Greg Puciato at Fine Line Music Cafe, Minneapolis (12 May 2023)

It’s a good metal/punk night with headliner Greg Puciato, the vocalist from the genre-destroying band The Dillinger Escape Plan, as he brings together three of his favorite bands to go on tour with him. The show stopped in at the Fine Line Music Café in Minneapolis on Friday, May 12th.



Starting off this four-band lineup is Brooklyn-based producer, drummer, vocalist, Brandon Gallagher, under his stagename Trace Amount. As first band on the bill, and a one-man-band, you have to give it to Gallagher playing his heart out to fans who showed up early enough to catch his 30-min set. He would occasionally, in between songs, admit that probably no one knew his music, so they wouldn’t know if it’s an “old” song or not. Still, he was grateful and thanked the audience for those encouraging “whoo!” and “yeah!” that some people were shouting.



Playing in complete darkness, with some lights from using the projection, random Matrix-esque codes were thrown on the canvas with his name, “Trace Amount” often seen.



Trace Amount’s debut album Anti Body Language came out on Federal Prisoner, the label founded by Greg Puciato and visual artist Jesse Draxler (who we previously mentioned that she worked with Poppy).



Next up was hardcore/punk Deaf Club, featuring vocalist Justin Pearson (from The Locust and Head Wound City), guitarists Tommy Meehan and Brian Amalfitano, bassist Jason Klein, and drummer Scott Osment.

Head Wound City (21 May 2016)

We’re actually big fans of Head Wound City, having seen them in May 2016 and described it as, “Based on the talents involved, I assumed theirs would be a brutal assault of a set and, oh, how I love to be right. The band swaggered on stage dressed like 50’s-style toughs and greasers and exploded into a pleasing amalgamation of noise and grindcore, tunes from the aptly-named new LP A New Wave of Violence and their 2005 self-titled EP. Vocalist Blilie shrieked, shook and spat at the mic as drummer Serbian tore a hole in the time-space continuum with his rapid-fire technique and Zinner, looking like Birthday Party-era Nick Cave, hung out on the far right of the stage scraping on his guitar. Opposite Zinner was bassist Pearson and guitarist Votolato adding to the delirium-inducing cacophony.”



So, everyone in Deaf Club have been around for a while, so it’s pretty funny when Pearson introduced themselves as, “Hi, we’re fourteen and this is our first show!” as they rip into their set. They also have a “Q&A” section of their show, which includes random nonsensical musing from Pearson. For example, he claims that the people in Lawrence, Kansas “were reading books” at their show (which I think is pretty funny). That he saw nothing but pedophile bumper stickers on trucks in Minnesota. What is he talking about? Maybe it’s an inside joke, they have a weird sense of humor.



Don’t let those random talking points distract you, when all is said and done, Deaf Club is a very good band.



Highlight of their set was at the finale, to make the show memorable, Pearson walked into the dancefloor and threw his microphone to the balcony. He then climbed the stairs and grabbed the mic and continued singing the song. At some point, he grabbed a chair and I swear he was going to throw it down, but maybe the better part of him thought he could hurt somebody, so he restrained. But man, what a moment, what a blast.



Deaf Club’s latest EP Bad Songs Forever is available now.



Next up was Escuela Grind, a high-energy, grind, and “unbelievably hostile” band, that formed in 2016, with vocalist Katerina Economou, drummer Jesse Fuentes, guitarist Jason Eldridge, and bassist Kris Morash. Apparently, all the band members are from different area of the country (New York, Massachusetts), so getting the band to come together can be challenging. They joked on stage that although they’re from all over, currently they are all living in a van.



You have to get used to the singing style, but if you can understand it, their songs are about unrests, such as Transgenders and being black in America. They dedicated their set to the outcasts and said that they are all welcome at their show.



Their set was just short of 40-min, but all their songs are pretty short, such as “Cliffhanger”, which starts at 150 miles per hour and comes to a stop as quickly as it started.



If you like what you heard, the band said they are returning to Minneapolis, at the Fine Line, on June 30th, with co-headliners Fit For An Autopsy and The Acacia Strain.



Closing out the show was Greg Puciato, who is touring in support of Mirrorcell, an album that came out last year.

Dillinger Escape Plan (28 April 2011)

We saw Dillinger Escape Plan in 2011 and said how hard it was to take a photo of the band, “Dillinger was incredibly hard to shoot because of they were mostly in darkness with the strobe lights. They also move around a lot, very high energy, and doing dangerous things like climbing and standing on the thin barriers. I spoke to someone close to the band, and he tells me that “they have very good health insurance”. Dillinger’s set started off with “Farewell, Mona Lisa”, then quietly started cursing at how early it was (it was 6:45). They kept the set pretty short, and before you knew it, the last song, “Sunshine the Werewolf” was played. The guitarist has climbed the amps and walking and playing on the 2nd floor, while the other band members are deep in the mosh pit.”



Dillinger Escape Plan officially broke up in 2013, after being around for 20 years. According to Puciato, he was 21 when he joined the band, and was nearly 40 when he left the band… so he just needed to take a break. After joining Killer Be Killed and Black Queen, he decided it was time to strike out as a solo artist in 2020 with Child Soldier: Creator of God.



Although Puciato is not as high-octane explosive as when he was in Dillinger Escape Plan, you can still see his angst underneath his performance in this latest tour.



Currently, Puciato is signing bands he likes under his label Federal Prisoner and Infinite Games.
His latest album Mirrorcell is out now.