Another day, another night at Club SAW. I’m pleasantly surprised to see the audience crosses generations, but I guess shredding gnar has no age limit. I spot the youngest audience members right next to the stage. Decked out in NOBRO merch, they are seven and 11 years old, according to their mother. The rest of the crowd is united by a love of nose rings, tattoos and, of course, NOBRO.
Taxi Girls took the stage for the opening act. The crowd is hesitant at first, but the Montreal punk band eventually gets us moving. Thirty minutes later, it’s time for NOBRO.
The energy in the room shifts subtly; it’s harder to hold my spot close to the stage as fans press closer. The band yells, “LET’S GO NOBRO,” and we’re off! The crowd is animated from start to finish, ready to follow the band’s lead. For “Let’s Do Drugs,” we quickly fall into a call-and-response chorus routine, and for “Set Your Pussy Free,” we get a little choreography: make a V with your fingers and pull them apart. Suddenly, the moshing begins, followed by some brave crowd surfers who get reprimanded by security.
The tempo picks up as NOBRO engulfs us in their youthful abandon, no fucks given. It looks effortless, but lead singer and crowd surfer Kathryn McCaughey reminds us she’s “just a bartender with a dream.” Each member is ridiculously talented, but Lisandre Bourdages on the bongos changed my life.
At the end of the night, I feel like a real NOBRO fan. They leave nothing on the stage, and maybe that’s why the fans can’t get enough of them. NOBRO gives us an excuse to be ourselves and party through the pain.
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