Concert review: Hot Klub Reunion at Lakewood Theater in Dallas (Oct. 9)

by Teresa Gubbins

DALLAS — The Dallas music scene has gotten bitten by the reunion bug this year with old rockers gathering to celebrate bygone institutions. It started with the reunion of metal club The Basement in April, followed by the reunion of '80s punk-rock club DJ's, and then a reunion of indie-rock radio station 94.5 The Edge in July.

The latest took place Friday at the Lakewood Theater: a reunion of the Hot Klub, the renowned '80s punk-new-wave club on Maple that hosted touring acts like Black Flag plus a whole crop of local bands. On Friday, some of those local bands reunited to play unexpectedly vibrant sets for an appreciative crowd of more than 400.

The lineup included Big Guns, Bag O Wire, Fallen Idles, Barry Kooda Combo, The Devices, the Telefones, Assassins, Superman's Girlfriend, and ended with Quad Pi. While some players still reside in Dallas, others came from as far away as Nicaragua for the show.

What was gratifying about the night was how strong the performances were, and not just for those viewers caught up in the flattering haze of nostalgia. These may have been 20-year-old songs, some of them simple, but the musicians' age and experience gave the music texture and depth.

The bands were also clearly having fun playing their tight 25-minute sets, and that was contagious, whether it was the sonic sprawl of Superman's Girlfriend, the brainy punk of The Devices, or the bounding energy of Fallen Idles.

In the lobby, people greeted each other with hugs and smirks, with an odd combination of excitement and dread.

"I sat out in the car for 15 minutes, trying to decide whether I really wanted to come in," said Neal Caldwell, whose VVV Records released Live at the Hot Klub in 1983. More than one person remarked that the event felt like a high school reunion. But if that was true, then it was a reunion of only the least-conventional, most interesting people in your class, who were the ones drawn to punk/new wave in the old Hot Klub days.

Radio personality George Gimarc held court and emceed between bands. Mark "Mr. Rid" Ridlen DJed. Musicians who'd taken their turn on stage formed boisterous little circles. A bunch of people had in common that they'd all worked together at Peaches Records during the '70s: Pat Turner, Mike Haskins, Bob Childress, Barry Kooda, Bucks Burnett. More music people showed up, like Steve Nutt, Kyle Thomas, Jeff Liles, and Tami Thomsen of Kirtland Records.

Steve Hall, 51, of Dallas, proudly showed off his "original" Hot Klub button, and recalled that he used to hang out at the Hot Klub two to three times a week.

Charles Weintraub remembered going to the Klub when he was 17, and called it "Dallas' answer to CBGB's."

"That was nearly 30 years ago, and it's hard to believe that we're still alive," he said. "It's bittersweet -- it feels good."

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