Tag: The Void

PLAYING BLOOMINGTON: Live Music Highlights from June

(June 24) Jacky Boy @ the Void

Bloomington locals Mark, Stone, and Steve constitute the trio of secular rockers known as Jacky Boy that opened up the night at Punks Give Back #4. Punks Give Back! Bloomington is a local branch of Punks Give Back!, a national, not-for-profit organization that supports local artists and organizers to raise money for local nonprofit organizations. Punks Give Back! Bloomington organizes a monthly event with music and poetry in order to channel funds into various organizations that support local underserved and underprivileged populations.

Punks Give Back #4 raised funds for Exodus Refugee Immigration, an organization based out of Indianapolis that makes it its mission to “serve the resettlement needs of refugees and other displaced people fleeing persecution, injustice, and war by welcoming them to Indiana.” Although they admitted that this was their first show in over three months (which I guess is a while for the band), Jacky Boy delivered their trademark grungy dream pop sound: jangly and distorted guitar effects, infectious hooks, and saccharine vocals.

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Jessie, and Ian, and Nia of Clue

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Jennie Williams

(June 22) The Bishop Presents: Fresh Kill: with Clue, Oscilla, Jennie Williams, Poems of T.K. Williams, Jasper Wirtshafter, and Alexandria Hollett.

This show, which featured the debut of new local group Fresh Kill, had an especially stacked supporting lineup of music (Jennie Williams, Clue, Oscilla) and poetry (T. K. Williams, Jasper Wirtshafter, and Alexandria Hollett). After three poetry sets opened the night, local singer-songwriter Jennie Williams grabbed the audience with raw and personal tunes sung in a rich tone that seamlessly shifted from one octave to the next. Following Williams was Clue, a three piece synth punk group comprised of Bloomington locals Jessie (synth and vocals), Nia (bass), and Ian (percussion). With a cool and deliberate energy, the bouncy, syncopated rhythms and Jessie’s half-sung vocal performance provided a lively counter to the other acts of the night. 

Headlining group Fresh Kill was the second-to-last band to perform. Fresh Kill is Emma, who sings and plays the drums, and Jess, who sings and plays guitar. Aside from occasional bursts of energetic instrumentals, their performance was minimal, which showcased the hauntingly personal nature of their lyrics. The audience was especially supportive for the debut of this band, who had family and friends in the audience for the special night. Lastly, Oscilla wrapped up the evening with ambient dance tunes that were as emotive as they were hypnotic.  

(6/21) Dream Probe, Livin’ Thing, Skull Cult, Doozie @ Kroger Castle

When I descended the stairs to the basement of the house venue Kroger Castle, Dream Probe had already started playing their set. Dream Probe is a Champaign-based hardcore punk band featuring Vince (guitar), Olguie (vocals, bass), and Tyler (Drums).  Dream Probe performed the songs off of their spring demo, bringing even more intensity and energy to their politically charged, anti-colonial, Spanish language punk. Although all of the instruments were turned up to max volume, Olguie’s powerful vocals managed to cut through the chaotic wall of noise.

Local punk group Skull Cult closed the night with another energetic punk set. Their sound contains elements of new wave, synth punk and hardcore but is difficult to define and characterize. Luckily, it seems like Skull Cult is more interested in creating an environment that is both boisterous and merry than in defining their sound. While their performance was abrupt, it was packed with turbulent music and uninhibited dancing.   

(6/21)  Jordan Victoria @ the Blockhouse

“This is my first time playing the guitar in public,” admitted Jordan Victoria, the drummer of Her Again, about halfway through her opening set at the Blockhouse. While her nerves may have been apparent when it was time to address the audience between songs, her vulnerability paired well with the intimate and autobiographical nature of her music. As Victoria’s subtle vibrato coaxed the lone meandering electric guitar through rises and falls in intensity, it felt less like a performance than a gathering among friends.

