by Sam Beresky
Daily Lobo
Bar hopping, beer, lots of rock and roll, a human sandwich with a pair of gorgeous Jewish sisters, a gimp and more beer would not even begin to describe a night at the Fall Crawl with local band Oktober People.
The evening began at about 8 p.m. at the Atomic Cantina. Lead singer, Nate Santamaria hobbled into a booth and leaned his crutches against the table. He wishes he had a good excuse for his broken foot, like that he was in a cross-country crutching competition and fell on a scorpion while kicking ass. But instead he got in a fight with a trampoline. That's all - no glam, just clean fun.
Soon Chris Moffatt, the drummer and a UNM Sociology major, joined the group and everybody ordered a round - not the first - of beer. Bassist Rhian Batson and guitarist Sean McCullough were somewhere milling around the bar.
It turns out that Santamaria's father formed a band called Oktober People in the late sixties and they once opened for the Allman Brothers Band in San Francisco. Eventually all of the band members died.
The new line-up of Oktober People formed last June when Batson and Moffatt, who had been playing together in a variety of other bands, decided to form something new and they asked Santamaria to sing.
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More beer was ordered and the band played with glow sticks and crutches. The bassist from the band Unit 7 Drain stopped by to show off his cat suit while the industrial guitar of Trans 66 wafted from the stage.
Another round was ordered and the meaning of life was discussed. Love, drugs, Rock and Roll and fixing the problems of the world were the most popular topics.
Then the entourage hobbled to Burt's Tiki Lounge for more beer and music. Unit 7 Drain played an inspiring set and finished by smashing a guitar into about a thousand pieces. The crowd went crazy.
Oktober People then took a short detour to look at porta-potties and to contemplate the Honey Pot Crutching Olympics.
Back at the Atomic Cantina the band enjoyed the last of The Mindy Set and began to set up. They used to get nervous setting up for shows but after they started drinking, the nervousness disappeared, Santamaria said.
Setting up the instruments seemed to be a small hassle, with one of the band members being injured and the sound man cussing at them.
Finally set up, the show began.
"Is it 11?" Nate said. "Word. Let's get drunk."
The band launched into a very fast, almost hardcore song that surprised most of the crowd. The next song, "Impeachment," began with a very slow and beautiful lead-in by Batson on bass that rivaled the sonic quality of Radiohead or Pink Floyd.
The band went on to play three more excellent songs, managing to rock hard and then bring it all down into slow, beautiful, melancholy moments.
The band played with the emotions of the crowd, working them into frenzy and then carrying them back to earth. The combination of sonic jams, quirkiness and great musicianship made Oktober People one of the best sets of the evening.
The band played five songs in 30 minutes to a packed house - then it was over. Band members frantically put their gear away and tried to get more beer. Moffatt went outside to make a call.
The mood changed. Before the show they were getting drunk, making nipple guards with glow sticks and talking about great music and drunken-crutching. After the set, they just kind of deflated.
Maybe it was the mood change of the band or the three shots of tequila and seven beers sinking in, but this reporter called it a night.
Oktober People will be appearing this Friday at the Launchpad with Appleseed Cast, The Mercury Program and Chin Up Chin Up.
