East Quad punks rock local scene

During the Fourth of July weekend, Old Spice drummer Sobie (Mike Sobieski) was mixing the band's first album, "Guinea Pig Day," when fellow band members found themselves incarcerated.

The band members put this minor legal setback behind them and Old Spice's punk/slam rock album is due to be released in mid-March. The band consists of Sobie, Bird (Brad Reinman) on bass guitar, BL (Brett Wisinewski) on vocals and Tony B (Tony Barragan) on guitar. They've played St. Andrews Hall and will appear at the Mosquito Club on Feb. 7.

Old Spice headlined the on-the-verge-of-violent East Quad Halfway Inn Punk Rock Shizzow on Saturday, sponsored by the East Quad Music Co-op and organized by East Quad resident and LSA sophomore, Neil Meredith Jr.

Punk bands Los Pinkos and Gramercy Riffs also slashed the stage and R & B boy-rock band The Shakes opened the show.

LOUIS BROWN/Daily Mike "Sobie" Sobieski, drummer for Old Spice, jams Saturday at East Quad's whipped cream-filled Punk Rock Shizzow.

In the traditional style of punk, the music got in your face, blared obnoxiously loud, and basically kicked ass.

For The Shakes, this Halfway Inn gig was the band's first public performance. Their set became a little sloppy at times due to the fact that they had only been playing together for a couple months.

The Shakes played, "Kids Kill Their Parents," dedicating to bassist Phil Linenert's parents, who both watched their son from the back of the room.

When Grammercy Riffs played their set the audience seemed sedated.

The music was explosive and the lead singer was incredibly energetic; surprisingly, no one was into it. But the room was full of mainly Shakes, Los Pinkos and Old Spice fans.

Los Pinkos members got the audience revved up with 15-second songs and a Clash cover.

REVIEW
	Punk Rock Shizzow Jan. 17, 1998 East Quad Halfway Inn

They invited friends to come up and scream into the mic with them.

Lead singer Kevin Boyer continued to spout lyrics while convulsing on the floor and moshing with the crowd. During the finale, he brought whipped cream and Twinkies onto the stage and proceeded to "get stupid" and spread it all over himself.

This inspired fans to do the same. People proceeded to spray it on stage and even lick the whipped cream off of the lead singer himself.

Standing among the room's 60 or so people covered in whipped cream, it became clear that these kids in the audience were not from around here.

Was it possible that these people came to stand and experience the beautiful progression of punk rock melodies? Could it be that they were pondering the subtleties of each chord?

Hell no! This was raging, slamming, kick, punch punk! Music where lead "singers" belch into microphones, water gets sprayed everywhere, and it's OK when whipped cream is spread all over.

01-20-98