This is about The Hundred Flowers, a band that existed in Minneapolis, MN during 2000 – 2004. What follows are a handful of live recordings which the band has graciously allowed me to share on Live Music Archive with other past, present and future fans.
[links to recordings provided in posts below]
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
[Mark Mallman]
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
[Mark Mallman, Melismatics]
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
[High Tiny Hairs; Idle Hands; Fuck Knights; In Pictures]
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums [2000 – 2001]
[Idle Hands (guitar, 2002-2004); Faux Jean (bass, 2004-2007); Nightinghales; Lunaderos]
Ed Hiykel: Drums [1997 – 2000]
[In Pictures; Nasa]
The Hundred Flowers • 2000-11-29
Minneapolis, MN • 7th St. Entry
[01] Hot Tramps (3:10)
[02] Hunting (3:03)
[03] interim / comments (00:22)
[04] The Ballad Of Latimer (4:33)
[05] interim / tuning (00:08)
[06] The Empty Glass Of Hours (3:50)
[07] interim (00:10)
[08] The Fault Of Everyone (3:41)
[09] interim / tuning (1:51)
[10] 49 Hips (3:55)
[11] Starry Eyed Sailors (4:47)
[12] interim / tuning / comments (00:23)
[13] Lipstick Blues (4:16)
[14] interim / comments (00:29)
[15] 20th Century Boy [T.Rex] (4:00)
[16] interim / comments (00:42)
[17] unidentified title (4:06)
[18] unidentified title (4:20)
[19] interim / comments (00:12)
[20] unidentified title (4:23)
Bill:
Saucer [?]
The Hundred Flowers
Shit-Fi
Marc mentions the band is a year old this month.
This recording was digitally captured from DCN.com [long-defunct] circa 2000. I have no idea how this was originally recorded, but it is pretty lo-fi. Still, it is the earliest recording of the band known to exist, and pretty early in their existence, so there is that.
Thirty-three years earlier on this date, the album “Are You Experienced” by the Jimi Hendrix Experience was released.
Recorded by: unidentified
Transferred / tracked / tagged by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2000-12-30
Columbia Heights, MN • Sharky’s Bar & Grill
cassette side A:
[01] start (00:24.23)
[02] Hot Tramps (03:06.57)
[03] Hunting (03:12.70)
[04] unidentified title (02:51.16)
[05] 49 Hips (03:59.22)
[06] The Fault Of Everyone (03:33.08)
[07] interim (00:22.33)
[08] The Battle Of Latimer (04:01.24)
[09] interim (00:29.46)
[10] Starry-Eyed Sailors (04:40.69)
[11] Lipstick Blues (04:37.37)
[12] 20th Century Boy (04:19.17)
[13] unidentified title (04:07.64)
[14] The Empty Glass Of Hours (03:40.40)
[15] interim (01:03.51)
[16] Girls (04:24.21)
cassette side B:
[17] unidentified title (04:36.27)
[18] Gingerman’s Last Waltz (04:31.26)
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Ed Hiykel: Drums
Bill:
All The Pretty Horses
The Hundred Flowers
This was the last show to feature Ed Hiykel on drums.
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-06-23
Minneapolis, MN • Loring Park
Twin Cities Pride Festival
[00] tape lead-in (00:05)
[01] When Spiders Near (02:35.31) [beginning truncated]
[02] 49 Hips (03:30.60)
[03] interim (00:15.63)
[04] The Fault Of Everyone (04:00.34)
[05] Starry Eyed Sailors (04:26.23)
[06] public announcement (00:29.29)
[07] interim / comments (00:50.44)
[08] Persian Verses (04:33.09)
[09] end runout (00:11.39)
unidentified filler (02:42.66):
[10] Lipstick Blues (02:10.18) [beginning truncated]
[11] end runout (00:32.48)
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums
This was the first time I saw the group with Mike Lopez on drums, which in my mind seemed to solidify a “classic” line-up for the group. The Pride Festival took place two days before Marc joined me in the parking lot at Eagles, where I was recording Pansy Division, and which led to me getting more involved with The Hundred Flowers in terms of booking and managerial duties. This set is woefully incomplete, but notable for being one of two times I saw The Hundred Flowers play outdoors, in the light of day. Ironically, most of the photos I took at this show are pretty so-so, compared to some of the shots I could get in dimly lit bars.
