Buzzbox

“There’s another band playing I forgot to tell you about,” says a breathless Richie Restivo, who has just reeled off a list of participants for Stand Against the Hand II, his second annual benefit concert for the Kansas City battered women’s shelter Hope House. “They are called When Good Robots Go Bad.” Actually, this whole benefit could be billed When Bad Robots Go Good, considering that the cast of characters (The Enlisted, The Sloppy Popsicles, The Controlled, Tanka Ray, Rock Over London and Omaha’s The Fonzarellies) might be considered nefarious by the well-heeled fat cats who conspicuously make tax-deductible donations to their favorite politicians and causes. Even members of Descension, one of Kansas City’s more notorious metal bands, offered to pitch in, and they aren’t even playing.

“Every year they’ve e-mailed me and said if I need anything, they’re totally there,” says Restivo, “and that’s awesome because even though their music might be thought of as hateful, they still have respect for things that are serious like this.” In addition to raising money for a great cause (Stand Against the Hand I took in almost $600 for New House, another battered women’s shelter), Restivo, a senior at Rockhurst High School, hopes to address misconceptions about young rockers. “People judge musicians just from the ones that really screwed up, and I don’t like that,” he says. “I’m just trying to prove that everyone who says teenagers don’t care about anything is wrong. We do care, and teenagers do support good causes.”

The next good cause Restivo hopes to tackle, again with help from local rock bands, is the search for a cure for AIDS, and he could use some sponsors, if you catch my drift. Until then, it’s Stand Against the Hand II at El Torreon on Friday, March 9; doors open at 7 p.m., and the $6 cost of admission goes a helluva long way.