I’m sure most of the crowd that went to the Nile Theater this past June 8th were not expecting the sounds Tristan Shone of Author & Punisher would be bringing to the table. Shone’s sound is a stark, but complimentary, difference between the headliner ‘Pig Destroyer’ and the other supporting acts. As they took the stage, Shone taped a handwritten sign “I.C.E. out of our schools + everywhere else” to his setup, much to the glee of a few individuals abutted up to the stage, expecting this to signal a fast-paced, politically-driven, performance. Because Shone has been vocal about his political standpoint, and how it enters into his work, the crowd may not have have expected the later to be wrong.
A&P does not bring a frantic thrill ride of adrenaline, but rather a heavy dose of deep, dark, industrial soundscapes produced by Shone’s self-made machine for his one-man-army performances. At one point, I heard angsty audience members scream, “Play something faster!” This was, to some extent, a fair comment, especially after the opening band, Sex Prisoner, had set the tone for the rest of the evening. Usually performing solo, this leg of the tour was accompanied by Doug Sabolik of Estatic Vision on guitar.
As Author & Punisher’s performance progressed with tracks from their most recent album, ‘Krüller,’ a different feel took hold of the crowd. With overtones of musical influences such as Nine Inch Nails, Ministry, and Ogre, there were more subtle tracks reminiscent of Tool (while not in the same vein of music, their contributions show through). I think the turning point was when their cover of ‘Glory Box’ by Portishead rang out. Much to the dismay of the most battle-hardened metal heads in attendance, I spotted quite a majority quietly singing along at the tempo they remember from the original and swaying along – all while trying to not let their buddies notice that they were, despite expecting a different show, immensely enjoying what was being performed.
A&P is much more of the artistic type of bands, and while I was pretty surprised with the pairing of Pig Destroyer as headliner, I found them a much welcome reprieve from bands that would sound all too similar in a line-up. I would love to see this be a trend, where shows throw in something complimentary but not the same, a performer the audience may not expect, lest we become the never-ending cycle of Spotify-playlist-esque shows where each band is a copy of the same genre on repeat.
Author & Punisher is currently on tour; check their website and social media to see when they’re coming through a city near you. As a bonus, if you want to learn more about the creation of the Shone’s machine, there is a short on YouTube by Noisey/Vice networks here.
