Walking into the Black Cat felt like a hug. After visiting on dozens of events over two years of residing in D.C., the black and crimson checkerboard dance flooring has been eternally trapped in my reminiscence. From pop-punk dance events to native bands to sold-out reveals, this venue has welcomed me with open arms since my freshman fall.
But in the present day, I had no thought what to anticipate. Frankie and the Witch Fingers and Wine Lips had each crossed my playlists up to now however had by no means turn out to be a staple in my rotation. It’s troublesome to get a lot perception into their performances on-line, however the massive dimension of the group instantly gave me a grasp of their reputation.
Frankie and the Witch Fingers hail from Indiana and have been making music since 2013 in a novel proto-punk style of their very own, combining the weather of traditional punk with groovy enjoyable. After a decade or so of lineup switch-ups, the band has lastly blessed the East Coast with a present to have a good time their first album in three years. Data Doom (2023), which options genre-bending rock ’n’ roll, presents a brand new twist on punk music. Some songs, like “Weird Dog,” might simply be from the Nineteen Seventies, whereas others are extra harking back to Joy Division’s haunting electrical sound, with a touch of Led Zeppelin traditional rock ‘n’ roll only for enjoyable.
Toronto-based Wine Lips opened the present, and the headbanging adopted from their first snare hit. Genre-wise, they have a tendency extra towards garage-punk and psych-rock, with heavy bass strains just like Rawhide (1982) by Dead Kennedys and the snare sixteenth beats of Fugazi. The synchronization of the group bore a hypnotic resemblance to some kind of dystopian film, of blind followers to an overlord. Clearly, they have been prepared for this present.
The Black Cat has a deep connection to punk historical past, and it’s clear the group did as properly: the marginally extra millennial crowd sported classic Minor Threat t-shirts and adopted the quick beats with ease.
Everyone within the crowd was transferring like bees buzzing—by the tip of the primary tune, the claps and screams almost drowned out the guitar suggestions. For such a small venue, the Black Cat is a powerhouse when it’s packed.
A brand new vibe was launched in the midst of their set. The bassline turned extra funky with the accompaniment of groovy guitar, and the headbanging became a slight sway of the hips with a small two-step. You might inform this wasn’t Wine Lips’ standard music, however the crowd overtly embraced it.
“I love their fluidity,” concertgoer Thomas stated. “Their blending of genres is impressive, you can tell how practiced they are. They will always put on a show, and I think they set good expectations for Frankie. They created so much energy in the crowd.”
But he appeared annoyed with the group. “I was waiting for the mosh! People don’t seem that into it but I know it’s coming.”
And he was proper, almost.
When Frankie and the Witch Fingers stepped on stage, they beckoned the group to come back nearer. As somebody who has been to numerous punk reveals, I instantly knew this was a name to mosh. They’re asking for intimacy, to be in shut proximity with the group, who answered enthusiastically because the area round me rapidly dissipated.
Their opening tune, “Empire,” toed the road between traditional rock and punk, holding a robust guitar melody which will remind a number of the Home Depot theme tune. A cool guitar sits on prime of a punk drum beat, inviting a mix of dance types from the group. Some have been headbanging and hopping, with {couples} subsequent to them participating in a swingy grind. The crowd was clearly responding to the band’s name.
Their subsequent tune, “Futurephobic,” began off quick. Not but a mosh-worthy stage of quick, however just like one thing you might hear in a ’70s automobile chase scene. The crowd was already leaping from the minute the stick hit the snare. By the center of the tune, the beat disappeared, with solely a high-pitched guitar melody to steer the group.
I knew this was going to be the shift within the present’s temper. This tune required a pit—the swap as much as a loud psych-punk refrain merely demanded it.
I leapt into the man in entrance of me, who was positively a former metalhead judging from lack of a haircut and worn flannel. A shoulder test or two later, I couldn’t transfer with out getting slammed into. Limbs have been flying, heads have been banging almost into one another, and a wall had began to type. A mosh pit had lastly been born after a set-worth interval of anticipation.
And the group went bonkers. For the subsequent few songs, all of which have been very punky, half of the viewers was participating within the epic mixture of sunshine punches and excessive pushing. The music merely requested for it. The difficult guitar fashioned dissonance with the easy bassline that created chaos, with a robust excessive hat beat holding the group collectively.
It wasn’t all rock-fueled unruliness—the band additionally explored extra of their afro-beats and funk influences. Mainly proven within the manufacturing of the percussion, Frankie and the Witch Fingers supplied an surprising style mix. And the group was with it. When the mosh pits dwindled, followers have been nonetheless swaying or giving spirit fingers to the guitarist.
When they left the stage, the group was expectantly ready for a return. An encore appeared assured, destined even. The crowd had been hype sufficient to deserve it.
Before lengthy, that acquainted chord development that some could keep in mind enjoying from their dad’s playlist, “I Wanna Be Your Dog” by The Stooges got here by way of the audio system, igniting motion again into the mass of our bodies.
Dylan Sizemore, the lead vocalist, joined himself, climbing into the group through the refrain. While within the crowd, Sizemore handed the microphone to a fan, who breathlessly succeeded at maintaining with the beat. Eventually crowd-surfing again to the stage, Sizemore’s stage presence shone through the encore, complimented by his intimate interactions with followers and their frantic dancing.
After the present, concertgoers described the encore as “glorious and sweaty” and “fucking awesome.”
Though gradual at some factors, Frankie and the Witch Fingers know tips on how to placed on a great present. The power was there, it simply wanted a bit push, actually and figuratively. By the tip, the band had imbued the group with their funk-punk-rock ingredient, making the Black Cat really feel extra like its personal planet of rock fusion as an alternative of a bit D.C. venue.
