 Next Show
Tonight, Friday, July 3rd, 7:30 PM
Columbus Fourth of July Festival
Columbus, Wisconsin [Map/Directions]
Tour Blog: Friday June 26, 2009
Cross Plains World's Fair
Cross Plains, Wisconsin
Here's a recipe for my favorite summer rocktail:
* 1 part beautiful weather
* Multiple sultry chicks
* An assortment of studly dudes
* 1 giant tent
Stir ingredients together with a liberal helping of LUBE and you have the ultimate summer party!
One year ago, LUBE played the Cross Plains World's Fair for the first time. The weather was kinda crummy and some light rain fell that evening. Despite that, we were shown wonderful hospitality and the band did it's part to rock hard. It was a supremely good time. Now, fast forward to a couple days ago. Same scenario but with much better weather and fond memories of last time. As is becoming habit, the bar was raised once again!
The night got off to a tasty good start. An anonymous long-time LUBE fan (we'll refer to her secretly as "Rowan") connived with the seemingly innocent Jeff to see to it that Jager Bomb supplies were delivered back stage. Before you know it, a whole bunch of us had downed a couple of the murky yet quite savory and refreshing J-bombs. This helped loosen things up and prepare us for what would be a fierce night of rawk!
As we were taking the stage, folks began rolling through the entrance. And they kept coming and coming and coming and coming! Before you knew it, the Esser's Best was flowing liberally and the good time was on! To paraphrase Steve's 3rd cousin twice-removed Jon, "We saw a thousand faces...and we rocked them all!"
Buzz is our primary set list concocter and he did a most excellent job of preparing the show. It's a fickle business and crowds can sometimes be finicky. Not in Cross Plains, however. It was a superb arrangement of tunes and it had asses shaking for over four straight hours. I'm going to go out on a limb and say it's nearly impossible to NOT have a good time in this kind of setting! Brian and Curt were passing out stickers with reckless abandon and once again they were placed in some very provocative places! It makes for sweet people watching, you know, if you're a little voyeuristic and stuff. We even threw in a few impromptu Michael Jackson jams, complete with Buzz in a white glove, to commemorate his passing.
Alas, the party did have to come to an end at some point. After a rousing suggestion for "1 more song!" we decided we would play...2 more songs! We ran a little beyond our time limit but did so only with the agreement of the fans to leave as directed by the nice security officers. So we dropped a couple of rousing ditties and capped a stellar show with all the fanfare we could muster without a licensed pyrotechnician, the fire department, or farm animals. Good times in Cross Plains, good times indeed!
LUBE would like to thank Larry Esser and all those associated with the CPWF. Feel free to call Amy and have us back in 2010, too. We'd love to do it! Like last year, former LUBE drummer Todd's dad was making burgers (while wearing his vintage LUBE shirt) and we had a really nice talk. Once he was done cooking, he joined the madness in the tent and hung out for a long time. Sweet! He knows a party when he sees it!
Take a few days to rest and then brace yourselves for the bombastic shows coming up Friday in Columbus and Saturday in Monona. There is some history at both of these places, so let's show 'em once again that there ain't no party like a LUBE party! These are two shows you do NOT want to miss!
V V out!
Tour Blog: Wednesday, June 24th, 2009
Quaker Steak & Lube
Middleton, Wisconsin
Unless you're a corpse, you've noticed that the weather of late has been beastly hot. And humid (Remember when they almost named the MLB expansion team from Florida the Humidity since Miami already had the NBA's Heat?). It's been steamy, slimy, and even dangerous with heat indexes over 100 degrees. That's how it was Wednesday, the day when LUBE was scheduled to play Quaker Steak & Lube's infamous Bike Night.
Every time we've played Bike Night it's been either stupidly hot, threatened by stormy weather, or a combination of both. Why can't it just be sunny & 80 for once?!? I was surprised to see that we were setting up outside when I arrived at The Lube. Based on the last forecast I had seen, I was pretty confident it would rain. Good thing we didn't play inside because for the first time ever I would have been wrong!
Lots of people took a chance and came out to the show. Word was out that this was going to be a special show for LUBE. Our drummer, Steve, initially had a work conflict and was unable to make our scheduled start time of 5:30pm. Bike Night gigs are too fun and get us in front of tons of people, so Steve suggested we find a replacement drummer for the night. Having been on the scene for almost 10 years now, we've gotten to know many great musicians. We could have chosen any number of drummers and had a great, successful show with them. But we didn't ask just any drummer. We went to someone who is not only a fabulous drummer and veteran of the Madison scene, but a man who is even nicer than he is skilled on the skins. You've seen him before in bands such as Shock Radio, Johnny Law, and Pink Houses, and currently in Los Sincheladas...Steve Barfknecht!
Stevie B had a daunting task in front of him. Despite his lengthy career as a musician, most of the songs LUBE plays were new to him. He was looking at learning about 45 songs just to play this gig. So he did, and with great aplomb I might add. We had 5 or 6 total practices together, and while that may seem like a lot, it took a Herculean effort on Stevie B's part to pull it off. He did a great for us and never missed a beat! Not only that but he makes funny faces when he plays. Plus, he's get special recognition as he had fans travel from Oklahoma to see this show!
