Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1998 12:30:31 -0400
From: "Randall Hixson" <rhixson@sunline.net>
Subject: Set list
I don't have the time or energy to write too much, but I wanted to pass
along the setlist for the 3 northwest Scarnella shows to Eric and anyone
else who cares. Thanks to Nels for providing the names of the songs, all of
which are subject to change.
1) Untitled + Underdog
2) The Most Useless Thing
3) Untitled + About A Cat
4) A Millenium Fever Ballad
I'm not going to bother cropping/adjusting any of the photos I took at the
3 shows, since this laptop's display is rather crappy. I'll do it when I
get home Tuesday/Wednesday, but those of you who can't wait can download
the whole shebang right now. Please note that these files are ZIPped, so
you'll need the appropriate software for your computer platform to extract
the files. Each of the 3 files is about 600k in size, and the archives
contain some photos that are dark, blurry or otherwise mangled by yours
truly.
Randall
http://www.sunline.net/fibbers/portland.zip
http://www.sunline.net/fibbers/olympia.zip
http://www.sunline.net/fibbers/seattle.zip
The scene of the next Scarnella show was the Crocodile Cafe in Seattle. I
arrived at about 6 p.m., and as soon as I got there I took a quick look
around to see if I could find anyone I knew. Two shady characters a block
away started waving and yelling at me, so I ducked into the cafe to escape
from them. The creeps followed me into the club, and the guy with 2 black
eyes and rotten teeth approached me and said that he could get me anything
I needed. I told him I wasn't interested, but he persisted, even offering
me "a free hit." I declined again, and he apologized, saying "I rode the
short bus to school and forgot to take my medication this morning." He
started to leave, but then he spun around and asked me if I wanted a girl
"for the evening." Nice guy...
Versus were late arriving, so we had plenty of time to kill before the
show. I helped Carla and Nels lug their gear inside, and while we were at
the van they showed off the spoils of a trip to a Tacoma thrift store. They
bought a couple of bizarre pillows, and Nels picked up a sporting beige
suit with an incredible pattern woven into the fabric. We twisted Nels' arm
while we ate, and he agreed to wear the new suit for the show.
Several people recognized Carla & Nels while we were eating and unpacking,
so I guess there were plenty of Scarnella fans in attendance. I had the
pleasure of meeting the list's Terry Granillo, as well as a gentleman from
Long Beach who'd flown up to see X the night before. Wish I'd been able to
swing it...
Scarnella opened to a medium-sized crowd, but the first song seemed to win
most of them over. Carla's bass started acting up near the end, effectively
terminating the piece at about the 15-minute mark. There were a couple of
other technical glitches during the set, but each song was met with
approving applause. As usual, the set ended with A Millenium Fever Ballad,
and it saddened me when Carla picked up her little boombox, since I knew
that the strains of Auld Lang Syne (spelling?) would spell the end of my
Scarnella experience.
Steve Fisk joined Scarnella at the cafe after the show, no doubt discussing
the upcoming recording session. I didn't want to pry too much, but Nels
explained that they would begin recording yesterday (Sunday) and hoped to
finish the whole album, perhaps even all of the mixing, while they were in
Seattle. They're planning on a Fall release for the album.
We gave the band a hand in loading their gear back into the van, and
shortly before we said our goodbyes another of Seattle's spooky street
dudes wandered up. Here's a rough transcript of Carla's conversation with
creepy guy #2:
"Are you guys in a band?"
"Yes."
"What's it called?"
"Scarnella."
"What's that?"
"It's a rare skin disease." (Expect to see that in future interviews when
she's asked about the name's origin.)
"What kind of music do you play?"
"It's just bonkers."
I guess that sums it all up...
Here are a couple photos from Seattle and Olympia, but the quality may be
poor. I'll try to clean a few up and post them when I get back home.
Randall
http://www.sunline.net/fibbers/oly.jpg
http://www.sunline.net/fibbers/seattle.jpg
Date: Mon, 8 Jun 1998 11:04:54 -0700
From: "Terry A. Granillo" <tag29-2@IDT.NET>
Subject: Seattle
It was good to finally meet someone on the list (Randall no less!) at the
Seattle show. And Jeff too -- although I'm not sure he's a subscriber here.
The show was fun, so much of a departure from what I'm used to from the Fibbers.
Nels was all over the place on the guitar, and doing things most of us only
dream of. And just hearing Carla sing again was worth the price of admission.
I'm happy. Don't know how Versus was, I took off to see some friends play their
final show ever after a five-year run as Goody Blick & the Country Kind. Thank
goodness we know now the Fibbers are coming back. :-) --t.
