Photos: Aleš Podbrežnik
Venue: Orto bar, Ljubljana, Slovenia
Concert date: 09.04.2009
Attendance: 180
Ticket price: €10 in advance
Who doesn’t know the little, bouncy guy, the chieftain of American punk rockers Lagwagon, Joey Cape, who played Ljubljana’s Orto bar on Friday, April 10, as part of the tenth-anniversary Orto Fest? This time we didn’t get Joey as the buzzing, hyperactive frontman we’re used to from the concert stages he shares with those boys, but in a completely different light. Punk rock in a much calmer, acoustic version. Sounds weird? Not at all. Who needs electric and bass guitars and drums when you’ve got a legend like Joey up there to marvel at? On top of that, he turned out to be a big joker, at his own expense and everyone else’s. No holding back and none of that famous bullshit. Just down-to-earth, with an incredible feel for the crowd. A big whiskey lover, though that night he treated his hangover with juice vodka instead, because (in his words) another night of whiskey would have been a bit much. So what about the famous saying, “hair of the dog”?
The thankful or thankless job of opening fell to Chad Rex – a raging beast, as he likes to describe himself. Even though his music is the complete opposite. The mellow ballads proved it, and they drew a crowd, so that the upstairs of Orto was enviably full for that hour. I can’t remember any set, ever, being as full of emotion as this one. Doubt it? Listen to “Breakin` Down 4 the 3rd”, “Righted”, “Mile Marker Town”, “Blankshot Man” or “Postcarted” and you’ll know what I’m talking about. Chad, who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the much bigger Bruce Springsteen, had no trouble warming up the crowd.
Jon Snodgrass, the guy in the big black-framed glasses, is a whole other story. His country-style songs are goofy and funny, his melodies refined, and his live performances hard to put into words. But above all, they’re full of energy and interaction with the crowd. At this show the crowd picked the songs it wanted to hear all by itself. And Jon delivered. Some he played gladly, others he’d rather skip and pick new ones.
And last but not least, there’s little Joey Cape. Besides the stuff mentioned above, the legendary frontman of California punk rockers Lagwagon has been seen over the years as the singer of Bad Astronaut, who sadly broke up after the death of drummer Derrick Plourde, and as a guitarist in Me First And The Gimme Gimmes. We absolutely can’t skip the duet with yet another legend – Tony Sly, singer and guitarist of No Use For A Name. Cape has tried his hand at producing, too. Besides the Lagwagon and Bad Astronaut albums, his work includes the records “Blue Skies, Broken Hearts … Next 12 Exits” and “End Is Forever” by pop punkers The Ataris, and “Nerf Herder” and “How To Meet Girls” by the rowdy Nerf Herder. His first solo studio album, “Bridge”, came out last October 21 on Bad Taste Records in Europe and Suburban Records in America. The bouquet of twenty-six songs you could hear at Ljubljana’s Orto bar was made up of songs from his debut, Lagwagon classics and a few other projects. Rather than his own album, from which Joey played only five tracks (those being “Who We`ve Became”, “Errands”, “Canoe”, “No Little Pill” and “The Ramones Are Dead”), most of the repertoire was made up of Lagwagon epics. “Whipping Boy”, “May 16th”, “Razor Burn” and “Alien 8” are just some of the ones the crowd gathered at Mostovna in Nova Gorica on July 9 last year (report here) heard in full-on thrash, and this time in a softer rendition. Which one suits you better, you be the judge. It’s not an easy call, since both versions deserve to be sung to the rafters.
Just like Cape’s set, during which we found out what the gentleman treats his hangover with, had fun watching him try to say thanks in Slovenian, hunt for the setlist he “never brought on stage”, and enjoyed the other mishaps. Finally, Joey, Jon and Chad played the gathered crowd the NOFX classic “Linoleum” too, and the crowd took over the singing. That wrapped up an unparalleled evening of acoustic Lagwagon, Rex, Snodgrass and Cape. Still doubting that acoustic punk rock sounds good?
Photos: Miha Mally
Setlist
Joey Cape: 1. The Chemist 2. Not A Dull Moment 3. Whipping Boy 4. The Contontionist 5. Who We`ve Became 6. Wind In Your Sail 7. Move The Car 8. Killers And Liars 9. Errands 10. Canoe 11. Goodbye 12. You Deserve This 13. No Little Pill 14. Minus 15. Violins 16. Kids Are Alright Intro 17. May 16th 18. The Ramones Are Dead 19. Violet / 27 / Know It All / Razor Burn 20. I`m Not Gonna Save You —– encore —– 21. Burn That Bridge 22. 17 Years 23. 500 Miles 24. Alien 8 25. Kids Are Alright 26. Linoleum
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