Hope that the Afterdarks will again stalk
Descending crumbling gray stairs, taking care not to stumble, you uncover a cobwebbed receptacle. Once the lid is cracked, ethereal spirits billow out and vanish into upper darkness. Recordings stacked within are robust and rough; atop their storminess ride declarations of vitriol and raw passion.
"The Afterdarks use vintage tone and Punk pace to drive a doom laden soundtrack to the end of the world," once explained the group's Facebook bio.
"As brashly demonstrative as linear and economical," was my appraisal of the Afterdark's 2011 The End is Nigh.
"Fury and propulsive attitude enjoy confident employ," I continued. "They are of broader visceral effectiveness for their counsel. Beer-spattered danger-kicks smack dab in up-all-night, shouted Punk furor."
Some time prior to penning those phrases, I was among chain-swinging attendees at Iowa's annual Vintage Torque festival. (Wayne 'The Train' Hancock and Brains! Brains! Brains! were also afoot.) The Afterdarks hurled wicked bombardments of Psychobilly ammo at rowdy fans who'd stormed the stagefront and remained focused on every technicolor antic.
Every mili-cube of atmosphere burst wide with perilous, dropkick chording that ricocheted between noggins hirsute, razor-cut, and pinheaded. As the festival stage went up in conflagratory shambolism and Afterdarks' macabre minstrels did kamikaze PsychoPunk dances of Other Side authorship, strained-throat urgings rained from the goaded-into-pandemonium crowd.
At one point, band members passed a goodly vessel -- within which slopped who knew what mixture of intoxicants -- each gulping greedily before resuming slamming out partytime broadsides.
Today.sadly, such reflections are all that's available. Because a May 20, 2024 Facebook post disclosed unfortunate truths:
"Hey guys Ol' Papa D [Darkness] here, otherwise known as Joe Robertson. All the guys have appreciated your support in the past two years. I know that for all of us, you all mean a lot. We have a few last dates promised, and the new release promised. The turnouts to our shows just ain’t what they used to be. Maybe the scene has changed. As far as I’m concerned, we will keep our obligations and release the last album. But (and I can only speak for myself), I’m done. Thank you for all these wonderful years. I appreciate every one of you."
You climb the crumbling cement steps, tectonic recordings in hand, hoping that live tapes exist and will one day enjoy issuance.
Discography: Blood, Sweat, and Gears (2009), Music for Things That Go Bump in the Night (2010), The End is Nigh (2011), Rock'n'Roll is Dead (2016)
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