Over the years, a lot of big names in music have taken the stage at Howard’s Club H. Popular punk bands like The Lawrence Arms and The Queers both recently played there, and who can forget that memorable 2 Live Crew show last winter? Four more bands with prom-ising futures ahead of them recently played at Howard’s, joining the cadre of wonderful musicians whom have played there in the past.
Headlining the May 26 show was Tomassi, a hardcore band from Cleveland, with a sound similar to My Chemical Romance and As I Lay Dying. They will be in the Cleveland area this weekend, at Phantasy Nite Club in Lakewood on June 3.
The Heart of Juliet Jones played before Tomassi. They are also a hard rock band with a sound similar to “screamo” bands like Thursday and Finch. They are putting on a few shows at Harbor Light Landing on June 10th.
Defiance’s Dash the Assassin put on a great show as well. Lead singer J. David Blanchard has a mellow voice, similar to that of Radiohead’s Thom Yorke. However, their music is much harder and faster than the experimental Radiohead. All in all, they have a pretty unique sound for a hardcore band. This budding young hardcore band will be play-ing at Headliners in Toledo on June 2.
The highlight of Friday’s show was The Juniper Wait, an experimental instrumental band from Port Clinton. They have great stage presence for a band that has only played six shows to date. The Juniper Wait sounds a bit like post-rock favorites Tortoise, but with a lighter, happier feel. Fans of the band will be happy to hear that they are record-ing an EP in June on Arclight Communications, the label run by guitarist Cody Kirkendall. They stole the show earning a high recommendation for see-ing them live; they’re part of a new genre that may be taking off within the next few years.
Howard’s has a stream of upcoming events including Wingspan, a Paul McCartney tribute that takes place on Friday, and Evollotto’s perfor-mance taking place on June 6.
Howard has been a staple in our local music scene for decades. Every night, it still delivers.
