They look so serious here don’t they but rest assured here’s one band who likes to take their clothes off and then each others clothes too while they’re at it…of course, that is if they had much on to begin with. I’m sure they’ll heat up west Germany on this coming, chilly Sunday eve. Enjoy.
Gay Beast in their own words:
Gay Beast formed mid-2005 during a fit of anxiety towards Midwestern passive aggression and as an attempt to make music that was queer in composition and aesthetic. Wielding a battery of drums, scraped and hammered guitars, chanted vocals, retro-future synths, saxophone, and other electronics, the trio (Angela Gerend, Daniel Luedtke, Isaac Rotto) build songs on grounds that adjoin complexity and catchiness, a space where both abrasion and tunefulness inhabit.
With releases on DNT, Gilgongo, and Skin Graft, Gay Beast have garnered a reputation for uniqueness on the rock fringe, their sound being both too weird for the stereotype of a “gay band” and “too gay” for the noise-rock set. Upon examination of the influence blender, one finds remnants of Devo, Captain Beefheart, equatorial pop-rock from the 60s and 70s, no wave, and feminist theory. This concoction, delivered via Gay Beast’s unique political approach to composition, is explored heavily on their third album “To Smithereens”, appearing Winter 2010 on Skin Graft Records.
Gelbart opens up the night with our favourite one-man show on earth. Here’s a video of his, a track that sounds like a long-lost Warp Records classic trying to find its way home and it just goes to show that, yes, robots can and do rock. Eh, Dan?
