Crystal Antlers find van, return donations

ILLUSTRATION by SHEA M. GAUER

Crystal Antlers bassist Jonny Bell answers his phone inside the same van that was almost lost forever—with the same select set of vintage equipment packed safely somewhere behind him. During the early morning of Friday, Feb. 8, just after Bell and the Antlers finished a set at the Prospector, someone stole the van with all the band’s equipment inside, triggering a wave of sympathetic donations and benefit shows. But after just over two weeks missing, police called Bell last week and said: “Did you report a van missing? I got it here, if you wanna pick it up!” So now tomorrow’s benefit at Alex’s is now a celebration, and Bell is returning all donations—if he can.

“It’s funny—some people didn’t want them back!” he says, en route to a show in Redondo Beach. “They were like, ‘No, keep it!’ I don’t think we have the most fans, but we have really loyal fans, and we try to take the time to know them personally. It’s been overwhelming—amazing.” Bell says police found the van when a traffic camera caught a flagged license plate number, and located the vehicle less than a mile from the Prospector near 10th and Walnut, where it had been abandoned for a week. (Bell remembers driving to the show on “no gas,” planning to fill up the next day.) The ignition was stripped and Bell’s iPod was gone, but the Antlers’ equipment—locked in a cage inside the van—was intact. Now all proceeds from tomorrow’s show will go to a selection of local charities, and Bell has set up heavier security measures.

“I got a better kill switch and we’re getting better locks and bulletproof glass,” he says. “And I got comprehensive insurance. And we’re definitely not ever leaving anything in the van—ever.”

CRYSTAL ANTLERS WITH SONADORA, PAPERPLANES AND THEE MAKEOUT PARTY ALEX’S BAR | 2913 E ANAHEIM ST LONG BEACH 90804 | THURS 9PM | $5 | 21+ | ALEXSBAR.COM

Tags: alex's bar, crystal antlers, Long Beach, Music, paperplanes, stolen van, thee makeout party