Ed Cole celebrates his personal decade with Birdie Jo.


How many times have I laughed myself pissing while watching Birdie Jo? I don't really know, but when I saw them play again on Saturday night, I was definitely laughing with all the glee of a 26 year-old, self-pissing geezer instead of a 36 year-old one. Long live Birdie Jo! I have been seeing this band for ten fucking years now and I am still awed and inspired every time I see them play. Pedro, Michael and ScottK and Amy - I idolize you all. I don't know what it is you do, but you must do it good because I keep coming back.
The first time I saw Birdie Jo was the first time I had ever been inside Sam Bond's Garage in early 1996; the experience was good. I was introduced to two of my favorite things in Eugene in one night. Birdie Jo were just a three-piece band then and they sounded nothing like I thought they would. I had already met ScottK at the health food store he used to work at. I thought he was the kind of guy who would have a raging punk band. Birdie Jo was not that kind of a band. They were punk in attitude, but they played a weird brand of clanky, working-class folk-punk.
Quietly, the band rumbled along with a dis-jointed yet compelling sound. The lyrics were great - they sounded like they could have been written by either Charles Manson or Woodie Guthrie or possibly by both. And then there was Pedro; the matinee idol of the Eugene underworld.
Pedro was playing sitting down that night and had also lost his voice. He kept yelling, "I'm a twelve-year-old boy! I'm a twelve-year-old boy!", and it sounded like he meant it. He was strumming spastically at a bass with both of his hands and fingers covered with duct tape - why, I'll never know(or care) but it was funny as hell to see him strum and yell. Pedro was a spaz, but he played and sang with all of his heart and somehow that heart-felt feeling came through in his forceful, spasmoditic performances. It was often both hilarious and moving to watch at times.

Over time, many of my own bands ended up playing shows with Birdie Jo. One night in the Fall of 1996, Birdie Jo and a band I had called "Seat" or something played a show at the old John Henry's along with a bunch of other local bands for a KWVA birthday show or something. ScottK, Amy and Michael were playing, sitting down, without Pedro - just drums, guitar and cello, no bass - and this huge frat guy was very drunk and aggressive with the band. He showed his dislike of the music by standing menacingly on the stage, staring down at the band and trying to challenge ScottK to a fight.
Scott turned him down and this guy ended up being drunk, violent and belligerent
all night long, much to everyone's dismay. But I always admired ScottK's ability to send the guy on his way without provocation or hard words. He was under the power of Birdie Jo.

The other night was their annual Thanksgiving reunion show. Seeing Pedro walk in with his mohawk cracked me up. I just about pissed myself.

If you ever come and see them, wear adult undergarments.

Birdie Jo rocks! They are unique freaks of nature and prime examples of all the goodness that humanity has to offer.

Give thanks, the bird is dead...

Man, Thanksgiving was pretty mellow this year, but mellow is good. I feel well-rested and well-fed and I am thankful for that. Tina made a medium-sized turkey bird with all the trimmings. Quite delicious! I am the beneficiary of some fine-ass cooking. Zook came over and ate and commenced hanging out for a couple of hours while we watched a really crappy English movie called Love, Actually. Sucks, Actually is what I was thinking the whole time. No gunfights and no car chases; it didn't feel at all like a thnksgiving movie. Oh well, better luck next year.
Now, I am oh-so-happy to be back at work the day after, lifting the produce boxing and slinging the B.S. with my workmates. Later, I work the soundboard at Sam Bond's Garage for reggae singer Norma Fraser. Should be a good show.Tomorrow, I work the Birdie Jo reunion show, same venue. If you see me at either show, come over and say "hi".

Over and oot,

Ed

Saturday was a most amazing day/night.

