Saturday December 18, 1999
Corner Pocket
Orange, CT
This was a Toys For Tots event with Darik and the Funbags. Lots of Toys came through the door. It is really cool that people can show up to support a charity. Yes...we all like to party, but not lost in all of that is the true meaning of Christmas. Thanks to all of you who brought toys.
It is always a treat sharing a night with the Funbags. They have an awesome sound guy who brings a killer system that makes us all sound like rock stars. I had the opportunity to jam with Matt Chirsky on the drums during sound check. Matt: You are still the "stick man"! We played one set of about 12 songs and rocked the joint pretty hard. I think the quote of the night came compliments of Joe Hess...."F'ING INCREDIBLE....F'ING AWESOME...YOU GUYS SOUND F'ING PHENOMENAL!!!!" Thanks Joe...I think Kevin is still deaf from the compliments. Thanks to the Funbags for inviting us to the party. It was a blast as always.
ROCK
-glenn
Friday December 17, 1999
Tailgators
Derby, CT
HELLO VALLEY! I've said it before and I'll say it again. It's always exciting playing a new club. This was our first "official" gig at Tailgators, and we had been looking forward to it for weeks. Big thanks go out to George for making us feel extremely welcome and comfortable for the evening.
We started out first set around 10:15. I must admit...the crowd didn't quite know what to make of us at first. Who are these guys...wow....they are loud....it was kind of funny to look at some of these peoples faces. They were sort of in shock. We would finish a song and they would just kind of be staring at us waiting for the next song...all of that would change. We finished out the first of what was supposed to be three sets and enjoyed a few cold ones. Little did we know that this would be our only break of the night. About three or four songs in to the set the room started to really fill up, and the crowd got really vocal and rowdy. Jumping up and down and singing along...it was incredible. I even spotted a few bartenders and waitresses jamming to the tunes. Then there was this dude jumping around like a lunatic in the front. We were trying to figure out all night exactly what this cat was on, but it was some pretty heavy shit. The guy had drawn a map to his house on the back of his shirt so somebody could get him home if he got lost...pretty funny shit. Anyway...the night was going to so well, and the crowd was having such a good time, the band made the decision to keep playing until the end of the night without another break. Fun was had by all. We were hoping for a big crowd like that, but weren't expecting it because of the Christmas holiday. The club owner was happy, the crowd had a good time, and so did we. Thanks to the valley crowd for making it a great night. We will be back there really soon. Keep an eye on the web site for the date.
ROCK!
-glenn
November 24, 1999 (MY BIRTHDAY!) Cool Breeze Cafe, Milford CT
We are revising the original entry. If you would like to see the UNCENSORED version please email us at
uncensoreddiary@epichead.com
WE HOPE TO SEE YOU ALL AT TAILGATOR'S IN DERBY ON FRIDAY DECEMBER 17th!
Rock
Glenn
October 30, 1999 Corner Pocket Orange, CT We had been looking forward to this show for some time. We were excited about it because we were told that this was going to be heavily advertised in the paper and on the radio with a sponsership from Bud and everything. Well...that stuff didn't happen, so we were a little dissapointed. But the show must go on...right? RIGHT! The first of 3 bands to take the stage was Neutral Ground. They played a great set spanning a few decades of tunes. I heard Hendrix, Smashing Pumkins, Metallica...nice job guys! Hey Joe...do me a favor...don't borrow any guitars from anyone in my band...okay?Next up was St. Tone. I love this band. They always sound great. We all agree that the hippie costumes that they were wearing were a stretch. I think Steve said it best when he asked them why they didn't wear costumes. Not that they didn't look great in their get ups, it's just that they usually dress like hippies...just not to that extreme. I've said it before and I'll say it again. Go see this band! How about when we play with them again at Cool Breeze in a couple of weeks. Okay...now to our evening. Let me start by saying that we couldn't settle on a costume idea until Thursday. We decided that we were going to be the Village People. Kevin as the Indian Cheif, Tony as the biker , Dave as the cowboy, Steve as the construction worker , and I was the cop. Kevin drove all over the state to
find a head dress, and I had to borrow copclothes from Tony's brother . I even had cuffs.
