What am I talking about? Employing the ol' "Do you know who I am?!" line when trying to gain entrance to a bar or nightclub in a town other than one's own. This past week I heard of two instances where the old saw was dragged out--once to no effect, the other to busted-face effect. First, I'll dazzle you with the violent happenstance. However, a little back-story: Years ago, when the Cha Cha first opened its doors, the hipster watering hole was half its current size and quite frequently had to turn eager patrons away. Jen Gallucci (Lipstick Traces owner and sister of Murder City Devil Dan Gallucci) worked the door in those days, and on one particularly packed night, Nation of Ulysses/ Make-Up frontman Ian Svenonious showed up but was denied entrance. Insulted that his D.C. cred did not gain him entrance on facial recognition alone, Svenonious trotted out with great huffiness, snarling the old "Do you know who I am?" threat, to no avail. (But to utter hilarity and the continued entertainment of Cha Cha regulars.)
Now, back to the present: When the Devils played the Black Cat club in D.C. last week, Svenonious asked to be put on the Black Cat's guest list. Midway through the set, singer Spencer Moody recounted Svenonious' behavior at the Cha Cha door that fateful night (mockingly, one would assume, since Moody is a satirical sasspot). Not one to be mocked in his hometown, Svenonious waited until after the Devils' show to slip backstage and bitch slap Moody, breaking the singer's glasses in the process. Devil Nate Manny (Jen Gallucci's husband) jumped in and slammed Svenonious' face into the floor, and blood was spilled.
The lessons learned? Don't get huffy-pantsed at the door of an over-capacity bar. And don't mess with the members of the Gallucci family, be they related by blood, marriage, or band.
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But let's assume when the members of Alien Ant Farm tried to gain entrance to the Baltic Room last Thursday night, the band hadn't heard of the tragedy that only one day earlier had befallen Svenonious. Without ID, the doorman couldn't let the group in. "But we're in Alien Ant Farm," they protested. Still, AAF was sent away to retrieve proper identification. Upon returning with ID, the band was then asked to pay $5 cover. "But we're in Alien Ant Farm." Eventually they paid the cover, and enjoyed themselves heartily. As the bar closed, they lingered until they were asked by the Baltic Room staff to leave. "But we're in Alien Ant Farm," the guys protested yet again, but were still shown the door. The persistence of Alien Ant Farm is almost cute, isn't it?
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Fremont institution Sonic Boom has opened a second record store, this one in Ballard. Word is that the space, located at 2209 NW Market Street, is twice as big as the Fremont store, which means lots more room for bands to play live. Grand Opening weekend happens over the last weekend of Rocktober, with the lovely Shins on Oct 26 at 6 pm, Lanterna on Oct 27 at 5 pm, and Dear John Letters on Oct 28 at 5 pm. And while we're on the subject of in-stores: Zeke will grace the stage at West Seattle's Easy Street Records on Oct 23 at 6 pm.
