Expect the Unexpected: Brooklyn Electropunk Band Lip Critic In Austin
For the past few weeks, I've been trying to determine how well-known the Brooklyn-based electropunk band Lip Critic is. Is it just my circle (the one that follows and photographs the loud experimental bands with mosh pits) that listen to them, or are they becoming a well-known band? Looking at the tour schedule at a handful of sold-out shows, it would seem they have a following.
I just spent the weekend at a music festival and chatted with fans lined up at the stage over three days. We know they are devoted music fans. As we compared notes and made recommendations, no one had heard of Lip Critic. As I was offering my recommendations, I realized Lip Critic fit into multiple genres we discussed. If someone liked hardcore music, I asked, “Have you heard Lip Critic?”
Like frenzied crowds? Check out Lip Critic. A fan of electro-punk? Lip Critic.
Brooklyn-based Lip Critic is Bret Kaser (singer/sampler), Connor Kleitz (sampler), and drummers Danny Eberle and Ilan Natter. The band combines punk, hardcore, hip hop, and electronic sounds. This mix creates their unique style. The basis of their sophomore album, Theft World, is said to have been inspired by Kaser having his identity stolen by a fan.
The fan created a fictional universe in which he believed the band was communicating with him through their music. The fan-fiction world created by the thief, and subsequent conversations with the thief himself, formed the album's theme. Much like the crooked world of an identity thief, who lives in an elaborate and confusing fictional world, there is no clear path in Thief World. When you think you know what comes next, you will be wrong. The result is an album of sensory overload. At first, it may seem disjointed, but it starts to make sense, and sticks with you more with each listen.
Of course, there are plenty of people who have been following them since the beginning. But if, like me, you have only recently been turned on to the band, it’s likely because of media coverage of their Theft Saga NYC Residency, which promoted their May album release of Theft World. During the residency, they played three shows at intimate, non-music venues: the basement under Spring bar, Yong Xin Tan laundromat, and 148 Frost Street boxing gym. Followers of Rolling Stone and Partisan Records likely saw the striking hardcore last-supper photo by Griffin Lotz. This photo features vocalist Bret Kaser with his arms outstretched, surrounded by moshing fans, showing his so-called “preacher energy.”
Lip Critic brought their frenetic show to Austin’s 29th Street Ballroom on June 17th. If you want a high-energy show with crowd-band interaction, mosh pits, and crowd surfing, this is the venue. 29th Street is a no-barrier stage that juts into the room. Fans can line the stage on three sides. On stage were just two samplers and two drum kits.
Kaser and the band took the stage with a screech and were quickly enveloped by the crowd. They took turns playing both old and new songs. Kleitz stayed at the sampler table and performed a fascinating, interpretative dance. Often, Kaser would join the second sampler at the table. He spent much of the time as both a hype man and a preacher, exciting the crowd, heading to the back of the venue, then returning to the stage.
The two drummers provided rhythm, sometimes working together and sometimes against each other. The show never got monotonous and left no room to settle into a pattern. Continuing the theme of the album, that comfort was stolen. Near the end, drummer Eberle took the mic and screamed “Milky Max,” a fan favorite, while surfing the crowd. After days of listening to Theft World on repeat, the live show and energetic crowd solidified my admiration and fascination with their sound and presence.
Next week they head across the pond for small run of sold-out UK shows and will return to the US mid-July for a string of mostly East Coast shows. Head to the bands' website for a full list of dates and to grab your tickets.