Cortez

Friday November 2nd:

Buzzfest day 1

We woke up around 12 noon on Friday and we were as hungover as any of us have ever been in our lives. The previous night at Negasonic definitely took its toll on us. We managed to make some breakfast and force down some food when Peter told us it was time to go, so we all piled into Peter’s car and hit the road.

We made the two hour drive from the bungalow in Stavelot where we were staying, to Opwijk where Club Nijdrop is located. The ride was absolute torture due to our being hungover but we managed to get some sleep on the way. When we got to the club we met up with Patrick who showed us around the club which was located in a warehouse.

The PA system was just being loaded in as we arrived. Patrick took us out to the backstage area just behind the main building. Backstage was a large lounge area plus a seperate bathroom and shower. Patrick and Peter told us that there would be plenty of food.

Tony and I decided to use the time to change our strings and put batteries in our pedals since we would not be using the electricity due to not having voltage converters. Once we finished getting our guitars and pedals ready we made some phone calls home and explored the area. There were a few old firetrucks parked next to the backstage area that were pretty cool looking.

Behind the club there was a field with two of the largest cows we had ever seen. Curtis and I couldn’t believe the size of these things so we decided to get a closer look. As we approached the cows the animals noticed us and started getting a little agitated. Curtis wanted to get a picture with the cows which I thought would be pretty funny. The flash scared the hell out of the cows, causing them to totally freak out. Thankfully there was a fence between us.

Just behind Curtis there was a sharp slope that was about three or four feet lower than where he was standing. Due to the slope the photo does not do justice to just how large these cows were. Jay came over to check out the cows before we headed back in to see if the food was ready.

The food was cooking but not ready just yet so we hung around backstage for a bit. At this point some of the bands were starting to arrive and Solenoid, the band who we were going to share equipment with, came in. Lieven, the band’s manager, said hi to us and then said “Hello, Tony” prompting Tony to look at him wondering how this man knew his name. We filled Tony in on the previous night and how he had taken a Jupiler from Lieven and we had a good laugh. Curtis and I went inside to scope out a table so that we could set up our merch. Ludo from R3 records was kind enough to help us get the table set up and agreed to help us by selling our merch as well as his own. Many thanks Ludo!

After setting up the merch we headed for the backstage area. Lieven and the rest of the guys from Solenoid sat at the table in the back of the room and drank a bunch of Jupilers. Every few minutes there would be some talking (in Flemish), then looks in our direction followed by laughter. We were thinking that these guys were making fun of us and started to get a bit paranoid. Obviously, Lieven was telling them about our exploits in Aalst and about our introduction to Belgian beer. After consuming many Jupilers, Solenoid went inside for their soundcheck. We laughed our asses of as the five of them went inside followed by Lieven carrying fifteen Jupilers for soundcheck. We went inside to watch Solenoid soundcheck seeing as we were using their gear. After line checking they played a song that had a killer Motorhead vibe to it.

Next it was our turn. We set up and ran through “the High Life.” The stage was huge and the monitors actually worked. After getting suitable monitor mixes we went backstage to eat. Peter, Patrick and their wives made some excellent food. There was a buffet backstage with chicken, sausages, pasta, salad and all kinds of beer.

After eating we hung around a bit more shooting the shit and horsing around. Our hangovers were finally starting to release their grip on us. People were starting to arrive for the show. We ran into Dirk from the previous night outside of the club and talked to him for a while.

The show started and Solenoid started off the night. They sounded awesome in spite of the amount of beer that they had already drank. They have a good mixture of Motorhead and classic Iron Maiden-type metal going on. Tony was completely amped on them, especially one song called “Angel Spray” which he took to screaming a guitar riff from for the next few days. You can see for yourself in this video.

