Punk, Hardcore, and Metal at Rodriguez Skate Park.
Skateboarding during the hardcore show. All photos by Paul Holstein.
I'd been to more than a few shows in the past week or two, but this one was a can't-miss for several reasons. The first was that it was outdoors at a skate park on a beautiful Saturday afternoon, only a few miles from my house. Also, EKG and Stacked Deck are two bands that I needed to see or see again. The other two bands were metal bands, which are hit-or-miss for me, but I showed up early to see them all, regardless.
Ophanim was up first, and I had actually seen them back in January with The Lowcocks, Plan III, and P.H.S. at The Vernors Room (also in Pontiac). They played a metal set, but honestly, I had just arrived, so I was wandering around checking out the skateboarding area and getting photo shoots in with Stacked Deck and EKG. When Stacked Deck started doing their soundcheck, I moved up front. The signer for Stacked Deck is local legend Ralph Smith, who also fronts hardcore band Death In Custody and Oi! band Bad Assets. His other two bands are great, and Stacked Deck was just as good. Ralph is die-hard straight edge and had his customary X's on his hands and the energy that goes with them. No broken picnic tables this time!
Honeyfoot were up next, and knowing that they were a metal band, I almost took a break and went back over to the skate area. I'm glad I gave them a chance, because after just a few minutes I was hooked and was glued to their entire set. Even though it was a sparse crowd, they had the energy of a band playing to a sold-out stadium. The music was good for what it was, but their stage presence was over the top, and everyone there (even the punkers) would be talking about them for a long time after.
EKG at Rodriguez Skate Park. All photos by Paul Holstein.
I first saw EKG ("Detroit's most offensive band") sort of by mistake. We were at The Sanctuary for an Aggro or Die! / Cult of Spaceskull / Meteors show and decided to walk in to The Outer Limits Lounge afterwards to catch Detroit 442. EKG came on first and blew our minds. Not just because they were balancing beer cans on their heads, playing buck naked, and inspiring a mosh pit – they were playing some damn good punk rock. I ended up catching them again at the annual "Ask a Punk" Breckenridge Fest and warming up for G.G. Allin's old band. The Murder Junkies after that, and this would be my fourth time catching them live. This was in a park setting, and most of the patrons were not actually there for the bands (they were skating or picnicking), so I assumed this would not be their raunchiest set. Well, they surprised me not just with Kingpin Keith wearing a G.G. Allin "Gonna Fuck This Ham" Dr Seuss parody shirt, but they also played a killer version of "Women I've Never Had" (the G.G. Allin version, not the original Hank Williams Jr version) along with a slew of their own. A killer afternoon, and it looks like I may be able to catch them again at The Sanctuary when they warm up for Total Chaos in a few weeks.
