Worriers' Lauren Denitzio Played Asbury Park Brewery w/ Natalie Newbold, Emily Bornemann, and Mikey Pellegrino, 3/22/18

Lauren Denitzio of Worriers

Solo But Not Alone

There's been a lot of "stuff" going around town this past week. We finally heard the plans for what's going to happen to the building that used to house Asbury Lanes, and it's caused some... ...conversation. Much of that conversation has centered on what it was that made Asbury Lanes special; and, while Asbury Lanes no longer exists, some of that spirit still flickers around town at shows like the one Aftermath Collective and House of Independents threw at Asbury Park Brewery last night.

Lauren Denitzio of Worriers returned to Asbury Park for an intimate solo set and headlined a bill that also included Natalie Newbold (Well Wisher), Emily Bornemann (Dentist), and Mikey Pellegrino (latewaves). It was a special evening. Each performer usually plays as part of a full band; and, naturally, there had to be some nerves. But everyone playing was in the same boat; and I think that gave everything a nice, communal feel. At any rate, if there were any nerves, they didn't hurt a single performance.

Mikey Pellegrino

One of the great things about hearing the songs stripped of their full-band arrangements, guitar solos, drum fills, is that you really notice what good songs they are. Natalie Newbold and I discussed this with reference to Emily Bornemann and Dentist following Newbold's set, but it was true across the board. latewaves, Dentist, Well Wisher, and Worriers can all get pretty loud in their own way; but, last night, everyone's songs held up -- shone even -- in the more intimate setting.

Emily Bornemann

And the interactions with the audience -- from Pellegrino's pointing out where the band would come in, to Bornemann's revealing that this was her first solo set in a decade, to Newbold's forgetting the opening line to one of her earliest songs, to Denitzio's admitting that they liked to be able to do shows like this whenever the rest of the band was unavailable -- felt natural, like a shared experience among friends.

Natalie Newbold

Just a sweet, sweet night. I could go on about it, but I just wanted to acknowledge that there are still plenty of chances to support cool things in and around Asbury Park. It's easy to get down on the way things are trending, and I forget that sometimes. Last night was a nice reminder of what we can still do.

Cayetana Played Asbury Lanes w/ Chumped, Worriers, Thin Lips, and ROMP, 8/13/15 (PHOTOS)

Philadelphia's Cayetana were back at Asbury Lanes.

Five Spot

I'm gonna be straight with you. Sometimes, I see five-band bills; and I'm like, "Really?? C'mon." CoolMom always makes fun of me for how early I get to shows; but I've always felt that, if you're in, you've gotta be in for the whole thing. There's definitely a little "for better or for worse" aspect to that sometimes. I had absolutely no reservations about last night's five-band lineup, though.

Top to bottom -- Cayetana, Chumped, Worriers, Thin Lips, ROMP -- last night's show was either bands I'd seen several times and loved (Cayetana, Worriers, ROMP) or bands who came highly recommended from people I trust (Thin Lips, Chumped). Top to bottom, nobody disappointed.

ROMP have tightened up (ha!) considerably since I first saw them this past winter. Lucas Dalakian is still non-stop motion on stage; and, last night, he was playing a vintage 1968 Mustang that looked pretty damn cool.

Thin Lips were without their bass player, but still managed to impress. They brought a version of pop punk that kept reminding me of their City of Brotherly Love brethren Swearin', who I love.

This was my third or fourth time seeing Worriers, and I'm becoming a bigger and bigger fan of their sing along political pop punk anthems. The band are touring in support of their recently-released and Laura Jane Grace-produced Imaginary Life. I've spent a lot of time with that record over the last several days, and the songs had just as much punch live.

New York's Chumped are a band I've heard a lot about over the last year or so, but never actually heard. I've, apparently, been missing a great deal because their set last night kind of blew me away. They live somewhere in the spaces between 1990s indie rock and pop punk. I even heard them getting a little shoegazy at times, which -- obviously -- works for me. Singer / guitarist Anika Pyle has a warm personality and appeared genuinely moved by the crowd and by the opportunity to tour with the other bands on the bill.

