THE FRESNAN

Bandgeek!: All Of Fresno's Scary Band Names Are Playing This Weekend

"Ohhh, it's Halloween and shit." is what a drunk guy said once as he woke and noticed the moon from his Amtrack San Joaquin seat, one October valley night. We couldn't have said it better ourselves. And with a weekend full of Halloween parties and junk, some music venues are dark. So that just means we have to focus on what's IS going down.

FRESNOOOO. Lets BANDGEEEEK!

FRIDAY

AUDIE'S OLYMPIC: Well, Audie's is getting into the spirit all weekend long. Tonight it's "Zombie Bondage Ball" where your normal straight laced zombie can finally let themselves get freaky and bondage each other up. Providing a musical backdrop for this night of zombie kink is Death Alley Motor Cult, From The Fallen, Infinite Agression and Goat (they're quite outstanding). [$5 9pm]

TOKYO HOUSE [PARTY]: If you're in the under 21 crowd this Reedly show (and this show) is really your only option for live music this weekend. This one is good enough though to carry you through with Tokyo Death March, The Escorts, Milford Higgins and Drown The Hero. Heads up: You're going to look like a douchebag if you don't wear a costume. [$1 7pm]

STARLINE: When Grooveyard throws a Halloween party you know, my friend, that Saints Of Insanity, Flailing Down and Synerza are going to be down. [$6 9pm]

SATURDAY

Incoming!: No Town Battles V Town on Saturday

Saturday. Fresno's own NoTown girls vs. Visalia's V Town. Tioga/Sequoia beer. Doors at 5. Do this.

Yes, The Roeding Family Is Old And Sweet And All, But We Gotta Do This Bigger Zoo Thing

 

Look at sweet old "Kiri", the Fresno Zoo's Malayan tiger. Check her out the next time you go and you'll see how bored off her fucking ass she is. She needs some space to run, maybe pounce on a gopher or two. She'll get that space if the Zoo is able to go through with its expansion plan.

The Roeding family is not happy with this. They came down from their Bay Area homes, as they do when these things come up, and said that Roeding is meant for grass and trees and stuff. That's nice, we like grass and trees too - they're pretty awesome and Fresno could use more. But, frankly dudes, you haven't lived in Fresno for a generation or two or something, so we kinda don't care what you have to say. Roeding Park is Fresno's, not some San Francisco family's.

While we do agree with some of the comments on the fresnobee.com thread, saying it would be better to take up some of the land on the other side of Belmont for parking and what not. But we don't agree with the batshit crazy Northies that want the Zoo moved, well, North.

If we want a better Zoo and we need to eat up some grass and trees to do it, we will. We don't feel good about it, being Tree Fresno supporters and all, but we're doing it. It's what Kiri would want.

*Photo stolen from Wendell Paypa.

Fierce Creatures Convincing Fresno State Students To Ditch Their Noon Class Today

Here's your first chance to see a 2010 F.u.S.E. band post-festival. The Fierce Creatures are playing the Pit at Fresno State at Noon today. If you're a music major, this should count as much as going to class because you will definately learn how to use your talents to put on a good show.

Tonight @ Neighborhood Thrift Cafe: Fun. Steel Train and Jarrod Gorbel

Don't know who these people are (alright, we kinda have heard of Steel Train), but they're from big cities and that means they're good. Right?

Headlining band, from New York, Fun:

Co-not-headlining band, Steel Train:

Steel Train - "Bullet" on Letterman from Steel Train on Vimeo.

Focused On Fresno: Remember It's Only Beer, Edition

Anybody that frequents the Body & The Bog pub and knows a little bit about the owner/bartender, John, knows this is classic. Now we're actually looking foward to election day.

F.u.S.E. Fest 2010: Thank You Fresno's Music Scene, You Made Downtown Fresno Awesome

Saturday night, Fresno's Couch Riding Scene took a major blow to its coolness factor. The Fresnans that forgoed their couches and Giant games to experience what Fresno's musicians have to offer, and to see what Downtown Fresno can look like FUSEd with music, need some applause today. We saw a lot of great people out there enjoying themselves at F.u.S.E. Fest 2010 and being part of the solution - the problem being getting Fresnans to come out to locally grown things. Let's hope the positive vibes carry over into F.u.S.E. 2011 and we see more people out there.

Some highlights for us:

• A bustling Fulton Street.
• Hearing people talk about how they'd never been to this part of town and how cool it is.
• Every age group was there.
• The band Whiskey & The Devil Chaplin finishing their stellar set at one end of Frank's Place. Then, Trumpet Solo took one perfectly timed beat and started their set at the other end of Frank's, enticing the whole crowd to move over to them. Never seen something like that before and it was cool.
• Dusty Buns impressing all and running out of every morsel of food.
• Fresnans discovering and being impressed by bands they had previously not known existed.
• The Fishbowl stage:

*Thanks to Nick Gennock for unknowingly letting us steal his F.u.S.E. pics. Also check out some nice ones by Andrew Ranta:

**The Beehive was first out of the post-F.u.S.E blogging gate. Expect one of Famous Whitewater's reviews soon. If you've got pics or videos or something, please link it up in the comments.

