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LIVE - It's the Viva Las Vegas Rockabilly Weekender!

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- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 12:14 p.m. Proteus:

This is the main thread for coverage of VLV09.

• For extensive coverage of the bands featured, with pics and some audio, go here.
• Gomango here for acres of car porn from the VLV09 Shifters Car Show.
• And find coverage of Cousin Harley's Sunday night set here.
• 15-minute video conversation with Paul Pigat here.

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After my travels, I'm in Vegas for VLV – so you're here too. (Virtually speaking, of course.)

Things kick off officially tonight at six, but rockabilly cats and their dates were congregating last night, showing off a range of '50s (and nuvo-retro) fashion, and parking their too-cool rides among the bland modern iron in the hotel lot.

For four action-packed, thrill-filled days, bands play on at least three stages around the hotel from 1 pm to 2 am (with a couple hours off for dinner). I count 43 artists on the official VLV website. There's a car show, a pool party (what does as rockabilly bikini look like?), dance instruction and contest – and, now that I read the fine print, a burlesque show and contest.

Plus, booths for dozens of vendors who cater to the "rockabilly lifestyle" (and I'll leave it to y'all to debate what that is), making this a complete celebration of all things – and all forms – of rockabilly.

Gretsch is here with a booth, showing off the Official Guitar of Rockabilly and providing hospitality to musicians in the Steer Horn Lounge. That means Joe Carducci is on-hand, along with laid-back Nashville-based artist-relations guy Jason Herndon – and Emery the FMIC event-planning guru. (Joe's right-hand man Jamie Ferguson was slated to make the 6-hour drive with Joe from Scottsdale, but an illness kept him home at the last minute.)

We're settled in at the Big Easy-themed Orleans Hotel/Casino, where everything happens; I know there won't be time to cover everything – but, as usual, expect pics, audio of performances and an interview or two, and maybe some video (but not immediately). I'll be posting content hot and heavy as soon as I capture and process it – and I look forward to meeting those who've already posted that they'll be here. (I was keeping this coverage a surprise, because you guys have such high expectations and it gets harder and harder to impress you.)

Remember, what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas. Except a lot of it will stay right here for your virtual delectation.

It could get wild.

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And hey, do you recognize the style of the artwork? That's our old friend Vince Ray at work.
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Apr 9, 2009 1:04 p.m. Mikey:

Hey Proteus! This is an exciting surprise. Now that I see some pics, even of the lobby, I'm in agony that I didn't get down there. I saw this and emailed Paul Pigat to say "You've got to meet Tim from the GDP" but I guess you'd already made contact. Have a great time and I can't wait to see some of festivities.
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Apr 9, 2009 1:22 p.m. Proteus:

About last night...

You can tell a lot about a place by its airport: in Louisville's, the home of tobacky and licker, there are all but signs saying "Light up! Have some bourbon!"

I reckon you know you're in Vegas when this is what the waiting area for the most remote concourse looks like this:

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I hadn't been to Vegas for over 20 years, since the era when its original post-war and Rat Pack splendor had entered years of genteel fade, renewal was barely at hand, and its "family-friendly entertainment center" format was just developing.

Then it was clear that a casino was a casino. You could knock your eyes out on glitz, glamour, and sparkle, but the classic old facades still stood on the strip, and – though the names were evocative of exotic mystique – they were clearly just big fancy hotels with noisy, dark, glittering, chaotic, smoky gaming rooms.

Since then this patch of desert has been replanted as the world in faux miniature: polynesian Islands, New York City, Paris, ancient Egypt, ancient Rome, legendary Camelot, Monte Carlo, and – our otherworld for the weekend, New Orleans.

It's all show-biz, of course, wild ambition fueled by dreams and greed, lust, liquor, and the Bacchanalian impulse, the Midas touch and its leaden reverse, and more electricity than we can possibly imagine. Mighty turbines spin at the base of Hoover Dam so Vegas can party (and glow) all night long.

