Frank Mullen

Jucifer “Henin Hardine”

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The first time I saw Jucifer, a friend told me to bring earplugs. I was kind of anti-earplug at the time, you know, high-frequency attenuation and whatnot, but I knew he was right when I saw the ready-for-Wembley Stadium wall-of-amps. Amber Valentine’s and Ed Livengood’s performances basically go like this: they eat pizza backstage, Ed drinks some beer, they blast some NWA, then some guitar noise starts seeping out of the amps, the drums get going and they end up kicking it like a church revival—only louder, a lot louder. I don’t attend religious services myself, but going to see Jucifer yearly makes up for a large soul-shaking spiritual deficit.  Their new album L’autrichienne is out now and is apparently inspired by the French Revolution, which, judging by their Civil War-influenced song “Antietam,” should be a killer.  Still, unless you have a stereo capable of more than 1,000 watts, you’ll need to see Jucifer live for the full effect.

— Rich Seymour

JUCIFER WITH  MIDDLE CLASS RUT,  SUNS BENEATH AND SNAKES ALIVE AT THE KNITTING FACTORY,  7021 HOLLYWOOD BLVD., LOS ANGELES.  7:30 PM / $10. KNITTINGFACTORY.COM.