Comparisions are inevitable, so I'm just gonna go ahead and get it out of the way... Crosstops are like the Supersuckers' bastard cousins (and as you might be aware, we here at Sin City Sounds have got a big ol' soft spot in our hearts for the 'Suckers). They're not so much evil, as just plain dirty. While Eddie Spaghetti sings about such classy subjects as liquor, women, drugs and killing; Crosstops lower the bar for songs that are about the more base desires of drinking, fucking and burnin' up the asphalt behind the wheel of a big rig.
That said, Crosstops are one of the fastest, tightest bands you are likely to see. If you like your thrash punk, (or Bar-Core as I believe they called it, or maybe it was Barn-Core... I had consumed several Jack and Cokes, so I'm a bit unsure) with a touch of twang and a sense of humor, then you better get your paws on a copy of Cloverleaf Fandango right away. And if you didn't already know, The Wooper is an amazing guitarist who has also been known to play with other great bands like Rich Kids On L.S.D., Me First & The Gimme Gimmes and Hotbox.
Faster than a Peterbilt hauling down a 6% grade, Crosstops ripped through two sets that included the Ghost-Riders-In-The-Sky-esque Places To Go (People To Do), Lay Me Down (In A Field Of Pussy) a charming little ditty about a hillybilly orgy, a cover of Larry Pierce's One Track Mind which features the infectious "I'd like to fuck your brains out don't cha know" chorus, along with soon-to-be-classics like The Boob Song, Scrape 'Em Off My Grill, The Best Ass In The West and Let's Truck Together.
I think you get the general idea, your basic evening of raunchy rock 'n' roll fun, perfect for the Double Down. Unfortunately, only a handful of punk rock regulars were there to witness the debauchery.
The 'Tops threatened to play until 5 am and after drinking the Double Down specialty, Ass Juice, and some more Pabst Blue Ribbon they achieved this goal by crashing through yet another set in the wee hours of the morning, with their britches around their ankles... or something like that.
My friends and I actually headed out around 2:30 am so that we could be somewhat rested for Saturday's activities, which were to include an encore performance from Crosstops, since the bands scheduled to open for The Flash Express weren't going to be able to make it.
More about that right here.
Hammer down, boys!
