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<\/a><\/p>\nAbout 11 or so the main event got going: Tim Kinsella, Theo Katsaounis, Victor Villareal and Bobby Burg on bass. They opened with a blistering version of the opening cut from their new CD, Life Like<\/em>, \u201cThe Messed Binds of My Generation\u201d, a 10-minute tune on the CD, but stretched even further onstage, they were gleefully jamming and wailing away as loudly as they could and were each other\u2019s perfect complement. Drummer Theo was bashing the hell out of his rather spartan drum kit, he kept great time along with bassist Bobby, but the bombastic percussion was no match for the twin lead guitars of Tim Kinsella and Victor Villareal, who were really both lead guitarists. Sometimes Tim would be strumming away feverishly while Victor would add some nice, piercing lead effects and other times they\u2019d both be intricately playing together. The whole band had their respective equipment turned up to the max, so, for instance, no matter how anarchically loud Tim & Victor tore it up, they never drowned out Bobby on bass, as the heavy, thick bulging tones from his Fender bass guitar was never overpowered. And of course, nothing could stop Theo from the catharsis of his percussive powerhouse. For the most part, Joan of Arc played new material, besides the aforementioned \u201cThe Messed Binds of My Generation\u201d, they also played \u201cLove Life\u201d, \u201cHowdy Pardoner\u201d, \u201cStill Life\u201d and \u201cLike Minded\u201d. To throw the crowd for a loop they also did a cover of an Owls tune (one of the many side projects of members who\u2019ve come and gone over the years) and the what was hilarious about that one was that after they finished it some smart ass from the audience yelled up to the band that that must\u2019ve been a \u201cfinancially sound\u201d decision – to do a cover of one of their own songs, basically, to which Tim had a Lenny-Bruce-esque come back, going on and on about the fact that they\u2019re not thinking about stupid stuff like that and, no, being \u201cfinancially sound\u201d wasn\u2019t the reason for doing the song – they did it because they liked it and wanted to play it so they did and to hell with \u201cfinancial soundness\u201d; anyway, bottom line is that this guy sure got a mouthful out of Tim for saying something so odd, so\u2026un-rock & roll, he said \u201c what a dickhead – that\u2019s like something my dad might\u2019ve said to me when I was between 17 and 22, so, no, it was about playing a song we wanted to play because it sounds cool, Mr. Wall Street\u201d. There was a good amount of between song banter going on, not that heavy, but usually just Tim going on about how he loves to eat burritos everyday and that he hadn\u2019t had the chance to get one yet – and this in the border town of San Diego, where there are burritos everywhere – and usually pretty good ones!<\/p>\n Besides the Owls tune, they did one other older JOA song from mid-career era and then went back to a couple more new tunes. Then, before you knew it, it was like after midnight – meaning that they were playing so well and the vibe of the show was such that it was lively and fun and despite there only being about 50 or so people there (what the hell happened? Doesn\u2019t anyone in San Diego except me and my girlfriend know who Joan of Arc are?) It was still a great, great time. In fact, that small group of people made it into a much more intimate show, providing for the up-close and personal dialogue between band and audience. Actually, I, who was standing right up in front of the stage didn\u2019t even notice that the audience was so thin until Tim mentioned that fact – he said he\u2019d tell his grandma that there were 60 people there to make it look better! Still, I couldn\u2019t help feeling kind of sorry for them, coming out here to San Diego to play a great show – better than anything that\u2019s been in town all year – there hasn\u2019t been anyone worth seeing here at any clubs since Sonic Youth played at the House of Blues last year. I\u2019m hoping that thing\u2019s will sort of come together and maybe over the summer there will be a number of great shows to see to make up for the dearth of worthwhile acts to see. While wandering around the Casbah I did happen to notice a showbill that read \u201cThurston Moore – Demolished Thoughts\u201d and at the bottom, written in a colored Sharpie pen was the date: July 30. Now, since there were showbills all over the room, ones from recent shows, ones from way back when, I wasn\u2019t sure if this was for a real upcoming show or if it was something dated. Well, I will soon find out because that is something I\u2019m definitely going to be at.<\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n<\/a><\/p>\n