The Murder City Devils don't get out much anymore, so when the opportunity presented itself, I made my way down to Pomona to catch one of the 2 shows they had lined up in California. They brought along Animal Self, which features Kareem Karam and Coady Willis from Murder City Devils as well as Julia Kugel of Soft Palms. Julia sang and danced across the stage in a dress with twinkling lights attached to it while Kareem and Coady banged out a blend of art-pop and punk. The trio had just played their first show not even a week prior and are currently in the process of mixing songs to be released in the future.
The Murder City Devils took to the stage and jumped into "I Don't Wanna Work for Scum Anymore" from the band's 2014 release The White Ghost Has Blood on Its Hands Again. The crowd appeared to still be waking up, but once they jumped into fan favorite "I Want A Lot Now," frontman Spencer Moody reacted to the crowd's excitement by chomping down on the microphone and holding it in his mouth, as well as jumping to the barricade to sing with the fans.
The band played a pretty even split of tracks from their 4 full-length lengths, with highlights like "Rum to Whiskey," "Idle Hands," and "Murder City Riot" as well as throwing in "Midnight Service at The Mutter Museum" from their 2001 release, Thelema. For the most part, The Murder City Devils' setlist has been consistent over the years. In 2024, they released a 7-inch with the track "Hill & 6th," which they've been able to incorporate. The group even threw in a cover of PJ Harvey's "In Dark Places." Upon finishing the track, Moody took the time to express what he believed the song meant and proceeded to read the lyrics with a broken voice. During "Hey Playboy," the last song of the night, Moody jumped into the crowd to perform the sort of speak-sing number until getting lost amongst the audience before completely disappearing.
Age slows down many, but not the Murder City Devils. They continue to perform with gusto and the mindset that Rock 'n' Roll is an unstoppable force. Moody's voice may be beginning to wither, but it only makes him scream louder. The second those notes on the organ begin to play on "Press Gang," nothing else matters. You black out for a second and then find yourself screaming, "pecked by the seagulls! Hanging from the gallows!" and you're having the best time. Murder City Devils have a couple more performances lined up this year, including a spot at Bumbershoot in Seattle and a Halloween weekend in San Francisco. Do yourself a favor and get a ticket if you're gonna be in the area.
