The Vandals and Assorted Jellybeans

I spent about half the day trying to find out if the show had been canceled, moved, or what, but there really weren’t any flyers around. But it was free, so I can’t bitch too much. I knew that, in case of rain, the show was going to be moved indoors, and since it was raining, I was looking for the alternate location when I heard the ruckus coming from the Rose Garden. They had fenced the area off and erected a stage with an awning over it so they that could play in the rain. In front of the dry stage, a bunch of soggy young punks were braving the weather. I was a little late and Assorted Jellybeans had already started.

I’ve never seen Assorted Jellybeans before, so I didn’t know what to expect. They play the kind of ska-punk that flooded the market a few years back — a three-piece with a pretty tight sound, good at what they do, just not really my cup of tea. I think I would have liked them more before half the punk bands in the country sounded like that. The crowd seemed to enjoy them, though, and was growing in size. They played an energetic set that lasted about 45 minutes. I think I’m getting old — there was just way too much energy and not enough beer. Assorted Jellybeans did their job adequately, and I wish I liked them more but the sound was a little generic. If you’re a fan of that sound, though, you’ll love them.

The first time I saw The Vandals was about 10 years ago, and a lot has changed since then, the music as much as the lineup. They’ve gone from cow-punk to sounding like every other band on those goddamned Punkorama CDs. I wish I was still 15.

Anyway, when The Vandal (mind you, there’s only one original member) finally took the stage, with a drummer borrowed from Suicidal Tendencies, everyone was soaked. The pit began immediately and wet jerks in A.F.I. shirts pushed each other around in a circle and felt real tough. The band played lots of the newer garbage and not enough of the old, in this crusty old punk’s opinion. I was particularly unimpressed with their cover of Pennywise’s "Come Out Fighting"; it seemed a little lame that they would cover a song by a band that came up in their footsteps. They put on a good show and are still as obnoxious as ever, and I do appreciate a band that talks shit to the fans, but I still wanted the old stuff and they didn’t play "Pat Brown." They played "Oi to the World" and the crowd pleaser, "Tell Me More" instead. Just when I had almost completely lost faith, they played "Anarchy Burger," and while it was no redemption, it made up for a lot of the bullshit. I could have gone away happy if they played "Pat Brown," but I think they’re lame now. It was free, though.

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