Live music review: Unwound marked 30 years of The Future of What at Mohawk
On Thursday September 11, one of the 90’s most influential post-hardcore bands, Unwound played at the Mohawk as part of their ‘30 Years of The Future of What’ tour, which would see the band play their third album in it’s entirety. Admittedly, I had not seen them live during their heyday, but this time around I would not let the opportunity slip away again.
Since the band’s unfortunate breakup in 2002, their musical legacy has only grown in size due to a new generation of fans that have discovered them through reissues of their back catalog by The Numero Group, an archival record label. There were attempts to reform the band with original member, Vern Rumsey, but his ongoing struggles with alcohol made that difficult. In 2020, they rehearsed with Jared Warren of Big Business on bass, but the untimely death of Rumsey in August of that year and the Covid pandemic put the reunion on hold. In 2023, they announced they would be touring again. The new iteration of the band would now include Jared on bass and Scott Seckington of Nocturnal Habits, which also included Trosper and Lund, would be joining the band on guitar and keyboards.
Opening act, Porcelain is one Austin’s best new hardcore post punk bands and without a doubt the perfect complement to the headliners in terms of sound and style. Before the group came on stage, the audience was treated to the strains of a yacht rock song that is the furthest thing from what the band is going to unleash onto the anxious crowd. Lead singer and guitarist, Steve Pike took a moment to say how special this show is to him and the band, getting to open for one their biggest influences.
Porcelain proceeded to unload one of their best and hungriest performances; an onslaught of ear shattering squall, that slowly reveals melodies that are both muscular and bracingly beautiful, occasionally delving into the realm of psychedelia. Along with Ryan Fitzgibbon (vocals/guitar), Jordan Emmert (bass) and Eli Deitz (drums), this is a band that knows how to command the stage and invigorate the audience.
After a 30 minute break, a giant pot full of flowers was brought to the front of the stage, and soon each member of Unwound got into position. The moment we’ve all been waiting for had finally arrived. Unwound wasted no time jumping right into the first track off the album, ‘New Energy’. They may be older but they still played with an intensity that got the crowd’s blood racing and their heads bobbing. While there wasn’t much banter from the foursome between songs, the opportunity to see Unwound performing again was exhilarating enough.
Surprisingly, the crowd never quite coalesced into a swirling mosh pit at any point during the show, even when certain portions of their songs invited such a response. Once they had reached the last song of the album ‘Swan’, they launched into “For Your Entertainment” from their fifth album, Repetition. This was followed by three songs from their first album, Fake Train and then they were done.
Unwound briefly left the stage but then individually, each member, walked up to the pot of flowers, grabbed a handful, and tossed them out to an appreciative audience as a form of thanks to their fans. I hope this won’t be the last time I get to see this phenomenal band.
Unwound continue their tour in Europe from October 29 to November 29.
All photos by Troy Gonzales
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