Show picks of the week (May 29 – June 4)

Plenty of solid melodic punk shows this week, including three retrospective Face to Face shows at Foufounes and a stacked bill headlined by The Menzingers at Bar le Ritz PDB. Later this week, there’s the return of psychobilly legends Reverend Horton Heat at Foufounes, and a great bill of grimy psychedelic garage and surf rock with Crocodiles and Shark Week at the wonderfully dumpy Brasserie Beaubien. Check out our full list of this week’s recommended gigs below.

Friday, May 29

Face to Face at Foufounes Electriques
California melodic punks Face to Face begin their three-night Triple Crown tour tonight, by playing their debut full length, 1992’s Don’t Turn Away, in full. Albany’s After the Fall open. Saturday’s show will feature their Big Choice! album with guests Boids, and Sunday’s show will see the band run through their self-titled album, with support from Prevenge. $25/$30 each night, 8:00 pm, 87 Sainte Catherine East. 

Chris Cresswell and Ian Graham at TRH Bar
Chris Cresswell of The Flatliners and Ian Graham of Cheap Girls are teaming up for this acoustic tour, with support by Chris Snelgrove of Prevenge. If you can boot it up the hill from Foufounes quick enough, you can likely catch most of Face to Face as well as this great bill. 9:00 pm, $13/$15, 3699 St-Laurent.

Tuesday, June 2

The Menzingers at Bar le Ritz PDB
Pennsylvania’s The Menzingers play heartfelt and melodic punk rock, with an enthusiasm and energy above and beyond many of the beardo-punk bands they often share festival lineups with. The Menzingers are always a great live bet, and the inclusion of openers Chumped and Roger Harvey make this an all-around solid melodic punk bill. 8:00 pm, $16/$20, 179 Jean Talon West. 

Wednesday, June 3

Reverend Horton Heart at Foufounes Electriques
The almighty Reverend Horton Heat has been cranking out his livewire brand of psychobilly for 30 years now, with no signs of slowing down. He’ll share the stage with Denmark’s long-running horror enthusiasts Nekromantix, and Montreal’s own psychobilly / garage stompers The Brains. Get that pompadour slicked back nice, and make sure to take Wednesday morning off (you’ll need it).
8:00 pm, $25, 87 Sainte Catherine East.

Thursday, June 4

The Kids at Sala Rossa
Belgian proto-punks The Kids will deliver a lesson in true RN’R when they return to Montreal this week to headline a stacked bill, including locals Proxy, Pale Lips, and Torment. This is a rare chance to catch a band that were contemporaries of acts like The Ramones and The Undertones, who still put on a killer live show. “This is rock n’ roll!” 8:30 pm, $12, 4848 St-Laurent. 

Crocodiles and Shark Week at Brasserie Beaubien
Formed from the ashes of the post-hardcore bands Some Girls and The Plot to Blow Up the Eiffel Tower, San Diego’s Crocodiles play a fuzzed-out take on psychedelic rock, mixed with the riffs of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club and the genre-hopping of late-period Jesus and Mary Chain. The band are joined by D.C.’s Shark Week, who sound like a surf band raised in NY’s grimy Lower East Side in the 70’s, along with Montreal’s surfy Sunfields. A stacked show in a tiny neighbourhood bar, complete with sketchy video lottery terminals – this one has all the markings of a memorable gig. 9:00 pm, $10/$13, 73 Beaubien East.