Mar 13

Mar 13 Review: Nothing at Eulogy

Shoegaze, Rock, Psychedelic, Experimental

Not all opening acts are created equal.

As the first of four bands on a 7 p.m. bill at Eulogy on March 6, Violent Magic Orchestra was firmly positioned in the slot most likely to be skipped — and many concertgoers made that mistake. Those who arrived early, however, were treated to something truly unhinged.

Equal parts performance art and sonic assault, VMO's set was a relentless barrage of blinding strobes, thumping techno-doom, and crowd dives that sent beer flying into the audience. The Japanese group’s synthesis of blaring death metal and techno may in theory come across as a prompt for an AI-generated song, but the unpredictable and completely enrapturing performance was exactly what an algorithm can never replicate.

The unenviable task of following that fell to Cryogeyser, a dreamy Los Angeles trio whose hazy Alvvays-adjacent set offered a welcome comedown, if a somewhat anticlimactic one. Philadelphia quartet Full Body 2 fared better in the third slot, projecting a dense My Bloody Valentine-influenced wall of sound bolstered by electronic flourishes reminiscent of Airiel and Depreciation Guild.

Then Nothing took the stage. The Philly quintet opened with new track, "Toothless Coal," a perfect entry point into their latest record, featuring a breakbeat drum pattern and buzzing guitar evoking the alt-dance/shoegaze crossover of the early ’90s British scene before three guitars gradually swallowed the room whole.

The set leaned heavily on A Short History of Decay, released just a week prior and arguably Nicky Palermo's most ambitious work yet — more introspective and ethereal than its predecessors, though no less crushing when needed. "Cannibal World" and the title track proved that point, pushing the limits of Eulogy's soundsystem with explosive outbursts.

While the bulk of the selections highlighted the latest batch of tunes, Palermo & Co. offered up a handful of crowdpleasing gems from its back catalog, including Guilty of Everything standouts “Hymn to the Pillory” and “Bent Nail,” which were especially exhilarating to hear performed live after over a decade in steady rotation.

The group helped breathe fresh life into shoegaze when it broke through in 2014, and it's good to see Nothing still pushing forward without losing the dreamy-yet-grimy wall of sound that made Palermo’s band essential in the first place.