Don’t Wait Until You Are an Old Fart

This band broke up just as I discovered them. I hate it when that happens.

Screen Shot from “Crucified Barbara, Live in Berlin” (YouTube)

So, having gone through some medical shit recently, I did what many people do — or at least I assume they do if books and movies depict this sort of thing accurately. I took a sort of inventory of my life. Here are some preliminary conclusions: I didn’t go to enough concerts. I was too busy with other stuff. My priorities were screwed up.

Here’s a list of things I did too much of:
1. Study. My late parents would vehemently disagree — as far as they were concerned, it was never enough.

Here’s a list of things I should have done more of:
1. Learn to play guitar.
2. Go to concerts.
3. Scuba dive.
4. Hang-glide.
5. Party with friends.
6. Ski. I only started when I was 28, so the fear of broken bones had fully taken hold. It’s better to learn when you’re not afraid of anything.

I’m trying to make up for lost time, so I’ve been attending more concerts lately. I recently saw a true living legend, Buddy Guy, and two young, up-and-coming bands, Band-Maid and Voice of Baceprot.

If you didn’t catch my review of Buddy Guy, here it is:

I also saw Band-Maid, which turned out to be a barn burner:

and Voice of Baceprot, a remarkable young band that plays on despite harassment and death threats:

Unfortunately, there is only so much time. I missed so many artists while they were still doing their thing. In many cases, I didn’t even know they existed until they no longer did. Back when many of them were in their heyday, the only evidence they had played was cassette tapes made on someone’s tape recorder smuggled into a concert. People called those “bootleg” recordings. They are a quaint artifact of the past now.

Today, we have camera phones. Go on YouTube the day after a show, and you can find videos of the band you love from ten different camera angles. Still, none of it is a substitute for actually being there.

I previously posted a piece about the Swedish hard rockers Crucified Barbara. Part of the article's theme was the sexist crap female rock musicians were subjected to, and Crucified Barbara’s in-your-face response.

Some bands are best in the studio and are known primarily for their studio work. There is no better example than the Beatles. They actually hated touring and stopped less than halfway into their 10-year run. Most of the surviving footage of their live concerts may as well be them miming to the sound of screaming girls.

More rare is the band that is actually better live. Yes, we love the energy of live shows, but we usually forgive mistakes, sub-par mixing, and distractions. It’s special when a band is so good live that they don’t need that kind of forgiveness.

Crucified Barbara were known as a great live band. Here is their set from a 2011 concert they co-headlined with two other hard rock bands that were quite big in their day.

At the concert's end, the three groups take the stage together for a blow-out finale.

Amusing note: One of the songs in that finale is called “Killed by Death.” Yes, death will do that to you!

It’s clear that whatever stupid crap the music press may have thrown at them, their fellow musicians respected them and were happy to rock out with them. Set aside about half an hour if you want to watch the full set. It’s completely worth it. All the songs are good; my favorite is a slow grinder called “Jennyfer.”

Postscript:

I discovered Crucified Barbara just as they were disbanding. Damn, what bad timing. As you can see, they were an amazing live band. But even the best things come to an end.

Here is part of their breakup announcement:

“Our lives have parted, and we need to move on. The last years have taken its toll on all of us, and the joy of playing together got lost somewhere along the way.”

They have gone on to other things. Three of them joined with other musicians to form The Heard and have released a few singles. It is not clear whether they plan to continue forward as a band. They have not been active lately.

Mia Karlsson, their formidable frontwoman, appears to have left behind her hard-rocking days and is doing acoustic ballads. Good for her, but it adds to my regret that I missed Crucified Barbara in their heyday, when they were tearing shit up and taking names. We need more bands like that!

I may or may not post again before next weekend. We have the Album of the Month session on Oct 1, and I will focus on getting ready for that.

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