{"id":55980,"date":"2024-07-22T11:36:19","date_gmt":"2024-07-22T16:36:19","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=55980"},"modified":"2024-07-22T13:34:51","modified_gmt":"2024-07-22T18:34:51","slug":"signing-off-punk-supergroup-bids-farewell-to-chicago-with-a-sold-out-show-at-lincoln-hall-as-part-of-final-tour","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/?p=55980","title":{"rendered":"Signing OFF!: Punk Supergroup Bids Farewell To Chicago With A Sold-Out Show At Lincoln Hall As Part Of Final Tour"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Kyle Decker<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It will be hard to discuss this show without acknowledging upfront that Chicago\u2019s own Shellac was originally scheduled to open before their frontman, the legendary musician and audio engineer Steve Albini, died on May 7th. I\u2019d say \u201cpassed away\u201d but the man was never one for euphemisms. Rest In Power, Steve. You are, and will forever be, missed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That said, \u201cLA punk band farewell tour\u201d seems to be my week\u2019s theme. I caught X on their farewell tour just this past Sunday (7\/14\/2024) and now I\u2019m seeing OFF! for their last Chicago show at Lincoln Hall (7\/18\/2024). Morris\u2019s memoir My Damage<\/em> was also a primary source for my fiction work. So, yeah, a lot of recurring motifs this week.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

While OFF! was founded in 2010, its members have been out and about and earning some clout for quite a while. Founding member Keith Morris is an OG LA punk, having been the original singer for Black Flag before forming the Circle Jerks. Other current members are Dimitri Coats (Burning Brides), Mario Rubalcaba (a.k.a. Ruby Mars) (Rocket From The Crypt, Hot Snakes), and Autry Fulbright II (…And You Will Know Us By The Trail Of Dead), making the band a punk rock Traveling Wilburys of sorts. A \u201csupergroup\u201d, if you will. Even their session sax player, Bruce Lamont, is known for the Chicago-based jazz metal band Yakuza.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

OFF!\u2019s early stuff sounds like it was broadcast from an alternate timeline where Keith Morris never left Black Flag. Hell, the 2010 compilation of 7-inches is even called The First Four EPs<\/em> which seems to be a nod to the Black Flag compilation The First Four Years<\/em>, the first four tracks of which feature Morris on vocals. Raymond Pettibon even does both albums\u2019 artwork.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Later albums saw the band incorporate elements of jazz and noise rock and their most recent album, 2022\u2019s Free LSD,<\/em> functions as the soundtrack for the movie of the same name starring Morris and directed by Coats. Unfortunately, I couldn\u2019t catch the screening at The Music Box the night before the show.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

FACS opened the night. And while I wasn\u2019t familiar with them before hearing they were stepping in for Shellac, I liked what I heard. The three-piece\u2019s sound is very much in the Chicago noise rock tradition. The audience cheered when they dedicated a song to Shellac. They\u2019re very much up my alley and I\u2019ll have to dive into their catalgoue and start paying attention to them. I suggest anyone who is a fan of noisy minimalism to do the same. Speaking of Shellac, between the band\u2019s sets the venue played To All Trains<\/em>, the newest Shellac album which release a mere ten days after Albini\u2019s death. It was somber, sure. But that album \u201cfucking slaps,\u201d as the kids say.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then, it was time for the main event.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

