Bat House, Thus Love, Flossing @ The Sultan Room

by Juliette Boulay | Aug 10, 2022 | Shows

Bat House at The Sultan Room (photo by Juliette Boulay)

An assemblage of queer post-punk bands played at The Sultan Room in Brooklyn on August 7th— Bat House, Thus Love, and Flossing. All loud and proud in their own rite, they put on a show to be remembered. There was a sense of community in the air, dancing (yes dancing, not moshing), and a general sense of openness that intimate venues like The Sultan Room bring to the table.

The first opener was Flossing, a two-piece led by Heather Elle (who’s also in noise-punk band Weeping Icon). Elle is a force with poetic lyrics that often use social media and ecommerce functionalities to comment on today’s clout-chasing culture and capitalism as a whole. Her vocals and bass mixed with James Maclay’s poppy percussion led the crowd in sex-positive songs like “Switch” and cheeky bops like “Men on the Menu”. Flossing had a really tight set overall that felt both intimate and just like their recordings. Dancable, bold, and a unique blend of feminist fury and fun.

While this was Flossing’s first live show, it was powerful and felt so natural. The pair commanded the crowd’s attention, delivered a tight performance, and conveyed an infectious passion for what they do.

The show continued on with Thus Love, a band from Brattleboro, VT. The band has two super catchy singles out off their upcoming album, Memorial, so I was excited to see them from the get-go. Their set was really fun, energetic, and matched the excitement of everyone there to support them. Singer & guitarist Echo Mars killed it, flouncing and strutting around the stage without skipping a beat while bassist Nathaniel van Osdol and drummer Lu Racine kept it rolling steady.

After listening to Thus Love more recently and seeing them live, I can see why outlets like Rolling Stone and Rough Trade have been writing about them. They have a unique sound and their songs are really well-written.

Thus Love

You can check out their singles here and pre-save Memorial. If you like Tears for Fears or just want something new to get stuck in your head, I’d highly recommend giving them a listen.

Thus Love cleared the stage to open it up for headlining band, Bat House. This group came down from Boston to play a set of post-punk tunes with diverse intonations. Some songs felt jammy while others seemed influenced by Beach House. I loved their sonic range, watching the crowd dance to the music, and seeing their friend chill on the back of the stage while enthusiastically playing maracas for every song.