I first saw Cayetana on singer / guitarist Augusta Koch's birthday at Asbury Lanes back in 2013. The band played that night with Laura Stevenson and our friends in Dentist and Paper Streets. I was immediately a fan. Their 2014 Nervous Like Me is a favorite of mine, and all the honesty and emotion on that record comes across during the band's live show. Like the other bands before them, Cayetana seemed pleasantly taken aback by the response they got at Asbury Lanes. They peppered a few new songs into their set, and I'm excited to hear their next effort.

No matter how you slice it, five bands makes for a long evening. It was a long evening, though, of getting to chat up some of the artists I've admired for a while now between sets of great music. It went by effortlessly; and, when Cayetana announced their last song, I couldn't believe it was already over.

Here are some highlights from all of the sets. Head over to Flickr for the rest of the pics.

Worriers, Imaginary Life, 2015

Album Review

Shellshag have this web series called "Shellshonic Shag-O-Vision" that you should really check out. The shorts consist of Shellshag and a guest covering a couple of songs together against the wild backdrop and green screen of the big Shag-O-Vision.

The fifth episode of the second season featured Lauren Denitzio of Worriers. It opened with Shell and Lauren doing a cover of Billy Bragg's "Little Time Bomb." It couldn't have been more perfect. As a young, aspiring lefty, I voraciously consumed Billy Bragg's entire discography. But I liked the rock music back then, too. So Bragg's approach of wrapping his politically charged songs (of which "Little Time Bomb" really isn't one) in approachable and singable folk punk appealed to me on a purely aesthetic level as well.

That's what I get from Worriers on Imaginary Life. There are songs dealing with serious topics like challenging the construct of the gender binary and calling out the police, but the album is also a really good punk rock record. Laura Jane Grace of Against Me! produced, and her ear for what makes a great pop punk song comes through on every track.

The album opens with the short "Jinx." Denitzio sings about how lucky she is to be making her way through life doing what she loves, sticking to her ideals. "'Cause today I have all I ever wanted." As the album progresses, we see glimpses, I think, of the way her life could be if she were to lose that.

"Plans" introduces a theme that pops up a couple of times on Imaginary Life: doing or sticking with something because it's what you're supposed to do, because it's what society expects. In this case, that's staying in a toxic relationship -- "In public, party. In private, hell" and "You love me like a sibling that you hate a little bit." -- because "We've got plans." The song also introduces the great lead guitar work from Rachel Rubino and John McLean that kept catching my attention throughout the record.

"Life During Peacetime" is a little less pop-punky, a little more Billy Bragg-y maybe, than "Plans." Again, though, it deals with the compromises and sacrifices we make in the name of a stable, "normal" life: "So I will build this house, and never leave" or "And you try to pretend when you teach your kids to do what they love only on nights and weekends."

"Glutton for Distance" is appropriately big and expansive -- those guitars again plus rolling rhythms from Mikey Erg (drums) and Audrey Zee Whitesides (bass). Denitzio sings of the importance of having someone to come home to and the ultimate desire to experience the world together.

Things get more political on "Yes All Cops," a rocker that dismisses the "few bad apples" theory of police abuses and calls us all out for our silence. Single "They / Them Theirs" is a pop-punk anthem that deconstructs the social construct of gender: "You are floating between two ends that don't matter."

Bouncing pop-punk guitars characterize "Most Space," an effective two-minute critique of acquisitiveness for its own sake. "Chasing" closes things out on a personal note (Billy always threw a few of those in there, too. See "Little Time Bomb."). Denitzio sings of that moment -- just an instant -- when it feels like the object of your unrequited love actually wants you. Then it's gone.

If I were to list out for you the topics that Imaginary Life confronts: gender, police brutality, middle class apathy, voracious accumulation, you may say, "That all seems so heavy." You'd be wrong. Denitzio and Worriers make their points, sure. Some of the songs are unflinching in their criticisms. But these are great punk rock songs. The kind of songs that will have entire audiences jumping and singing along. Screaming out loud, in unison, messages that deserve to be heard.

