0 [LIVE REVIEW] Pierced Arrows / Lullabye Arkestra @ Capitol Theater (Olympia)

Words and Videos by Nik Christofferson

It’s not often I find myself anywhere near Olympia, unless it involves taking in a show at the Funhouse with a frosty cold one in my hand. Even though our state’s capitol is a quick hour drive, I have always thought of it as just another pass-through city en route to Portland rather than any kind of hot spot or live music destination. This oblivious sentiment has quickly gone the way of the compact disc since venturing down south a couple Fridays ago to catch a killer show with my esteemed music scribe buddy Bob Ham.

The venue: Olympia’s historic Capitol Theater or more accurately the theater’s secondary venue-- The Backstage, impressed with its crappy/awesome DIY ambiance and a perfect potent aroma of mildewed hundred year old building, musty theater seats, and unshowered hippy. The entrance alone was impressively tattooed with years of band stickers and a full wall of past set lists; years upon years of shows all at a glance, making it easy to clog up the entrance with curiosity. Behind a curtain laid a descent sized room with a rather large makeshift stage complete with its own flashlight waving staircase bathroom attendant. Only complaint of the evening-- all-ages venue = no beer.

The show: a killer double bill featuring San Francisco’s black metal maestros Ludicra along with the unfettered and legendary NW garage rockers Fred and Toody Cole, also known as Pierced Arrows. With Pierced Arrows having played a Thursday night gig at the Funhouse and Ludicra scheduled for a very rare local turn at the Georgetown DIY venue The Morgue on Saturday, we were really killing two birds with one stone.

The result: Lullabye Arkestra bassist Kat Taylor- Small’s nimble and weighty bass riffs were met with powerful yet simplified throne work of husband Justin, resulting in a tight and muddy garage hardcore punch in the face. The opening Toronto duo hit it fast and hard and even threw in a cover of The Cro-Mags’ “We Gotta Know” for good measure while proving to be an awesome new discovery.

Around the time Pierced Arrows began to set up, word spread that Ludicra guitarist Mike Cobbett was rushed to the hospital with an emergency appendicitis. Sadly finally catching up with Ludicra was just not meant to be. What was meant to be was a blistering and extended Pierced Arrows performance that pushed the boundaries of volume humanly possible to withstand. Seemingly ageless, despite the 60 years of weather on their faces, Fred and Toody along with drummer Kelly Halliburton rocked the fuck out without fatigue or set list for nearly 90 minutes. The flannel shirts in the crowd were many and dancing ensued. Wait? People were actually moving their bodies to the rock and roll music? Yes, it’s true and it felt like something out of the grunge twilight zone or at the very least that awesome NW music doc “Hype”. Beyond the killer live show, all disregard for anything resembling the typical Seattle too cool for school attitude, made seeing the legendary ex-Dead Mooners in the historic musical landmark a real treat and nice break from the norm.