THE FRESNO URBAN SOUND EXP 2010 IS HERE!

WHERE? All down down Fulton Street in Downtown Fresno; Front of Warnors, Star Palace, K-Jewl Art Studio, Frank's Place, Iron Bird Cafe and Tokyo Garden. Check the map for exacts - the Bee also has a nice one.

WHOS AND WHATS: It's an all-ages event (except for Tokyo Garden 21+). Passes are $20 and that allows you into everything. Jump around. If you have someone 12 or under, they're gettin in free. Parking is all around and free. There will be food on Fulton Street from Dusty Buns, at Tokyo Garden and Iron Bird Cafe.

BRING CASH: There are no ATMs on Fulton Street and you're going to want money for drinking, eating and buying band merch!

BANDS: There will be a program you get that will tell you this:

FISHBOWL (under Warnors Theater marquee)
5:00 Espacio
6:00 Bad Andy & The Sunburns
7:00 Lance Canales & The Flood
8:00 12 Guage Serenade
9:00 Tony Manjarrez Latin Jazz Band

FRANK'S PLACE
5:00 Blaze
6:00 The Whiskey & The Devil Chaplin
7:00 Shiver Fox
8:00 Sparkle Jet
9:00 Fierce Creatures
10:00 Achievement House
11:00 Viper City Brass Band

FRANK'S PLACE - VESTIBULE STAGE
6:30 Trumpet Solo
7:30 Azazel
8:30 Your Hero Is A Villain
9:30 Grafik
10:30 Hate FX
11:30 The Quiet Americans

IRON BIRD CAFE
5:30 Almost Winter
6:30 Jeff Caughey
7:30 Blake Jones
8:30 Third Rail Power Trip
9:30 JJ Brown Band

TOKYO GARDEN
10:00 AC Myles
11:00 E. Rose
12:00 Distrito Torre
1:00 It'll Grow Back

K-JEWEL ART GALLERY
5:30 Local Honey
6:30 Clave (Omar Nare & friends
7:30 The Capital is Burning
8:30 Omotola
9:30 I Do Not Exist

STAR PALACE DJ VENUE
5:00-6:00pm Geoff Kramer
6:00-7:00pm DJ Marc
7:00-8:15pm DJ Roman + Adrian Mezenger
8:15-9:30pm Ezra Osborn + Shant P
9:30-10:45pm DJ Bradley + Guest
10:45-12:00am DJ Clint Storm + P-Rez
No Input Nata — all damn night.

Check the website for linkage to the band's and DJ's websites.

What does F.u.S.E. mean for Fresno? Check this. Here is the website with more. See you out there!

F.u.S.E. Fest 2010: Pre-Party Tonight At The Lamp Post!

It's gonna be down and gritty and classic tonight at the Lamp Post, just like the sign. Pre-party for Saturday's F.u.S.E. Fest. At 7:30, things get underway. At 8pm, Strange Vine will play and it shall be good. At 8:45 it will be a "one off" showcase of F.u.S.E. 2010 musicians doing quick acoustic sets to promote their Saturday sets. At 10pm, Down Word will give us the finest Fresno has to offer in rock.

Sounds like a nice way to begin the weekend and get pumped for Saturday. Cost is $5 but if you buy a F.u.S.E. Festival pass, you get in for free (sorta). The Lamp Post is located at 607 E. Divisadaro St. There is a rumor that Dusty Buns will be parked there for some good eats too.

BANDGEEK!: If You Need More Than A Festival Of Local Talent, There's This Stuff

So yeah, we're going to be at the Lamp Post Friday for the F.u.S.E. Festival pre-party with Down Word and Strange Vine. Then on Saturday at 5pm. It's on. Downtown Fresno. Fresno Urban Sound Exp 2010. It shall be the times of times.

But we can't ignore the fact that there is some other stuff happening too. Good stuff as well. Let's quickly see.

FRIDAY

KUPPAJOE has Reluctant Hero:

CLUB BABYLON has Blooddrunk:

AUDIE'S OLYMPIC has the Impalers:

STARLINE has 40 Watt Hype:

SATURDAY

F.u.S.E. Fest 2010: Where The Hell Is FUSE Fest Anyways?

Not everybody knows where the Star Palace, Frank's Place, Iron Bird Cafe, KYNO or Warnors Theater is. Right? So then maybe you aren't exactly sure where Saturday's F.u.S.E. Fest 2010 is happening. Well, there's a map for that.

