Show Review: Versus Tetrad, FOCO, Death Trap, Blame God at Arlene’s Grocery.
June 26th, 2024.
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“Then they devoted all in the city to destruction, both men and women, young and old, oxen, sheep, and donkeys, with the edge of the sword.” -Joshua 6:21
June 27th, 2024
Yesterday we were stuck in a car for much longer than usual (Rats can drive? Yes, some do, see here) but were still enjoying the summer vibe by blasting Rage Against The Machine’s self-titled debut album. It was a fortuitous choice because as the day wore on we received news that the levers of capital had obliterated MTV New’s online archive, erasing decades of cultural history in the name of some sort of market efficiency. Killing In The Name. Then we went out to see Versus Tetrad, FOCO, Death Trap, and Blame God tear down Arlene’s Grocery with a Fistful of Steel. Here’s our account of the night.
Versus Tetrad started the show with a diverse set of instruments: Drums, bass, trumpet, sound board, and two vocalists, no guitar. This one of a kind combination cooked up what we call psychotic jazz. Drum and bass were locked in airtight with manically fast grooves. The trumpeter free-associated on top of this while the vocalists took turns shrieking and contorting all over the stage. They were like demons exorcized from Zach de la Rocha. Sometimes the trumpet and voices would scream together. It was musical group psychosis of the best kind. Each instrument's part was wildly unique, its own planet in the band's shared universe that slowly coalesced into a unified sound as if a black hole of madness was pulling them together. We can’t find any socials or music links for them, which is completely fitting.
FOCO rocked out with burnt & charred riffs, scorching red hot with wah. Before their set the sound tech pondered if his amps were going to blow out. FOCO’s bassist tried their best to manifest that thought into reality. It was mid-tempo doom thrash. If a massive hulking Mad Max vehicles had a stereo system for the driver, they’d be playing FOCO through it. Frontman barked about protest and injustice and took time in between songs to highlight a fundraiser for Palestinians that they put together. Their set was like standing in your house listening to a voicemail on an answering machine telling you that the world is on fire, while your home around you is actively engulfed in flames. If Rage Against The Machine is a fire flavored ice cream cone, FOCO is the heat wave melted version of one.
Death Trap was a solo act and sounded exactly as described, death metal vocals fused with trap beats. She called it “revenge music”. It was an unlikely but incredible mix of genres, like the combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. Being a solo act is hard but she conquered the stage with irrefutable conviction. The intensity of the performance felt like a meditation of the performer's inner world channeled through these death trap beats. One of our favorite aspects was not a part of the performance at all. After a song finished she would usually laugh before introducing the next one. It was a laugh of satisfaction, a laugh you hear from your best friend who’s happy to see you, a laugh you let out after you’ve just pulled off something near impossible.
Blame God sounded like condemnation. Their frontman screamed from a well deep inside of themselves, from a place we’re totally unfamiliar with. Maybe it was Dante’s sixth circle. Their instrumentation alternated between head banging sludge and manic blast beating. An occasional polyrhythm warped our spirit into unknown shapes. Their set had the crushing intensity of one of those hydraulic press videos. The object of destruction is subjective, so just listen to them yourselves and feel the pressure.
It was another great night of Rock. We toasted to new friends and made connections with familiar faces, the power of community is strong. There was an intense theme of resistance at this show. Resistance against injustice, persecution, genocide. The intensity of the rage against the machine’s that work to distort our lives was palpable. And this frustration is understandable. What are we to do when the wrongs of the world seem out of our power of control? We believe community and connection is part of the answer. By sharing struggle we find solidarity, and within solidarity is power.
Our night ended with the last sip of the beer bottle tasting like a battery. We’re better off forgetting about that but Versus Tetrad, FOCO, Death Trap, and Blame God left us with a set of music and memories we won’t soon forget about. Connect with them on social media below and be at their next show!