Now every hotel/casino is a theme park to itself, a fantasy come to life where dreams may turn to gold or back to dust. All promise immersive worlds of wonder; all deliver spectacle and sensation – and the same gleaming rows of slot machines, all promise and perdition, the tables and the dealers.

It's a clever thing, really, enormously creative (if a little insidious), the way Sin City has made itself simultaneously into Fun City. Gamble a little, be naughty a little, gawk a lot – and, hey, bring the kids!

It's a bit like Disneyland, only with a skimpier dress code, adult shows where everything goes – including the clothes – and rides for everyone from roller coasters to Entertainers (which appears to be the Las Vegas' phone book euphemism for 50 pages of fetching folk who may - or may not - ply the world's oldest profession.)

I've heard it called the "safety valve of America," a place of light and license where the rules are turned off for awhile. There's a remarkable contrast between the themed costume party of the showfolk (and every bellman, waitress, and croupier is show) and the slouching middle America garb of most Vegas vacationers.

In the movies – even in the eighties – people dressed UP to gamble. The gentlemen were turned out bespoke, and the ladies glittered like luck charms in high couture (or an impression of it).

Now all the drama and excitement, all the fun and fear and frolic can be taken in wearing rumpled jeans and shorts, loose tees, and ball caps: the Saturday crowd from Wal-Mart out for a mild time.

Or anyway, that's the pastiche of phrases I jotted on a napkin as I rode the shuttle from the airport to the Orleans. The bus (filled with upper Wisconsin, DC, Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, and Indiana) crawled from legend to legend: Tropicana, Excalibur, NY NY, Paris, Monte Carlo, the amazing none-more-black Luxor with its spotlight shining up directly at (and I'm not making this up) the full moon...

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After making our connections, the Gretsch Posse cruised the strip (actually the traffic's a bit too dense for "cruise" to apply – crawled from light to light is more like it) to take in the architecture ... and 25.00 hamburgers served by waitresses with impressive architecture of their own. (I was too dazed to get pics of the girls, to my shame.)

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The Orleans is not on the strip, but a couple of miles away. Between the strip's river of light and the Orlean's sprawling pool of same is a dark semi-industrial/commercial district, where businesses supporting the massive local industry are quartered. Some of their names are pure poetry in context: Mojave Electric (you bet!), Titian Stairs ("A Step Above"), and – my favorite – Southern Nevada Paving. (They're not done yet, but they're trying!)

I knew I was in the right place when I saw that – not Penn & Teller, not an elegant magician, not Barry Manilow – but Jeff Foxworthy is scheduled for next week in the Orleans Arena. Yeah! My kinda people!

And the first song I heard in the parking lot of The Orleans was Chuck Berry's "Maybelline."

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And, inside...

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Even last night, before the main event, the gaming rooms and corridors were thick with all manner of rockabilly-attired folks – giving me hope that, out of all the glittering city, at least here at The Orleans, the dress of the guests will more than live up to the fantasy of the palace.

Alas, the one sample I snapped last night might look Kansas blown in to gawk at the sights – if it was Kansas circa 1956.
- Rated: 90 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 1:23 p.m. bonedaddy:

Ah McCarran Int'l Airport. I worked on the wireless network installation for those guys when I was with Aruba Wireless. Fun. Well, not really

Have fun in Vegas Tim; it's an interesting place to say the least.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 1:25 p.m. Proteus:

Cars?

We'll be seeing a LOT of them, maybe in their own thread.

Some appetizers:

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Much more later, rockers & rockettes.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 1:40 p.m. Proteus:

bonedaddy, giving much thought to the IP infrastructure in this city is mind-boggling. The density of connections, the sophistication of the casino systems, the pure infrastructure...be a hoot for a tech nerd to get an inside look at some of the installations.

Not to mention a tour through the power stations.
- Rated: 110 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 1:51 p.m. Deed Eddy:

OMG, it's the Octo-Mom!

