Evan Stephens Hall, frontman of Pinegrove, as photographed by Will Fisher. Used under Creative Commons License CC BY-SA 4.0
I will begin this by saying I do not use TikTok. Proud disclaimer. However, because I’ve not been able to avoid contact with the internet in its totality, I’ve become aware of the Pinegrove Shuffle– a dance trend to a song from Pinegrove that’s been going around the video-sharing app.
Pinegrove is a band whose work I’ve adored for years, but some of that admiration was marred when Evan Stephens Hall– the group’s frontman– was accused of sexual coercion in 2017. The band took a year to refrain from releasing any music, and Hall took time to work on himself, stating that he’d begun therapy in the Facebook post in which this was all revealed.
Since then, it seems Pinegrove and Hall have been mostly accepted back into the spot they once had in the music scene. This acceptance has been solidified by the burst of the band’s alt-country music regaining public attention in the TikTok trend.
The Pinegrove Shuffle itself is a mix between the hardcore two-step and something else, resembling a bird flailing. Its movement suggests a melancholy feeling that matches the song– “Need 2,” well.
After the TikTok trend went viral, the band re-released “Need 2,” this time with a slow version, a fast version, and a hyperspeed version. The song hasn’t been reproduced at all but has instead just had its speed altered in the new releases.
Robin Murray of Clash Music describes Pinegrove’s re-ascent into the public spotlight “incredibly, bizarrely unlikely,” given their history. I could not agree more.
Even when an artist has done their time in therapy or has completed the proper reparations after an incident such as the one Hall was a part of, it feels strange to have them resurface at such a public level, especially with Pinegrove in particular. Historically, they’ve been adored, and since Hall’s accusation most have been unsure how to feel about the group.
It seems the dance trend has brought them back to a normal, inoffensive position that old fans and listeners were not exactly prepared for. I can’t say the trend is wrong or shouldn’t be popularized, but I can’t say I adore the booming popularity of a band with a sticky history either. It’s tough territory. In the meantime, I’m still enjoying the sped-up versions of “Need 2.”
After seeing friends’ posts about a recent hardcore show they’d been to in South Carolina, I finally decided to check out DRAIN, and they easily lived up to their reputation.
DRAIN’s first two EPs, “Over Thinking” (2016) and “Time Enough at Last” (2017) garnered public attention and solidified them as a prominent peg in the Santa Cruz hardcore scene. According to DRAIN frontman Sammy Ciaramitaro, “When people come to Santa Cruz, they’re like, ‘Oh, I get it, DRAIN looks like what this town looks like.’ We also sound like what you expect Santa Cruz to sound like.”
Following their local roots, DRAIN released “California Cursed” right after the dawn of the pandemic– April 2020. This is the album that first drew me to DRAIN. It’s one of those LPs I can’t help but move to when I listen to it.
Songs like “Feel the Pressure,” “Army of One,” and “Hypervigilance” are undeniably bangers, for lack of a better word, and they’ve helped the album quickly become one of my most-listened for the month.
Having an album released so soon after the outbreak of COVID-19, DRAIN wasn’t able to tour or perform any shows for “California Cursed.” This was especially unfortunate because of how vital live shows are to the fire that fuels the hardcore scene.
“Kids fell in love with music but didn’t have the chance for two years to see it live,” said DRAIN’s frontman. “Now that it’s come back, the feeling is, ‘I want to see it live. I want to go to every show. I want to experience it.'”
DRAIN’s most recent album, “Living Proof,” released on May 5 of this year. Its reception has been wider than any of the band’s other releases, and for good reason.
A review of the album in Kerrang! by Luke Morton reads, “From piledriving opener of “Run Your Luck,” “Living Proof” puts its pedal firmly through the metal, hauling a mix of chunky riffs and frenetic two-steps into a mosh-ready melee, superbly bolstered by Slayer-esque guitars and snarling, spiteful vocals. Despite the aforementioned Sammy being a genuine Good Dude, he is in serious F— You mode throughout “Living Proof,” spitting lines of defiance and individuality.”
I could not have put it any better.
DRAIN is currently on the “Living Proof” tour through the U.S. until the end of June. Here’s to hoping we get a Raleigh show real soon.
