Brooklyn Band of the Week: The Fugue

Apologies for going NME-style, but I simply can’t think of any other way to say it: the Fugue is totally the next Jesus Lizard (although front man Joe Somar wisely refrains from the sweaty naked David Yow hugs). Like the increasingly-imitated nineties-era Touch and Go band, the Fugue are heavy on the distortion and theatrics; a show a few years back even found them setting off indoor fireworks. You’re lucky if you can understand a single word of the screeched lyrics, and the bass is so heavy it might cause intestinal bleeding. Despite, or perhaps because of, all this, the Fugue is a mind-blowing live act, whose distressing, cacophonous noise will make you question your definition of ‚”music.” The recently released a split 7″ with the equally eardrum-shattering AIDS Wolf, and are playing a few local shows before heading out on a West Coast tour later this spring.
See them live:
Friday, January 26, Uncle Paulie’s, 8pm, $8, with An Albatross, These Are Powers, and Best Fwends. Directions at http://www.toddpnyc.com
Monday, January 30, Northsix Basement, 9pm, $8, with People, Capillary Action, and Hi Red Center.
Mp3s are at http://www.myspace.com/diefugueusa.
-Cortney Harding