bands that play the wrong place at the wrong time

Last night I went to a bar I usually like and surprise surprise! I saw a shitty band for free.

This particular shitty band appeared to be on tour from Iowa, judging by their uniform 1992 Lollapalooza-era white boy dreadlocks, "intense" grunge riffs, and general shirtless-ness. Also their singer's name was like Sioux City Pete or something.

Now if these guys stuck to being really big Tool and Nine Inch Nails fans and playing daytime slots at "hardcore" festivals in the Midwest, I would never have to talk about them. But for some reason, they chose to drive to Los Angeles and play at a weird art-fag bar in Silverlake. Which I must point out they did not have to do, and most assuredly were not paid to do.

After Pete & the boys finished their set, a bone-thin homeless-looking man in his 40s wearing work-out clothes picked up an electric guitar and began bashing out shouty, out-of-tune Billy Idol and Rolling Stones covers, changing around chords and lyrics as the mood struck him. This went on, seemingly, for a couple of days.

I wish I was making any of this up. I don't know where these terrible bands come from or where they end up, but I can't get ignored by a bartender in Silverlake without hearing one.