The Damned, The BelRays, Electric Frankenstein
Fillmore at Irving Plaza
May 14, 2009

It’s sad to say, but the number of living legends from the early part of  punk history is dwindling rather quickly. With the death of three quarters of The Ramones, Joe Strummer, Arthur “Killer” Kane, and (most recently) Lux Interior, the need to see bands that are still alive (and killing it on stage) is a must.

Luckily, the dark princes of punk, The Damned, are still vivacious as ever, churning out new records and putting enough emotion in their concerts to show up even the rowdiest new band.

The Damned made good on their cancelled December dates, returning with two pure rock acts in tow—Jersey street rockers Electric Frankenstein and R&B rave up act The BellRays. Read the rest of this entry »

Rancid, Big D and the Kid’s Table
Irving Plaza
August 15, 2008

Rancid took the stage a week or so ago for a five day stint at New York’s prestigious Irving Plaza (only fools call it the Fillmore). It’s been a few years since Rancid’s last visit to the Big Apple, and this time they packed in a larger venue and brought a ton of legendary bands with them–Bloodclot, Sick of it All, Madball.

Alas, I got the bum night and had to sit through Big D and the Kid’s Table and their ska-infused pop punk hooha. They reminded me of a castarated version of the Suicide Machines, but with way more horns and a lot less punk. That said, they covered Morphine, which is always a plus in my book. Too bad no one but me were old enough to care.

Rancid were the stars of the night and truth be told, the band have become legends in their own right. God knows they’ve earned it. While not as intimate as their run at BB Kings a few years back, the plays was packed with kids itching to sing and the band did not dissapoint. Particularly if you’re a fan of “Out Come the Wolves,” from which the band played nearly a dozen songs. It would have been nice if they peppered in some pre-Wolves classics, but alas, they had five nights to fill.

Besides, a fantastic rendition of “Rejected” courtesy of Matt Freeman, the band dipped into their new B-sides collection and pulled out “The Brothels,” “I Wanna Riot,” and “Tattoo.” I don’t think I’ve ever heard them touch those tunes, except maybe Riot during the early Wolves tours.

Other than that, the show was rather paint by numbers with most of the hits accounted for and a single song encore of “Time Bomb.” In all honesty, if you go see the Offspring or Green Day, the chance of them playing a song of their first two records is slim to none, let alone really random B-sides, so this tour ranks pretty high in my book. Good to know there are still bands out there that know there fans weren’t all born after they released their biggest records.