A 12-year-old kid approached the microphone during the question-and-answer session at the Repo Man screening at the Oriental Theatre on Sunday. “Where did you come up with the name Circle Jerks for your band?”
The crowd erupted in laughter at his question, which had to have been a scheme pulled by the adult with whom the child was accompanied. Keith Morris, lead singer of the Circle Jerks, straightened up in his chair. He told a story about how Greg Hetson, guitarist for the Circle Jerks, found the name in an urban dictionary in the ’70s. “You’re too young to this just now, but when you get older and are hanging around with your buddies, you may want to try it because it can be a lot of fun,” Morris said. “Sometimes there are cookies involved,” added Zander Schloss, who was on the panel and plays Kevin in the film.
It was this moment that encapsulated the entire spirit of the night, where hundreds of old and young punks, weirdos, and other counterculture aficionados piled into the Oriental Theatre. Myself, I fit into all of these categories. Yes, even the “young” description. I will not elaborate.
Repo Man has been my favorite movie since I first saw it in 9th grade. I bought a copy of the DVD at Atomic Records with my second paycheck that I had ever earned; it set me back $19.95. I was instantly taken by the fact it didn’t look, sound, or feel like anything I had seen up to that point, yet there was a strong familiarity and comfort in watching it—it had many characters that were people of color, mostly Mexican. There were no shitty racist jokes, and said characters of color weren’t stupid or employed in stereotypical roles. The humor was defiant, had a bad attitude, and didn’t care if anyone, especially Hollywood, thought it worked or not. The setting was Los Angeles in 1984, and it had the same feel as my favorite movie at the time, Born In East L.A. Since that day, I hoped I could make something halfway as good as Repo Man, and have endlessly quoted it, whether people know what I am talking about or not.
Ninety minutes before the Q&A, I walked into the theater, excited for the night ahead, regretting not having worn my OFF! T-shirt. The merch table was set up outside of the cinema and what caught my eye immediately was a copy of the Jerks’ second and most popular album, Golden Shower Of Hits, signed by the whole band, for $30. I’ll pick it up on my way out, I thought. It sold out by the time I came back 10 minutes later with my allowance in hand. I hadn’t felt that shafted since the Melvins show at Shank Hall in 2006 where I waited on buying their autobiography Neither Here Nor There and it was out of print one month later.
The show started around 7:20 p.m. with the voice of Schloss over the loudspeakers, singing the 7UP jingle from the grocery store scene in the movie. He came out from behind the curtain to cheers from the audience, followed by Hetson and Joey Castillo (formerly of Queens Of The Stone Age). They immediately went into the opening theme from Repo Man. Alex Cox, director of the film, materialized from beneath the drum riser in a bowler hat. He grabbed the microphone, and what followed was a very faithful Iggy Pop vocal rendering, from the opening line “I was riding on a concrete slab” to the final snare slams. Here was the lanky Englishman, in all his glory, who launched Gary Oldman’s career with Sid And Nancy, who wrote and directed Walker and Straight To Hell, singing “Repo Man.”
Morris took the stage after the opening theme and told the crowd he turns 71 in a month. He then launched into “Deny Everything” off of the Group Sex LP. The set was urgent and charged, stuffed with all the classic Jerk songs like “Under The Gun,” “I Just Want Some Skank,” “Coup d’Etat,” and many others that spanned their catalogue. The Circle Jerks portion of the set ended with “Wild In The Streets,” what Morris called “the closest thing we have ever had to a number one hit.” Next, he said, “We have six songs we are gonna end with and we are done, thank you!”
The opening feedback for “Revenge” by Black Flag pierced the air, and what ensued were all the classic songs from the early Flag 45s. People came running down the aisles to start a pit when the drums for “Nervous Breakdown” began. The pit was a combination of fervently enthusiastic Gen Z and some courageous Millenials who felt confident in their knees and ankles. The Gen-Xers sat in their seats and smiled.
Then the movie played. Apparently, I am the only one who finds it hilarious when the priest gets his bible zapped by the alien car and says “Holy sheep shit” before throwing it to the ground. I know this because when I laughed at it, the people in front of me gave me a half turn of their heads.
Celebrating my favorite movie and walking back to my car up North Avenue had me thinking of a way to end this article. Something inspirational. It came to me instantly.
Repo Man has a clear, bold message that resonates with every generation. That message is: “Fuck a John Wayne, man.”
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