My memory is less clear as to why I only have the last five songs of the band’s set, and why the sound is so murky. I seem to vaguely recall running into some difficulty trying to get a board feed, but that’s about all I can offer here, some 24 years later. Apart from the overloaded signal at the start of When Spiders Near, the remaining songs don’t sound bad, other than the line noise, I reckon.
Tracks 10-11 are from an unidentified date, and contains only a snippet of Lipstick Blues, which seems to have been the end of the set, wherever it was recorded. I can’t offer any explanation for this one, I’m afraid.
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-06-30
St Paul, MN • Christensen’s Big V’s
cassette side A (30:06.31):
[01] start (00:35.39)
[02] DC Heir (05:25.07)
[03] interim (00:30.28)
[04] Hot Tramps (02:53.07)
[05] interim (00:28.14)
[06] When Spiders Near (04:30.24)
[07] interim (00:22.33)
[08] 49 Hips (03:50.28)
[09] interim (00:33.44)
[10] Starry Eyed Sailors (04:30.37)
[11] interim (00:14.12)
[12] Lipstick Blues (04:44.38)
[13] interim (00:22.22)
[14] Start Me Up [The Rolling Stones] [w/ Andy Hound] (01:05.73) [truncated!!]
cassette side B (14:29.20):
[15] Jonathan (04:17.71)
[16] interim / comments (02:17.00)
[17] Persian Verses (04:48.37)
[18] end runout (03:05.62)
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums
Bill:
Howlin’ Andy Hound
The Hundred Flowers
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged / photo by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-07-06
Moorhead, MN • Ralph’s
[01] start (00:18)
[02] DC Heir (4:58)
[03] Hot Tramps (2:54)
[04] interim / tuning (00:09)
[05] When Spiders Near (4:19)
[06] interim (00:06)
[07] 49 Hips (3:43)
[08] interim / comments (00:26)
[09] Starry Eyed Sailors (4:25)
[10] interim (00:10)
[11] The Fault Of Everyone (3:55)
[12] interim / comments (00:15)
[13] Hunting (2:52)
[14] interim (00:16)
[15] Start Me Up [The Rolling Stones] (2:35)
[16] Lipstick Blues (4:11)
[17] interim (00:44)
[18] Persian Verses (4:16)
[19] interim (00:17)
[20] The Battle Of Latimer (5:05)
[21] 20th Century Boy [T. Rex] (4:33)
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums
This leans a bit to the lo-fi end of things, but seriously rocks, nonetheless. The P.A. and the acoustics in the room were a disaster. Faced with the option of wasting too much time trying to fix everything, the band stormed through their set and ignored it, so I’m doing the same with the recording for now.
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged / photo by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-07-07
Grand Forks, ND • Kosmo’s
[01] DC Heir (4:14) beginning truncated]
[02] interim / PA issues (1:02)
[03] Hot Tramps (2:57)
[04] interim / PA issues (00:12)
[05] Starry Eyed Sailors (4:33)
[06] interim / PA issues (00:30)
[07] The Fault Of Everyone (4:00)
[08] interim (00:23)
[09] When Spiders Near (4:23)
[10] interim (00:25)
[11] 49 Hips (3:39)
[12] interim (00:50)
[13] Lipstick Blues (4:25)
[14] interim (00:20)
[15] Persian Verses (4:12)
[16] interim / tuning (00:28)
[17] 20th Century Boy [T.Rex] (4:52)
[18] interim / feedback (00:30)
[19] The Empty Glass Of Hours (3:53)
[20] Hunting (2:47)
[21] interim / tuning (1:49)
[22] Hot One [Shudder To Think] (from The Velvet Goldmine) (4:50)
[23] interim (00:21)
[24] The Battle Of Latimer (4:19)
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums
Evidently I couldn’t get my deck rolling in time to catch the very start of DC Heir. Lipstick Blues is marred by digital artifacts; there are multiple occurrences in The Battle Of Latimer as well. This was recorded direct to CDR, and although the previous night in Moorhead was also recorded to cassette, no tape from this set has been located in the archives. This 16/44.1 EAC transfer is from a tracked generic unbranded CDR, so it is most likely a clone from the original CDRW, and definitely not the master source. As of 2025, this seems to be be the only source I’ve been able to locate.