Oct. 29, 1999 Gipper's Orange, CT There is nothing better when you are in a band, than proving yourself to a bar owner. We booked this gig pretty much at the last minute, we we had very little time to promote the show. As a result, the owners of Gipper's were pretty worried that people wouldn't show up. In fact, as late as 9:30 they were beginning to panic. We assured them that it was still early and that our people would be there. Well...you all showed up, and needless to say, the owners were pretty happy when they counted their loot at the end of the night. The bar itself is not really designed for bands, so we had to clear out some tables and make room. It was a little cramped, but there was enough room to rock! We played a full three sets including a middle set of about 16 songs. The crowd had a blast and so did we. Unfortunately, I don't have alot to say about the show. Maybe because I almost got knocked out when Tony accidentally hit me between my eyes with my bass...oops....and OUCH!!!! We did have a pack of girls who were celebrating a birthday up on stage dancing.
Dave did his nails...yes, I did say that...he painted them black. Why you ask? Because he wanted to in the spirit of Halloween. I think he just needed to get in touch with his feminine side. His nails were simply devine.... Thanks to the owners and staff of Gipper's for making us feel welcome. We had a great time, and we didn't even destroy any tv's like we promised!
Shennanigans
Norwalk, CT
October 9, 1999
It is always exciting to play a new club for the first time. So needless to say, we were all pumped up to play in Norwalk for the first time. Shennanigan's was the place...and it didn't dissapoint.
Our friends in Blonster opened up the night for us in fine fashion. In fact, they rocked hard!!! I guess they are a band without a name at the moment. I don't care what the hell they call themselves...they sounded really tight and played a bunch of songs that I wish I was playing. I was glad that they played before us so I could get a chance to hear that sound system from the crowd. WOW...it sounded great.
We took the stage about 10:45 to a totally packed room. What was so cool about the room was that there were so many new faces. This is one of the advantages to playing a new town and a new club. Hopefully some of those new faces will become familiar faces at future shows. Judging by the response of the crowd...that is a definate possibility. We opened up with Kid Rock, and it was instant mayhem. The place went bullshit. Kevin broke out his fur coat and pimp hat for the occasion, and looked cool as hell. All through the first set the crowd was rowdy. Jumping up and down and screaming. What a crowd!! We had a case of beer on stage (free...of course) to wet our whistles while we jammed...That was key, because it was freaking hot as hell. I don't remember if it was the first or second set, but we had a pack of girls come up on stage and sing a song with us. They were out celebrating a wedding...they were trashed, yet not trashy...cool...Fun was had by all. We brought back our old inflatable friend...not the woman...the black sheep! We introduced her to the crowd, threw her out there, and watched her bounce around for a while...then she was gone. I never saw her again. I feel used, she doesn't write, she doesn't call...nothing...bitch...So as I was saying....um....what the hell was I saying? Oh, right...the show. Shennanigans provided us with a dj to play in between sets, and that really kept the crowd going while we did some more drinking and socializing. The second set went well too. The crowd hung right until the last note of the last song. People were screaming for more and the bouncers were screaming at the crowd to get the hell out! It was pretty cool.
All of the reviews of the club were positive. Great sound, great lighting, free beer, incredible crowd, and plenty of room on stage to jump around and be the freaks that we are. We have already been invited back to play there again, so keep an eye on the web site for the dates.
Thanks to Neutral Joe for helping out on stage all night. We appreciate it, and hey...those beers were on us buddy!
Up next is Halloween at the Corner Pocket. Rumor has it that this is going to be a pretty big party with drink specials, costumes contests and other cool shit like that. We hope to see you there. We are in the process of trying to figure out how to dress the band for the evening. You'll just have to come on down and see what happens.
ROCK <smc>
Hey Glenn.....it's Kevin here....you forgot to mention that sick bastard who I asked to open my beer! WELL....Here is what happened...we got a free case of beer...thanx!...BUT!!! they weren't twist offs...WHAT THE HELL WAS THIS ALL ABOUT??? SO....I ask some dude in the front row to open it for me....well he does.....WITH HIS TEETH!!!! Then the bastard DRINKS THE WHOLE THING IN ABOUT 5 SECONDS! WHOA!!!! - only at an Epic show my friends.....
