April has just started and Punk Rock Tacos has already put together three shows as part of their relentless campaign to spread punk rock all over the Chicagoland area. This time the show takes place at the legendary South Irving Park venue, Livewire Lounge. The atmosphere was great even before the first band got up on stage; beer in hand, most of the crowd was eager to see some great bands while jamming to the music playing in the bar. A quick shout out to the bartender playing Eskorbuto, one of my favorite bands, which made getting there early truly worth it.
One of the aspects of the way Punk Rock Tacos puts together shows that make them so enjoyable is their ability to curate a chaotic mix of bands and genres. On paper, this strange combination would not appear to work, but once that initial feedback of the amplifiers’ screeches, as if it was introducing the rest of the distorted noise we call music, it all starts to make sense. On tonight’s bill, the only common thread between all the performers is the crunchy distorted guitars; although to the inexperienced ear they all probably sound similar, these bands could not be more different, both in genre and their artistic expression.
The first opener for the evening was Hood Rats. The rock n roll and punk rock trio made their way from Montreal to Chicago and put on an incredible performance despite having probably the toughest responsibility – to get the crowd started and excited. They played an energetic set that got everyone at Livewire interested and engaged.
The band’s lead singer and guitar player, Tony Salador, is the mastermind behind the musical project accompanied by Guillaume Tremblay & Andy McAdam as supporting musicians. At the risk of sounding reductive, Hood Rat’s set could be described as electric. Their music ticks all the boxes needed to have a great time –it is loud, fast, and straightforward. A great balance between street punk, leaning towards hardcore punk, but with a prevalent underlying rock n roll sound ever-present in their catchy riffs.
Overall, Hood Rats are a great band to see live. Hopefully, they will come back to Chicago soon, and if they do I would suggest any enjoyer of hardcore punk and street punk to see them live. The band describes their music as “in your face, raw music” and that description fits them perfectly. Their studio music is also worth checking out, and a great place to start would be either their song “Do Not Resuscitate” off of their Deep Cuts: The Singles Collection album or their video just released earlier this month “F*** the Police.”
After a few minutes of setting up and getting everything ready, Maharaja took the stage. Not many people were expecting the stark contrast between the first and second acts. This three-piece act from Dayton, Ohio showed they are all well-seasoned musicians; their performance was controlled, clean, and incredibly fucking heavy.
In comparison with the first band and their music perfect for slamming and thrashing, Maharaja brought the meat to the table with a slower-paced, thick, sludge and doom metal more suitable for the long-term neck issues caused by headbanging too hard. Their songs were significantly longer, as is typical in this specific genre. However, when the music is good, does the length of the track really matter? In terms of musicianship, all three members were exceptional, but the vocal skills of the lead singer and bassist alongside the backing vocals of the guitar player are worth highlighting. The brutal, unnatural, guttural sounds gave the music a haunting sound of despair and anguish. Their style is heavy, and gloomy, like being pummeled with a sledgehammer to the skull repeatedly (in the best way possible) and the atmosphere they created while performing complemented that sound perfectly.
Sadly, Maharaja is currently bidding farewell, as they are disbanding soon. All good things must come to an end, and this one specifically is leaving one full-length album and a few EPs to show for it. Not only does the cover image look sick, but their single “Soulless” would be a great soundtrack if there is ever a movie made about Marvin Heemeyer’s Bulldozer Rampage.
At this point of the show, the gears shifted. Lengua Salvaje took over the stage and as they were setting up, it was clear they were there on a mission: to play fast, loud, and with determination. They had things to say, and pulled no punches.
Before beginning their set, as the band members were waiting for their cue, the lead singer standing a bit off to the side gave the impression of someone kind of shy and reserved. However, once the music started playing, the presence of the vocalist seemed to grow larger and larger until it was the stage that felt too small and constrictive.
Lengua Salvaje added a much-appreciated political tone to the show. Touching on anarchist themes and spreading a fairly overt anti-capitalist message, their music was as untamed as their namesake. In terms of sound, the band was playing an amalgamation of hardcore and crust punk with hints of grindcore; the guitar tone was crunchy, closer to the standard sound of crust punk, but the drums truly shone by setting up the pace that created the back and forth between the styles, keeping each song interesting throughout their set.
A song of theirs worth checking out is the track titled “Machete,” it truly showcases this band’s musical style, a unique sound that combines the best aspects of several subgenres within the more extreme branches of punk. Lengua Salvaje is a great band to see live for an unbridled and savage display of angst and aggression, and a perfect choice to precede the headliners of the evening.
To close off the evening, the final band of the show took the stage. In between the tambores, y la sazón caribeña they unapologetically embrace as a core part of their sound, La Armada brought unto the table a sound that took all the aspects from the music genres of the previous three bands. The clear influence of metal, punk, and hardcore shone through in every single song. The set was tight, a no-bullshit kind of performance, which makes sense for a band with a clear message of anti-oppression that honors the Caribbean resistance movement.
Singing in both English and Spanish, this band takes on colonization both as a historical concept and as a modern one as one of their main subjects. Embracing Latin American, and Afro-Caribbean rhythms they have a subversive approach to what has historically been a caucasian music genre, which in a way is their strongest form of protest.
When talking about their music, they have some explosive, fast-tempo tracks. They do not shy away from their hardcore punk original sound but also are not afraid of brazenly appropriating the characteristics of adjacent music genres to create depth and variation in the songs. Their frontman Enrique Vargas performed incredibly well, connecting and engaging with the crowd as well as delivering each lyric with fierce, and aggression.
Al final del día, el corazón hispano lleva la sangre que anhela la libertad del viento caribeño. Es la razón por la cual es fácil crear una conexión con las letras que rechazan la colonización, y mantienen presente la necesidad de la unión entre los pueblos oprimidos. Fomentar la resistencia latina es parte esencial del deber de los activistas hispanos, y así juntos salir pa’lante.
This article was a collaborative effort with the incredibly talented Ed Kost who produced all the featured images in the article.
