Finally Punk
Arena, 2009
It’s a late-night show with the female punk quartet Finally Punk rocking the streets of suburbian Vienna. The band from Austin arrives tardily and a little exhausted, a string of their bass breaks during their concert and the next day will bring another long journey of driving (the girls split this duty). As we approach Erin, Stephanie, Veronica and Elizabeth after their short and sharp onstage performance of rotating instruments and vocal duties, they are kind of „Uhm?“ quickly followed by a „Great!“. Beer-sippingly they hop out the venue and drop onto the next bench. „Primary Colors“ is carried by a simple and cheery melody, Erin’s bright sounding voice and a bass that needs to be restringed. It’s all unwound, all good-mooded in an appealing DIY aesthetic. With this aftershow warming and cheering up – as if these firebreathing girls really required any of it…- the level of enthusiasm reaches its highpoint. Once Finally Punk have let pass by some police car, they liven up the deserted street with a fresh and vigorous performance of „JD vs. Gator“. Animated jumps, vocal shouts – lead vocals by Veronica – and motorcycles speeding by included.
- Photography
- Simon Brugner
- Artist
- Finally Punk
Arena
Arena is a cultural center and music venue in the industrialized district of Erdberg. Its beginnings hark back to 1976, when some thousand demonstrators gathered around the former St. Marx Auslandsschlachthof to save it from demolition and subsequent commercial use. While they were not able to save the huge building complex, the vast social movement did succeed in reaching the foundation of an autonomous cultural center on the smaller area of the former slaughterhouses, which represents today’s Arena. Presently Arena has integrated a wide musical spectrum to its programme for various crowds and commercial use. Yet Arena’s dictum “Love Music, Hate Fascism!” is more than a relict of old days as it is still the venue with the most punk concerts in town.