By Jordan Stovka

A dense line of punk fans formed outside Rock And Roll Hotel just before 7 p.m. on Wednesday, all in anticipation of the sold-out Menzingers show.

The Scranton, Pennsylvania punk-rock four-piece visited H Street as part of their spring tour celebrating their latest album. While their reputation attracted a primarily 21 to middle-aged crowd, the addition of DIY rock groups Rozwell Kid and Jeff Rosenstock pulled the fan base whose hands may have still been branded with black X’sif not just recently graduated from the juvenile right-of-passage.

The venue filled quickly and fans packed to the very front, first for West Virginians Rozwell Kid and their stage antics, and then for Long Island singer/songwriter Jeff Rosenstock and his charismatic enthusiasm.

The pit’s energy swelled all the while, finally popping by the time The Menzingers began their set, exploding into a powerful mosh and wave of energy plowing fans into the front of the stage.

The group celebrated their latest record After the Party with tracks from the album, while also adhering to crowd-pleasing classics like  “I Don’t Want To Be an A*****e Anymore” off of 2014’s Rented World and “Good Things,” “Gates,” “Nice Things” and “I Can’t Seem to Tell” from 2012’s On the Impossible Past.

After returning to the stage for an encore, The Menzingers concluded their set with the light-hearted track “Casey” and the ever-nostalgic “Lookers” with just as much energy as they had at the beginning of the hour.

With impressive, practically larger-than-life Marshall and Orange amplifiers towering in the shadows of the platform, ears would easily be ringing until the next day, the buzz of classic punk-rock joyfully rattling around every attendee’s skull.

Featured Photo Credit: DIY rocker Jeff Rosenstock belts out songs of rebellious angst to an awaiting audience at D.C.’s Rock And Roll Hotel Wednesday, March 29, 2017. (Jordan Stovka/Bloc Reporter)

Jordan Stovka is a sophomore journalism major and can be reached at jstovka@icloud.com.


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