The Night Marchers

[September 3rd, 2008]

[SOCAL PUNK] Eventually the mall punkers had to grow up—and trade away teenage abandon for, like, trying to pay their rent. The Night Marchers, a San Diego super-quartet composed of some of the city’s veteran rockers, take the relentless vocals of frontman John Reis (formerly of Rocket from the Crypt, Drive Like Jehu and Hot Snakes) and play hard-charging tales of adulthood. The band has filled these stories with some new stylistic approaches—group harmonies on “Whose Lady R U,” a melodic lead in “I Wanna Deadbeat You”—that set the new group apart from his old bands. “Don’t need my records/ But I do need you,” Reis sings as the dual guitars play tug-of-war with his voice and a pounding rhythm section. The Night Marchers may not rock quite as hard as RFTC, but they make up for it with crafty hooks and a few absolutely killer songs. No one ever said growing up was fun, but so long as he’s got a crack band behind him, Reis makes it look easy.