Wow.

I don’t know if I’m being too hasty, but I read the first version of the leaked Runaways movie script and uhhhhh… I thought it was total crap!  Without giving anything away, it’s a pinch of debauchery (eg. the sex, drugs, and rock & roll) and a dose of Hollywood rather than a proper BIOPIC of a band and the music I hold dear.

Here are the facts I could gather from it that I know to be true:

1. There was an all-girl band called the Runaways.

2. They had a creepy manager called Kim Fowley.

3. They were signed to Mercury Records.

4. They had a song called Cherry Bomb.

5. There were some lesbian relationships going on.

6. They toured Japan.

And other than that – ???.  Even the part about Cherie Currie’s leaving is different from what really happened.  I’m really disappointed.  I hope the other versions of the script really improved upon this one.  I thought I read before too that some of Sandy West’s memoirs that were completed before she died were going to be included as well, and I don’t think there were more than 15 lines in the whole script from the Sandy West character.

Boo, boo, and boo.

The Pearl Demon Drive pedals that is!  After waiting an eternity for them to arrive, I’m happy to say these aren’t a crappy marketing gimmick.  In the couple hours I’ve had the time to play around with them so far, I’ve been very pleased with their aesthetics and playability.  I’ve never had the opportunity to play any of the other direct drive pedals such as Trick or Axis, but the difference between the DD’s and chain driven pedals is day and night.

You literally get what you play… they are so smooth and fast, and in fact I am having difficulty keeping up with them!  I also like how the connection points from the slave pedal to the drive shaft don’t pinch if you have the pedal at a strange angle- which renders the pedal useless during a song- like my old Eliminators did.  Now I can place the pedal at any weird angle and still be able to play.  This is also the only pedal with a changeable footboard, from short to long.  I’ve never played on longboards before, so am trying to get the feel for that right now.  I haven’t had the chance yet to play around with the adjustability much, other that setting the pedal to a lighter feel.  Right out of the box though it feels very playable.

Aesthetically, the pedal matches my new drum kit perfectly and it looks fabulous.  The pedal parts are cast, not machined as in other high end pedals, but I honestly don’t feel like this pedal is of cheap quality or that it’ll break.  I have been reading reports of the beaters not lasting, and they do feel a little soft for a felt beater, but I don’t play extreme metal so I don’t figure on shredding them at all.

Bottom line: It’s the nicest pedal I’ve played yet!

I keep wanting to call these “Devil’s Gate Drive” Pedals like the Suzi Quatro song.

Is it just me or are drum companies getting gimmicky, where “new and improved” models are being churned out at alarming rates?  Well that was my first impression anyways of the new Pearl Demon Drive pedal, which replaces the not-so-old-and-redundant Eliminators.

Watching the campaign for this pedal (I started seeing it at the end of last year) had me intrigued.   Before a release date was even scheduled I started seeing videos popping up on Youtube from famous drummers (read: Pearl endorsers) claiming that this pedal was the best thing since sliced bread.  Pearl even states that the Demon Drive is the “smoothest and fastest drum pedal available”… only where was the scientific data to back this up?  And the “cutting edge technology” looked nothing more than a rip off of Axis and Trick pedals that metal drummers have been using for years.

As cynical as I was,  I still followed what was going on with the pedal.  I think probably because it matched my new drum kit!

Projected release dates came and went with still no pedal (which to me just seemed like working people into a frenzy), but there was yet another slew of Youtube videos showing the pedal actually being demonstrated at music trade shows like NAMM and Musikmesse.  I liked the idea of the skateboard bearings in it that produced hardly any friction for faster play, the ability to change it into a longboard from a shortboard, and the adjustiblity without all the cams and allen keys that the Eliminators had.  And of course being direct drive instead of chain drive, there’d be no hesitation in the playing.

I was sold without even playing them.  In the end it was actual product demoing I saw and not the marketing push and glitz (well at least I hope not, I’ve always thought I was immune to marketing ploys!)  and brought my Eliminators to Long & McQuade’s for a part trade on the double pedals.

The pedals are definitely not cheap – after tax they were $830 CDN,  and I got $226 in trade credit for my Eliminators.  Which is still pricy for something I haven’t even tried out yet.  But I have been happy with all Pearl hardware I’ve ever bought, so I’m assuming this shouldn’t be any different.  The proof shall be in the playing… whenever they arrive!  But yes, I am sure the marketing push didn’t work on me, as even though advertising works on countless zillions of others, I am immune.  Right?  Right?

I was absolutely stunned to find out that the Runaways were a band of girls, including future stars Joan Jett and Lita Ford.  Not only that, but I had just gotten my own drum kit and here were girls that were at the time 16 years old, around the same age as myself, totally rocking out.  Strangely, I have never been a fan of chick singers/bands, but they just clicked with me with their glam/metal/punk sound and lyrics that teenagers related to.  Sandy West became one of my drumming heroes and biggest influences.

Above: the “Famous Five” version of the Runaways with the equally infamous corset.  L – R: Sandy West, Jackie Fox, Cherrie Currie, Lita Ford, Joan Jett.

I was equally dumbfounded to learn that while the Runaways had been pioneers in the music industry for women, they had been belittled by the media (Creem magazine simply declaring “These bitches suck.”) and abused mentally, emotionally, and sexually by a management team that also robbed them blind of their money.  Check out the documentary “Edgeplay: a Film About the Runaways” and see what happened to a bunch of talented girls that had vile and greedy handlers running their careers.

While this was all going on and through various lineup changes, they still managed to make 5 albums before disbanding.  My personal favourites are the Runaways, Queens of Noise, and Live in Japan.  I personally think Cherrie Currie was a much better frontwoman than Joan Jett – I’ve always found Joan Jett’s vocals to be too shouty for my tastes.  But to each their own!

2010 will bring us a big-screen treatment of the Runaways story.  We can only hope it’s not going to be one of those “based on a real story but full of Hollywood tripe” deals.  I hope it’ll bring a whole new generation of listeners to the Runaways’ music.

Check out this not-so-great quality video of Cherry Bomb played live.  Beware of the Cherrie Currie crotch shot at approximately 1:40!