Thursday night, I decided to check out one of my favorite local bands Trash Fire. I first saw Trash Fire at last year’s Capitol Hill Block Party. They were an unannounced band on the schedule. Their slot just said “Redbull Select Performance”. What followed was around 12 minutes of “in your face” punk rock fun. I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see them perform for free.

I found out about this show on Instagram. Members of their band posted photos advertising their set at 9pm. Knowing I wanted to get a good spot, I showed up to Cha Cha Lounge at 8:45pm. Cha Cha Lounge doesn’t have a dedicated stage, so when there is a show, they clear out a portion of the dance floor and that’s the stage. The crowd looked like mostly people who had just gotten off of work and were looking to get drinks with co workers, mixed with friends of the performers, and 3 or 4 people looking to party on a Thursday.

As the band began to complete the set up of their equipment, one member posted on social media, “Show starts at 10pm.” After seeing this, I decided to take in the atmosphere around Capitol Hill until the show began. Fueled by alcohol (shout out to Cha Cha Lounges $2 Budweisers special), I saw street performers (above) and various art shows and installations occuring all around Capitol Hill as part of the Capitol Hill Art Walk. I made my way back to Cha Cha Lounge around 9:50pm, found a spot near the front, and waited for the show to begin.

The Pythons
The first act of the night was a group called Pythons (left). The group was made up of two folks, one on vocals, guitar and shaker, while the other worked synthesizers. Most of the set was inaudible in terms of lyrics, but the beats still had the crowd moving. During the set a few crowd members started checking the speakers and various connections behind equipment. It was distracting but I feel like it didn’t take away from the experience. After maybe 3 or 4 songs, they wrapped their set and Trash Fire made their way to the stage.

Trash Fire

The band rushed into their set, with the lead singer grabbing the mic and letting out a loud “Yeah!”. Folks in the crowd had puzzled looks as the lead guitar player and lead singer jumped around at the front. The lead singer (Jonah) yelled lyrics while also running into and getting into the faces of people standing in front of the crowd. As the show progressed, the lead singer would bang on the symbols of the drummer (Andy King), lay on the ground, and even grab drinks from people in the crowd, take a sip or two and throw the still full drink into the crowd, covering those in the range of the drink in alcohol. Some audience members laughed, while others flipped off the lead singer and walked to the back of the crowd.

At one point, the lead singer got in the face of a group of guys sitting near the front, yelled at them about how one day they would die, but they (Trash Fire) “will never die!”, leading into the band’s song “We Will Never Die!”. The set was chaotic, loud, but overall a good time. The performance ended, when during the last song the lead singer, and the lead guitar player, ran into the crowd. The lead singer grabbing the drinks, having a sip and tossing the drinks of everyone he passed while the lead guitar player bumped into folks as if in a mosh pit. The ground was slippery because of the amount of drinks that were tossed, and people ended up on the floor including the lead singer who was still trying to perform on the ground.

After the show, the crowd who remained were laughing and cheering. I decided to speak to the lead singer. With a smile he walked up, I told him “Great set!”, and he replied “Thanks! Sorry for charging into you. Actually you know what? I’m not sorry.” (Haha).