When I first moved to NYC, I was ready to dive into the veritable buffet of live music the city has to offer. The first show I made it to upon relocating was ’68 at The Meadows. Having first discovered the one-of-a-kind hardcore-blues-rock-noise-whatever duo during their 2017 run with Atlanta Post-Grunge outfit Whores., they were one of the bands that could get me out of the house no matter the weather. So of course I was thrilled to hear that I’d get to see them again in the same venue as I had two years prior, until I read further. The poster said “’68 Farewell Tour, Playing The Meadows …for the very last time!” Fuck.
Before ’68 took the stage, opener Nate Bergman (ex-Lionize) took the stage to the tune of Magrudergrind’s “Bridgeburner.” Walking out to a Grindcore classic, donning a Pig Destroyer shirt and covered in tattoos, and carrying a nylon string guitar, the first act pulled quite a few confused looks from the crowd. But for those in the know, all the pieces fit together. Having grown up on Punk and Hardcore, Bergman’s heart airs its injury not against the backdrop of distorted chords and thudding drums but the hoarse-voiced strain of American folk born of Joe Cocker, Tom Waits, and John Fogerty. And, fun fact I learned while researching him – as an aroma cognoscente, Nate always travels with his favorite scents in a pelican case. Pretty cool, because when was the last time you walked past someone in a Pig Destroyer shirt and thought “damn, he smells wonderful!”
Starting with a “Britney, I’m Sorry,” a song of heart-wrenching despair, the tattooed troubadour told us “It only gets sadder from here.” Somehow, despite the minor chords and heavy lyrics, every song had an implicit leitmotif of an enduring search for a better tomorrow. In between expertly crafted songs including “Long Black Hearse” and “Belfast,” with its chorus of “cocaine and laundry,” Nate kept things going with a sense of humor and crowdwork that belied the depth of his subject matter. After declaring “Davey Havok was my Bob Dylan,” he played an incredibly fluid cover of AFI’s “Girl’s Not Grey,” which teleported me right back to high school. For his final song, Nate brought his unplugged guitar into the middle of the crowd and played, sang, and twirled under the disco ball while the crowd silently soaked up every chord.
When it was time for ’68 to take the stage in their signature formalwear (dapper-looking gentlemen in full white suits), the vibrant energy had returned to the sold-out crowd. Named for his father’s classic Camaro, singer/guitarist Josh Scogin (formerly of The Chariot, Norma Jean) is an engine firing on all cylinders. Along with drummer Nikko Yamada, the duo blend blues, grunge, hardcore, and good ol’ rock and roll with all knobs turned to eleven. Just as they had a decade ago when I first saw them, the two played front and center on the stage facing each other. While the fans of ’68 come to their shows for the consistent banger-after-banger setlist pulled from their four LPs and two EPs released over the past thirteen years, we stay for the improvisational riffing, covers, and general tomfoolery that are emblematic of the ’68 brand.
The set started off with “ALWAYS LOVE” from their forthcoming final record, They Are Survived, followed by twin hits “Removing Their Hooks,” and “Removing Their Hats” from Yes, And…. Josh took no time to start riffing crazy, the last song devolving into the melody from Biz Markie’s “Just A Friend” followed by a classic and long-lasting crowd singalong. Despite cutting his teeth in late nineties metalcore outfit Norma Jean (née Luti-Kriss), Scogin has always had a soft spot in his heart, and his setlists, for nineties Hip Hop. This cropped up again later in the set when the band covered Beastie Boys’ “Intergalactic” and played a brief snippet of Notorious B.I.G.’s “Hypnotize.”
As the set wove back and forth through their discography, the crowd went especially crazy for the two tracks from debut full-length In Humor And Sadness. Between songs, Scogin and Yamada joked with each other, playing call-and-response rhythm games, trading solos, and clearly enjoying every last minute of their final run after a decade of playing together. Track after track, the audience danced and cheered, singing along to the back catalogue tracks such as “Whether Terrified Or Unafraid” with the powerful refrain “I could’ve been anyone from anywhere/But I chose to be me, from right here.”
Watching ’68 is a lesson in the push/pull between minimalism and maximalism. The band has only two members, but the sound is massive. While Nikko plays a 3-piece drum set with hi-hat, ride cymbal, and sample pad, the intensity and virtuosity with which he plays brings more dynamicism to the instrument than most metal drummers can do with a 15+ piece ensemble. Josh’s setup, on the other hand, is a mad scientist array of effect pedals, controlling different octaves of sound across a stereo amplifier setup, and the errant theremin because, well, why the fuck not?
When the last notes had been played, ’68 milked every last moment of their set. Those last guitar notes were played over and over on a looper while Scogin slowly took apart the drumset while Yamada kept the beat going. Piece by piece until all that was left was a snare, and then it all just stopped. The two musical powerhouses took a bow and bid their farewell to a city that had been a major part of their story.
While Scogin and Yamada have been quiet about what is next for them, fans have been left with a small hint. Responding to a rumor that he might be joining Better Lovers, Josh Scogin posted a handwritten reply on his Instagram denying these rumors, indicating that he doesn’t really “join bands, [he] start[s] them.” So while this is a sad close to a chapter, I’m sure this isn’t the last we’ll hear from the southern gentleman with the smooth voice and his percussionist friend.
Buy `68 music and merch here:
https://amzn.to/3RLrEV8
Buy Nate Bergman music and merch here:
https://amzn.to/4uRvzyn
WORDS AND PHOTOS BY ROBBY GRODIN
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