Images: Audio Karate, Mercy Music, Purple Flame December 1, 2018 at Evel Pie

“At least it’s a dry cold,” we joked while standing on the outside patio of Evel Pie on the coldest day of the year. Well, joke’s on us, because then it rained.

Thankfully, the drizzle wasn’t enough to stop Audio Karate. The Southern California emo/pop band – whose name would actually be a great nickname for Jesse Pino –  called it quits in 2005 but recently reunited for some shows, including this one in Las Vegas. The band, who admitted that it was much chillier out than expected, has a sound reminiscent of The Get Up Kids, with the earnest vocals of Arturo Barrios and the inclusion of a keyboard player. Despite the extended time off, the band sounded tight and fresh, proving that good songwriting is timeless.

In direct support was Mercy Music… or is that Deadhand? Mercy Music’s Jarred Cooper and Brendan Scholz were joined on drums not by Rye Martin but by Aaron Weislogel, who drummed for the trio when they were known as Deadhand (as well as Lydia Vance). The set didn’t look back, however, focusing mostly on this year’s excellent release Until the End of the World, along with tracks from debut When I Die, I’m Taking You With Me including “Undone,” which Scholz introduces as “the only Mercy Music song Joey Cape likes.” Their set also featured a cameo by Santa Claus himself, who was out visiting Evel Pie and its sister property Golden Tiki that day.

Kicking off the night was Purple Flame… or is that Sector 7-G?! Yes, I’m using the same joke twice, but Flame/Sector drummer Dennis Steffen actually referred to the band as “a Sector 7-G cover band” and they do feature the same members (plus one spiffy shark head). Their set was a lot of fun and a nice precursor to the world’s best Purple Flame cover band, Sector 7-G, who celebrated their 10 year anniversary at the Double Down a few days later.

-Emily Matview

Photos by Aaron Mattern | https://www.flickr.com/photos/akmofoto/