GAIA @ Black Oak Ranch

[Drunk Monk]

8/5-7/11

earthdance lite (<!-- l --><a class="postlink-local" href="http://brotherhoodofdoom.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=7&t=543">viewtopic.php?f=7&t=543</a><!-- l -->)

still in recovery mode. more to come...

[Drunk Monk]

Black Oak was magical as always, although we were somewhat disappointed that they didn't really run with the GAIA concept. There were some struggling efforts: the food court actually had dish options, there were some lectures (although the drug ones were probably better attended than the grey water ones), Lagunitas beer sold you a $5 stainless steel logo-ed cup which could be returned for the deposit or kept as a keepsake (this would have been better if the cup was bigger). Overall, tho, it was just earthdance with one less big tent and about a 1/3rd of the attendees.

The nite krew had an intense episode each night dm was there (Thur, Fri & Sat). There were rumors of laced face paint, which was a funny notion, and dm personally dealt with two face painted IPRs, plus there was one other, but ultimately, it was just a funny rumor.

Musically, it was unimpressive. Dm's friend's son's band, Steel Toed Slippers played and that was enjoyable. Aaron Neville was okay - a bit too much pop crooning. The Wailers is down to Family Man (Marley's base player); they played Bob's top hits, but their singers sucked. Seriously, how hard is it to get a decent Bob Marley impersonator? Dm was getting so irritated that he nearly grabbed the mike to take over. Delhi 2 Dublin was fun - celtic banghra dance music - and Dm would have bought a CD if they had one available. That was the last act Dm & clan saw before bailing.

There was a qigong master from AZ who ironically, was a pupil of a master that DM was hanging out with the weekend before in Plano. Dm took her workshop the first day - it was okay - hard to teach hippies qigong. He bailed on the second day as it was more of the same. Considered doing an article on it for a fleeting moment, as it would have been so easy for Dm to concoct - just had to take some photos and the GAIA promoters (personal friends of DM) would have loved it. But then Dm decided he was on vacation (if chasing IPRs at 4:20AM is a vacation) and he shouldn't bother working at all. Dn regrets that somewhat now as it would have been something he could have written for the ezine in his sleep (and probably would have done just that).

Dm hopes the show goes on as he loves the venue. He hopes in future, they get more GAIA oriented and better acts.

Next stop, OSL.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Why didn't you say Dehli to Dublin was performing. Then I would have come.

Not really, but at least I knew one of the bands and I have heard them on the youTube.

[Drunk Monk]

I enjoyed them immensely and look forward to seeing them again. They were the only band to get the crowd hopping.

On a side note, they put way too many lasers in the dancehall dome (called the roundhouse). They moved the dome so it was farther away, which was a drag because it meant more walking. They put so many lasers in their that you couldn't stay in for very long. I think the most people I saw in there at one time was a dozen. The DJs weren't very good there either, so that was a total bust.

[Drunk Monk]

I was originally planning to leave for this on Thursday afternoon, but Women's gymno is on Thursday night and I really want to watch that with my family. So I'll probably leave super early on Friday morn, hitting the road at 4:20 would be ideal as I'd miss the north bay commute traffic and arrive on site when everyone is bleary (easier to jedi my way in). There's only one band I really want to see - Bomba Estereo at 6:30 on Friday. My friend's son's band, STS is playing on Friday too at 3:45. Saturday has 3 old faves, David Lindley at 4:30, Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars at 9, and then Cheb I Sebbah at 11...shoot, I was thinking of bailing early for more Olympics but I haven't heard any of them in a spell. Sunday I can totally bail on.

[Drunk Monk]

Dm blasted up under the cover of night, on the freeway by 4:20 AM, only stopped in Hopland for an accident, and enjoyed a delightful sunrise. Got there at 7:30, but the staff pass booth wasn't going to open until 8. Fortunately, several security and night hog friends were hanging out there - a few that knew dm by name and rep, but dm didn't remember - so it was chill. Secured a nice shady spot, tucked the car and was ready to go.

The ticket sales were way down. GAIA lost a ton of money. It might not happen next year, as they lost money on the first year and were hoping to improve. It made for a great show for those who came because there was plenty of room and an amazing line-up. Dm made an early prediction that the bulk of the patients would be staff and sure enough, it was so. It was so in spades. The supervisors were very impressed, which dm waved off humbly, saying 'it was probability, not prophesy.'

RM didn't make an official lammy (which was lammy lameness), so dm's rogue JNK lammies became the most sought after RM lammy trophy. Dm had made up a special one (soon to be posted on sitonmyfacebook). Several other JNK have been making lammies lately - good stuff but all photoshop montages - so dm decided to step up his game. He hand-drew an image of Aayla Segura, made her green instead of blue (it's a GAIA thang), and lit up her light sabers with some glow in the dark paint.

There was this weird generation thing happening at RM. There were the seasoned vets - the elders - and this group of about 10 nooBs, all in their early 20s, who were like those dreaded frat party people that usually spoil the scene. At one point, several of the young lads thought it would be funny to v-neck/muscle sleeve their staff shirts and walk around with bike shorts stuffed with socks. The young lassies with them followed sheepishly, along with one vet who just had to see what would happen, but he soon gave up because it was tiresome. There was an effort by the vets to break up the nooB pack (actually just to steal their lassies as they were young and nubile). That was marginally effective.

