With The Luxury Pushers, JJ Pearson Project, Brody’s Militia
Melody Inn
Saturday, May 19, Punk Rock Night, 10 p.m., $6

In the Catholic Church, each saint has a feast day. It’s a celebration of the life of the individual saints, but it happens on the anniversary of their deaths. Surprisingly, Punk Rock Night works in much the same way. Our heroes, martyrs and saints may not be as widely worshiped, but to the punks, they’re just as important.

Sid Vicious and Joe Strummer are the high saints of British punk, but Joey Ramone (1951-2001) is the founder of the American synod of punk rock. His nearly 30 years of service to punk rock (and massive amounts of converts) make him our most important “saint.”

For the anniversary of his birth, the Melody Inn, a local basilica of punk rock, is putting on quite a celebration. Headlining the gig is Dayton, Ohio’s the Luxury Pushers. With a zealous hard-rock sound, the Luxury Pushers blends the sneer of the Sex Pistols with the mock-pomposity of the Hives.

Celebrating with the Luxury Pushers is local band the JJ Pearson Project, comprised of disciples of the old school of pop-punk that was started by the Ramones and survived by the likes of the Descendents.

Also paying homage to Joey Ramone is Kentucky rabble-rouser Brody’s Militia. The band plays a style of punk that is more reminiscent of the post-Ramones ’80s hardcore punk sound.

No matter what styles of punk have spawned in the past 30 years, they all owe a debt to the founding father — namely Joey Ramone. So leave your scapulars and votive candles at home, don your leather jacket and black jeans, and worship St. Joey in the way he would have wanted you to.