The Suicide Machines & The Write-Ups at Flint Local 432.
Jay Navarro of The Suicide Machines at Flint Local 432. All photos courtesy of Paul Holstein.
It was my friend Don's 56th trip around the sun, so we made a day of it. We pulled in to the local mall at just seconds before 9:00am (almost exactly on time) to carpool down to our tailgating spot in Downtown Detroit. The Detroit Lions game at Ford Field turned out to be a nail-biter. We had a group of friends meeting us an hour closer to Flint at 6:30pm to head to The Suicide Machines/The Write-Ups show at Flint Local 432 after the game, so when the game went into overtime we were a bit nervous (but winning that game was top priority, so we stayed to the very end). We pulled out a win and met up with our friends at just seconds before 6:30pm (almost exactly on time, for the second time that day).
Flint Local 432 is right by the Capitol Theatre in downtown Flint. We parked in an alley and made our way over; it was the first time that Don and I had been there, but our friends (both are members of the hardcore band Plan III) had been there years earlier. Apparently it's nicer now and billed as an all-ages, non-profit, substance-free music and performing arts venue. That was apparent when we walked in to signs that said "No Weapons," "No Alcohol," "No Drugs," and surprisingly, "No Moshing." I wondered right away how the last one would work out.
It wasn't long before The Write-Ups took the stage (they are local to Flint), with lead guitarist Dallas McCulloch wearing Detroit Lions gear and with their logo emblazoned on his guitar. A few songs in, he would tell us about how he came directly from the game and that he was removing his Lions sweatshirt to tone down the sports references... only to reveal a Detroit Lions shirt underneath. It was a great set, energetic and catchy, and leaning towards ska with a trumpet player and shared vocals. Underneath, though, as they pointed out a couple of times, were darker themes that included the Flint Water Crisis, police brutality, and mental illness. They credited their band's existence to the venue, Flint Local 432, and their sound to The Suicide Machines, who were up next.
The Suicide Machines had scheduled three shows this weekend in Michigan. The first one was Friday night in Paw Paw, which I had to look up as I hadn't heard of it. The second was Saturday in Ann Arbor at The Blind Pig. I almost bought tickets to that one, as it was much closer, and I have fond memories of seeing The Dwarves on their iconic "Thank Heaven For Little Girls" tour there back in 1992. It would have been good to go back to The Blind Pig, but they announced the Sunday show at Flint Local 432, and that's just a 30-minute drive. The flyer was killer, with a Regan (The Exorcist)/Jack Kevorkian mash-up set to the artwork of the Negative Approach EP. I wasn't sure what the set might be like, but it turned out that they played mostly obscure songs but with the inclusion of favorites "S.O.S." and "Break The Glass." Jay was obviously having a lot of fun, singing with various crowd members, calling out friends by name, and jumping into the crowd every few songs. As expected, the "No Moshing" rule was broken, but no one seemed to care. I'm incredibly lucky to have such a great band being local and doing so many small shows (earlier in the year they played back-to-back shows at Small's Bar with Negative Approach). Hopefully it won't be long until they are back again, and maybe they will eventually play "Detroit Is The New Miami." I'm still waiting.
