last night we went to go see the panic channel at the dragonfly in hollywood. it's the first (secret) show of the new band of steve isaacs (vocals, guitar), dave navarro (guitar), chris chaney (bass), and stephen perkins (drums). in other words, jane's addiction with a different vocalist. that's not doing the band justice but that's how everyone else will know who they are so they better get used to it. ;)

twiddle thumbs and i wanted to get there early to insure a spot up in front. neither of us have ever been to the dragonfly before. we were looking forward to going to the venue. the show was supposed to be at 10pm, doors at 9pm. we got there just before 8:20pm and were about 10th in line. i had passed the dragonfly when i was driving because it's such a low-key place, i didn't even notice it. i was able to find street parking right away so i thought i was lucky. *background organ music*

we got in and stood at the very right side of the stage, in front of where dave would perform. the staff was very tight with the way the crowd was standing/flowing. they marked on the floor, close to the bar, a walking path that must be clear at all times. if you stopped for two seconds, you were blasted with a powerful flashlight. makes you wonder if they were fined by the fire department in the recent past. i've never seen anything like it.

security was also pretty tight with cameras. they didn't inspect anyone walking in, but if they caught you taking pictures, you were out of there! some people were just taking pictures of their friends or the stage, and immediately either their camera was confiscated or they were kicked out. i didn't really watch the action. i just knew to be careful. this was the debut performance of the panic channel and i wanted to document it! i set my mini disc's recording levels to the music being played over the system. i knew the band would be louder so i set it a bit low. then i waited...

for about 1 hour, we watched phil, the guitar tech. he was pretty amusing. twiddle thumbs said he was only half there. i doubted if it was even that much! he was so spaced out. he kept repeating his tasks. he must've tuned that same guitar 4 times! for a good 10 minutes, phil kept looking all over the place for a missing object. we kept guessing as to what it could be. eventually, he found it. he couldn't find his damn flashlight! it was right there the whole time. right in front of him. we saw it the whole time. if we knew what he was looking for...

during all this set-up gazing, i tried to peek at the setlist and write it down. i wanted to know the names of the songs, after all. i was able to write down all the songs except the first one. at one point, phil had several setlists and put one down for a moment. thank you! i was able to write down the first song. then phil crumpled up that setlist and threw it away. twiddle thumbs got pissed. she treats setlists like sacred objects. i guess i do too, but still i wasn't pissed. it's nothing to him. i knew that. however, if no one throws drinks in that trashcan, guess who's going through it after the show.

eventually the band walked on stage without any announcement, which threw me off guard. i immediately went to hit record on the mini disc so i had my head down when dave walked over and shook twiddle thumbs's hand first--she told me later. immediately they started playing. some people were taking photographs. i waited. i wanted to see if cameras would be taken away. no, people kept on flashing without consequence. i realized once the show started, the security didn't give a fuck. i was still very cautious but i took a few pictures with the automatic 35mm that i use at concerts i'm bold enough to take that big camera to. it's just not a stealth camera but it has zoom and takes great pics compared to my usual concert staple, the disposable camera.

i think it was right after the 4th song, i had a feeling that i should check the mini disc player. normally i keep it in my pocket but for some reason i thought it would be safer in my purse. i was horrified when i put my hand in my purse and discovered that the mic cable was unplugged. i must've unplugged it when i pulled out the camera. fuck!!!! i really liked the songs they just played and i don't have it recorded! i also had my digital camera with me and tried to take some video clips. i was very nervous about that. i didn't want to get busted because you have to hold out the camera for awhile to take video. i didn't want to get caught but i wanted to document it all.

crappy video still of dave from my camera

steve is 35 and looks much younger. i was shocked. he sounded good and the music was great. i was impressed. i was setting myself up for potential disappointment. after all, "strays" was a piece of poo. i was really digging some of the panic channel songs. dave is playing much heavier than i thought he would. he really fucked rocked some heavy riffs now and then that blew me away. stephen is a drumming animal, as always. chris plays the bass like he's in pain. the faces he makes! a kodak moment for sure.

after the band walked off the stage, a couple fans were too greedy and didn't ask the staff for stuff, they just got up on stage and took it. so all the setlists and picks were gone. i went to check the trash can for that crumpled up setlist. instead, i saw a pristine setlist right up at the top of the trash. no digging for me! so i grabbed it and in doing so, i realized that there was more than 1 copy. lucky! twiddle thumbs asked the guitar tech for some picks and he gave them to her. see, you can be polite and ask. you don't have to steal from the stage.

how are you to tell?

they were selling t-shirts and stickers in the corner of the venue. we had to get one for ourselves and our friends. we had 4 shirts and 5 stickers and the guy only charged me $30. he must've lowered the price 'cos i kept adding shirts to my order. i was so shocked by the price that i went back to buy 2 more shirts for other friends. he charged me $20 this time so in the end, it balanced out. a very good deal.

when we got back to the car, i had a parking ticket. i couldn't read the damn sign about parking because it had stickers and was painted over. assholes. i took pictures of the sign and from the point of view of my vehicle but as it was at night, you just couldn't tell that the fucked up sign was the one closest to my car. i should argue this one but i don't think i will. instead i will print out the picture and demand that with the fine i pay, they use the money to fix the sign!

concert tickets: free
souvenirs: $50
parking ticket: $40
an evening listening to the debut of the next big thing: priceless

setlist:
punish me
unholy ghost
loophole
bloody mary
she won't last
outsider
go on
half hearted
ashes