Screen Shot 2017-01-23 at 5.49.00 PM

Ted Leo, Priests, Waxahatchee & more played Inauguration Night protest show in DC (pics, review)

Priests frontwoman Katie Alice Greer organized a sold-out anti-inauguration show, with a lineup that easily beat Trump’s own, called “NO THANKS: A Night of Anti-Fascist Sound Resistance in the Capital of the USA” at DC’s Black Cat last Friday (1/20).

It being Inauguration Day, the mood was tense, but this show offered a platform for musicians and guest speakers to bring awareness of certain issues and create an ambiance of solidarity. Proceeds from the show went to Casa Ruby, an LGBTQ+ community center, and ONE DC, a non-profit focusing on prevention of gentrification, with each organization gaining $6,000.

The show featured a diverse range of performers, from local punk bands like Free Children of Earth to easeful avant-garde acts like Mellow Diamond, with sets lasting more or less fifteen minutes.

DC political hardcore punks Pure Disgust gave one of the most impressive performances of the night, with a high energy set that relieved tension by starting a small moshpit near the stage. Next up was Sadie Dupuis, who kicked off her short solo set with Speedy Ortiz’s “The Graduates,” and then played a few songs from her Sad13 solo LP Slugger.

Priests’ Taylor Mulitz’s other band Flasher took the stage, contrasting Pure Disgust’s heavy sound with danceable post-punk tunes that continued to liven up the mood. Before starting the Priests set, Katie gave a teary-eyed speech on the importance of the arts, thanking everyone for participating in the event on such short notice, and later wrote an op-ed for Pitchfork about the event and the importance of activism post-Women’s March. Watch her speech below.

Priests’ set featured some of their older songs like “Right Wing” (a very appropriate choice for the night) and a couple of new tracks off their debut album Nothing Feels Natural, featuring Pitchfork writer Jenn Pelly and activist Hope Willis as “protesters” holding up signs that read “Abort Trump” and “Abuse of power comes as no surprise.”

Waxahatchee‘s Katie Crutchfield played one of the last sets of the night, announcing that her new album was officially finished. She debuted a new song called “Sparks Fly,” that sounded like it could’ve been on her last album, and played a few covers, including Guided by Voices’ “Game of Pricks.”

Ted Leo also played a set as part of his band Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, which I unfortunately missed. More pics and videos are below.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BPgbiXJDeWq/?taken-by=cigarrillosdedieta

https://www.instagram.com/p/BPn3nghjcW_/?taken-by=cigarrillosdedieta