One of my favorite discoveries of 2022 has been Jobber, the new post grunge band that just recently released their debut EP, Hell In A Cell. I described them in a review of their single “Heel Turn” as “Belly meets Veruca Salt meets Siamese Dream era Smashing Pumpkins.” I think that’s a pretty solid assessment and for their heavier moments, singer/guitarist Kate Meizner (Hellrazor/The Glow) has also mentioned that Helmet was an influence as well. It’s all there in their sound and it all coalesces into something that would fit perfectly in either 1993 or 2022. (As a middle aged “never got out of my grunge rock phase” woman, you know my heart lives in 93 and anything that reminds of that time is special.)
And aside from their supremely well crafted music, one of the most interesting things about this band is that they are pro wrestling themed—or perhaps “centric” might be a better way to phrase it—as it is presented as the subject matter of their songs rather than a gimmick or a theme in the vein of Mac Sabbath (McDonald’s/Black Sabbath) or Okilly Dokilly (Ned Flanders); there are no Macho Man costumes or vintage Hulkamania tees in site. Sure there’s jokes, such as the opening track of the EP which features (manipulated) audio of Mankind talking smack about the band, but the songs are all serious in nature and aren’t just about wrestlers or in-ring moves in a base level way, rather that all serves as a framework and entry point for discussions about life, feelings and politics; “interesting” hardly seems to do it justice as a descriptor really.
Given the pairing of an early 90s era grunge sound with this compelling subject matter, it was a no brainer that I’d love this band (I am a child of the 1980s/teen of the 1990s after all). It was a joy to get to see them play finally and I loved hearing the songs live, particularly the title track of the EP which is a major standout, the bouncy “Entrance Theme,” which features a decidedly ungrunge addition of keys for a really cool juxtaposition of sounds, and the busy drums of “No Holds Barred” (named for the 1989 movie which was Hulk Hogan’s first starring role and an oft-watched VHS tape in my house as a kid) courtesy of Mike Falcone (Hellrazor, Ovlov, Speedy Ortiz).
Suffice it to say, this is a band that fucking rocks and has some real shit to say presented in one of the most unique ways that I’m currently aware of all wrapped up within big, catchy riffs. I’m definitely more than looking forward to what they bring to the table when they tackle their first full length.
Read more about the meaning behind their songs/the songwriting process here and here.
Jobber’s set was bookended by Golden Apples who hail from Philadelphia and played a set of pleasant bedroom pop tinged shoegaze and Virginia based group, Dazy, who is touring behind the new album OUTOFBODY.They closed the night strong and brought plenty of their own big riffs to town with an Everclear edged 90s vibe to sweeten the deal.
Scroll down for pics of the show (photos by Kate Hoos)
Dischord/DC supergroup, Hammered Hulls, recently put out their debut full length, Careening, and embarked on a short tour to promote it. The band members—Alec MacKaye, Mary Timony, Mark Cisneros, and Chris Wilson—have all been in numerous influential bands: Helium, The Make-Up, The Faith, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, The Warmers, Autoclave, Kid Congo, Titus Andronicus, and Wild Flag to name but a few. And for this tour at least, you can add Fugazi to the parade of legends too, because Brendan Canty was filling in on bass for Timony. While I was bummed to not see MT playing herself, getting to see Canty out from behind the drum kit and playing another instrument certainly was an unexpected and very cool surprise and I’m sure for more than just me.
Opening band, Clear Channel, also hails from DC and features Mary Regalado of Downtown Boys on bass/vocals. I saw them in 2018 (see pics) and described them then as “groove-heavy echo-drenched space punk” and I’m still pretty pleased with that description! They for sure know how to drive the grooves and get the crowd fired up, and it was a pleasure getting to see them again. I was also pleased to pick up a copy of their record, Hell, which has a silk screened cover reminiscent of the punk flyers of yore (so right up my alley, obviously) and I apparently now own #203/500.
NYC’s own Skull Practitioners hit the middle slot and I admit, they were a band that I had been totally unfamiliar with before the show. I’m glad that’s a thing of the past though because I absolutely loved their set, a wonderful symphony of noisy, loud controlled chaos on verge of, ahem, careening over the edge but always managing to pull itself back at the last second. All three members of the band contribute vocals and the band also features Jason Victor of The Dream Syndicate on guitar. They self describe as “post-punk-psych-garage” and it definitely sums them up, with elements of all of this weaved throughout their sound. I most definitely will be keeping my eyes and ears open for more from this band in the near future.
