Guest Blogger: Andy Nystrom: Overwhelming Colorfast at the Sunset--1.1.2010

Who needs New Year's Eve when you've got a brilliant gig lined up January 1?

After spending a mellow Eve at home with my wife Carrie and buddy Diana watching decent horror yarn "The Unborn" and VH1 music best-ofs and metal vids, we were primed for old faves Overwhelming Colorfast at the Sunset in Ballard.

According to pal Greg from openers The Small Change, Overwhelming Colorfast drummer Dan Reed lives in Seattle and big bro and vocalist Bob was visiting our fair city for the holidays. So why not concoct a free OC reunion gig? All systems were go and they recruited Nick and Heather of the Riffbrokers on lead guitar and bass, respectively, to pull this thing off.

Following fine sets from Paul Lynde Fan Club and The Small Change, OC plugged in and ripped into its arsenal of favorites including "Roy Orbison," "Arrows," "How it Should Be" and "Every Saturday." Prior to a cover of the Beatles' "She Said, She Said," Bob joked that he wrote that tune and John Lennon only wished he could have done so.

Now, OC has never been a model of perfection (no band can be), but they can do their Husker Du-meets-Beatles thing like no other. Because they haven't played out much since the '90s, OC was a bit ragged throughout and there were a few miscues here and there, but the wild, pogoing crowd didn't seem to mind. Smiles flashed among the sweaty throng and on the players' faces on stage. Flashback supreme.

As a bonus, Joe Reineke from other NorCal faves the Meices (and of Seattle's Alien Crime Syndicate) joined OC buds on stage for his old band's "Don't Let the Soap Run Out" and OC's "Try." And, of course, Seattle music man and barfly Kurt Bloch (who produced two OC albums) made an appearance, as well, and jammed with OC on a lengthy prog-rock cover that finished off the night.

Just the right dose of tunes to start off the New Year.

Andy Nystrom has attended punk and rock gigs since 1979, when he won tickets on the radio to the California World Music Festival in Los Angeles and his dad took him to see Van Halen, Aerosmith, UFO, Eddie Money and Cheech and Chong. His first punk gig was Circle Jerks and TSOL at the Starwood in 1981.