The night at The Sunflower Lounge began with a set from My Last Duchess, a perfect opener for the night ahead. The punk quartet brought real energy to the stage, hyping the crowd up with not just songs from their own discography, but a beautifully performed cover of ‘Black Sheep’ by Metric, bringing the audience together with the well-loved, familiar tune. They gave us a flavour of the sweet voice of their lead singer, completely contradicting the belting from their guitarist – yet together, it created a real, raw sound that was authentically them. The group showcased to the crowd their talent and passion for performing, seemingly at ease on the stage. The promising young band gave me hope for the future of the music industry, bringing back the sharp and unique sound that all artists should have. My personal favourite was their unreleased track ‘Solitaire’. Once again, the groups energy whilst playing this song did not go unnoticed by the crowd, and they were met with a room full of applause, cheering and most of all, many new fans.
Everyone was ready for Pure Adult by the time My Last Duchess left the stage. It was clear that this was many people’s opportunity to either discover a new music artist or they were dedicated followers of the band. Either way, whether they knew their music or not, they could not help but dance along – not a single person was still. Though their music was out there and would not appeal to everyone, it was clear that the energy they brought to the stage was enough. They were performers, each word they sang was filled with passion and a deeper meaning, punctuated with the movement of their bodies. Everyone was transfixed by them, especially Bianca Abarca, whose experience of contemporary dancing added to the whole experience.
The Brooklyn duo created music that was danceable rock, influenced by punk and post-punk. They were not put off by the harsh, dissonant music that was off limits in the past, but ventured into it to make their own unique sound – hyperactive and aggressive. The experimental rock band teetered over the lines of what was expected and refused to fall into generic post-something genre cliches. Their exhilarating live performance brought elements of 90s noise rock and hardcore with a touch of aggravated, techno-based rhythms, a firm staple in the thriving underground scene.
For me, the best moment was when they played their track ‘Hot Crusade’. Not only did it get the whole crowd moving and vibing along but also delivered their brand of pummeling post punk polemics. The band indicted political fence-sitters, enlacing biting, sarcastic, and instantly quotable one liners within searing industrial guitars and gnarled distorted basslines. It’s music full of equal parts raging fury and for unshackled dancing, all weaved together into ecstatic punk thunder. The group have truly established themselves with their explosive music style and strident leftist political ethos, definitely not a band to miss.