Dead, Jail, or Rock’n’Roll. That’s my entire review. Want more? OK. Michael Monroe. He’s that Finnish dude from the superlatively influential band Hanoi Rocks. Lived in New York’s East Village for years. Lived, breathed, ate up bands like The Damned, Dead Boys, The Heartbreakers. Out the other end came bands like Guns ‘n’ Roses and Manic Street Preachers. Michael Monroe lived up to every note of his own influences on Friday night and passed on to the crowd a highly energetic, electric night of current and classic glam punk, full of high-kicks and splits. Believe in rock ‘n’ roll. Or wind up dead, or in jail…
Hours before the main event, the night started off in familiar territory. Jersey City’s Black Wail brought the stoner doomy blues riffs. Sober or not, the sound was enough to bring on a contact high. OK and it made me thirsty for more whiskey and beer (well that’s not too hard to do, actually). Kore Rozzik was next and if there was a crossover band fit enough to create a sub-genre that I’d like to coin as Nü-Gutter-Glam Rock, then yeah, it now exists. Swedish rockers Hardcore Superstar came back to NYC after a 10-year absence to co-headline and pour some extra sleaze into the night.