Imaginary Life is out now on Don Giovanni Records, and you can catch Worriers live at Asbury Lanes on 8/13 -- JUST A FEW HOURS FROM THE TIME OF THIS WRITING! -- when they play with Cayetana, Chumped, Thin Lips, and ROMP. See you there.

New Single from Worriers

Worriers at Knitting Factory Brooklyn in February.

"They / Them / Theirs"

Lauren Denitzio's Worriers have something that I really like. I've always been drawn to a politically-charged message wrapped in an accessible package. Billy Bragg took on big issues like war and peace and capitalism on all of those records that I loved throughout my high school and college years. Worriers take a more personal approach.

"They / Them / Theirs" addresses society's construct of the gender binary. "What if I don't want something that applies to me? What if there's no better word than just not saying anything?" and "We are floating between two ends that don't matter." Denitzio takes that very personal feeling and extends it out to kind of ask, "How about treating people like people before we try to put them into a category or a box?" The band deliver that message as a fast-paced piece of pop punk that should have audiences singing it in unison for everyone to hear.

The song is the first single from Worriers' debut full-length, Imaginary Life, which is due on August 7th from Don Giovanni. The album was produced by Against Me!'s Laura Jane Grace.

I saw Grace being interviewed by Larry King once. King asked her what it felt like to be in the "wrong body" or something, and her response was something along the lines of, "I never felt like I was in the 'wrong body.' I just felt like me." Her collaboration with Worriers on "They / Them / Theirs" is a great one, and I look forward to hearing the rest of the record.

Worriers have also announced a tour that brings them to our area a few times. They kick things off tomorrow with a show at Brooklyn's Silent Barn that also features Caves, Sundials, and Alice. After a few weeks spent traversing these United States, Worriers come to Starland as part of the IDOBI Meltdown festival on Friday June 26th with Lifetime, The Menzingers, and Laura Stevenson. They close out the tour with a stop at New Brunswick's In The West on June 29th.

Check out "They / Them / Theirs" below.

Mirah, Mal Blum, Worriers, Slothrust, and Aye Nako Played Knitting Factory Brooklyn, 4/3/15

Mal Blum played the She Shreds / Don Giovanni Showcase last Friday. Great photo by Mike Petzinger.

Words by Allyson Dwyer

Yesterday, I gave you Mike Petzinger's photo highlights of last Friday's She Shreds / Don Giovanni Showcase featuring Mirah, Mal Blum, Worriers, Slothrust, and Aye Nako at Knitting Factory Brooklyn. As promised, here's Allyson Dwyer's take on the event.

The same pair covered the Screaming Females show at Asbury Lanes for us, and I'll get you that tomorrow. For now, here's Allyson. Now, it's time for a limoncello with George.

She Shreds / Don Giovanni Showcase at Knitting Factory Brooklyn

by Allyson Dwyer

CoolDad is in Italy, probably on a yacht with George Clooney drinking fancy wine and wearing designer scarves; so I'm stepping up to do his dirty work. Usually the designated beer runner, I've finally graduated to covering shows while CoolDad HQ CEO laughs from a distant private yacht.

On Friday, I headed into Brooklyn by my lonesome to check out the She Shreds release showcase with Don Giovanni Records. In between sets, DJ SAD13 (aka Sadie Dupuis of Speedy Ortiz) spun tunes. As with the record label's previous three showcases this year, it was held at the Knitting Factory.

I arrived just in time for the beginning of Aye Nako's set. I had listened to Aye Nako, having come across them on a random Spotify playlist, and was excited to catch them live. The Brooklyn-based band had a wonderful dynamic on stage – lo-fi power pop-punk musings, with lead vocals traded off between guitarists Mars and Angie. Roommates, they shared that they have the best name for a dog ever...Broccolini. Holy shit! So cute.