The goth subculture is, for many, inherently queer. In fact, a running joke between me and several of my goth friends is that gayness in the goth community is considered “boring” due to the sheer volume of bi and pansexuals populating the subculture.
There are many different reasons as to why goths are so queer, and I doubt I’m wholly qualified to speculate. I will do so anyways.
Perhaps the marriage of the anti-establishment ethos from which goth was born and its darkly Victorian aesthetics gave way to the dissolution of contemporary markers of gender and sexuality.
Below is a short compilation of some of my favorite tracks by queer goth artists. Some of these songs focus on themes related to queerness while others simply intersect with the artist’s identity.
The Playlist
“Deathwish” – Christian Death
“Spiritual Cramp” – Christian Death
Christian Death is one of my all-time favorite goth bands. To me, they represent what I would consider to be the archetypal goth sound: doomy guitar, moody vocals and flippantly dark lyrics. Original frontman Rozz Williams was known for dressing in drag in opposition to the hypermasculinity of the punk scene, an act which solified him as something of a queer icon.
Cover for “The Iron Mask” by Christian Death
“Burial Ground” – Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows
“Deathhouse” – Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows
Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows is a largely underrated pioneer of the goth scene. I adore her work so much that I’ll probably dedicate an entire blog article to her in the future. The mastermind behind Sopor Aeternus (meaning Eternal Sleep or Sleep of Death) is Anna Varney, a trans woman whose experiences largely fuel her music. Varney’s 2020 album, “Island of the Dead” captures the despair of being in a relationship with someone who cannot accept their partner’s transness and is based on real-life experiences.
Cover for “Island of the Dead” by Sopor Aeternus and the Ensemble of Shadows
“Inked in Red” – Vision Video
“Death in a Hallway” – Vision Video
Vision Video is a band based in Athens, Georgia that is quickly mobilizing to change the goth subculture for the better. In my article about the band, I touched on the rich political commentary the band touches on in their songs as well as the work of frontman Dusty Gannon in cultivating a safer, more accessible goth scene.
Cover for “Death in a Hallway” by Vision Video
“Dark” – Secret Shame
“Who Died in Our Backyard” – Secret Shame
Based in Asheville, Secret Shame brings an interesting contemporary sound to the traditional goth style. With a slant bordering on alternative rock and a vocalist who sounds like a centuries-old ghost, Secret Shame produces songs right on the cusp of the goth scene.
Taking a brief detour from this month’s Pride-based content (because I’m very sick and incapable of concerted research) to cover a recent show I attended.
This show was special, not just because it was insanely fun and had a great line-up, but because it was the first show my younger brothers had ever attended.
Taking place June 18 at Kings in Raleigh, this three-band show was a wildly good time and a great way to kick off a fresh work week.
Paranoid Maniac
Composed of Raleigh locals, Paranoid Maniac delivered a frenzy of hurried, untethered sounds.
The five-piece group were the first of the three headliners to go on, and their performance certainly set the tone for the rest of the night.
With an unceremonious start, the vocalist and band quickly mobilized to flood the room with a slant of distorted guitar, gnarling bass and reverberating drums that thrummed in the ribcages of everyone in the audience.
Cover for “Hold Your Own Leash” by Paranoid Maniac
The vocalist, clad in a vest and large pair of opaque black shades, wailed barely-comprehensible lyrics into the mic as they paced back and forth across the stage.
Amid the swell of music that pounded against the venue’s concrete walls, certain phrases rang out with clarity, such as “f– the alt-right.”
The crowd was (frustratingly) still during this performance, headbanging and swaying in place despite the palpable energy that electrified the air.
At the end of the set, we’d all sufficiently woken up from our perpetual daytime half-slumber.
Reckoning Force
Reckoning Force is a rapid and rabid group based out of Norfolk, Virginia.
My first impression of the band formed while watching a roadie unceremoniously duct tape a flag on the venue wall.
Reckoning Force at Kings, Raleigh, photo by J
Everything following was perfectly intense and chaotic.
As Reckoning Force started their set, patrons who’d been tucked away at the bar began to flock to the stage.
