Photo by Nate “Igor” Smith of Driven by Boredom.

Alright, I know I should have gotten this post up a few days ago, but after the Showcase, I got down with a super nasty head cold that kept me bed-ridden since Friday. I still feel pretty shitty, but this post isn’t going to make itself, now is it!?

All in all, the Ov Curse showcase was a rocking good time. The bands were all fantastic and the crowd was energetic and supportive of them all. I took a camera down with me to document the evening, but I’m quite possibly the worst fucking photographer on earth and most of my pictures S-U-C-K! So I’ll be jazzing this post up with various shots from other bloggers and photographers in attendance that are far and away superior to my own.

That’s David on the left from Chronic Youth (who put on the showcase with us) and Damian on the right from Fucked Up. Damian was supposed to host the whole showcase, but I think he spent most of it holding court outside the venue and talking about hardcore, records and touring with most of the bands. Either way, he was, as always, pretty entertaining. For shits and giggles, Damian also started a rumor that Fucked Up and The XX were playing a 3am show later that night on a bridge, and it spread like wildfire… I was totally bummed when I found out it wasn’t true.

This is Dallas’ Awen who opened things up with a pretty dramatic and awe-inspiring set of Apocalyptic Folk. It was so good to finally get the chance to see these guys live; their last album, The Bells Before Dawn, has quickly been rising as one of my favorites and they really need to play out more often!

In case you missed it a few posts down, The Toilet Cobra just did an interview with Dais, Awen’s record label. The interview includes a few questions about the band.

Photo by Jason Fisher.

Drunkdriver played their usual intense set to a packed crowd that was separated from the band with a steel gate. I was shocked that, during the course of their blistering and exuberant performance, Berdan and the crowd didn’t collapse it.

This is T.J., also known as King Dude, frontman for Book of Black Earth and the guy most of you streetwear aficionados will know as the man behind Actual Pain. I don’t think there are enough words in the English language to convey how talented and what a good dude T.J. is. He greeted me as soon as I got to the club, and we spent most of the night hanging out and chatting.

T.J. then got up on stage with just his acoustic guitar and some candles, and played some of the most haunting and beautiful Neo-folk you ever did hear. Afterward, I asked T.J. why he named this project “King Dude” and he replied that it was sort of a joke name that stuck.

Photo by Nate “Igor” Smith of Driven by Boredom.

This is Greta of My Gold Mask, a band who’s name, come the end of 2010, you’ll all probably be familiar with. This showcase was my first time ever seeing them live, and I had no clue that the only instruments that Greta and Jack (pictured below) played with live were a guitar, some effects and a drum kit.

Photo by Nate “Igor” Smith of Driven by Boredom.

There was a bit of a disconnect at first because of how lush their album and most recent EP, A Thousand Voices, sounded, but these guys know exactly what they’re doing and pulled off one of the most exciting and memorable sets of the evening.

Photo by Nate “Igor” Smith of Driven by Boredom.

I can’t believe that this was probably Hussle Club’s 3rd show ever! These guys perform like they’ve been touring for close to a decade. They absolutely brought the packed room at 1808 down to their knees. These guys are all energy and sweet hooks!

And where do I even begin with Terrence? Dude is quickly turning into the consummate frontman… an absolute pleasure to watch and listen to. Both Hussle Club and My Gold Mask will be performing at the Cameo Gallery in Williamsburg on April 22nd. If you’re in town, I wouldn’t dare miss what could end up being one of the greatest live shows you’ll see!

This is Toby, singer and guitarist for Blessure Grave, on your left and Bobby, frontman, madman and just all around jack of all trades for //TENSE//, on your right. This was my first chance getting to meet both of these guys in person after countless email correspondences. And while I was generally excited to see many of the acts performing live, these were the two I was most excited for, and neither disappointed.

Photo by Jessop K. of Out of Print Mag.

While //TENSE// were performing, I let out a tweet which read:

Seeing //TENSE// live can only compare to when I heard Pretty Hate Machine for the first time. The crowd is going insane dancing

I still stand by that statement. Seeing them was a total throwback to my youth… For 40 minutes, they delivered pounding dancefloor anthems that the crowd just couldn’t resist. Truth be told, I don’t think anyone was really prepared to see a band breathe new life and energy into EBM quite like that. Multiple people came up to me to say that these guys were amazing, they’d destroy in NYC. Soon enough…soon enough.

Video of Blessure Grave courtesy of All Our Noise.

Finally, to close out the evening, Blessure Grave took the stage and delivered live on everything their records hinted at. Most of their set was composed of brand new songs, all of which show the band getting better and better over time… something really scary considering how good their old material is! The crowd was awed by their dark and brooding performance, and I’m sure won over by their heartfelt hooks. Come June, Blessure Grave will be hitting up the East Coast for the first time, giving everyone here a chance to see what the hype around them is all about.

In addition to the live footage, All of Our Noise also did this interview with Toby Grave shortly after their set. It’s a great clip where Toby speaks about how Blessure Grave’s goth/death rock fits in with San Diego’s mostly garage rock scene, opening up for Christian Death and the band’s influences.

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I unfortunately have zero clue where any of the photos of These Are Powers went! But as usual, the veterans were great and had the crowd (and some locals who strayed in) dancing for a good 20 minutes with an impromptu DJ set before they hit the stage. I’m trying to scrounge some pictures up and will update this post as soon as I figure out what happened. Finally, Light Asylum didn’t end up making it down to Austin this year. We were all bummed!

- My Pal the Crook