Concert Review: Preoccupations Embrace The Punk At Warsaw
In a previous review, I called their show cinematic, of which the movie has not ended. Their arrangements reel like the grained, 90’s home videos of a bunch of boys trashing their schoolyard at night, or quickly swirl like the image of an Anime character eternally falling from an endless skyscraper. You may not see how these two images are related, but, at Warsaw, both united under the emotional common-grounds of alienation.
Preoccupations play their instruments like a film with multiple endings. Songs never end clearly, but yet their chaos feels concise, which is perfect for tracks that show the grim euphoria of pain. In some ways, we can become addicted to worry, and allow fear to become a constant co-owner of our days. The question is whether we are satisfied by our stress; enough so to not let it go and work harder for joy. Tracks like, “Newspaper,” “Decompose,” “Disarray,” and “Death” grappled with this dilemma even in title. For all the punches life gives us, we can find an on oddly close bond with our victimhood, which explains why Preoccupations sound and style felt more punk than ever.
Described as “post-punk,” Preoccupations was, definitely, giving more The Sex Pistols than ever before. Confidence and rage made a beautiful blend through Matt Flegel’s voice, and he was letting their union thrash through tracks like, “Memory” and “Zodiac.” He presented verses like the angrily throttled explanations of someone whom has said, “If you can’t heal the misery, then make it your company!” Every instrumental suite and riff exemplified this misfitted union, and made the audience swerve their heads and bodies as if rhythms hit you like punches. The crowd soaked into sonics that tight-roped between music, noise, and the plain, guttural sounds of raw discontent.
Preoccupations’ Warsaw show pushed them beyond the bounds of genre into becoming a “taste.” There are certain bands that you will either love or hate or rather “get” or not understand, and Preoccupations is one of them, which is a good thing. Not everybody is going to love you when you are good, but more people will love you when you are different. Preoccupations are good and different, which is why they completely served a show that fed the fans that “get” their music and feel understood by it. For More Information on Preoccupations Click Here.
