Rusty was another band that I wasn't able to see last year due to my illness. They headlined Friday March 11 at The Horseshoe Tavern to an enthusiastic crowd of fans looking to relive a high-energy punk rock show by one of the best bands from back in the day. Personally, I think the last time I saw the band live was a good 18 years ago.
Rusty delivered. The band sounded tight and the songs sounded great. They haven't lost any of their magic and impact over the years. I know I still enjoy listening to their tunes, and I was glad the tunes still worked live, too. The crowd was super into it, singing along, crowd surfing and basically soaking up the vibe.
Rusty's set hit up highlights from their 1995 début Fluke, the 1997 follow-up Sophomoric and 1998's Out Of Their Heads. The band treated us to four new songs and unlike a lot of bands that seem to go through the songwriting motions after many years away, Rusty have some really solid sounding tunes here. I don't think I'm alone when I say that I'd love to add these songs to my collection.
Of course, some things do change after all these years, beyond our natural ageing. I don't think that people were trying to take selfies with the band back when I last saw them in the mid-90s.
Here are my favourite songs from Rusty's set.
"Groovy Dead"
"Oh No Joe"
"Soul for Sale"
"California"
"Punk"
"Empty Cell"
"DS-27"
"Wake Me"
"Misogyny"