I caught up with Mike Petzinger and other friends, and then got up front to check out Slothrust. I had never seen them before, and I was blown away. From Brooklyn via Boston, they are a band you have to experience live. Watching them play is like watching a perfectly edited, timed short movie. Leah Mallbaum's neurotic lyrics are made unique by her precise guitar playing and calculated-yet-warm voice. My clothes literally floated above my skin to Kyle Bann's basslines, and the hair on my neck rose to each soaring, rising crescendo of a song. Since, their album has not left my car stereo.

Next up was Lauren Measure's Worriers, a band I have seen quite a few times now. It felt like seeing old friends. Sadly, the night was going to be the last that guitarist Rachel Rubino would be playing with the band for some time. But they played their hearts out to an absolutely packed and enthusiastic room. The band are working on a new album. I'm excited to hear more and, of course, to see them again.

The fantastic Mal Blum and band took the stage to play tracks off her recent Tempest In A Teacup as well as new songs from her upcoming album that will be her first for Don Giovanni. Saying I'm excited for this new album is an understatement – and so hearing some of the songs again made me very happy. Plus, Mal Blum is just such a wonderful personality. Her stage presence is just another part of what makes her music so warmly inviting and familiar.

The night was building up for Mirah, an artist each band gushed about being excited to play with. It seems that everyone has a history with her music. I have a few of her albums, but I haven't yet made that deep connection with her in a way that others, like her peers, have. With a long drive ahead of me, I headed out for the night after just a few songs. I heard from Mike Petzinger that, for many in the audience, it was like a religious experience. I can certainly identify. I have a few artists who would, no doubt, do that for me (All Praise Queen Björk).

Stay tuned for another takeover, in which I visit Saturday's Screaming Females show at the Lanes. I know, I'm hella interesting. Xoxo.

Photo Highlights of Mirah, Mal Blum, Worriers, Slothrust, Aye Nako at Knitting Factory Brooklyn, 4/3/15

Mirah headlined the She Shreds / Don Giovanni Showcase on Friday night at Knitting Factory Brooklyn.

She Shreds / Don Giovanni Showcase

So I told you I was lining up some quality substitutes while I was away on vacation. Well, I got talented photographer Mike Petzinger and voice of her generation Allyson Dwyer to cover the She Shreds Magazine / Don Giovanni Showcase on Friday night. The bill featured Mirah, Mal Blum, Worriers, Slothrust, and Aye Nako. I'm telling you. You will not do any better than the duo of Mike and Allyson when it comes to getting the feel of what it was like to be at any show.

In the interest of SEO and milking the event for all it's worth, I'm first sharing Mike's shots of the evening. Allyson will chime in with her take a little later.

These are just some highlights. For the rest, head over to Mike Petzinger Photography and give his page a like. You'll be treated to plenty of fantastic shots from shows around the NY / NJ area.

Don Giovanni Records Showcase at The Knitting Factory Brooklyn, 2/7/15 (PHOTO LINKS)

Downtown Boys played. Craziness ensued.

Night 2

The dynamic duo of Allyson and me were back at Knitting Factory Brooklyn for the second installment of Don Giovanni's 2015 label showcase. After a bit of wrangling to ensure that I had a photo pass for the show, I was inside again and took up my spot front and center. Good thing I got that pass, too; because I went absolutely crazy taking photos on the second night.

Anyway, Chris Gethard was hosting again for Night 2. He'd noted the evening before that Don Giovanni are a label that think outside the box: Take the first two nights of the showcase and put them right next to each other. Then, hold Night 3 some number of weeks later. Even better, make that third night have two separate shows to confuse everyone even more.

Joe Steinhardt: "improv'er" / break dancer

Gethard again treated us to the comedy stylings of Don Giovanni executive Joe Steinhardt. This time Gethard and Steinhardt engaged in some long-form improv involving Ikea and break dancing. Both gamely attempted to execute spins on the stage. Gold.