After Solenoid’s ass-kicking set it was time for our first set on European soil. We opened the set with “the High Life” and things were going well. Aside from a slight malfunction with my wah pedal everything went off without a hitch. We played a mix of old and new songs including, “the Ocean,” “Lost Control,” “Holy Roller,” “Faces” and “This Time.” The crowd responded well and we were quite happy. Thanks to Solenoid for the use of the drums and amps!

photos by Dirk DeBock

Cabron played next and were excellent. Curtis and I only caught a few songs as we were asked by Ief from Rock Tribune Magazine if we could do a quick interview. We talked backstage with Ief for about twenty minutes, you can see the article below.

After the interview with our hangovers gone we decided to have a few beers. Hypnos 69 were playing so I went inside to check them out. They have a cool Pink Floyd vibe to their songs. The fact that they use different instrumentation like saxophone and mellotron in addition to the standard guitar, bass and drums made them stand out from the other bands of the night. Just after the set I ran into Guido from Club Negasonic who had come to see us with some friends. We talked for a bit and he told us that his friends enjoyed the set even though had never heard of us before.

Monkey 3 played after Hypnos 69 and raised the stakes with the addition of two screens showing projections as the band played. Hailing from Switzerland, Monkey 3 are another unique European band. Cool instrumental space rock. Brant Bjork and the Bros. finished off the evening. Playing as a three piece with Brant handling all of the guitar duties (due to the departure of guitarist Cortez earlier this year) the Bros. (Dylan on bass and Alfredo of Kyuss fame on drums) layed down some thick greasy grooves. They opened with “Low Desert Punk” and played a set consisting mostly of material from the “Saved By Magic” and “Somera Sol” records.

With day one of Buzzfest 2007 behind us we crammed into Patrick’s car and headed for the bungalow in Stavelot.

Thursday, November 1st:
We woke up bright and early to head to Patrick’s parents’ house. Patrick’s father had agreed to let Tony and me use two of his acoustic guitars so we could play some songs on FM Brussel. After meeting his parents and picking up the guitars, Patrick stopped at a local bakery so that we could try some Belgian breakfast pastries. The pastries were awesome, although the fact that they were covered with powdered sugar made them quite messy to eat in the backseat of the car.

After arriving in Brussels, we got out of the car looking like rejects from Scarface due to the powdered sugar all over our clothes. We made the short walk to FM Brussel to meet up with Saïd the host of the show, Mental. We had approximately five minutes to try and work out some songs to play acoustically which we hadn’t really ever done before. We decided on playing “the High Life,” “the Ocean” and a new one called “Holy Roller.”

When Saïd called us into the studio, we picked some songs for the playlist, did an interview and played live. After the interview we met our new labelmates from Sweden, Deville, who were doing an interview as well. When Deville finished their interview, Saïd came out and took some pictures with us. At one point Jeremy happened to be putting in a plug of chew (Skoal), like the Vermonter that he is, and Saïd asked him what it was. Jeremy offered him some and Saïd said yes, resulting in the following photo:

Let’s just say that he didn’t like it and leave it at that.

After leaving FM Brussel we drove through the Red Light District prompting Jeremy to jokingly ask if the women in the windows were real. Patrick found a parking garage that appeared to be open so that we could get something to eat. Upon leaving the garage it actually seemed to be closed (as it was a holiday) with all of the garage doors having closed, and security grates down, except for the one we entered through. Patrick just sort of shrugged and said in typical fashion “We’ll figure out how to get the car out later.” We ate at Quick which is sort of like a McDonalds except that the food is better and doesn’t make you feel terrible after eating it. On the way back to the parking garage we remembered the possible trouble in getting the car out that lay ahead. It turned out that when we put the ticket in, all of the gates lifted – automatically freeing us from the garage. It was the most high tech garage any of us (including Patrick) had ever seen.

We left Brussels and made the short drive to Aalst to go to the Buzzfest Warm Up night with Deville, Set the Tone and the Whocares. When we arrived at Club Negasonic it was still closed, so Patrick suggested that we head to the pub just down the street. This place was awesome; it was a metalheads dream. Old longhairs working, hanging out blasting old school metal on the stereo. We drank a few local beers (Palm) and then went next door to the club.

