Two powerhouses stand on stage, waiting as the crowd eagerly looks on. Lights flash and they, along with the drums, explode, screaming “FIRE! FIRE! FIRE!”. Red overtakes the stage as lead singers Jordan Billie and Johnny Whitney put everything into their mics.
The Blood Brothers are a post-hardcore band that emerged from the Seattle scene in 1997. Johnny Whitney, with his incredible vocal shrills and equally incredible hair, and Jordan Billie, with his complimenting velvety baritone lines, released 5 albums from 2000 to 2006. Their iconic album Crimes was released in 2004, raising the bar from their previous album ...Burn, Piano Island, Burn. Crimes has a more refined and mature sound than the previous albums but is just as ferocious and addicting. The album stems from the general political anger and frustration the 2004 election and the resulting Bush Administration brought, drawing stark parallels to what many people are experiencing in today’s political climate. In a recent 2024 interview with Stereogum, Billie commented, “It’s this idea of American exceptionalism just sort of mutated and twisted to its ugliest form. I think that’s what Johnny and I were trying to engage with.” And engage they did. Their political commentary is delivered through creative characterizations and storytelling rather than blunt statements, as evidenced through their environmental imagery in “Feed me to the Forest”, a spotlight on society’s rising obsession with celebrity culture in “Trash Flavored Trash”, and relaying through auditory imagery the hysteria driven by political narratives in “Peacock Skeleton with Crooked Feathers”.
I am incredibly grateful to have attended the band’s Crimes 20th Anniversary Reunion tour in Boston. With The Blood Brothers disbanding shortly after I was born, I never thought I would have the opportunity to see them perform live. The concert was truly a life-changing experience. The energy they emanated from the stage was matched by the crowd of both loyal millennial fans who have patiently waited 10 years for a reunion and newer fans seeing them for the first time. Although I was one of the younger attendees, I didn’t feel isolated or excluded– rather, I was welcomed as a member of their community of fans. I stood next to a friendly guy who lived in Seattle when The Blood Brothers were first bursting onto the scene. He told me many stories about his experiences seeing them play early on in small venues and his time spent in the Seattle and Boston music scenes. Jordan Billie recognized him towards the end of the show, surprising both him and I, further proof of the band’s incredible appreciation of their fans. The dueling vocals and interactions between Billie, Whitney, and the crowd left me with a smile splattered across my face. Morgan Henderson (fun fact, he is also in Seattle indie band Fleet Foxes), was rocking out on the bass and keys in front of me. Behind him, Mark Gajadhar was on the drums, dripping sweat as he quickly transitioned from crashes to snare to toms. Across the stage, Cody Votolato strummed the iconic notes in “Love Rhymes with Hideous Car Wreck”, “Ambulance vs. Ambulance”, and happily shook maracas during “Peacock Skeleton with Crooked Feathers”. The 19-song set ended with a four-song encore, with the band playing three songs from Burn, Piano Island, Burn (“Fucking’s Greatest Hits”, “The Shame”, “Guitarmy”) as well as “Jennifer” from their first album The Adultery is Ripe. It was an absolutely fantastic set, I cannot emphasize it enough.
A little special shoutout to my mom for introducing me to this band that she obsessed over when she was my age and for informing me they were reuniting for a tour. <3
