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Stiff Little Fingers and
New Rivals
Highline Ballroom
November 11, 2007
Written by Josh Williams
Photographed by Amy Davidson
Opposite
Photo: Stiff Little Fingers
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I found myself down
in the bowels of the meatpacking district on a Sunday
night. No, I wasn’t hanging out with old trannies.
I was at the Highline Ballroom, the newest corporate
music death-star in town. Who needs independently
owned venues and a decent pint with your punk rock
when you can have a handsomely prepared salad with
your $12 dollar cocktails? Well, the salad was a
bit of a joke. Apparently you can slap half a head
of romaine on a plate, squirt it with some mustard,
and voila, fancy meal. The staff on the other hand,
was pleasant and professional. And I might add,
the Highline cocktail was almost worth $12. But
this is not a food review, so…
New Rivals
New Rivals
New Rivals
Opening was the New Rivals, a poppy quintet with
a dash of feel good punk. They reminded me of a
lot of the corporate sanctioned “melodic punk”
you’ve heard on Clear Channel stations the
past few years, kind of like a harder edged Blink
182, or Sum 41. The distorted guitars brought out
the bands desire to bring on a hard sound. However,
that sound was quite muddled and non-distinctive.
The guitarists did have chops, but they may want
to work on tone a bit. The rhythm section was tight,
bass player did a good job in the pocket, and the
singer did have a bit of charisma in an asshole
kind of way. You know the type, the grinning bully.
The guitar player even told him he was sick of his
bullying halfway through the set. It seemed to be
in jest, but maybe something lurks below the surface.
Oddly enough, at the beginning of the set, the singer
made mention of the 15 lbs he had recently put on.
But then he mentioned they were from long island,
so it made sense. Surely he’ll be back in
shape by beach season. Other than attitude, the
voice was so-so. Good handle on melody, though no
memorable lyrics other than “I want to die
face down in your vagina”. And well, let’s
face it—there is absolutely nothing wrong
with that in the slightest. Sometimes all you need
is a sneer, a swagger, and a song about p*$$y.
For more information about New Rivals, log onto:
http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?
fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendID=20108360
Stiff Little Fingers
Stiff Little Fingers were next. They were of course,
the act the crowd had come to see, and they delivered.
Even though Jake Burns has put on some weight and
age, he made no mention of it, and the band played
the set like a bunch of upstarts. It was advertised
beforehand that they were going to perform the 1979
breakout album “Inflammable Material”,
in its entirety. They performed a good half hour
to 45 minute set before even launching into “Suspect
Device.” By the time “Alternative Ulster”
entered the set, this writer was a tad drunk, and
entirely satisfied, and glad to say he’d been
there.
For more information about Stiff Little Fingeres,
log onto: http://www.slf.com/
and http://www.myspace.com/stifflittlefingers1977
Stiff Little Fingers
Stiff Little Fingers
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