Check it, it was made special for the festival. Just think Fulton Street, and you're set because it's all happening on it. And, there will be a pedicab running down Fulton so you can check out what's happening at Iron Bird Cafe with ease. Everything else is right on top of each other, really. Remember: Parking is free downtown on the weekends unless you park around Selland or the Chuk when there's a game. Simple as that.

The map also reveals where the food is. Yes, there are places to eat downtown. Tokyo Garden. Iron Bird Cafe. Joe's Steakhouse. Chicken and Waffles on the Fulton Mall. And, as a special treat, Dusty Buns will be parked outside the All Things Fresno store on Fulton.

Downtown Fresno: Good music. Good food. Free parking.

F.u.S.E. Fest 2010: Bubba Likes Him Some Canales, Jeff Or Geoff, Spanish Towers and Kopi

Lance Canales was on the Alan Autry Show this week, promoting his F.u.S.E. Fest appearance (Fishbowl Stage at 7) with some F.u.S.E. fest organizers. Did a great job. Bubba like. You can hear the whole thing here and watch his performance here:

Also, F.u.S.E. 2010 artist, Distrito Torre, goes on the No Network and reveals the meaning of their name (oh duh, why didn't we know that) as they promote their time slot (midnight at Tokyo Garden):

Distrito Torre FUSE Fest Promo from Enrique Meza on Vimeo.

Tonight @ The Oly: Royal Baths, The Fresh & Onlys and The Quiet Americans

Fresno's The Quiet American's, love these dudes. They're playing at F.u.S.E. Fest Saturday (Frank's Place - Vestibule Stage - 5:30). But they're also playing tonight at Audie's Olympic. Along with: The Fresh & Onlys and San Fran's Royal Baths.

The Fresh & Onlys new album, Play It Strange, "has an evocative moody swagger that jangles with 80’s guitar pop like the Go-Betweens, Jacobites, or early R.E.M. and a provocative rawness ala Iggy Pop or The Gun Club." Alright, sounds good.

More info at Love The Captive. Watch some Fresh & Onlys here:

F.U.S.E. Fest 2010: Times and Stages Announced!

Take some time today and start geeking out with the 2010 F.u.S.E. schedule:

STAGES AND TIMES FOR F.U.S.E. FEST 2010 - THIS SATURDAY, OCTOBER 23

FISHBOWL (under Warnors Theater marquee)
5:00 Espacio
6:00 Bad Andy & The Sunburns
7:00 Lance Canales & The Flood
8:00 12 Guage Serenade
9:00 Tony Manjarrez Latin Jazz Band

FRANK'S PLACE
5:00 Blaze
6:00 The Whiskey & The Devil Chaplin
7:00 Shiver Fox
8:00 Sparkle Jet
9:00 Fierce Creatures
10:00 Achievement House
11:00 Viper City Brass Band

FRANK'S PLACE - VESTIBULE STAGE
5:30 The Quiet Americans
6:30 Trumpet Solo
7:30 Azazel
8:30 Your Hero Is A Villain
9:30 Grafik
10:30 Hate FX

IRON BIRD CAFE
5:30 Almost Winter
6:30 Jeff Caughey
7:30 Blake Jones
8:30 Third Rail Power Trip
9:30 JJ Brown Band

TOKYO GARDEN
10:00 AC Myles
11:00 E. Rose
12:00 Distrito Torre
1:00 It'll Grow Back

K-JEWEL ART GALLERY
5:00-10 Fresno Beehive's "Fresh Voices" with Local Honey, I Do Not Exsist, The Capital Is Burning, Omotola and more.

STAR PALACE DJ VENUE
5:00-6:00pm Geoff Kramer
6:00-7:00pm DJ Marc
7:00-8:15pm DJ Roman + Adrian Mezenger
8:15-9:30pm Ezra Osborn + Shant P
9:30-10:45pm DJ Bradley + Guest
10:45-12:00am DJ Clint Storm + P-Rez
No Input Nata — all damn night.

Check the website for linkage to the band's and DJ's websites.

So who are you pumped to see? Where are you going to have to make a decision on who to miss? Fulton Street will be alive Saturday night!

MORE F.u.S.E. NEWS TODAY
>>>Lance Canales and a F.u.S.E. Fest organizer or two will be on the Alan Autry Show around 11 this morning. That's on AM 940 KYNO or listen live at www.940kyno.com.

>>>It'll Grow Back will be on Central Valley Buzz today from 4-6, playing live and talking F.u.S.E. Fest. Watch it on www.centralvalleytalk.com.

20 Seconds With A Fresnan: Mike Osegueda

He is Fresno's "Blogfather". He writes columns for local newspapers. He tweets. He likes the Oakland A's. He's Mike Oz of the Fresno Bee and Beehive.

Mike has something to promote, maybe multiple things. So we allow him 20 seconds of audio time on The Fresnan to say what he wants. That's the game. or podcast. or whatever.

Click and listen in: 20secondsWithMikeOz.mp3

It just might have something to do with this AND this: