Throw Rag, Inflatable Supermodel, Indecisive Youth & Socially Pink

Last Tuesday night at Riff Raff was simply pandemonium. An angry mob of listeners prevailed, heckling the bouncer as he dragged the venue’s rowdiest away. By the end of the evening, the result of this chaos would leave the small club battered and bruised, but hopefully not for too long.
Though all four bands that night were worthy of the headliner spot, Socially Pink apparently drew the shortest straw, but their talents reaped immediate recognition as the bar was more than half-full by the middle of their early set. With possibly the most classic punk sound of the evening, their constant call-and-response backing vocals were comparable to old school Misfits, but with yet less singing and more screaming.
Indecisive Youth jumped right into their set with a quick setup and an immediate surge of energy. The only initial shyness seemed to lie in lead singer Shawn “Bleech” Freyer’s tendency to focus more on his band than the audience. However, he quickly came around, albeit no sooner than the lead guitarist. Every time my faded ass sees these guys, the one memory that remains is of the flamboyant Nick Giusto teetering on the edge of the bar, shakin’ his puffy hair all over the place. (Think Brian Setzer playing mostly bar chords.) As the most excited member of the band, he was also undoubtedly the strongest backup-singer-without-a-microphone of the night. Songs became increasingly intense and lengthy as the show proceeded. One of Indecisive Youth’s most distinguishable aspects is their willingness to write songs that exceed the two-and-a-half-minute-or-less ethic of conventional punk.
In light of Mardi Gras, Inflatable Supermodel frontman Joe Manente broke out a garbage bag full of ribbon, much of which was attached to dolls and stuffed animals, depending on which assault weapon one preferred to unleash upon the audience and / or band and / or bouncer (oops). But ribbons and Pound Puppies notwithstanding, there’s an exclusive vibe surrounding Inflatable Supermodel that I’ve gradually come to appreciate; I don’t know if it’s Manente’s angry, and often gruff voice, or the deep drumming and chant-y retorts from the rest of the band, but their mad sex-driven sound has fashioned its own pirate-like motif. Therefore, I’m inducting Inflatable Supermodel into the time-honored sub-genre of pirate punk. Arrrr!
Remember the scary indigents who tried to kidnap Pete in Disney’s Pete’s Dragon? Well, Throw Rag is what would happen if they formed a punk band, minus Shelley Winters. One singer (Captain Sean-Doe “the bastard son of John Doe”) was barely visible on the floor, while the other (Jacko), sometimes too noticeable on the bar. By “too,” I mean almost completely naked, allowing for momentary glimpses of his naturals in the midst of committing borderline sodomy via water bottle. Jacko was a perfect mix between Jack White and post-prime Elvis, though Throw Rag did not as much resemble the White Stripes as much as they did the white trash (as exemplified by the pompous playing of Jacko’s washboard / cowbell combo). This icky approach worked. Hordes of fans were singing along while various local band members could be spotted taking advantage of the night’s crash course on stage presence. Through their trashy turmoil, Throw Rag unquestionably attained at least one new fan that evening.
- David P. Brown
- Photo by Alyssa Starkey

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