Here we have yet another show that will go down with one of the best at Philadelphia’s legendary First Unitarian Church basement as OFF!, The Spits, and Double Negative broke off a proper display of punk rock for a plethora of fans foaming at the mouths like a pack of hungry dogs about to be tossed lunch.
Raleigh, NC’s Double Negative kicked off the evening with a blistering set chock full of energy that quickly got a standing-room-only crowds’ head in the game. Having formed in 2004 and featuring members of Epic Warfare, GRIDS, and Logic Problem, the band recently parted ways with longtime singer Kevin Collins and drummer Brian Walsby. Charlotte, NC native Bobby Michaud (GRIDS, Brain F≠, Infeccion) taking over on drums and Cameron Craig (Logic Problem, Shards, Atrophix) on vox, to fill out this touring unit. Rounded out by longtime members Scott Williams and Justin Gray, the band tore through a barrage of tracks that spanned the band’s early corpus all the way through their recent studio work, Hardcore Confusion Vol. 3 & 4, on Sorry State Records.
Seattle punk rock mainstays, The Spits brought their 77 style punk rock to table with blast of beer, sweat, and spit as the crowd pogo-ed and smashed into each other with reckless abandon. The band released its fifth self-titled album in 2011 that continues the The Spits’ unofficial legacy of release titles 1,2,3,4, and now 5, all saturated with the band’s trademark lo-fi, dirty, garage punk stylings. It’s no surprise The Spits have earned themselves a much deserved seat at the table alongside groups like the Ramones, Bullet-era Misfits, Crime, and The Eat.
Featuring Keith Morris (Black Flag/Circle Jerks), Dimitri Coats (Burning Brides), Steven McDonald (Redd Kross), and Mario Rubalcaba (Earthless/Hot Snakes/Rocket From the Crypt), OFF! is band that bridges first generation punk rock fans with new-school punk enthusiasts like no other. With an insatiable onslaught of live energy, Morris and crew decimate stages with a an intensity that is lost on 99% of so-called new punks bands. Inciting an over-capacity crowd into a mosh frenzy, OFF! delivered a bullet-proof performance that saw no lulls whatsoever, punctuated by a crowd that reciprocated every ounce of madness for yet another legendary show in the one and only, First Unitarian Church basement of Philadelphia. OFF! just dropped a new video for song “Wrong” taken from their self-titled album avail through Vice Records. You can watch the video for “Wrong” in the YouTube player below.
We know you are here for the pictures, so without further ado..
All pictures by Blow The Scene, Senior Staff Photographer Dante Torrieri (Useless Rebel Imaging)
Recommended for you
