Our day began with a hearty breakfast before my husband, Raymond Burton Estes (…And We All Die), and I set out from Northern Virginia for Baltimore, Maryland to spend the day with punk, hardcore, and reggae legend, H.R. (Paul D. Hudson), best known as the singer of Bad Brains.
While at The Sound Garden, we watched as fans arrived, purchased items to be signed, and took their place in line to meet H.R. People from all over the greater D.C./Maryland/Virginia (DMV) area came to show their love and support for this hometown hero. There were no fights or arguments about who was in line first or any of that. There was just a pleasant experience of people with a shared interest coming together to celebrate one of their favorite singers.
Of note, Ivan “Vice” Read, the drummer from old school D.C. underground rock band, Press Mob, showed up sporting a Bad Brains t-shirt and a P.M.A. (positive mental attitude) ball cap. Press Mob and H.R. were both featured on the 1987 compilation record, DC Rox: A Compilation of DC Area Artists, on Wetspots Records. Read was eager to have his old friend, H.R., sign a copy of the record because he’s been getting all his old friends on that album to sign it, noting that they’re not getting any younger and he wants to see everybody again.
Before today, the two men hadn’t seen each other in at least 20 years. It was a sight to see old friends catching up and only added to the positive vibe of the experience.
…And We All Die also got some records signed for himself and Darin Johnson, singer for their hardcore band Eleventh Hour. Bad Brains is a staple around the house, so it was good to see these worlds collide.
After the meet and greet, we headed over to Zen West to get ready for the show. The Zen West staff and crew were super friendly and helped us get sorted and allowed us to be there for H.R.’s soundcheck.
Baltimore’s Old Bay Thrashers opened the show with a set of Propagandi-inspired punk rock, with a twist. The band slowed their songs down for this show, so it was interesting to hear them perform these more upbeat tunes with a more mid-tempo, reggae-ish vibe. They played a song, “Ludlow”, which was inspired by Howard Zinn’s 1980 book A People’s History of the United States that discusses the Ludlow Massacre of 1914 in which approximately 20 people were killed for during an attack on striking coal miners. They also appropriately covered “The State-Lottery” by Propagandhi. Old Bay Thrashers band members are Todd Spalt (vocals, bass), Robert Carroll (vocals, guitar), and Zak Concannon (vocals, drums).
Up next was the local band, The Melon Farmers, who delivered an Offspring-esque set of pop punk reggae, which was appropriate as singer/guitarist, Ian Gilley, wore an Offspring t-shirt. They began their performance with a cover of “Clint Eastwood” by Gorillaz, in response to a request from one of the audience members. The band played a song, “Phelps Dub“, about and dedicated to Olympic gold medalist swimming champion and another hometown hero, Michael Phelps, who famously smoked marijuana. The Melon Farmers band members are Ian Gilley (vocals, guitar), Shane Wilson (bass), and Gilby Rybak (drums).
Also hailing from Baltimore was Deep Six, a local reggae-jam band that sounded like a healthy mix of 311 with some beach party guitar magic. The band was tight and played a mix of originals and covers, including “54-46 (That’s My Number)” by Toots and the Maytals. Deep Six band members are Matt Battaglia (vocals, guitar), Mike Mitrega (drums), Nick Kramer (bass), Gunter Leatherman (guitar), and Josh Carlon (keyboards).
Consisting of three-fifths of the current H.R. lineup, Austin, Texas’ Lion Heights delivered a high-energy set of roots reggae. They came out swinging and stayed strong throughout their entire set. They got the audience dancing and primed for H.R. And, as a fan of guitar, we hardly noticed they didn’t have a guitarist, which says quite a bit about their musical wizardry. There’s no doubt why they are part of H.R.’s band. Lion Heights band members are Jeremy Carlson (keyboards, vocals), Dane Foltin (bass, vocals), and Aldane “Spice” Hutton (drums).
Lastly, H.R.’s band took the stage and began their set with an instrumental. Comprised of the members of Lion Heights along with longtime guitarist, Ezekiel Zagar from F.O.D. and McRad, H.R.’s band played walk-on music while friend and manager, “Tall” Sean McLaren, escorted H.R. to his seat at center stage. The band played a set of H.R. originals and reworked Bad Brains songs that had audience members dancing and singing and celebrating. We were thrilled to hear “Sacred Love“. At one point, H.R. asked the crowd if they liked pop music before the band went into Seeking From Within, penned by Zagar. H.R. band members are HR (vocals), Ezekiel Zagar (guitar), Jeremy Carlson (keyboards, vocals), Dane Foltin (bass, vocals), Aldane “Spice” Hutton (drums).
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