Zipping over from their native Detroit (and sold-out shows there), Protomartyr came back to Kalamazoo, Michigan to make up for a cancelled show that was dropped due to, what else, the pandemic.
Opening for them were some other Michiganders, the punky trio of Erik Nervous, who might have the greatest kick drum head ever designed.
They played a fun batch of post-punk, full of weird guitar riffs, pogo-inducing beats, and snappy bass. They even got in a fun jab at Protomartyr, referring to them as “Joy Division 2.0.”
Protomartyr (who lead singer Joe Casey claimed to be “Back in, well, not fighting shape. More like competitive eating shape.”) packed in a good crowd, and were soon flooring everyone with their mix of post-punk, prog rock, spoken word riffs, angry shouts, and spooky chants – most of those, by the way, were provided by the one and only Kelley Deal joining them onstage to sing and play guitar and synths.
Standouts included “Cowards Starve,” which came out like a sermon from the end of a bar, “Jumbo’s” – a song about a bar, the crowd-favorite “Michigan Hammers,” “Processed by the Boys,” and a new track – “Graft V.”
It was a solid show, and Mr. Casey and Ms. Deal were a pleasure to meet afterwards. Catch them live if you can. Protomartyr sound like no one else – live or otherwise.
Keep your mind open.
[Thanks to Jim DeLuca for the press credentials.]
