Jabberjaw photo submission finalized and sent off!

Well I just finished sending out the pix for the in the works upcoming book about legendary 90's underground punk rock club The Jabberjaw.  Try and think back to the 90's, what were you into, what where you dressed like?  Unless you paid attention to what was happening in the underground, you probably liked Grundge or whatever lamo pop music was around during that time.  And you probably wouldn't want anyone checking photo's of you during this time dressed like a dorkus malorkus.  Cuz mainstream fashioned sucked, remember everything being size gigantic.  This was before the internet and popular clothing brands that just copied what they found in thrift stores.  Anything cool you had to hunt that shit down!  If there were any great original bands to hear and see, you either had to already know about them or catch them during one of their tours through your town.  No myspace, internet blog, magazine press, just word of mouth or you happened to catch a flyer with a listing of the show.  The Jabberjaw, if you knew about the place, was the one stop showcase of super cool bands.  Most of these bands  weren't  on any major labels to get them showcases at the local Roxy and Whiskey type venues, so it was all DIY with help from friends.  Plus the shows were 5 bucks, a bargain for then and now.  I happened to be in my 20's during this time and was really into what was going on at the Jabberjaw and other DIY punk venues.  Wanting to be a part of it, but somewhat an outsider, I relied on my camera to document in my own way, something I thought was cool and had an energy that I could'nt quite describe, but inspired me to want to go and check shit out.  Every generation has something underground happening that will always remain special for that time period.  For me it was the shows at Jabberjaw.  These bands to me are as timeless as all the legendary bands that came before them.  It also put the final stamp on the so called Punk genera before the term totally became a meaningless marketing term for a music sound.  Don't get me wrong, punk rock still exists it just isn't called that anymore.  To check out more pics during this time, I've got quite a few on my facebook page, so check em out if you liked these bands.  And if you like these photo's and never heard of these bands, do yourself a favor and listen to these bands.         

Some kids putting up with the heat, probably was 100 degrees in there.  You could see the perspiration on the walls.

One of my favorite Chris Thompson bands, The Monorchid.

Rocket from the Crypt

The Make Up

One has to experience the sonicness of Unwound.

L.A.'s Derby Dolls

Well if you've never attended a Derby Dolls event, you're really missing out.  Probably one of the coolest new sports that I've become a fan of.  Like the roller derby of the 70's but with more of a DIY punk rock aesthetic.  Attending one of these derby's will have you up and out of your seat cheering in no time.  I believe the 70's roller derby was scripted like wrestling, but here you get the real deal.  The girls are actually competing and most of them are really great skaters!  They all have great team names and alias jersey names.  Like Gori Spelling, Mila Minute, and Kung Pao Tina.  This particular event was a holiday all star line up.   Thanks to my friend Ane Jens a.k.a. Gori Spelling, who was able to help me out with a photo pass.  I was able to get some fun pics from this derby.  Looks like Gene Simmons and family were also fans of the derby, because Family Jewel's also happened to be filming an episode that night at the derby, with the Simmons family doing their verson of The Star Spangled Banner.  I believe there are Derby Dolls in numerous other cities in the U.S., so treat yourself and support a sport that is in the early underground stage.  They don't seem to have any huge corporate sponsership deals that in most cases take away from the heart of  the neat things.  I'm sure this sport will grow as more people attend and find out about it, everyone involved seems to be having a fun time, so hopefully wherever this sport goes that will remain true.    

One the fastest skaters on the block, Gori Spelling will show you how the L.A.D.D. girls jam!

Here is another speed demon, Mila Minute leading the pack against team Santa's Little Helpers. 

You know a sport is cool when all the players give hi fives to fans and audience members at the end of the game.

Team L.A. Ri-Ettes!