I've been going pretty hard-core lately, what with school and work and band and all the other things that go into being a human resident of planet Eugene. I often think of my many friends who seem to also be pushing themselves into an exhaustive, cathartic state of art-worship and party culture that kind of defines the state of our intersecting music and social scene - Mr Random, Shawn Mediaclast, my girl Tina and many other bands and persons. Why do we do it? Work at our jobs to survive, spend precious few moments with our families some weekends, go out and play in our bands or dj gigs or performance stuff or whatever, only to return to school/work on Monday, frazzeledand burnt-out, only to do the same thing all over again the next weekend. That being said, I must tell you of my Saturday experience.
Saturday evening started out pretty well. After a pleasant family dinner of stir-fry and rice - we often enjoy a nice, healthy meal before going off to our various rock and roll events. I dropped Cosmo off at the McDonald Theatre, where the Cherry Poppin' Daddies were playing and then I was off to KWVA, where the Underlings were slated to play live, on-the-air.
Mike Z, Dylan and I played pretty damn well on the Baker's Ball show. It was totally fun; the fun was total. I think we sounded pretty good, also.
Later, I loaded some gear for Tina's gig at the Downtown Lounge and then made my way to John Henry's for my gig. Mikey and I hung at SNAFU club for a drink and then to D-Lo to hang with the Ov's a bit, finally making it back to our show, ready to play at 1 am or so.
When we hit the stage, it was like a sack of wet corn-meal splatting on a sidewalk. We played what was possibly the worst show ever - well, at least the worst show I've played since the Garden Weasel show at the Jambalaya club in Arcata circa October 1991. It was...terrible! We fucking bombed, worse than I can remember having ever bombed before. I couldn't even tell that drums were being played. Dylan broke a bass string. I forgot my lyrics and felt like I was in a vaccuum of suck-ness. What was to blame? The patron saint of unconcious drummers worldwide, alcohol? Or was it just that the stars mis-aligned and pulled is into the vomitrous nebula of anti-music? I gave up and lay down onstage and just let chaos reign. We couldn't even finish a song all the way through. It was either hilarious or disaserous or both. But at least it will make a good story for the grand kids.

Shawn and Prudence the wonder-pug dropped in to listen at Sam Bond's on Friday. How is it that I know so many cool mammals?

I like school, but I have some bad habits left over from my care-free days in highschool that have got to go. The classes I like I charge into pretty full-steam. The classes I don't like, however, I have a hard time keeping up with.
I took my career guidance class mainly to fulfill a requirement. It is terrible - the teacher is nice, but the rest of the kids in my class are half my age. Also, I am forced to examine myself - my likes, dislikes, personality qualities, etc...- so that I might land in a future job environment better suited to my skills. EEEEWWWWWWGGGHHH!!! I hate examining myself - I'd rather be an unknown quanity. Also - I hate all jobs equally! I don't want to work - I just want to be holed up in a creepy mental institution with coffee and pills and a cassette recorder and a ukelele or something. Still, I think I will hang in there in the world of school and work for awhile longer yet.

I went to see No Means No last Thursday for only the ninth time since 1989. They seemed well, although both bassist Rob Wright and guitarist Tom Holliston seemed tired. Still, they always play their own brand of complicated jazz-punk as if their lives depended on it - i.e. the only way to play.
My hero-worship of No Means No is akin to what I feel about Mike Watt or DOA - those are some of the only bands out there that have lasted and still participate in the get-in-the-van punk ethos. They'll never be rich or famous, but they are doing what they do out of love and commitment to their music. That's always what I've wanted to do when I grow up.
My Underlings played at Sam Bonds on Friday and it was good. Many work friends were there + of course Monsieur Random and Tina. That night, Dylan and Mikey became a "crack" rhythm section. They truly filled in the cracks and also played like they were on crack. All I had to do was just slop down some music and they would spread it and flatten it out like they were laying a highway or somethin'.

If you don't know (or don't remember) who Stew is, you should familiarize yourself. An artist's artist, that's who he is.

School is starting to kick my ass. Actually, that's not true; LIFE is kicking my ass, in a good way and school is just one part of that. I am working as hard as I can to keep on top of my classes but I still feel dis-organized and un-focused. I'm glad to have a chance to break out of the old routine, 'cause working the natural foods circuit has become more and more like prostitution to me. Don't wanna do it.

Come see the Underlings play with Brooklyn songwriter Eef Barzelay at Sam Bond's Garage on Friday. I think we play at 9:30.

I've actually been writing a whole lot lately; just not on my blog.

I am really enjoying my writing 121 class at Lane. All the required reading and writing is working the brain muscles that have long sat, un-used in my cranium. Exploring topics such as Tupac Shakur's educated thugster-ism and former alcoholic/writer/living person Caroline Knapp's cautionary tales of boozin'-gone-bad, I have a hunch that my teacher is forcing my class and I to examine ourselves and our own motivations and perspectives, whether through writing about Thug Life or addiction. Yikes! Some of this shit is hitting too close to home for comfort. I would highly reccomend author Caroline Knapp's Drinking: A love story to any of my interested literary friends. (Dan Jones? Mrs. Random?Are you out there?)