So very sorry.
- Rated: 88 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 2:07 p.m. Ric12string:

Proteus, exactly one year ago, we took our kids down to Las Vegas for their spring vacation from school. What better place to while away their school break than in Sin City...

We made sure that we went to the Mirage to see the Love show, which is built around the Cirque du Soleil's interpretation of Beatles' music. What a GREAT show.

If you get a chance to see it after your work duties are over, I would highly recommend that you and Joe head on down there to see it. For anyone who grew up, as we did, listening to that music, and who enjoy seeing a world-class performance troupe (CdS), it is really a special evening. My children, who are so sick of hearing Beatles music by this point in their lives, and who turn off any recollections about their music that I may share with them, actually loved the show and actualy wanted to listen to the Love CD that we bought.

Really a fun time for you guys, if you get the chance.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 2:37 p.m. Proteus:

Joe has seen it - he's been raving about it as well. I'd love (so to speak) to fit it in.

We'll see.
- Rated: 58 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 2:44 p.m. JC:

I want that 57 Caddy!
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Apr 9, 2009 2:52 p.m. kenniwan:

I am currently wearing a very sharp Italian shirt (no collar, buttons covered by a discrete flap), which I purchased at the Las Vegas branch of Savers second-hand store when I was last there. I'm sure looked much more suave on whomever donated it than it does on my bloated frame. Notwithstanding, Savers Las Vegas is an indispensible source for weekend warriors looking for stage clothes on a budget.
- Rated: 58 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 3:28 p.m. dmanlow:

I'm looking forward to the coverage.

"Octo-Mom"...too funny Deed!
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Apr 9, 2009 3:32 p.m. Adam:

Very cool Proteus, looking forward to the rest.

And Deed, I don't know if I hear more about her because I'm from Southern California or if it's bad all over the country, but I thought this place was my one escape! I suppose I should have known better.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 5:54 p.m. Proteus:

The headiest headliners will play in the Mardi Gras Ballroom: a few pics during setup.

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Well GOLLY, look at the kind of gear it takes to put on old-fashioned stripped-down roots music! To help decipher my fuzzy pictums, in the first rack that looks to be a harmonizer (say it ain't so!), four separate digital reverb/effects units, and no less than 20 channels of compression.

In the second, a pair of OmniDrive speaker management systems, lots of graphic EQ, and more compression.

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Chandelier. Symmetry always attracts me.

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Lovely old kit waiting for whackage.

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Loading dock, laying in supplies, and dramatic shots of Joe, Emory, and Jason walking against the sun to get the trailer and unload the Great Gretsch Gear.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:05 p.m. Proteus:

The size of the event is coming clear. Not just through the obvious quality of the sound systems and the size of the ballrooms, but the numbers steadily arriving.

They say attendance is up from last year. With rooms of vendors, all the venues, and diversity of artists (not to mention the PBR), it has all the hallmarks of a convention. More, it also looks to me like the gathering in of a far-flung clan, a rendezvous.

Rockabilly nation? A place where music and fashion have evolved from the mid-50s – but along different lines from mainstream pop culture, and with respect and veneration for eras past. The music and its "lifestyle" is provide a vital eternal present for those who live (or sometimes visit) there.

The double line for valet parking as folks arrive stretches the equivalent of a couple of city blocks; they pile out of both modern and obviously driven old cars (the trailered show queens won't arrive till later), register at the front desk, and then dud up in finery to make the scene.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:11 p.m. Proteus:

More cars!

I'd lay short odds that this is a '49 - '51 Chevy, so I'm calling it a '50. I don't recall if Chev's fastback was the Styleline or the Fleetline. Someone straighten me out on that.

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Again, it's a three-year spread: '61 - '63 T-Bird. I'm splitting the spread at '62 again, and waiting for someone to nail me on it. I'm not so good with production years.

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It's a trifecta! I don't make this a '61 - '63 Continental, but it could be a '64, '65, or '66. Middle-of-the-roader as I am, I'm calling it a '65. Anyone? .

