MICHIGAN/CANDIAN BAND: BLACKBIRDS

To start off 2009 right my friend from Canada, Jesse Gongora, went on tour with his band Blackbirds all over the East Coast. I've known Jesse Gongora for quite some time now and it is usually a lengthy period before we end up meeting up with each other.



The last time that I saw Blackbirds was in Baltimore at the Charm City Art Space in August 2007. Back in those days, I was still living in that tiny yet quaint apartment in College Park with my amazing room mates Kandace Levy, Katie Sams, and Aurora Caskey.

Aurora and Kandace came with me to their show at Charm City Art Space. Both ladies have never experienced a show quite like it.




This time in 2009 Blackbirds came to Washington D.C. and Silver Spring, MD to play a show. The band played a show at the Girl Cave off of Gallatin St. in Northwest DC and they also played at the Corpse Fortress in Silver Spring, MD. If you are looking to get into some really aggressive, socially conscious, straight up angry hardcore you would probably like Blackbirds.




If you are interested in hearing their music visitBlackbird's Myspace. They have a few tunes from their 7" split with Braindead and a new song that they wrote last year that is untitled.

I think the boys and the girl enjoyed their stay here. It was a little short and I wish I had spent some time really showing them around the city. But they did eat at Sticky Fingers and had a late night rendezvous at the Blackcat. I'm pretty sure they'll be coming around this area again next time they're on tour.

Here are more pictures of their visit to D.C.:

BUBBLE GUM GLUED TO THE SOLES OF MY SHOE.

I figured that it was the beginning of 2009 and there were a lot of things that had to be confronted, that haven't been confronted last year. My attempts at blogging were pretty nonexistent; if any blogging did occur it was pretty erratic and almost unnecessary. This year I am not making any resolutions or promises but this is a place on the internet for you to delve into or not. First and foremost, it is for me. A place where I can document all the clippings of my life outside the internet, the internet obsessions, randomness, and truisms that occur.

So peak in, let me show you what creates my world...

To start off my first post right, I must talk to you about a new hardcore band straight out of Connecticut called Ripshit.



Now many people who have been listening to hardcore and the various forms of this kind of music for years tend to become more and more picky about newer bands that rise from the ashes of the more memorable bands we all know and love. The thing I love about Ripshit is I saw them at Girlcave in Northwest DC last night with my friends in Blackbirds, a boston hardcore band Draize, and DC local Deathrats. and without even checking out more than their music online, I didn't realize that the brutality that screeches vocally in ever song is sung by the petite woman in the picture above. She delivered more energy in a tiny basement than I have seen with black metal frontmen at the Sidebar or Ottobar.

The lyrics are very politcally expressive. With titles such as "America Runs On Nothing" and "I'm not Unemployable I'm Just Young and In Love" they have alot of universal understandings that are expressed lyrically about not trusting our government, taking back control to the people who actually work for this county, and simply put anti-capitalist sentiments. The things you'd expect from most hardcore punk bands. Unlike other anti-capitalist-smash-the-system hardcore music, however, this band makes you actually want to sing along with them. Even if you didn't want to squash the man, have him underneath your nail.

They are a fairly new band so there aren't mp3s I can stream or have you download but I can link you to their myspace where you can also find information on touring, booking, and the lyrics to their songs!

www.myspace.com/ripshitct