Read previous – Photos: Softcult at PhilaMOCA
At my age, 4-band lineups can be arduous; however, the show headlined by Destroy Boys at the TLA in Philly on Saturday, September 10th was one for the ages and worth the prolonged standing-induced joint pain. Destroy Boys have seemingly been touring non-stop since the release of their 2021 LP Open Mouth, Open Heart – for this brief leg of their tour, they’re joined by an absolutely killer lineup that included Pinkshift, Softcult, and Jigsaw Youth.
Opening the night was NY-based trio Jigsaw Youth. Prior to the show, I wasn’t familiar with them; however, they immediately grabbed my attention with their heavy riffs, gut busting bass lines, and psychedelic grooves. Not to mention, their live performance was electrifying – especially that of singer/bassist Maria Alvarez. Alvarez later called for the crowd to open up a pit, to which the crowd obliged. They finished up their set with a cover of Nirvana deep cut “Milk It”, during which the crowd formed a wall of death. What a way to start a show!
We had a chance to catch Softcult earlier this summer at PhilaMOCA (coverage here), but their shoegaze distortion and dreamy harmonies were right at home on the larger stage at the TLA. They performed tracks from their phenomenal Year Of The Rat and Year Of The Snake EPs. Singer/guitarist Mercedes Arn-Horn riled up the crowd for “BWBB” (i.e., ‘Boys Will Be Boys’), a song that’s a big middle finger to bystanders that enable shit behavior.
I’ve been meaning to catch Pinkshift ever since being introduced to their track “i’m gonna tell my therapist on you” and I was super bummed to have missed them the last 2 times they played Philly (supporting PUP and Mannequin P*ssy). The Baltimore-based trio, comprised of singer Ashrita Kumar, guitarist Paul Vallejo, and drummer Myron Houngbedji, were down to get the crowd sweaty and it didn’t take long. Kumar is a phenomenal vocalist and an exhilarating performer – I also commend her fashion choice of rocking (platform) Crocs (in sport mode, of course) with socks, a look I can definitely get behind. I’ve seen A LOT of bands since coming back from the COVID lockdown, and Pinkshift’s performance is a top contender for one of my favorites. I’m definitely planning to catch them again when they play the FU Church on November 19th (tickets here).
Destroy Boys singer/guitarist Alexia Roditis mentioned that their TLA performance was their biggest headlining show ever (to date) – that’s pretty hard to believe, considering they hail from the West Coast and have been making a name for themselves since 2015. Seeing them live, I can imagine how fun and rowdy their early DIY/basement shows must’ve been. While the name Destroy Boys conjures a particular aesthetic, they’re not a 1 dimensional band by any means – their sound ranges from garage/punk to anthemic power pop. Their set primarily comprised tracks from Open Mouth, Open Heart, but they broke out their most popular track (“I Threw Glass at My Friend’s Eyes and Now I’m on Probation”) mid-set along with a cover of Nirvana’s “Drain You”. They finished out their set with “Fences” before coming back with an encore of short covers and a follow-up performance of “Muzzle”.
Destroy Boys just played Riot Fest in Chicago and will finish out their tour with some Midwest dates. See all of their upcoming tour dates here. Check out their music video for “Locker Room Bully” from Open Mouth, Open Heart below and keep scrolling to see more photos from the show.