Recent -- like really recent -- Don Giovanni signees Alice started things off with a short set. They seemed a little nervous which was pretty charming, and they definitely have a sound that touches on a lot of stuff I really like. Looking forward to the record.

brick mower produced one of my favorite records of 2014; and, while I missed them on Night 3 of last year's showcase, I've seen them several times locally since then. They had Chris Pierce on drums like they did when they opened for The Muffs at Asbury Lanes and sounded as tight as I've ever heard them.

Post-NSC stage.

Last year, Nuclear Santa Claust played the smaller Night 1 at Death By Audio. That was the most aggressive of the three nights with The Groucho Marxists, Vacation, Tenement, and Night Birds also on the bill. Just like last year, beers -- Beers. Not empty beer cans. -- hurtled toward the stage throughout the set. The band, which includes Don Giovanni "co-honcho" Zach Gajewski on bass, were soaked. Cans littered the stage when the set was done.

Pete Stampfel, Chris Gethard

Just before Worriers took the stage, New York underground legend Peter Stampfel joined Gethard onstage. He discussed some deeply personal experiences with vacuum cleaners and, when asked what advice he had for independent bands trying to make it, said simply, "Persevere." Chris Gethard called Stampfel a "perfect man."

I'd just seen Worriers at Asbury Lanes during one of the Home for the Holidays after-parties, and I'm really growing to love their sound and the content of Lauren Measure's songs. Saturday just solidified that for me.

The next two sets continued the surprise theme of the previous night. Philly's Pinkwash set up a stack of amps for guitarist Joey Doubeck. After some technical issues, Doubeck and drummer Ashley Arnwine delivered a short (Very short. Like 4 songs.) set of room-shaking guitar / drum rock.

As surprised as I was by the intensity of Pinkwash, nothing could have prepared me for Providence, RI's Downtown Boys. The band's politically charged, bi-lingual punk rock worked the crowd to the first real moshing, stage-diving frenzy of the weekend.

Downtown Boys and friends

Downtown Boys had guitar, bass, drums, saxophones, a guy jumping around hitting drumsticks together, and lead singer Victoria Ruiz. They had rage. As Ruiz made between song speeches about gender, race, and the police, her mother stood beaming at the front of the stage. Ruiz eventually climbed into the audience and ended up being hoisted aloft in what she claimed was her first-ever crowd surf. Drummer Norlan Olivo eventually followed Ruiz into the crowd and climbed atop his floor tom as the crowd held it over their heads. By the end of the set, people from the audience had joined the band onstage for a group sing and thrash. Totally crazy. Totally cathartic.

California X did a great job following the hardest act to follow of the night, closing things out with a wall of guitar noise. The band had a lot more room to move around than when I saw them a few weeks ago at Paradise Lost, and I could actually see them and take photos this time. I held my spot at the front of the stage and reveled in one of my favorite bands right now.

At the end of the night, I told Joe Steinhardt about my amazement with Downtown Boys, and he said, "We try to bring you the future here."

Don Giovanni bring more than that. It's obvious that Joe and Zach are signing and helping out bands that they really personally enjoy. The results of that approach are obvious when you feel the good vibes at one of these shows.

Two days. Two late, late nights. One traffic ticket. Thirteen bands. So worth it.

Links to all of the pics from Night 2 are below.

Chris Gethard, Joe Steinhardt, Peter Stampfel
Alice
Brick Mower
Nuclear Santa Claust
Worriers
Pinkwash
Downtown Boys
California X

H4TH2014, Night 3

Happiest Time of the Year

I started going to the Home for the Holidays shows a couple of years ago. From that first time, I felt the amazing sense of community fostered by The Bouncing Souls. I think one of the members of one of the opening bands in 2012 said something like, "Who else throws a multi-day party like this for all of their friends?"

I can't imagine that anyone does.

