I’ve become addicted to videos on you tube called “Rig Rundown” that are posted by http://www.premierguitar.com and feature well known guitarists (and some lesser well known guitarists) talking about their guitar “rigs” (equipment). I especially love the videos featuring J. Mascis, Nels Cline, King Buzzo and Judah Bauer.
A few weeks ago, as I was scrolling through the “Rig Rundown” thumbnails on you tube, I noticed a video by a band called the Go Times playing live recently in Chicago.
Now, this is where the past comes in.
In the mid 1990’s I played guitar in a band called Gila Bend and near the end of the troubled, tedious existence of this band we traveled to Peoria, IL to play a show. The three things I remember from this day is that we listened to the band RODAN over and over again the whole way there ( guitarist Mike H was always in charge of the tape deck), there was a teenage girl at this show wearing a black leather jacket with the word CUNT spray painted in big silver letters on the back (Our bassist Fred Popolo joked the whole way back to Chicago about “CUNT” going home after the show and her parents, reading the paper in the living room, saying to her ” Hi CUNT! How was the punk rock show?” to which she responds “FUCK YOU MOM!”) and a great hardcore band called The Go Times that also played that night.
So I’m thinking “wow, they’re still together” and I watched the video.
It quickly became apparent to me that this was not the same band. The band in the video were middle-ageish guys playing garage rock with twangy vocals and it wasn’t bad, I liked it. Then I thought “maybe this is the same band, I’m middle aged and I no longer play music that sounds like Gila Bend. Let’s investigate!”
I found this website
http://www.gotimeband.com
This was the band in the video and they were called Go TIME! not the Go Times. I read the bands bio and realized that I used to be in a band with the guy on the right side of the screen in High School! Two bands in fact. The first two bands I was ever in!
I always like to use a line from one of my heroes, Mike Watt, when describing these two bands. We had a sound that “made your asshole pucker from a mile away”.
This former band mate of mine is named Scott Niekelski and he (back then at least) was an evil genius of a kid. He caused all kinds of trouble and never got busted and he inspired other kids to cause even more trouble. He sold black shoelaces as “death bracelets” to kids at his high school and had kids at MY high school doing the same. He had a “death bracelet” pyramid scheme! We stopped hanging out around the age of 18 when girls began to enter the picture. Why does that always happen?
Anywho, here’s another example of the serendipitous, path crossing nature of the internet covering the entire past history of the human being. Starting from now. No, NOW! NO NOW! etc, etc, etc …
and I get to watch my childhood buddy play music from afar. I’m also happy to report that we have both improved greatly at playing and writing rock songs.
Go Scott Go!