Motorpsycho in NYC
When rock touring around Germany in 1999 Jenya and I got hip to the Norwegian band Motorpsycho and became instant fans. Despite being huge in Europe, they never quite made it in the US, and thus never bothered crossing the pond.
So when we learned they were playing a very short three day tour of the east coast in October 2002 we immediately scored tickets for their gig at Knitting Factory in NYC. And then bought plane tickets. Most of my family still lived around the greater NYC area, so it was a no brainer, really. We at least had a place to crash.
Yes, it seems crazy to fly from California to New York for a single show, but our friend Jai Young - who discovered Motorpsycho during his own separate travels - did exactly the same. Is that any indication of how good a band they are?
Anyway, Jenya and I enjoyed the family stuff in the suburbs until the night of the gig. I borrowed my father's car even though he claimed it would be "impossible to park" downtown. I told him I'm from the Bay Area and I can handle it. And sure enough we easily nabbed a spot a block from the venue.
Only then learned it's a four band bill and Motorpsycho were last. So Jenya and I wandered around and got Moroccan food for dinner. Hailed a cab back to the club, and still had time to kill. Jenya and I sat in the front area near the merch. I bought their latest CD as it's impossible to find any of their records in the US. This was well before youtube, and I didn't actually know what these guys looked like, and realized later I bought this CD directly from the bassist/singer.
Anyway, Jai Young appeared along with his friends Howard and Kevin who I met back in the Bay Area years ago. Ultimately the venue filled to about 30 people, a large chunk of which I knew personally. Our heroes began their set and we all really enjoyed it. News to me: the bassist is a lefty, and plays upside down (i.e. with lower strings toward the floor). This explained a lot about his choices.
Kind of weird how so few were in attendance. Really goes to show you how there are huge music markets around the world that don't necessarily intersect. I had a blast, though, and glad I didn't have to deal with some clogged standing-room-only bullshit. I could see everything, hear everything, and move about freely. Sucks that they were probably losing their shirts on this, though.
Fast forward over 20 years they've been putting out amazing albums almost yearly with no sign of slowing down. I have all of their records. They haven't been back to the US during that time except on very rare occasions. So I'm really glad we put forth the effort to see them when we did.