In the end it turned out that Steve S was able to get out of work in a timely manner, but because Stevie B had gone through the trouble of learning the show, Steve S became our monitor tech for the night. So those of you who looked confused, eyeballs darting between the two Steves wondering what the hell was going on, you now know.
Blissfully, the rain held off (we've been pretty lucky over the years @ Bike Night) and we played a fun show to a bunch of sweaty, hot, beer-drinking, good time-having folks! I don't know how you handled it but I drank about 4 gallons of liquid and never once had to pee. My beat up but trusty fan was my best friend! By the time we finished, it was still 85 and muggy. My shorts were so wet & heavy it felt like someone was trying to pants me, and that my friends, is something you DON'T want to see!
We want to thank Tom and everyone at QSL for a kick ass mid-week party! Bike Night has become an institution (just ask Nick), and they feature awesome bands every Wednesday rain or shine. We really enjoy playing these shows and look forward to our next one on Aug. 26!
The next few weekends are not only busy ones for us but will prove to be memorable ones as well. This Friday, June 26, we reinvade Cross Plains and headline the beer tent at the Cross Plains World's Fair. Last year we saw a bit of rain when we played but the tent was still packed. We are anticipating nothing less this time around! Show time is 8:00pm and is an awesome way to shut down the work week/kick off the weekend. Last year former LUBE drummer Todd Schroeder's dad was making hamburgers at the CPWF, so it was almost like a family reunion for us.
The following weekend is 4th of July weekend, and while there is always way more to do than any one persona can manage, LUBE is playing twice. Friday July 3 we're back in Columbus as part of their 4th of July festival. This will be our fourth year there and have always had killer shows. If you remember back a couple of years, this is where EBUL was born.
The next night, Saturday July 4th, we return to the Monona Community Festival for what is going to be the LUBE gig of all LUBE gigs! Last year we broke the record for beer sales, totaling over $35,000. That was unbelievable but this year we're going for more! I don't know that I've ever had more fun at a gig than I did last year in Monona, so all I can tell you is "Don't miss it!" As if you needed further incentive, we have some.
As some of you may have already heard, Jeff Hermans is parting ways with LUBE. From his triumphant debut as the masked mystery man at The Bean almost 4 years ago to right now, Jeff has brought both professionalism and high energy to the band. He is a natural performer and we've all become better musicians as a result of his influence. However, the time has come for Jeff to step down and move on. We wish him nothing but the best!
And while we're bummed our good friend is no longer going to be a part of LUBE, we also have great cause for celebration! Instead of reverting back to a 4-piece band like we originally were, we called upon another old friend to see if he had any interest in some LUBE-style musical entertainment. Kind of like Stevie B but with a guitar, you know? Well, that crafty old friend of ours is none other than Charles Thomas. If you've been on the local music scene over the last umpteen years, you've undoubtedly seen him perform in bands like Sender, Badwolf, Hotter Than Karl, Chewy, and Old Man Sanders. Charles is a strong vocalist and rocks the crap out of his Gibson SG. After just a few practices with him, it is clear that LUBE will again be raising the bar!
The July 4th show in Monona will be Jeff's final performance with LUBE. At the same time, it gives us an opportunity to introduce you to the talents of Charles as he'll be playing some tunes as well. The first full show we play with Charles will be Friday August 7th at the Arlington Fire Department's 100th Anniversary Festival, so mark your calendars NOW!
Rest up, drink plenty of fluids, and get ready for some monster shows with LUBE!
Tour Blog: Friday, June 12th, 2009
Verona Hometown Days
Verona, Wisconsin
For smelly band guys like us, the opportunity to play a big festival gig to a tent packed full of hard-partying, beer drinking people is a clear sign that life is good. To be able to do it back-to-back weekends means life is really good! After making our debut at the Mt. Horeb Frolic last Friday, we were pleased to be making our initial acquaintance at Verona Hometown Days.
If you've never been to Verona Hometown Days, let me explain something to you...the tent is friggin' huge! There was plenty of room for a couple thousand people to congregate despite a looming threat of rain & thunderstorms. Temperature-wise it was another perfect beer tent day, mid-70's and delightful. While there were a few sprinkles that fell during the evening, the real rain didn't hit until we were about finished for the night. Loading out gear through the rain kinda sucks but we had our buggies close by and it wasn't so bad.
While there were a ton of familiar faces in the crowd at Verona, many of whom we just saw the previous Friday night, there was also a large number of people we hadn't seen before. When we took a poll to see how many LUBE virgins were with us, I was surprised to see so many hands go up. They weren't virgins for long...
Buzz made some tweaks to the set list to help the show stay fresh not only for us but for all those regular LUBIES who see us frequently. One of my favorite changes wasn't even a new song. It was a new arrangement to "Monkey Wrench" by the Foo Fighters. Their live DVD of a show from Wembley Stadium if most stellar, stellar as in if you haven't seen it yet, do it! That's what rock & roll is supposed to be! Anyway, they do an extended version of Monkey Wrench that we really liked. We didn't do it exactly as they did, wanting to put our own spin on it, and it turned out awesome. While we didn't quite end up playing to 86,000 people like they did, the crowd response was similar and that felt good! And by popular demand, we had a guest appearance from Brian Zombie. He's got such great energy!
