With the 2014 release of their self-titled debut and the 2015 release of their sophomore effort II, Toronto, ON-based trio Metz have received attention across Canada, the States and elsewhere for sludgy, face-melting power chord-based sound reminiscent of Bleach and In Utereo-era Nirvana, A Place to Bury Strangers, Japandroids and others — and over that time the Canadian trio have quickly become a JOVM mainstay.
Now, as a native New Yorker, who has been covering music for over a decade, I’ve seen countless venues come and go — and soon as a well-regarded or beloved venue closes, another one pops up a few months later in another part of town; however, as both a passionate music fan and journalist, there are a handful of venues that hold a special part of your heart. I’ve publicly mentioned what the Bowery Ballroom has meant to me on several occasions but one of the other venues that has held a special place in my heart was the sadly, now-defunct DIY Death By Audio. Unlike most venues I’ve seen and covered shows in, there was a palpable sense of anything goes and in fact, I saw some of the most memorable shows I’ve ever seen; shows that transformed how I saw and wore about live music.
As the venue was closing up shop back in 2014, its owners and bookers curated what turned out to be an epic final month featuring a number of currently renowned acts, who had gotten their start or had some kind of connection to the South Williamsburg, Brooklyn venue including A Place to Bury Strangers, Thee Oh Sees, Protomartyr, Ty Segall, Future Islands, Lightning Bolt, Metz and many others. What people most likely didn’t know was that the venue recorded the last month of shows at the venue and the end result is the compilation Start Your Own Fucking Show Space, which features highlights of the past month in chronological order, slated for release next week through Famous Class Records — and the compilation is meant not as bittersweet nostalgia but as a forceful call to go out and do something fucking awesome, like start a show space and have your friends and others play there.
The first single off the compilation features Metz playing a blistering and frenetic version of “Get Off” and it should remind all of those, who are unfamiliar with the band and those who are familiar with the band that they are one of the most forceful, furious and noisy bands around. And they play some of the most mosh pit-friendly music around.
