Wraths Debut Show at Saint Rocke
Southern California’s South Bay has birthed many iconic punk bands such as Black Flag, Descendents, Pennywise, etc. and with band members mixing and matching for new projects such as Wraths, the legacy continues. Packing out Saint Rocke in Hermosa Beach, CA for their debut show last Friday, Wraths is evidence that the punk scene is still alive and well.
Chris Kranes and Andrew Tyler Murphy (The Darlings) on bass and drums respectively and Steve McCall (1208) on guitar, were joined by Jim Lindberg (Pennywise) on vocals to create Wraths’ fast, aggressive punk sound. The band released their first single in November 2014 and a self-titled seven track EP just before the end of 2014 and just as quickly scheduled their first live show.
The fans were in full mosh mode and a pit erupted for each and every song. Wraths showed the power of four talented musicians coming together with a tight and fast set that featured all seven original songs from the EP and included two covers. With each song lasting less than two minutes Jim Lindberg commented during the show, “This music is tiring, singing that Pennywise shit is easy” as he compared the pace and energy required to belt out these aggressive vocals. Behind Jim’s increased pacing, Chris’ thick bass lines, Andrew’s punchy, driving rhythm on drums, and Steve’s fret flying solos filled out each track nicely and gave depth to each song.
Fans were also treated to something special when Wraths premiered a new song, “War Drums” during the set. It may have only been the third time Wraths played the song, but it was as put together and polished as the songs recorded on the EP. Covering Nirvana’s “Breed” and old school Black Flag within the set got some extra crowd involvement, but by the time Wraths ended with “In Control,” they were definitely just that.
Wraths proved they are worthy of the attention they received at this sold out show and you can look forward to more good things coming from this band. Do yourself a favor, if you haven’t downloaded Wrath’s EP, do it here. Though the touring may be limited by band member’s schedules and other band commitments, if Wraths comes to your town for a show … just go!
Like Wraths on Facebook , follow @wrathsband on Twitter, and hear them on Soundcloud and Spotify.
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