Original image of Piss Kinks by There Stands the Glass.
A five-band bill at recordBar on Wednesday, July 13, confirmed that multi-genre shows are the best shows. More than 300 people paid $25 apiece to experience the four-hour showcase of experimental punk and hip-hop.
The eventful evening opened with the farewell performance of the furious Kansas City quartet Piss Kinks. Skin was bared, instruments were abused and ears were violated.
Ebony Tusks, a Kansas trio that seemingly shares my belief that Yeezus is the best Kanye West album, followed. I’d previously witnessed the industrial hip-hop crew fizzle in front of befuddled spectators, but the members of Ebony Tusks had Wednesday’s crowd in the palms of their hands.
WifiGawd didn’t stand a chance following Ebony Tusks’ triumph. I didn’t care for the marijuana-obsessed Washington D.C. rapper before Wednesday. I like him even less after enduring his cliche-ridden outing.
Stage diving began in earnest during screamo revivalists Soul Glo’s dynamic set. One of the breakout bands of 2022, the Philadelphians almost lived up to the hype. Traces of Gang of Four make the headlining band Show Me the Body an even more interesting proposition.
Yet the atmosphere suddenly turned sinister during the New York band’s brief headlining appearance. A couple creeps insisted on rubbing their sopping-wet t-shirts on each of the 200 people still in the building. A young woman separated from her friends openly wept.
Violence on and around the stage resulted in at least two contested ejections and what appeared to be a fan’s broken nose. The chaos appealed to me. After all, both rock and roll and hip-hop are supposed to be dangerous.