Although I mentioned that the legendary Sick of it All is playing Now That's Class this Friday, I failed to mention that they will be joined by one of Cleveland's finest hardcore / punk acts, Cheap Tragedies. Cheap Tragedies is a phenomenal musical powerhouse fronted by Tony Erba of Nine Shocks Terror, Face Value, and Gordon Sollie Motherfuckers fame. I suggest that all of you attend the show early and bear witness to one of Cleveland's best bands before participating in what I believe will be a very memorable SOIA performance. Below is a review of Cheap Tragedies' latest record.
Cheap Tragedies - Vol.1: Souvenirs and Evidence (Mad at the World, 2008)
Just when you thought that punk had forgotten how to rock, Cleveland's Cheap Tragedies dish out twelve blistering tracks of raw energy on their debut LP via Mad at the World Records. Without gimmicks or a conscious yielding to the demands of a modern audience , these five veterans of Cleveland's underground music scene demonstrate how to stand out in a crowd by allowing various influences to surface naturally. While never letting listeners forget that they are offering a slab of in-your-face hardcore, the twin guitars of Jeff Grey and John Millin display a genuine passion for hard rock that reminds them to pop in Thin Lizzy every now and again. The shouted vocals of Tony Erba (Face Value, Nine Shocks Terror, Gordon Solie Motherfuckers) articulate the struggles of modern-day life in a rust-belt relic with a sense of urgency. This is raw. This is honest. This is the rock n' roll epitaph of a dying city that was left behind. This is the new voice of Cleveland.