desk: “A Sex Pistols stadium show?” piped in one wag. “This is the answer to the question Pistol loyalists asked one another after the release of The Great Rock N Roll Swindle: Was it all just a money-making scheme?” “San Bernardino Sun, Sept. 15, 2002, Page 1, banner headline,” envisioned another. “4 Dead, 37 Injured in Devore Punk Melee.” Others seemed confused: “The Sex Pistols—I think that's my dad's favorite band.” “The Offspring—I think that's my dad's favorite band.” And another was miffed about the presence of Unwritten Law, Blink-182 and New Found Glory—and the Sex Pistols, for that matter—on a “punk” bill. The swindle, indeed, goes on. . . . (Rich Kane)



Amodeo: Eats Elk meat
Photo by Jeanne Rice
ROCK ME, AMODEO!
Somewhere between the all-ages loveliness of Chain Reaction and the Hub, the all-ages-with-alcohol-but-don't-ever-hope-to-see-your-friends'-bands-there dominance of the Galaxy Concert Theatre, Coach House, House of Blues and Grove Theater of Anaheim and the 21-and-over-only oppression of every other place, sits a hole—and Bobby Amodeo means to fill it. The ex-Wank member/ex-Linda's Doll Hut booker is having a go at booking an all-ages-with-alcohol (i.e., beer), 450-body capacity room in Garden Grove that he has dubbed the Headliners Ball, which by day is usually a nondescript-looking Elks Lodge on the corner of Trask Avenue and Newhope Street, in the shadow of the 22 freeway. Amodeo has held several weekend shows there now (most recently last week's Throw Rag/Bullets N' Octane/Motorsoule/Just Like Jesus/Void bill) and with, he reports, zero incidents of fighting or precocious young'uns trying to buy booze—factors that put the kibosh on two popular all-ages-with-hooch clubs of the past, the Ice House and Old World. “We've got awesome security,” says Amodeo. “When they do pat-downs at the door, they're not assholes about it; they're nice and smiling.” Some bands have initially been put off at the prospect of playing an Elks Lodge, but once they see the place, their thinking changes pretty quickly. “It looks like a big gym, like you're playing someone's prom,” he says, “but it's a beautiful room. Everyone's been really impressed.” The whole point is to give local bands—many who've been playing bars—the chance to perform to younger crowds. Amodeo says there's even potential for bigger, festival-type events at the Lodge, with its adjacent patio and grass area that can hold about 1,000 people. Meanwhile, Amodeo is starting to play and write songs again with the idea of forming a band, something he put a hold on after he was diagnosed with the big C in 2000. The new music, he says, is like Weezer meets Cheap Trick. “As long as I can stay healthy and strong, I'll keep at it. I just want to get out there and play with my friends, really, just see what happens. It's like starting over again, which is kind of cool,” he says. “Cancer's changed my outlook on life. I don't even like sleeping anymore; I feel like I'm wasting time.” (RK)

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