Since the Harrison Center sold out music in the name of art, the local, all-ages punk scene is scrambling to find a new small venue. In the meantime, it has retreated, like a Morlock, to the darkest of basement spaces. But the Solstice is upon us and the summer punk season has begun! Huzzah!

Locals on tour

With the closure of the school year and the raising of temperatures, a few local punk bands have decided to try their luck on the road. Whether it be a weekend tour or a month-long endeavor, there is no better way to pick up a foreign fan base and make a name for one’s band than a tour.

Local grindcore gods Phoenix Bodies have a lengthy West Coast tour in the works for late July and August. The band is touring in support of their critically acclaimed album Raise The Bullshit Flag.

Also embarking on an ambitious tour this summer are hardcore punks Bolth. The four-piece begins the tour in Evansville and zigzags across the Eastern U.S. Their homecoming show is Aug. 30 with Hellmouth (ex-Suicide Machines). www.myspace.com/bolth.

On the smoother end of the music spectrum, Hoosier homegrown ska kings Green Room Rockers have a nationwide tour in the works for July and August. The string of California dates includes a stop in Los Angeles with The Chris Murray Combo. www.myspace.com/greenroomrockers.

Cincinnati invasion

While our own scene is chugging along nicely, our Buckeye neighbors to the south in Cincinnati are not only producing some great bands, they’re also sending them to Indianapolis to blow out our eardrums.

Pop punkers The Dopamines have descended into Indianapolis basements on several occasions and have built a nice little fan base here. Their sound is the classic Ramones-Core pop-punk sound, but the melodies are stronger than most. Their next date in the city is Aug. 8 at The Halloween House with Prizzy Prizzy Please. www.myspace.com/thedopamines.

Goofball hardcore band John Walsh combines punk rock antics with hardcore shenanigans to make a perfectly stupid sound that is reminiscent of Frogball or the Maniacal Laughter-era Bouncing Souls. They play next in the Circle City with Shot Baker July 26. www.myspace.com/americasmostpositive.

Also playing the Shot Baker show are Org-Core punks Till Plains. Hailing from neighboring Covington, Ky., Till Plains combines killer musicianship with Hot Water Music-esque gritty melodicism. www.myspace.com/tillplains.

Fellow Kentuckians The Frankl Project combine ska, folk and hardcore to make an intriguing sound that has recently attracted the attention of some labels. Imagine if Against Me! joined Rise Against on stage to do a set of Sublime covers. It sounds odd on paper but it sounds great coming out of a speaker. www.thefranklproject.com.

Representing the ska scene in Porkopolis are the Pinstripes. The Pinstripes are, in a word, amazing. The band’s technical skill mixed with front man Mike Sarason’s killer vocals creates a deadly sound. I highly recommend going to their myspace page — www.myspace.com/thepinstripes — and giving the song “Find It” a listen.

Gay Rude Boys Unite!

One of the most important yet over-looked issues in punk rock is the acceptance (and the lack thereof) of homosexuals.

Bad Brains stirred the pot with rumors of Rastafarian-influenced homophobia back in the ’80s. Bands like Bikini Kill and The Pansy Division paved the way for gays in punk back in the early ’90s, but their sexual orientation seemed to be a label that few people chose to look beyond.

For gay bands, their orientation is a part of who they are, but it’s not everything, and it most certainly shouldn’t be used as a shock-value selling point or gimmick.

At a recent In The Face of War show at the 1511, a few drunken, homophobic remarks from a rowdy fan erupted into a rift in the local hardcore scene that left In The Face of War banished from the house. ITFOW is not a homophobic band. I find it hard to believe that anyone would mistake them for such.

Regardless of ITFOW’s status, homophobia in the scene (national or local) is an ongoing issue that needs to be addressed and should not be taken lightly. If you can be accepted for having a pink mohawk, then you should be accepted for being gay as well.

In the Face of War: www.inthefaceofwar.com


The 1511: www.myspace.com/the1511

Queercore: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queercore