Dm managed to avoid getting anchored with a radio as there weren't many radios provided. So dm just ran amuck. Dm caught Steel Toed Slippers, which is a band by the son of a good friend. Their set was mediocre, which was a little awkward. Also caught Shovelman, which was this guy who converted a snow shovel into a synth slap bass. Funky and fun, worth checking out, but not necessarily for a whole set. Then was the act DM came to see - Bomba Estereo. As there was NO ONE THERE, dm was front of stage with plenty of room to dance about. The singer was a little more bleating than on their CD which dm loves so, but she's super quick and feisty. It's all about her and the drummer. The other two (bass and synth) were almost superfluous. The synth guy was actually a little annoying. They totally lived up to DM's expectations. Dm would have even bought another CD, but they didn't have one.

That night, dm pulled a great jedi move by coming in at just the right time to take a belligerent drunk from the head of security (an old dear friend) and a production head (another old friend), escort him to the space station despite his violent outbursts and struggling, and execute a perfect takedown and restraint. Some people, when they get drunk, like to fight their way to sobriety. As he had no skill at fighting, it was a pretty easy deal, and he was returned safely to his g/f once he had got it out of his system. It was very jedi, as it looked almost effortless and earned dm's keep for the day.

Dm stayed up until 4 and at that point realized that 24 hours was a long time to be conscious, so he crashed soundly until late morning.

Mas manana

[Drunk Monk]

It was muggy and wound up sprinkling a little, but that was good as it kept the dust down.

My first scheduled act was David Lindley. I was a huge fan of his, and had forgotten why, but Dave immediately reminded me. It was just him and his acoustic stringed instruments and he created a sound that was bigger than most 6-piece acts. And there was nobody there, just a few old deadhead friends who knew. I was close enough to perch on the hay bales at front of stage. Dave tore it up. I hadn't been following him over the last few years, and I regret that now. He blew me away. Little Green Bottle had me in tears - it was so funny. And When a Guy Gets Boobs is too-close-to-home hilarious. He went into Mercury Blues, which is one of my fav tunes from the El Rayo X daze - when Dave played that on steel pedal, it was a fight not to take off all my clothes and go dance off into the crowd. Now it's Tuna Blues, an environmental song with a mercurial twist. It affected me so much that I passed on tuna at lunch when I ate Japanese yesterday.

Here's a rendition of Little Green Bottle, not from GAIA, but just to give you a little taste of Dave's sweet medicine.
[youtube]OM_VxKBYKVI[/youtube]
Actually, it's not a little taste. At 9:30, it's a long song. But make the time for it, and enjoy. You won't be disappointed.

[Drunk Monk]

Now, as y'all know, dm go to a lot of music. But dm is seldom really moved by it anymore. Dm almost never have the epiphanies that he did back in the day. But Lindley restored some faith. He was awesome. Still buzzing from that, dm stumbled past Shovelman again, who was playing on the pedal power stage, which was a stage driven by patrons pedaling stationary bikes. The whole concept of that was just so GAIA. A few more steps and dm saw a stir going on in the kid's zone. Under the small kid's canopy, the schedule said 'music' but it was really Michael Franti, throwing down an intimate acoustic set, just for the kids. It was charmingly sweet. Franti dropped some of his big hits like Sound of Sunshine and Say Hey (I Love You), bringing kids up on stage to lead the crowd in some simple dances. Franti kept it real. Dm went back to see STS again and they were much tighter in an indoor venue. Then he snuck over to Sierra Leone Refugee All Stars, who are still incredibly authentic. Finally, there was a crowd sufficiently large that dm would have had to struggle to get to front of stage, but he prefers to have dancing room, and found himself a nice spot surrounded by writhing hippies, Gaian amazons and sparkle ponies to get his wiggle on. SLRAS capped off several hours of dm strolling about, enjoying music and the scene, as if he had a ticket.

Just before Franti took the main stage, Flash was to emerge in honor of the year. Flash is the Grateful Dead dragon, and one of dm's greatest honors was to be part of that crew (see <!-- m --><a class="postlink" href="http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/ezine/article.php?article=1025">http://ezine.kungfumagazine.com/ezine/a ... ticle=1025</a><!-- m -->). The head of security tipped dm off that Flash was about to appear just before it happened. Now, the promoter of GAIA, Bob Barsotti, an old friend, recently underwent a quadruple bypass. He was there, but dm only saw him from a distance. Dm hadn't connected with him or his wife, Suzy, yet. Dm popped in just before the run to be greeted with cheers and hugs from the crew. Suzy was the dragon head and invited dm to join in, but they already had their team in place, so dm just tagged along. It was glorious. Talk about your Flash-back. After, dm hung out back stage with the Dragon crew and gave offerings to the Dragon altar there.

Dm skipped Franti's set. He went back to hang out at RM and act like he was working...

Mas manana.

[Greg_phpbb3_import1]

Note to self: Need vid of DM getting his groove on for Archives.

[Drunk Monk]

dm moves through a crowd of dancing hippies like an eel through jello. besides, few acts get dm inspired enough to really get his groove on nowadays. at best, you could get a drunken sway and swagger, but that's really not videoworthy.

[Drunk Monk]

It sprinkled lightly, which was nice because it kept the dust down. There was a late night incident - a fight that landed on a poor friend's tent - and after that was resolved, I made a beeline for my tent as I planned to get up early and drive home alone, plus I figured with the light crowd, it was done. But it wasn't. There were two more fights. The next morning, I was packed soon after daybreak, hung out for breakfast, and then hit the road. I stopped at City of 10K Buddhas for lunch on the way home. 'Twas pleasant.