Frenzy on the frets

If you're a fan of well-gnarled guitar frenzy punk then Babylon was definitely the place to be last night, with Brooklyn's Obits in the house. Not to slight the other members of the quartet, I dare say most music lovers are more familiar with the resume of singer-guitarist Rick Froberg, who deserves to go down in the guitar rock history books for Drive Like Jehu's Yank Crime alone.

Pregnancy Scares started the night with a blistering set of their hardcore tuneage. I dare say they turned up the buzz for this one.



Emmanuel got to do double duty ... of course the Scares set clock in around 15 minutes so it's not the most arduous long haul in rock history.



This was also an LP release show for Ottawa's favourite blackened melodic punk quartet, Crusades. This guy looks familiar.



Dave rocks the mike.



Obits put a bow on the night with a killer set. I find them less noisy than noted predecessors Hot Snakes and Drive Like Jehu. They have a cool intensity that makes me think of The Real Kids.Also, I like Babylon's stripey new paint job.



There was also some singalong action from Greg Simpson and Sohrab Habibion.



An ace night all-round, right down to the request for Fake Kinkaid in the encore.

• Show reminder:The Balconies and Birthday Boys perform at Live Lounge; Chad VanGaalen, Jennifer Castle and Giant Hand play Ritual; the Elmdale hosts New Car Smell and Alanna Cherote.