The Briefs

With the Real McKenzies and Manda and the Marbles. Sunday, May 23, at the Beachland Ballroom.

Jar the Floor Karamu House, 2355 East 89th Street Through June 13, 216-795-7070
The Briefs return to '77-era dirt punk, creating a ruckus out of hit-and-run guitars and songs about pubic lice and the cost of getting laid. Skinny ties and bleached hair aside, the Seattle band is brazen enough to have put out an EP of cover songs about spree killing, including bloody blasters from real old-school punks Angry Samoans and the Damned.

A smash in Europe, the band released a cocksure debut, Hit After Hit, that led to a brief signing with Interscope. Having promptly moved on to BYO Records, they'll soon be releasing Sex Objects, which races at warp speed through drinking, brawling songs à la Sham 69, with all the confrontational swagger of the New York Dolls. The Briefs take a '70s trend and mix it with the active ingredients of the '90s punk revival. Their power chords and hooks are cooked up like crack, and they're every bit as addictive.

Like this story?
SCENE Supporters make it possible to tell the Cleveland stories you won’t find elsewhere.
Become a supporter today.
Scroll to read more Music News articles

Join Cleveland Scene Newsletters

Subscribe now to get the latest news delivered right to your inbox.