Austinist Presents: F*cked Up, Annihilation Time, Iron Age [Emo's Saturday]

Some would say that the words "progressive" and "punk rock" don't belong anywhere in the vicinity of each other; that punk has long become encased in a stylistic straitjacket (leather, covered in metal studs and Exploited patches). To those cynical souls we say, never mind the bollocks: Toronto hardcore futurists Fucked Up open their soon-to-be-classic new album, Chemistry Of Common Life, with a thirty second flute solo, and song lengths average between four and five minutes, eternities in punk time. The genre-flaunting extends to the expansive production: "Royal Swan" contains a distinctly proggy stereo-panned drum solo, and lead single "No Epiphany" features a shoegazey 18 guitar tracks. Having signed to indie super-major Matador last year, the industry has been forced to acknowledge the band on their own terms; this has led to some fairly humorous work-arounds for family newspapers pressed into reviewing the album. Besides all the artsy-fartsy stuff, these lovable Canucks are quite possibly the most fun live band performing in the modern era--we still have fond memories of their off-the-grid SXSW performance at Trailer Space last year, wherein singer Pink Eyes paraded around the store wearing a Lone Star 12-pack box on his head and howling through a mic pilfered earlier from an M2 VJ. Of the 2007 FunFest set that involved the extended dismantling of a Guitar Hero axe and no small amount of hirsute male nudity. Or that video where they do Descendents covers with the guy from Vampire Weekend. See for yourself at Emo's this Saturday, when Fucked Up roll through with tourmates Annihilation Time (PBR metal), locals Iron Age (Metallica's Kill Em All album), and Denton's ANS (surf thrash).