Rock ‘n’ Revenge

She Wants Revenge. At UCSB’s Hub, Friday, October 20.

Reviewed by Levi Michaels

When L.A. indie-rockers She Wants Revenge took the stage back in
June for the Summer RoundUp, something about them seemed just a
little bit out of place. Perhaps the glaring sun subtracted from
their salacious drag and dirty lyrics, because, after all, we all
know how hard it is to be libidinous in the middle of the day. But
when the lights of the Hub fell last Friday night, the vampire boys
were clearly in their element.

“We were really excited to be coming back to Santa Barbara
because we loved the crowd at the RoundUp,” said front man Justin
Warfield, pausing for a moment on the balcony of the UCen while
openers the Archie Bronson Outfit and Neuromance raged below.
“We’re especially glad to be playing for the students because they
are the most dedicated fans.”

And the students did not fail to accommodate. From the opening
rendition of “Red Flags and Long Nights,” the crowd was encouraging
and energetic, feeding off the dark and intimate atmosphere.
Seriously, think Interpol after dark. Other highlights of the show
included “Sister,” “Out of Control,” “These Things,” and a
particularly dramatic “Someone Must Get Hurt.”

The momentum paused for a well-placed keyboard interlude by Adam
Bravin, only to be summoned back in full force by Warfield, who
proclaimed the next song to be simply “a dance song.” “I Don’t Want
to Fall in Love” quite literally got the room shaking before “Tear
You Apart” closed the night with a culminating cry of “I wanna
fucking tear you apart,” courtesy of the students.

The show was unfortunately lacking in the new material
department — the songs were exclusively from SWR’s self-titled
debut album — but as Warfield explained, “We’ll be going back to
the studios after our tour is done at the end of the month.” Until
then, keep the lights off, boys.