Live Review: Screaming Females at the Knitting Factory

Originally posted on Free Williamsburg.

Don Giovanni arguably have the most consistent roster around right now with the likes of Brick Mower, Priests, California X, Waxahatchee, Black Wine and flagship band, Screaming Females all gracing the New Brunswick-based label.

Screamales kicked off their latest tour in Baltimore the previous night and there was no sign of any early-tour rustiness as the band customarily blitzed through their sold-out 60-minute set at the Knitting Factory on Saturday evening. You can also listen to new single, Wishing Well, after the jump.

Rather uncharacteristically, I missed the opening act, which was Mal Blum, but did catch Pujol, who always pack more of a punch live than on record.

Screaming Females took to the stage set a little after 9pm. This was the fourth time I'd seen them this year and for my money, they're the best live band around right now. Whilst all eyes and ears are naturally drawn towards singer and guitar virtuoso Marissa Paternoster, the rhythm section of Jarrett Dougherty on drums and King Mike on bass are not just there to make up the numbers. Mike's rickenbacker bass is the perfect foil for Marrisa's unabashed penchant for exquisite guitar solos, which are a complete joy to witness.

It's the material from 2012's Ugly LP that gets the crowd the most pumped, with It All Means Nothing, Extinction, Leave It All to Me & Doom 84  all giving the venue's floorboards a testing by the rambunctious attendees. The band had promised a surprise at the merch table for this tour, and they have a new 7" single out in anticipation of new album, Rose Mountain. The single is called Wishing Well, and you can listen to it below.

As an FYI, the Knitting Factory had a "mandatory" $3 bag check, which was shall we say, selectively enforced... this was also the first time I'd been to the venue in 2014. I'm not quite sure what's happened with the booking there but it got me thinking: Last year I saw the likes of The Growlers, The Babies, Jaill, Pop Zeus, Foxygen, Bleached, White Fence and Wooden Shjips. This year I can't quite remember any shows even being on my radar until this weekend, which is a shame because the sound is usually on point. as it is tonight.

If you haven't seen the band before then I would certainly urge you to rectify that as soon as possible. The term "power trio" may have become diluted and perhaps somewhat of a dirty word over the years, but Screaming Females are almost single-handedly dragging it back kicking and screaming to the present day.

The band's remaining tour dates are as follows:

10/06 - Ace of Cups - Columbus, OH
10/07 - Logan Square Auditorium - Chicago, IL
10/08 - Triple Rock Social Club - Minneapolis, MN
10/09 - Back Porch - Spearfish, SD
10/10 - Lost Lake Lounge - Denver, CO
10/11 - The Crux - Boise, ID
10/13 - Holocene - Portland, OR
10/14 - Obsidian - Olympia, WA
10/15 - Black Lodge - Seattle, WA
10/17 - 1234 Go! - Oakland, CA
10/18 - Hemlock Tavern - San Francisco, CA
10/19 - Los Globos - Los Angeles, CA
10/23 - Red 7 - Austin, TX
10/24 - Walter's Downtown - Houston, TX
10/25 - Community Records Block Party - New Orleans, LA
10/28 - The Stone Fox - Nashville, TN
10/30 - Pre-Fest 2 - Ybor (Tampa), FL*
10/31 - FEST 13 - Gainesville, FL*
11/01 - 529 Bar - Atlanta, GA
11/02 - Kings Barcade - Raleigh, NC
11/03 - Strange Matter - Richmond, VA
11/05 - Johnny Brenda's - Philadelphia, PA
11/06 - TT The Bear's Place - Cambridge, MA
11/07 - Spark City - Providence, RI
11/08 - Asbury Lanes - Asbury Park, NJ

All shows with PUJOL except *

Screaming Females are on Twitter and Facebook, purchase their music here.

@Chris_Quartly