A Deer A Horse at TV Eye (photo by Kate Hoos)
“It’s been a bit of a weird week, anyone else having a weird week?” asked Angela Phillips, lead singer/bassist of A Deer A Horse (and also owner of the coolest bass in New York City). And you know what? Yeah, it was a bit of a weird week for me too. But as I always like to say, there is nothing a nice dose of rock n roll can’t solve, and boy was I in for a much needed head clearing at this show.
The show was kicked off by Shiverboard, who prior to this night I had never heard nor heard of before. But immediately upon walking into the venue (unfortunately when their set was already in progress), I found myself enthralled with them, turning to the members of Venus Twins between songs and asking “who are these guys?! They’re fucking sick!” All at once they are noise punk, grunge, metal, grind and hardcore, and they seriously knocked my socks off with their stage presence and catchy as hell tunes. Onstage they mentioned they have new album coming soon and after the show I went to the merch table and said “tell me more!” They said that while yes, it is coming, they have not yet recorded it though will be in the process of that soon. While I anxiously await that, I’ll be digging into their previous releases, which includes some recent live recordings on Bandcamp, and keeping an eye out for upcoming shows. (They will be playing 2/16 at Our Wicked Lady.)
Shiverboard at TV Eye
Next up was Trace Amount, a one man harsh industrial noise project who put on a feverish and spell binding set, playing many of the songs from the 2022 album, Anti Body Language.
The penultimate set of the night was played by the ever incredible Venus Twins, the killer experimental noise punk bass/drums duo of Jake and Matt Derting. I’ve seen them many times now and never once have they delivered anything less than 200% at a show. This was another one for the books, with all the potent noise and pummeling intensity I’ve come to expect from this band. Matt also traded his axe for a sax during a brief interlude, handing the bass to an audience member while it continued to feed back, the sax swirling over top as Jake wailed on the drum kit with wild speed and acumen, all of it converging into a beautiful cacophony radiating out from the stage. If you haven’t heard their most recent album, Raxis (which was one of our favorites of 2022), I suggest you get on that, post fuckin haste.
Heavy noise rockers, A Deer A Horse, closed out the night and incredibly, despite having followed them on social media for several years and loving their 2022 album, Grind (read our review), this was my first time actually making it out to a show. (Working nights is great and has always been my jam, but can also be a bitch sometimes when it means you can’t get to all the shows you want to because you’re busy working other shows!) Their set ripped and it raged and was everything I had been waiting for. I especially loved getting to hear the album opener, “Bitter,” which is a favorite of mine. They will soon embark on a European tour before heading back and playing dates in the US leading up to their appearance at Caterwaul Fest in May. I’m certainly going to make sure I don’t wait so long to see them again, my work schedule be damned! (I’m also contemplating a trip out to Caterwaul, my bank account be damned!)
A noise rock head clearing is exactly what the doctor ordered because, while feeling a bit weird and in the doldrums before the show, I was refreshed as ever and dipped back into the cold night air with a decidedly jaunty pep in my step. Proving definitively that sometimes, noise is all you need.
Scroll down for pics of the show (photos by Kate Hoos)
SHIVERBOARD
TRACE AMOUNT
VENUS TWINS
A DEAR A HORSE
