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FREAKY FRIDAY FOR ZEBRAHEAD By D.A. Muse On Friday the 13th of August, The Scene went to The Roxy to check out one of its favorite bands Zebrahead ! They shared the stage that night with The Kotten Mouth Kings, Too Rude, Shuvel and Downinside . The five member band from La Habra, California are known for their very unique hybrid of ska, rap, punk, and rock which they dubbed "Lounge Core." The Roxy’s small room was filled to capacity with an audience already worked into a frenzy by the previous band, Too Rude. Zebrahead arrived to a room full of people who were ready to have some fun. |
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They all took their place
on stage -Justin "Goldtoof Mauiello, Greg "G" Bergdorf,
Ed "Kooter" Udhus, and Ben "Grand Master B" Osmundson,
who play, respectively, guitar/vocals, guitar, drums, and bass- but something
was not quite right with this picture. Half way through their first song
" Someday" the crowd started looking slightly confused. Someone
said to a friend "Where’s Ali?", the girl surmised that
perhaps he was sitting out the first song. Something was off kilter, but
that did not slow the crowd’s state of hysteria, elevated by the
bands intense infectious grooves, and "G’s" amazing guitar.
At the end of the song, Justin announced that the band was shy one member,
Ali Tabatabaee (singer "Goldtoof"s" rapper alter ego).
Immediately the worst came to mind "Is he hurt" followed by
"Has he left the band?". Justin went on to explain that Ali
was suffering from a bad back injury and was under strict orders not to
do anything. The four remaining members of Zebrahead decided to go ahead
and play the hometown gig without him. And perform they did, Goldtoof played both double duty and split personality, as he sang his lyrics, rapped for the missing Ali, and played guitar. He managed to hold together the integrity of the songs, which still rocked steady in spite of the missing member. Coming together like a family in a time of crisis, the four of them managed to pull it off, and it seemed almost effortless. The steady rhythm section of Ed and Ben, coupled with the intense infusions of Greg’s guitar were the glue that kept the band’s momentum going. It was amazing that even with the added pressure on Justin to sing and try to reproduce Ali’s rapid-fired rap lyrics, he was still the usual nutty, and charming Goldtoof we all know and love. He also did not neglect his guitar playing duties. You wouldn’t believe it, if you hadn’t seen it, and perhaps not even if you had. Zebrahead, excelled under pressure. Whatever their reasons were for not canceling the performance, everyone in the room was glad they did not. They played about six songs, with the crowd cheering them on. People up front jumped and the entire room swayed from the beats they were delivering, and excited moshers tossed their weight around. While it was not quite the same without lightening-tongued Tabatabaee, Zebrahead still managed to more than satisfy. All things considered they should all be proud, for they truly showed their stripes. Ed. Note; Hopefully, Ali is recovering well, and they will play L. A. again soon. The Scene will follow up on this for its readers. |