With OFF! being a classically styled hardcore punk band, few of their songs crack the two-minute mark. So, naturally, the setlist was going to be massive. They had an hour slot to fill, after all.  The crowd was already cheering as Keith Morris took to the stage to tape down the setlists, which looked more like scrolls. Between his signature hat and dreads and his stubble, he looked like some kind of punk rock wizard as he handled the long sheets of paper and posted them around the stage. Being up at the front as I was, I managed to glance at the setlist and it was clear that the band was going to be playing Free LSD<\/em> front to back.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s worth noting that Autry Fulbright II is not the original bass player for OFF! That would be Steven Shane McDonald of Redd Kross (he\u2019s also been with the Melvins since 2016). I only bring this up because a crowd member commented on it. Saying something like, \u201cThat\u2019s not Shane McDonald!\u201d at a volume Fulbright could hear. After a few minutes, Fulbright leaned up to the mic, grinned, and said, \u201cHi. I\u2019m Steven Shane McDonald and I\u2019ll be playing bass tonight.\u201d It got a good laugh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The show got off to a rocky start when Dimitri Coats\u2019s guitar amp died during the first song. Was it awkward for a while? Sure. Nerve-wracking even? Maybe. An audience member momentarily broke the tension by shouting, \u201cAcoustic set!\u201d which got a laugh both from the band and the crowd. Look, I\u2019m not the type of rock journalist who wants to build a name on acid-tongued criticism. I\u2019m a storyteller, by nature, and the story here is: \u201cOff! rocked so hard they blew amp on the first song.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The rest of the band, including Lamont, played a little jazz session while Coats and the crew tried to fix and replace the amp. Morris even joined in with fingerbells. Which, honestly, made the experience unique. Like, how many people can say they saw this group of people do a ten to fifteen-minute jazz session? I went for a show. And I got a story.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cShit,\u201d Morris joked, \u201cI shoulda\u2019 gone and taken a piss.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thankfully a replacement amp was found and the band started from the top. I was leaning on stage and as the second song was starting Keith Morris reached down, grabbed my left hand, held my arm in the air like I\u2019d just won a boxing match, and then aggressively tapped my watch. I was like, \u201cWhat the hell is going on?\u201d My buddy pointed to the setlist on the stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The next song was \u201cTime Will Come.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oh<\/em>, I thought, got it.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The rest of the set blazed through the set as if making up for lost time. A lot of Chicago venues have a hard 10:30 cut-off.  Even under normal conditions punk doesn\u2019t so much rock around the clock, as it races against it. OFF! had twenty-six songs to get through and a considerably reduced time to get through them. Songs this short played this fast can get a little disorienting. But the energy was high and the occasional mosh pit broke out. Those seemed to be in short bursts, though, given that much of the crowd appeared to be in their thirties and forties. So, y\u2019know, my age. Lord knows I can\u2019t slam like I used to, and I still have a scar on my cheek from a Viagra Boys pit last September. Also, I just wanted to absorb what was happening. When it\u2019s your last chance to see a band, you should watch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The song \u201cKill To Be Heard\u201d certainly took on a deeper meaning given recent events and \u201cthese fucked up times we\u2019re livin\u2019 in\u201d to paraphrase some of Morris\u2019s stage banter. Granted all times are fucked up. But with attempted assassinations and a rise in political violence in the news along side the disturbingly typical violence of the randomized variety, the song seems an especially salient piece of art.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From listening to others in the crowd after the show, I got the impression that some would have preferred they played more of the early stuff. But I didn\u2019t mind the focus on Free LSD<\/em> so much. The album itself was a bit more experimental than the older ones, which were more straight foreward old school hardcore punk. Free LSD<\/em> takes things in a more noise rock direction, which is really more in my wheelhouse lately both in what I\u2019ve been listening to and have been trying to do with my own bands. I\u2019m of the opinion that it\u2019s their best stuff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

At the end of the show, Keith Morris thanked everyone for coming out and apologized again for the technical difficulties and was very gracious to the audience for their patience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is the mid-west, sweetie,\u201d a woman shouted back, \u201cWe ain’t got nothin\u2019 but time.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Setlist:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSlice of the Pie\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTime Will Come\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWar Above Los Angeles\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBlack Widow Group\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKill To Be Heard\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIgnored\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSmoking Gun\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cCircuitry\u2019s God\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMuddy the Waters\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInvisible Empire\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBehind the Shifts\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWorst is Yet to Come\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSuck the Bones Dry\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cMurder Corporation\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cKeep Your Mouth Shut\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeace or Conquest\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFree LSD\u201d (Free LSD<\/em>, 2022)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cVoid You Out\u201d (Wasted Years,<\/em> 2014)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cRed, White, and Black\u201d (Wasted Years,<\/em> 2014)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWiped Out\u201d (Off!<\/em>, 2012)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBlack Thoughts\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDarkness\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI Don\u2019t Belong\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPanic Attack\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cUpside Down\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPoison City\u201d (First Four EPs<\/em>, 2010)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Kyle Decker It will be hard to discuss this show without acknowledging upfront that Chicago\u2019s own Shellac was originally scheduled to open before their frontman, the legendary musician and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":55981,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[41,39,20],"tags":[504,499,505,199,285,502,506,497,374,503,495,496,500],"class_list":["post-55980","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","category-music-news","category-reviews","tag-autry-fulbright-ii","tag-black-flag","tag-bruce-lamont","tag-chicago-music-news-live-venue-interviews-reviews","tag-concert-review","tag-dimitri-coats","tag-fee-lsd","tag-keith-morris","tag-lincoln-hall","tag-mario-rubalcaba","tag-off","tag-shellac","tag-steve-albini"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55980","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=55980"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/55980\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/55981"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=55980"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=55980"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=55980"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}