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TeamGoon  > Music > 2006 Photos > Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
 
TeamGoon > Showcase Marque - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 The Skulls final show - Report filed by: Team Goon Senior Writter -Marcus Solomon Part 1: Thanks to everyone in The Skulls for agreeing to do another “final show” at Showcase Theatre in Corona CA so the rest of us could attend. The previous “final show” had been held on January 20th in San Diego at some place called Jumping Turtle, but after a few angry rants from people such as me, the band agreed to go at it one more time. Vocalist Billy Bones told me that we had guitarist Kevin Preston to thank for this special last gig. Hmm…it seems we have Kevin to thank for originally getting the band back together again, Kevin to thank for being the primary reason the band has now broken up, and Kevin to thank for doing it one more time. The Master of Ceremonies for the entire was Mr. Bruce Moreland (Aka: Bruce Barf). Bruce was the MC for The Masque, which was the first punk club in Los Angeles back in opening way, way, back in 1977. Bruce is also the brother of the dear, departed Mark Moreland, founder and lead guitarist of the legendary Wall of Voodoo. First up was a band from San Diego named The Sex Girls. No, it is not what you think, and no, I did not see this band. That’s too bad, because judging from the band’s MySpace profile, these four dudes play some really cool punkness reminiscent of The Stooges and The New York Dolls, albeit a bit more sloppy and apparently without vocals.
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 2: Next up was another band from San Diego called Wrecking Crew. With a name that is an allusion to the epically great Adolescents, you would think this band might sound something akin to the Adolescents; if so, you would be absolutely right. The first time I head this band live, my jaw dropped. No, I do not have leprosy, it’s just that when this youthful five piece does its thing, it is that impressive. I had written in a previous column that Wrecking Crew’s only flaw is sounding too much like the Adolescents, but that is no longer a problem. A bit of time has passed, and the band has continued to develop its own admirable, jamming character. Even so, dual lead guitarist Joe’s Harrison aggressive and precise playing style is so much like the great (and erratic) Rikk Agnew its weird. Fucking rad! Wrecking Crew has a new six-song EP available from Finger Records. They should send me one and you should go buy one. Check out: www.wreckingcrewsd.com.
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Wrecking Crew - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Chris of The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Kevin Preston of Pri Madonna and The Skulls - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Milkman of The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Mike of The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 3: The Strange Ones took the stage next. No, it was not the crowd climbing up on the stage, but rather it was THE MILKMAN (of TEAM GOON fame), on the drums and his big brother on guitar and some other dude on bass that comprised a tidy little punk band. The Milkman is no longer a cute little skate grommet; he is turning out to be a regular-looking skater dude and his band fairly jams. I found this performance to be quite adequate. Give these guys a few more years of practice and I’ll bet they will be rocking the house. The Strange Ones’ set was only a very brief three songs due to the time constraints, but it was a good taste and preview of the future for these talented dudes brimming with potential.
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Strange Ones - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 3: Fuck the Neon Maniacs! Seriously, if you are a hot chick of legal age, you should fuck the Neon Maniacs because these guys are really cool, they play fun-oriented, retroish punk rock, and I think they are kind of lonely. Frontman Gnat (owner of Puke ‘n’ Vomit Records) good-naturedly made fun of The Skulls by proclaiming, “Extra! Extra! The Skulls are breaking up!” as he threw dozens and dozens of copies of La Opinion, the free Spanish language newspaper at the audience. The three band members were wearing white jumpsuits covered with Velcro strips and had the audience pelt them with Velcro balls throughout the entire set. It was very funny and clever. The Neon Maniacs is a great band that keeps getting better. I asked the bassist about the band’s increasing diversity of sound and he told me they had been practicing and writing a lot; it shows. Try to imagine a Devoish Ramones influenced by The Exploited and Toy Dolls on laughing gas. Cool. Go to: http://www.myspace.com/NEONMANIACSNET
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Neon Maniacs - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 4: The spawn of Billy Bones’ loins is now a young woman by the name of Daniella, and she has a band called the C’mon C’mons along with her boyfriend Ben Lowrie (guitar) and some dude name Jamian on the drums. Yow! It hurt my ears and offended my sensibilities. That is what punk rock is supposed to do. The C’mon C’mons has a sound that can be described as anti-punk with a very confrontational shattering of expectations. It sort of reminded me of free-form jazz in the sense that the guitar work seemed often spontaneous, and with a complete disregard for harmony and melody. It was not completely chaotic, but it was deliberately sloppy and in-your-face, with a rather steady bass line and cacophonous drums. Mr. Bones looked proud as punch as his little darling played her bass with committed intensity. Again, due to time restrictions, the C’mon C’mons played only three anti-tunes, one of which was an intense cover of The Skulls’ “Life Ain’t So Pretty”.
