on issues of shred and purple stuff

So I've been putting it off for a while, but as Rock Band is now out and more people have been asking about it I figure I should post some pic's of Guitar Hero Night at the Chelsea Room. I mentioned briefly last summer that I'd heard about a bar out near Dundas and Bathurst that had cheap drinks and Guitar Hero (2 at the time) on a projector on Wednesday nights. At the time I had only stopped in once to check things out, but as the fall came and went GH night became a pretty regular occurrence. It also just so happened that Halloween fell on a Wednesday last year, and I was there with a bunch of regulars who decided to show up dressed to rock!


The Chelsea Room was bought a few years back by some ex Keg staffers who decided to strike out on their own, but its the staff not the owners who unleashed the rocktonium. Behind the midweek Guitar Hero night is Misha, the lanky assistant manager who keeps his axe in a death grip and commands the attention of the room when he occasionally steps up to deliver the shred. Pictures were snapped the night he decided to slay the beast that is Dragonforce, and the look on his face as he dismantled it a note at a time was simple: pure concentration. The look of the crowd however, tells it all ...


Of course not everyone can make the controller dance like that, but the experts are the exception, not the rule. Since the drinks are half price until midnight and most folks are pretty average at the game anyway, the ability to play well tapers off steeply as the night wears on. But that has nothing to do with how much fun is had. The most crowd pleasing acts are more often the ones who put the most pelvis into their rocking, or fail hilariously while trying to crowd dive, powerslide, or get the bassist onto their shoulders while still finishing the song. But then in my case I'm just pleased to frequent the arcade with a liquor license I always dreamed about ...


I haven't been free on a Wednesday since just before Christmas, so who knows if its still as busy as it had become before the holiday. This week I've got no plans though, and I intend to head down after work. So if you're in the mood and find yourself in the neighborhood stop in and mayhaps we can share a round of the house shooter: "Purple Stuff". I have no idea what the put in that shit, but by the time a purple shot seems like a good idea who really cares?

(note: all photo's copyright Genevieve Magtoto and used with permission)