I moved to San Francisco in 2005 after spending a few years being a tour lackey for a couple of different metal hardcore bands. My first (and only) job in the "City by the Bay" was working in the bakery of one of "America's Largest Natural Food Store" (I am leaving out the name of this company, but it shouldn't take a genius to figure out who my employer was). For the first three months of my five year sentence at that company, I was an average, run of the mill treat bitch. I boxed cakes, baked bread, and took a lot of shit from uppity Pacific Heights residents who couldn't handle the fact that the strawberry chiffon cake was made with conventional, not organic, strawberries (like I had any fucking say in what went into our cakes at that point in my grocery store career). One day while stacking cookies, stocking cake slices, or some other mind-numbing, menial task, I noticed three heavily tattooed gentlemen shopping for what appeared to be lunches they were taking back to their office. They approached the bakery counter and began to eyeball the vegan cookies. I offered to help them, and as I handed one of them their vegan treat, my white chef's coat sleeve rode up, exposing my Jawbreaker "I Kissed The Bottle" tattoo on my right forearm.
"That's a pretty awesome tattoo, but its not quite as cool as this guys," said the shortest of three sleeved up dudes as he pointed to the tallest of the group, sporting a beard and an obvious resemblance to the speaker. The tall, bearded guy pulled up his pant leg, exposing a tattoo of two rabbits with "Jinx Removing" underneath them in a banner.
"Whoa...that's fucking awesome," I uttered, feeling somewhat like a dumb fanboy and cursing myself internally for saying something that seemed so teenage girl-esque and void of intelligence.
And that was how I met Kevin McCracken.
Kevin was the shorter, bespectacled gentlemen who noticed my tattoo, while his younger brother, Kerry, actually had the Jawbreaker tattoo that bested mine. As months went by, Kevin and I would chat about punk and indie rock whenever he would come into the store for groceries, and soon enough we began running into each other at shows around town. Eventually, Kevin asked me to play guitar for the band he drums for called Aim Low Kid, a dynamic indie rock outfit not unlike Modest Mouse or Built To Spill (I eventually proved to be a little too "extreme" for the band, and bowed out of my guitarist position after a few months). During my time in the band, Kevin and I grew to be great friends. I became friends with his wife, Nicole, as well as his parents Tom and Maureen. In more recent times, Kevin's non-profit screen-printing company, Social Imprints would hire me on as a merch dude for the Noise Pop Festival in San Francisco, and because of our friendship, I am lucky enough to know his adorable infant daughter, Kaitlin.
In 2010, Kevin's wife Nicole was diagnosed with breast cancer. Breast Cancer that needed chemotherapy and surgeries to treat. I was devastated by the news. Not that I think anyone deserves to get cancer more than anyone else, but Nicole, a vegan yoga instructor who treats her body and health better than I've treated any possession I've ever had in my life getting breast cancer? What kind of fucked up world do we live in? Kevin, being the stand-up, motivated individual he is, instantly shifted his intense focus and uncanny ability to make things happen/get shit done onto his wife's well being. He started a Facebook group to keep friends and family informed of Nicole's progress and well-being. Nicole utilized both traditional medical treatments for cancer, as well as holistic and natural options as well. So far, Nicole has been responding well to treatment, and things appear hopeful.
However, cancer is expensive, both emotionally and monetarily. They, like any family going through a tragedy like this one, need help through this incredibly trying time. Kevin has deep roots in the Bay Area punk scene, most notably as the drummer for Siren, a melodic hardcore band from Santa Rosa who were most active around the Bay in the mid-90s. While they may have never achieved the notoriety of some of their peers like Rancid, Jawbreaker, or AFI, they had the respect of those who were fortunate enough to see them in their heyday, and kept a cult-like following of what are mostly now aging Bay Area punks who may have traded in cut-off dickies for slacks, but kept the spirit and values with them as they matured in life.
I never caught Siren live when they were around (I was merely teenager growing up three hours away from Santa Rosa and two hours away from San Francisco or Berkeley, so getting to every show every weekend proved to be a challenge). Kevin sent me four songs he had digitized that hadn't graced my ears in probably fifteen or so years. I can honestly say that Siren still sound fresh and relevant in 2011. Melodic, driving hardcore never really went out of style, and if anything has had new life breathed into it via bands like Set Your Goals, Title Fight, and Shook Ones. While the newer, younger bands may have touch more ferocity and speed to them, Siren would easily hold their own on a line up with any of those bands, if not outshine them in terms of passion and ability achieved only through maturation and life experience.
In the face of tragedy and hard times, coming together is the first step towards getting through the turbulence. Punk may evolve sonically, socially, and aesthetically every five to ten years, but punks helping each other overcome struggles and challenges has and forever will be one of the most important aspects of this counterculture that continues to thrive even though it has come so far from where it began. The McCracken family needs help. so it was time to get the band back together...
Saturday June 25th, Siren will reunite as part of a benefit show for the McCracken family called Music Heals Nicole at The Phoenix Theater in Petaluma. In addition to Siren, the show will feature sets from The Velvet Teen, Cropduster, , and The 50/50's. There will be a silent auction as raffle prizes all attendees have a shot at winning, and of course, all of the evening's proceeds will be put toward the McCracken Family's fight against Nicole's cancer. Tickets to Music Heals Nicole are $25 each and are well worth it seeing as how you're getting an evening of incredible music, and also because your money is going to help one of the greatest families in the Bay Area battle through an incredibly trying time in their life.
Kevin and Nicole McCracken, along with their daughter Kaitlin, are three of the most special people I've had the privilege of getting to know throughout my 31 years on this planet. Over the years through their careers, friendships, and Kevin's music, they have touched the lives of many people in need, giving hope and a chance to those who thought they had neither. Now they're in need of some extra support, so let's make sure they get all the help that's available to give. If you are in the vicinity of Petaluma, or the Bay Area Saturday night, please make your way to the The Phoenix and take part in Music Heals Nicole. It's not often that bands reunite for worthwhile reasons, especially bands as awesome as Siren. Help a family in need by enjoying an evening of incredible music and extraordinary friendship.
Really great! Thanks so much Erick. By the way the show is $10, but we will gladly take the $25. No one is getting turned away for lack of funds.
ReplyDeleteYour thoughtful words are much appreciated Erick. Siren was at the front of efforts to confront corporate take-over of "punk" music. Too bad we weren't able to replicate a west coast "Fugazi." Unlike many of Siren's peers, the band took on this David vs. Goliath battle, even going so far as to turn down a Lookout offer because Siren was told they could not say no to Caroline (owned by EMI) distribution. - Miriam Wilding
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