VIRB

Everyone on stage at the Crystal Ballroom on May 30th. Photo by Steve, on Flickr.

Still bloggin' after all these years. Let's start here:

We were in Europe in the spring and then back in Portland for the very beginning of the summer for a string of shows for kids in schools. We deemed this the "No Swears Tour" and kicked it off with a lunchtime show for Parkrose Middle School out near the Portland Airport. Before we played our two 15 minute sets for the rotating assembly we spoke to both 6th and 8th-grade classes about YACHT, being in a band, touring, and making music for a career. This experience was totally terrifying and really, really fun. As you may or may not know, my last full-time school attendance was the 8th grade. Yes, seriously. I took correspondence courses for my freshman year of high school before promptly dropping out and taking the GED as soon as I was legally allowed. So, returning to school was especially frightening for yours truly.

The No Swears Tour was kind of a misnomer because we actually swore a lot during these shows. It's cool, right? Teenagers are a lot different than they used to be in our innocent years. They probably have cusses now we've never heard of. The most intense show of "NST" was a fundraiser for Music In The Schools that was initially supposed to be at Lincoln High School, my (Claire's) alma mater (and that of many other luminaries -- whoa, Kathleen Hanna went to my high school, Rad!). It was moved to the Crystal Ballroom for administrative reasons, which is for the best because it was a crazy show with tons of bands, and it ended up raising a huge amount of well-deserved money for Portland Public Schools. It was mostly put on by an amazing girl called Galia, who was super-pro and way more driven than I ever was as a high-schooler. Way to go, Galia!

We did another show at Westview High School, which is apparently the largest high school in the state, after-hours in the theater, with the very awesome now-reunited All Girl Summer Fun Band and Reporter. It was put on by Stump Club, who are trying to set up a new all-ages venue in Portland: a very worthy mission. The PA was comically bad-sounding, the point where we kind of gave up on music altogether, hosting an ad-hoc talent show and "Grungey Lad" seminar, as well as an extended Q&A. After someone (literally) looked at the manual for the PA and got it audible, we played like four songs with everyone on the stage with us, signing and stomping along. Thanks, guys. You used your bodies for greatness! This was a very good show for us. Another highlight: finding out that a kid at Westview had used YACHT's "Magic Beat" in his graduation speech! He gave us a copy of it later and it blew Jona's mind.

Last but not least was Holocene's very-first all-ages show, something which was possible due to a minor tweak in Oregon state liquor laws. This was the kickoff for PDX POP NOW fest, and was an exciting lineup of local bands and bandettes: Fist Fite, Southern Belle, and White Fang. The all-ages vibe was major. During the White Fang set, our friend Steve got his front teeth knocked out! EXTREME! I wish there was a photo of this somewhere... all I can find is this girl impersonating Steve. UPDATE: Here's a photo of Steve's knocked-out teeth.

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