Spinning Platters

It’s safe to say, in this day and age, that defining what constitutes “punk” music is irrationally difficult. Classicists will tell you that it means 3-4 chords, lightning-fast drums, a general disregard for playing instruments BESIDES drums with extreme skill, and lyrics focused on dissent, disturbance, and general disquiet with the way things are. Others will claim that it’s more the attitude that matters than the instrumentation; the DIY aesthetic, the “we’re angry and we’re here to let you know what’s wrong with the world” message, and the desire to rebel against any manner of what constitutes the norm. The latter argument usually bears more weight; too often are to be found multi-platinum-selling artists playing their same recycled chords, in the aforementioned classic formula, with no specifically diligent message — only an intent to be a product that is easy to swallow, and thus, sell. Bands such as the World/Inferno Friendship Society are better examples of the image that punk music has so deftly stood for over the years, shifted into a medium of instrumentation and songwriting that borrows from so many genres and walks of life that, while they could not be called “punk rock” in the classic 70’s musical style, they possess the attitude and energy in spades — after all, how often do you hear jazz and klezmer music so furious that it breeds explosive mosh pits?

Continue reading “Show Review: The World/Inferno Friendship Society with The Phenomenauts and Locksley at the Rickshaw Stop, 10/3/2011”