Punk Concert Review: Report Suspicious Activity Play Baltimore

Photo quality is weak - sorry - I'll try to improve it via photoshop in the next few days.

That's Vic on the right. See what he means about sweating and energy?:)

Warning: This review contains profanities so if that bugs you stop reading now.

Theres something quite surreal about going to Baltimore to see a punk band led by a guy who lives in Seattle and works for Microsoft to write up the review for a site based in Seattle and owned by MSNBC.

Similarly, I noticed an addendum to my power of suggestion essay namely if you see people lined up at a venue to use the bathroom (especially when it's a long line since there's one bathroom for men and women) you will find yourself concluding out of the blue that you too now must use the bathroom, an urge or need that was not there before noticing the line

But enough asides (the rest I will include in comments) let's talk about the concert.

First up was Alameda. I loved their sound. I'm terrible at describing why some music works and others don't. That's part of why I wrote the prior piece Why Writing About Music I subscribe to that old adage - which has been attributed to various people - that writing about music is a bit like dancing about architecture.

But if forced to describe Alameda I'd say they sound like a less political Bad Religion but with younger members, by which I mean the sound is tight and melodies are catchy and I felt like dancing and screaming (both good things and both things I do not normally do)

You can listen to the Alameda via myspace here and Report Suspicious Activity here

The lead signer was particularly charismatic. He also looked a lot like a reporter I used to work with named Bruce.. if Bruce had a long beard and was in a punk band.

It's always funny - to me, at least - how at punk shows it's hard sometimes to guess who is a fan and who is in the bands. Often, of course, the people fit both categories.

So it was that one guy said hello to me before the show began. I'd already met and talked briefly to Vic of Report Suspicious Activity who was very nice and polite and thankful regarding our interview.

Vic explained that the band was doing just three shows: the one I saw in Baltimore, one tonight in Washington D.C. and, having warmed up with those shows, a bigger show in Chicago. He also explained the last album was supposed to come out two years ago - when its Bush bashing would have been more timely - but he broke his hand and they had to change things around. So now they had a new problem - is this the right time for an album protesting George Bush? He also explained that the band members are scattered across the nation (he is in Seattle, another member lives closer to Baltimore) making tours sort of hard, especially since they all had day jobs.

That was a lot to chew on so I let him get back to tuning. I'd retreated to the bar to jot down some notes and hold fort so I had a place from which I could scribble notes, take photos, etc.

I look at this guy saying hello and note that he still has his "I voted" sticker on his jacket.
"You know it," he said.

I thought he was just another excited voter until he got up to do the sound check and I realized he was the singer. He put on a hell of a show and I later complimented him on it.

In between songs this lead singer said, "We are very humble tonight" to share the stage with Report Suspicious Activity. There is a lot of great history in that band - who members have played in Articles of Faith, Jawbox, etc - and Alameda fans should check them out, he said.

I though it was a classy moment. Similarly the leader of the next band, the Mishaps, also did more than the obligatory thanking of the headlining band. When he asked for applause for Report Suspicious Activity and there was not much applause he stopped everything to emphasize the quality and importance of RSA and its members and only then, after fans showed more excitement, did they go on with their show.

Then it was time for the main attraction....

I thought back to my interview with Vic. I'd asked him:
"What should people who come see you live expect to see?"
He answered, "Foreheads popping to the point of aneurysm. And a lot of sweat."

He could also have answered that there would be some singing along to his songs, one person (that Alameda lead singer after a few special birthday drinks) dancing and many, like me, smiling, rocking their heads and feet to the beat and just loving every minute of it.

I particularly liked the band's performance of Bush is Brezhnev but that may be because I just love the idea of a political lesson delivered at that speed,

He said in the interview, "Well, you know, in the last eight years there were so many invidious (if merited) historical comparisons made between Bush and people like Hitler or Stalin. He's not really like any of them; he's the type of homegrown American greedhead unique to our culture and our moment. So I thought, don't glorify him by comparing him to Hitler; compare him to Brezhnev. Like Brezhnev, he's a grotesque; he's a hack. It's a bit of a joke--You'd have to know who Brezhnev was to get it. A lot of people don't. "

While trying to dig up the lyrics to the song I found this good piece comparing Bush to Brezhnev.

At one point someone shouted out a request for them to sing "Guantanamo."
"They have got to close that @!$%#er," Vic yelled back.

The band sounded tight and good. If they sound that amazing in a warm-up show they are going spectacular when they perform in Chicago.

At another point Vic said "our time for Bush bashing is, thankfully, coming to a close." The band's future in an Obama world is more vague, he added. Another member said something sarcastic along the lines of, "yeah, now there won't be anything to protest."

He's right - there will always be something to protest and hopefully therre will always be great bands like these to make some of that protesting entertaining and cathartic.

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