Scotch LaRock and I wrote about how great the Home for the Summer weekend was back in July, and last night at The Stone Pony was just one more example. Seaside Caves played to a surprisingly large early crowd. One of the reasons -- in addition to all of the friends I heard shouting for them from the crowd -- was probably all the people who'd come out to see Frank Iero. Frank Iero and The Cellabration did a set that was basically non-stop energy from start to finish. Jesse Malin was dripping with sweat following his own set, which included a cover of one of my favorites, "If I Should Fall from Grace with God."

The Bouncing Souls followed Night 1's "pre-2000" set and Night 2's "post-2000" set with a career spanning roll call of greatest hits. At various points throughout the night, The Souls brought up fans to take over drums, vocals, guitar, and bass. For the first encore, all four guests took the stage to cover "Hopeless Romantic" as Greg Attonito summersaulted into the crowd and surfed throughout the song.

Who else does that? Who else engages their fans like that? I haven't seen it too often.

After the show, many of us trundled over to Asbury Lanes to catch the last two sets of 2014's Home for the Holidays. White Wives' Roger Harvey and his band The Wild Life started things off just after midnight. I was trying to place their sound, turning to someone and mentioning The Mountain Goats, I think. Then they closed their set with a cover of Neutral Milk Hotel's "Gardenhead / Leave Me Alone." I bolted for the stage mid-conversation, so that I could sing along. Great.

Lauren Denitzio and her band, Worriers, were next. I hadn't caught up with them since February's Don Giovanni Showcase, and I was happy to see them on this year's after party schedule. "Cruel Optimist" and "Precarity Rules" were two of my favorite songs from last year, and it was great to hear them live again.

Things ended a little after 1 AM, and another Home for the Holidays was in the books. It just seems to get better every year. And I'm pretty sure you don't have to be a Bouncing Souls superfan or true believer to get it. It's just a great weekend celebrating some great New Jersey music. Everyone's invited. Everyone's included. It's the happiest time of the year.

Here are some of the pics I got from last night. The rest are at Flickr.

Don Giovanni Records Showcase Starts Tonight. New Brick Mower.

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

New Brunswick's Don Giovanni Records has grown into, quite simply, one of the most important independent record labels in the country. Nowhere is that more evident than at the label's annual showcase. Founded as kind of an alternative to the industry / corporate showcases at events like CMJ or SXSW, the Don Giovanni event features bands from the label, bands who are friends of the label, and a real sense of community.

This year's event spans three days in Brooklyn. Tonight's show is at Death By Audio and features Tenement, Vacation, Nuclear Santa Claust, The Groucho Marxists, and the Jersey Shore's Night Birds.

Nights Two and Three take place at Music Hall of Williamsburg. Tomorrow night's lineup consists of Laura Stevenson, Shellshag, Upset, Worriers, and Nude Beach; while Saturday brings Screaming Females, California X, Brick Mower, Priests, and the currently Asbury-based Black Wine.

These are some great bands that I've written about often here and elsewhere (click the little tags at the bottom of this post or the "Speak Into My Good Eye" tab up above to see all of that). As of right now, it looks like tickets are still available for each night, including two-day passes to the MHOW shows. If you can't make it, watch for my coverage over at Speak Into My Good Eye.

Also, take a listen to the brand new "Shitty Parade" from New Jersey Pop Punks Brick Mower whose album Teenage Graceland comes out March 25th on Don Giovanni.

Backlog Edition

Listening Session Friday

A bunch of albums have come out in the last week or two that could be contenders for whatever type of year-end list / post / vanity project I decide to put together. I did manage to cobble together a review of the sophomore LP from Swearin', Surfing Strange, earlier this week. That leaves me with at least three more that I want to get to before too long:

Upset, She's Gone
Worriers, Cruel Optimism

and one that, inexplicably, flew under my radar until recently,

Los Campesinos!, NO BLUES

I think that when CoolMom started at her latest job several years back she had to fill out a little personal profile for the hiring announcement. I'm almost sure that, on the "favorite music" line, she wrote, "Billy Bragg, Los Campesinos!"

Keep your eyes peeled for a flurry of activity this weekend (maybe even the return of the "Sunday Run Album Review") and...

Rock on.