Good news for Vancouver skate rats: local thrashers S.T.R.E.E.T.S. are back and ready to get rad. The downside, however, is that their upcoming reunion gig is on March 22 at the Cakeshop, a venue in singer Jonny Olsen’s adopted city of New York.

“He got married and moved out there,” bassist Mike Payette tells the Straight. It’s been a while since S.T.R.E.E.T.S. has graced a stage, and he hopes the band’s chops are up to snuff by next week. “It’s been at least two years,” he says of the time elapsed since the group’s last show. “And the songs are not easy to play. They’re so fast and technical.” Although the West Coast members of the band, guitarist James “Gnarwell” Farwell and drummer Cory Gagnus, are ready for their set, no one is quite sure about Olsen’s practice schedule. “We don’t know whether or not Jonny has been practising. We’ll see how it goes,” Payette says. “Even if we suck, it’ll be a fun time.”

The hectic touring schedules of their current projects—including Payette’s classic rock ’n’ roll duties in Pride Tiger and the blistering metal riffery of Farwell’s Bison—stand in the way of a local show, but S.T.R.E.E.T.S. still has one last gift for its fans. “We’re going to
rerelease our complete discography as a free download,” Payette reveals. Check out the quartet’s MySpace page (www.myspace.com/streets) for more information before heading outside with your skateboard and your iPod.