The vocalist lurched around in a torn-up yellow shirt with a frayed, screaming voice that paired nicely with the frantic music. Shortly after the start of the set, the crowd parted as two individuals darted back and forth across the floor.
The energy in the crowd changed instantly. Everyone moved at once either to dart to the sides of the room or to slam as hard as possible into the nearest person. I went for the second option and was promptly knocked to the ground by someone twice my size.
Two massive punks in studded vests immediately grabbed me, pulling me to my feet and checking to make sure I hadn’t broken something. I was fine, if not a bit embarassed, but felt better after watching several others take a similar tumble later.
Though the pit was small, we were sufficiently invigorated by the sounds — or maybe the force — of Reckoning Force.
The highlight of their set was certaintly when they covered Minor Threat’s “Screaming at a Wall,” a track well suited to the vocalist’s particular brand of angsty screams.
Public Acid
The final band to perform was Public Acid, based out of Richmond and North Carolina.
Like Reckoning Force, the band set up a flag before their performance. To my absolute delight, they simply taped their flag — baring a Rorschachesque skull — over the one left up by Reckoning Force.
Cover for “The Beat Sessions” by Public Acid
Public Acid was my brothers’s favorite act of the night, as they said the music reminded them of the DOOM franchise.
The band’s straight-up heinous sound compelled my brothers, both teenagers “too cool” to do much of anything, to bob their heads and sway around. I consider that a massive win.
Though not many patrons entered the pit, this allowed for more movement and dynamism as people kicked their legs around, spun and knocked into each other. The energy in the room was magnetic, even for those outside of the pit.
Public Acid was a great way to end off the night, leaving the audience sweat-drenched and shaking with adrenaline. After the show, I felt both like I could run ten miles and sleep for ten years.
Closing Thoughts
Paranoid Maniac, Reckoning Force and Public Acid are three bands with small online presences.
They make up for this by totally dominating the stage and plunging the audience into a landscape of chaos, insanity and vigor.
Familiarity with the bands isn’t necessary to enjoy them. Their vibrant sounds and captivating stage presence strike you right through the ribcage in the best possible way.
The cover of Joyce Manor's sixth studio album "40 oz. to Fresno."
Joyce Manor is a pop punk band from Torrance, California.
I was 14 or so when I was first introduced to Joyce Manor by someone I probably considered cooler than me. Their 2016 album “Cody” was the first new album from the band that I was able to listen to as the singles dropped and I’ve considered it to be one of my favorite albums since then.
Joyce Manor will be at Cat’s Cradle with Teens in Trouble on June 26 as a small pit stop on their tour with Weezer. Tickets are currently being sold for $25, and more show info and ticket access can be found at the Cat’s Cradle website.
Joyce Manor
Joyce Manor’s most recent release was their album “40 oz. to Fresno” in 2022. Their most popular album, according to Spotify and the many Joyce Manor fans in my life, is “Never Hungover Again,” released in 2014 on Epitaph Records.
Joyce Manor has performed at the Cradle a number of times, including touring with Jeff Rosenstock and Modern Baseball. Their music is punchy and punky without crossing the bridge over to hardcore or pure punk. It’s like the type of punk that might be palatable to a larger audience, but still not everyone– essentially, pop punk.
Vocalist Barry Johnson has a trademark voice that sounds a bit like screaming without any of the vocal violence of screamo. It’s part of what makes the group so special, because they’re able to maintain a signature sound without becoming repetitive.
Teens in Trouble
Teens in Trouble is a WKNC favorite, especially after Double Barrel Benefit 19 earlier this year when they joined us for our annual fundraiser at Kings Raleigh.
Teens in Trouble is the perfect opener for Joyce Manor, because they’ve got indie rock to offer that is easily enjoyable without sacrificing inventiveness.
Vocalist and frontwoman Lizzie Killian described her band’s sound as “fuzzed out indie rock for dog people,” which is kind of a perfect descriptor. Reminiscient of music from Remo Drive and The Beths, Teens in Trouble should be a great opener for the show at the Cradle and will undoubtedly hype the crowd up before headliner Joyce Manor plays their set.
