The Chats @ Theatre Corona
W/ Drug Church, Scowl
October 21st, 2022
Usually when I name these Live from the Pit segments, the title usually reflects the band that’s headlining the show, whereas the other acts are included in the description box beneath the tour poster, like above. However, for this article I have to refrain from referring to The Bronx since I left the venue before they even went on stage in hopes of catching a cool local band at Turbo Haus. Alas, the metro system shut down, as is commonplace in Montreal, and we were left walking on the side of the road with neither live band satiating our ears. At the very least, however, I was more than satisfied with the three bands we ended up seeing at Theatre Corona that night. Indeed, The Chats put on one of the best live shows I’ve seen in all of 2022.
The first band to take the stage at Corona that night was Scowl from Santa Cruz, California. I’d heard a lot about these guys in the weeks leading up to the show, with all of my pals from the local scene who are super into hardcore telling me how fucking great they are. Well, I have to say that I agree that Scowl is a fucking awesome band, but what wasn’t fucking awesome was the sound issues they had to put up with during their set. While it was short and sweet, and the band put a ton of energy into their performance, especially vocalist Kat Moss who was jumping around the stage the entire time, the sound did not reflect their energy. I don’t know what was going on in the sound booth for these guys but they could not get the levels right. The mic was so low that most of Moss’ vocals were inaudible. Similarly, the drums were drowning out the guitar and bass, both of which felt muddy to the point of it being difficult to discern the riffs. None of this is on the band. This is all either on the venue, the gear, and/or whoever was doing sound.
After Scowl it was time for Drug Church, another band whose name I’ve heard a lot over the years. I’ve seen their name graffitied on abandoned buildings from St. John’s to Montreal, so their fanbase is definitely large. My pal Marshall who came to the show with us also said that they were sick and they were the band he was most excited to see, aside from The Chats. I didn’t quite know what to expect but I was honestly pleasantly surprised. These guys are an interesting combination of pop punk, grunge and post hardcore with a unique sonic atmosphere I don’t think I’ve heard anywhere before. Of course, I was transfixed on vocalist Patrick Kindlon for most of the show, as he was captivating with his interesting vocal style that sounded like a combination of yelling, singing and spoken word all at the same time. Thankfully whatever sound issues were present during Scowl’s set were fixed by the time Drug Church took the stage and I got really into their set. I wasn’t expecting to dig these guys as much as I did but I think they converted me into a fan that night.
After Drug Church it was time for the main event, at least according to my friends and I: The Chats. A simplistic, meat and potatoes punk rock band from Melbourne, Australia, I never would’ve expected a band like The Chats to end up not only make one of my favourite records of the year, but also put on one of the best shows of the year. This power trio had so much fucking energy on stage I couldn’t believe my ears or eyes. Seriously, they played perhaps 30 songs, literally almost their entire discography, including every track off of Get Fucked with the exception of “Boggo Breakout” and “Getting Better”. They played some older material, including “Smoko”, and, on top of that, they played a KISS cover, “Rock and Roll All Nite”. They also played every song twice as fast which is insane considering their material is already pretty blazing. I was mesmerized by their set and can’t wait for them to come back to Montreal. These guys have a permanent fan in me, and seeing them play almost the entirety of Get Fucked was a highlight of the year for me.
Overall this show was excellent. It’s a shame that Scowl had to deal with those horrid audio issues but I’m glad they at least fixed things up for Drug Church and The Chats. All three of the bands that I got to see on this night absolutely killed it. Drug Church gained a new fan and The Chats turned me into a lifer. Seriously, if you get the chance to see The Chats live don’t pass it up. You won’t regret it.
~ Akhenaten
Where Strides The Behemoth? 