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Savages Setlist
Head Wound City Setlist
Tour Dates
05/24 Calgary, AB; Commonwealth Bar & Stage*
Read More05/25 Edmonton, AB; Starlite Room* 05/27 Vancouver, BC; Imperial Vancouver * 05/28 Portland, OR; Wonder Ballroom * 07/16 Chicago, IL Union Park 07/17 Milwaukee, WI The Rave II / Eagles Hall 07/19 Cincinnati, OH The Ballroom 07/20 Louisville, KY Mercury Ballroom 07/21 Indianapolis, IN Deluxe 07/26 Sacramento, CA Ace Of Spades 07/27 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst 07/30 Santa Ana, CA Observatory * with Head Wound City
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On Saturday night, Savages put on a passionate, thrilling show, one that fans will be talking about for months, maybe even years to come. In support of their new album Adore Life, the London-based four piece stunned the sold out awe-struck crowd along with openers Head Wound City and served as an important reminder of the life-changing magic of music.
Head Wound City is the project from Yeah Yeah Yeahs guitarist Nick Zinner, Jordan Blilie and Cody Votolato of The Blood Brothers, and Justin Pearson and Gabe Serbian from The Locust.
Based on the talents involved, I assumed theirs would be a brutal assault of a set and, oh, how I love to be right. The band swaggered on stage dressed like 50’s-style toughs and greasers and exploded into a pleasing amalgamation of noise and grindcore, tunes from the aptly-named new LP A New Wave of Violence and their 2005 self-titled EP. Vocalist Blilie shrieked, shook and spat at the mic as drummer Serbian tore a hole in the time-space continuum with his rapid-fire technique and Zinner, looking like Birthday Party-era Nick Cave, hung out on the far right of the stage scraping on his guitar. Opposite Zinner was bassist Pearson and guitarist Votolato adding to the delirium-inducing cacophony.
When I reviewed Savages back in 2013, I knew they were something special, but nothing - no amount of hype or anything - could have prepared me for the incendiary performance that took place Saturday. On the strength of what I consider to be the best album of the year (so far...), Savages took their angular post-punk sound and played a 70-minute set of songs that bristled with anger and defiance, but also love. Nothing is more punk rock than love. The days of lazy cynicism are over and Savages are the harbingers of the kind of hope that people crave, especially now. It’s not just rock and roll music that these women play; it becomes something more. “I understand the urgency of life,” Jehnny Beth sang in a chillingly beautiful voice in one of the many potent moments during the concert. “In the distance there is truth which cuts like a knife/Maybe I will die maybe tomorrow so I need to say/I adore life.”
The band wasted no time getting under our collective skins and jumped into “I Am Here,” the primal second track off of 2013’s Silence Yourself and a perfect introduction to the band. Savages’ visual aesthetic is as striking as the music itself as they were wearing all black and fixed against a backlit smoke-obscured stage. Beth is absolutely mesmerizing; she’s got a thunderous voice that’s reminiscent of Souixie or PJ Harvey and a commanding presence. But watching her interact with the fans near the front by giving out high fives and, early in the set, beckoning fans to come closer to the stage that I enjoyed the most. She also doesn’t let a silly thing like a fear of gravity get in her way, sprightly leaping into the crowd three times and being gingerly carried about. Can you guess which picture from this show is being shared the most on social media? The one of Beth standing coolly atop a platform of hands like the f*cking goddess that she is.
As Beth prowled about, guitarist Gemma Thompson effortlessly balanced the extremes of each song, like the languid strains of “Slowing the World Down” and vicious electrical-storm-style noise on “The Answer,” both from Adore Life. Contributing an infectious staccato bassline to nearly every song was bassist Ayse Hassan (Hello “Husband”!), who immersed herself completely in the intoxicating soundscape, jerking from side to side with each pluck. And her interaction with drummer Fay Milton was phenomenal. That rhythm section! The musicianship of each member of Savages is impressive, but if I had to choose a favorite player... it would be Milton. Milton’s restraint is what I like the most - her ability to utilize the empty space between notes (maybe it’s her classical music upbringing?) She’s also a blast just to watch (check out the live videos of “No Face”).
Like a lot of live music lovers, what happened at the Bataclan in Paris last year really shook me to the core. I can’t help but look at the cover of Savages’ Adore Life with the stark, defiant black and white image of the clenched fist and watch songs like “Adore” and encore closer “F*ckers” and not think that even though this music was recorded before the attack, it’s the perfect response to them. Savages seek to destroy convention and incite positive change. Loudly. You know the old story about the Velvet Underground selling virtually no records, but every single person who saw them or heard them started a band? With Savages it’s the same, only people are starting a revolution.
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Head Wound City |
Based on the talents involved, I assumed theirs would be a brutal assault of a set and, oh, how I love to be right. The band swaggered on stage dressed like 50’s-style toughs and greasers and exploded into a pleasing amalgamation of noise and grindcore, tunes from the aptly-named new LP A New Wave of Violence and their 2005 self-titled EP. Vocalist Blilie shrieked, shook and spat at the mic as drummer Serbian tore a hole in the time-space continuum with his rapid-fire technique and Zinner, looking like Birthday Party-era Nick Cave, hung out on the far right of the stage scraping on his guitar. Opposite Zinner was bassist Pearson and guitarist Votolato adding to the delirium-inducing cacophony.
When I reviewed Savages back in 2013, I knew they were something special, but nothing - no amount of hype or anything - could have prepared me for the incendiary performance that took place Saturday. On the strength of what I consider to be the best album of the year (so far...), Savages took their angular post-punk sound and played a 70-minute set of songs that bristled with anger and defiance, but also love. Nothing is more punk rock than love. The days of lazy cynicism are over and Savages are the harbingers of the kind of hope that people crave, especially now. It’s not just rock and roll music that these women play; it becomes something more. “I understand the urgency of life,” Jehnny Beth sang in a chillingly beautiful voice in one of the many potent moments during the concert. “In the distance there is truth which cuts like a knife/Maybe I will die maybe tomorrow so I need to say/I adore life.”
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Savages: Jehnny Beth
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Setlist |
Like a lot of live music lovers, what happened at the Bataclan in Paris last year really shook me to the core. I can’t help but look at the cover of Savages’ Adore Life with the stark, defiant black and white image of the clenched fist and watch songs like “Adore” and encore closer “F*ckers” and not think that even though this music was recorded before the attack, it’s the perfect response to them. Savages seek to destroy convention and incite positive change. Loudly. You know the old story about the Velvet Underground selling virtually no records, but every single person who saw them or heard them started a band? With Savages it’s the same, only people are starting a revolution.
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Savages at Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis (21 May 2016) |
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