Oi! It’s The Reckless Upstarts w/ Bad Egg, 100 Proof, & Wolfcharge.
The Reckless Upstarts - All photos courtesy of Paul Holstein
"The Dominion House Tavern, built before 1850, is the oldest remaining continuously run tavern in the Windsor-Detroit Border region and one of the oldest in Ontario" (from Wikipedia). I was told that they have liquor license #1 as well. Turns out it's also a great place for punk rock shows. We arrived early to try some of the pub food that is available at multiple establishments within walking distance and ended up getting a recommendation from a Canadian friend for the Rock Bottom Bar and Grill. It was excellent, and they had a great selection of beer on tap (for my friends, I'm always the designated driver). After dinner and drinks, it was a short walk to the show, and Scott Funnel (singer for Wolfcharge, which we would find out later was no longer in the band) was running the door. First stop was the merch table for The Reckless Upstarts, were I grabbed a CD and T-shirt and talked to friends that were also just arriving.
First up was Wolfcharge, who you may remember were part of my story The Dayglo Abortions 2024 Canadian Tour Eh? where I travelled to Canada to see them at The Backstage earlier in the year. They were again debuting a new line-up, but this time the vocals went back to the drummer, making them a three-piece. I also reviewed their 2024 CD "Dis-topian Nightmare," which you can check out here. The drums were pounding for their "dirty lo-fi D-Beat" sound, and the crowd all moved up. Another great set, although I did miss Scott on vocals and their cover of GBH's "Knife Edge.".
100 Proof
The night moved along quickly, with 100 Proof taking the stage shortly after Wolfcharge finished. 100 Proof and the band that would follow them were both described as hardcore, and that was accurate. The singer had a Cold As Life shirt on (classic Detroit hardcore), so that set the stage early. 100 Proof has been around since 2008 and are from Chatham, Ontario. They ripped into their set, and a mosh pit broke out (which was unexpected, given the size of the area in front of the stage). There were a lot of spilled drinks, as the crowd was obviously getting more and more sloshed. My friends had apparently switched to Molson Export, which they tell me is not available in Detroit, and our table was filling up with empty bottles.
Bad Egg
Another quick transition, which included a quick mopping of the pit area, and Bad Egg started a quick sound check. The female singer was pumped with energy and spent several minutes pacing back and forth across the mosh pit area with the microphone while the band got ready. I was expecting a sound even more hardcore than 100 Proof, and that is exactly what we got. More moshing, more spilled drinks, and we were ready for The Reckless Upstarts.
The Reckless Upstarts have that classic Oi! sound, done to perfection. They started their 14-song set with "Dying for a Living Age" and "Glory," which can both be found on their "Still Standing: The Early Years" CD. I was barely able to hold a spot by the stage as the moshing picked up and fans/members of other bands were on and off the stage helping out on vocals. At one point a fan brought up 4 shots of whiskey for the band and set them on the stage (they were quickly downed), which was followed by the band grabbing an entire tray of them for another round, which also included anyone in the audience that wanted to partake.
Nearing the end of their set, Scott Funnel (ex-Wolfcharge) and a few others were on stage to sing "For the Boys," which was followed by a cover of The Wretched Ones "Going Down the Bar," where Rob Worotny (from Seven Out) sang. As always, an excellent show from one of the top current Oi! bands. I can't wait to see them again at the Black Christmas festival in December.
Black Christmas festival 12/28/2024, featuring Reckless Upstarts.
Flyer art by Greg Maxwell
