On 11/11 of 2023, the very first show in the New Curious City Show series took place at Burns Alley. The bill consisted of Cat Uncle, Monsoon, PINKIE, and Chase Heffron. What began as a backyard battle of the bands turned into a back alley battle of the bands (coined by Brett Nash) due to the rain and some quick venue shifts.
To start things off, I would like to give a huge shoutout to Aubrie Paradise and volunteers from the Charleston Sound for helping bring this event to life.
I’d also like to issue a huge thanks to Kushi Simmons of Charleston Punks for all of the photography used in this article! Thanks for capturing the moment.
Lastly, I just wanted to say thank you to everyone that showed up and supported the show! You guys rock!
Cat Uncle kicked off the event with gritty gain and bullet train style drumming. The long since duo of Daniel Renshaw and Elijah Sky Springs delivered a tempered and emotional performance in Daniel’s debut of his solo moniker. Cat Uncle wove in a classic cover of “High and Dry” as they brought the set to a close.
Next up, Monsoon took the stage. Sienna Chandler’s stage presence was remarkable, casting spells from her guitar onto the crowd and leading chants in the anthematic “Red Blood.“ Joey Kegel held the beats down from the drumset behind, orchestrating waves of beats on Ghost Party’s lead single, “Don’t Move.” The two piece whisked Burns Alley into a flurry, charming the audience with what must’ve been witchcraft.
PINKIE kept the energy up with a killer punk set from the duo of Lyla Carpenter and Alex (of temptress). They played through classic cuts like “My Friend Goo.” They dug through their still unreleased discography of gems, hitting “Mary Jane,” “Animal Cannibal,” and “Groupie.” Keep an eye out for these 2 rockers in the future.
While you’re here, give Alex’s newest 2024 album a spin! Here’s my favorite track.
Finally, Chase Heffron stepped onto stage donning an acoustic guitar. He struck up with “South Down 17,” showcasing his songwriting skills while he swerved through verses. As he swung into the chorus, he hit an earworm of a riff and let out some southern twang reminiscent of MJ Lenderman. I’m beyond eager for these tracks to hit streaming- stay tuned.
Finally, at the end of the show we took a moment to count the votes, here were the results:
In 4th place with 7 votes was Cat Uncle.
In 3rd place with 9 votes was PINKIE.
In 2nd place with 17 votes was Chase Heffron.
*drum roll please*
In 1st place with 19 votes was Monsoon.
The Athens rockers continued on their way the rest of the day to stir up trouble at the Radio Room in Greenville- these two can’t be slowed down! Be sure to be on the lookout for Monsoon in 2024.
So that was way back in November…
Our 2nd NCC show is TODAY! 2/10 at Stu’s House!
We’ll be rocking with Newgrounds Death Rugby, Gods, and Overlay! DM us on IG at thenewcuriouscity for the address. Thanks to Elijah Sky Springs for the poster design.
Thank you for the kind words🫶🫶🫶