Sick of It All at the Bowery Electric

Pete Koller and Lou Koller

In 1984 in Queens, New York, vocalist Lou Koller and his brother, guitarist Pete Koller, had a name for their band even before they actually had additional musicians. As high school students, the brothers formed Sick of It All in 1986 in their parents' basement in the spirit of the hardcore punk bands they were enjoying at CBGB's Sunday matinees. Sick of It All became a major part of the New York hardcore scene, and sold half a million records worldwide. The band currently consists of the Koller brothers, plus bassist Craig Setari and drummer Armand Majidi. The line-up has remained unchanged since 1993. Sick of It All's 12th and most recent studio album is 2018's Wake the Sleeping Dragon!

In October 2019, opening two nights for Municipal Waste at the Bowery Ballroom, Lou Koller announced that Sick of It All would perform in four of New York City's five boroughs with Agnostic Front in December. This mini-tour launched at the Bowery Electric tonight. With the audience less than arm's length from the small and low stage, Sick of It all moshed alongside its fans from the first song. The band's hardcore was rooted in fast and angry rock and roll and heavy metal, summoning raw power and explosive energy to keep every song exciting. Lou Koller worked a shrill vibrato into his singing, his brother Pete jumped high repeatedly as he played lead guitar, and the rhythm section drove the propulsive beats. Even with this hard and heavy structure, the songs remained melodic yet never leaned towards pop. With no new album to promote, the 33-year-old Sick of It All concentrated on the songs it recorded in its first decade, and the fans seemed fine with this. No doubt this kind of performance will keep Sick of It All at the top of its genre.

Setlist:

1. Injustice System
2. Clobberin' Time
3. Inner Vision
4. Take the Night Off
5. World Full of Hate
6. Betray (Minor Threat cover)
7. Rat Pack
8. My Life
9. Uprising Nation
10. Straight Ahead (Straight Ahead cover)
11. Pete's Sake
12. That Crazy White Boy Shit
13. Good Lookin' Out
14. Just Look Around
15. Machete
16. Scratch the Surface
17. Step Down