Being as involved in music as I try to be means I am constantly either in a state of passivity or euphoric engagement. I recently went to a couple of shows last week that reminded me why I still try to be as involved as I can be, finding as much to be gained from a dirty ass basement that had one vocalist in clown makeup writhing on the floor playing to 50 people to a sold-out Saetia show in a venue that fits 900 people. Below are some concert reviews, along with a recommendation for a radio show I have been enjoying.
Deletar/Ultimate Disaster/Mock Execution/Necron 9 at Chi-Town Futbol
It was out of sheer boredom that I decided to go to the d-beat/punk show. It was at what was formerly known as Chi-Town Futbol on the south side of Chicago. Going there is a very fun clashing of cultures, where primarily latinx people of all ages play indoor soccer. Nestled in the corner when you enter the building is a small field of artificial grass where a bunch of punks congregated to watch some atonal music. It made me an interloper and outsider in two ways. I wasn’t wearing the proper punk uniform. The person taking door money who was in Mock Execution had a punk battle vest, and others were wearing attire that felt retro in the sense that it felt ripped from the documentary Decline of Western Civilization. It was partially a nice reminder that as much as the internet has collapsed culture into a flat two-dimensional space, these pieces of punk culture still exist. It felt like a distinctly different experience from the hardcore kid going to a “big-room” show at a proper venue.
The touring bands of Deletar and Ultimate Disaster stood out the most for me. Their sets got a more arms-crossed punk crowd to move. It also ignited what feels like a deeper interest in D-beat for me. It can be easy to complain that it all sounds the same. I have had the experience of checking a couple of newer bands out, and feeling like a 10-minute EP felt like an eternity. But I am also aware that without Discharge and some imitators, much of my favorite music wouldn’t exist in the first place.
The bands themselves were enjoyable. Necron 9 is part of that community of what I’ll call raw punk bands from Milwaukee and supported by Unlawful Assembly. I was hoping to be won over live as the demo washed over me, but each song was undiscernible from the other. I still had some fun and never got overly annoyed.
Chalk/Circus/Crimelight/Gangstalker/Contempt/Isolation Unit
Chicago is a massive city, allowing anyone to shut yourself off to your little two to three-mile radius. It is not different for the larger punk and hardcore scene. Most of the venues are clustered around the north side of Chicago. It is the result of decades and decades of history that you can mostly ignore. Most of the shows lately happen in a venue that, if you are lucky, is 17 plus. Lately, I have felt an increasing disinterest in going to shows at these places. Something is lost when you go to a 900 cap with a barricade.
Those barriers to entry are necessary and lead to greater enjoyment. I forced myself to travel an hour to Chicago’s southside. It was far away from the comfort I mostly felt living near Wicker Park. Taking the western bus out of my routine reminded me of where I am living. But I eventually was at the show at an unnamed venue for its first show. It was a relatively spacious basement underneath a clothing store. Even the bands I did not enjoy didn’t matter. To me, it was the manifestation of hardcore and punk. It’s all about going up to some random person and shooting the shit before moshing into each other. Contempt might be the best example of what I care for. The art for the demo conjures images of Confront and is deeply reverential of the past. Every other riff, I was wondering if it was ripped from some 80s band that I adored. Their set started with a Leeway cover of “Rise and Fall,” along with an Agnostic Front cover that I wrongly attributed to a Negative Approach to a stranger. Another standout was Circus for the sheer presentation; the singer in clown makeup was writhing on a filthy basement floor at one point.
Heccra as Sub-T
I felt some weird obligation to see Heccra. In 2020, I heard their name mentioned as influence for newer emo stuff that got named fifth wave. It might have come up when I interviewed Your Arms Are My Cocoon. I never fully became invested in the music of Heccra, but I respected it more. I did not have the experience of discovering any of those early EPs many years ago and creating some reality in my head that may not have existed.
I mostly came away from the first Chicago Heccra show with a similar feeling to the one I have when I see artists that exist online first: a light disappointment. These songs weren’t crafted with an audience in mind. There was a slight lapse with the backing track at points. There was a slight cringe during one song when I was paying attention to the lyrics. I did not go deep into Heccra lore or listen to the few interviews. It reminded me that, for all the eccentricities that may be the top layering of their songs, they still have that adolescent core that makes them unmistakably emo. It was a show for those few I saw singing along to “Camp Algonquin” and other songs. I hope it lived up to their expectations.
Sadder Star
Like most music obsessives, I am constantly overwhelmed by the endless choices in the streaming era. I want to devour every inch of the music I love and never dive as much as I want to. I have lost count of how many deep dives I gave up on after a few days. Sadder Star helps alleviate that insatiable need to learn more without ever being overwhelming. Each episode of the radio show is about an hour. Listening to it does feel like going onto your favorite 2013 Blogspot in the best way possible. Each show invites you to explore emo and screamo and delve deeper. You can also just listen passively, enjoy an hour of music, and move on with your life like a normal person.
