Born in Baltimore's grim, dirt, trash, and junk. "These kids sure know how to fever rock. Music for the sweats, the chills, and all around paranoia."
Dueling drummers, fuzzed out stabs of thick bass, walls of feedback, manic synth throbs, and howling vocals. The debut record from The Lovebug Junkies, Concussions (Songs for Ghosts), preaches an ancient religion in which the devoted, from the high priests to the most obsessive zealot, pray to a wicked deity- Catharsis-Through-Rock-n-Roll. The album's 12 songs explore personal tragedy; the violent and tragic loss of loved ones, of relationships, and of sanity during the grieving process. On Concussions, The Lovebug Junkies follow an arcane text from the house of Rock-n-Roll; that a thorough exorcism of pain and longing can fit within a 4-minute pop song, albeit meticulously folded, squeezed, and barely held together by a ribbon & bow.
Armed with a set of songs, singer Russell Burton and guitarist Donnie Carlo III devised a seductively simple code-of-conduct for their record:
They would do their utmost to honor the songs and ghosts within them.
They would not release the record until it was the absolute best they could do.
Yearning for the physicality and individuality of early Rock & Roll records, drummers Alex White & Matt Hammond along with bassist Chris Howard, tracked live in the Cathedral of a large unoccupied church, a fitting location given the record's central theme. Recording was then moved to NP Recording Co, where keyboardist, Nic Johnson, perfected his concoction of keyed instruments, including a maze of vintage synthesizers, tube organs, a mellotron, and an acoustic piano. Fully committing to the recording process, the band drifted deep in difficult emotionally trying waters and later, after many laborious months, proudly resurfaced with an album they stand behind without pretense. “We littered the road with blood, sweat, and tears”, says Burton, “Creating a record is never an easy process”. Carlo, puts it simply, “we followed our code.”
Doors 9:30 | Music 10. 21 and up. With Community Center.