History Doesn’t Repeat Itself, but it Often Rhymes
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Being at this show felt like I was back in 2005 with all these scene kids taking over the Hardcore scene, but maybe I’m just getting old. What a horrible thing to say about myself at the bright age of 20, but, I digress. It seemed like I was one of the only people there that night who graduated highschool. It was the 4th of July, and a few of touring bands from San Jose were playing at Speed’s in Portland, Oregon: Bullshark, Usurper, Terra, Muerte and Ripped Off. Speed’s usually has a good crowd and hosts good bands. It’s outside under an overpass so rain isn’t an issue, and it doesn’t usually feel and smell like a wet garbage dump during a heat wave. You’ll have to ask a punk where it is though, because I’m not telling.
Bullshark opened and they were alright. They had some nice riffs that would’ve fit better at a death metal show. They desparately wanted the crowd to move more, but that’s wishful thinking on their part as the warm-up act. They finally got their wish, however, when they started shooting a roman candle into the mosh pit during their last song. All I can say is holy horseshoe.
The second band, Usurper, was a little better. They drew the crowd back in from the huge horseshoe it started as, so good on them for that. They sounded a bit more on the punk side of hardcore, and I liked their songs more, but I did not look them up after, so that tells you all you need to hear about that. They were even able to draw us in for a big pit toward the end, which was short lived, but still good fun.
By the time the third band, Terra, took the stage, I was getting sick of the music and the mosh pit. To spare myself the time it would take to describe the songs these bands played, and you the time it would take to read it, I will just ask you to imagine your basic modern hardcore/metalcore song without much discernable quality. There you go, that’s how most of the bands sounded. It was three hours of dun dun dundundun dun dun, dun dun dundundun dun dun, dun dun dundundun dun dun. Crash, crash crash crash crash crash! Eeeeeaauuugggghhhhh! Someone comes flailing toward you trying to do karate. It did not inspire much within me.
Muerte, the fourth band, was like a breath of fresh air. They had their own style to their music. Their vocals reminded me of Sunami (in a good way), and their instrumentals was where they really shined. Their songs had a nice danceable groove, but the drums were fast and hit hard, sounding almost reminiscent of classic hardcore punk from the 80s and 2000s. They actually got the crowd moving, whipping the pit up into the unfettered chaos of churning and flying bodies to which I have become accustomed. It was beautiful.
This nice moment was ruined when Ripped Off took the stage. Maybe that was a little harsh, but I was fully over this show at this point. Having five bands can turn any show into the infinite show of doom and despair, especially a show like this. We went right back to no movement and run-of-the mill songs fit for only the finest openers. Please stop guys, the horse is already a bloody pulp.
My biggest gripe with the show, however, was the crowd, and that is not the fault of the bands. I know I might sound like an old man shaking his fist from his porch, but I swear mosh pits used to be so much better a couple years ago. At the risk of sounding like every adult since the beginning of time, I think these new kids need to sit back and watch some actual moshers show them how it’s done. It’s arrogant to think you can just jump in with no experience. There’s an art to it, and if you don’t take the time to learn it, mosh pits get boring, scenes die, and people are more likely to get hurt.
But also, I do think these kids should have their fun; I know me saying all this is the least punk-rock thing someone could ever do, so don’t let me stand in your way. Do whatever you want, but please, do it far away from me, and point me in the direction of some shows where people actually know how to mosh.