Negasonic was a small club that could only hold about a hundred people, but it was really cool. We made our way to the bar and started the drinking. We started out with the intention of trying as many Belgian beers as possible. The owners and bartenders were all really cool and the beer was cheap. We met a local named Dirk who happened to have his name tattooed on his forearm. He bought us some beers and told us he would come to the show on Friday in Opwijk.

After a few beers the first band went on: the Whocares from Belgium. These guys were awesome, a total mix of Turbonegro, early Hellacopters and Electric Frankenstein – sleazy punk rock n roll. Set the Tone played next and they were in the Pantera mold. Our labelmates Deville played last and were awesome. They remind me of Gonzalez and Sasquatch, as they have a poppy edge in the vocal department. During Deville’s set is when things started to get a little hazy…someone decided that it would be a good idea to start drinking Duvel, which is 8.5% alcohol…bad idea. Tony had a good time telling the “Europeans” that they don’t make any good motorcycles compared to Harley Davidsons.

Outside the club we met this guy for the first time.

His name is Lieven and Tony decided to liberate a Jupiler beer from him without asking if it was OK. Luckily, Lieven is a great guy and didn’t mind the drunk Americans. We also bothered the Deville guys while they were loading out and had a great time acting like idiots. Evidenced by this photo:

Deville

We all piled in Peter’s car to make the 90 minute ride back to the bungalow in Stavelot. After some initial singing with the radio and general obnoxiousness we all passed out, which made the ride much less painful.

To be continued…

We arrived home from Belgium on Monday, November 5th around 6 p.m. a little tired, glad to be home, but also sad to have left. The people we met showed us a great time and made some lasting impressions. I’m going to attempt to run down some of the things that made our first trip across the pond so awesome.

Wednesday October 31st:
Our flight arrived in Cologne, Germany at 7:30 in the morning. After gathering our luggage, we proceeded out the front doors of the terminal to meet Patrick from Buzzville Records. After trying cell phones, Tony and I determined that we had service but couldn’t seem to make any calls. Jay and I then spent about twenty minutes trying to place a call on the payphone, which was difficult due to not being able to read German. After our initial frustration wore off, I realized that the country code we had been attempting to dial was different in Europe, even though it was my US cell phone I was using. So after forty minutes of panic, we were able to track Patrick down, who was at the next terminal over looking for us. We packed the gear into Patrick’s Renault mini van, and let’s just say that there wasn’t much spare room. Off to Belgium.

After a two hour-plus trip, including a stop at a gas station in Germany to drink some much needed coffee, we arrived at Patrick’s house in Merchtem. We met his daughters, who thought we were Germans (because we were loud), his wife and dropped off our guitars. On to Brussels.

Upon arrival in Brussels, we parked in a garage which was in a building that was sort of a tower. We parked on the roof and got a great view of the city from there. After walking for a few minutes we arrived in the Grote Markt, which is the grand center of the old city. It was amazing to see the difference in the architecture compared to back home. Everything was so much older and cooler looking. Having never been to Europe before, and having only seen it on TV, it was so much more awe-inspiring in person. We converted our American dollars to Euros and struck out to get some long awaited food and drink some of the world famous Belgian beers.

We walked down this crazy street that had a bunch of Turkish restaurants one side, and Greek ones on the other. They were all yelling at each other and at passing customers to get people to eat at their place. It was really funny and pretty crazy. Patrick explained that the two sides can’t stand each other and competition for customers was heated. We settled on a Greek cafe and had some meat plates with all kinds of sausages and pulled pork, lamb, etc. The food was out of this world and the beers went down like water.

After eating, we made the two hour trek to Stavelot which is where the bungalow we were staying at was located. We watched some of the new AC/DC DVD and then hit the sack. We had been up for 27 hours and sleep was a priority.

To be continued…