The Swinging Bridge

Issue date: 4/2/08 Section: Entertainment

Media Credit: Google Images

A Place to Bury Strangers is frequently referred to as "the loudest band in New York City." Earplugs are handed out at their shows, and when eardrums aren't being blown, the power likely is. An 8.4/ 10 Pitchfork Media review praises the band for their ability to "pull beauty out of eardrum- puncturing bleakness." SAB President Brian Duffield recently saw them, and to this day speaks reverently of a near death experience.

Why then bring this kind of visceral experience within the sacred walls of the Union, typically home to serene acoustic acts and predictably heart-breaking vocalists? For one thing, this is polarizing music; people either love or hate them. This says to me that something critical is being done in their art, something so divisive that everyone is forced to recognize it and come to terms on their own with it. Whether or not you are a fan, this is not music that can be ignored; the walls of sound and fuzz and distortion make sure of that.

Causing people to rethink their relationship with media and art is always a worthwhile endeavor in my opinion, and if nothing else, A Place to Bury Strangers forces its audience to come to terms with the fact that nothing is being spoon-fed to them. Carrying on this metaphor, one could even go so far as to call A Place to Bury Strangers the steak to Colbie Caillat's bubbly.

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