The Bitchwax is back

Many years ago, one could see live shows at Molly Maguire's in the Byward Market: I saw Resin Scraper, Jehovah's Wetness, The Delta 72, The Donnas and a few other acts before MM's changed names and stopped putting on any kind of live music I was interested in. One of the acts I watched there was The Atomic Bitchwax - Nov. 24, 1999. They were on tour with Core (who I arrived too late to see) and Nebula. Back then Ed Mundell was the band's guitarist. He was in Monster Magnet (as he still is) and the group bore the unfortunate tag of being his side project.
Flash forward five years and 11 months (give or take a day or two) and once again The Atomic Bitchwax is on an Ottawa stage, this time at Babylon. Ed's no longer around; instead Finn Ryan of the aforementioned Core has joined bassist Chris Kosnik (also of Black NASA) and drummer Keith Ackerman on guitar and vocals. He's brought some of Core's classic rock and a smidgen of their jazz to The 'Wax - which means a good, long night of heavy duty Deep Purple (they cover Maybe I'm A Leo) and Captain Beyond style grooves.

Waxy buildup, plus some shirtless drumming!



Kosnik sings! (And let me tell you, the band sounds a whole lot better vocally than it did back in 1999.)



I wonder how the Customs folks react to the sight of Ackerman's bass drum head ...



Finn'n'Keith.



Kosnik goes cosmic.



More Finn!



In a word: Heavy, man.

• Show reminder: Caribou and The Acorn play Babylon.