The latest luminaries of the Nashville punk boom, Useless Eaters — featuring members of D. Watusi, Kindergarten Circus, Cy Barkley and the Way Outsiders, and led by singer, guitarist, Memphis transplant and onetime Jay Reatard bandmate Seth Sutton — are the first of their peers to wear a distinctly British influence on their sleeves. Boasting a buzzsaw-toned, dueling six-string assault of angular riffs recounting early XTC and Gang of Four records; hard-hitting, rapid-fire, martial beats; and brash, staccato monosyllables spit out with plenty of sneering attitude, the band intimates a direct, unapologetic fetishization of late-’70s punk and post-punk that never ceases to arouse a visceral fist-pump. Save for the occasional reverb-rife garage-rock flourish, the presentation is totally frill-free, tough and in-your-face — with no shortage of energy and hooks to boot. Help them bring their
Daily Commute LP into the world at this inevitably sweaty, smoky release show. Locals Feral Beat, Memphis’ Sex Cult and Denmark’s Cola Freaks open.
— Adam Gold