The Jesse Minute, Botox Party, Yavin Five, Girl Haggard, Gunshot Wound
Firehouse 13 in Providence, RI
June 3, 2009

It took me awhile before I realized that I was watching Gunshot Wound. I forgot that they were opening the show and they sounded much heavier than they did the last time I saw them, which was only a couple weeks ago.
Being a little more sober than the last time, I got to enjoy them with a clear head, and they were truly rocking the place. The songs were fast, heavy punk rock songs which reminded me of Minor Threat if they played Fat Wreck Chords style. One of their guitarists even sounded like the bassist of Propagandhi. There was some sloppiness, but that is to be forgiven from a punk band playing at the speed of close to light.

There's no better way to follow up a fast hardcore/punk band than with some country, done with a punk rock flair, courtesy of Girl Haggard. Despite the fact that their singer had a great voice and I loved the walking bass lines, I wasn't that impressed with them. I didn't find their songs to be all that catchy, with a few exceptions. Whiskey & Co immediately came to mind as far as a comparison, but something felt lacking about them.

Yavin Five put on an energetic, heavy filled set. Their singer can scream like the town cryer during the Apocolypse, and the band backed him up with a ferocious blend of Heroin/Hot Cross styled screamo and blazing punk/hardcore. This is a band I need to see more than once every few years.

Botox Party, the only band not from Rhode Island on this show, sounded like a mixture between F.Y.P. And The Queers. I originally thought they were going to be a rockabilly band due to their drummer's Elvis greased hair and vintage looking kit, but I was mistaken. They were okay, but hunger took over towards the end of their set, forcing me to the McDonald's drive thru next door.

The Jesse Minute blew away the rest of the bands with their set. It was the last Rhode Island show with their drummer, and they sure made it special. They played a super tight set of female fronted melodic punk, and the small crowd that was there was singing along and having themselves a great time. I hadn't heard much of them before, but their songs had an instant draw to them. They were catchy as all hell and had a fun vibe, a definite positive way to end the night.

Written by: RF
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