Despite the weather, despite the fact it was the end of yet another grueling work week for everyone, this show was a crazy, over-the-top, kick-ass gig! The tent was full, beer flowed liberally, and a whole lot of people had a great time. That includes us! Take a look at the pictures. There's not a sad face to be found...grins for everyone!
We would like to thank you for two great shows to start the beer tent season! Thank you Verona for allowing us to LUBE you up a little bit! It's great when the community (and others) come out to support the local town festivals. Verona Hometown Days is a super event and we'd love to play it again next year.
After a short respite from the playing circuit, we crank it back up on Wednesday June 24 @ Quaker Steak & Lube's Bike Night. Last year we had over 1000 bikes come out on a night we played and it was unbelievable! This is also a good opportunity to bring the family as it's an early show (5:30-9:00pm) and the kids really seem to enjoy the music and fun. Come after work, have a cold one or two with a plate full of wings, and still get to bed on time...a great concept! After that we invade Cross Plains once again and play their World's Fair on Friday June 26. Last year there was as fun as it gets, so make a point to be there!
V V out!
Tour Blog: Monday, June 8th, 2009
Interview with The Verona Press
The Verona Press interviews LUBE bassist, Andy Barth, for the upcoming Verona Hometown Days.
LUBE has a cocktail of rock covers at its disposal, ranging from 20-year old hits to modern punk ballads.
"If we had to just pick one genre to play, we'd rock pretty hard," said Andy Barth, LUBE's bass player. "But we'll play everything from Green Day to A Flock of Seagulls, to The Doors, to Foo Fighters."
[ full story ]
Tour Blog: Friday, June 5th, 2009
Mount Horeb Summer Frolic
Mount Horeb, Wisconsin
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to the start of beer tent season! This is one of the greatest times of the year for those who like to go out, have a good time with friends while enjoying a tasty beverage, and see the area's best bands. While there may be a tent or two prior to this event, The Frolic is traditionally the kickoff of beer tent season, and we were stoked about starting it off!
Our first venture at The Frolic turned out to be a smashing success! All week long the weather prognosticators were indicating that it was going to suck on Friday. Clearly, this is not the way to start off BTS (beer tent season). However, we enjoyed a little bit of luck and had glorious weather! It could have been a little warmer but hey, beggars can't be choosers. Mark Webber and his crew set us up with some refreshing beverages, lovely red Frolic Fest mugs, and it was off to the races.
From the looks of the people in attendance, they have been eagerly awaiting BTS just like we have. It was clearly time to partaay! It was wall-to-wall people inside the band tent with a large crowd looming outside and in the beer tent. Local peeps are great about coming out and supporting the town festivals like this. Beer sales were strong and it got folks moving and dancing.
Veteran LUBIES are familiar with the now-infamous "I Got LUBE'd" stickers we pass out at shows. Always creative and more than a little frisky, LUBE fans have found some very interesting places to put their stickers. Our supply was running low so Jeff placed a new order that arrived just in time for The Frolic. The new Hawaiian Blue stickers were a big hit! Just look at the pictures and you'll see! We still have some of the now-retro orange ones as well, so if you're a collector like Nick is, you'll want to make sure you get one of each. Someday they might be worth millions on eBay or after we do "Behind the Music: LUBE." Jeff also tweaked the LUBE logo stickers, giving them that BTS feel. LUBE is now filled with beer and the saying on it reads, "4 out of 5 lushes prefer LUBE!" No doubt about that! There is a smaller supply of those stickers and so you might have to work a little bit harder to get one of them but trust me, they can be had!
The Mt. Horebilians were in fine form Friday night. The crowd was singing along to our songs, the stage was flooded with Gimme Gimme Girls, and the wardrobe malfunctions were frequent. Kudos to our part-time photographer/gear-schlepper/Zombie singing buddy Brian Henry for helping whip the crowd into a frenzy down in front. B is one of our biggest cheerleaders and does great PR work for the band. If you didn't get your LUBE sticker from long-time grunt/photographer Curt, you got it from B. Despite the pleasantly cool weather, it was getting hot inside then tent. People were body passing, jumping around, and dancing their butts off. Your Vernacular Vampire here is a kind man, and so periodically I would take my fan and provide some wind relief for the up front party animals. That wind-blown look is hot! So in the future, if you're at a show and getting a little warm, come to the cool side of the stage by me & Jeffy and we'll cool you down a bit.
By 12:30am it was all over and the BTS officially underway in splendid fashion. We want to thank Mark Webber and everyone associated with The Frolic for allowing us to get your festival off to a flying start. We enjoyed our first Frolic immensely! Also thanks to Sound Man Matt, Intellasound and Tom Easton on lights for making us look and sound good. Now, if you missed the Frolic or didn't quite get your itch fully scratched, come see us again this coming Friday, June 12, at Verona Hometown Days. Another Friday, another beer tent, another damn good time to be had! It's an 8:30pm start, so come on down and RAWK with us!
V V...out!
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