Page 37 - the NOISE October 2014

>> ContinUeD FRoM 31 >> WhisKey RoDeo the GReen RooM, lAte sePteMBeR ‘14
jjjjj review by clair anna rose
By tony BAllz
b Ugh
bb Eh
bbb Solid
bbbb Gold bbbbb Total Classic
it’s a beautiful Tuesday night in Septem- ber when I make my way through down- town Flagstaff. Rene Rivas breaks my speculative reverie as we walk by asking,
“You remembered your press pass, right?” Snap. I’m new to this “Press Pass” thing. After years of just wandering about and
using my smile as passport, suddenly I’m turned onto this new concept of a press pass. What? No flirting my way in? No sweet talking? Just a flash of a badge, no pearly whites needed and in we go? I gotta get me one of them press passes.
I did, but I never remember to bring it anywhere with me.
Fortunately for me the Noise’s newest photographer is a professional press pass protocol practitioner (for private lessons on spontaneous alliteration in modern conversations, contact me on Facebook.)
I try not to look suspicious as we walk into the Green room and slip behind the black curtain to where Whiskey rodeo is playing at a campaign fundraising event for Mayoral Candidate James Hasapis.
It’s been a while since I’ve heard Whis- key Rodeo play; the Flagstaff band has since relocated to Texas. On a tour back through old Flag Town they’ve stopped in to remind us of what we’ve been missing.
The crowd that turns out knows all the words and enjoys a walk down Whiskey Rodeo Memory lane. One of those in- cluded, is Mr. Hasapis himself, who shares with me some memories of Whiskey Ro- deo from their early days as a new band.
“I first met the guys of Whiskey Rodeo at Uptown Billiards (Uptown Pub House.) We used to hang out there with friends,” Mr. Hasapis tells me. “They started jam- ming on the patio. Eventually they per- formed a concert at the Uptown Billiards. I was hiring and scheduling acts that year for Pride in the Pines and I asked them to perform. I scheduled them to open for the festival and they played well, but there wasn’t much of a crowd. Later that afternoon, one of my acts didn’t appear. I saw Greg, told him the situation and he agreed to get the guys together and they played a second set. They got back
photo by rene r. rivas
on stage, played their set and the crowd went crazy.”
Mr. Hasapis tells me how tonight’s event came to fruition, “Whiskey Rodeo sent me a message they were going to be back in Flagstaff for the weekend and while they were here, they wanted to play a benefit concert to raise money for my campaign,” he says. “Of course I said yes and asked Rand Jenkins if we could use the Green Room and it just came to- gether. It means a lot to me to have them come back to town and do this. We’re like brothers. We’ve been through a lot to- gether. To have that support from them means the world to me.
“Flagstaff is home to many of us. Wheth- er we grew up here or moved here from somewhere else. There is an attraction like no other. Our town is much more than community; it’s like one huge ex- tended family. The caring and support of our community can sometimes be over- whelming. Even when people move away from Flagstaff to accomplish their dreams, they come back and continue to be a part of us.”
It’s a lively evening, the band plays some originals and outlaw rock covers that are high in energy. Unfortunately for Flagstaff, Whiskey Rodeo has sold out of their newest CD at a previous stop on their tour.
Of course, my favorite part of the show is the bands very interpretive rendition of “Call Me Maybe.” Each verse progressed
further and further over the line of vulgar- ity and was much more inventive and the parodies much more entertaining than the pop hit, which, even though I’ve never heard it in its entirety, is now, once again, perpetually stuck in my head. Things quickly got back on track with a booty- shaking cover of “Fat Bottomed Girls,” though everything came to a screeching halt when Chase broke into a cover of Hansen’s “Mmmbop.”
| Clair Anna Rose is aware of ‘90s popmusic. clair@thenoise.us
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