Duress is on their "final" tour before Matt & Melanie depart for Shangri-la. Their set on 6/28@Kostner House was one of the very best times I've had at a show in a year, which is how long I've been into hardcore now. So I have, by far, the least amount of experience and knowledge in this field in comparison to everyone else at a show. But I digress.
Traffic was shit from Roselle to KH and Peach, Scotty and I arrived right as Colour Wolf (klr wlv, formerly Strange Wool) was about to start. This new supergroup consists of Matt, Melanie, and Mike from Duress on bass, guitar, and drums respectively, and los Hermanos Campos, Spider on the mic, Varg on the guitar. I've known HC forever and this was the first I ever got to see them play live together. Spider had his t-shirt tucked into some worn-in gym shorts, a crazed but calm look on his face.
"We are Colour WOLF" he began in typical Spider intonation. I was told later they sounded sloppy but I think they were spot on, even if they were fucking up. The noise began along with Spider dancing and mule-kicking like a maniac. The first lyrics ended up being screamed inches from my face while Adam grabbed my shirt like I was in for a beatdown. I had no idea what he was saying and hadn't even heard any of their songs up to that point. The next 4 minutes were a blur of swinging fists and Spider's insane vocals. Less than a minute in, EvanB smashed someone's nose (Schuman I think) and blood was drawn. I was trying to mosh and got in some good runs, but was staying clear of Adam's feet which were usually speeding right past my testicles. He played futbol for a long time; that's just bad news. At some point I did hit my face on Melanie's guitar, but the very top of it, where it's pointed. That swelled up nice over the next couple days. And before I knew it, after 4 songs their set was over. I gathered myself and was making my way out where I saw a sweaty Varg lighting up a corncob pipe, a picturesque moment. I told him it was "alright". He ignited a firecracker and threw it at me.
We spent the next couple hours in the perfect June weather drinking PBR and smoking all sorts of dope and cigarettes. Organized Sports from Portland played a bit later and fuck were they good. There was little moshing but I think it was their first time out here and people just seemed to be enjoying the first impression.
After their set, I took a walk to the car to ditch my smokes, lest they be crushed by stampeding straight edge kids. As I was walking along the side of the house I could hear a discussion between members of two particular bands, and it was heating up. By the time I walked back, it was a full-on shouting match. And it was over issues that began months ago, because of a certain flyer for a certain record release show. Like I said, I'm still pretty new to this so I'm not exactly qualified to comment on this beef but conflict is just interesting, and I wouldn't turn away from a public argument. It's a shame that friends divide over such things, but I respect people for standing behind what they say. So I was glad that Matt came in and ended that shit and proceeded directly to the basement to start the second-to-last Duress show in Chicago. And what better way to prompt a Duress set than a heated argument? Mike and Crucial Kyle were tuned up, letting the feedback bleed out from the amps, creating that abrasive atmosphere of impending destruction that I've come to love at shows. Melanie picked up her bass, Matt his mic: "I'm 25 years old! I don't have a fucking job and I live with my parents!"
Then the riot began. The only songs I specifically remember hearing were "Asshole" somewhere in the middle and "Spider" as their closer. The crowd (the few that came and could actually fit in that basement) was moshing belligerently, perhaps because we all knew this era was coming to an end. Ha, "era", like I've been around for SO LONG, like I'm some fucking historian. But that was kind of how it felt. The set seemed just a big "fuck off" to all those that turned on Duress in judgement and those that never liked 'em to begin with. If I had time to think in this moshpit, that's probably what would've been on my mind, all those people I once thought highly of or believed in, but who turned out to fail me instead. At one point, I put someone in a headlock and wrung them around; Diego, maybe. If so, my bad, dude, I was caught up in the moment. But after the next song, Matt called out Diego on the mic, who was now in the corner conversing with a female. "Diego's having real talk WITH A GIRL!" Music played and Matt literally fucking attacked him and ended up on all fours still screaming in the mic while Diegas managed to balance on him back-to-back; it had to be seen. Hopefully Nick got that part on film. And during the entire set, a drunken Varg stood against the steel pole, calmly lighting off firecrackers and throwing them everywhere. It seemed he was really trying to blow up part of the drumset or Farn himself. At one point, he just lit a whole bundle and threw it right in the middle of the pit and Matt ran right over them while they exploded. Amazing that he wasn't scorched. Before they played "Spider", Matt announced Mike was indeed gay and that his boyfriend was in attendance, and then yelled "Michael Stefnik is a dick-in-the-ass faggot!". Someone, I wish I knew who, then responded "So's Varg!"...and everyone cheered like crazy. They then played an absolutely furious version of "Spider" and all the hatred filled the room, along with a bigger and bigger cloud of gunpowder smoke. Sweat and smoke filled my eyes, as though moshpits weren't disorienting enough at times. It was ridiculous, the mutually assured violence between friends. Song ends with smiles and hugs all around, and, of course, a sieg heil or two from Matt. I doubt the whole set took more than 15 minutes, but that was a truly memorable and cathartic experience. My year in hardcore has mostly been filled with either waiting to see this band or actually seeing them. They always deliver and the music is not to be ignored. It, in fact, invades your personal space. And Matt has an uncanny lyrical ability that captures all the bullshit frustrations of dealing with bullshit people in a bullshit world. But now that's coming to an end, I guess. But it was all worth it, no regrets. Heil and fuck off.
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