Last night I made the long trek up to Wheeling to complete the Curl Up and Die trifecta. It wasn’t nearly as long as the drive to DeKalb so that was cool with me and since it was a late show, there was no traffic getting there so I made great time traveling up north.
I was supposed to be on the guest list, as was youngdave, and we would have been, in fact we would have been the only ones on the list as Mike from CUAD showed me their list. The venue/promoter had other ideas though. They claim that because the club was so small (100 capacity) that they refuse to do any sort of guest list and that “all the money is going to the bands”. That of course is a bit of bullshit because they (the promoter) is not a charity and don’t put on punk shows for free just because they think they are doing a favor to “the scene”. They could have let the headlining band have two people get in on the list, especially when they are “the press” which also helps the promoter because you are writing about their shows. Mike felt so bad about it that he gave me a CUAD shirt which I thought was incredibly kind of him. I wasn’t mad at them or the label, they had no control over the situation. Hopefully CUAD really did get that money and the other bands too especially since the price of gas sky rocketed yesterday everywhere.
The club was very small with rather poor ventilation. They didn’t really have or need a full PA because the bands amps alone kick out more than enough sound to fill that room. The downside of that though is the lack of monitors which can hinder the band, especially a singer. All the bands made a good go of it, all with pleasant results. The stage was also only 3 inches tall, and really can’t be called a stage if you ask me. Since the ceiling is only like 9 feet tall that was probably the reasoning behind it, but they could have made it a foot tall and still had ample room for the people on stage.
Unlike the last two CUAD shows, this one wasn’t plagued with ladies jeans wearing metrosexuals wearing white or pink belts and bandannas. There also wasn’t any whiny emo bands on the bill either. I know there must be a need in the world for these bands and a portion of “the kids” are into that, but it didn’t make much sense to me to put them on a bill with a band like CUAD, and luckily the people who booked this show were well aware of it and the bill was full of bands that were closer in styles. Of course it helped that 3 of the bands were on tour together.
Tower of Rome
Tower of Rome, who were from IN, started the evenings festivities. They are a grindcore band and play with such speed and ferocity that you’d think that they were going to kill everyone in sight. Think early Napalm Death mixed with A.C. I really enjoyed them and they played what I felt to be the perfect length for that style of music without it starting to all sound the same. The singer was pretty intense, even though the only time he faced the crowd was when he’d hurl himself into it. At one point he inadvertently bashed himself in the nose and was bleeding all over the place. I was told that was not the first time that has happened to him and it didn’t surprise me with the force of which he would shove that mic into his face to make his whirlwind hurricane of death vocals. If i had any cash, I would have bought something from them and I’d definitely enjoy seeing them play again.
Animosity
Animosity were next and they were a pretty straight up metalcore band. I could imagine them being around in the late 1980s when all those hardcore bands went metal and Roadrunner or Combat Records sending me their album (on cassette no less). They were pretty good too but I think I would have enjoyed them a bit more if they played a couple less songs. By the end it seemed to drag a little.
Ed Gein
Ed Gein followed and from what I gathered, they seemed to be a pretty big reason why most people showed up. They started their set with a sample from the movie Donnie Darko, which was a plus in my book. They were sort of a grindcore/metalcore mix and a couple of their songs really stood out and were very good. All three members of the band shared vocal duties which I thought was pretty unique for the genre. Very powerful stuff and the crowd were into them.
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
Finally the trifecta was about to be completed. Three shows in about 6 weeks time and I was just as excited as I was the last couple times. CUAD hit the stage and started the set with one of their strongest songs, “Damn Girl, that Shit is Deep Like the Ocean”. I couldn’t think of a better way to start and it was nothing but goodness from that point forward. The set list was very similar to the last time I saw them and included “Ted Nugent Goes AOL”, “Nuclear Waste, Bring that Shit on”, “Instrumental” and “Anti Depressants are Depressing” from the new album as well as “I’m Trying to Fly to the Moon Using Two Magnets and Willpower” (which I love the song title as well as the song itself). They closed their set once again with “You’d Be Cuter if I Shot You in the Face” which was due to my request. Mike once again dedicated the song to myself and youngdave and thanked us for coming to all three of their shows in such a short time. They never fail to deliver the goods live and if they played here every 2-3 weeks for a year, I’d not miss a single show. The thin crowd that were there seemed to really enjoy their set as well.
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
I’ve said it twice before and I’ll say it again, Curl Up and Die are one of the few “new” bands that I really love and think have something special that sets them apart from the other bands in their genre and their live show is always top-notch and worth the effort (and cost) of going out. By all means go see them if/when they come to your town. Mike said they plan to keep touring some more this fall so my trifecta may turn into a quadfecta (or whatever is the suitable description for 4 shows).
Curl Up and Die
There are more photos you can see by clicking below…
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
Curl Up and Die
In my next life I would like to come back as a microphone.
Jones Violet approved.
Do these guys have an album out? I want to check them out just from their song titles.
They have 2 albums out and a couple EPs.
The newest album is great (reviewed a couple weeks ago on this site) and I also recommend the We May Be through with the past… EP as well as But the past isn’t through with us EP.
The live photos are great!! Definitely fun to see these guys live!!
Tower of Rome is God.