Choirs

This Choirs review is a big deal to me. I have been talking about doing a review on Choirs since October when Schuyler Heinsohn told me about his band and their new addition Bryan Powell (former Guards. Guaaards). He refused to tell me anything about the genre of the band at the time and doubted I would like it.

Choirs played at The 1011 alongside Triptych, AOD and Televangelist, which is an odd combo but I knew I had to be there. So about Choirs, there are two guitarists, Schuyler Heinsohn and Zachary Franco, bass player Bryan Powell, drummer Wesley Powers and the vocalist Matthew Scaggs. While I’m standing in the crowd absorbing their first song I keep thinking to myself, “These boys are doing what the bands I liked in high school were doing but better”. At the time, I listened to hardcore and screamo bands both local and national. But this band has a garage band, ‘we obviously aren’t professionals’, sound but have the potential to rise up to an underground national level. I was really impressed by Choirs even with their screaming, incomprehensible lyrics (because you know how I feel about that).

This band has a juvenile ‘I’m in a high school band’ style and ‘I’m in a boy band’ look, which makes this hardcore band similar to Illustrations. Some have compared their sound to Thursday, although I do not agree. I really just kept thinking this is what those little local bands in my town were trying to do. This is small town local, ‘I want to play as hard as I can and scream as much as I can’, taken to the next level. Now I don’t know if my giddy, happy, anticipation mood influenced my interpretation of their sound but I’m going to say it didn’t. Seeing Choirs actually put me in a good mood, the crowd was full of good energy. The band was just support for their eccentric singer, Matthew Scaggs that enjoyed flinging his scrawny body and bold vocals across the room at people, at walls, at the floor. Until the very end all the members really stayed in their place while Scaggs terrorized the crowd, causing a scene, making a show. The end of the show, the final song, was really when everyone broke loose, Heinsohn and Powell broke out of their little corner and joined their front-man in the crowd closing out the set with more than we expected… or maybe more than I expected.

Without Scaggs’ staggering vocals the band would be just another good band: interesting, one time is enough but really good--kind of band. But together as a band Choirs is out to show you what they’ve got.

Cito of Chesshero/ Xry

Here is something I stumbled upon while on facebook, a great place to stumble. It may be the longest most annoying song I've heard in a while.
Maybe I'm just being a mean girl but...
It's local.
It's music.
Part of the scene.
Check it out. :)



This, on the other hand, is a really cute video I wanted to share. I hope many of you have already seen it.
Xry discussing their role as artists through all sorts of mediums including music.
Check out my Xry reviews if you haven't and come to their comeback show on January 16th at the 1011.



1011 Ave B.
San Antonio, TX

Pinata Protest

Pinata Protest, in my opinion, is a bit of the talk of the town. A lot of people know who they are and it makes sense because the name has been around for over the past three years. Recently these four boys have been busy performing everything from accordion festivals, Latino festivals to punk shows. They also opened for Flaco Jimenez at a New Year's Eve show.

So what is it about this band that dances to conjunto and listens to the Ramones? This band with members that vary from happily married to tattooed with gauges and a suit-wearing accordion player? What makes this band the talk of the town? Well it may be that these four humble Mexican-American gentlemen are a representation of San Antonio. They are punk rock kids that yell and jump around and bring a punk crowd; but they also have an accordion and cover Volver Volver. They interact with the crowd and make music you can dance to. Pinata Protest is a fusion of two scenes distinct in San Antonio: Tejano and punk. They can carry a heavy bass line traditional to Tejano music, and play songs they classify as Cumbia, lyrics are interchanged between English and Spanish and are usually shouted in short angry syllables.


They pack houses at places like Salute and the Mixx, both club/venues were packed with people to catch this band's free shows. At the Latin Festival in the Main Plaza Downtown the crowd varied from children to parents, goth kids to music bloggers. Their shows are so high energy with a crowd to match that I always seem to have fun. So even for those that may say "I don't like THAT kind of music" I would say to go out and experience a live show. Just hearing their music is fine and dandy but the live experience with the energy and fans...is well worth it.

So THIS FRIDAY! Limelight (on the N. St Mary strip) is hosting their West Coast tour kick off! Pinata Protest, Viet-Ruse, Nada Mas Basura and the MORIARTYS will grace the limelight stage, and for 5 bucks (granted you're 21+) you can see what I'm talking about.
Come out and meet the band!