In addition to all my school-orientation - by the way, I FUCKING LOVE SCHOOL! - I have been rehearsing as much as possible with the Underlings. Which, actually, isn't very much since all of us are going to school and/or working all the time. We are coming along, however, continuing to fuse soul and pop songs and Ramones-y garage rock and I home some people come out to Sam Bonds on November 3d to see us open for Brooklyn songwriter Eef Barzelay .

Here are some quotes copied out of my dad's WW2-era journal:

"If one complains to you for any cause, it is more a Godsend than a calamity, for he could do more harm by complaining to others about you.

A person who has had a grievance satisfied is a better booster than one who has had no grievance at all.

Right or wrong, the complainant has some merit on his side.

First maneuver is to give ground rapidly as, "I'm terribly sorry this has happened." This is known as rolling with the punch. Allow the complainant to get the beef out of his system without you fighting back. Amongst friends and family, familiarity wipes out restraints and we are more apt to rely on vocal force and bull-headedness.

A heated assertion draws a heated retort, and when heated, a mind is hermetically sealed to reason.

It is well to avoid vituperation, personal affronts, sarcasm, glittering wise cracks and half-baked opinions."

I reckon my father was around forty years old when he wrote that. I wish he had written a book.

The Underlings' show at Sam Bonds Garage went well. The people were there to be rocked and we rocked 'em. This was our second performance and I felt it went well - it's starting to feel like a band.

I Can Lick any Son of a Bitch in the House played after us and kicked some dust up with their hairy, American-roots /punk/bar-band music. People love sincere, shit-kicking bands at Sam Bonds and the place was packed to prove it.

Third band Hillstomp I had seen years ago at the Ash street Saloon in Portland. They are a blues two-piece band consisting of two guys, one on slide guitar and singing, the other on percussive buckets, metal things, washboard and also vocals. With good chemistry and sound, they had the minmal dancefloor at Sam Bonds PACKED with sweaty, drinking dancing humans. Disgusting! Yet, spirited revelry also, it was. I was impressed.

Tina had a show over at the Wetlands (although she caught the Underlings set and took that picture) so I hitched a ride over there and watched the last two songs of the Ovulators' set. They sounded good, and the room sound at Wetlands was suprisingly full and good. It seemed like a fun scene.

Then, packed up, went home, and slept zzzzz

My school has been going good, although I should be writing a paper right now instead of blogging. Until next time...

Mission of Burma, September 17th, 2006


My heart was slain by Mission of Burma last night. The band from the past coming back with a blast. Now I see where so many noisy/artsy/melodic/destructo-bands got their ideas from. I can remember feeling so turned on when I first discovered MOB when I was 18 - I bought a copy of Reflex magazine with a copy of 'This is not a photograph' included as a flexi-disc. I dropped the needle, and my brain was changed. MOB were chemical to me in the best way.
Last night was like that all over again. I went into the show with no expectations and my mind was blown with the first chord. I could wax eloquently about how surreal it was to hear 'That's when I reach for my revolver' in such a powerful, emotional way by three guys that could have been has-beens, but turned out to be the real shit instead-but I won't. My mind has been blown again, and it's just what I needed. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

An era has ended. Not just for you, not just for me, but for all of Eugene and Lane county.

I have dispensed with my long-time associate, the red-and-white Chevy van, that has served me so well since June of 2001. I know it's been said, many times, many ways, but a man ain't a man without his van. I feel a gaping hole in my heart, where my van used to be; a hole that will take a long time in healing before it is ready to allow another van in. But someday, I will have another van. MARK MY WORDS.

For months now, the red Chevy van was in a steep decline. When we took it up highway 58 about a month ago, past Oakridge & up 3,000 ft, the van, it was overheating and finally the fan belt broke. We made it back home the next day, trying to coast whenever possible to keep the van-ship from overheating. During our recent move, the old Chicken Ship of Love was sputtering and clanking - the drive line was developing problems and the engine was running but prone to overheating.



