New York’s Show Me the Body headlined a sweaty, action-packed show at San Diego’s Brick By Brick that offered an aggressive, experimental, and ferocious energy.
The critically acclaimed trio incorporates distorted banjo, discordant keyboards and an almost hip-hop-like vocal delivery into songs pinned down by a driving rhythm section and a distorted banjo that is extremely unique to hardcore music making them sound like no one else.
The crowd ate up SMTB’s dynamics, which were everything between danceable post-punk, thrash inducing breakdowns, and electronic noise sessions. Some in the audience sang along as singer and banjo-basher Julian Cashwan Pratt spat lyrics into the mic. Others, swept up in the frantic energy, orchestrated stage dives.
The tour had a stacked bull that featured similarly boundary-pushing hardcore artists in Jesus Piece, Scowl, and Zulu — all of whom ripped Brick x Brick to shreds and crafted the perfect atmosphere for SMTB to shine.
Show Me the Body’s concert was an intense and exhilarating experience. Their unique take on hardcore made for a truly memorable performance, and their energy was infectious. I would highly recommend seeing them live if you have the chance.