Whoring It Up At Sleeping Village In Chicago

Mar 10, 2025 admin_bitlc Features, Music News, Reviews 0

By Kyle Decker

WHORES., while not being the most shocking band name out there, is definitely a word that carries weight. A t-shirt would certainly require explaining in most circles. When I told my bandmate about this gig, he put it in his calendar as “Show @ Sleeping Village”, not wanting the uninitiated to glance over his shoulder and see “March 8th-WHORES.”

But, as Lenny Bruce -who I need not remind you is not afraid- once said “There are no dirty words. Just dirty minds.” And he used “whore” as an example, saying something to the effect of, “‘Whore’ doesn’t necessarily mean a sex worker. Anybody can be a whore. A writer can be a whore. Most of them are.” Granted it’s been about twenty years since I read How to Talk Dirty and Influence People, so I’m probably paraphrasing -or even misattributing. But he’s right. Dig past the first couple definitions in the dictionary and you’ll find things like: “a person who is willing to compromise their integrity or principles for personal gain or in pursuit of something” or “someone who debases themselves by doing something for unworthy motives- typically money.” That certainly fits the definition of writers. Or musicians or graphic designers or photographers or anybody trying to make a living with the creative arts. Hell, every one of us taking part -willingly or unwillingly- in capitalism seems to fit the definition. Survival, for most, has always necessitated a certain level of exploiting oneself.

WHORES. hails from Atlanta, Georgia and formed back in 2010. The three piece band is best described as “noise rock” and “sludge metal.” An adequate description as their list of influences very much draws from the Amphetamine Reptile Records catalog. There are absolutely traces of The Melvins, Helmet, and God Bullies at play here. If we’re talking FFO (For Fans Of…), the Oklahoma band Chat Pile and Pennsylvania’s own Pissed Jeans would definitely be contemporaries. It’s fuzzy and heavy and the fact they’re well known for their “intense, cathartic live shows” is what made me throw my name in the hat to cover this show.

Over WHORES.’s fifteen-year history the one consistent member has been vocalist and guitarist Christian Lembach. The rhythm section moved through a revolving door for the first few years (I can relate), but bassist Casey Maxwell has stuck around for a decade at this point, and drummer Douglas Jennings Barrett has been hitting the skins for WHORES. going on six years now. Although they’re not the most prolific band in terms of recording -releasing two EPs in 2011 and 2013 and two albums, Gold and War in 2016 and 2024 respectively- they’ve proven they’re about quality over quantity. Rolling Stone listed War in their top 24 metal albums of 2024.

As a writer (see also: whore), I’m always interested in lyrics. Or rather, overarching lyrical themes. It should come as no surprise that there’s a lot of anger here. Both to outside forces and people, as well as self-loathing. Grief, regret, betrayal, feeling stuck, that moment when ennui becomes impotent rage. It’s all on play here. The name WHORES. isn’t so misogynous, as it is misanthropic. But, like all true misanthropy, it includes the self.

Now, on with the show!

“Intense” and “cathartic” are certainly apt descriptions. Sleeping Village -a bar/club on Belmont a block east of Milwaukee in the Avondale neighborhood, if you are unfamiliar- was packed. Any attempt to go get a drink or use the bathroom would lose you your spot. The music itself was loud and heavy, but mixed well. Sleeping Village gigs, in my experience, are really good with this. It’s not a huge space -only a 300-ish person venue- so sound carries without excessive volume. Of course, after years of going to shows, I’m at the stage where I need to wear earplugs, which honestly should have been all this time (tinnitus is real, kids). But you could feel the bass through the floor if you were standing close enough. I’m not at the point in my familiarity with WHORES. that I know all the song names, but I immediately recognized the opening song as “Baby Bird” off of Clean. The first stanza being “I’m going out tonight and I don’t care who knows” is a good way to kick things off to a room full of people who have gone out tonight and, presumably, don’t care who knows.

The crowd must’ve been feeling the aggression. Given the current political and economic climate, it’s not hard to believe that a room of 300 people would have at least one -if not a dozen- things to get out of their system. Lord knows I’m leaning closer to that dozen. Which made jumping into the meat-grinder of a mosh pit extremely tempting. If I’d had a few drinks in me, I probably would have. But I am not a young man anymore and the last time I hopped into a pit like that was for Viagra Boys at the Metro. Doctors had to glue my face shut. The scar is still there. But honestly just watching Christian Lembach rage through the mic, guitar, and a small army of pedals was absolutely worth the cost of admission -or would have been had I not gotten in on a press pass.

It wasn’t all anger and frustration though. Lembach and bassist Casey Maxwell would occasionally waltz up to the edge of the stage for some audience baiting, and while Maxwell’s stage demeanor was fairly stoic, Lembach would occasionally engage the audience in light-hearted banter. During one of his trips to the stage’s edge, an audience member reached up and stroked his guitar. Lembach responded by placing his hands on his hips and, with a wry smile, asked “Do you mind?”

At another point some started smoking weed. Lembach commented, “Your weed smells like shit.” He went on to joke, “Weed is for teenagers. Try heroin, or at least methamphetamine.” A short time later he stated, “I was kidding about the weed. Do whatever you want.” Another audience member shouted something out, though I couldn’t hear what. “I wasn’t talking to you, dipshit.” Lembach shot back. “I got the microphone. So I’m gonna win every time.”

Meanwhile, in the back, drummer Douglas Jennings Barrett poured some water on his floor tom and snare, causing bursts of water to splash up through parts of the set. The whole time he was smiling like he was having the time of his life. It was infectious.

When the band came back on stage for the encore, Lembach demanded “Only ladies, or people who identify as ladies, in the front row.” Saying they shouldn’t have to push their way up through the pit for a good view. He related a quick story about how his better half had come to Chicago to visit him while he was on tour. So he’d gone to the store to get flowers only to notice a lot of people were buying flowers. “I wondered why,” he said, “then I checked my calendar…” (March 8th is International Women’s Day).

Speaking of, the opening act was Chicago’s own Latter – an experimental noise rock band fronted by sound artist Meredith Haines with Beach Bunny’s Jon Alvarado on drums. Haines had a ton of stage presence and her performance was down right theatric. Her songs about past relationships and living with chronic illness were also “intense and cathartic.” She even walked off stage right before the last song and came back dressed in a hospital gown, carrying a saw and performed “My Body is My Sickness.” She writhed on the floor in her gown, and cut the gown to taters with the saw as the final notes rang out. They did a great job as the local act opener for the touring bands. I will definitely be keeping track of Latter, and Haines’s future projects.

Facet, from Oakland, are WHORES.’s tourmates. I can definitely see the match. While cut from the same cloth as WHORES. Facet’s music had a bit more speed overall and was slightly less fuzzed out, giving their sound a more youthful quality. I also had the immediate thought that there was a bit more “pop sensibility” -whatever that means- in the vocals. Theri sound is cleaner and quicker, but it is noise rock through and through.

Overall, another great night out at Sleeping Village. Though it’s getting harder for me that all their shows start at 9pm. But they keep the bills at three bands and run a tight ship in terms of running on time. I was home by midnight. Which I can appreciate.