WRIGLEYVILLE — As an angst-ridden suburban rocker in the '90s, Scott Lucas would mail cassette tapes to the guy who booked rock shows at Metro, hoping his band, Local H, might score a gig there.
“When you first form a band, the thing you wanted to do is play Metro, at least it was that way for us,” Lucas said.
But back then, Local H didn’t meet Metro’s indie rock standards.
“We got back a letter, and they went through every song saying … ‘Work on this or that.’ It was like they were big brother mentoring us. They said, ‘Thanks for the tape, but we don’t think you’re ready for the Metro, yet,’” Lucas said.
“It never bummed me out. It was more like, ‘Yeah, somebody listened.’”
Twenty-five years and a gold record later, the Local H front man is a regular on the Metro stage and considers the iconic rock club on Clark Street something of a second living room — his favorite place to play shows, listen to music and hang out with his favorite bands.
So, when Lucas and new drummer Ryan Harding set out to promote the band’s new album, “Hey Killer,” they of course decided to kick off what amounts to a Local H silver anniversary tour at The Metro on April 19.
“The thing that’s really cool about this Metro show is that if we play until midnight it would be 25 years to the day of our first show, April 20, 1990,” Lucas said. “So, we’re gonna get our work done on the 19th and start the party on the 20th.”
Lucas, who’s 44 and has a little silver in his hair to prove it, says “Hey, Killer” features Local H’s third drummer — making it feel like a third debut record for the alternative-rock duo.
“Each time there’s a new member things do change. Most importantly there’s this invigorating shot of energy that happens,” Lucas said.
“As opposed to our first record … or the first record with [drummer Brian St. Clair], I think that it’s a more confident record than the others. We’re confident to know the record is powerful and we don’t have to overcompensate. The songs rock. Ryan rocks.”
After recently finishing an “album-listening tour” — Lucas and Harding would bring a case of beer to a fan’s place to listen to tracks on "Hey, Killer," including "Mansplainer," "The Last Picture Show In Zion" and "City of Knives" — the guys eagerly await getting the tour started at The Metro.
It will be Harding’s first appearance at the venue closest to Lucas’ heart.
“It’s my favorite club in the country to play. It’s the place where you’re most likely to see us play our best show,” Lucas said.
“When I had to move back to Chicago. … I just had to live close to Metro. … It has always been this place where I saw great shows. … I saw a great Nirvana show there. I was pressed against the stage and left with a line across my chest that lasted a week.”
Lucas, who has a penchant for Maker’s Mark whiskey, admits, “There’s a lot of things that happened at The Metro that I don’t remember.”
But he’ll never forget seeing the Screaming Trees there in 1997.
“It was probably one of the greatest shows I’ve seen in my life,” Lucas said. “[Singer Mark Lanegan] threatened to beat up the entire audience.”
An early '90s show featuring Liz Phair and Red Red Meat at Metro influenced songs on the first two Local H albums.
For a short time, Lucas even worked at Smart Bar — the late-night dance club in Metro's basement — alongside his pal “First Lady of Metro” Kelly Wey.
“I’d pay him in beer and give him some of my tips. He did it because it was so much fun,” said Wey, Metro’s bar manager. “[Bar] industry people would pour downstairs at 1:30 in the morning, and he’d turn it into this giant DJ-driven karaoke night with everyone singing at the top of their lungs. It’s probably the most fun I’ve ever had at the club ever.”
These days, Lucas is more than just a performer and rock club regular. He’s part of the family, a guy folks at Metro can count on to play a charity show or be an emergency fill-in on a bill.
Lucas is even an unofficial Chicago ambassador to bands that he likes that are making a tour stop at Metro. Sometimes he’ll sing backup or play guitar. Last year, he helped start a water gun fight on stage during a Deer Tick show. And usually, Lucas is more than willing to volunteer his services as a late-night drinking establishment tour guide.
“Yeah, well, that backfires more often than not,” Lucas said. “There are times when I’ll get you thrown out of a bar … and it won’t be a very good time.”
But hangovers fade, there’s always the next rock show, and there’s a decent chance you’ll find Lucas there.
“I really do like music, and I really like hanging out with bands talking shop,” Lucas said. “As soon as I moved to Chicago, all I really wanted to do was hang out with other bands and drink and talk shop and get together and … do silly things like dress up as other bands and play cover songs together. Metro is great for that. Always a lot of fun.”
A lot has changed in the quarter-century since Lucas first begged to play Metro, but there's at least one thing he can count on as he leads Local H into an uncertain future.
“As long as I don’t walk in Metro with a huge entourage, they always let me in.”
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