Punk is Alive and Well

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Halloween started off a tad early in grand style this past week. And in all places, Scottsdale Arizona (which is known for its snobbish attitude). Jason at Artist Development AZ is continually bringing great shows to the Venue of Scottsdale, and this show was no exception. The Venue was just absolutely packed to the gills almost as soon as the doors opened.

If you get the chance, you definitely need to check out Fiend Fest 2006. This was actually my first all punk show, and it was a blast. I say this with the utmust sincerity - freaks rule!! The crowd was extremely colorful, between the face piercings, face tattoos, hair styles and colors. And let's not forget the mini-skirts. The number of mini-skirts itself needs a separate nod of appreciation. The best part was that the age bracket encompassed 18 - 60 year olds. Everybody was having a good time.

Not sure who was on stage when I walked in, but they quickly left and then we were treated with the audio assault of UK Subs. Great band, great tunes and a definite crowd pleaser. Next up was Osaka Popstar - which included Marky Ramone (Ramones) and Jerry Only (Misfits) in their ranks, as well as Dez Cadena and Ivan Julian on guitars. Not sure who the hell the singer was. Various cover songs took new life and the band pounded them out to the crowd's delight.

The second most interesting band of the night took the stage - the Addicts. Known for their distinctive Clockwork Orange ‘Droog’ image, along with their urgent, uptempo music and light-hearted lyrics, set them apart from the rest of the bands. The kicker was the couple dozen beach-type balls that were inflated and tossed to the crowd during the end of the band's set.

At this point of the night, I was lucky enough to hang out with Jerry Only (Misfits) and Charlie Harper (UK Subs) backstage. It was rather humbling to be in the presence of such punk legends (thanks Jason!). Jerry treated me like he had known me for years.

Hitting the stage was the mighty Misfits. The crowd roared with approval. Jerry Only commanded the stage as they launched in to song after song with only a second between each one (Ramones style!). There are always people out there that are going to bag on the band because Doyle isn't there, or because Danzig isn't there, but let them. The band proved they are still a force to be reckoned with. They reminded the audience about punk from the old days, schooling a couple of the early opening bands in the process.

Overall it was a very impressive lineup, and its easy to see why the tour is selling out venues. No one walked away disappointed. And for people at the show such as myself, we walked away with a refresher course in Punk 101.