The band was on fire, and the energy in the room was great, but the sound in this space was very echo-ey and added a ton of ambient reverb to the sound of the band. It didn’t help that the stage was backed by a giant glass window, which, given the volume in the room, played havoc with the frequencies throughout the set. Additionally, the vocals were being pushed to the limit, but for the most part were pretty buried in the overall wash. Basically, another day in the life of a rock band, and I’m pretty sure they picked up a few new fans that day.
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged / photo by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-07-27
Minneapolis, MN • Bon Appetit
[01] AAAA (2:25)
[02] interim (00:41)
[03] Hot Tramps (2:53)
[04] interim (00:10)
[05] Starry Eyed Sailors (4:33)
[06] Persian Verses (4:17)
[07] interim (00:09)
[08] 49 Hips (3:39)
[09] interim (00:27)
[10] The Fault Of Everyone (4:23)
[11] interim (00:13)
[12] When Spiders Near (4:28)
[13] Lipstick Blues (4:55)
[14] interim (00:14)
[15] The Battle Of Latimer (3:48)
[16] interim / tuning (00:22)
[17] DC Heir (3:52)
encore:
[18] interim (1:36)
[19] Hunting (3:12)
[20] interim (00:29)
[21] 20th Century Boy [T.Rex]
Marc Landry: Vocals, lead and backing guitar
Kathie “Pony” Hixon-Smith: Bass
Ben “Ginger” Commers Bachman: Guitars, keyboards
Michael Paul Lopez: Drums
Bill:
Howlin’ Andy Hound
The Hundred Flowers
Snails
End Transmission
I recall Marc showing me the flyer for this show beforehand, but I don’t think I attended – or recorded – this one; as I believe I had a conflict with my work schedule. I vaguely seem to recall some discussion that involved letting the band bring some of my gear to the venue so that a friend of theirs could record the set. It sounds like a fun show, and the recording captures the energy quite nicely, I think.
Recorded by: unidentified
Transferred / tracked / edited / tagged by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
The Hundred Flowers • 2001-08-01
Minneapolis, MN • Gay ’90s
[01] start (00:27.64)
[02] [soundcheck] AAAA (02:43.25)
[03] interim (00:30.26)
[04] Hot Tramps (02:57.63)
[05] interim / announcements (01:30.40)
[06] Persian Verses (04:16.33)
[07] When Spiders Near (04:23.56)
[08] interim (00:14.20)
[09] The Fault Of Everyone (03:49.32)
[10] Starry Eyed Sailors (04:20.68)
[11] interim (00:23.15)
[12] Lipstick Blues (04:50.39)
[13] interim (00:26.23)
[14] 49 Hips (03:37.06)
[15] interim (00:21.06)
[16] The Empty Glass Of Hours (03:54.09)
encore:
[17] interim (00:45.06)
[18] The Battle Of Latimer (04:57.71)
[19] end runout (00:16.58)
Bill:
All The Pretty Horses
The Hundred Flowers
Great Girls Blouse
This was recorded over something; the tabs were plugged with what appeared to be foil from a cigarette package. Classy! I’m not exactly sure why I didn’t record Great Girl’s Blouse, unless it had something to do with trying to get my gear set up in time for The Hundred Flowers set. After that, I had to forego recording All The Pretty Horses, as the bar started to fill up and my equipment would have definitely been in the way.
I had hoped to run my deck near the soundboard, and possibly incorporate a line or two from the board along with the stereo room recording, but the sound person was not accommodating in that respect. Fortunately, I was able to run a power cord to a nearby wall outlet, and set up my gear on a chair in one of the seated rows facing stage right, which raised a few eyebrows from one of the drag queens who was MC-ing the event. The motto for this recording: By whatever means necessary.
The band announces several upcoming shows:
Aug 10: Terminal Bar: w/ The Deaths
Aug 18: Sursumcorda w/ Ear Candy
Aug 16 : Entry show w/ Ouija Radio
Sep 15th: Chicago – that set subsequently was released as a live CDR
Hearing this back reminded me that I never had the opportunity to see the band at The Terminal Bar. Apparently my work schedule prevented me from attending the show they mentioned. The Terminal was a terrific low-key neighborhood bar with an old time-y dive bar vibe – a great place to play if you were in a band, and also a fun place to see other bands play. C’est La Vie!
Recorded / transferred / tracked / tagged by: J.Free / Sonic Archives
Download or stream the show from Live Music Archive
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addendum
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