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Pegboy Steals Kilo Kai rum-release show in Chicago!

Article posted on Dec 4, 2007 by Ian Lashbrook

Kilo Kai Rum Release Show on Nov. 11th at Chicago's Double Door featuring the Bouncing Souls, Pegboy, and Beer Nuts! 

Review and Photos by: William Jones

Warning! I admit that I may have been heavily intoxicated at the show I am about to review. But honestly, should anyone (of age) be at a Bouncing Souls any other way?

It was also in honor of the release of a new Chicago-branded spiced rum, Kilo Kai. And with a free tasting event at the Debonair Social Club in Chicago first, and free Kilo Kai drinks at the show at Double Door until 9 p.m. (after which point there were only $1), how was I expected to stay sober until the Souls went on at 11:15.

The show featured The Bouncing Souls, Pegboy and Beer Nuts. But before the show, a few words about the rum. After being invited to the show and tasting event, I will say that I feared I was going to have to schmooze with corporate jackasses and say nice things about some crappy rum when I'd rather be drinking Captain Morgan. Rum and coke has always been my favorite drink, but not a fan of Barcardi or Malibu, I've always gone with the Capt.

I was relieved, therefore, to find I now have a great new choice when buying rum. The Capt. is still great with coke, but so is Kilo Kai, and it tastes a hell of a lot better on its own. It's the same proof, but it's a bit sweeter with flavors like vanilla, banana, cherry, nutmeg and orange peels lingering in the bottle. The rum comes from Curacao, boasts that it's 100% rum and vows to "take no prisoners."

It comes in a black bottle with a skull and crossbones-type white logo that actually looks a lot like the black-and-white Bouncing Souls art. In Chicago, they have targeted the music scene as their main source of promotion with the release show, a sponsorship of Riot Fest, The Wu-Tang Clan and Scott Lucas of Local H, so they're off to a hell of a start in my book. Oh, and I had a lot of time to sit and talk with both the people behind the rum and its PR company in Chicago, and they're anything but corporate jackasses. Yes, they know how to throw a hell of a promotional party, run a great campaign and win over the press (i.e. give them free booze), but they also seem genuinely passionate about their product and were actually hanging out near the pit up front at double door and interested in the bands.

Speaking of the bands, it was a hell of a show...what I remember of it. The Bouncing Souls, while the headliners, actually had to take a backseat to Chicago favorites Pegboy, which was evident after three-fourths of the crowd skipped out before Bouncing Souls took the stage, which, in turn, may be the reason the band's set was barely 40 minutes.

Pegboy's Larry Damore wasted no time falling, literally, into the crowd as the band opened with "Locomotivelung." The band played a very tight 15-song set heavy on Strong Reaction. They sounded incredible, despite the rarity of the band's live performances-easily the best band of the night. They closed with "Hardlight."

The Bouncing Souls played a lackluster 40-minute set and didn't seem too excited about the show (likely due to the small venue emptying out before the band's set). The band played a standard mix consisting of two to three songs from most of their albums. Greg Attonito swayed a little bit and Papillon spent the most time talking, mostly about tequila and how much more he liked it than rum. All-in-all, it was not terrible, but The Bouncing Souls have definitely had much better shows.

And a quick word for Beer Nuts-"Chicago's most notorious party band." The band lived up to it's slogan. Dressed as pirates, the band-which is a supergroup in its own right with a former member of Ministry, a member of The Effigies and a member of Rights of the Accused-rocked like a silly, but actually good college band, never taking themselves too seriously, but putting on one hell of a show. Whether sincere or ridiculous, the band relentlessly promoted the rum, drinking it straight from the bottle during the show and even using the bottle as a guitar slide at times.

Really, they embodied what the show was all about. Drinking a little too much, good music and having fun. It's too bad the headliners didn't seem to be having so much fun.

www.kilokai.com