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Comon Comons - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 5: The penultimate (I have always wanted to use that word) band was Prima Donna, Kevin Preston’s love child and the primary reason The Skulls broke up. Kevin is dedicated to his new band and he deserves the freedom to pursue his dreams and desires. There is no doubt that Kevin is going to be genuinely famous someday, but I honestly don’t think Prima Donna is going to make that happen. His extraordinary and seemingly endless talent is undeniable, but the general public does not dig glam. Glam? Gay Los Angeles Metal? Seriously now, Prima Donna rocks the high-caliber punk/glam monster, but I was still feeling sick and a bit resentful of The Skulls’ break-up, so I went outside…like a little bitch. Wah. www.myspace.com/primadonna
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Pri Madonna - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Stiches - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > Banners - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 6: Finally, the moment of irony had arrived. I could not wait to enjoy The Skulls, but I was not enjoying the fact it was to be the last time. Showcase Theatre was packed to the limit. Kids, old-timers (such as yours truly), and every age in between filled the venue with anticipation and a sweaty, musky ,reek, as they all pressed forward toward the stage. While the theme from “Pirates of the Caribbean” wafted out of the P.A. system, Billy and the final incarnation of The Skulls—Billy Bones, James Harding, Monster Matt and Andy Andersson--came to the fore. Two, long, vertical banners framed the stage, the one of the left read “1977” and the right read “2006.” Another hand-painted huge banner was further on stage left. It was a fantastic, dripping, The Skulls logo accented by fluorescent red and green “light” beams emanating from the center.
TeamGoon > Banner - Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 7: First out of the gate was “Aye Aye Aye!” immediately followed by “Babies”, “Held Against Your Will”, “What a Waste”, “I Don’t Care”, “Punk Town” (a new song written by James and Chris Jelley). This first initial burst came to an end with “Can Punk Rock Pay the Bills?” Of course, the place was packed and everybody was happily freaking out…and yet, there was a pervading sense of sadness because something good was (once again) coming to an end. It was pretty clear that this roiling mass of Skulls fans were going to make this last gig worth it by squeezing every bit of juice from each fleeting moment.
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 8: The second wave of songs began with the magnificent Kevin Preston back on guitar. This began with Mr. Andersson relinquished lead guitar back to the “wonder-kid” while Monster Matt graciously returned the drum duties to the amazing Mr. Sean Antillon. I never realized what a difference a drummer can make until this moment. Matt is a great drummer, but when Sean got behind the drum kit, the sound suddenly became noticeably more crisp, solid, and BIGGER. That’s what playing for dozens and dozens of bands for just as many years will do. Sean Antillon is without a doubt one of the best drummers in rock ‘n’ roll…period. The first song by this assemblage was “Pretty,” followed immediately by “Summer of Hate,” and then the poignant “Gold and Ruby Red.” The place was going absolutely nuts with a huge pit swirling on the relatively small dance floor as a steady stream of stage divers poured over the edge like an avalanche.
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 8: And the band played on…wait, isn’t that a book? Anyway, we were then treated to “You Can’t Drag Me Down.” Temporary guitarist Skot Snot (who briefly replaced Kevin for a few months) also rejoined the band for this tune and made the song sound that much fuller. Skot also played along with the next tune, “Kill Me, Kill Me, Kill.” The fuller sound of two guitarists made me with The Skulls had two guitarists all along. Skot then graciously stepped down just before “Girlfriend, Shower, Sleep.” Just before the band played “Trainwreck,” bassist James Harding handed me a big, wooden whistle for me to toot at the appropriate time during the song. However, I was feeling nauseated, grumpy, and I had a headache. I tossed the heavy whistle into the crowd and probably gave someone else a headache.
