The party band extraordinaire NO ICE threw a crazy shindig at one of Brooklyn’s final bastions of DIY chic Shea Stadium, to celebrate the release of their debut LP Come on Feel the NO ICE with many of their wild friends along for the debaucherous ride. The album was produced by the seasoned industry vet and recording guru Oliver Ignatius over at the music collective he founded Mama Coco’s Funky Kitchen and definitely captures the band’s wild and fun communal life-affirming party passion. They would surely be the centerpiece fuse to set off the tinderbox of craziness of one seriously fun night of music.
Opening the show was the Brooklyn-based trio Milk Dick who certainly know how to make raw and scuzzy punk fun and relatable again. There are definitely traces of close associates of theirs in the deluge of sounds in their music like JEFF the Brotherhood and Diarrhea Planet, but they rip it up in a bit more of an 80’s skater punk meets Dead Milkmen sort of way. They’re raw, boisterous, straight to the point, and a super blast to experience in person. Another awesome BK power trio by the name of THICK kept the party pumping with lots of high-energy riot grrrl anthems and classic rock n’ roll rebellion. Their whiskey-soaked tunes are as infectious as they are treacherous, as they’ve incited lots of moshing and head banging every time I’ve been blessed enough to experience them, and this show was no different.
Milk Dick
Milk Dick
Milk Dick
Milk Dick
Milk Dick
Thick
Thick
They started playing by turning off almost all the already meager stage lights, which left all of us blind to the dangerous rockin’ fever that soon infected us all, as the crowd soon erupted into crowd-surfing pandemonium. Still, Nikki Sisti (guitar/lead vocals), Kate Black (bass/vocals), and Shari Page (drums/vocals) are all top-notch shredders as they knew how to bring the insanity to a proper broil. There was so much uninhabited energy on stage as they whipped their hair around with hurricane intensity that it often boiled over into the crowd as they even partook of crowd surfing of their own. They just released an awesome Breeders-meets-surf-rock flavored EP It’s Always Something, but they are already planning another release for 2017. These three truly comprise one of the hardest working bands on the scene today, and even this night were ready to jump over to do another set at Baby’s All Right early in the morning, so you gotta respect their zeal for the rock n’ roll feel.
Thick
Thick
Thick
Thick
Then No Ice came on stage with their always-massive armada in tow, with at least eight musicians stuffing the stage to overflowing party vibes. The army of revelry was steered, as always, by the vocalist and guitarist Jamie Frey along with his cohort-in-crime vocalist and tambourine shaker Gwynn Galitzer by his side. In the mass hysteria of their music, there are still some definite currents of influence that can be filtered away, from The Jesus And Mary Chain, Elvis Costello, Dinosaur Jr., The Pixies, and even some of the sweetness of The Lemonheads, but one of the more surprising inspirations was Bruce Springsteen, for whom they even did a rowdy cover of “Dancing In The Dark.” Still, among all the alternative greatness contained in the music, there was also the feeling of a grass-roots type hootenanny being afoot that always kept things light, swinging, and fun enough to square dance to. Their new album should be a must hear for all you aspiring sinners out there, and do yourself a favor and see them live if you know what’s best for you.
NO ICE
NOICE
NOICE
NOICE
NOICE
NO ICE
NOICE
NOICE
NOICE
NOICE
NO ICE
Finishing out the night was another “Fun On A Bun” Brooklyn trio called Sharkmuffin, who have also never failed to bring out the best revelry of every party I’ve ever seen them play at. These three sirens of fiendish rock have always brought the prime goods to the table, as frontwoman Tarra Theissen flies the banner of razor-sharp intensity, bassist Natalie Kirch lays down the relentlessly driving march of a back beat, and their impressive new drummer Janet LaBelle supplies the artillery barrage to annihilate the masses. They have been described as glam grunge, but their sound is definitely a more complex concoction that certainly evokes the classic Sleater-Kinney sound with equal parts Yeah Yeah Yeahs sleekness and Bikini Kill rawness. They previously released a pair of EP’s, as well as a self-titled 7”, but also just recently released their own first LP called Chartreuse, which I have been rockin’ out hard to every since I picked it up at one of their recent shows.
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Sharkmuffin
Article: Dean Keim
