LIVE! Skindance

Artist: Skindance

Link: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Skindance/844078655636919

Skindance's guitarist/singer/frontman John Dilday reminds me of The Melvins' Buzz Osborne, fully inhabiting the duo's rhythmic interplay [of drums/guitar] as he moves, screams, yells, and generally throws himself wherever the guitar's going. But not unlike the girl-with-cigarette on his Dinosaur Jr. T-shirt, I'm sure Dilday could give a fuck what he looks like.

The “rock first, rock always, live and let die” ethos of the best live acts in the visceral rock genres (grunge/punk/garage) was on full display. Check the chronology of this particular Skindance show: Treat your guitar like the punk-bitch it is, break a string. Pull out another guitar, grind it against the amplifier, promptly break two more strings.

Then proceed to nail the blistering vocals and feverish interplay of the recorded versions. In fact, if Dilday and drummer Tony Panizzo were not separated at birth, I'd argue their locked-in rhythms suggest they at least share the same beer bong. High point of the night? A fan requested “FATS,” and Skindance fired it up without hesitation, thrilling us all with Dilday's bloody-raw vocal and that memorable riff.

Given his faculty with melodic verses, Dilday bathed in the pretty stage lights could trick an unsuspecting listener into resting comfortably ensconced in serenity. Word to the wise: Snap the fuck out of it. It's just a prelude to power.

*** The author of this review, Shawn Myers, plays the naqareh for the following band: http://youtu.be/tMS73-1kCr8