Scream at the Raccoon Motel -- September 16
Wednesday, September 18, 6 p.m.
Raccoon Motel, 315 East Second Street, Davenport IA
Two venerated rock outfits with their origins in Washington D.C. will co-headline a special September 18 concert event in downtown Davenport, with the Raccoon Motel proud to host the hardcore and punk rockers of Scream alongside the post-hardcore trailblazers of Soulside.
Currently composed of Pete Stahl (lead vocals), Franz Stahl (guitar, backing vocals), Skeeter Thompson (bass, backing vocals), Clint Walsh (guitar, backing vocals), and Jerry Busher (drums), and touring in support of their 2023 studio album DC Special, Scream was formed in Northern Virginia in 1981 by the Stahl brothers, Thompson, and Kent Stax, who replaced original drummer Steve Atton shortly after the band formed and passed away in 2023. Scream emerged at the tail end of the first wave of Washington, D.C., hardcore and would go on to outlast many of their fellow bands from D.C.'s early hardcore punk scene. Along with bands such as Minor Threat and Government Issue, Scream merged the attributes of the movement, including fast tempos, sociopolitical lyrics, deliberately unpretentious attitude, and a shunning of commercialism. Before their initial breakup in 1993, the group released a quintet of studio albums in 1983's Still Screaming, 1985's This Side Up, 1986's Banging the Drum, 1988's No More Censorship, and 1993's Fumble. and in 2011, the original line-up of Scream recorded the Complete Control Sessions EP, which was issued on vinyl and digital download.
In the musicians' AllMusic.com biography, it's stated that "Soulside was an important band on the 1980s Washington D.C. punk scene because it was the missing link between the lyrically advanced, but musically straightforward emo-core of bands like Rites of Spring and the sonic complexities of Fugazi. Comprised of Alexis Fleisig on drums, Bobby Sullivan on vocals, Scott McCloud on guitar, and Johnny Temple on bass, the band mixed politically conscious lyrics with a brand of punk that featured tempo changes, Sonic Youth-inspired guitar dissonance, and some very hushed moments. When Soul Side broke up, Janney, Fleisig, McCloud, and Temple turned their side project, Girls Against Boys, into a full-time band and packed up and moved to New York. Bobby Sullivan went on to join a number of bands, including Seven League Boots, Rain Like the Sound of Trains, and the Sevens." Having reformed in 2019 for several shows in Europe, and having composed three songs that were released in August of 2020, the currently touring Soulside finds Sullivan performing alongside Scott McCloud, Johnny Temple, and Alexis Fleisig.
Scream and Soulside play their Davenport engagement on September 16 with an additional set by Blaster, admission to the 6 p.m. concert is $26.45, and tickets are available by visiting TheRaccoonMotel.com.