CYA! smc
Kevin
Toad's Place, New Haven
Friday Oct. 1, 1999
Before I get in to the show I want to thank all of you for making the night another huge success. We are seeing more and more familiar faces at our shows lately and it is really awsome to have such a loyal pack of "Epic Heads" following us around. For the third time in a row nearly 200 of our friends came through the doors! We thank you for all of the support!!
On to the show! The night started off with a band that I have never seen before. Erl Shibe 5...Scott White <from the Funbags> and I stood at the bar and watched this band put on an awsome set of Jazz, fusion and funk. These guys and girl are such a tight unit, and all of them are tremendous musicians. I only wish some of you had come out of the back bar to see them. They were pretty special. DOA2000 sounded great as always with some some of the best segues on the scene and the Funbags...well....do I really need to describe the Funbag experience? I think not...it's a party that only they can pull off!! Thanks guys for the invitation.
We had a blast...we destroyed another inflatable woman, and that is really starting to put a Dent in Tony's inflatable collection. Did I mention the shirt that Kevin was wearing? I can't even put it in to words. He looked like a cross between Joseph and His Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat and a Peacock! I can only hope that some of the pictures that were taken come out so we can post it on the we site! I'm sorry I'm all over the place with this entry, but things are popping in to my head out of order. I guess it's just a side affect of having a great night! How good was it?
A mosh pit almost broke out during Faith!!!! WooHoo!!! Yea Baby Yea!!!!
We have another big show coming up this weekend at Shennanigans in Norwalk. It is our first time playing there and we need your support again. It is sure to be a great night! We'll see ya then!
Glenn
Cool Breeze Cafe
Hmmm...let me see if I can remember any of it. It has been a couple of weeks since the show. Our good friends St. Tone opened up the night for us with a killer set of originals and covers. These guys get better and better everytime I see them. It's only a matter of time before they make it big with their originals. Good Stuff!!
We finally got to steppin around 11:15 to a packed room. The word is starting to spread that a night with EPIC is a good time! We broke out some new material that went over very well. Overall the night was a huge success. Some of the highlights included a female guest vocalist on Sad But True...she was probably a guest on on to many verses tho. We had a 6th member of EPIC that night. He kept grabbing a mic and really never left the stage. We wont mention names because he was having a great time and so was everyone else so we let it slide. The big event accured at the end of the night. Steve was feeling really good...maybe too good...as we endedthat last song, Steve kicked his drums totally off of the stage...it was awsome! The crowd loved it! When the lights came on and the smoke cleared I remember sitting in a chair and looking at the room as people were filing out. It was a mess. Empy bottles, cans, cups, streamers, confetti, and Steve's drum set all over the floor. It looked like Time Square on New Years Eve. I believe Dave "The Shit" summed it up the best when he looked around and said..."Just another night with EPIC, what a party"
Tailgators Bar And Grill
It's always fun to play a new bar. We have been trying to play this place for a while but things always seem to come up and it never happend. Tony St. Tone asked us to open up for him, so we did. We only played one set, and left quite an impression on the people there and the people who own the joint. The Derby Fire Dept. was well represented and didn't want to see up leave. They gave us all t-shirts and begged us to play more. So much so that they put heat <like they needed to> on the owner to book us back soon.
We had a good time for the hour that we played and look forward to many shows in the future at Tailgators. Keep an eye on the web site for the dates.
We have 2 HUGE shows coming up in the next couple of weeks. Toads 10/1 and Shennanigans on 10/9. We hope to see you at both. We have some suprises for you!
August 26 1999
A Thursday night at a restaurant....it sounded like a dead night waiting to happen. Bennigans really pushed the show with some really cool signage and advertising. We really didn't promote the show much because...well...it was a Thursday night at a restaurant. Thanks to Bennigans for pushing our name. It is really cool to know that just having our name hanging in the bar was enought to draw a crowd...a BIG crowd. We figured that there were actually more people here for this show that were at the St. Patty's day gig.
