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In the midst of preparing a piece on a great but relatively unknown Chicago blues guitarist I came across something I wrote almost 10 years ago to the day on an old fashioned listserv (Yes Virginia. Back then we communicated our love of music via old timey email). It was the time I went as saw the art/noise band The Imperial Butt Wizards. Definitely the most dangerous gig I’ve ever attended. You had to be there but I hope this gives you an impression of this most strange gig. I believe the date of the show was July 15, 1996. My girlfriend, Kitten, suggested that we go to Hell’s Gate to see the Imperial Butt Wizards, an art/punk band. A review that she read said that the band tends to get a little rowdy and throws stuffed animals around with firecrackers stuffed into various stuffed animal parts. She said it would be fun. I thought it may prove to be interesting so we decided to go. Hell’s Gate is a small bar on Yucca St. in Hollywood. Yucca is notorious for drugs and is not an area that you want to be in during the day but we went. Found a well lit parking area and went inside. First, the band was delayed. The drummer was late. But he turned up and soon everyone was set up. The band launched into a punk tune and I wasn’t anyway prepared for what happened next. From stage right came a group of people dressed in all sorts of weird costumes, carrying lit fireworks and boxes. As the firecrackers blazed away the people who just entered took up positions on the stage and threw books, plastic confetti (tons of it! Everybody ended up covered in it. I was still picking out little bits of plastic the next day), fireworks, medical supplies and God knows what else. Soon the room was filled with smoke and then the band stopped. After a weird speech by the vocalist it was on again. One guy stood on stage, lighting firecrackers and putting them into the pockets of the coat he was wearing. Others brought out stuffed animals in which lighted firecrackers were placed and then tossed into the mosh pit. The animals would then get ripped to pieces by people in the crowd. One guy was particularly upset when, after he had scored a huge stuffed animal, it was set upon and ripped apart by other moshers. So here I am, on the edge of seething mosh pit, bits of stuffed animals are flying all round me, lit firecrackers are being thrown into the crowd, frisbees flying everywhere as well as other assorted objects and the fumes from the firecrackers are becoming overwhelming. It is hard to describe what I was feeling. Part of me wanted to get the hell out of there. It was getting dangerous. It was scary. I thought that the whole place was going to burn down. The other part wanted to wait around to see what happens. So I did. Eventually, the band ran out of firecrackers. So one guy started to burn anything that he could get a hold of. Books, boxes, plastic etc and then throw it into the crowd. By this stage there was shredded animals and boxes all over the floor and the room was filling with smoke. The band then stopped. Only because the club turned the fire extinguisher onto the band and stage. The room then filled with smoke and everyone decided it would be a little easier to breathe outside. It was an amazing show. At one moment I would be scared that a major disaster was about the happen and the next moment would find me laughing at the whole situation. It was, by far, the most outrageous and dangerous show I have ever attended. I’m still a little overwhelmed by the whole experience.