Local noise rockers get loud at The Fat Cat
Drenched in fuzz and distortion, and as salty as the nearby sea, rock and roll is alive in downtown St. John’s.
The Fat Cat was a flurry of activity on Saturday, with Danny Keating, Puce and Geinus celebrating the release of Geinus’s 2018 album, “Keeper.”
Starting late at 11:30 p.m., the show began with the musical stylings of Keating, whose lo-fi, outsider music created an interesting opening set for the show.
Keating has been performing in the city for well over 10 years, his act reminiscent of the king of outsider music, Daniel Johnston – whom Keating performed a tribute to in 2016.
Puce, a relatively new band in the local music scene, was next.
Though the three-piece band may be new, guitarist and vocalist Victor Lewis is a familiar face on St. John’s stages.
I’ve been a fan of Puce since the October 2016 release of their self-titled EP.
Just a month after its release, the Fred’s Records play copy looked ancient, tattered and torn from being in constant rotation. Soon thereafter, we were reminded by a colleague that we had more albums in stock than just the Puce EP — perhaps we should diversify our musical selections.
Puce has perfected their brand of sludge-y, psychedelic doom. At times, I heard a hint of North African blues. At other times, classic rock shone through the sludge. At one point, while drummer Matt Cull and bassist Ashton Whitt kept time, Lewis transcended human form, playing a wild guitar solo, making use of the 12 effects pedals at his feet.
The trio is working on new material, and their second release is highly anticipated by pretty much everyone who has had the opportunity to see the
My final views on the Geinus set comes through in the form of nearly illegible scribble in my notepad, written well after 2 a.m. – “Geinus creates the perfect elevator music for the descent into hell – this is a compliment.”
band perform.
Though Puce is a tough act to follow, Geinus were on fire at their album release show, drawing a large crowd hungry for music off their new eightsong album, “Keeper.”
Starting at 1:30 a.m., the four-piece band – Steve Abbott on guitar/vocals, Chris Brown on guitar, Andrew Fisher on bass and Alex Pierson on drums – kicked off their set with “Chicargo,” the floor packed with fans, longtime and new, swaying, fistpumping and headbanging along with the complex noise rock arrangements.
After just a couple of songs, savagely hard-hitting drummer Pierson broke his snare drum, but this was just a minor setback for the talented band, who have nearly two decades of experience playing live shows in St. John’s. Using local connections, the snare drum was soon replaced.
With catchy riffs, heavy breakdowns, excellent stage presence and mesmerizing solos from lead guitarist Abbott, Geinus put on a highly memorable performance.
My final views on the Geinus set comes through in the form of nearly illegible scribble in my notepad, written well after 2 a.m. – “Geinus creates the perfect elevator music for the descent into hell – this is a compliment.”
Not having seen these local legends before this weekend, I now know to keep an ear out for future shows. Geinus rips, and like their 2018 release, this local band is a “Keeper.”