Apparently the legendary Wilson Center is closing its doors to punk rock shows. I’m not sure if this was the last show there, and while it was never my favorite place in the world to go, it’s sad to see DC lose yet another venue. While this line up can’t compare to the Minor Threat, Bad Brains, and SOA shows the Wilson Center has seen in its long history, it did showcase some of the strongest local bands which set out to prove the scene is still going to thrive in spite of losing a big part of its history.

I missed the first band Standfast, but got there in time for locals The Chase. These guys played blazing fast hardcore that had most of the crowd foot tapping and head bobbing. However, there was little else aside from that except during their cover of Op Ivy’s “”Jaded”" which inspired a circle pit. The singer danced frantically, narrowly avoiding the guitars being swung recklessly around. They played a fairly short set and made way for the other bands in what would be a long night of chaotic music.

One thing they probably don’t tell you about the Wilson Center in the books on DC punk is the seemingly endless time they take to set up between bands. Fortunately one of the distros was giving away an awesome zine called Megabeef. I had more than ample time to read this thing from cover to cover between the upcoming bands, and as you can probably tell from the name, the zine is basically a long rant about whatever he feels like bitching about. Many of the albums in the reviews section were also targets of his wrath, and as if that did not give him a chance to flex his critical muscles enough, he went on to review a Japanimation fighting video, a tennis class, and his apartment. Anyways it was funny stuff, but this wasn’t supposed to be a zine review…. moving on, the next band was A Thousand Times No from Boston, who I honestly don’t remember much about. But I suppose it wouldn’t be right to just pretend like they didn’t play, so I place the blame squarely on myself. I was tired. There were seven bands. I’m sorry.

After about 10 hours of setting up, this time opting to play on the floor rather than the stage, Breed/Extinction were ready to go at it. By this time I was ready for the three locals headlining and knew nothing about these guys, which pretty much meant I was in a pissy mood and looking for these guys to get off the stage which they weren’t even playing on in the first place. Then they had to go and explain how their drummer quit on em and they were using borrowed equipment and a new singer which they somehow grabbed from Australia. So now I was virtually sure they would suck. Well, I was wrong. They totally rocked in that 2 people screaming incomprehensibly with a wall of noise behind them kinda way. For their closer they explained how they hadn’t written lyrics for it yet, so they had nothing to scream for this song. With the recent obstacles this band has faced, which would put any VH1 Behind the Music band to shame, they said this may be their last show so they wanted it to be something memorable. So rather than them screaming incomprehensibly for this last song, they invited the crowd to scream incomprehensibly. It was great, it was like Tourettes Syndrome night at the karaoke bar.

Affront was up next, and although their usual dancing crew that seems to follow them around everywhere wasn’t there, it’s clear they’re gaining acceptance in the area. They more or less play youth crew hardcore with a twist of something that seems a little darker in their music. Lyrically, they tackle more social and political issues than the standard youth crew stuff and all in all it’s pretty good stuff. Their set included Dag Nasty and Billy Idol covers, which brought the crowd to life.

Finally, the bands the crowd had patiently been waiting on all night were up. Majority Rule were next, and for the first time of the night, the crowd was moving through the entire set. They play really intense metal that goes from soft and slow parts to eruptions of noise and screaming. While both the singers’ voices are kinda nasal and annoying and completely unintelligible, the timing changes and the liveliness of the crowd kept things interesting for me.

Next up were their tourmates and fellow locals pg 99. These guys are a musical powerhouse. They don’t mess around with the slow pretty parts, it’s just all out intensity for the majority of their songs. However, as is their tradition, they ended it with the 15 minute “”By the Fireplace.”" The crowd patiently rocked back and forth waiting for the inevitable eruption. The drums slowly built up to it and when it came, mayhem ensued. Since they were playing on the floor, I didn’t quite see how it all happened, but by the end of their set, drums, cymbals, and bodies were lying on the ground in a disheveled heap. Pretty much indicative of how the entire night went.

- review by Raif Hoffman