But THIS, my friends, IS a '59 Chevy. .

And I'll stake my boots that here, dropped into the asphalt weeds, rides one very slinky '65 Riviera.

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- Rated: 129 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:14 p.m. wenzel:

Dude, is that Jack White? Nice writeup Proteus, but you need to invest in a new camera, tripod or hire me to take the photos for free! Just pay airfare and I'll be there.

I'm talking about this photo...
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Apr 9, 2009 6:18 p.m. Proteus:

BOTH of those guys are Jack White! How did you know?! (Or is that a pic that needs a tripod?)

The camera is the new G10, and I do have a tripod – Just didn't have it with me on my wanders.

And I've cut the pixel count back to 3 MP for the sake of quicker editing.

I know you're a killer photog, cap'n, and personnel would definitely help. I'm running on 3 hours of sleep since 7 Wednesday morning, about to shut down, and the show hasn't even started.

I'm not complaining, mind you! Just whining.

Give me some settings suggestions for the camera.
- Rated: 308 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:27 p.m. Proteus:

Room Service!

I hadn't even thought about great cajun food being a specialty of the house at a hotel called The Orleans – but when I saw gumbo on the menu, I thought I'd give'er a shot. I could LIVE on gumbo.

I expected just a cup of it, but I don't call that a cup. And it's as good as any I've ever had, so I know what's for lunch every day now.

The rest of it was just as good. Couldn't even eat it all.

And the room service dude was dressed MUCH better than I am.
- Rated: 45 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:30 p.m. MrMoonlight:

Proteus said:
I'd lay short odds that this is a '49 - '51 Chevy, so I'm calling it a '50. I don't recall if Chev's fastback was the Styleline or the Fleetline. Someone straighten me out on that.

I'm sure Tux will be along any time now...

(Sorry Tim, but you set yourself up for that one.)
- Rated: 88 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 6:59 p.m. Ric12string:

Perhaps it is my analogue mind at work here, but I don't see anything wrong with that photograph at all, Proteus, if the issue is one of exposure. Obviously, the automatic exposure meter read for the brightly lit background, which predominates the image, and exposed for that, leaving the pedestrians and the foreground in the shadows. And there should be no need for a tripod in such bright light as the exposure would require a pretty fast shutter speed.

Am I missing something here?
- Rated: 44 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 7:35 p.m. Shuie:

Pro, the fastback Chevy was known as the Fleetline.

There is my positive contribution to this most excellent and surprising thread. What an adventure! Please enjoy.

I'm loving the '59 Chevy too. Bestest tail styling ever. Mind you, the Bill Mitchell Buick Riviera is a wonderful rolling sculpture. Very taut and restrained, looks more compact than it really is. Marvellous.
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Apr 9, 2009 7:43 p.m. fauves:

yup. the t bird is 61 to 63, I had the strongest lust for one of them for a long time. But, I only wanted them tail lights. and the tilt away steering wheel. thats my fav era bird
- Rated: 44 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 7:48 p.m. Shuie:

I'm with you on '65 for the Lincoln Continental.
- Rated: 129 ↑
Apr 9, 2009 8:29 p.m. wenzel:

Tim, can you adjust the ISO settings on that camera? If so, raise it to between 1600-3200 if you can. Night shots without a tripod require a higher ISO or film speed in low light when hand held. Try setting your camera to shutter priority and setting the lowest setting to somewhere around 60 or 50 at the lowest when hand holding. If it's on a tripod, you can set the shutter to a lower speed and let the f/stop change by itself or use full manual and control everything and meter off of something you want to ensure is properly metered. Does your camera have spot metering? Sometimes at night you may need to spot meter since the overall darkness will make the camera try and compensate by lowering the shutter speed and that will make the pictures look blurry. If you tell the camera where the proper exposure area is it will then allow you to maintain handheld speeds, but expose properly. I wasn't dogging you Protues, I think the sotry still works here, so no worries! Higher ISO or film speed will help!

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