Grownups Insane

It was my birthday yesterday. I turned 22. That's nothing special, but it made me realise I'm fucking 22, and, coming from 21, that's fucking old. I also have other issues but I'm not gonna bother you with them, right.

I made pancakes for lunch and in the evening I went to a nice lil' hardcore punk show in Antwerp. The venue of choice was het Autonoom Centrum Antifa-Brick, both a clever and powerful name. It's a squat close to 't Zuid, and the basement is available for shows and the like. Undoubtedly mostly crust, grindcore and other extreme genres, and that's cool. It's a cool space, kinda.

The first band was Wilderness Children, an upcoming band featuring my bud Pie and some other more or less familiar faces. Pie told me they sound like Modern life Is War, which is right. Life Logn Tragedy came to mind. And they played a Suicide File cover, which I didn't recognize but greatly applauded cause I think The Suicide File is really good. So you could probably compare them to that band too. Now, with all the comparisons out of the way and now that you know what to expect, I can tell you it was really nice to see and hear them play. Mid-paced hardcore is kinda my thing, and I know for a fact it's pretty big in Belgium (does anyone remember Midnight Souls?) so I'm siked for this band. They had some great songs, not every bit was that original but overall I'm looking forward to seeing them play more and for the demo they're recording right now.
Also, Pie is one of my favourite people to watch on stage (along with the guitar player from Hessian/Amen Ra and -see later- the vocalist of Toxic Shock). He's just really into playing guitar and that's cool to see.

Kids Insane were the next band, and OH FUCK THAT WAS THE BEST ENTRANCE EVER. While the band was playing some kind of intro, the vocalist just stood to the side. and when it was his cue to sing, he just slid from the side of the room tot he middle and started singing/shouting. It sounds kinda lame but it was awesome to see him do that. Actually, it was kinda lame but that made it all the more cool. Anyway, Kids Insane is a really good band! I did not know that, unfortunately. Now I know! Hardcore punk like it should be, with a few tweaks here and there. Genuinely angry and genuinely concerned. Some creative riffage and melodies. Some captivating parts. Another Suicide File cover, I think it was Ashcroft but I'm not sure. Anyway, Kids Insane, they're from Israel by the way and touring Europe right now, are really cool and you should listen to them. Now.

Toxic Shock also played. As I said, their vocalist is a joy to watch - that is, if you can see him. One moment he's on the other side of the venue, the next moment he's right in your face singing that he's a zombie. That's awesome. But let's not focus on one fifth of the band, Toxic Shock is a great band. No wonder they're doing so well lately, releasing a record on Refelctions, playing some cool shows. For one thing, how many crossover thrash bands are there in Belgium? Not that many, at least compared to 'regular' hardcore bands. En plus, they're really competent musicians, fast as fuck and technically intense. Another great show, a pleasure to watch and be angry to.

On my way back to the station some 20-something dude biked along the Keyserlei singing along loudly to Live While We're Young by One Direction and I saw a part of myself in him. Salvation.