By Brian Stout

By Brian Stout

In more ways than one, this is a heavy piece to write. We have reached the final show of the celebrations of Flint Local 432’s 40th anniversary, and it’s been my honor and privilege to help get the word out. For a guy who loves music as much as I do, but doesn’t play or sing a note, this is my way of being part of it. I spent many weekend evenings at the Local during the 1990s and 2000s. I met all my greatest friends there and it is one of the key experiences of my life. Sincerely, Joel. Thank you from the bottom of my midwest blue collar heart.

Speaking of heavy, this show’s lineup has heaviness to spare, sonically and thematically, but it’s also a celebration. Hardcore heroes Silence the Wake have a record release that is over two decades in the making. Cult Therapy’s phenomenal Get Fucked, Sinner! Is celebrating a year in release. It was a breakout, gaining national attention and landing in PopMatters’ best punk and hardcore releases of the year. That record was released by Freak Baby, which is holding a bazaar and will be releasing a new issue of their zine. Finally, J.L. Massimino’s show on WKUF 94.3 FM is celebrating a decade on the air.

The show at Factory Two on April 25 starts at 5 p.m., so don’t dawdle, because this entire lineup is unmissable. And the show is free. And it’s your last chance to be part of the celebration of this Flint institution. Change any plans you have made, unless those plans are getting to this show.

Here’s a rundown of the lineup.

Silence the Wake changed its name from Off Kilter to signal the shift in sound. As the current name suggests, the band is heavy, but in that cathartic way. “I looked us up on Discogs and the description is ‘Flint, Michigan-based band that played fast, screamy stuff with melodic parts thrown into the mix,’ so that’s what I’m going with from now on,” explains guitarist Curtiss Gulash. Bring some cash so you can pick up their release on vinyl or cassette, which will be available in limited quantities. It’s a piece of Flint music history from a particularly fertile era. I was around during this time, but I’m not biased at all.

Cult Therapy’s Get Fucked, Sinner! is a harrowing journey through religious trauma and addiction. Lead singer Jason Duncan’s words are a lyrical exorcism that ends with a powerful, cautiously hopeful, message. His description of their sound is, “If Weezer was an angsty Saddle Creek band from mid-1990s Seattle,” and I concur, and I’d add in The Pixies. This is strong stuff, so let me provide two tracks that ease you into it: “Therapy and Drugs” and “Deacon’s House” are catchy songs with great riffs.

There’s a similar moodiness in the songs of Clear Days Always, which is a project from Local mainstays Spit for Athena. “Insult” from 2021’s release Romance has a discordant, noisy sound that made my mental music index reach for bands like Drive Like Jehu and Lungfish, without exactly sounding like a carbon copy of either. If you like to stand still and do that half-body nod I like to do when things are hitting, you will be into this. By the way, this is a compliment.

Another band that went in a heavy direction from an earlier project is Monte, who’s got those chugga-chugga breakdowns for when you need to do the floor punch or windmill (watch out for your neighbors, though. Sorry, I am a dad now and I feel obligated to say it). Pivoting from the Fat Wreck Chords-inspired punk of previous band Apathy for an Enemy, Monte sounds as tough as Edward Norton’s character who goes by that name in the Spike Lee classic 25th Hour. “Bone$aw” has some truly chilling vocals to go with those breakdowns. It’s a mini-epic, really. Lots of ground covered in about three and a half minutes.

Save some energy, because when Great Planes! hits the stage, you’re going to want to be up front, judging by the heavy, passionate sound of their EP Endless Crisis.. You can get a head start on memorizing the lyrics by going to their bandcamp page. “Heavy Hollow” gave me some Cursive vibes, with a little more humor (a great sample kicks off “2,500 Bones”).

* note that Great Planes! has been replaced by Gusher.

As a Michigan native planted elsewhere these days, I cannot stress how lucky it is to be able to move between Flint and Detroit’s always fertile music scenes. Don’t take it for granted, people. Things aren’t like that everywhere.

For there to be a place for everyone to see great bands in Flint for decades now is nothing less than a miracle. But don’t just take my word for it.

