Before Green Day and Blink 182 played their catchy punk meets pop music, there was The Queers and The Dickies who helped originate the sound. Both bands have been performing their brand of pop punk for well over thirty years. After watching the two perform at The Southgate House Revival it looks like they still have the speed and ferocity they had when they started.
While they may not be playing at the large venues that Green Day and Blink 182 currently perform at, nothing really beats a punk rock show at a smaller venue. Fans get the chance to get closer to the band for a much more intimate experience. Not to mention plenty of open floor space for a pit.
For me, The Queers 1993 album, Love Songs for the Retarded was my introduction to the world of punk rock. Hearing classics from this album such as, Granolahead, I can’t stop farting and Ursula fin ally has tits, turned me back into a fist pumping teenager.
The band didn’t waste any time going from one song to the next starting each song with a quick “1,2,3,4” ala Ramones countdown. And speaking of the Ramones, The Queers closed out their set with a cover Sheena is a Punk Rocker. While the show was light in attendance, almost everyone was in the pit for this classic.
The Dickies were up next. Frontman Leonard Graves Phillips took the stage in a pair of jeans, glasses and a well-worn sports jacket; looking more like an eccentric science teacher than legendary punk star. Phillips spent most of his time on stage gyrating like a spastic lunatic as he sang and played with multiple stage props. Fans were treated to such over the top antics such as, Phillips in goggles riding a blow up doll and even a giant singing purple penis.
Phillips did take a quick break from the music and stage antics to address the election and current events stating, “Let the Hardcore bands argue about politics. I’m sure Fat Mike (of NOFX fame) has something to say.”
The Dickies continued on thru their set list with a blitzkrieg cover of Black Sabbath’s Paranoid, Gigantour (one of my personal favorites) and finished the evening with The Banana Splits (The Tra La La Song) I was a little disappointed they didn’t play Killer Klowns from Outer Space (The title track of the classic 1988 B Horror Movie) but there is always next time.
