The Von Bondies Mercury Lounge February 16, 2009 Written by Kristen Salem Photographed by Amy Davidson Opposite Photo: Jason Stollsteimer

‘No one takes you seriously when you’re 24’… The Von Bondies provide teenage angst-fuelled punk rock--for adults. When they took to the stage at the Mercury Lounge a crowd of loyal fans were well-oiled and ready.

This band has lost and gained more members than sense and left avid followers hanging with a four-year hiatus. Now they are back with their new album Love, Hate and Then There’s You.

The Von Bondies play sweaty, jump up and down motor-city rock. And the new album kicks harder and more accessibly than the last two. ‘Pale Bride’, the opener and first single of the EP, is a tightly knit mixture of punk-blues and revival. The show no doubt left everyone’s ears ringing and clothes were covered in spilled beer from all that fist pumping.

You can’t help but adore Jason Stollsteimer’s boyish shyness and post-millennialself-loathing. This is perfectly buffered by Christy Hunt’s (rhythm guitar) and Leann Banks’ (bass) sex appeal and edgy rock-chick self-assurance. Don Blum on drums is the constant.Subtle and steadfast, he held the tunes together from the back of the stage with riveting control.

A band like this sounds best in a venue like the Mercury lounge. It’s dark, confined and deep down n’ dirty. Being a few days after Valentine’s Day, anecdotes about love and lust were told between songs. ‘ How many of you out there made love on Saturday?” Stollsteimer shouted.

Some recent media buzz surrounding the group occurred when Stollsteimer got a fistful of Jack White at a post-gig party. Was this partly due to jealousy on White’s behalf? With double the members and perhaps double the ability to bring killer guitar chords and oomph to their shows, also hailing from the same city? Hmm. Whatever the case, The Von Bondies are doing Detroit proud.