Finally, the red Van just bit it. It started to leak water out of the freeze plugs on the side of the engine. I drove it out past the airport on highway 99 yesterday and sold it to Pick-a-part salvage yard for a mere $75. It barely made it & it was overheating horribly, spraying water, clanking etcetera, but still, my faithful red one made it.
I rode my bike back into town and that was that,




Thanks, Red Van! May you rest in pieces and hopefully be recycled into many other vehicles. Long Live the Red and White Van!

Wow!@ I can't believe I haven't posted since 8/22. It seems like things keep happening in my life.

Tina, Cos and I moved over onto Churchill st, waaaay over in west Eugene. Kind of suburban-feeling; I think I just saw the Brady Bunch getting out of their mini-van down the street - but we love our pad- plenty of room for all of us + a wonderful back yard with nice, big trees. I can't wait to crank up the Marshalls and see how the neighbors react - I have a feeling they will all grow to love the rock.

Tina is off, on her way to fly to California and then Rhode Island, escorting her grandmother back home. I hope she has a safe and wonderful trip. That girl knows how to travel, though - let me tell ya.

The Underlings will debut this Saturday, September the 9th at 9pm at Luckeys Club Cigar (located by Broadway - or 9th ave) opening for the avante-new wave of TOUCHFORCE. If you are reading this, I hope you choose to attend, because I am particularly proud of how this new band is developing. These guys - Dylan Esmonde and Mike Z - are playing the sh*t out of the material, and it's really sounding fresh and full of potential. Garage-y yet pop and smashingly energetic; we'll knock your socks off and make you eat them.

PEACE!

Yay! I've been working all the time! Yay! I've been doing sound at both Sam Bonds Garage and Luckeys. Yay! I was deathly sick with a viral barfing affliction on Saturday and missed the Lane County Fair. Yay! Now I'm at work. Yay!

Music has been rocking and fresh. Sunday night I played music with my friends Brian and Don, jamming pretty hard on the Wipers tune Tragedy + some other song. Good licks, high kicks.

LAST night I went to Black Forest Karaoke for the first time on Tina's urging. Totally fun! I sucked, but tried hard to perform "Sunday Morning Coming Down" or "Sunday Morning Sidewalk" or whatever it was called. It is crazy to see how many people are into their own personal karaoke performances. Some were great, some were terrible, most were in between. I can't wait to go again.

Yippe!

E

Howdy kids.

Mr. Random, you are one open-minded mofo. It is always warming to see people going through their own musical metamorphisis. I can remember when I was 15 and 16, listening to shitty radio bands and then first becoming aware of Husker Du, Black Flag and the Meat Puppets and Minutemen - it was a mind blowing time that had a lasting effect on my musical directions since then. After the past 20 (!) years of musical exposure I sometimes feel burnt-out, as if the radiation emitted from all that potent, electric music has kind of melted my edges off and left me more than slightly jaded to many of the new bands and styles of music being created. Perhaps I need to steep myself in a new musical tea of influences; something new to destroy the old, like Black Flag forever destroyed Journey to me when I was 15. Only this time, what the hell is going to destroy Black Flag?

My forays into playing with new people has been pretty fruitful. I've met and rocked out with a number of drummers and bassists. I think I have my new line-up for my new band ALMOST set. Regardless of who is in it, the Underlings will debut on September 9th at Luckeys, opening for techno-trash rockers Touchforce. See you there.

R U Sk8 ing?
peace

Ed

I hate myself for not writing more often! I have a lot of stuff to get off of my chest, so let's just have at it:

#1: I've been auditioning several different drummers and bassists for my new band, which you will all hear about soon!
#2: I quit my stinky salsa-slave job and it feels really good. I am currently working at OGC again, handling the vegetables oh-so-carefully.
#3: I am going back to school - gotta get out of this werk-related rut I've been in - school seems like one of the only legitimate ways to survive WITHOUT A STUPID JOB!!!! I HATE JOBS!!! RAAAAAARRRR!!!!
#4: My new band has a name, and that name is the UNDERLINGS!!!!! Choke on that, suckers!!!!! Our first gig will be at Luckeys, September 9th, opening up for TOUCHFORCE, suckaaaaz!!!!!!!
#5: We're moving again, and we don't know exactly where yet, but we have about two weeks to figure things out.

Everything else is completely normal. Trust me.

Buon Serra from Italy!

