For real, Empty Bottle, turn the volume up.

Yesterday evening I headed out to the Empty Bottle to check out Mickey, Nobunny, and The Spits. It was a good show to break up with someone to, or at least that's what it sounded like. Mickey is the perfect band to get into a big fight with someone to, like yelling at the top of your voice and leaving with a loud as hell, "Fuck you." Nobunny filled the spot of the music a friend would have one when you showed up all bummed out and angry, pretty good until you thought about it. The Spits are the band you see when you decide to drown your sorrows with cheap booze at some raucous bar and you end up howling along nonsensically along with while spilling your beer and realizing that life is good.

Last time I saw Mickey it was at the Black Lips show at the Logan Square Auditorium, they were pretty good then but I thought that they'd be better somewhere smaller, grimier, someplace like the Empty Bottle. They rocked. They're kinda glamy, not that it's a bad thing at all, not in that hair metal sort of way, but in the old school rocking way. If glam rock is a feather boa, then Mickey plays a kind of rock that is a feather boa that's been covered in motor oil. I don't dig their slower, light stuff, it's strikes me as being candy coated. Their stompier numbers are a great thing though. The set started off with the lead singer in the middle of the crowd of various rock freaks and that got the party started rather well. Solid, like an old school electric guitar you find in a filthy garage.

A few of my friend told me about Nobunny, maybe even hyping them. I eventually relented and listened to them besides the terrible band name. What? It's not a good band name. If I was left to my own devices I would never have listened to them just because of the name. The stuff I heard was okay, but I'm not sure if it's suppose to be annoying on purpose. I guess that's punk rock? The lead singer's voice is grating. Their set started off with a really cool song, but they didn't stay that way. They had damn good stage presence, jumping around and rocking quite adequately, but never going over that edge that would have made them badass. I still thought the lead singer was annoying. Good for them.

The Spits came on last and I said to myself, "Right on." How can you not? Dudes had a big glow in the dark skull with red strobe lights for eyes and the first thing they did was light a cymbal on fire. Then they proceeded to play a set of the best kind of music, fast and rocking. They should have been louder. Why don't they ever turn up the great bands at the Empty Bottle to the point where it almost hurts? Pentagram was pretty loud, I think... That was a strange night. Anyway! I imagine that gospel musicians have the same effect on the faithful as the Spits had on the various freaks, miscreants, punks, and rockers last night. You know, dancing around and arms in the air, howls of appreciation in a great lurid fashion after each song. Man. The Spits sounded like what the Ramones would sound like if the Ramones had grown up listening to Misfits. It's bands like these that make me want to toss up the horns and and yell for more until my ears bleed and my eyeballs have liquefied. If the Spits had come on second, I would have left during Nobunny's set.

Mickey are playing a show on June 18 at the Mopery along with Box Elders, Yolks, Church of My Love, Lover!. Huzzah!