by John Johnson, photos by Chaz Dykes of Chaz D Photography

The beautiful Capital Theater, this past Thursday October 8th, was ground zero for an alt rock threesome, fueled by nineties angst. Walking in, the thing I noticed most, other than the crowd was mostly above 50, was how cool the varying tee shirts were. I had obviously come to check out the bands, especially Sponge and Local H, but being a self-professed tee shirt snob I couldn’t help but take in all the rare and out of print concert and band shirts that were being sported. Standouts were a yellow Soul Coughing circa El Oso with bear face snarling, a cartoon inspired Damned beauty and a threadbare Sonic Youth gem that you can NOT find at a Hot Topic. In short, it was a merch nerds eye candy extravaganza.

The sold out crowd at the historic Cap was buzzing as they piled into the intimate venue, and the opening act hit the stage right on schedule, as people of this certain age greatly appreciate. The night kicked off with Detroit’s own Sponge, who wasted no time diving into their gritty, mid-grunge catalog. The ever slim frontman Vinnie Dombroski, dressed in ripped black jeans and sleeveless black dress shirt, commanded the stage with swagger and grit, tearing through hits like “Wax Ecstatic” “Molly (16 Candles Down the Drain)” and their biggest hit “Plowed”, with the same raw energy that made the band a ’90s staple. Duel guitar duties were aptly handled by slide master Kyle Neely and Andy Patalan, who impressed the crowd with some talk box skills beneath his Detroit baseball cap. The charismatic Dave Coughlin, bashed and smiled his way through their all to brief set, which was short but punchy, reminding the audience that Sponge’s mix of grunge and melody still hits hard three decades later. After their performance, the guys hung out at the merch booth to meet fans and talk “shop” with several of the aforementioned collectible tee wearing attendees. The band’s touring Bassist, Jeff Hayes, handled side duties by selling Sponge swag in between selfies and tales from the road.

Next up was Local H, who brought their signature two-man wrecking crew setup to the stage and turned the theater into a thunderous wall of sound. Scott Lucas’ guitar riffs roared while Ronnie Dicola’s relentless drumming pushed each song forward with fierce intensity. I don’t believe that the majority of the audience, mostly there to see Everclear, were prepared for just how intense Local H can be. It’s crazy how two guys can make that much noise. They tore through “Bound for the Floor” and “High-Fiving MF” and a TV on the Radio cover, like they were playing a sold-out arena, not a tiny theater. Most of the crowd seemed to be into Local H’s particular brand of energetic ditties. Those who weren’t found Lucas prodding them into standing up and throwing their fists in the air, with his wide eyed stare down technique. They’ve still got that raw, punch-you-in-the-face sound that makes you forget how small the setup is. Not to be outdone by the assemblage of groovy garb wearers, the stoic visaged Lucas wore a Dolly Parton number, probably in solidarity for the icons latest health battles. Chatting with him at the booth after their short set, the dry witted frontman made me guess where the bands name came from. He hinted that it was “a mash up of two old REM songs”. The “local” part was easy, as it was obvious to me it was taken by one of my favorite songs by the Athens quartet, “Oddfellows Local 151”. The second part of the duo’s moniker is from the deeper cut, “Swan Swan H”, off of 1986’s Life’s Rich Pageant.

Headlining the evening, and celebrating their 30th anniversary of their breakthrough release Sparkle and Fade, was Portland’s own Everclear. Art Alexakis led the band through a hit-filled set that felt like a road trip through the late ’90s as they played their sophomore album from top to bottom. The nearly twenty-something song set was complete with singalongs like “Father of Mine”, “Wonderful”, and “Santa Monica”, which had Vinnie from Sponge back out to handle vocals. Alexakis’ voice, although a bit road weary, carried the same raspy honesty that made those songs timeless, and his gratitude for the crowd was genuine, even if the sincerity was delivered in between an abundance of F bombs. I’m far from a prude and love a good precisely placed Fuck here and there, but used to excess it loses its proverbial punch, just saying. Alexakis was backed by Davey French on guitar, Brian Nolan on metronome-esque drum kit and Freddy Herrera on bass. Herrera doing a majority of the banter in between songs to keep the assemblage focused and without using too many fucks in his repartee. The night wrapped with a sense of shared memory — three bands, each with their own take on post-grunge and alt-rock, delivering a reminder that the sound of the ’90s still has plenty of life left in it.

Now, Go Out and See, Hear and Feel Live Music