While the famous parade marched up Fifth Avenue this weekend the hardcore punk/drunks made their way down to the East Village to shout, slam dance and spill their beers all over Bowery Electric as some of New York Hard Core’s finest took to the stage to close out St. Patrick’s Day 2019.
Scene legends Murphy’s Law headlined a long night of music as The Take and the Enablers opened up the evening. The five-piece Functional Idiots played a set of short slamming direct songs with tempo changes like on “He’s Dead, Jim” as the older crowd appreciated the band’s style.
No Redeeming Social Value took the stage for the first time in 2019 to the tones of bagpipes as Brendan Shiels serenaded the crowd wearing a full-bodied beer costume while frontman Dean Miller threw green leis out. When the band kicked into gear with the classic “More Tattoos” the pit was in full force. The four-piece sent brew flying during “Beer=’s Fun” and the anthemic “Wasted For Life” playing their tight and propulsive punk rock style. Heavy, alcohol soaked tunes like “Still Drinking”, “Olde-E”, the Slumlords cover of “Drunk at The Youth of Today Reunion” and the country-twanged “I’m Gonna Puke” all were appropriate for the sloppy holiday. The finale of “Skinheads Rule” saw fans climb onto the stage for a pile-on-sing-along which caused cymbals and stands to slam into drummer Glen Lorieo who took the assault in stride, never missing a beat.
More bagpipes played as Murphy’s Law strolled out in full leprechaun costumes to the still packed house. Frontman Jimmy Gestapo recently had a medical scare and jokingly said from the stage that while he surveyed that issue he may die from cheap costume poisoning. The band’s first few songs were all classic burners as “Quest For Herb” featured blaring saxophone lines from Raven and “Beer” was a soaked hops fest, led by phenomenal drummer Chris Ara.
After that, however, the show hit its first snag as Gestapo’s bottle of Jagermeister was consumed completely by the crowd so he waited, and waited to get a new bottle before proceeding. When one arrived he drank up as the crowd happily filled in vocals for “Panty Raid”. Things seemed to be back on track but then during one of the many sing-alongs, someone ripped Jimmy G’s his necklace of beads off and he became incensed. Before “Sarasota” he stopped the set cold and went on an extended tirade against the offender, while he apologized for post song, he returned to this incident many times in-between songs, including ominously before the finale cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Somebody’s Gonna Get Their Head Kicked In Tonite”.
On a brighter note, when the band rocked into the punchy “Crucial Bar B Que”, the bagpipe aided “Cavity Creeps” or invited Todd Youth’s daughters on stage to help sing “Care Bear” spirits soared. The musical highlight of the whole evening was an extended “Ska Song” which may have went on for over 47 minutes (I lost track of exact timing) as solos were taken, weed was smoked, a section of “The Wearing of the Green” was played on pipes and a drum solo was beat out directly on the new bottle of Jager; as the band clearly revelled in the opportunity to stretch out. All in all, from the punk rock shenanigans, the joyous communal singing and drunken anger/threats it truly felt like a familiar St. Patrick’s Day in lower Manhattan.
