The Orwells House Show
The Orwells performed at a much anticipated show on Saturday, April 4, taking place in a crowded living room in Urbana (it was literally a full *house*). The night began with a few opening acts by Flesh Panthers, Petty Crimes, and The Honey Dips. First up was grimy garage rock by Flesh Panthers. “Flesh Panthers” was a great choice for band name because I can’t think of a better way to describe their music, and I mean that in a good way. Next came Petty Crimes , an upbeat indie band also from Chicago. I found myself bopping along with the rest of the crowd, occasionally meeting the gaze of another audience member and doing the “yeah, man they’re pretty good huh” head nod. Our final opener was The Honeydips, a fun surf rock group. Sometimes house shows can be a hit or a miss, because you never know if a band got the gig because they are a friend’s brother’s stepson’s uncle who just wanted a place to practice with an audience, but I have to say all of these bands were definitely worth listening to.Between sets, there was ample milling about, waiting in line for the bathroom, and sidling up next to The Orwells who were inconspicuously chilling in the dining room like the rock gods they are. I’m not sure if “rock gods” is an exaggeration or not, but they are barely older than me, have better hair than me, and have more worldwide fans than me.
By the time The Orwells went on I was ready for a snow-cone. Not only was it hot and sweaty, but it was really hot and sweaty! I’m pretty sure I was severely dehydrated and on the cusp of fainting, because it felt almost like that time I passed out at Six Flags waiting for the giant drop ride. But somehow I managed to pull myself up by the bootstraps and elbow my way to the front. The first thing I noticed was the lead singer’s hair, which swung around in wet tendrils like hot spaghetti. Then I noticed the fan girls practically hanging off the rafters on the side of the “stage” like drooling monkeys in heat. When the music started, everyone’s ears exploded and blood rained down on us all as punishment for our lust and gluttony. Just kidding. As loud as the music was, no one was directly hurt. That’s not to say we were safe from the moshing. I saw the light flicker out from a girl’s eyes and she was sucked down into the feet of the dark mosh, never to be seen again. After witnessing that, I kept my elbows up high and eventually started to enjoy myself as I became one with the mosh.The music itself was awesome. If you are not familiar with The Orwells, they are actually becoming pretty popular and they sounded great live. I’d definitely recommend listening to them if you like Twin Peaks or FIDLAR, because they have a similar grimy, gritty, angsty, garage sound that we punky college kids like. My personal favorite song is “Mallrats (La La La)”, which they played near the end and drove everyone crazy. I think The Orwells really understand the plight of our generation, because we are all mallrats inside. [embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iNZpBOme8GI[/embed] Overall, the bands were great and I’m thankful I didn’t get kicked in the head by a stray crowd-surfing foot this time.