Slidebar Bans Weekly Writer Brandon Ferguson From Premises!

For most drunks, there's nothing remarkable about getting banned from a downtown Fullerton bar. Shit, stroll along Harbor on Friday between the hours of midnight and 2 a.m., and you'll see sidewalks teeming with wayward boozers, some spilling urine and other bodily fluids along the planters. But for this frequent downtown Fullerton patron, getting banned from the Slidebar Rock 'N Roll Kitchen holds a bit of a mystery–sort of.

The shock in all of this comes from the fact that I haven't been to the bar since I reviewed the Dead Ships in August–a show I reviewed positively. While I've been kicked out of the nearby Tuscany Club following a brief altercation with an obnoxious drunk years ago, I've never been unruly at the Slidebar.

All kidding aside, it's not a surprise, even though I've reviewed several up-and-coming bands in this establishment from Dead Sara and Blok to punk icons the Adicts. Fact is, the Slidebar winces at any negative publicity thrown their way in the wake of the Kelly Thomas murder, and I've tried to get the Slidebar's response for my stories multiple times, with no response back.

So here, I'll give the Slidebar guys another chance to respond: Fullerton Police spokeshole Andrew Goodrich has maintained police were responding to calls made that night of a man breaking into cars near the transportation center (which is right next to the Slidebar). After the fact, there's been no indication that Thomas was actually breaking into cars. Did the caller falsely tell police they saw Thomas breaking into cars so as to elicit an aggressive response to a nuisance? Did police coach the Slidebar in how to make this call? Do the police and Slidebar, as some commenters have suggested, enjoy a cozy relationship? 

A call was placed to the bar yesterday. I was told someone would get back to me as to my banning. The clock is still ticking….