Silence the Wake’s guitarist Curtiss Gulash grew up outside of Flint in Otisville, and he got plugged into the scene by friends’ older brothers, Flint music royalty Steven Swart of the phenomenal early 1990s band Power Tool and Dusty Brill, who was a fixture for years in bands like Power on Hold (R.I.P. Scotty A), Smatch, and Choke 66 (R.I.P. Jay Willey on both of those). Dusty later played with Good Charlotte, and both started out as teens in Preppy Horde.

At first, Gulash’s parents weren’t ready to let him head downtown, so he began going to shows in Davison and made connections with musicians who played at the Local. “I finally convinced my parents to let me. and two friends go downtown for [local hardcore heroes] SPIT’s final show. I brought in their lead singer to talk to my parents as a way to convince them it was okay,” he laughed.

The night’s diverse lineup of hardcore, grindcore, and melodic punk was inspiring. “After that, my parents saw the spark in me, and as long as I wasn’t getting into trouble and keeping my grades up, I was allowed to go downtown on the weekends,” Gulash shared.

Vocalist Berry Beebe described the shift from Off Kilter to Silence the Wake. “I remember reaching a point where the new music we were writing felt far removed from where Off Kilter started. Off Kilter was about energy and angst, and Silence the Wake was about anger and depression, at least on my end. When Curtiss joined the band, it seemed like it was a natural time to evolve our sound from energetic punk to more of a hardcore sound,” he explained.

Silence the Wake were part of many memorable shows at the Local. “From seeing a band like Absence pack the original location to the crowd for Less Than Jake nearly collapsing the floor at The Metropolis to playing with My Chemical Romance and Underoath before they both blew up, those are all memories I’ll carry with me forever,” Gulash shared.

“I can’t begin to state how special the Local was to everyone who has been a part of it over the years. Joel and all of the staff over the years have earned my gratitude and respect. It means the world to me to get to play under the banner of the Local again,” Beebe said. “For Silence the Wake, it’s been about 20 years since we’ve rattled the cage. Getting to play music with my friends again has been awesome, and it’s honestly humbling that anyone would like to show up and get sweaty with us again.”

Silence the Wake’s rhythm section, Jeff Buffmeyer on drums and Nick Mayberry on bass, have been in countless bands over the years, and they will be pulling double duty on the 25th, since they are also the rhythm section of Cult Therapy.

“After I discovered the Local, I went religiously, to every show, no matter who was playing, and I soaked it up like a sponge. After a while, I started jamming with different people and starting new bands, and by the time high school was over I was a full fledged band guy,” he shared.

“Over the years, the Local has been the catalyst for everything in my life. Nearly all of my friends are people I met through the Local. I’ve been in countless bands who called the Local home, I’ve. used the Local as a practice space, and actually I wouldn’t know my wife if it weren’t for the Local. The Local has provided such a positive, creative, fulfilling path for me, it’s still very much a pillar in my life,” Buffmeyer added.

Lead singer and guitarist Jason Duncan also credits the Local with being the place where he learned to be a musician and where he found his people. Duncan and his partner, cellist Jess Duncan, had their first dates at the Local and played in Ari Thanos and Bell Tree. Even transplant guitarist Jacques Doucet has gotten into the multi-band norm, playing with Fernando Solis, too.

“To be making music with the same musicians for the past 25 years is truly special. If anyone likes what we are doing, we are doing it because we were inspired by the many great local musicians who called the Flint Local 432 home,” Duncan said. “These shows have been like high school reunions. I can’t wait to see all the familiar faces of this community that we don’t get to see as often. I am so lucky to be in an active band that aligns with the 40th anniversary.”

This is a celebration. Please come. I can hardly say it better than Curtiss Gulash of Silence the Wake:

“Life is fleeting. We’ve all lost friends over the years — people who we know would be in that room with us on April 25th. So let’s all sing, dance, and scream for them.”

Article by Brian Stout, whose work can be found on PopMatters and other music sites of distinction: https://www.popmatters.com/author/brian-stout

Event Listing:

https://facebook.com/events/s/silence-the-wake-clear-days-al/1234388988244880/