Welcome to Hell's Lobby

Hardcore timeout from the usual indie suspects. Last night I halfway accidentally ended up at one of the most epic shows I've seen in quite some time. If you ever got into the Toadies, or were hanging out in Denton in the early 90s, then you've probably heard of Brutal Juice, but if you haven't, it's time, my friend. This band got together last night at Lola's, Fort Worth for a gig Funky Townians have been anticipating since last fall, and quite frankly, these guys melted our faces off. (so much so that it's actually grammatically correct to end that sentence on a preposition.) Brutal Juice is self-proclaimed "acid punk" with metal tendencies, but for such a hardcore sound, it is surprisingly danceable. I mean, of course, you can still find the bald-but-bearded, slightly overweight guys with neck tattoos sweating and running into each other in primal displays of punk dance, but they even had us (my indie bff and I) dancing our socks off.

The bartender told us that two of the three main AC units were out, and sweat was flying, but no one could sit still. (Except for someone's hipster girlfriend who was sitting in the back, praying for death and setting new text speed records with thumbs like 8th grade girls'. Whatever, she was wearing some noise pop band tee and clearly didn't have a rock n' roll bone in her twiggy body.) Lola's, which is a pretty intimate space, was packed and receiving blow after blow from songs so electrified the set could count as electroshock therapy. The only person who seemed to get more catharsis from the whole event was the vocalist, Craig Welch, who is highly addictive and completely captivating to watch. Even guitarist, Ted Wood, who spent the day in the hospital, dug his feet into the stage and channeled divine punk energy for over an hour.

Brutal Juice found huge success in the 90s, opening for bands like The Toadies and GWAR, but took a ten-year hiatus from the scene, not seeing their first reunion show until 2007. I have a sneaky feeling we haven't seen the last from this band, so you should definitely check out their MySpace and see if you can't catch a show. If you're in Dallas, they're playing at Trees tomorrow night (May 29; doors at 7:00), and they'll be down in Austin May 30 at Red 7, doors open at 7:00. As a chick with indie folk leanings, trust me- pretty much anyone can enjoy the show Brutal Juice puts on; the energy is undeniable and contagious, and you'll find your head pounding along even if you don't normally listen to jams in which "Raaawwhhhh!" is a perfectly acceptable lyric.

Video won't do these guys justice, but try this on for size: