Why Is Rancid So Awesome?

Saw Rancid last night at Henry Fonda. I don’t know how else to describe them but “legit.” Nothing fake. Tim talks like that for real. Lars has tattoos on his neck and face and would probably stab you if he felt like it and Matt is just the best bass player ever and that’s all he cares about. Anyway, the show reminded me of something I wrote up after I saw them at the Echo a few years back. Check it out -

Oh Yeah, That’s Why I Like Music

(or Rancid @ The Echo 3-21-06)

From time to time, I get a little bitter on music.

Burned out.

Even jaded.

Terrible, I know. I’ve seen a lot of bands over the past few years. A few good ones, but a whole mess of bad ones. It’s not very often that I leave a show thinking about starting a band again. Feeling inspired. Wanting to put something out in the world that actually matters.

Last night, I left wanting to do all that and even get a Mohawk and spider web tattoos on my elbows.

Thank you Rancid.

Through a very nice friend at Epitaph, I scored 1 ticket to the uber-sold out show at The Echo.

It’s no surprise that Rancid picked The Echo to do their weekly residency for the month of March. The venue is well, pretty punk rock. There is no “The Echo” sign on the building. It looks like the standard abandoned building on the wrong side of Sunset Blvd. This is not the “Sunset Strip” that Motley Crue and Guns N’ Roses became household names on. In fact, if it wasn’t for 30-40 “punks” standing out front, I might have missed it. I’m guessing the place held about 250 kids last night. It’s not the legendary Gilman St or anything, but it certainly is no posh House of Blues either.

Most of the audience was under 25 and the majority wore full punk attire. The oldest guy I saw was maybe 40. It was Tony Hawk though, so I guess he gets a pass.

I walked in around 9:30 and the previous band had just finished. I wasn’t sure who was going on next until the roadie loaded an amp with an “Armstrong Ave” street sign.

When bassist Matt Freeman took the stage, the place went nuts. Around May of last year, Matt was diagnosed with lung cancer. It was later dismissed as abnormal tissue growth and not terminal. Still, it was great to see him looking healthy.

Matt started the bass line for “Journey to the End of the East Bay” and a few seconds later the rest of the band rushed the stage.

When Tim started singing, the place went crazy. There was no need for monitors on the stage. The crowd was singing louder than the band.

I always loved that song. As soon as Tim yelled “Started in 87, ended in 89,” my mind turned to one thought only. What are the chances they will do an Op Ivy song?

2 songs later, I wondered no more.

Lars took the mic. “When I was a kid, there was only 1 band from our area that we gave a shit about. This is the first time Rancid has ever played this song. Sing along if you know it. This song’s called “Sound System.”

The place went crazy. It was like a scene from an old western. Beer bottles and glasses went flying into the air. The pit that consisted of about 30 people now took over the whole floor. There was maybe 10 people crowd surfing all at once. I looked back by the sound booth and even Tony Hawk had his fist in the air singing along. It was amazing.

Rancid went on to play a slew of some of their hits (“Time Bomb,” “Roots Radicals”) and some old favorites (“Gunshot,” “Detroit.”)

They even played “7 Years Down” from Let’s Go. Lars said it was only the 2^nd time they had ever played that song live.

And if you think the crowd didn’t explode during the bass solo of “Maxwell Murder,” you are sorely mistaken.

They did the standard “This is our last song,” bit with “Ruby Soho.” After walking off stage for about 30 seconds, Tim popped back up and said, “Fuck it, should we do one more?”

They closed with another Op Ivy classic, “Knowledge.”

All in all, they only played for about 40 minutes.

Before they walked off stage, Lars simply said, “Thanks. We’re Rancid.”

Yes, you are Lars. And if you ask any of the 250 people that saw you last night, you are so much more.