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 9: Around about this time, some over-anxious teenage kid in a red leather jacket came up the side of the stage in a vain attempt to do a stagedive, but ended up hurting my bad knee by trying to push through those of us standing on stage right. Instead of climbing up onto the stage from the front like everybody else, this goof tried to take the sissy side door and in so doing, caused me a great deal of physical pain. The next thing I knew I had this kid by the collar with my fist pulled back as he pleaded for me not to destroy his pretty face. I am not a violent person, but I had to fight within myself as my mind went from “I am going to beat the shit out of this kook!” To: “What the fuck am I doing? This kid is harmless!” I let him go and slumped down to rub my aching knee. People, if you are not man (or woman) enough to climb up front, then you have no business jumping onto the heads of other people.
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 10: After that bit of drama, Bruce and Danny Hidalgo joined Billy and the boys. Bruce (Aka: Bruce Barf) was the original MC of the Masque, which was the first punk club in the Los Angeles area (Hollywood) way back in the late ‘70s. His brother Danny was the original guitarist for The Skulls when the band first started out in 1977. Believe it or not, Billy Bones is not the first vocalist. That honor belongs to the dear, departed Mark “Sten Gun” Wallace, who first started the band, and soon moved to the drums because he asked Billy to take the mic. This part of the show was in-fucking-credible! Bruce Barf on bass with Kevin and Danny jammed away on “Nervous Breakdown” and “Building Models.” Hell, Danny wrote that song with Sten Gun so it was his right; it was his duty. It was so good I wonder why both of the Hidalgo brothers are not ripping it up onstage on a regular basis. The two geezers abdicated back to Billy, Sean, James and Kevin (the core unit) so they could crank out “Jerry #5”, which is a hard-hitting commentary and tribute to the late, great Marc Moreland (guitarist and primary music writer for Wall of Voodoo.)
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 11: “Incomplete Suicide” was next on the menu, and then we were treated to yet another surprise. Nate Shaw from The Hunns came up and played with Kevin on Kevin’s simplistic masterpiece “Monet”, with Kevin doing the leads and Nate on rhythm. Where the fuck did Nate Shaw come from? Cool. Kev and Nate then traded lead guitar duties on the next tune which was the classic “On Target”, a Skulls original from back in the day. So much was going on and so much had already happened that it all seemed kind of surreal. The past and present had melded into one, intense ball of NOW.
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Then it got really weird, and something very strange happened….Sean Antillon left his drum kit and picked up a….guitar? Yes, the drum-man played guitar for the song he wrote all by himself, and it was a rousing and impressive rendition of “Rattle Yer Bones”.Billy’s vocals for this song were supplemented by Joey Montemora, and Joey’s son, a really cool young man who has Down’s syndrome. It is important to note here that the punk scene is one of the few places that a special needs person can get onstage and rock out without being considered “weird.”
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 12: So many songs had been played by this time, and it was apparent the evening was starting to come to an end. There was a definite sense of urgency in the air. It made me think of the final night at the original Upland Skatepark. We all knew the park would be gone forever and we had like 15 minutes to skate, so everybody just went insane while savoring those precious, last moments. Only three more songs to go…the band played “Judy Says” and Eric from Prima Donna joined the band to belt out the Saxophone portion like a champ. Impressive, but I really don’t get this glam thing. Countdown…two songs left…the second to last (penultimate) song was The Skulls’ version of “Walk the Line”, complete with James’ never-ending volley of stupid, funny hats. Building, building, and then the FINAL CLIMAX…we are all “Victims”! What? Is it really over? Did that really happen? To make all points undeniably clear, Kevin Preston had his Jimi Hendrix moment where he sacrificed something that he loves very much. As the final song came to a thundering conclusion, Kevin tossed his beloved, white guitar straight up in the air and gave it a guided thrust down right into the stage floor. It shattered and with its death, I imagined a trillion individual notes rising up to punk rock heaven. A split second of silence and Kevin said: “That’s it.”
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006
TeamGoon > The Skulls last show at The Showcase Theater - Corona, CA - March 10, 2006 Part 13: Damn! The Skulls really broke up. Mr. Bones says he is collaborating with Kevin on the formation of a new band (name pending), and a corresponding video project with the renowned punk video documentarian Bad Otis Link. The video project in still in the planning stages, but the plan is to cover The Animals’ classic “I’m Crying”. Meanwhile, James and Andy are working on starting another band…since Andy moved all the way to the U.S. from Europe to play for The Skulls, he might as well stay awhile. Sean continues to play for a ton of bands, including The Weirdos. Join me now in thanking every person involved with The Skulls from the very beginning to this most recent end. Remember, nothing lasts forever, so maybe someday The Skulls break-up will be undone once again.
 

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