It felt like a return to days of old, and was proof that punk is neither gone nor forgotten. Only perhaps by two groups, the disloyal who abandoned their punk roots for a trend when people told them punk was over, and those from punk's first generation who just got too old to care any more and still swear that punk will never be as good as it was in the days of the Sex Pistols, and Dead Kennedys.

This night was ripe for moshing, as kids packed themselves on to the Roxy floor to be part of a time-honored male bonding ritual that was originally spawned by the punk movement. Early in the evening, the floor was a little sparse at points but still full enough, as the opening band came on and did their thing. The Pushers played a good set. These guys can write and play a song fairly well. I'd go see them again. Looking around, there were kids gjetting into them, but not enough to get the pit in a stir of motion.

Next up on the slate for the evening was F-. They were OK. I though their songs were all right, and the two girls in the band playing bass and guitar were real cute, but that's about it. I found nothing remarkable about them. In all honesty, I may have been distracted by the singer. He was really dicking with my mind. I did notice however, the not only did they have a fair amount of fans who knew their songs, but they got the floor moving a bit more than the last band. So to their credit, perhaps it was just me.

The next band is sort of a favorite of mine so it was a kick to see them. Damnation arrived to a packed house and showed the population of the Roxy what punk is all about. The energy and physicality of a punk show can kick ass over that of any other musical genre. No one brings that point home better than Damnation! The singer is all over the place; in you face, on the floor, off the stage. Working too damn hard to be a musician, and never skipping a word in the songs. The pit was fully fueled by this time, urging the singer to join them all the more.