Porridge Radio’s Postpunk Lets Loose at Lost Lake
September 22, 2022
The first time I heard Dana Margolin’s personal and anguished lyrics being repeated over and over atop the melodic, driving postpunk of Porridge Radio‘s “Lilac,” I was immediately enthralled. In the early, confusing, and scary days of the pandemic, we were all feeling a little lost, and Margolin howling “I’m stuck, I’m stuck, I’m stuck…” fit the template of much of my thinking at that time – and I’m sure many others’ also.
The rest of Every Bad, the record that’s wrapped up by the pounding questioning of “Lilac” and lets loose with the first minutes of “Born Confused” and Porridge Radio’s second full length album, continued the trend, and introduced many of us to a band that aptly described the psychology of our surroundings.
The feelings, the calculating coolness, and the desperate personal angst oozing from Porridge Radio may come from a psychic space.
Except the record was recorded months before we entered that state, and just happened to suffer a certain indignity, hitting official release in the same days that the entire world entered lockdown, for an unknown period of time. So – does this make Margolin psychic? Maybe.
If not, the stories, the feelings, the calculating coolness, and the desperate personal angst must have come from a psychic space. Last Saturday at the Lost Lake Lounge, the Brighton-based band showed some of that prescience on one of many stops on their first, long-awaited US tour.
Mostly showing off their third full length, the recently released Waterslide, Diving Board, Ladder to the Sky, the four-piece, including Maddie Ryall (bass, vocals), Georgie Stott (keyboards, vocals), and Sam Yardley (drums), proved that as strong as they are on wax, they’re doubly good in person.
It’s difficult not to invoke artists like Ian Curtis or PJ Harvey in comparison when talking about Margolin’s howling audience seduction, and, indeed, when trying to describe the weight of the band’s energy onstage. From the first “One-two-three-four…” of “Give/Take,” splashed onto and anxious crowd through a knowing smirk on Margolin’s face, Porridge Radio took us on a wildly emotional trip through her mind – and our own.
It’s difficult not to invoke artists like Ian Curtis or PJ Harvey in comparison when talking about Margolin’s howling audience seduction
The catharsis of Margolin’s songwriting – succinct angst spat in perfectly sanguine phrases repeated over, and over, and over, each time gaining just a little more power until the words are slung out in existential screams – works overwhelmingly well. When she screams out “I don’t wanna be loved” nearly 20 times in “Birthday Party,” it’s nearly impossible to control the need to grab her and hold her, if just to be there in her turmoil. The aloneness of “Splintered” crept through the crowd as the band performed, leaving a feeling of want in everyone.
Wrapping up their set with the anthemic “You Are a Runner and I am My Father’s Son” formed a brilliant replacement for destroying their instruments at show’s end – by replacing the instruments with all of the insides of those watching. It’s an amazing trick, destroying all your adoring fans, and making them feel thankful for it. And we wouldn’t expect anything less from yet another brilliant export from Brighton.
LA-based singer/songwriter Sabrina Teitelbaum – under the moniker of Blondshell – warmed up the crowd for Porridge Soup, with a tense mix of indie cuteness and self-assurance. Her strong voice, easy confidence, and obvious lyrical talent formed a strong argument for her success – as she’s entering a slight buzz right now. all of that talent should serve her her well as the buzz grows.
Porridge Radio Setlist:
Give/Take
End of Last Year
Circling
Rotten
Birthday Party
Trying
Good for You
Splintered
Jealousy
U Can be Happy if You Want To
The Rip
Long
Sweet
Back to the Radio
You Are a Runner and I am My Father’s Son
