I ended off 2013 by heading out to see the Cro-Mags. They haven’t played down the shore probably since the show at Middlesex County College in 1994 (which my friends skipped to go see Earth Crisis and Four Walls Falling in Philadelphia! Dicks.) unless you count them playing at Club Krome in 2002. The semester had just ended and I trekked across the state to get to the gig.
I ran into some friends at the show, but everyone was kind of off in their own little worlds, which is fine but it made me feel like I was always slightly outside of a conversation. I saw at least two or three of the opening bands, but most of them sounded like that NJ Bloodline/Fury of V style that seems to be popular again. Whatever. I think I missed Blind Justice, who I have seen before.
I packed it up front for the Cro-Mags. After some false starts with We Gotta Know, they went flying into World Peace and the place went off. It was quite cathartic to scream along to those songs for a bit. During the Clockwork Orange theme I stood there, eyes closed, and just felt this intense fucking rage. Meanwhile, people are texting and laughing it up with their expensive beers like it is some frat party. Fuck you.
I ended up moshing for some songs because up front people were doing these douchey belly flop dives and it got a bit ridiculous to deal with after I took an ankle to the head. I sat out a few songs in the back to cool off, but went back in to mosh for their cover of Right Brigade and then, of course, Life Of My Own. I went outside with maybe one song left because it was really uncomfortably hot in the venue.
I hung out with a few friends for a bit afterwards and then called it a night. I wish people didn’t act like solipsistic assholes when they dive, but at least their was a lack of slow motion stage moshing bullshit for once.