Skull Practitioners
I first saw Hammered Hulls almost four years ago now, in January of 2019 (see pics) when they were pretty much brand new and had only played a handful of shows at that point. Later that year they put out their first release, a three song demo and after that we all know how things shaped up. So their debut full length was probably a longer time coming than perhaps it would have been otherwise but it was definitely worth the wait. (Spoiler alert, I plan to include it on my “favorites of 2022” list.) In that time the band members all kept busy with various other things as they were able to depending on conditions, most notably for me Cisneros in the jazz project Zach Barocus Freedom Sound (also featuring of course Barocus and J. Robbins of Jawbox) which released one of my favorites of 2021, and Timony reissued her 2000 solo debut album, Mountains, which is still a huge favorite for me all these years later. (I saw her play on the tour in support of that album twice, once in 1999 and once in 2000.)
Hammered Hulls
So you can imagine that I was more than delighted when HH announced they were finally releasing their debut full length and touring in support of it. And on the night of the show, I was even more excited that they played the entirety of the album (plus two songs from their earlier EP), highlights for me being “Needlepoint Tiger” which they opened the set with, “Abstract City,” “Staggering Genius” and “Rights and Reproduction.” As far as my overall feelings on the band, I’m not sure I can put it any better than Fugazi’s Guy Picciotto did when the album was announced, so I’ll let him take it from here:
“Alec MacKaye has been a source of inspiration to me since I was 15 years old when his bands the Untouchables and Faith made their massive crater-sized impacts on me. “Inspiration” doesn’t do it justice – in the chaos of his performance and the power of his voice, Alec was always to me the distant horizon of what any singer could aspire to be. It is surely the only debt you can incur that feels like a gift.
That he now continues to provide that same energy to me 42 years later with his band Hammered Hulls is not really a surprise but it is wildly welcome. Mary Timony, Chris Wilson and Mark Cisneros, three musicians of absurd pedigree, sensitivity and skill, create a weave that’s both tough and lithe, the ideal setting for Alec’s singular voice and words.”
Indeed, to echo Picciotto’s sentiment, these four musicians (well, five if you count Canty and I think it’s fair that you do) more than live up to the praise and the status of their pedigree. After a long year of seeing many incredible shows (including seeing Canty drum in person of the first time ever when I saw the Messthetics in June), this one was very high on my list to make sure I attended, even turning down a high volume/well paying merch gig to make sure I didn’t miss it; hey a middle aged punk nerd has gotta do what a middle aged punk nerd has gotta do! I reaped the rewards of that decision in spades though, being immersed in the musical landscape laid out before me by these three dynamic groups that, each in their own way, challenge listeners, provoking deeper thought and reflection through their music. No dollar amount could replace being able to be front and center for a night like this.
Scroll down for setlist, fan shot videos, pics of the show (photos by Kate Hoos)
Setlist: Needlepoint Tiger, Boilermaker’s Notch, Pilot Light, Not Gone, Abstract City, Hardest Road, Self-Inflicted, Looking After You, Bog People, Staggering Genius, Sounding The Sea, Written Word, Rights and Reproduction, Mission Statement
Google “Christeene” and one word will keep coming back over and over again to describe her, feral. And indeed, the recent performance by Christeene at Market Hotel could hardly be described as anything other than feral. But other words—wild, trashy, over the top, radically and unabashedly queer, cathartic—are also very apt descriptors too. She is the embodiment of every normies’ nightmare brought to life—out of the shadows and into the spotlight while they clutch their pearls. Arriving on stage with a butt plug jammed in her ass attached to a bouquet of balloons, this was not going to be some delicate ride were were in for, this was some real queer shit, right in our fucking faces. And for those of us lucky enough to be assembled at the debaucherous altar of Christeene, it was exactly where we wanted and needed it to be.
The show was opened by experimental composer Holland Andrews who, in sharp contrast to the later ferocity of Christeene’s set, played subdued and thoughtful soundscapes cleverly constructed with mostly just their voice run through an array of effects pedals and loopers. The early birds were certainly treated to a special performance that held the room in a rapturous place.
