Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

24 Hour Fitness was my bathroom

“We played to like five people that night and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude.”

At a tour stop in Germany, San Diego band Hey, Chels "played to like five people... and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude."
At a tour stop in Germany, San Diego band Hey, Chels "played to like five people... and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude."

Ricky Schmidt, bassist of local band Hey, Chels — comma included — never expected a giant German stinky dog to cross his path. But life is full of surprises.

“Day two [of the tour] took us to a rural town called Arnstadt,” remembers Schmidt, who also plays with Western Settings. “Arnstadt didn’t seem like it had much going on except for a suicide cliff that historically has been used to jump off of when you wanted to end it. That, and a little house that had been converted into a somewhat legitimate venue. It had a stage and a bar while maintaining the integrity of a house, with each room being different and weird.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“It was run by the sweetest guy named Udo and his giant, dopey, stinky dog named Beethoven. This venue looked like it maybe had its heyday in the ’80s, and was most likely catering to the hair metal of the time, judging by the posters on the walls. We played to like five people that night and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude. Apparently that is a thing in Germany. Not a fan. I do love Germany though.”

Schmidt can gamble on the open road, but he’s fond of his own pond, too, which he shares with Hey, Chels singer Jax Mendez. “Jax and I live in City Heights, more specifically Azalea Park, even more specifically... just kidding. Kevin [White, guitar] lives in University Heights. Steph [Presz, drummer] lives two hours north somewhere in vast landscape that is L.A.

“Our favorite thing about City Heights is Tower Bar, Black Cat, and El Super. I personally really like being in City Heights, it’s close enough to everything while still feeling quiet.”

He’s done his share of wandering, though. “In the last decade these are the neighborhoods I lived in, chronologically ordered: Poway, Little Italy, Pacific Beach, Golden Hill, North Park, Normal Heights, North Park again, Ocean Beach, back to Normal Heights, and now, finally, City Heights.

“That doesn’t include a couple extended periods of time where 24 Hour Fitness was my bathroom, my car was my bedroom, and the city was my living room. Honestly, I think all these neighborhoods are cool for their own reasons, each offering unique charm. Except for Poway, there’s nothing really there for a person like me.

The new album is Everything Goes. They aren’t asking for donations, even in an age where everyone’s asking for donations. Schmidt explains. “Well first off we don’t have physical copies yet. Second off, the world is falling apart before our eyes. A lot of people don’t even have jobs anymore or the future doesn’t look so secure suddenly.

“I think a big part of doing the music thing is sharing it with people and we don’t want people to have to pay in order for that to happen right now. If we were doing this for the money we would have stopped a looooooong time ago.”

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Pie pleasure at Queenstown Public House

A taste of New Zealand brings back happy memories
At a tour stop in Germany, San Diego band Hey, Chels "played to like five people... and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude."
At a tour stop in Germany, San Diego band Hey, Chels "played to like five people... and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude."

Ricky Schmidt, bassist of local band Hey, Chels — comma included — never expected a giant German stinky dog to cross his path. But life is full of surprises.

“Day two [of the tour] took us to a rural town called Arnstadt,” remembers Schmidt, who also plays with Western Settings. “Arnstadt didn’t seem like it had much going on except for a suicide cliff that historically has been used to jump off of when you wanted to end it. That, and a little house that had been converted into a somewhat legitimate venue. It had a stage and a bar while maintaining the integrity of a house, with each room being different and weird.

Sponsored
Sponsored

“It was run by the sweetest guy named Udo and his giant, dopey, stinky dog named Beethoven. This venue looked like it maybe had its heyday in the ’80s, and was most likely catering to the hair metal of the time, judging by the posters on the walls. We played to like five people that night and reluctantly ate raw ground pork to avoid being rude. Apparently that is a thing in Germany. Not a fan. I do love Germany though.”

Schmidt can gamble on the open road, but he’s fond of his own pond, too, which he shares with Hey, Chels singer Jax Mendez. “Jax and I live in City Heights, more specifically Azalea Park, even more specifically... just kidding. Kevin [White, guitar] lives in University Heights. Steph [Presz, drummer] lives two hours north somewhere in vast landscape that is L.A.

“Our favorite thing about City Heights is Tower Bar, Black Cat, and El Super. I personally really like being in City Heights, it’s close enough to everything while still feeling quiet.”

He’s done his share of wandering, though. “In the last decade these are the neighborhoods I lived in, chronologically ordered: Poway, Little Italy, Pacific Beach, Golden Hill, North Park, Normal Heights, North Park again, Ocean Beach, back to Normal Heights, and now, finally, City Heights.

“That doesn’t include a couple extended periods of time where 24 Hour Fitness was my bathroom, my car was my bedroom, and the city was my living room. Honestly, I think all these neighborhoods are cool for their own reasons, each offering unique charm. Except for Poway, there’s nothing really there for a person like me.

The new album is Everything Goes. They aren’t asking for donations, even in an age where everyone’s asking for donations. Schmidt explains. “Well first off we don’t have physical copies yet. Second off, the world is falling apart before our eyes. A lot of people don’t even have jobs anymore or the future doesn’t look so secure suddenly.

“I think a big part of doing the music thing is sharing it with people and we don’t want people to have to pay in order for that to happen right now. If we were doing this for the money we would have stopped a looooooong time ago.”

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Syrian treat maker Hakmi Sweets makes Dubai chocolate bars

Look for the counter shop inside a Mediterranean grill in El Cajon
Next Article

Gonzo Report: Eating dinner while little kids mock-mosh at Golden Island

“The tot absorbs the punk rock shot with the skill of experience”
Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader