The Figgs - 3.28.01 Kansas City, MO

So like I said a couple posts ago, America's Finest Rock BandTM have recently released a vinyl remaster/reissue to commemorate the 10th Anniversary of Sucking In Stereo gracing our earholes. Well, Peterwalkee Records is. The Figgs are sweetening the pot by including this digital recording of the March 28th date at The Hurricane in Kansas City, Missouri date from the SIS Tour. The Figgs are pretty unfuckwithable live and this just confirms that they were aces ten years ago as well.

The set is a spirited romp through 16 songs in 45 minutes. As I recall, this was the eras where the boys wanted everything to be a sing-along, at least in NYC, and I'm pretty glad the Dashboard Confession-ism is pretty much absent. It's all rock, with a little bit of talk, and you would be unwise to not pick it up with the quickness. I'm not sure how one gets this if they have no use for the vinyl reissue, but I would venture that it's available if you reached out to Peter Walkee or The Figgs. Do that.

R

Live: The Figgs @ Bruar Falls 12.5.10

Night two of the holiday shows for America's Finest Rock Bandtm, this one out at Bruar Falls in Brooklyn. It was cold, and this early in the season I'm not riding my ass across the bridge for a lot of bands, but The Figgs are more than worth the hypothermia. Having just received a pretty much clean bill of health after a shitty run of things, it seemed worth the ride.

And, oh boy was it. I came in to find the room full and Guy Lyons already on the stage, which bade well for the rest of the set. While I will argue whole-heartedly that the best rock is made by power trios, a good number of my favorite Figgs tunes are Guy tunes and its always a pleasure to see him back with the boys. Bruar Falls has a 12am curfew (which I fucking love, by the way, even if The Figgs are playing) that kept the set down to a little over an hour and a half. Thirty or so Figgs shows in, I'll take the truncated twenty or so songs set, especially when a lot of the material is from the Sucking In Stereo era that our heroes are celebrating the 10th Anniversary of. There's a vinyl remaster out of same, along with a pretty aces live 1991 recording from the Kansas City, MO date of the SIS tour. As was their promotional intent, they played the record, along with a bunch of other boss rock tuneage that is better than your favorite band. No dramatic drummer spills, although Pete Hayes time did feature Tommy and Guy did pop up again for a romp through Bad Luck Sammie towards the end of the set. Why Weight On Your Shoulders didn't (and hasn't for too long) pop up in the set is beyond me, but save for that, there wasn't a boring moment in the set. See them live, buy their merch. Here's a link that will facilitate both.

R

Live: The Figgs @ Fontanas 12.4.10

It's always a pleasure when Americas Finest Rock Bandtm The Figgs trot out their holiday shows for the good boys and girls of the Eastern Seaboard. As has been the norm of late, the Manhattan show was at Fontana's. It's a decent room, although it reeked mightily of ass for the early part of the evening. Literally. That is not a reflection of Nancy, who opened the proceedings. I wasn't crazy about them, and all things being equal would have been more than happy to miss them, but there were enough Ben Deilly-era Lemonheadsy guitar parts to keep it interesting-ish.

Colleen showed up and The Figgs were on in short order, as there were a million other bands shoehorned on to the bill and maybe even a couple unlucky franchises after them. While these were holiday shows, they also celebrate the 10th Anniversary (ouch) of the release of Sucking In Stereo. To commemorate the event, Peterwalkee Records is re-releasing SIS in remastered vinyl form. Early purchasers also get a copy (on CD) of a live set from Kansas City, MO from that tour. The Figgs are doing their part in marketing the new product by playing (most of?) the record on these dates. This short set didn't really allow for that to entirely come off, but know that there was much ass-rocking dispensed and that non-owners of Sucking In Stereo would be advised to rectify that situation stat. Non-musical highlights included the terrible trio standing on their respective amplification, culminating the feat with Mr. Hayes taking quite a spill from atop the snare drum and Keith Mooning his kit in the process (to much crowd mirth). Not a set-ender, nor were there any injuries, save for perhaps the egos of the bands that followed. Poor dears.

Were you to have been foolish enough to miss the show(s), you can get your dose of Figgs for the holidaze via this link.

R

Live: The Figgs @ Breur Falls 12.3.9

Ok, this is only a week past being relevant, but hey I've got a lot on my plate. Last week, about this time I jumped on the bike and jumped over the bridge to see America's Finest Rock Band, The Figgs, play one of their increasingly rare live shows at Bruar Falls. I missed out on their Halloween extravaganza owing to lack of desire to be pelted with eggs/be divested of my worldly possessions, but had very little excuse this time around.

I crossed threshold and ran into the questionably moustachioed Mr. Pete Hayes, sadly sans his long-suffering wife and new daughter. In luckier eventualities, The Figgs were just about to go on. They proceeded to play one hell of a set, pretty much lacking in deep cuts, but still better than most bands that don't suggest one might Hold one's Steadiness. These shows were with Detroit's The Sights and featured the bands swapping opening slots. This night had Los Figgs on second, which is to say opening. The crowd was sparse, but mostly to see our heroes. Had they not arrived thusly, they left as such as The Figgs wiped the floor up with all in attendance. There was a brief glimmer of respite for the headliners when Gent moved to acoustic towards the end of the set, but all hope was lost for any followers when the soloing continued apace until the set's end. Not the nicest move, but one that more than asserted who the big boys were. We were treated to a couple new songs, including the A-side of the new Casino Hayes 7" and the requisite holiday covers. And there was much rejoicing by all who did not have to follow them. Keep track on the rest of The Figgs holiday dates (and the myriad side projects each member maintains) here. Were you to want to get the new 7" as the best holiday stocking stuffer ever, you can get it here from the kindly proprietors of Peter Wallkee Records here. Save all the toys for the little rich boys.

R

Figgs for the Holidays!

Hey Kids:

America's finest rock band The Figgs is taking a break from recording their new record and procreating to play some shows for the holidays (and the New Year).

Peep the dates below and note that there will be holiday single available for stocking stuffing courtesy of the good folk of Peter Walkee Records.

It's on Figg-approved vinyl, with complimentary digital downloads.

Come to the shows and thank them personally for the holiday gift, willya. We don't get the boys playing shows outside of Green Bay casinos much anymore. See you Thursday in Brooklyn.

Holiday Shows!
12/3 - Brooklyn, NY - Bruar Falls
12/4 - New York, NY - Cake Shop
12/5 - Staten Island, NY - Cargo Cafe
12/11 - Albany, NY - Valentines
12/12 - Saratoga Springs, NY - Putnam Den
12/18 - Cambridge, MA - TT The Bears
12/19 - Dover, NH - Brick House

2010!
1/4 - Carrabassett Valley, ME - Sugarloaf
1/5 - Newry, ME - Sunday River
2/26 - Saratoga Springs, NY - The Irish Times
2/27 - Saratoga Springs, NY - The Irish Times (Matinee Family show)
2/27 - Saratoga Springs, NY - The Irish Times (Late Show)