As anyone who’s been introduced to my psychotic pet cat can attest, physical size has little bearing on purpose and capability. Screaming Females‘ Marissa Paternoster may barely reach the height of a sitting Oompah Loompah but (a) she has awesome hair and (b) she can fucking shred on the guitar. Pretty good on vox too: the New Jersey band’s last appearance round these parts, sitting atop the bill of Loose’s Cardiff Halloween special a year ago, was a tightly compressed hit of yowling and riffing, many plexus punches from agitated garage squealing. They nailed squally rock music that night, and fit in an impressive amount of non-annoying guitar solos too.Get to the front.
A distinctly VFM line-up too, courtesy of two excellent local promoters clubbing together, of which a brace of bands particularly worthy of attention. The Hysterical Injury turn distorted fuzz bass riffs and furious drumming into a kind of feral gold, while Joy chums Bellies continue being utterly great, Nat and Debi (of the Jelas and Drunk Granny) making cranky, meandering and raucous lo-fi guitar/drums/righteous brilliance. But this whole thing looks stellar.
OFFBEAT VS ARTSCARE RECORDS PRESENTS: SCREAMING FEMALES
It’s been 6 years since guitarist/vocalist Marissa Paternoster and bassist Michael Abbate crammed into drummer Jarrett Dougherty’s attic to write and record their earliest collaborations as Screaming Females. The band was young (Michael was still in high school) yet already focused. Rather than placing those recordings on a CD-R demo or waiting for a label to approach them, Screaming Females opted to self-release a real album with real packaging. The record was Baby Teeth, their aptly titled debut. This was just the tip of the iceberg for the trio, who quickly discovered and jumped headfirst into a national DIY punk network. After numerous basement shows around their home state of New Jersey and a few short tours, Marissa, Michael and Jarrett decided their next effort needed a proper studio. The band decided not to utilize normal studio wizardry and instead opted to simply set up their gear and play. Many songs were recorded in a single take and the record saw few overdubs. Through these raw recordings the band attempted to capture a true representation of the louder and faster sound they had developed. Creating this new, deafening punk soon had its consequence. During one practice an irate police officer issued the band a noise violation and insisted they had to consider neighbors who could be trying to watch television. Befittingly, the next album was titled What If Someone Is Watching Their T.V.? To celebrate the release of this second album the trio embarked on a 70-day national tour, beginning their reputation as one of the hardest-working bands in North America.
Their dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed. This past year has brought their television debut, sold out headlining shows and tour dates with legendary names such as Ted Leo and Against Me! As a way to thank the fans, Screaming Females are reissuing vinyl of their first two albums, which until now were only available at early shows.
http://www.screamingfemale
2 ROOM SPECIAL WITH SUPPORT FROM THE HYSTERICAL INJURY/
CAVES/ ROCK IN THE POCKET/ BELLIES/ BLACK ELEPHANT/ SPLUTTER!
LIVE AT THE CROFT / BRISTOL
SUNDAY 11TH SEPT
£7 ADV FROM BRISTOL TICKET SHOP/ CROFT.COM
