On Thanksgiving night, the Lava Pups take the stage at the Press Club to open for the King of the Surf Guitar. A Guitar Legend. An inventor of surf music. The one and only Dick Dale!That meant that our last band practice was devoted to getting ready for that upcoming show. We have only a short time to prepare. So we sat down as a band and figured out what we collectively believe we play best. We do not want to perform any really lame or tentative songs for a Dick Dale crowd. We are not going to experiment with new or recently added material.
After all, we are opening the King of the Surf Guitar. The crowd will be chomping at the bit for loud and fast Dick Dale style. We simply will be a diversion while folks drink, talk, and watch to see if I pee my pants. Be patient, guys! Duck! Incoming beer bottle!
We then ran through the set and recorded as we went. Glenn was leaving on Sunday for Disneyland and Long Beach. We needed to get MP3s of the set to Rikki Styxx, our guest drummer. We were not going to have much of an opportunity to rehearse with her. Our sound check just might be the rehearsal.
As we practiced, our semi-punk garage sensibilities came to the front. We have a couple of slow songs and a couple of more traditional songs. But our energy level always picks up on the rawer, more primitive, racing tunes. Sea Witch. Magma Runner. Surf Party. Squad Car. Lava Tube. Our Link Wray Medley.
As we finished our first run-through the set, Robert yelled out, “Yeah, we are a punk band! We are the Lava Pups Clash!” Deep down I think he probably is correct.
How about the Lava “X” Pups? Or “Black Flag” Pups?