Zombie Fight @ ABC No Rio 12/22/12

Posted Dec 25, 2012, by The Bear.

Featured Artists: Capacities; Coma Regalia; We Were Skeletons; Zombie Fight; Genre: Hardcore; Punk; Rock;
ABC No Rio, located on Rivington Street on the lower east side of Manhattan, is, with the closures of places like CBGBs, Coney Island High, The Wetlands, The Knitting Factory (moved to Brooklyn), and other places, one of the few great Punk clubs left in Manhattan from the older days and, despite constant rumors of closings, or building renovations, is still very much a going concern. Hopefully it will be for a long time to come.

On Saturday, Dec. 22, 2012, I saw a matinee there made up of some of the younger Hardcore Punk bands in the scene these days; the headliner was Zombie Fight, who I have seen before, and they were supported by We Were Skeletons, Capacities, and Coma Regalia, this last band, having come in all the way from Indiana for the show ,was playing in place of Born In A Cent who had originally been advertised for the bill.

If you ever see a show at ABC No Rio wear earplugs as the performance space is very small with a capacity of maybe 100 (or less) so with bands playing all out it can be loud! But that's what you expect from a Hardcore show, right? This show was no exception. It was also a relatively short show as they had to be done before 7 PM, and with doors at 3 PM, and the first act at 4 PM, things were kept moving at fast clip and the schedule was rigorously kept.

All of the bands were good, each in their own way. Coma Regalia, who played first, is a duo of a guitarist and a drummer / singer, but they make as much noise as a four person band. Capacites, who played next, was a four person band with three singers who all sang lead at different times. We Were Skeletons probably were the most musically ambitious, with interesting breaks in their songs going from loud hardcore, to softer (and slower) more melodic parts at times. And Zombie Fight has matured into an excellent new generation NYHC band who play it loud, fast, and raw, with great riffs topped by unmistakable Hardcore vocals. All four bands deserve to be supported and you should check them out if you can.