 

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PLAYING BLOOMINGTON: Why Bloomington? An Intro to Hoosier Punk

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MX-80 Out of the Tunnel LP
The back cover of MX-80 Sound LP Out of the Tunnel. Photo by Kim Torgerson (c. 1980)

I moved from Brooklyn, New York to Bloomington, Indiana in the fall of 2014 to pursue a PhD in Ethnomusicology at Indiana University – in a nutshell, to study music within its cultural context. Coming from a background in music journalism and with a life-long interest in punk and underground music, I began to explore the Bloomington punk scene. What I found was a scene that looked nothing like the one I had encountered in New York, and certainly wasn’t trying to be that. I decided to make the local underground and punk scene the topic of my academic research and dissertation.

I include this information about my process and position not for narcissistic reasons, but for clarity and transparency.  Who we are – our positions, our experiences, our backgrounds – largely determines how we write, who we write about, and why we write. This column, therefore, is my interpretation and presentation of the Bloomington underground music and punk scene, and all of the weirdos and misfits that constitute it. But enough about me. What follows here is a (very) condensed history of the Bloomington punk scene and why it is so incredibly awesome.

1974. Patti Smith recorded Horses, the Ramones began playing at CBGB, and the New York Dolls released their second studio album. That same year, guitarist Bruce Anderson and bassist Dale Sophiea formed MX-80 Sound and began to perform their unique brand of art rock at local music venues and houses across Bloomington. By 1976, they were circulating a fanzine, Big Hits. Considered by many to be the pioneers of the local underground music scene, MX-80 was soon joined by proto-punk band the Gizmos (the first iteration), who began recording with Gulcher Records in 1976.

Collaboration took place between Bloomington punks and the punks of nearby Lafayette and Indianapolis. From Lafayette, post-punk band Dow Jones and the Industrials recorded a split LP, Hoosier Hysteria (1980), with the Gizmos (the second iteration). Bands from Bloomington and Lafayette traveled to Indianapolis to perform at the legendary music venue, Crazy Al’s. The Gizmos (1), MX-80 Sound, and then later The Gizmos (2), Dow Jones and the Industrials, The Zero Boys, The Jetsons, The Last Four (4) Digits, The Premature Babies, The Panics, Latex Novelties, The Joint Chiefs of Staff, The Dancing Cigarettes, and many others, constituted a vibrant scene that is still celebrated today through band poster exhibits, roundtables about the history of Gulcher records, reunion concerts, re-issues, and compilation CDs.

When listening to early Bloomington punk, the Gizmos’ (1978-1981) album is telling: Never Mind the Sex Pistols, Here’s the Gizmos. While the Bloomington and Indiana dirtbags were certainly influenced by the dirtbags in New York, London, and Los Angeles, they distanced themselves from these powerful urban centers and created a sound that was distinctively hoosier.

This remains true in 2017. A few times a week, punk bands can be found performing in houses and D.I.Y. venues across town, such as The Bishop, Blockhouse, The Void, Rhino’s, and The Backdoor. Bloomington is home to a number of punk and indie labels: The Secretly Group, Winspear, Plan-it-x Records, and Let’s Pretend Records are a few. Bloomington’s Landlocked Music and TD’s CDs & LPs sell local punk music, which is broadcasted through Bloomington radio stations WIUX and WFHB. 

A thriving zine scene augments and documents the music. The volunteer-run Boxcar Books and Community Center boasts one of the most impressive commercial zine collections that I have ever encountered. Zines like Neurodivergence and Shut Up and Listen are produced and celebrated through youth zine-writing workshops and zinefests.

It should be clear at this point that the Bloomington punk scene is rad; that such an unassuming Midwestern town has such a deep history with punk music, and that the scene is still flourishing today shouldn’t be surprising. My goal for writing this column is to shed a light on the scene itself, and all of the humans that make it special.    [/fusion_builder_column][/fusion_builder_row][/fusion_builder_container]