Overall the night was killer. Matt Chirsky from the Funbags showed up and jammed on Shimmer with us. We had a drunk dude that comes to all our shows jam with us on Come Out And Play...he was really hammered, so...um....well....his timing was a little off. Chalk it up to having a good time! Kevin continued his tradition of hitting the Salvation Army in search of an ugly shirt. He busted out some wacky hawaii thing...yes...he left the price tag on. Was it 15 cents? By the way, this night was special because we saw breasts and a bare ass! They pay us for this?????
I'm going to keep this entry short because I have new songs to learn. We all do. We are off for a couple of weeks to freshen up our set. We'll see you at the Cool Breeze on Sept. 17th!
Saturday August 21, 1999
Coming in to this show we were all pumped up coming off of our Toads gig the week before. See the previous gig diary entry for details. We were also excited because playing the Pocket the night after the Oyster Fest is a big deal. Well...it rained all day and the Oyster Fest was a bust. NO PROBLEMO! We packed the place anyway.
We had a brand new banner to unveil, but left it at Toads place. We had some new props to break out and a new friend for Tony. During the night we had a few strange things go down. First of all we renamed our very own Dave. He is now officially known as Dave "THE SHIT" Desing. He got this name after his Madonna like crotch grabbing antics at Toads. He continued the tradition by showing up to this gig with an inflatable...screwable...SHEEP!! Are you kidding me??? Well, he busted her out during the second set and introduced her to the crowd as Tony's girlfriend (sorry Barb). By the end of the set this sheep was like an alien abductee going through probing experiments. As if that wasn't enough, at one point we had some dude drinking beers out of her...um...hole!! Did I mention that it was Jaeger night? It was, so everyone was pretty well lit. At the end of the set some guy asked if he could take the sheep home for a night of fun. What the hell my friend...IT'S ROCK AND ROLL!!! Let me back track to the end of the first set for a second. Tony took a quick road trip to the Orange Fire Dept. Why you ask? Lets just say that he had to make a charitable contribution to the OFD porcelain fund. It was that kind of night my friends. The crowd was great and the beer was cold. Just another night at the Corner Pocket.
Thanks to all of our guest musicians Scott, Chris, Joe, St Tone....and I think there were others....hmmmm. I turned around a few times to find more people in the band. Fun was had by all. We will see you all at Bennigans this Thursday night for our last show before our 3 week vacation!
Friday August 13, 1999
Toads Place
New Haven, CT
After much back stage partying with the Guido Rocker and the Funbags...we were ready to play at 10:00 sharp. Kevin was dressed like a Harlem Pimp! You know...fur coat, big hat with long peacock feathers, gold chains. I tell ya...I would have been scared if he showed up at my place "lookin fo his bitches"! The rest of us were a little more conservative...but you know what? We looked good. Completely by accident we all came out with sun glasses on. We never discussed it...we didn't plan it...it just happend. The crow was HUGE! The biggest ever to witness an EPIC show. I estimated about 850 or more! Not only was the crowd big, they were loud. There were a few times during the set that they were louder than Kevin. During our third song we tossed a bunch of beach balls out to the crowd (glad we found em) and watched them fly around for a few tunes. Just before we played I Hate Everything About You by Ugly Kid Joe Kevin announced to the crowd that Steve's girl friend was at the show. Frank then carried out an inflatable naked chick! Let me tell you...there is nothing funnier than seeing an inflatable naked woman bouncing around the room while you are on stage jamming. Thanks to Tony for spending the $30 and the air to get her going. We ended our set with the Beastie Boys...our very special EPIC Remix version. Yup...it went over well. In fact, everything went over well. Our EPIC tickets totalled about 200!!! Our best showing yet. Thanks to YOU for making the night such a huge success. It looks like we will be doing it all over again in October. We'll keep you posted.
To Tony, Steve, Dave and Kevin...YEEEAAAAAAA BABY! WE ROCKED!
Glenn
Thursday August 5th: Cool Breeze Cafe
Well, it was a Radio104 giveaway night at the Cool Breeze. We were hoping for a huge crowd, but it was a Thursday, and we all have real jobs to get up for on Friday. It was an interesting night to say the least. Dave from Radio104 came down and gave away a bunch of swag and tickets to see Dave Matthews at the Meadows. He also gave Dee Snider Radio104 tee-shirts to Steve and Kevin....hey....I didn't....what? Oh well, maybe next time I'll get the hook up. We went on early and played a really long first set because Steve spilled something on his pants and was affraid to get out from behind his kit because it looked like he pissed himself. The crowd wasn't huge, but they were in to it. We played a few new tunes for the first time. I won't spoil the suprise for those of you who are coming to the Toads show on the 13th. At the end of the night about 10 Jai Alai players showed up as we were finishing up, we played a little longer, Tony and Steve had an argument, Tony quit in the middle of Even Flow, and we went home. (See the guestbook for Tony's apology) He has since returned to the band.
