As the semester comes to a close, Mayagüez’s Off The Wall continues to be one of the hosts to some of the west’s best shows. Last Friday May 18th, was no different as it brought together some of the greatest independent rock bands to tear down the house, giving stressed out students and the overall community, a place to release all of their anxieties.
(promo for the show by Derick Joel)
Kicking off the show was Grumpa, a band who was coming back after a hiatus that lasted over a year. Known for their signature mix of punk-influenced rock ‘n’ roll and boogie woogie, the west-coast based band had audiences dancing and head banging with what seemed to be new versions of songs like “Black Dog” and “Me Quedé a Pie.” However, Grumpa’s music wasn’t the only infectious element of their performance as lead vocalist and guitarist, Xavier Osvaldo Aymat performed like he had the power of Angus Young, Jim Morrison, and Iggy Pop in his soul and transmitted it to those in the crowd thereby properly preparing them for the rest of the evening.
(Grumpa performing)
Next in the line-up was Dan Siego, one of the west’s most well-known bands popular for their mix of punk and noise rock. The duo composed of Derick Joel and Jean Ortiz, performed many of the songs in their repertoire such as “Drunk Wizards,” “Girl,” and their single “Bloodpuncher,” all of which had the audience head banging like crazy. However, what distinguished Dan Siego’s performance the most was their crowd interaction. Bassist Derick Joel joined the audience with his instrument and in their closing, gave free shots to everybody attending after giving his bass to one of the women in attendance. Following that, he grabbed a drum and started to play it in the middle of the crowd while Jean continued playing the drums in an improvised fashion. Finally, at the end of their show, Joel started improvising with his pedals creating some ethereal sounds while members of the audience played the drums alongside Ortiz. Dan Siego’s performance was truly a sight to see, but while they did some fantastic interaction with attendees, they didn’t create a mosh pit like the following band did.
(Dan Siego performing)
Following Dan Siego was one of the best and most well-known bands to come out of the independent scene in the last ten years, Campo-Formio. Performing for the first time in Mayagüez in quite some time, Campo-Formio brought down the house with their signature mix of punk, math rock, and progressive rock, creating a mosh pit that had people moving back and forth and from one side of the bar to the other causing some attendees to even fall on the ground. With this, Campo-Formio demonstrated once again that they are truly one of the best bands to come out of Puerto Rico’s underground as they have a fantastic way of transmitting energy to the audience so they can express their inner selves in the form of a variety of dances ranging from head banging, to pogoing, to whirlwind mosh pits.
(Campo-Formio performing)
Off The Wall in Mayagüez continues to show its commitment to the independent art scene by providing its space to those who desire to get their work out there, and the show last May 18th was an example of that. By joining forces, Grumpa, Dan Siego, and Campo-Formio were able to display their music in full force while transmitting some raw energy that made attendees of all ages and backgrounds release the problems that plagued their insides in the form of dance and mosh pits.
Listen to Grumpa, Dan Siego, and Campo-Formio