I almost didn’t come to this show. The venue, Sleeping Village, was over two hours’ driving time from my house. It was on a Tuesday night, and it started late – 9pm Central time, which is 10pm in the Eastern time zone where I live. I worked an eight-hour shift that day and had to work another the following morning. I guessed I wouldn’t get home until 2:30am if I was lucky.
Then I learned that this would not only be the first time Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs would be in Chicago, but it was their first U.S. tour ever. That’s when I knew I had to be at this show, and they’d already announced tickets were running low. I snagged one of the few remaining tickets and got in a disco nap before making the drive.
This was also the first show I’d seen at Sleeping Village, which is a nice, small venue. The stage and viewing area are in a space smaller than some convenience stores. As soon as I walked in and saw the size of the space, and knew how powerful a Pigs x 7 show could be, I thought, “They’re going to destroy this place.”
First to start the demolition were local noise-psych rockers The Tomblands. They brought a wall of guitars, two drummers, and a ton of energy to the stage. They also encouraged all the locals to get out and vote in the upcoming Chicago mayoral election.
The lads from Newcastle Upon Tyne came out at 10pm (Central) sharp and kicked things off with the raucous “Mr. Medicine” off their new album, Land of Sleeper. The power they unleashed felt like someone threw open the door of a blast furnace.
They tore through “Rubbernecker” and “Halloween Bolson,” with lead singer Baty bouncing, stomping, and prowling around the stage like a kabuki performer, bassist Hedley played like his guitar he was holding an electric eel, and Sykes and Grant kept trading shredding solos.
Some of us finally got a mosh pit started by the time they got to “Ultimate Hammer” and continued to floor the audience with their combination of metal, doom, and punk. “Big Rig” was especially wild, and “GNT” and closer “A66” were downright fierce.
I got to shake hands and chat a bit with the porcine quintet after the show and asked Baty how the tour had been so far, especially after it was so long coming after 2020 shut it down the first time.
“It’s been…fucking amazing,” Baty said. “We thought we’d be playing shows to, like, fifty people, and they’ve all been like this. It’s incredible.”
It was.
Keep your mind open.
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[Thanks to Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs for the show, autographs, and chats!]
