Having missed White Whale, the sound of Final Insult's set spilling into the stairwell was magnetic. The hall is vast, with beautiful scenes on the ceiling and walls. A disco ball hangs from the ceiling, spinning a spotted electric pattern that no doubt disagreed with the sobriety of many in the crowd. All night, Polish beer flowed like water and the kitchen cranked out delicious food.
STRANGERS were a standout performance early in the night, with Andy Czuba flailing about the floor, invoking an other-worldly scream, the most selfless lead singer of the rally. For years, the man has been one of those people that are like a conduit through which the scene merely passes, and his bands have always been great. Strangers is no different, and rest of the guys drive the sound with big walls of thick fuzz and really interesting rhythmic ideas. The only national band that comes to mind is Refused. The idea of a Strangers full-length record could be exciting.
If Strangers were the movers, then MALLWALKERS were the shakers, summoning a twenty minute impromptu dance party from the crowd. They're at the top of the scene right now, and everybody knows it. Maybe it was all of the pot and or the Baltika from the downstairs bar that some of us had stumbled into, but their set was brilliant (even missing Biff on trumpet), and should have gone on for hours. It's how the world should end, to the soundtrack of a Mallwalkers dance party.
The encouraging part about the two bands is that they represent everything that the Decency Rally seems to be all about: to brim with optimism at the future of the movement. Both groups are young, and will no doubt have fresh recordings sooner than later (Mallwalkers/White Whale 7" drops at the Sugar City release show on December 19th). These two sets were personal highlights, which is to not forget about truly incredible sets from Beardage, Coworkers, Everything Falls Apart, and Vile Crocodile.
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