So Pitchfork, or whoever is responsible for this sort of thing, got the indie kids into arty hardcore.  That means that 90-pound 6-foot males with plastic classes and girl’s jeans are being screamed at by fat, smelly, hairy, bearded vocalists, face to face.  That’s right, I’m talking about Fucked Up.  You must see this band if they come to your town though.  No joke.

To put it in dork terms, this guy has a really great angle on it.  Pink Eyes, as he calls himself, has channeled an incredible amount of energy into a harsh sound that is paradoxically warm and uplifting.  It’s perhaps his lyrics that do it, or maybe having seen the guy’s antics in a way that makes it clear that he has a good heart.

Learn the lyrics before you go, because you will be undoubtedly confronted with the opportunity to scream them along with Mr. Eyes, and really regret it if you don’t.  He brings the music and his spirit to your face, inches away.  He is fearless in making contact with the audience, and if someone smiles enough, he’ll push them even further, perhaps by picking them up and swinging them around, unbuttoning their shirt and sticking his head in your belly, screaming forehead to forehead, even tying you up in the microphone cable.

I had few interactions with him, the first, he looked at me and grabbed my chin, shaking it back and forth, as if to mockingly complement me on my cuteness.  Later he put his arm around me and I felt the hairiest back I have ever felt in my life when I reciprocated.  Finally, I got to scream “LET’S GO!” as they played the only song whose words I was sure of, the Ramones’ “Blitzkrieg Bop”.

A lot of people could pull off these antics, but what makes this band special is the musical element.  While unrelentingly loud, with three guitars, a melodic component juxtaposes well with his voice, and in general keeps it interesting.  The singer’s act detracts a bit from appreciating this, you can go home and listen by yourself if you feel like scratching your chin over something.  This show is no place for that sort of shit.