But then it was time for the full on sonic assault that is Christeene, the excitement palpable in the air as we all waited. And as the band to took the stage, the anticipation grew as Christeene herself slowly made her way up through the audience, a trail of balloons out her ass. When she finally arrived, the crowd was more than ready to go off and as the butt plug came out, the real party began. “I’m Christeene, this is my Fukkin Band,” she introduced herself and the assorted musicians, themselves stalwarts of NYC nightlife and queer circles (I photographed guitarist Viva DeConcini drumming at 2021’s Dyke March). From there Christeene and the Fukkn Band proceeded to rip and rage through song after song, reaching a fever pitch frenzy that went right to the edge of sanity but somehow never fully teetered over, pushing and pulling the audience as we were fully entranced in her spell of beautifully freaky faggotry.
This show was in celebration of the brand new album, Midnight Fukk Train, which was recently released on Spaceflight Records and is in itself a wild ride, a drastic range of styles that “leaves no soul unscathed.” I was happy to be dragged down to the depths of hell though and if the total abandon of the audience around me was any indication, so was everyone else. The full on seductive depravity was exactly what we were craving, the icy chill of the November air outside forgotten as we sweat it out while Christeene led the band full speed ahead through playing all eight songs on the album.
Her stage presence is of course, extravagant and over the top, and she being a sexy DIY nightmare fashionista, the show came complete with multiple costume changes as well as plenty of crotch grabbing and ass rubbing to heighten the mood. Highlights for me were the rowdy “Beaucoup Morocco” and the glorious filth of “Fix My Dick” which translate so well to the live setting. Not one person stayed still during the entirety of the set save for during the stirring “Piano Song.”
Suffice it to say, this was one of the best shows I went to all year and that’s certainly no small feat. I go to shows for a living (this was show 229 of the year for me) so I get to see a lot of stuff on an almost nightly basis and truly, not much if anything has held a candle to what Christeene and Her Fukkn Band brought to the stage that night. I’m all aboard the Midnight Fukk Train and if you know what’s good for you, you’ll get onboard too.
Scroll down for pics of the show [some NSFW] (photos by Kate Hoos)
Indie surf pop rockers, The Moss, have announced a new EP, Insomnia, which is the follow up to their 2021 album, Kentucky Derby. The song is a jangly, catchy ride through the emotions of a missing someone with frontman Tyke James sharing “Insomnia’ is a bittersweet song about passing the point in a relationship where you can’t sleep at night when you are away from them.”
The song has been a hit among fans and the band is looking forward to being on the road to interact with their fans in 2023. Drummer Willie Fowler sharing “No matter what we do, we want to make sure the songs are fun to play live,” he says. “We pride ourselves on being a band people want to see live.” See below for tour dates:
12/31/22- Salt Lake City, UT @ Last Hurrah 2022
1/25/23- Boise, ID @ The Shredder
1/26/23- Portland, OR @ Holocene
1/27/23- Seattle, WA @ Barboza
1/28/23- Vancouver, BC @ Fox Cabaret
1/30/23- San Francisco, CA @ Cafe Du Nord
1/31/23- Santa Cruz, CA @ The Catalyst Atrium
2/1/23- Santa Ana, CA @ Constellation Room
2/2/23- Santa Barbara, CA @ SOhO Restaurant & Music Club
2/3/23- San Diego, CA @ Voodoo Room at House of Blues
2/4/23- Tucson, AZ @ Hotel Congress – Club Stage
2/7/23- Dallas, TX @ Club Dada
2/8/23- Austin, TX @ Antoine’s Nightclub
2/10/23- Denver, CO @ Globe Hall
2/11/23- Fort Collins, CO @ The Coast
5/12/23-5/14/23- Salt Lake City, UT @ Kilby Block Party
Local R&B/soul infused indie pop artist, Papi Shiitake recently released a brand new album, Wabi-Sabi, and to celebrate played a co-headline bill at Mercury Lounge with electro shoegaze band, Mevius. It was my first time seeing both bands and both brought a different sonic flavor to the night and plenty of great vibes. Papi Shiitake was full of good time grooves and played several of the tracks from the new album throughout the set, getting the crowd in the mood to dance. Mevius, the long running project of producer Daniel Kasshu, closed the evening with their sweeping electro gaze, singing songs in both English and Japanese and bringing the dark wave vibes. They also recently released a single, “Something Is Wrong.”
