For a year and a half, San Jose was home to the underground music venue, the Texas Toast House, which was actually the home of Chris Gough, Tom Nguyen and a rotating group of guys. They put on shows in their detached garage in the backyard. The shows were always all-ages, admission was donation-based and there was generally at least one touring bands on the bill. They hosted a whopping 36 shows during their run.
Gough recently released a zine called “We Lived in a Beautiful Place” that reflects on their one-and-a-half-year run, which came to an end last year when the house and garage were torn down by the landlords.
In his zine, Gough talks about what lead them to start booking shows in the first place, what problems they ran into (which were mostly caused by one angry couple in the neighborhood that had a problem with punk kids being anywhere near them) and what events lead up to the house getting torn down. What Gough came away from it all was what an amazing, ambitious experience it was. He ended with an empowering thought that seems to summarize the DIY, punk-rock spirit behind it all: “Don’t wait for someone to tell you what to do. Just do it. And do it yourself.”
We caught up with Gough to do some follow up questions on the once beautiful, always exciting, Texas Toast House.
What’s your take on the all-ages DIY scene in San Jose now that the Texas Toast House is no longer there helping to fill that void?
There really isn’t a lot of all ages venues to begin with, which is why people were doing house shows in the first place, but there are still active promoters for the few places in the South Bay that are still doing shows.
I know you had problems with one of your neighbors, but otherwise, during the 36 shows you hosted, did you ever have any other problems?
No, they were the only ones who gave us problems pretty much. We talked to our neighbors around us a few times to see if we could do something to accommodate them so they wouldn’t be annoyed, but a lot of them had no idea we even had loud music at our house. Kindness and communication can go a long way, but sometimes it’s not enough.
What were the shows that stick out as the most memorable for you personally?
Our show with Big Kids, 1994! (pa), Dead to Me, the New Trust, and Koalacaust was a blast and a huge success. There was also the Algernon Cadwallader show that was just crazy but fun. A ton of people having fun in your garage is a good feeling, nothing but positive vibes from everyone there.
Community seems to be a big part of the success of grass roots arts projects like the Texas Toast House. Can you give us some examples of how you felt particularly supported by your community?
As far as support, we had a ton of help. Our friends helped us out with maintaining the space, helped us build additional sound proofing, hung out at shows and donated what they could to touring bands. Our friend Leslie donated a PA speaker to the space. Everyone that came out to these things was absolutely awesome, we were really lucky to have such a good crowd of people. I honestly can’t remember a time we were let down by this community, except maybe the guy that broke our toilet, but he was from Vacaville, apparently, so it doesn’t count.
What was the most amazing thing you took away from spending a year and a half hosting shows at your home?
The most amazing thing is the friends I’ve made. Hands down, I had some of the best people around me nearly all the time. Even though the house is gone I still hang out with people who went to the house and continue to try to get people excited about the South Bay again. I’m mostly surprised at how much that place meant to some individuals. I got a lot of emotional responses to the zine, which was a little unexpected, but really nice to hear.
Are your show hosting days completely gone, or are you still putting on shows?
I try to set things up here and there for some close friends, but it’s hard. More bands are playing in Oakland because there is a higher tolerance for this kind of thing there. Bands want to play in San Jose, but there just isn’t a place to do it. The kids are there, the demand is there, but there isn’t the appropriate vehicle to serve those needs. It’s really expensive to maintain a nonprofit DIY all ages space here, and someone is bound to come along sooner or later and make money off you, which can be annoying.
What do you miss most about not doing shows at the Texas Toast House?
Besides not doing shows? I miss the dogs, I miss the friends I don’t get to see as often, and also just the fun things we did there, like big family dinners or silly little themed parties. It was a fun place to live. It made you forget you had a lame job or stressful school stuff. It was an oasis for me.
.Remembering The Texas Toast House