Saturday August 7th:
Well...it wasn't Woodstock. Some good bands played in front of us. Neutral Ground, St. Tone, some mimes (you know...clown looking freaks that don't speak?), gymnastic troups...etc. What a scene. They set us up on a flat bed truck. We played...we had a few beers...we headed to the Frog Pond!
Saturday August 7th:
This was our first time playing the Frog Pond. Our friends MHZ asked us to come down to play an opening set for them. These guys had one of the best P.A. systems I have ever had the pleasure of playing through...and that includes Toads! Thanks for the use of the bass rig too...very cool! Our plan was to play a quick 45 minutes and be done. Well...as it turns out, they wanted us to play for about an hour and a half. You don't have to ask us twice! We added some tunes to our set list and hit the stage. It's not very often that we pat ourselves on the back, but this night was a night to do just that. WE KICKED ASS!!! I'm sorry to brag...but we ROCKED HARDCORE!!! This was by far the best show that EPIC has ever put on. The sound was perfect (a little loud if anything), nobody screwed up, the crowd loved us...PERFECTION!!! We were going in to this night as a practice gig for Toads this week. Well, if that was any indication, you guys are in for something special Friday night. I just hope we can duplicate that energy. I think we can. It was good to have Tony back from his one day retirement. He has promised not to quit again for at least another year....Thanks again to MHZ for letting us use your system. We had a blast.
We will see you all at Toads on Friday night! Please e-mail us at OneEpic@aol.com if you need tickets!
We took the stage around 10:00 to a packed room. I was blown away how quickly the room filled up once we started playing. GREAT CROWD! We opened up with a different song than we had planned and I guess nobody told Steve...ewps...he caught on after a few notes and recovered. We busted out some recently road tested new material including Give It Away by the Chili Peppers, Dirty Deeds by AC/DC, Same Old Situation by Motley Crew, and last but not least...I Wanna Rock by Twisted Sister! They all went over extremely well. It was cool to hear everyone singing along with Dirty Deeds! Chris Michols joined us on stage for a verse of Fight For Your Right To Party and got the crowd to thank us like only he could...<F*#@K YEA!!!>
September 17, 1999
September 18, 1999
Glenn
Bennigans
Milford, CT
Glenn
The Corner Pocket
Orange, CT
WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON WITH THIS BAND!!!! It's official, we the members of EPIC are turning in to 5 freaks! Read on for the stories of the evening.
Glenn
Before I write a single thing about the evening I need say a few quick words of thanks. First of course to Darik and the Funbags for inviting us to play on the bill with them. Next to our new friend Vinny Penn from KC101! He pumped up this show every day for about 3 weeks. We are looking forward to playing with Vinny and his band again in the very near future. Keep your eye on the web site for the date and place. Also thanx to DOA200 and last but not least our friend Frank for all his help with the props and the BLOW-UP DOLL!
Well, the night started off with Steve and I driving all over Connecticut looking for beach balls. Did you ever try to do that in the end of summer? It aint easy, I'll tell ya that. We finally found them and got to Toads just in time for Darik to tell me that his bass rig blew up, and the one he was going to use for the night sounded like shit. NOT TONIGHT...NOT FOR TOADS! Tony and I hopped in the car and drove back to West Haven to pick up my rig. We got back to Toads around 8:30 only to find out that The Funbags were doing the song that we were going to open with...SHIT!!! We were bumming that we couldn't do the tune. But we are not going to bite the hand that was feeding us that night, so we replaced it with Epic by Faith No More.
We hope to see all of you after the Oyster Fest at the Corner Pocket this Saturday night.
Walnut Beach Day, Milford CT
The Frog Pond, Stratford CT
Glenn