This is our fourth day here. I am typing to you from an internet cafe in Vernazza, and I am very thrown off by the Italian keyboard layout/language preferences, so forgive me if this reads somewhat funkily.
We arrived in Milan early wednesday morning and immediately crammed ourselves on a bus to the city center train station, built by facist Mussolini in 1931. Milan is fast paced, dirty, expensive, dirty and also very pro-fashion and has tiny cars and zooming scooters everywhere. Did I mention how drty it was? It is a very dirty city, but also very exciting. After hopping the metro and landing in the center of old town, we registered at our hotel and then head for the Duomo, an amazing cathedral that took over 400 years to build - please google "Il Duomo" and see for yourself. We only took the self-led tour of the roof and outside, where you can view all of sprawling Milan in all of its oldness and glory. (oh yeah - no apostrophe on this keyboard - get used to it) A cabbie took us on a short tour of very-old, pre-Christian buildings and monuments - magnifico! We also did very much walking, enjoying beer and appetizers at a local bar and taking in the insane street scene on a warm summer night, with the fabulously-dressed Milanese sauntering about the streets. Outside the Duomo at night, we had coffee and gelato and viewed the absolute best people-watching I have ever experienced. Fashion in Milan is over the top, with even the poor street kids looking very chic and up-to-date. Unnecessary zippers, ripped jeans, t-shirts with sometimes vulgar slogans printed on them, hotties in skin-tight outfits that might make an American stripper gasp - everyone was wearing something completely different, yet they all looked distinctly Italian. Even the business men in their suits came in a huge variety - sometimes pin-stripes, sometimes bright colors, sometimes mafioso black and white, always impeccably fitted and usually travelling at high-speed on a scooter or in a tiny car.

Ok, I must run but I shall write more soon.

Ciao!

Hello, Peeps.

I'm getting married in five days. There is going to be a huge party. Cosmo, Dave Snider and I will be rocking out later, as will the Ovulators and djs Sleeve and the Audio Schizophrenic. I hope that you, if you are reading this, are indeed going to attend. If not, you'll be missing a swell party. Oh yeah, it's in Yachats on Saturday, 3pm.

Otherwise, I am looking forward to a very nice vacation to Italy, starting next week. I've never travelled abroad. Keep abreast, and I will let you know how it works out.

ps I can't wait to get away from my stressful job for two weeks. I can't wait to feel normal. Normal normal normal.

-Ed

O.k. - so, we've had faster internet for about a month now. I think I've finally worked the kinks out, got my computer tuned up and all that jazz. I am very stoked to now have a connection that lets me listen to KWVA while I surf. (Right now it's Nick Drake, as dj'd by Sleeven) That and also faster downloads for audio rulez. Hellow, twentieth century!

I'm getting the pressure to be more of a man at work. I'm counting the days until my head explodes - may you all be splattered with my remnants. I can't wait until a money bag falls out of the sky, knocks me off of my bike and solves all my problems.

17 days until the knot is tied and then...Italy. Hope to sees somes of yous there.

peace,

e

Awwwright. I've added two new ed cole songs to my myspace praofile (which would be myspace.com/edcolerocks )

I hope you humans are wrapping up a relatively relaxing weekend, as I am doing. Tina was at a bachelorette party/rainy campout last night - she came back looking like a forest-covered, smoke-flavored bachelorette - which, I suppose, she is. p.s. we're getting married in two weeks and then going on a magical journey, so stay tuned!!!!

peace out,

E

Hey - I hope you go to myspace.com/thepinkies and listen to the latest mp3, "Abandoned". We've recorded a couple versions; this one is particularly raw, so enjoy.

I've still got a few more rants in me before death overcomes us all. Lessee, here...

I witnessed Chanteuse last night at Sam Bond's Garage along with a very-pleased crowd of on-lookers and on-listeners. Their best show yet - they were real rock stars! Sleeve's distorted ukelele playing sounded like a face-shredding peel-out of sparks and loose gravel. Tina's drumming and singing was great - she kind of leads the band from behind the kit, the kit becoming like a throne room of sorts. And Chaia was wonderful - singing, bassing and tambourining all came into play. Bravo, Chanteuse!

wOrk has let up some and is not all-consuming. It is now just almost-all-consuming. Salsa slavery must end now! I call for a mutiny of all salsa-oriented workers and their friends and girlfriends. Now!! People, rise up from your couches, throw don't your remotes, turn off the internet and GO SMASH ANYTHING EVEN REMOTELY RELATED TO SALSA!!!!!!!!!!


Otherwise, things are fine.