The Cambridge Elks Lodge. This building has hosted countless amazing shows over the years, and I’ve come out hoping tonight’s show will be no exception. Limp Wrist are a straightedge queercore band that started up in 1997. The band is fronted by Martin Sorrondeguy, who first honed his aggressive vocal skills singing for the band Los Crudos.
This is a band that is up front about who they are.
They play hardcore punk, really fast, and they are queer as hell and proud of it.
Most songs are a minute or so in length, but that seems to be plenty to get their point across. For example, here are the lyrics to Want Us Dead, clocking in at 1:30:
Two men were hung in the Middle East just for being gay
Some Texas punks got killed ’cause someone thought that they were strange
They want us dead
Want us dead
Trannies are beat and murdered by some sick fucks full of hate
Religious fanatics think that fags like me should burn in hell
They want us dead
Want us dead
It’s direct and to the point. They do not pull any punches.
By the time I entered the downstairs show room at the Elks Lodge, it was full of spiky hair and spiky jackets. The mirror behind the stage was fully fogged up, and the ceiling was beginning to drip with condensation. It was the perfect setting for a hot, sweaty mess of a show. I had unfortunately missed three of the openers: Exit Order, The Combat Zone, and St. Ripper, but I could tell all of them had put on amazing sets by the chatter of the crowd outside smoking (and by the state of the room, of course).
I arrived just in time to catch a full set by the final support act, Subclinix.
Subclinix is a snotty punk band from Boston.
They reminded me of an updated Dead Boys, but twice as fast. I wasn’t familiar with them going into the show, but they were lively as hell, tight as a band, and I enjoyed their performance. They are worth checking out, and I urge you to.
And then it was time for what we all were waiting for: Limp Wrist took the stage. The band was shirtless except Scott (guitar). Martin (vocals) was clad in only hat, vest, boots, and bikini bottoms—all leather. As with their recordings, Limp Wrist wasted no time on stage at all.
They launched directly into their set—no holds barred, no warm up, just in-your-face punk.
The crowd went nuts. Bodies started flying everywhere, so I took up a post stage right on a little riser to get a good vantage point of the fray.
Limp Wrist played 20 songs in less than an hour, and left an impression on me that will last a lifetime.
They are flat-out the punkest band I have ever witnessed play,
and the audience responded in kind by dancing and crowd surfing like a pack of animals. This was the kind of show that the Dead Kennedys had in the early ’80s. This is early Black Flag without the violence. This was a group of people brought together in support of each other, coming together to celebrate their differences while finding common ground. And no matter how aggressive this music is, the guys in Limp Wrist couldn’t be nicer folks. They stuck around to meet everyone, to sign merch for those that wanted it, and to pose for pictures with fans.
This is the scene that I am proud to be a part of.
This is the type of display that got me into punk in the first place.