Page 8 of Not the Punk

The stage was super cool. I’d been on the side stage before on their last tour, hanging with Saxon, but this time was no less exciting, and I had a great view.

When they were ready to go on, they huddled up together and stuck their hands in the center like a sports team. Pierce yelled, “Let’s rock this gig!”

Then they all hollered, “Hell yeah—good show!” and threw their hands up and jogged on stage. Pierce went first, followed by Kay, and as they made it to the center, the roar of the crowd went up.

Joe strutted out to his guitar with serious swagger. He was the coolest guy in the band. His tech handed him his guitar, making sure the strap was adjusted correctly, and when they were finished, he gave the guy a fist bump. “What’s his tech’s name?” I tapped Don’s arm.

“What? Oh. That’s Laz. He’s the tech for both of them.” Sure enough, Laz made his way over to Kay and double-checked him too. After another fist bump, Laz disappeared on the other side. He’d be needed for guitar changes, probably. Covering two guitarists must be a tough job.

On Don’s other side, someone huffed, and I looked over; it was Jinx. I still couldn’t get used to the fact that Midnight Hunt was managing this band, and I actually knew him. “I’ve got to get a couple of assistants to help the techs. Damn it.” He fiddled with his phone. I figured he was either making a note or texting Miami, his partner in the business and in life, who wasn’t around.

Pierce started talking to the audience to kick off the show, and he quickly announced their first song, Alcohol and Cars, the title track of their last album. It was one of my favorites, but I was ready to hear the new music. They’d finished recording, but the new album wouldn’t actually drop until the following week. The folks at Rocktoberfest were getting a sneak preview. I’d learned that from Don and Kay endlessly chatting about it.

The guitars wailed, and Joe power-walked to the front and flicked his pick out to the front row. He already had another one in his hand and kept on playing. His stage presence included the tightest jeans in the world that looked so soft and worn they could disintegrate at any moment. He was so amazing. Why would he like me?

I noticed their marketing guy, Kai, taking pictures. He was buzzing around the stage, staying out of the way but getting the shots he wanted. As the show progressed, he even climbed a ladder and scanned his phone around, taking video. Other cameras around on booms might have been from the festival organizers.

When the crowd cheered, I yelled right along with them, and I screamed out the songs I knew. Then Pierce introduced the band members one by one. When he got to Joe, he railed out a killer solo, and at the end of it, Kay joined him and they went back-to-back as the music entwined. After everyone had their spotlight, Pierce yelled into the mic! “All right, Rocktoberfest. You rock so hard!” He waited for them to settle down before continuing. “So, I have a special one for you right here. Off our new album coming out next week…this is brand. New. Music. This one’s called Young As You Used to Be.”

Joe and Kay played the opening riff in sync with each other. I couldn’t get over how good they were. Individually, they both kicked ass, but when you put them together, they rose to another level. It was phenomenal. The drums, bass, and rhythm kicked in, and Pierce strutted around egging on the fans before he started singing

They say you look like him

They say you sound so good

You’re a pale second though

And you started at the end

It was fantastic. At the end of the verse, Kay and Joe split the music, guitars wailing as they chased each other around the melody. Then Pierce hit what had to be the chorus.

You’re not as young as you used to be

Your head is still screwed on crazy

You really got no place to go

Down is a direction though

Yo!

The whole band screamed out, "Yo!"

And around we go

Let’s go

And then there was a round of each of them yelling, “Let’s go!” That was a fun song for sure, and the audience was eating it up.

They followed it with another new one before hitting House and Home, their biggest hit off the last album. But that wasn’t a great song to end the show, which left me confused. They walked off the stage, high-fiving each other and grabbing water.

“Is that long enough?” Kay asked after downing half a bottle.

“Listen to them…” Joe beamed, smiling ear to ear. But I could barely hear either of them over the yelling.

They started chanting, “Punk. Punk. Punk.”

They’d grown a lot in popularity for sure.