Rock Night at the Deep End
A live show by four great bands — Tate & the Bedwetters, Further North, Ladybird, and Mommy's Little Monster
Right off the top, I’ll say, I was at the Deep End for rock night because of Garry Walden and Ladybird. I discovered Garry’s music a few months ago after we connected on Insta and I was immediately astonished by his songwriting and the professional quality of the production. The sound of Daniel Sanchez’ amazing drumming was also particularly impressive on the single Gravedigger, and Ladybird struck me as a band ready to go to the next level and beyond. I made it a point to block out the day on my calendar for Ladybird’s show at the Deep End.
In the weeks I waited for the show to arrive, I discovered the music of Devin Davis and his band Tate & the Bedwetters, and to my delight, realized they were headlining the same show with Ladybird, and suddenly I had two reasons to go check out this show. My friends, it was something else.
Mommy’s Little Monster opened a show featuring four bands, and if you did the band family tree of Mommy’s Little Monster, it would quickly become a shrub. All of these guys are always playing with someone, somewhere.
Mommy’s Little Monster is a Social Distortion tribute band with Jim Maertz on lead vocals and guitar, and RD Marsden on guitar and backing vocals (both also of Sarchotic). On bass is former local weatherman and multitalented instrumentalist John Cameron, and Jose Romero is the drummer for Mommy’s Little Monster. “He has played in several local bands over the years and he is a killer drummer,” Maertz says.
I had heard a rumor that Jim also played drums, and he confirmed, giving the band a unique distinction — they’re the only band I’ve photographed so far where every member is a drummer of one degree or another. Maertz says he’s kind of a beginner. “I dabble with drumming... I can play a couple songs and I know the fundamentals, but that’s about it until I can carve out time to practice.” Marsden plays the drums for Sarchotic, and John Cameron plays the drums in random spots around the city sometimes, because he’s a free spirit like that.
Next up on the ticket was Garry Walden and Ladybird.
This was the moment when The Deep End got hardcore and became a challenging environment for a photographer. Garry Walden has a very dedicated and, ahem, carefree following. Okay, so, if I wasn’t watching my language, I would say the fans of Ladybird have zero f*&ks to give when Ladybird is playing. Enjoy the show or get out of the way, friend.
Ladybird is a three-piece punk band: Garry Walden, guitar and vocals, Peter Skulski, bass and vocals, and Daniel Sanchez, drums, and to say they have a rabid fanbase would be an understatement. You haven’t lived until you’ve been in a claustrophobic madhouse with 140 young people screaming a young genius’ lyrics right back in his face from three feet away.
I spent some time in the pit during Ladybird’s set, and it was not for the faint of heart. A gentleman who was celebrating his 50th birthday took a spill that shoved a monitor out of place and knocked over a mic stand. I have a feeling he felt like he had celebrated his 60th birthday when he woke up the next morning.
So, then they stopped the show and called security and did a cleanup intermission, right? No, I’m kidding. The band kept right on playing, others drug the birthday boy out, we put the mic stand back up and the show didn’t miss a blip.
Gravedigger and DOA are already on my Spotify playlists, and if you like pop-punk, they should be on yours, too. When Ladybird is playing in the Wichita Falls-area, I’m going. Don’t ask me to be anywhere else.
Next on the bill was Further North.
Further North is a five piece pop punk/emo band consisting of Steve Stanley on bass and vocals, John Marc Stanley on guitar and vocals, guitarist Chris Jacobs, Aaron Capers on drums, and keyboardist Chris Compton.
I was absolutely unfamiliar with Further North’s music until the day before the gig, when I sat down to immerse myself in their Spotify offerings. As with Ladybird, I was knocked-out by the talent and professionalism and songwriting of Further North. They also have more Spotify listeners than any other band on the bill, by a wide margin, and one listen to their catalog tells me that following is deserved.
Further North invited Austin Rupe of Basics onstage for a guest spot, and it was fun to see Austin up onstage, commanding the audience, doing a different thing.
I intended to say more about Further North in this article, but to be honest, they deserve more attention that that. I’ll be coming back to Further North in the future.
When Further North wrapped up, I stepped outside with a friend to assess what I had photographically. I heard people saying they had never seen the Deep End so packed for a music show. It was the kind of event where you almost needed to step out and take a break… a rock show right on the edge of pandemonium. And then we heard the action firing up again, and we went back in for the main event.
The headline event for the evening was Tate & the Bedwetters featuring Devin Davis, who is in my eyes, like Garry Walden, a musical genius waiting to be discovered. Don’t believe me? Listen to Due Date and pay attention to the lyrics. That’s the song that I heard Devin perform previously that blew my mind at open mic night. Amazing, right? And if you like up-tempo rock, like I do, check out “It’s Like Spidey Senses but for the 2007 Toyota Camry XLE”
Tate & the Bedwetters played all of their most popular tracks, which you can find on Spotify, but I felt their music was a little more energetic and cool in a live setting and I would recommend you catch them live. Like Further North, the rest of the band deserves our attention. Braden Faulkenberry, guitar and vocals, Jonas Lester, guitar, bassist Riley Southby and drummer Tate Faulkenberry will be the subject of a future story on Tate & the Bedwetters.
The aggro rock show on the floor at an arcade was great, but I look forward to seeing them again in a setting where I can photograph and really listen to each individual member, because Devin and his band deserve the attention.
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